After leaving Flocia, it took us four days to reach the Royal Capital.
The wagon came to a halt at the Odis Temple, where my little sister waited. I leapt from the wagon, hurrying toward a nearby priest.
“Lu…!? Where is she?”
“Ah… up in that tower…”
I bolted toward the tower, racing up the stairs without caring for my own breathlessness. Since the temple gates opened, I hadn’t been able to calm myself. Freyja—the goddess of fertility, who I had woken up in Flocia—might now be within my sister.
I heard footsteps behind me. My companions were probably running up the stairs.
And shouting—Mia’s voice rang out.
“Hey, Rion! Wait up!”
I’m sorry. But I can’t stop now.
I arrived at the room where Lu was. A priest stood by the door, wide-eyed at my sudden appearance.
After asking permission, I knocked on the door. No response.
“…Rion-dono. Your little sister has been asleep this entire time.”
Hesitating for only a moment, I opened the door.
“I’m coming in!”
There she was—Lu, bathed in light streaming through the window, asleep.
My chest tightened painfully. It felt as if time had been rolled back. Back to before I met Solana. Back when I was still just the “Wake-Up Caller of the Royal Capital” and Lu was unwell, forced to stay in bed—that cold winter morning.
But now, spring had long since arrived. The sunlight washing over the bed, the gentle breeze from the window—they were warm and kind. Yet Lu, still asleep, seemed forgotten by the season, frozen in that long-ago winter day.
“…Lu.”
I called her name.
I had steeled myself for this moment, but it still hurt.
During the battle in Flocia, the green light had flown toward the Royal Capital. When it burst, it radiated magic—most of it seeming to pour directly into Lu’s body.
Had my recovering little sister simply been unable to withstand the sheer magnitude of the magic? Days had passed since we left Flocia, yet she hadn’t woken up.
I dropped to my knees and gently took her hand in mine.
It’s warm.
Relief washed over me.
“I’ll start, Goddess.”
I activated my skill. And answering me was the gentle, radiant sun goddess herself.
『Yes. Do as you will, do what you think is the best.』
Using Alarm, I sensed two presences from Lu. One was my little sister herself. With the skill’s Wake up ability, I might be able to rouse her fully.
The other… was something capable of lifting a seal.
When I analyzed the seal, I gasped.
| The Goddess of Fertility, Freyja can be unsealed. |
The voice rang in my head. I remembered this feeling.
Just two months ago—before Lu had even awakened her skill—I had sensed a similar presence. Back then, even using a seal appraisal, I couldn’t discern what it was. But now… it was unmistakably Freyja-sama.
Had I grown stronger? Or was it because Lu had absorbed her magical power?
I gripped my sister’s hand tightly and called out.
“Wake up!”
A golden light enveloped Lu’s body.
The brilliance intensified.
Mia-san and the others, arriving moments later, shielded their eyes at the doorway. I, too, could barely keep mine open.
Then, a voice brushed against my ears.
“…Uuh”
My eyes gradually adjusted.
Lu’s body twitched. Her eyelids opened, revealing her sky-blue eyes.
“…Lu!”
When I let go of her hand, Lu slowly sat up on the bed. She looked down at me, kneeling before her.
From a distance, it might even seem as if a traveler had knelt to greet a princess on her throne.
It felt… slightly strange.
Her eyes were hazy, yet her lips curved into an unexpectedly mature smile.
“Nice to meet you.”
Lu tilted her head slightly, one hand resting over her chest. Her blue eyes, her chestnut hair, her features—all were still Lu’s, yet somehow, the aura she radiated wasn’t the Lu I knew. Her eyes gradually changed, turning a pale green.
I could only stare in stunned silence and whisper,
“…Lu?”
“…Who… are you?”
My heart thudded, pounding in waves.
I felt the coin in my pocket tremble. The gods must have realized it.
Yes… I know too.
All I had to do was remember who was sleeping inside Lu.
“I am Freyja.”
Though the voice came from my sister, it sounded impossibly dignified.
Lu—or rather, Goddess Freyja—rose from the bed and bowed deeply.
“Thank you for waking me, Horn-Bearer.”
Without delay, she moved to the matter at hand.In my sister’s face, the goddess named Freyja let out a quiet, subtle smile. Her cheeks twitched just a little, and it was a graceful and delicate yet a natural expression. It was a look that I had never seen before on my sister.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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