CH 4

Troy

Troy poked his small head out from the blanket and fearfully looked at Nier. He quietly said, “Sister Nier, who were the two strangers who we met today…? She resembles you so much. I’m scared. She even said she was the real one… But Sister Nier is right in front of me… You’ve always been by my side… I… I’m afraid you’ll leave me…”

“Do not be scared, Your Majesty. Come what may, I will always protect you. Even if she really is the real Nier as she claims, I will still always be by your side to protect you. I will never leave you.” Nier gently stroked Troy’s head. She knelt next to the bed with a smile. She gave him a peck on his forehead: “Do not be scared, Your Majesty. I will always be by your side. I will protect you no matter what happens.”

“Mm!” Troy jubilantly wrapped hugged Nier around her and carefully kissed her on her cheek.

Nier shuddered. She quickly got to her feet and bowed: “Sleep now, Your Majesty. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Sister Nier.”

Nier nodded then covered up the fireplace with the board. She turned around to look at the red mattress. Troy was still looking at her. Despite there being only a faint light inside the room, the child’s naïve and innocent eyes still shined as bright as the brightest star in the night sky. Nier gave the boy a smile. She made a hush hand gesture then went to the door. Just as she pressed her hand on the handle, someone pushed it open from the outside.

“Your Majesty!” exclaimed Nier, then immediately covering her mouth.

Elizabeth gave Nier a gentle smile and shook her head. She quietly asked, “Has Troy fallen asleep yet?”

“He has just gone into bed.”

“I will keep him company, then.”

Elizabeth looked over to the bed with a smile. Troy, who was already tucked in bed, jumped off the bed when he saw his mother. He ran over on his bare feet and tightly hugged his mom. Elizabeth squatted down to affectionately pick up her son. She kissed his cheeks then looked to Nier. She questioned, “Nier, did something happen in the Royal Palace today? There are too many guards on duty tonight. It was Alice who arranged it, wasn’t it? Did something that I don’t know about happen?”

Nier froze. Normally, she should report everything to Elizabeth as it was a fundamental part of being a guard. A guard shouldn’t hide anything from their master; however, she suddenly realised she didn’t know how to word it.

“How shall I put it? Am I supposed to tell her that I saw myself or that I saw my so-called true self? What would Empress Elizabeth think of it?” pondered Nier.

“Umm, today, I saw, umm, another me? She bore a striking resemblance to me. She said that she was my future self. How do I put it…? Mm, I do not quite understand… umm… that was what she said, though. I wanted to apprehend her, but she was very skilled. Not even Alice and my combined efforts were enough to capture her, so she escaped. I am very sorry…”

Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows as she engaged her thoughts. With the corner of her lips up, she proposed, “Nier, you might be a bit too tense. Let’s do this: on my birthday, we’ll go to the relaxation stop. Join us this time. Not as a guard, but as a friend. You should have some good rest.”

From his mother’s arms, Troy grabbed his mom’s face and exclaimed, “Sister Nier is telling the truth! Mom! Sister Nier is telling the truth! Those two people really did exist! They really did!”

“Of course I believe Nier is telling the truth. However, think about it. Would that woman’s claim be true? She was just making up things. Nier, Troy, there are lots of people who resemble each other in the world even if they’re not siblings. Would you believe such a blatant lie just because they resemble you? Nier, we can only put it down to you being too tense. Get some rest so that you can maintain a level head. Plus, even if it was true, I’m sure you would want to go along, right, Troy?”

Nier had a spark of realisation. She reasoned, “Her Majesty is right. She’s just someone who resembles me, yet I believed her. Now that I think about it, it was a lie. I must be too tense.”

Nier bowed to the two. Elizabeth then carried Troy to the bed.

“Mom, tell me about your past with Dad. Start from the part when you planned to go to the castle.”

“Sure, that castle… Mommy… Mommy… umm…”

Elizabeth’s smile slowly froze stiff on her face and soon turned to confusion. She shut her eyes and tried to think. She tried to bring up her memories.

Elizabeth started to think, “What did the two of us do at that castle after I told Vyvyan about it, and we slept on it for a night? How did I solve the case involving the castle? Did I go to it or not? No. No. Everything became a fuzzy memory after that night. Actually, it’s not fuzzy. On second thought, the memory is filled with problems. Wait, no. It’d be more accurate to say that I have my memories, but it’s far too fuzzy.

Maybe I don’t have the memory at all, and all I actually have is this lingering vague feeling. I should be here; I should’ve succeeded the throne; I should’ve brought my son here. I don’t have any recollection. As a matter of fact, I lack a motive. I just happen to be here. I’m here merely because I feel that I should be here.

This is a big problem no matter how I think about it. No, I don’t have a problem. It’s this entire world that has a problem. This world seems to be riddled with problems. This palace, this nation and this world that I’m in is problematic. It’s as though I’m some sort of software that someone placed here.”

Troy’s breathing caught Elizabeth’s attention. She turned her head to look at her son. She hugged him as tight as she could. His breaths and warmth reminded her that it was all real. After all, her son truly existed.