Shadowless Night

“Oh, thank you for the offer, but how could I be so rude as to interrupt the Knight Commander’s schedule?”

“I was returning from work, so you don’t have to refuse.” Starz chuckled and came down from his horse. He smiled softly and held out his hand. “Give me your hand.”

Macaron realized that everything she said had been ignored. Yes, this man was such a man. Though he used to dress Mimi the Cat in frilled clothes…

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Macaron took Starz’s hand and placed a foot in the stirrup.

“Excuse me.”

Soon, she felt a hand wrapped around her waist. In an instant, her body lifted upwards. Starz raised Macaron like a doll made of dry straw and sat her on the saddle while he landed nimbly and lightly behind her. Macaron gave up. Fine, I’ll go on a date with a handsome guy because the sunlight is lovely today.

Starz gave a light signal with his foot, and the horse began to walk. Macaron whistled. Riding an animal that would die with one wave of her hand felt oddly reassuring. It was her first time riding a horse in human form, so she was amazed. Seeing her delight, Starz smiled happily. What an innocent girl.

“Come to think of it. I haven’t learned your name.”

“Oh, did I not tell you?” Macaron glanced up at him. A meaningful smile crept across her lips. “Please call me Mimi.”

The man’s eyes widened. Macaron laughed inwardly.

“… Did your father name you…that?”

Starz was surprised that the girl had the same name as his cat, but he was also amazed at what strange parents would give their daughter a name one commonly uses for a pet or a child’s doll.

Macaron grinned,“Of course not.”

Was it a joke?

“My mother named me.”

“Mm…” Starz sighed deeply. The culprit changed from the father to the mother, but he didn’t notice much difference in the end result.

“And Mimi is my nickname. My real name is Mireimi. Mimi for short.”

“Oh… That’s very…”

…Weird. Starz swallowed his words.

“Isn’t it cute?”

“That’s right… It’s a cute name.” Starz nodded with a bitter look.

Starz’s large chestnut horse neighed, and Macaron pressed closer to Starz’s chest with a squeal. Starz laughed and patted Macaron on the shoulder.

Macaron realized that Starz was treating her like a child. Probably thinking, ‘Girls this age are so innocent.’ And Macaron, the so-called innocent girl, thought he was a cute human with a firm chest.

Clop. Clop. Clop. About twenty minutes later, with the constant sound of the horse’s hooves, a colossal building began to appear. The majestic white building was shining under the pouring sunlight. Macaron held her breath and looked up.

The shield and limbs of the Emperor who wields a near omnipotent power. The seat of power, the starting point of an empire built on a history of might.

Starz was kind enough to take care of the details. Unlike ordinary temples throughout Illavenia, the Great Temple forbade commoners from visiting. Macaron thought it was a nasty rule, but anyway, she had the ring of a Radwiell, and the priestess welcomed her as a guest brought by the leader of the Knights of the White Night.

Starz asked the apprentice priestess to guide Miss Mireimi well. Macaron had told him, ‘Please call me Mimi,’ but Starz pretended not to hear and hastily said his final goodbyes. He said he was returning from work, but he looked busy.

Macaron stood watching Starz’s back as he left, then turned her gaze and looked around. Everywhere she looked was pure white. The space seemed more massive than she had expected. It looked empty and cold.

The woman blinked slowly and changed her expression in an instant. The apprentice priestess beside her shuddered momentarily at the visitor’s changed mood.

“Welcome.”

“Thank you for your hospitality.”

Her manners were excellent compared to her blunt expression. The priestess worriedly looked at the hem of her dress containing grass, but she still proceeded to lead the way.

Macaron followed the priestess and slowly looked around her— High ceilings, massive pillars. Despite the splendid decorations, the space filled with pure white color did not look ostentatious. It was just as beautiful as it was admirable.

Rows of stone statues near the ceiling stared down at Macaron. They had that benevolent and dignified look to them. Macaron thought she wouldn’t have felt this way if she had entered this space as an eagle.

This pressure, as if Macaron was looking up at a god, could only be felt from the level of a bipedal being that lived with its feet firmly planted on the ground…

It was familiar.

It must’ve been a simple sense of deja vu. Macaron’s eyes clearly scanned the open space.

[Calyx, I’m going.]

[H-huh? Where!?]

[To visit to the castle.]

[Is there anything new? You see it every day.]

[But it’ll be my first time in human form.]

Suddenly, her conversation with Calyx came to mind. The way his eyebrows knitted. Your first time in human form? Like he was asking why that should make any difference to her. Macaron smiled. Had he asked, she would have been quite happy to respond, ‘Because it does’.

In the past, there were times when she took on a human form, but this time was different. This time was not a simple imitation; it felt like hibernating cells had woken up and taken over her senses. She’d never eaten a live human. So what had changed? After a few questions, Macaron found the answer herself.

She’d had a dream for the first time. Only then did her human form become so real, and Macaron realized something else: She was a human being in that dream. She had run with her human limbs through the dark grass.

Unlike other animals made of flesh and blood, Macaron was a being that could completely separate itself from solid matter. Also, if she put her mind to it, she could transform into a strong animal with robust muscles, making her feel even more disconnected from a single form.

Unlike Macaron’s actual appearance, the skinny limbs in the dream were heavy, as if tightly bound to large stones, and they had moved slowly and unnaturally, like walking through water. She had faltered and couldn’t move.

Clearly, she hadn’t had the tiniest amount of strength to support those slender limbs. She’d fallen several times while running, and breathing was difficult because she’d been so out of it. She could still feel the burn at the back of her throat and the metallic taste of blood that came with it.

In that nightmare, Macaron had seen a huge white building. She’d tried to escape that place. It was like when she saw the Imperial City of Illavenia— just by looking at it, she felt the same disgust despite the difference in appearance.

While vaguely guessing where the place in her dream was, she saw a man at the gambling table today and got to know him. The man with light pink shaggy hair, whose entire fortune she had robbed, including his necklace and earrings.

He told her to call him Lahe, the Gambling King. She only thought he might be a high-ranking aristocrat. The two men who followed the Gambling King Lahe tried to hide his shameful appearance by covering him with parasols. Maybe they were embarrassed by his losing streak.

At that time, Macaron saw a particular pattern drawn on the parasol. It was like the one carved into the building she had seen in her dream.

[Gambling King Lahe.]

[Yes, Eagle Knight.]

[The people in the back with the parasols…]

Gambling King Lahe looked back and was aghast. On the parasols were printed four identical patterns.

[Oh, you guys! How could you bring this!? Just shout from the rooftop that we’re from the temple!]

The two men looked at the Gambling King Lahe with cold eyes, and Gambling King Lahe asked if something was bothering them. No matter what happened, though, Macaron only remembered his words.

The temple? It wasn’t the Imperial Castle she’d seen in her dream, but the temple.

It was right here.

Macaron followed the young apprentice priestess. Here’s the prayer room, and here’s the statue of Idelavhim… The priestess’s chatter was meaningless and went out of Macaron’s ear. Macaron didn’t stop as her eyes scanned all over the temple.

The apprentice priestess secretly smiled at her when she saw her react like the other people visiting the Great Temple for the first time. Nobody could take their eyes off it; everyone was amazed. But she could understand their surprise. In a way, the temple felt even grander than the Imperial Castle, all thanks to the uniqueness of the temple space. No one could deny that it was splendid and beautiful.

The apprentice priestess guided the visitor with a brighter voice.

Gong—

The bell rang.

It was the sound announcing prayer time. The bell moved slowly, spreading a majestic sound throughout the space. Using the inside of the temple as a resonant chamber, the sound of the bell flowed like a song. The apprentice priestess stood proudly. Visitors were usually even more impressed after hearing the bell’s sound inside the temple. Compared to hearing it outside the temple’s walls, the sound was the difference between heaven and earth.

The sound of a bell ringing from its tower entered the interior of the Great Temple through the open space. People used to wonder if the singing voice of the heavens would be like this. It was a sound that calmed the mind.