It was the morning of another day of waiting.
Yu Valarfin told them they had work to do in İlonya and sent them to Andromedia, asking them to go ahead and announce the arrival of Neko, the new Cardinal of Virgo.
Yu had explained their plans before the four of them left, saying that they would arrive in Andromedia a few weeks after their arrival, but today she knew very well that things had not gone as planned.
They had arrived and had done their duty and delivered the bad news and the good news, but even after weeks, even months, the Valarfins still had not arrived.
Both Sivina and Ana were worried about them. They told the people in the city who were waiting for Neko that she would be here soon, so that those who were waiting for Neko would also be worried.
Sivina couldn't stop thinking: what if something bad happened to them? What would they do then? She didn't want to think about it, but she couldn't get the questions out of her mind.
"Those two are too beautiful to die."
It was the first time in her life she had ever used that expression, but that was exactly how she felt. Especially the fact that Yu's handsome face would never be seen again was almost unfair.
"I hate praying."
All they could do was pray for their well-being, but Sivina was not used to entrusting things to the gods or anyone else. Her father taught her to do things by her own work.
The two of them had been waiting for the Valarfin for months, and every day they sat outside the door to see them coming up the forest path.
"I have prepared tea for you to rest."
There were four people working in this cathedral. An old butler, a middle-aged maid and two young maid with her. One of the servants came to them. She did this every morning.
"Thank you."
She and Ana had been practicing swordplay in the backyard of the cathedral since sunrise. They had nothing else to do to pass the time, except to train and read while they waited. Of course, there had been a couple of incidents here and there, but these were small things that were normal for a knight.
Sivina was a knight and Yu had offered Ana a knighthood, but she said she was not worthy of it and chose to become a special kind of maid. Yu accepted this request without much discussion.
Ana tried to help with the work here as a maid, but the cathedral servants wasn't let her have a hand in the work, saying that the two of them were guests.
"Your skills are improving, Ana. Soon you will make me jealous."
As they entered the cathedral to drink tea and rest for a while, Sivina began to reflect on her student's progress.
"You are on a completely different level than you were in Rolderhelm. I think you will soon be able to use the sword against simple opponents."
It was better than that, but she had ideas about Ana's use of the sword that made her uneasy. A sword meant close combat and she saw that as more dangerous than magic and she was worried about Ana getting hurt.
She had had experiences like this before and she didn't want a scar on her beautiful body.
"I am happy that I was able to reach the 'simple' level in nine months."
Even though she was above the level of a simple, Sivina would not tell her that and would only allow her to compete against simple opponents.
As Sivina continued her comments, they made their way through the cathedral and were about to enter the library when they heard the voice of the maid who had just brought them tea.
"Lady Ecues! They're coming!"
***
After a short time in the Andromeda Church, they had nothing more to do and left, heading for an obscure corner of the city.
Their destination was a remote place that Yu would have hesitated to go to alone at night. A stranger walking around the city could find the church of any cathedral, but Yu and Yurine could not find it without someone who knew where they were going.
Since the sect re-founded by Rie was both new and small, it was given a small place in Andromedia. So they moved towards this small and insignificant place reserved for the Cathedral of Virgo.
"It's a nice place, Yu. It's surrounded by trees and there's a garden to play in."
"Playing games... How did I not think of that? Kids are supposed to play, right? Why don't I see you playing?"
"W-what are you saying! I'm not one to waste time with games. Besides, we've played tag before, we've played snowballs."
"I'm talking about things like hopscotch or hide and seek, but you need friends to play those, don't you? I'm sorry, I haven't tried to get you friends so far."
She was a lonely girl with no friends. As Yurine's situation reminded Yu of himself, compassion swelled inside him.
"Only Yu is enough," Yurine whispered.
Their vehicle drove through the side streets and entered a road with more trees than buildings. In the alleys it was difficult to move as there was no one to clear the snow and their speed was slowing down, but when they got to the dirt road, their speed slowed down even more because the road was bad.
"Look at the place they gave us for the Virgo Cathedral, it's an insult."
As they moved, their vehicle swayed constantly, making Yu nauseous.
"Do you think those two were waiting at the door when they heard us coming?"
It was unnecessary to take the prisoners with them to the Andromeda Church, so Dimen and Tobias were sent with the prisoners to the Cathedral of Virgo.
He wondered about Sivina and Ana's reaction when they saw a pink-headed human and a lion-man coming toward them with seventeen other prisoners.
But what he was most curious about was their reaction when they finally found out that they had arrived. In Yu's mind, he pictured two excited and beautiful girls pacing in front of the door.
"They should. When a great and precious being like me comes, they should welcome me in the best possible way and do their best to fulfill my needs and cherish me. Anything else is disrespectful and I cannot accept that."
"The young lady is so vain."
"Yu, what do you want with my cheek today? Ugh!"
Kigaro watched as Yu grabbed the arrogant sword fairy's cheek and pulled her towards him.
Yurine had asked to ride with Yu again, in the driver's compartment. When their vehicle turned out of the alleys and onto a wider road, Kigaro drove the animal he had been riding and the three of them began to move side by side.
"Shouldn't you be more humble? Arrogant commanders can find it difficult to garner people's love and respect."
"I am not arrogant or conceited, I am just telling the plain truth. Everything I say is the truth! Who do you think I am? Anyone can see my nobility at first glance."
"Ah, father and daughter are smugness in the flesh."
"I command you to be quiet!"
It was as if Kigaro had said something he had kept inside for a long time. It was surprising for Yu, who had never heard him make such criticisms before, to hear them now.
"Should I perceive this as impudence or intimacy?"
Although there were a few houses and shops around, it was mostly a jungle and anyone would have felt uneasy walking here alone.
"I didn't expect to see such a forest inside the city walls. The city is much bigger than it looks from the outside..."
"Yu, we're here!"
When a tower appeared in front of them, Yurine jumped up and Yu, startled by her sudden movement, had to hold her to prevent her from falling.
"Come on, Yu! Drive faster!"
"If we go any faster, the wagon will tip over."
Even though the falling snow covered most of the tracks, the tire tracks were still faintly visible on the ground, indicating that Tobias and Dimen, whom they had sent ahead of them, had arrived. Yu's carriage kept tilting to the left and right as their own wagon passed over the tire tracks they had left.
"Yu! Yu! Hahaha! They're waiting for us!"
Seeing the people waiting in the cathedral garden, Yurine cheered up and started laughing. She hugged and kissed Yu to share her joy.
There were prisoners on a trailer waiting in the cathedral garden. Dimen, a two-meter lion, noticed them standing in front of the trailer, turned around and called out to someone.
Tobias came out from behind Dimen first, and two seconds later, two beautiful girls, ready to feast Yu's eyes, stepped in front of them both and started waving their hands.
"They really waited outside the door."
"As it should be!"