“Her Majesty placed her under house arrest?”
“Yes. She locked Sister Lian in one of the bedrooms and sent a bunch of Guard Knights to watch her.”
“How could Her Majesty do such a thing… Lian, Lian hasn’t been treated too badly, has she?”
“…”
The concern in Iyue’s eyes and voice made the brightness on Nefitali’s face dim for a moment.
“She hasn’t been treated badly, no,” Milin said with a slightly awkward expression.
“She’s eating and drinking well there, with a whole bunch of beautiful ladies attending to her. I wanted to yell at her, but she put on this serious look and said she couldn’t just leave that Queen lady alone… Oh, right, what about Natalie? That fiancé also mentioned some curse—”
So Milin recounted to the two sisters the content of her earlier conversation with Prince Alvin, and how she had sneaked into the palace at his instigation.
“A curse on Her Majesty’s body…? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“Even you, a former Guard Knight, don’t know about it?”
“That is indeed quite suspicious.”
“Sister Iyue, were you really a Guard Knight?”
Milin tilted her head slightly at Nefitali’s words. Judging by her puzzled expression, she knew nothing about it.
“Heh… Sister never told you?”
Nefitali smiled with interest and looked at her friend.
“No. Sister Iyue hardly ever talks about her past.”
“Did you never ask her?”
“I did. But Sister Iyue always laughs it off and changes the subject.”
“…”
Iyue remained silent with her head down. Nefitali glanced at her, then let out a light laugh.
“Hm? What’s up with you two?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking of something happy.”
“…Did you see Her Majesty again?”
Avoiding her sister’s meaningful smile, Iyue questioned Milin.
“No. I only saw Sister Lian. But I asked the maids in the palace, and they said Her Majesty left the palace early this morning.”
“Leaving the palace now… She’s probably going to prepare for the Audience Ceremony,” Nefitali said.
“But isn’t this a bit early? In the past, Her Majesty would only set out at midnight tonight.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?” Milin listened to them in confusion. “You’re making it sound like she’s not coming back. Aren’t we going to see her tomorrow?”
Her question made the two sisters look at her.
“Little Milin… Could it be that you don’t know the specific procedure for the Audience Ceremony?” Iyue asked first.
“Uh… Is it some festival event in the Sea of Trees? Like the Flower Crown thing?”
“Nefi…”
Milin’s answer made Iyue look at her sister with mixed feelings.
“Oh, it’s my fault. Since Milin didn’t ask, I completely forgot to explain it to her.” Nefitali showed an apologetic expression, then said to Milin:
“Where should I start… Milin, do you know about the ‘World Tree’?”
“Yeah. It’s a symbol of the Sea of Trees, right? I’ve only seen it in books before… But I actually saw it from the balcony of the palace.”
Milin recalled the giant tree in the distance when she stood with Lian on the balcony.
It was truly an enormous tree, one that not even the Crown Tree they were standing in could compare to.
“I heard it’s your First Queen’s incarnation. Also, I heard that the Sea of Trees stays green all year round because of her blessing.”
Milin nodded affirmatively.
“If it were just an audience with Her Majesty the Queen, calling it a ‘ceremony’ would be an exaggeration… So the real audience is with the World Tree.”
“Every year at this time, Her Majesty holds an Audience Ceremony to thank the World Tree for its protection that keeps the Tree Sea Golden Realm free from the harsh winter. At the same time, Her Majesty communicates with the Ancestor Spirit dwelling in the giant tree, seeking its guidance.”
Taking over from her sister, Iyue further explained.
“As my sister said, this is an important event. According to past procedures, I would first invite the nobles and guests from all walks of life, guide them to the World Tree, and request the Ancestor Spirit to disperse the Lake Mist Barrier, so that boats can reach the ceremony site.”
“That fog on the lake was a barrier? I thought it was just a natural phenomenon.” Milin pouted as she said this, then suddenly noticed a contradiction.
“Wait. You said you have to request the Ancestor Spirit to dispel the barrier… But didn’t you have to cross the barrier to see her?”
“Exactly. Before the Audience Ceremony begins, Her Majesty must single-handedly break through the barrier on the lake and reach the foot of the World Tree—that is the Ancestor’s trial.”
“Break through… by rowing a boat, right? That lake is pretty big. Rowing a boat alone must be really hard. What if someone helps her?”
“Mm. Because that fog isn’t just ordinary fog that makes you lose your way; it’s a barrier magic that drags people into illusions. Once, a Guard Knight, worried about the Queen’s safety, followed the boat of the previous King into the fog…”
“As a result, the King returned, but the Guard Knight and his boat vanished without a trace. Even after the fog dissipated, his colleagues searched the entire lake but found neither his bones nor any wreckage.”
“It was that dangerous a thing? I heard it’s held every year, so I thought it was no big deal… But then Her Majesty won’t be okay, right?”
The story the two sisters told in turn left Milin a bit stunned.
“I think it shouldn’t be a problem. This ceremony has been held for so many years.”
“…That knight’s disappearance was many years ago. When I was a Guard Knight, I also escorted the previous King to the lakeside with my comrades. And the previous King never failed to break through the fog.”
“Failed…? Failure means death, doesn’t it? Have there been cases of failure?”
Milin asked.
“In the history of the Sea of Trees, there have been years when the Audience Ceremony could not be held as scheduled, so naturally that counts as failure. It seems the fog barrier treats only the royal family specially. So even if a royal fails, they can still return. And since Her Majesty ascended the throne, the ceremony has been held on schedule every year.”
“But this time she left early… That’s unusual.”
Nefitali said lightly, then looked at Iyue, who wore a worried expression:
“What’s so unusual about it? She might not necessarily be going for the trial first. And even if she is, I think we don’t need to worry about her. Especially you, sister… Haven’t you already abandoned your duty as a Guard Knight? What happens to Her Majesty shouldn’t have anything to do with you, right?”
“…”
Iyue knew her sister was taunting her, but at this moment she couldn’t say a word.
“Ugh… Why are you two acting weird again?”
Milin was startled by the sudden tension. She looked back and forth between Nefitali and Iyue, trying to find the reason from their expressions…
“Indeed, as you said, I am an Oathbreaker who betrayed my oath as a Guard Knight.” After a long pause, Iyue raised her head and said to her sister, “According to the creed of the Knights Order, such betrayal should be punished by the blade… But Her Majesty showed her mercy and generously pardoned me. So this time, I cannot stand by.”
“Oh?”
Nefitali looked at her sister’s face with interest.
“Sister, you still have such a look in your eyes? How resolute… As if all the despair I gave you just now has vanished.”
“Is it the courage and faith in your eyes that carried you through the hardships of that journey, allowing you to defeat the Demon King?”
“Is your bond with that person really that strong? What kind of power is it that enables you to overcome such deep despair all alone?”
“So what does sister intend to do?”
“And Little Milin? Since you told us all this, I want to hear your thoughts first.”
Instead of answering her question, Iyue turned to Milin.
“Hmm… I don’t really believe that curse the Prince talked about, but like Sister Iyue said, the Queen of a nation wouldn’t just put an ordinary girl under house arrest for no reason, right?”
Milin tapped her cheek with her index finger, looking thoughtful. Then she sorted out her thoughts and made a decision.
“Like you two said, the Audience Ceremony is a big deal. And Sister Lian is still under house arrest by the Queen in the palace… For the ceremony to go smoothly and for Sister Lian’s safety, I think we need to investigate thoroughly what’s happened to her.”
“How do you plan to investigate?”
Nefitali asked.
“Let’s go see her right now. I know someone who definitely knows where she is.”