Sigrid
Chapter 3

Sigrid had felt very little emotion, even when Alcerto had come back to the order as a dead body. One day, she realized that no one in the order was talking to her. That was when she remembered that Alcerto had been the only person who had started conversations with her. When she’d once heard noble scions mocking Alcerto’s death, Sigrid was filled with an intense self-hatred. But she could not protest, and instead joined the conversation, speaking as though she were one of them. She’d cried when she went home that day.

“But you know… How should I put it? You aren’t like me. I know this might sound silly, but as a fellow commoner, I’m proud of you. Though I’m sure you wouldn’t want to be pigeonholed in the same category as me. I’ll be off. Thank you for always being so friendly.”

Sigrid smiled and held her right fist to her chest in parting and walked past him. Alcerto grabbed her wrist.

“Wait!”

“Hmm. If you want to complain, you can,” Sigrid said, shrugging.

“Damn it! That’s not what I’m doing,” he said, letting go of her hand and tousling his hair. “I’m a little jealous of you myself.”

“What?” Sigrid asked.

Her eyes went wide in surprise, making Alcerto grin.

“I’m a bit of a clown, you see, and I’m nowhere near the model knight that you are. I guess it’s just the way I am. But you’re the model knight, in every way imaginable. That’s why I envy you.”

Sigrid found herself staring. The words seemed to come to him with no difficulty, and her cheeks began to glow.

“Wait— I, I didn’t…”

She had been so eager to hear such things, but now that she had, she felt extremely embarrassed.

“Th-thank you,” she managed through shaking lips.

Sigrid looked up to find that her blushing face was reflected in Alcerto’s wide blue-green eyes.

“Uh… I should go,” she said, turning away and walking rapidly out of the training yard.

A model knight.

“I envy you.”

Her heart beat rapidly. It felt completely different to hear this from the man she had envied than it felt to hear the same thing from a superior or anyone else.

Have things changed? At least a little?

Sigrid pressed her hands against her cheeks—they were burning. Her heart rate was so high she found it painful, but she was happy too. The compliment felt lovely, and it put her in a great mood.

“Sigrid?”

She looked up. It was Morris, looking at her in puzzlement.

“Oh, Morris. Thanks for last night.”

“Well, at least you should have eaten breakfast before you left, Sid. Are you all right?”

“Oh, yes. I’m fine.”

Other than the fact that I can’t seem to get my pulse to slow down.

She breathed slowly, trying to calm her heart rate. Then she looked at him.

Speaking of which.

“Morris.”

“Yes?”

“How much was that house in District 2?”

“The house? It isn’t mine. I’m only renting it.”

“Renting? How much is the rent?”

“It was fifteen hundred kerb.”

“Oh… Fifteen hundred…” she muttered.

“Why do you ask? Are you interested in finding a new home?”

“Yes. It’s more than I expected, though.”

Sigrid was paying 400 kerb in monthly rent currently, which made something like Morris’ house four times more expensive. Her weekly pay, however, amounted to 4,000 kerb, so it wasn’t entirely out of her price range.

“Thank you,” she said, moving past him. She turned a moment later and said, “Morris? Your hair’s flat in the back.”

“Ugh,” he grumbled, rubbing his short black hair.

Sigrid moved on, grinning. Morris, still unsure what to think about her changed behavior, ran into Alcerto moments later.

“Good morning,” he said, but Alcerto seemed to be dazed, like he hadn’t heard.

Morris slapped him on the back.

“Snap out of it.”

“Ah! Oh— Morris. Didn’t see you there. When did you get here?”

“Just now. What’s with you today?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. By the way, did you see Sigrid?”

“Yes, just now. Why do you ask?”

“Did you notice anything different about her?” Alcerto asked cautiously.

Morris nodded in agreement.

“She seems a little strange. She did say something about a dream.”

“A dream?”

Morris narrowed his eyes.

“Why did you think she was being strange?”

“Well, I just heard… She asked for some time off.”

“What?! Sid applied for leave?”

“Yes,” Alcerto said, rubbing his chin.

Then there had been her surprise confession a moment ago. It was hard to believe that Sigrid Ancertna—the stiff, obstinate, and gruff knight that she was—had said such a thing. Alcerto would have never imagined that she’d ever envied him. If anything, he’d suspected she disdained him. And then there had been that look on her face after what he told her.

She’s surprisingly… cute?

Morris did his best to fix his flattened hair and said, “She’s been odd since yesterday.”

“Yesterday?”

“Yes. Since last night…”

“What happened last night?”

“I don’t know. She was out past curfew, and she didn’t look like herself.”

“Past curfew?”

Alcerto seemed to find it very unusual that Sigrid had broken a law.

Morris patted his temple, muttering, “There’s something wrong with her head… Maybe a mage got to her? What with her extended leave and everything…”

“But why would a mage try to harm her?”

“Well, you’ve got a point. I once quarreled with Sigrid, you know,” Morris said.

Alcerto seemed baffled.

“You are always quarreling.”

“Yes. But back then, it was over a thief. She tried to cut off the hands of a pickpocket she’d just caught.”

“That’s just like her,” Alcerto said.

“He was just a little boy. A bag of bones. She drew her sword, just like that… We ended up clashing blades as I tried to stop her.”

Morris frowned. He could remember the incident like it was yesterday. The boy had gotten away, as he had intended, and Sigrid had gotten upset, shouting at him that he was an accomplice to the crime. Then she’d called the guards on him. The guards, taken aback, had let Morris off with a small fine.

Under the usual circumstances, that would have been the end of their friendship, but Sigrid applied the same strict standards to herself. She was never lenient, not even with herself. If she believed something was wrong, she would never let anyone convince her otherwise.

She had even saved a low-ranked knight from being mistreated by a superior more than once. That had resulted in some personnel restructuring that put her at a massive disadvantage, but Sigrid hadn’t batted an eye. Because of this fairness of character, people maintained their relationship with her for the most part. Some simply didn’t like her, of course, but Morris wasn’t one of them.

“What is going on, anyway?” Morris asked.

Alcerto ran his hand through his hair, and said, “Well, I suppose we’ll know soon enough.”

“I guess so.”

The two of them shrugged at each other.

* * *

Sigrid checked her bank balance. She had been living most frugally over the past few years, and her balance had grown considerably as a result.

First, I’ll move.

To change her life, her routine needed to change. The easiest way to do that was to give herself a new environment. If she moved to a completely new location, it would affect how she lived her life—that was what she believed.

Should I buy a small house in District 2, or a country house on the outskirts?

She groaned to herself as she tried to decide. The commute to the order headquarters was not a problem, since she didn’t need to show up every day. There wasn’t always work to do, even if she did go every day. She could simply go when she was wanted.

So, should it be on the outskirts?

Truthfully, Sigrid wanted a garden. Although she’d acted like she hated the idea of female knights going to teahouses or having tea parties in gardens, she actually admired it a little. Seeing how people liked to criticize female knights as lavish spenders, Sigrid had done her best to prove she wasn’t of their ilk. The fascination with pretty teacups, feminine outfits, cosmetics, and other such things she disdained, had been written off as unworthy pursuits for a knight. Naturally, she had no friends among the other female knights.

But I’m going to be different now.

Sigrid made her decision and went to a realtor. She entered the commercial district of District 2, which was filled with noise. The streets lined with shops were neatly decorated, and there was a broad road that carriages could use. She went into a shop featuring a sign that read Marigold Realtors. The owner, her brown hair done up in a tight bun, came over.

“Welcome.”

“I’d like to see some houses.”

Marigold, who’d named the establishment after herself, smiled and gestured to a seat. Sigrid sat on an old yet clean and well-maintained sofa and took a cup of coffee.

Then the realtor asked, “Is the house just for yourself?”

“Yes. I’m currently in the Second Order,” Sigrid replied.

“Oh, so you’re a knight. I have some good ones in District 2 or District 1—”

“Actually, I’d like to see some country houses on the outskirts.”

“Oh, my. You want a country house? The commute to the palace won’t be easy.”

“Yes, but I want a garden, you see.”

“Ah…” Marigold said, nodding. “In that case, how about Sector 14? It’s within District 2.”

“Sector 14?”

“Yes. It has been recently undergoing renovations, and there are houses with small gardens attached. Perfect privacy, of course.”

“They’re probably expensive, right?” Sigrid asked.

“Are you not interested in renting?”

“No, not really…”

“Then you’ll want to take a look at this one! It’s cheap!” Marigold said, beaming and handing her a document.

It held information about a house in Sector 14, but it was half the usual price. It was more than good enough, considering the budget Sigrid wanted to spend, but she was puzzled.

“Why is it so cheap?”

“Well, you see…”

Marigold stared at the young knight before her. She was neatly dressed, but there was something precise and doll-like about her face, giving the realtor the impression that lying to her would not be a good idea.

“There was a murder in the house.”

“A murder?”

“Yes. The father killed his entire family, then himself. There was a lot of debt on the house, and it was put up for auction, which is where I acquired it. But unfortunately, there have been no buyers…”

Sigrid nodded.

“May I take a look at it?”

Marigold seemed hesitant.

“Well… It hasn’t been cleaned. It’s not very presentable…”

“All the more reason to see it,” Sigrid said.

Marigold decided the house would fail to sell yet again, but she nodded back.

“All right, then. Let me give you the address.”

When she arrived, Sigrid marveled at the entrance of the house. It was completely different from the houses on either side. The rusty metal fence and lush weeds made it an eyesore, and probably an undesirable neighbor for the other houses. She opened the creaky metal gate and passed the weeds, which came up to her knees.

Then she opened the front door. The smell of old blood wafted into her face, and she frowned. Sigrid was used to seeing dead bodies, but she still hated the smell. Taking a look around for the source, she soon realized that blood had seeped into the wooden panels on the floor.

I’ll have to replace all the flooring. And not even that might completely do away with the smell.

The windows were broken, possibly from people throwing rocks from outside. The furniture and tableware had been left untouched, which lent to the spooky atmosphere. Sigrid guessed the house hadn’t been touched since the incident. She could smell rotting food in the kitchen. When she reached the second floor, she saw a cradle covered with blood and swarming with flies.

Are houses usually so ill-maintained? Do they even want to sell it? Why didn’t they clean up?

Sigrid studied the layout. The house itself seemed sturdy enough, and because it had been built for the middle class, it had a decent configuration. She left the nursery only to hear the faint cry of an infant from behind her.

I see.

Sigrid finally understood.

It’s one of those houses.

She leaned her head against the door and listened. The sounds were coming from inside, for sure, but they stopped when she opened the door.

“Let’s see… If I remember correctly…”

Sigrid cocked her head, slowly gathering aura. A sphere of light grew in her hand, and a tiny point like a firefly soon became the size of her fist. Then it grew to the size of an entire head. For lack of a core, it couldn’t stabilize, and the surface kept undulating like a puddle in a rainstorm. She released the compressed aura all at once. With a flash, heat filled the space, and glittering points of light flickered in the room before slowly fading away. The sounds stopped by the time she left the room.

That seems to have worked.

Sigrid had once heard a mage say that ghosts were simply a type of aura generated by negative human emotions. He had claimed that using a warm aura to purify the surroundings could chase away ghosts.

But I didn’t expect it to be true.