Antidote

I retraced my steps toward the commercial district, guided by hazy memories.Like rediscovering something long forgotten, the structure of Karlac slowly, bit by bit, came back to me. A map I had seen at the Ipsen mansion floated in my mind. What had been blurry, as if someone had spilled water over it, became clearer the more I walked.My cheeks flushed with excitement.My pace quickened.There was a slight pain in my left ankle, but it was negligible.I walked with a slight limp. A large barge with a roof passed through the middle of the canal. I tilted my hat slightly back to let the breeze from the canal brush against my cheek.After a while, I entered the commercial district.The wide street was crowded with people. A cart piled high with silk passed by. Slaves, carrying large jars filled with spices on either side, marched in a line.Large and small boats were tightly docked by the canal, unloading cargo or enticing customers. I was so absorbed in the spectacle, lost in the crowd, that I didn’t notice what was coming.Suddenly, an arm grabbed me tightly around the waist.I almost screamed, but a large hand covered my mouth before I could. I tried to struggle, but the arm around my waist wouldn’t budge, and the body behind me was as solid as a fortress wall. That arm dragged me toward a corner.There was a staircase leading under the bridge that crossed the canal. Without a sound, I was pulled underneath. The crowd was too thick for anyone to notice me.My body was dragged into the shadowy darkness beneath the marble bridge, and my hat was violently pushed back. As the hand covering my mouth released me, I was spun around.My eyes widened in shock.My chest heaved, and my throat bobbed uncontrollably.“…Jiyod!”I called his name like a scream.At that moment, two strong arms wrapped around me tightly. Before I could even react, he lowered his head and kissed my forehead.I looked up at him, gasping for breath. His narrowed eyes, trying to hold back a smile, were looking at me.“This is… this is….”“Hahaha! Were you surprised?”He burst into loud laughter.I was so furious I balled my fists and punched his shoulder hard. But before I could follow through, he lowered his face again and this time stole a kiss from my lips. There was a quick smacking sound as he pulled back after the light kiss.Unbelievable! In a place like this!I pushed against his chest and looked around. My heart was still pounding as if it were about to burst. Fortunately, no one seemed to have any interest in peeking under the bridge.Then again, who in their right mind would think to look under a bridge? That thought only made me angrier. I pouted at Jiyod.“Are you angry?” he chuckled, as if he found the whole situation hilarious, grabbing my wrist and pulling me back into his arms.“Stop it. People are watching.”“So what if they are?”“What do you mean, ‘so what’….”But in the end, I was pulled back into his embrace. He pressed his lips against my cheek.“How have you been?”“It’s only been two days….”“What a cold-hearted man you are.”He grumbled.“Only two days? If I don’t see you for even a minute, I feel like I’ll sprout thorns in my mouth….”As he said that, he gently stroked my lower lip with his thumb. His eyes crinkled with a soft smile.“How did you get here?”“How do you think I got here?”Jiyod laughed.“…The steward?”“Of course. I told you before, didn’t I? She owes me a huge favor. It didn’t take long to catch up to you, since you walk so slow. But what about you? Did Madam Lisbeth send you on an errand?”At that question, my mood brightened again.“I’m on a break.”“A break?”“Yes. Lisbeth gave me the day off. It’s just for today, but… she even gave me a red pass so I can freely pass through Red Gate.”A flash of surprise crossed Jiyod’s face, then quickly disappeared.“That’s impressive.”With that, he bent down and whispered close to my ear.“So, does that mean I get to spend the whole day with you?”Before I could answer, his large hand grabbed my wrist and started pulling me along.“Is there anywhere you want to go? Anything you want to eat? If you came all the way out here, it must mean there’s something you want to buy, right?”“Not really…”Though I hadn’t thought about wanting anything, I suddenly realized it would be nice to have a new hourglass. The one I currently had was too small, requiring constant flipping. I wasn’t aiming for an expensive mechanical clock, but…“An hourglass would be nice. A slightly larger one.”At my words, Jiyod smiled broadly. His face lit up, looking a few years younger in an instant. Seeing that youthful expression reminded me of how much younger he had looked in my dream.At the same time, the steward’s words echoed in my mind—how Jiyod was the complete opposite of Lisbeth, who would favor me as long as I behaved. What could she have meant by that?I considered asking him but decided to keep my mouth shut.“Let’s go.”His hand, which had been gripping my wrist, slid down to clasp my hand tightly. His fingers, thick and rough, intertwined with mine, while the veins bulging on the back of his hand felt coarse. I glanced down at our hands briefly, then tightened my grip in response, holding onto him firmly.The commercial district was crowded with people. The gentle spring breeze blew between the canal and the streets, and merchants were shouting here and there.We passed through the food market.The air was thick with the smells of fish, salty sea air, and sharp spices. A vendor selling thick deer haunches was haggling fiercely with two women, spitting as they argued. Across from them, about a dozen freshly gutted birds were strung up, dangling from the eaves of a shop. In a large bucket, a carp the size of a forearm flopped around, its red scales glistening. A young boy carrying a net full of shellfish tripped and spilled his load on the ground. Shouts, curses, crying, laughter, vendors vying for attention, and the sounds of bargaining filled the air.At that moment, a boatman docking his vessel along the canal called out to us in a loud voice.“Come take a look! Hey, you over there! Take a look at this!”His boat was loaded with baskets of blackberries and figs, but before I could respond, a large man with a shaved head approached the boatman and started asking questions. They quickly began haggling.Nearby, a girl squatted beside the canal, moving wriggling silverfish into a reed basket. Three or four cats prowled around her. One of them darted close to my feet, nearly brushing against them before scurrying away.My head felt as chaotic as the market itself. Jiyod expertly navigated through the bustling crowd, his pace leisurely, perhaps mindful of my ankle.Fearing I might lose him in this sea of people and never find him again, I tightened my grip on his hand even more.As the food market ended, the color of the ground tiles changed.The tiles shimmered with golden sand mixed into the red, and the white tiles formed a swirling sun pattern.A few slaves, panting heavily, passed by carrying large ceramic jars. A mule, dyed blue, rattled a cart down the street. A woman sitting atop the cart puffed on a cigarette.An old man, small and sharp-eyed, was scolding a child harshly.“Do you know how expensive this frankincense is?! You couldn’t buy even a handful of this stuff if you sold your body a hundred times over…!”A merchant in flowing silk robes rushed past them.Jiyod turned down an alley.Shops packed between the buildings had colorful awnings made of various fabrics.A few boys sat in a circle, threading glass beads onto strings. A yellow dog lay nearby, watching them work. I was briefly captivated by the colorful beads. A sharp voice echoed through the alley, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps, the thud of something being unloaded, and the mingled scents of oil, spices, dyes, and freshly tanned leather.“What do you want?” Jiyod suddenly asked.“An hourglass. What kind should I get?” he asked again, and I fell into brief contemplation.“I’d like one a bit larger, one that lasts about two hours….”“Anything else? Do you prefer one carved from ivory? Or maybe one made of metal? Quartz is better than glass, don’t you think?”As he continued talking, we arrived in front of a large shop.Stacks of colorful rugs were piled up outside, and a rocking chair sat among them. A small, hunchbacked man, who looked shriveled up like a dried fruit, was sitting in the chair smoking a cigarette.Jiyod pulled me inside the shop. As we stepped in, the hunchbacked man squinted one eye and glanced at us. That’s when I noticed that his right eye was a glass prosthetic. He spat out his ivory cigarette holder.“It’s been a while.”His voice was gravelly. Jiyod gave him a half-hearted nod, and I offered a somewhat awkward expression.The hunchbacked man stared at me. His glass eye gleamed, making it hard to read his expression.“You seem to be doing well.”Not knowing how to respond to that, I simply smiled ambiguously. Was he someone else I didn’t remember, who knew me?He shifted his gaze from me to Jiyod.“What brings you here? Has the Duke of Karlac decided to stop meddling in your affairs?”His words caused my breathing to quicken slightly. I stared intently at the side of the short man’s face, hoping for any sliver of memory to surface. But, just like with Ismion, Ida, and Jiyod, no recollection of this man returned.I turned to look up at Jiyod, recalling the brief dream that was nearly my only memory of him, much like Ida.“Just a short vacation today.”Jiyod answered with a smile, and the hunchbacked man opened his mouth in disbelief. He tapped his cigarette holder against the armrest of his chair with a sharp clack, clack.“Well, well, the bastard sure has it good.”“I’ve always lived well, haven’t I? From Stravin to Ipsen, and now Karlac. I’ve mastered the art of moving around comfortably.”Jiyod replied calmly.“I’m here to look at some hourglasses.”“Hourglasses? What kind?”The hunchbacked man shot a suspicious glance at Jiyod, who simply shrugged.“Nothing unusual. Just a plain one… preferably one that lasts about two hours. Lord Slan said he wanted one.”“Lord Slan?”He looked at me. It was now clear that this man knew my name. I just stood there with that same vague smile.“I’ve got a few….”The hunchbacked man kept glancing at me out of the corner of his eye.“Whether they’ll suit Lord Slan’s taste…”“Anything will do.”I answered quickly.“Well, even if you say that…”His cracked lips twitched as he got up from his chair. His short legs swiftly moved through the piles of rugs. As he shuffled away, Jiyod called out after him.“Bring us the best one. The very best!”“Shut up!”The hunchbacked man shouted angrily.Once he had disappeared deep into the shop, I looked around. Behind the stacks of rugs was a wooden counter with a few trinkets on display. Glass lamps, brass candlesticks, and strange quartz figurines. Among them was a wooden horse with fake jewels for eyes.I reached out to touch the toy, thinking Kirsten would like it. Not long ago, one of his toy soldiers lost its horse. The horse had rolled off the terrace and broken its hind legs. I had told Kirsten, who was on the verge of tears, that putting the broken horse to rest would be the merciful thing to do, and I solemnly covered the toy with a cloth.I thought about how many coins the steward from Red Gate had given me, and then I turned around. I flinched slightly. At some point, Jiyod had moved in close beside me.“See anything you like?”He asked in a gentle voice. I shook my head.“The shop owner…”Instead of mentioning the wooden horse, I asked what had been on my mind.“He seems to know us well.”“We’ve known him for quite a while.”Jiyod answered casually.“Do you not remember?”“No.”“He’s not really worth remembering, to be honest….”Just as he said that, a loud shout came from the back of the shop.“I can hear you!”The hunchbacked man came striding quickly toward us, grumbling irritably.“That filthy temper of yours is still the same! After two years of rolling around the battlefield like a pig, isn’t it time you changed?”“I’ve been rolling around like a pig in battle for more than just a couple of years. What’s another two going to change?”Jiyod chuckled, and as I listened, I thought of this young knight’s unfortunate childhood.King of Ipsen. Survivor of Tesfaya, war hero of Pasik, butcher of Ipsen. These labels clung to his name like badges, and anyone who saw him would be reminded of his dishonorable birth and the hardships of his life.At some point, the man had walked right up to me and thrust a small tray in front of me. His fingers, which held the tray, were missing in places. His left hand lacked a ring finger and an index finger, and his right hand was missing a thumb.On the tray were several hourglasses.“I brought a few, but I don’t handle these kinds of things often. Take your pick.”His tone was much softer than the one he used with Jiyod.I looked at the tray.At a glance, they all appeared to be of high quality. One was made of ivory, another was adorned with gold, and there was even one with a bottle crafted from precious rose quartz. However, possessing something like that might draw unwanted attention.I picked up an hourglass made of teak. The surface was smooth, as if polished countless times from the distant southern lands where the wood grew. As I lifted it, the ash-colored sand inside the round glass softly rustled. The man holding the tray grumbled.“That one’s cheap. How about this one made of white jade instead?”“No, I like this one.”“You should pick something better. What about the ivory one? It’s filled with fine gold dust instead of sand.”“Thanks, but I’m fine.”When I said that, he muttered under his breath.“Well, if you insist. It’s not something to be embarrassed about either….”“How much?”I asked, and the man blinked. A glass eye gleamed beneath his eyelid.“Money? How could I take that from Lord Slan?”He replied reluctantly, and Jiyod cut in.“Leave him be. If he paid you, he’d feel so guilty he wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.”“But…”At my hesitant response, the hunchbacked man nodded his head vigorously.“Just take it. Though I wish you’d chosen a better one….”I fiddled with the hourglass in my hand for a moment, then nodded.“Thanks.”He gave a crooked smile, his misshapen lips curling upwards, and somehow, it felt familiar.Jiyod draped an arm around my shoulder and embraced me.“Anything else you need?”I shook my head, and we left the shop together. Behind us, the hunchbacked man hurried out, following us.“Come visit more often, Lord Slan! Stay healthy until next time!”I turned back to him with a vague smile.Next time… when would that be?As we emerged from the alley, Jiyod pulled something out from his coat. My eyes widened. In his hand was the wooden horse I had been looking at earlier.“When did you…?”“You’ve been eyeing it for a while, haven’t you? I didn’t know you had an interest in things like this.”“When did you take it?”“I swiped it. Don’t worry about it. It’s cheap.”He laughed and handed it to me.“But…”“Really, don’t worry about it. And don’t think of it as a gift. I’ve done more than enough for that guy already.”I couldn’t bring myself to ask what exactly he had done for him.“Are you planning to start an army of toy soldiers? You’re a bit old for that, aren’t you?”“No. It’s for Kirsten… um, Kirsten is Lisbeth’s son.”“I know.”He smiled, lowered his head, and kissed the top of mine. Then, when no one was looking, he kissed my cheek too. My face heated up instantly.“Isn’t it about time he started his squire training? And he’s still playing with things like this?”“Kirsten’s still young.”“I thought he was about six?”I didn’t respond to that. It was true that Kirsten was a bit more spoiled than other children his age. Lisbeth had practically given up on making him start squire training.“People are saying the boy doesn’t seem to have inherited Madam Lisbeth’s qualities. There’s quite a bit of concern over Glenberg’s succession.”With that, he raised his right hand, mimicking a talking motion with his thumb and fingers. Then he made a ‘woof woof woof’ sound with just his lips.“People sure do talk a lot,” I muttered quietly. Jiyod made a humming sound in response.“Especially Karlac folks. Though, personally, I don’t care much about it.”“Tell me more about the shop owner from earlier.”“You mean that hunchback?”I recalled the shopkeeper sneering at Jiyod, calling him a bastard. They seemed to show affection by mocking each other’s flaws.“He’s a miser, that one. But because of that, he’s loaded. From what I know, he’s one of the top five merchants in Karlac. Though he’s a bit past his prime now.”After a brief pause, Jiyod continued.“…He’s helped me out many times before.”“What kind of help?”“Feeding an army costs money.”He squinted slightly, giving me a sly smile.“I didn’t want to deplete your wealth either. It worked out for me, and he benefited from it too. I sold him salt I smuggled from Ipsen for dirt cheap…”My jaw dropped at his casual remark. Salt was a state monopoly in Karlac. No one could trade it without the Duke of Karlac’s seal. Ipsen was a major source of salt in Karlac, but most of its profits were supposed to go into the state treasury.“I don’t do that anymore, though. Not for the past two years, at least. It’s not like I had the chance anyway… Remember the Alto civil war I mentioned before? I told you how I dreamed of you every single day during those two years.”I lowered my head, trying to hide my flushed cheeks.“Now I’m trying something new. There are a few interesting opportunities out there. The hunchback recently opened a trade route with York, and Ismion played a key role in it. York folks are peculiar—they won’t trust anyone who doesn’t speak their dialect. Ismion, despite his appearance, is quite clever. Do you remember that he’s originally from the capital?”I had heard that story from Ismion before, so I just nodded.“Hmm, right. I don’t know what they teach wizards in the capital, but I imagine they’re probably teaching them how to have a sharp tongue and insult people fluently in five different languages. Anyway…”Jiyod shrugged.“You’d probably be more interested in Archibald’s marble mines than in those greedy York folk. There’s a funny story there too. Apparently, the lord gave up on monster hunting completely…”He gleefully launched into his story.“As soon as rumors spread that the cowardly lord was hiring mercenaries instead of using his knights, I sent Lady Lea there. She had about 700 soldiers with her, and I stripped them of their armor and banners. They looked just like a bunch of ragtag mercenaries. The idiot didn’t suspect a thing and brought Lady Lea in, only to…”“…So I told Lady Lea to just buy the land outright, but that coward must have sensed something because he started resisting. Honestly, I was about to give up, but then guess what that crazy woman did? She sat herself down in the marble mine and started a siege. Every time the lord sent workers or knights, she’d scalp them and send them back…”He burst out laughing.“How could that coward stand up to such a lunatic? He sold the land at a bargain price. After that insane stunt, Lady Lea said she’d come back to Ipsen, but I told her to stay a little longer and play the role of a miner. She threw a fit, saying the limewater there was bad for her skin and that the food and weather were awful. You should’ve seen Ismion’s face when she said that.”As Jiyod recounted the story, he gently stroked the back of my hand with his fingers.I reflected on everything he had said. There was a time when I might have joined in on these conversations. I used to dream of us talking while overlooking the quartz mines at dawn, but that vision was fading fast.Now, I no longer had the status or the right to engage in such discussions—about quartz mines, salt smuggling, marble mines, or feeding armies.I stared down at my feet for a moment, then lifted my head.Jiyod was watching me silently.We stopped walking for a brief moment. After a short silence, he spoke up.“Are your feet okay? We’ve been walking quite a bit, haven’t we?”“I’m fine.”I hurried to respond, worried he had noticed my somber expression.“Really, I’m okay.”“Let’s sit down for a bit.”Jiyod wrapped his arm around my waist and guided me to the other side of the road. There was a small stone bench by the canal, where he sat me down.A luxurious boat with golden sails slowly passed by on the canal. It bore the insignia of a Karlac noble—probably the Rivensdale family—and had large wings carved into the sides of the wave-shaped prow, painted blue.A chilly breeze blew from the canal. The sun was now just slightly to the west, no longer directly overhead.I glanced at Jiyod.“Aren’t you busy?”“I am.”Then, with a look of pure joy, he bent down and kissed my forehead loudly, not caring who was watching. As people passing by glanced over, he reached behind me and pulled my hat back down.“But what could be more important than meeting you? Even if the serpent heads of the Triad were raising hell, or the old fox dropped dead right now…”I quickly covered his mouth with both hands, startled. Then, I glanced around nervously.The “old fox” was clearly a reference to the Duke of Karlac. The Duke held both the Karlac and Halden titles. Before assuming the Karlac throne, the duke was referred to as the Count of Halden. The Halden family crest featured a shield with a slanted bow and two black foxes flanking it. I remembered how the previous Duke of Karlac used to sneer and call her a “fox” in jest.“What if someone hears you?”I scolded him as I took my hands off his mouth, and he grinned.“Everyone in Karlac knows I dislike her, so what’s the harm?”“Still…”“Don’t worry about it. Anyway, how are your feet?”“They’re fine. Ismion gave me medicine, and the wizards treating me brought some ointment as well.”“Ah.”He tilted his head slightly.A faint smile appeared on his lips.“Now that I think about it, a new wizard must have arrived.”“?”I looked up at him, confused.“How do you know that?”“I heard that Enric isn’t well.”He answered nonchalantly.“Everyone knows that the mage has been going in and out of the Glenberg residence. Even the five-year-old squires know that. Since someone like that is bedridden, it’s only natural that the mage attending to you has changed.”“Ah… Enric must really be sick if rumors have spread that much.”I muttered, thinking of the mage who had been checking on me for the past two years.“He must be very ill.”“That’s what I’ve heard. Apparently, he’s been unable to get out of bed because the winter fever hasn’t subsided yet…”Jiyod’s expression was subtle. He shrugged his shoulders.“For the fever to persist into spring, it must be pretty serious.”“He needs to get better soon…”“Is the new mage not good?”“It’s not that, but…”“Think positively, Slan. Your medication has changed, so who knows, maybe there will be some improvement with your madness. I think it’s fortunate, actually. The fact that you haven’t gotten better in the last two years makes me suspect that Enric was a quack. It’s probably for the best.”I nodded quietly.“I hope there’s some improvement with my memory loss too.”With that, I held Jiyod’s hand a bit tighter, feeling slightly embarrassed at the same time. But Jiyod gently clasped my hand in return.“Don’t rush it. Your memories will come back slowly. Haven’t things already improved a lot? Ismion mentioned that you occasionally talk about the past.”“Only just a little…”“Don’t just talk to that quack, share some with me too. What memories have come back?”“Most of them are about you, but how can I tell you when I’m embarrassed?”When I grumbled like that, Jiyod looked at me for a moment before leaning down to give me a brief kiss. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice, so I didn’t get mad at him and just stayed quiet.Looking into my eyes, Jiyod whispered softly.“Don’t talk about your memories elsewhere. There’s no need, and there are still those watching you.”He said the same thing Ida had. I blinked and nodded.I remembered what Lisbeth said—that Duke of Karlac had not yet calmed down. In this situation, it would be unwise to let others know that I, a traitor and patricide, was regaining memories of my connection with Jiyod, a man who still had soldiers under his command. Though Jiyod had sent most of his troops stationed at the Orzen Gate back to Ipsen, the fact that he had brought an army to the very doorstep of Karlac remained unchanged.The Duke of Karlac is cautious.Since I had once betrayed my father, it wouldn’t be surprising if he thought I might do the same to him. And the method might not be pushing him down the stairs this time.My thoughts were interrupted by Jiyod’s voice.“In truth, I wouldn’t mind if you never regain your memory.”I looked up at him.In his ash-gray eyes, there was a very gentle and tender light. He softly caressed the back of my hand as he whispered.“I love you as you are. Whether you remember or not, you haven’t changed.”Just as my face flushed from his heartfelt confession, he added quietly.“Well, there is something that’s slightly different about you down there though…”Understanding the lewd implication, my face turned beet red, and I bit my lip, hitting his arm hard. Jiyod only laughed without pretending to be hurt.“I actually prefer it this way. Now that everything’s nice and smooth down there, you seem to enjoy it more, and putting it in is also a bit easier…”That was when I hit him as hard as I could, and only then did he finally shut up.At that moment, I saw a large man approaching us from across the road, leading a horse. Jiyod noticed him before I did and stood up from the bench.“Slan, do you remember Urkal?”“No…”I answered in a small voice, and just then, the man stopped in front of us, holding the reins of the horse.I had to tilt my head far back to look at his face.The man was enormous. Even though Jiyod was tall, this man stood a full head taller than him. He appeared to be around thirty years old, with curly red hair and long, golden eyelashes that glistened in the light. His large facial features were covered with freckles of a light brown color. Unlike Jiyod, who hadn’t inherited any of the Ipsen features from his maternal side, this man was the epitome of an Ipsen native.He gave us a polite nod.“I’ve brought the horse, as you requested.”“Good work.”Jiyod responded with a smile, taking the reins from him.It was a sleek Karlac warhorse. Its black coat gleamed with a fine luster, and even its short mane shone. It was clearly a well-maintained thoroughbred.As I approached the horse, Jiyod smiled.“This one is the son of Roke. Out of all the colts sired by that stud, I picked the best.”He softly spoke as he stroked the horse’s muzzle.