North x Northwest

Chapter 369

Chapter 369

Previous

Extra’s Chapter 369

Extra 2: Malus beach

[ “Sesbron Newspaper, July Issue No. 23.*

Two nights ago, a passenger ship carrying about 50 people sank due to a shell explosion off the coast of the Gulf of Gardel. This accident appears to have resulted in the death of Liloa Obernyu, a wanted person whom the authorities are keen to apprehend. It is an open secret that the Council is keeping a close eye on her movements. Although the passenger list was filled with false names, authorities confirmed that one of the passengers was Liloa Obernyu. It was not confirmed whether her lover, former marquess and current professor at the Clairaut, Edgar Retiro, was with her. However, his whereabouts are unknown, so the authorities classify him as missing. Other famous personalities included in the fatalities are…” ]

Grinning, Ed lowered yesterday’s newspaper.

“…Really?”

Lil, lying on the bow of a small yacht, muttered with her eyes closed.

“…How many times will they kill me?…”

Getting blinded by the sunlight, she picked up her hat. The sails of the yacht were all set, but their shadows didn’t reach where she was. Ed watched silently as Lil placed her short-brimmed hat on her face. He watched her until he was sure she was completely asleep.

From three days ago until last night, they didn’t sleep a wink. It began when they had to escape from a sinking ship due to an explosion followed by a fire. And to avoid the eyes of the authority’s army pursuing them, they had to find a ship in a run-down harbour and flee immediately. It was at that point that they realised the explosion was no accident, and they couldn’t relax until the city’s coast was out of sight. They both were exhausted from staying up all night to keep watch.

Soon, Ed fell asleep as well.

When he woke up, he looked around reflexively, but all he saw was a solid horizon that didn’t allow the establishment of any civilization.

As he raised his upper body, the hat he was wearing fell onto the deck.

The yacht that came a long way into the Gulf of Gardel Bay, off the southern coast of the Central Continent, parted the calm waves.

‘Truth be told, sailing to Malus in this small boat is close to impossible. But with Liloa onboard it suddenly becomes a possibility. To be precise, it’s due to the blessing given to her.’

Ed came to that conclusion after experiencing years of goodluck.

‘…The blessing of Orsay, the goddess of the sea… It’s said that the ancient people who received the blessings of ancient mermaids survived any storm that came their way and safely returned to land*. Even for those who were unconscious, those who had no choice but to rely on a raft, and for those who would hopelessly adjust their sails in a place with no wind, their boats would be safely anchored on land…’

However, Ed’s reasoning went further than that.

‘Three days ago, when we were floating in the sea near a sinking ship, a vague streamlined body carried us. I guess it was either a whale shark or a mermaid… Even though I’m not sure, I know for certain it wasn’t just my imagination. And considering our luck so far, this theory isn’t unfounded at all…

In that sense, like Lil, I, too, am fortunate to be in a place where the sea watches over me. It happened whenever I was injured or lost consciousness. But that’s where the similarities end.

Of course, human effort is still required because injuries can’t heal on their own. Nonetheless, the new government can’t help but despise Liloa Obernyu, who seems to be invincibly reviving one time after another…

It has been years since the Emperor was dethroned and the council took control of state affairs. The sun of the Empire is now the people and all the people are equal. Thus, the traditional aristocratic system was abolished. However, those “all subjects” aren’t truly inclusive of all human lives.

Discrimination and persecution still persist… Because everyone still tries to distinguish themselves from others just to fall within the scope of the “subjects”…’

Ed rubbed his tired eyelids. In that moment, memories that were painful to remember flashed by.

The watery voice in his recollection was still as clear as day.

{ “…This is… this is not how it should be…” }

When they were both still out on sea, Levi tried her best to collect Annette’s body, but there was nothing she could do. Lil sobbed for a long time as she lay down on the fragments of a smashed tombstone where her friend’s remains once lay to rest.

Shouts of victory were heard from down the hill. After the revolution of the anti-imperials, the emperor, who endured for a year and three months, was deposed, and the provisional president took the podium to announce the abolition of the aristocratic system.

{ “…Edgar. This is not the future…” }

As Lil once said, the future was distant. It was then that he slowly came to understand her, who was sad that she couldn’t see it in this lifetime.

Ed exhaled a long breath.

He then stood and grabbed hold of the rigging to adjust the sail. He hoped that this trip to Malus would be a break for them.

‘Liloa needs time to rest.’

***

Before reaching the vicinity of Malus, Lil and Ed changed into the clothes they had prepared to look presentable. Fortunately, no one at the port suspected them as the two looked like mere tourists on a boat trip. Despite the many outsiders coming and going, Malus was a peaceful rural town without the need for security guards to carry out strict inspections.

They easily rented a carriage and rode through the quiet country roads. The open carriage was perfect for admiring the surroundings. The wind was lukewarm and the scenery nothing special, but it put Lil in a good mood.

While Ed was thinking of seizing a suitable day to go out with her to the market, Lil turned to him and asked.

“Did I ever mention to you that I once lived in Malus when I was young?”

“Yes. You did. Until the Archduchess passed away.”

“I still remember that time. When I was young.”

Ed had also stayed in Malus for a while, but since it was just one of his many travel destinations, his memory of it wasn’t as impactful as it was to Lil. She seemed to remember Malus with great fondness.

That was, apparently, until they arrived at the mansion.

Lil, standing in front of the house, had her face crumpled in a way Ed had never seen before. Surprised by her sudden change, he stared at her, but Lil’s expression didn’t change as she carefully surveyed the mansion.

“What’s this?”

Ed answered in confusion.

“…What’s this? It’s a mansion?”

Servants came out, opened the gate, and welcomed them. While Ed was exchanging words with the caretaker, Lil strode away towards some unknown place.

“Where are you going, the front door is open?”

“…”

Ed asked, but it was no use. He added, wondering if she might want to seek the backyard.

“There’s nothing to see in the garden. It has almost completely turned into an orchard.”

‘There… are no flowers, let alone trees, in the back garden. The reason I had acquired this mansion was to grow medicinal herbs in its large, sunny garden…’

After a while, Lil returned from the back and said something he didn’t understand.

“It was you?”

“…What?”

“I’m pissed now.”

“Huh?”

“How annoying.”

“Huh?!”

“…”

Ed was momentarily confused and soon asked a stimulating question.

“After such a long time, what’s suddenly going on?”

He had long been safely eliminating factors that could cause Lil to become irritated. His research was so thorough that he not only never made the same mistake twice, but even prevented potential mistakes. As a result, he hasn’t made Lil angry in recent years.

‘I still remember the countless times she became enraged with me in the beginning of our relationship…’

Recalling that time, Ed smiled to himself.

“Are you laughing?”

Lil widened her eyes before looking back at him sharply. Ed quickly made a straight face.

“…No.”

“…”

“But why are you angry? It’s not like you don’t like the garden.”

‘There’s no preference more distant from Liloa than a well-kept garden, for she loves nature that’s wildly growing and raging. So, what made her angry?’

“You…”

“Shhh…”

Lil tried to say something, but Ed raised his index finger to her lips. He slowly shook his head, horrifying Lil enough to slap his hand away.

‘Her disgusted reactions are always the most amusing.’

“What are you doing?”

“No, don’t ever tell me. I’ll figure it out.”

“Or you don’t…”

Despite her sullen response, Ed just grinned.

“…Hmm, what made her so angry…”

He started singing in a strange tone. Lil turned around without even looking at him and headed back towards the entrance. Ed followed along, constantly bobbing his head.

‘What on earth could it be…’

***

– – – – –

Footnote:

‘…The blessing of Orsay, the goddess of the sea… It’s said that the ancient people who received the blessings of ancient mermaids survived any storm that came their way and safely returned to land…’ = Chapter 99 = This blessing was obviously bestowed by Bellus, the mermaid Lil and Ed saved. It was probably the moment when Bellus placed Lil’s hand on her heart and her hand on Lil’s chest.

[ Sesbron Newspaper, July Issue No. 23. ] = In other chapters we already showed you a map and a portrait which were both part of the hardcopy book of NorthxNorthwest. But that wasn’t all, it also contained a copy of the newspaper and Lil’s wanted poster! We had to be a little creative with Photoshop as the picture with both posters wasn’t the best angle to read. In the end, we managed to straighten both posters. Unfortunately, the newspaper (both the straightened version and the original photo) was barely readable after inserting it in the chapter. Realising the newspaper was more than worth reading, we decided to recreate the newspaper, see below.

Sharp eyes will see the difference between the original newspaper and our recreated one. Just as with the map of the central continent, we decided to change the names to fit your knowledge of the story. Unfortunately, we found those pictures when we were already far advanced with the story. As you may have read in the beginning, due to being inexperienced with translating a novel, we decided to use the names used in the webtoon. A mistake we only discovered later. Apparently, and proved by not only the newspaper or the wanted poster, a lot of names differ from what the author had in mind. We listed a few of the known differences below. (We don’t know why this change was made or if this was done with consulting the author.)

Liloa Obernyu = Lillios Auvergne

Lil Schweiz = Lille Chaise

Venua Obernyu = Benois Auvergne

Archduke Joseph = Grand Duke Joseph

Cesar Lemoine = Decesar Lemoyne

Roahn = Lohan

Sesbron = Cesbron

Imperial Clairaut = Imperial Clerus

– – – – –

Previous