Frantic Feast Chapter 3

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http://natsutoge.fc2web.com/novels/utage3.html
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Chapter 3
What is this?! Why is Garnet here?!
Beside Zidane, whose head was overwhelmed by question marks, Garnet and Kushuhal continued to talk.
Zidane was so confused that he did not hear most of it. The only thing he heard was the final sentence of the whole conversation.
"You must be awfully tired. There will be a guide taking you to your room, please relax. F party will be held in this lobby tonight, I will come to pick you up after one hour."
Immediately the maid who was at the very end of the long line offered to guide the Queen.
Garnet bowed towards Kushuhal once more, leading Beatrix and the others, and followed the maid.
Zidane watched Garnet's party heading for the staircase and disappearing from their sight with great impatience.
"Now, Governor Kushuhal, we will be going to Her Majesty's place."
Tot nodded his head. Zidane did the curtesy as well, and exit the room.
"What is this Dr.Tot?! I don't get this at all! Why is Garnet....mrgh!"
As soon as they entered the empty hallway, Zidane thrust the questions at Tot. His brain was about to explode. He wanted to get an explanation, and know what was going on as fast as possible.
However, his mouth was covered by Tot's hand half way through the sentence.
"Mr.Marcus, we are at the house of Kushuhal. There might be people eavesdropping. Please call Queen Garnet Her Majesty. And, control your volume."
Zidane nodded."Okay, now explain this to me." Stifling his voice with all strength, he inquired.
Tot slowly started to stroll and began his explanation.
"...It all started...with a meeting few days ago."
The topic of that meeting was about this year's budget.
The problem of how to obtain the amount of money to recover the damage in Alexandria from the previous war, along with the truce money with other countries became the most concerned subject.
And then, a governor announced his will.
"And that person said that [I would be delighted to carry this debt with my own wealth]"
Everybody who were present was surprised. That man was the person who had the most wealth and power in the meeting.
"And neither I myself nor Queen Garnet was relieved. We were aware of that the something was being planned. ......That moment."
[Nevertheless, in exchange, when Her Majesty is visiting Treno for patrol, please let the Queen stay at my house.]
The governor added afterwards.
"So, do you know the meaning of it?"
Being asked like that, Zidane pondered.
That governor must be Kushuhal. Surely, from the size of his house, he was undeniably a very wealthy person. But, using that money to rebuild Alexandria, it was a deal that was too good to be true. Besides, the condition was only to let the Queen stay at his house.
Zidane tilted his head.
"......Perhaps saying it this way will be easier to understand. Kushuhal wanted her to stay at his mansion, where he and his son live."
Oh. The realization hit Zidane.
"So, you're saying that, while paying to rebuild the country, his son will marry the Queen, become the King, and take over Alexandria....."
"It was very tricky to figure out because he did not say it directly."
Hypothetically, he said [Please marry my son.], Garnet would definitely refuse without any hesitation. Therefore he only said [Stay at my house.], making Garnet, who was going to patrol in Treno, unreasonable to not accept the offer.
"Does Mr.Marcus see this situation as Kushuhal kindly claiming devotion to his country?"
"Not really..."
"Certainly, while Queen Garnet is here, something must be happening. Whether it’s a wedding.....or an assassination."
The final word made Zidane flinch.
"What....!"
"Currently, there is no royal member except for Queen Garnet. The royal blood had ended as soon as Queen Brahne died. Therefore, marrying the son of the person who had the most wealth and power next to the Queen would be a natural consequence. In the past, the military chief Beatrix's family had the right for the heir, but it was confiscated due to the deep bond the Chief had with the war. It is not good for a warrior to be a King. And because of that, Steiner was not on the list either. The only one left would be Kushuhal."
Tot told the story in a shallow tone despite the fact that it had a strong impact.
"In other words.....if the present Queen is killed, his son would be the King...."
"Yes, as long as Queen Garnet does not have a child." Tot, who was walking in front of Zidane, spinned his head to him and encouraged Zidane:"Good luck."
Although Zidane was puzzled for a second, but he realized what Tot meant soon and turned scarlet.
"Wha,whawhawhawha...!"
"Well~no need to be so shy. The youngsters these days~hohoho.."
"Dr.Tot!!"
"Okay, let's put a stop to teasing the youth--------Mr.Marcus."
Promptly somber again, Tot looked up to Zidane in the eye.
"Please take care of Her Majesty."
Accepting with serious eyes, Zidane nodded sincerely.
"I know."
Tot grinned at his response and started walking once again.
"Queen Garnet did not expect you to be here. But this time, the task is too heavy and hazardous to let her carry it alone. So I brought Mr.Marcus here."
So that's it, muttered Zidane. Speaking of which, Tot looked through Garnet's personality quite well. Like he said, Garnet came here without telling him anything.
.......Garnet, it's clear that you didn't want to tell me.
Zidane clenched his fists instinctly.
It was sad how Garnet would not tell him anything. It was irritating, that she saw him as a man who she could not be honest with.
If I knew it's gonna be like this, I should've asked her a long time ago...
But regret would not make a difference. He and Garnet had already come to Kushuhal's mansion. Now he had to concentrate on protecting her.
"But...does it have to be me alone? If it's like this, it's better to have a bunch of guards..."
"Unfortunately, there is no one reliable enough to keep a secret. Someone like Beatrix is already beside Her Majesty. About 10 more people followed too. Nonetheless, comparing to those ten, Mr.Marcus is more reliable and experienced than any of them. And if it involves around protecting her, instead of a clumsy guard, you would be better."
"Why does it have to be a person who can keep a secret?"
"I think you understand that since they are setting up a blind date with Queen Garnet, your life is at its boarder. But, for Queen Garnet’s sake, I wanted to bring you here no matter what. If you arrive along with her in the airship, those who work under Kushuhal would report him quickly. If it's like that, Queen Garnet could be in danger. So I brought you with me. The problem is after you and Queen Garnet had talked. Nobody assumes that Kushuhal would not know. You, and Her Majesty would be in danger in case it got spilled."
No wonder he was the commander of Alexandria. Zidane was a little caught up by his explanation, but thanked him with a smile.
"Thanks, Dr.Tot."
If it was not for Tot, he would not be here, and would wait for her with fretfulness in the Castle instead.
"Well, if you are going to be in danger, I figured it would be better for you two to be together. Go to Her Majesty's room."
"Yeah, she had me worried all the way here. This time, I'll lecture her to not leave me out."
To the words that seemed to come from a stubborn child, Tot chuckled.

* * *
Sitting on the soft sofa in her room, Garnet fell into confusion.
Inside this room, there were only maids and Beatrix, the soldiers were out of the room, waiting for her command.
Although the maid gave her black tea, Garnet did not have the attention to take it.
The attention was on the perplexity of seeing someone she never expected to see.
Before she left, she told Steiner to tell him. That she would be back in three days. If she said it herself, she would talk about extra things and make him worry, so she was afraid to tell him.
She did not tell him anything else, including the fact that she was coming here. He should not have known. And why...why would he be here? In addition, although it was hard to see in the dark, he was wearing a robe that looked like the one an officer trainee would have.
The moment she saw him, she had the urge to yelp.
But she remembered where she was at swiftly, and yelled the name in her mind. She somehow managed to get through, and as soon as they entered this room, she told everybody to pretend that they did not know him. If he knew anything about this, he could be in danger.
Why.....
Garnet was half stunned, because it was not nearly possible to believe.
"I suspect, that it was Mater Tot."
Beatrix slowly parted her lips.
"Dr.Tot? He brought Zidane here?"
Beatrix nodded.
"He brought him for you, Your Majesty."
Garnet gazed at Beatrix absent-mindedly. Meanwhile, someone knocked the door.
"Your Majesty, It's Tot."
Hearing that voice, the maid opened the door quickly.
Tot, with trainee dressed Zidane, entered the room.
Garnet jumped up, staring at Zidane.
Maybe it was the clothes, maybe it was the brought-up bangs, Zidane looked different.
Garnet's heart was too chaotic to know whether to rejoice, to astonish, or to mourn.
Even so, the two people locked their eyes together without blinking.
".....Sorry. Beatrix, Dr.Tot, can you leave us alone for just a second?"
With Zidane asking quietly, Beatrix and Tot brought the maids out of the room.
The last maid shut the door, and the silence fell upon them.
Garnet was trapped by Zidane's irises, not able to move.
She knew that the atmosphere of mild anger was coming from him. She tried to say something, nothing came out.
It was Zidane who moved first. One step, he approached Garnet.
"Garnet..."
Watching him getting closer pace by pace, she automatically stepped back.
Garnet did not know why, maybe it was the guilt for not telling him anything.
Zidane, neglecting all of that, took one step again.
Garnet walked backwards also.
One more step. Moving backwards.
Repeating the same movement for several times, Garnet's back touched the wall. In the thin darkness, he was approaching her.
She could see his face vividly.
"Zidane...."
He stopped in front of her eyes.
She could not see him unless she looks up.
Zidane, with bangs brought up, had more his maturity. Under the candle light, he was good looking. Even in this situation, Garnet's heart accelerated.
".....Garnet."
Zidane called her name gently, raising both of his hands.
Then,




*Slap*




The sound echoed inside the room quietly.
Garnet felt the warmth in her cheeks, the hands were still on her.
The cheeks that had been slapped so lightly, did not feel any pain. Instead, her heart sored.
Opening her eyes, she saw Zidane's sky-blue irises.
The eyes were genuine and full of sorrow. Feeling the pain in her chest, Garnet shed a tear.
"...Garnet, do you know the reason why I’m by your side...?"
Garnet was not able to say anything.
From his hands, she sensed sadness within the warmth.
While clasped in this warmth, she could not reply yes or no. She merely wept.
Seeing the candle lights being reflected in her tear, Zidane said painfully.
"....I said it's because I want to protect you, didn't I..?"
It was like a bird protecting its nest.
Like carefully trying to not destroy the nest, not let his home to be taken away.
Also, like protecting that very significant nest, from the others.
"Garnet, is "the place that I belong to".....Let me, protect you....Please...."
Tell him when she was going to a dangerous place.
If she really had to go he would go with her, protect her with his own hands. Zidane tried to tell her that desperately.
Garnet could not prevent the liquid from gushing out of her eyes.
Coming here without telling him the situation, causing him so much agony.
"I'm sorry...!"
She put her hands around his face like he did.
With trembling lips, she told Zidane.
"I'm sorry...I couldn't say anything...I was really scared...I wanted to let you come with me...But, if I did, I’ll put you in danger...!"
Descending her head, several drops of tears fell on Zidane's hands.


"I don't want to lose Zidane..."



More than her own danger.
Garnet was afraid of losing him from a long time ago. Since that dream, the anxiety had remained in her.
Zidane might disappear.
It was a thought that was too painful. It hurts too much.
"Zidane....!"
She did not want to lose him.
Considering the things she should do, not to letting him to get involved seemed like a rational answer..
The shivering shoulders were pulled and wrapped by Zidane's strong arms.
".....Don't forget that I feel the same."
Garnet lifted her eyes to look at him. A pair of clear irises was there.
The irises that had always supported her and smiled upon her were now so loving that it was sad.
".......!"
She could not endure it anymore. Burying her head in his chest, surrounding her thin arms around his back, and embraced him with all her force.
While weeping, she kept apologizing.
Zidane, listening to her voice, put his face into her black long hair as if determining that she was there.
Although still in a dangerous situation, they wanted to feel each other's existence at least for now-------