The Emperor stared at him.
"What exactly are you trying to do with all that wish-power you've been collecting?"
"It's not like we've only known each other a day or two. You've helped me, and you've helped plenty of other people, but you never say what it is you actually want."
Su An said nothing.
He simply floated there in midair, looking off toward Lappland in the distance. Only after a long while did he finally speak.
"What I want, huh..."
"What does it have to do with you?"
The Emperor: "...I shouldn't have asked."
Seeing that Lappland's conversation over there was just about wrapping up, Su An knew he had to hurry back. It wouldn't do to let a client get dissatisfied—especially this little wolf cub, who had gotten awfully clingy.
"Alright, enough of that. Let's talk business."
"You? Business?"
Su An ignored the jab and continued.
"That Texas girl might become my client someday."
The Emperor's brow arched. "What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said. She's got the potential. If she ends up being able to see me later on, then right now she's basically a premium-client candidate."
"You're telling me, to my face, that you're setting your sights on one of my people?"
"What do you mean, 'setting my sights'?"
Su An looked innocent.
"I'd be helping her, not hurting her. Think about it—if one day she runs into something she can't solve, she makes a wish, I step in, problem solved. Sounds great, doesn't it?"
The Emperor fell silent.
It wasn't as if he didn't know Su An's methods. The man looked unreliable, but when it came time to actually do something, he was always dependable. And he never cheated a client. The long-lived beings of every nation might get driven half to death by his personality, but most of them still acknowledged the way he handled business.
"Fine," the Emperor said at last. "As long as you don't screw them over, I can't be bothered to interfere."
"Now that's more like it."
Su An patted the Emperor on the shoulder.
Or rather, patted empty air.
"Oh, right. I might need your help when the time comes."
"My help?"
"Yeah. You know a lot of people, and you've got connections everywhere. If Texas ever needs something you have access to, you could put in a word. That'd be nice. And later on, you could casually help me gather some information too."
The Emperor gave him a sidelong look.
"And what do I get out of it?"
Su An blinked.
"What do you mean, what do you get out of it? Don't you like that little wolf cub? If the chance comes up, maybe I'll steer her your way."
He grinned.
"And I can keep an eye on both of them, make sure they grow up safe and sound."
The Emperor thought it over.
"Deal."
"Nice and decisive!"
Su An nodded in satisfaction, then turned and drifted back toward Lappland.
Texas stood before the front entrance of the Saluzzo estate, tilting her head up to look at the building, which somehow felt colder and emptier than it had in her memory.
The last time she'd come had been six years ago, at night, in the middle of a banquet and that arena performance. She had never really gotten a good look at the place.
"Well?" Lappland walked over to her side. "More interesting than the houses in Columbia, right?"
Texas withdrew her gaze, expression blank as always.
"It's alright."
"Alright?"
Lappland laughed softly.
"Your mouth is exactly the same as it was six years ago. You still refuse to say more than a single word."
Texas didn't answer.
Behind her, the convoy had already begun unloading luggage. The butler and servants were bustling back and forth.
"Come on," Lappland said, turning inward. "I'll show you where you'll be staying."
Texas followed her.
The moment the two of them stepped across the threshold, Lappland's pace faltered ever so slightly.
She turned her head, her eyes sweeping over the space beside her—
Empty.
That transparent nuisance who usually hovered at her side like a shadow had disappeared at some point.
Texas noticed the pause.
"What is it?"
"...Nothing."
Lappland withdrew her gaze and kept walking.
You vanish right when the tour starts, Su An. You'd better have something important to do.
The inside of the estate felt even colder and more oppressive than the outside. The corridors were long and narrow, the halls cavernous and empty.
"This way is the council chamber."
Lappland pushed open a heavy wooden door.
"It's where my father discusses business. Boring as hell."
Texas glanced inside.
It really was boring. A long table. Chairs. A fireplace. That was it.
"And that over there is the library," Lappland said, pointing toward the end of the corridor. "It has historical records of all the Siracusan families, plus the Saluzzo family's account books for the past few years."
"They let you read the account books too?"
"Nope." Lappland shrugged.
But I had Su An read them for me, she added silently to herself.
The central courtyard was much better than the interior.
Sunlight spilled down from above, shining over the neatly trimmed plants. At least here, the place looked like somewhere the living might actually stay.
The two of them continued on, crossing the courtyard and entering another corridor.
"This is where I live."
Lappland pushed open another door.
"The guest rooms are on this floor too. You can pick whichever one you want later."
The guest room at the end of the corridor had a window that looked directly out over the vineyard.
Texas walked to the window, her gaze passing over the neatly pruned vines to settle on the distant slope beyond.
"Do you remember?"
Lappland leaned against the doorframe.
"Remember what?"
"What you said to me over there, six years ago."
Texas pointed out the spot. Lappland followed her line of sight.
"You mean the part about planting grapes outside your front door?"
"Mm."
"I remember. Why?"
Texas turned around, resting her back against the window ledge as she looked at Lappland.
"At the time, I said I didn't want to eat sour grapes."
"And you said carefully pruned grapes wouldn't turn sour."
Lappland nodded, waiting for her to continue.
"I asked you a question back then, and you couldn't answer it."
"How can you guarantee that the grapes left after pruning will really be the ones that remain in the end?"
The room fell silent for a few seconds.
Lappland remained leaning against the doorway, her expression barely changing.
But she remembered that question.
Back then, she hadn't been able to answer it.
Because she herself had been one of those pruned grapes. Whether she would be cut away or not had depended entirely on her father's mood.
Now six years had passed. She had grown older, stronger with the sword, capable of killing a ripper-beast in the arena.
But that question...
"Because I'm the one doing the pruning."
A voice drifted in from the side.
Lappland's ears twitched sharply.
Su An had appeared out of nowhere. He was floating behind Texas like some kind of stand-in spirit, and for once his posture was unusually proper instead of all crooked and lazy.
His hands were tucked against his transparent chest, his expression one of complete self-assurance.
"I'm the one pruning the grapes, so naturally I can decide how long they stay."
Lappland looked at him, her gaze complicated.
Su An blinked.
"What? Was I wrong?"
"...Where did you go?"
"Huh?"
Su An froze for a moment, then waved a hand.
"Oh, that? I went to catch up with someone."
Lappland didn't say anything. She only kept looking at him.
Besides her... there were other people who could see Su An?
Under her stare, Su An began to feel slightly uneasy.
"What? I was only gone for a bit. It's not like I wasn't coming back."
"...A bit?"
"Uh... alright, fine. I also eavesdropped on your father's meeting for a while."
Lappland withdrew her gaze and said nothing more.
Texas looked at Lappland, then followed the line of her sight toward the apparently empty space where it had fallen. A slight furrow appeared between her brows.
"Who are you talking to?"
Lappland's heart immediately skipped a beat.
...Damn it. I asked that out loud without thinking.
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