Episode 98

Rose gripped the handle of the trunk tightly with trembling hands. As the bracing scent of the sea and the moist breeze filled her senses, she realized she was truly at the harbor.

She presented her ticket to the gatekeeper and boarded the ship. 

This was the first time she had ever been on such a large vessel. Staying in a luxurious one-person cabin was, of course, a first as well.

She hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep in days, and her head felt heavy. After squeezing her eyes shut and then forcing them open, she strengthened her wobbly legs and made her way to the cabin.

Once inside the cabin, Rose let out a long sigh and sat down, feeling as though a weight had been lifted.

“Haah…”

Just a few days ago, this journey to the Republic aboard a ship was something she couldn’t have imagined. 

It all began with the urgent message sent by Briley.

* * *

It was the day after Rose had submitted her entry to the contest. She had been called to the Academy’s communication exchange center, where a message from the Republic had arrived, delivered by Briley.

A message from Briley, who was supposed to be traveling around the Republic and enjoying her trip.

Rose was curious about what could be so important to warrant such a message from Briley.

The content of the message, however, was far from anything Rose could have imagined. The words were short but powerful, and Rose found herself momentarily stunned.

Despite reading the message carefully, its meaning did not immediately register. 

Why Jasper was injured and how Briley knew about it and reached out were all mysteries.

Rose took a deep breath and immediately contacted the communication exchange center that had sent the message. Within a few minutes, she was connected to Briley in real-time communication.

Rose stood in front of a communication booth in the corner of the exchange center, holding the receiver to her ear. Her hand shook with nervous anticipation.

-Rose!

“…Bry?”

The familiar voice sounded from the other end of the line.

“I saw the message. What on earth is going on? Jasper is hurt…”

-I’m not sure of all the details. Jasper is still unconscious. It seems he was shot. I felt like I had to tell you.

The words that Briley spoke about the gunshot and Jasper being unconscious all sounded faint to Rose, as if she were underwater, much like when she had fallen into the water, making her breathing labored and her hearing dulled.

-He’s at a hospital in Valloch Harbor.

Briley quickly explained the situation. Rose was unable to utter a single word and was lost in her thoughts as she listened.

Briley had arrived in Valloch just the day before by train. 

Coincidentally, Caleb was on the same train, and he mentioned that he was going to see Jasper. So they traveled together. 

However, Jasper had left the hotel where he had been staying for a long time. He had moved to another hotel, but when they went there, they couldn’t find him. Instead, through the hotelier, Briley and Caleb learned about Jasper’s recent activities. 

The day before, there had been a shooting incident near the harbor alley, and Jasper Conway found injured with a gunshot wound, had been taken to the hospital.

As Rose heard this, her entire body tensed, and she stammered.

“That… That can’t be. Jasper couldn’t have been in Valloch all this time?”

She had received a letter from him, which stated that he was sent to a remote Imperial outpost for military training. 

How could he be in Valloch, a Republic territory? 

Rose couldn’t understand the situation at all. It all felt like a dream. 

What she was least inclined to believe was that Jasper had been wounded by a gunshot.

“Bry… How is Jasper? Is he alone in the hospital? What about the Conways?”

-For now, Jasper was alone. I’ve just received this information, so I’m not entirely sure how everything is unfolding. I’m sorry, Rose. Jasper… well, he got shot in the shoulder.

As Rose listened to Briley’s words, she had been holding her breath, and she let it out with a heavy exhale.

-It seems like the wound didn’t cause any life-threatening injuries. However, because it was discovered a bit late… Jasper seems to have lost a fair amount of blood. That’s why he’s still unconscious.

“Bry, which hospital is it?”

The financial concerns about traveling to Valloch or the upcoming start of the autumn semester had momentarily faded in Rose’s mind. 

For the moment, her only focus was on seeing Jasper.

The large pupils of Rose’s eyes were glistening with moisture. She quickly wiped away a tear with the back of her hand as she struggled to steady her ragged breath.

-Are you coming here now?

“Yeah… I think I have to. I need to see Jasper.”

* * *

The sound of the ship’s horn began to reverberate, and even in the cabin, vibrations could be felt. Rose’s hand, as she wiped her face with it, felt hot. 

After ending the call with Briley, Rose immediately boarded a train from the capital and headed towards the western coast. 

Now, she was on a ship headed to the port of Valloch. 

Without Briley’s assistance, none of this would have been possible. Briley had contacted someone at home and arranged for Rose to receive a train ticket to Valloch and passage on the ship.

This was Rose’s first time traveling in a first-class train cabin, but she was too preoccupied to appreciate the luxurious surroundings. She hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep since leaving the capital. Even now, she didn’t feel like lying down, despite the fatigue that made her body feel warm.

‘By now, Jasper must have woken up, right?’

Rose continued to pace back and forth, occasionally biting her lip.

She hadn’t been able to contact Briley during her journey to the Republic, so she had no idea about Jasper’s current condition. Being alone also made her susceptible to various anxious thoughts. 

She was usually someone who maintained a positive attitude no matter the circumstances, but at this moment, she couldn’t stop the negative thoughts from taking over.

‘Why was he in Valloch?’

Rose couldn’t help but feel anxious that Jasper’s injuries were somehow connected to her. 

The Redmark Summit had last been seen at the port of Valloch, and Caleb had mentioned that he was going to the Republic to gather information about George Bell. 

It was in Valloch that Jasper had been shot. So, what if he was hurt because of his involvement with George?

Rose desperately hoped that wasn’t the case. She was overwhelmed by the idea that it would be not only George but herself causing Jasper’s suffering. 

Beyond just hating George, she might start to loathe herself.

‘Please let him be safe.’

Finally, the ship Rose was on began to cut through the water towards Valloch, leaving her thoughts to churn as they sailed.

* * *

“You must live up to the name Conway. With grace and dignity.”

 Jasper frowned at the repetitive and seemingly endless words. Seated in front of him, his father, Duke Conway, had a stern and serious expression.

Jasper realized something as he locked eyes with his father, who looked liked around ten years younger than he was now.

‘It’s a dream.’

While he didn’t frequently dream, he was often aware that he was in one. The worlds his subconscious revealed to him were generally harsh and nightmarish.

‘If it’s a scene from my childhood…’

Jasper turned his head to look at someone who was sitting beside him. His long-deceased mother was occupying that spot.

Oddly, everything around Duke Conway was blurry and distorted. The duchess appeared with a dark and gloomy expression, but the duke, regardless of her, continued to speak without acknowledging her presence.

“You should also set an example for the children. There are no longer colorful butterflies flying around, Jasper; we are in the midst of a war, and our enemies are numerous.”

The Duchess replied in a subdued tone.

“I understand.”

“Who lets a child drive a car?”

It was then that young Ethan interjected urgently.

“Father, I begged Mother to come with me. She’s not at fault.”

“When a child throws a tantrum, adults should know how to stop it.”

Ethan, now in the form of a defiant boy, quivered his lips. His expression was something you wouldn’t typically find on the current Ethan. Back then, he had been delicate and tender-hearted.

‘Why has he suddenly become so much like Father?’

The Duke had always been strict and austere. The air in the house was perpetually frosty. Now that the Duke was resting at the family estate due to illness, Ethan had inherited his role.

‘I’m sick of it.’

Jasper wanted to wake up from the dream as soon as possible. While seeing his mother after a long time was heartwarming, he knew that all of this was nothing but an illusion. 

Indulging in the illusion would leave him with nothing.

“If only you could act more carefully as a duchess.”

“All right.”

“It’s a sensitive time, you know.”

“Listen to the kids, stop eating, honey.” 

“I’m telling you to listen.”

Jasper felt like he was suffocating. Both Ethan and the Duke viewed the world from a perspective of conflict. They saw anyone who wasn’t on their side as a pack of greedy wolves, trying to take what was theirs. 

Even the idea of using a car seemed to set the Duke off. 

Back when the discussion of cars becoming commonplace was beginning, the Duke’s sensitivity was at its peak.

Before the era of trains, the only wheeled mode of transportation was horse-drawn carriages. These carriages were primarily the domain of the nobility, as horses and carriages were costly to maintain. 

However, with the laying of railway tracks, trains were introduced and then came the invention of the automobile.

Merchants and the gentrified class intentionally started using automobiles. Suddenly, the automobile became a symbol of the new era and a tool for political campaigning.

“That’s a monstrosity. To ride such a thing along the streets of the capital… It needs to be regulated. It’s not enough to lay railway tracks throughout the country…”

The Duke vehemently rejected the flow of the new era. 

For a while, he argued that automobiles were less safe than carriages and that they were products of the bourgeois ego. He also complained that the noise produced by the engines was offensive and sacrilegious.

That was until the Duchess had an accident while riding in a carriage and lost her life.