The afternoon of a certain day...

Mira visited Mireille’s room with lunch on a tray. When she opened the sliding door, Mireille was sitting with her eyes closed on the tatami.

(Again, huh?)  

Mira thought.

Mireille had been confined in one of the inn’s rooms. With nothing to do, she was just sitting there.

Whether it was morning, noon, or night, she did not change what she did. Speaking of moving, she only did so when she ate, went to the bathroom, or took a bath.

From the start, she didn’t seem to be alive. She was just like a soulless doll.

“It’s meal time.” Mira announced.

“Thanks.”  Mireille opened her eyes and expressed her grat.i.tude.

Only the minimum amount of words were exchanged, as per usual.

Mira put the tray on the desk, and Mireille picked up the unfamiliar chopsticks. Her fingers were so thin that she couldn’t even figure out which one was the chopstick.

No, it wasn’t just her fingers. Her flesh thinned, the bones surfaced, and her eyes were hollow. Mireille looked like a ghost.

“...Are you eating properly?” Upon seeing Mireille’s state, Mira finally said something besides the bare minimum.

“Are you concerned?” Mireille asked after putting down the miso soup that she had sipped. She had a faint smile on her pale face.

Mira was startled by that smile.

Could it be called a fleeting beauty? It looked so fragile that it might break the moment you touched it. That attractive smile produced an indescribable charm.

“..........”

“.........”

They stared at each other and remained silent.

After a while, someone finally opened their mouth. It was Mireille.

“Yeah, I ate properly. You should know that as well.”

Mira was occasionally replaced by others, but basically, it was usually Mira who was taking care of Mireille. Therefore, whether Mireille is eating or not, Mira herself knew it well.

“Then, what is it with your current state now?” Mira demanded.

Even though she took her meals properly, Mireille got thinner day by day. That was abnormal.

“Who knows.” The princess shrugged casually.

However, Mira seemed to know the cause of Mireille’s anomaly.

“If you die, Fujiwara-sama will be troubled. Do something about it.” Mira ordered.

“Fuu... Even if you say so, there is nothing I can do about this.” Mireille sighed.

It would be useless to say anything more than this. Mira did not say anything else and just left the room.

Today was the same too.

She ate her meal, took care of her business, cleaned up, and mediated. Mira thought that Mireille would do the same routine she usually did today as well.

　◆

Mireille was thinking about the beastwoman while sitting quietly.

Her name was Mira. She did not introduce herself to her, but she knew of her name when she heard someone call her.

She remembered Mira’s conduct. Every single one of her body movements was for a reason. There was no wastage in her movements. She might have had considerable training for her to be so familiar with the way she moved.

Thinking that far, she sneered at herself. Things like fighting don’t matter anymore. She knew that there was no point in having strength.

No matter how hard she trained, Mireille understood that there was no hope in this fight.

Death will come equally for the weak and the strong.

If she closed her eyes, the deaths of many people would float around the back of her eyelids. However, Mireille kept looking at it.

Eventually, night fell.

Mireille heard the sound of sliding doors opening.

“It’s meal time.” It was Mira’s voice again.

Opening her eyes, she looked at Mira, who was putting the tray down onto the desk.

“There are a lot of things tonight.” Mireille commented.

Rice, fish, and horsemeat. As for the drinks, it was camel milk. There were also a lot of fruits. This was not a meal served to prisoners at all.

“...When I reported about you, I was told to give you something that could increase your strength.” Mira mumbled.

“Is that so? I only got a little bit thinner. If such delicious food were to be served, I think I would be bedded by that guy soon.” The princess stated blandly.

“Oi!” Mira growled.

“It’s just a joke.” When she laughed, Mira stood up angrily and left the room.

Before long, she finally finished her meal. After a while, Mira came by to pick up the empty tableware. Mira did not say anything, and when she was leaving with the tableware, Mireille opened her mouth to speak.

“Wait.”

She could not understand why Mireille had stopped herself from leaving. But, she couldn’t help but stop when she was called.

Mirelle’s mouth opened again.

“What is your name?”

“...It’s Mira.” The beastwoman said.

She knew her name. However, she thought that she wanted to hear it from her own mouth.

“My name is Mireille. I think they sound quite similar.” Mireille smiled slightly.

Their names were a little bit similar. No, it was not just the name. Mireille thought that while she was also a woman, she also went down the path of a warrior, just like her.

Even though the other woman was a beastwoman, her appearance looked just like that of a human. Apparently, Mira was special.

“What’s wrong?” Mireille only asked this since Mira frowned when she said that their names were similar.

“My name is something precious given to me by my mother. Don’t mix it with a human’s name.” Mira gritted her teeth.

“Do you hate humans?” Mireille couldn’t help but ask.

“I hate them. I hate them so much that I want to tear them apart.” Mira ground out her words.

“Isn’t the leader of this town a human as well? Do you hate Fujiwara too?” The princess continued her questions.

“......” Mira became silent for a while, and left the room.

Mireille stared at the sliding door where Mira had left from for a while. Eventually, she closed her eyes and started to meditate once more.

The next day, as well as the following day, Mireille talked to Mira. She didn’t know why she was so interested in Mira. But strangely, since she had started talking to Mira, Mireille’s body stopped becoming weaker.

“I lost everything.” Mireille mumbled.

“Are you in the position to say that after taking everything from us beastmen?” Mira sneered.

“You had something taken from you too?” The princess asked.

“Yes. You guys were the ones who robbed me of my land and my mother.” The beastwoman stated.

“Is that so? So this time, it’s our turn, huh?” Mireille said to herself.

Mira did not answer. She want to say that she deserved it, but she did not do so. Then, Mira left with the tableware as per usual.

When Mira left, Mireille did not do anything anymore. She simply closed her eyes again, and just thought about another person’s death.