The Daughter of Evil - Volume 4 - Chapter 4.12

chapter 4, section 1-the monastery on the seashore; scene 2
Praefacio of Blue, page 235-238

♣ Yukina ~In the Former Lucifenia Territory, “Monastery/Approaching the Front Gate"~

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The Held Monastery was past the bread shop, at the end of a steeply sloped hill path.

Germaine opened up the gates without hesitation while commenting to herself, “Oh my, so this is how it looks”, heading inside. I flusteredly rushed after her. This monastery was built due to my father’s donations, but I had never set foot inside of it until today.

It had been much more intense to climb up the hill path leading here than I’d anticipated, and so as I looked around I was a little out of breath. Inside the grounds, which were not all that large, there were various fields, a storage shed, and two main buildings. One of those buildings was probably the monastery itself. The larger one had a belfry, so it was probably that.

Next to the storage shed, a boy about the same age as me was maintaining some farming tools. He noticed the two of us and came our way with a pout on his face. He was holding a hoe in his right hand.

“Do you have some business here? If you’re here to worship or seeking lodging, then go inside the monastery. The farm is basically off limits to everyone but the monastery members and orphans here.”

Even now, he had a threatening look, as though he was liable to attack us with the hoe. Despite his assertion, the only way to get to the monastery was by cutting through the farm (unless there was some back entrance that we didn’t know about), so his anger towards us seemed a little unreasonable to me.

Germaine seemed to take umbrage with his behavior as well, speaking up in an obstinate tone, “What an attitude to take with guests! Looks like this place doesn’t discipline its children at all.”

“Don’t you speak ill of the sisters! And as for you being guests…What kind of business do you have, and with who!?”

“Uhh, well, that is…what was it again?”

Germaine gave me a sideways glance, as though imploring me for help. I stepped up before the boy.

“We came here to see one of the sisters at the monastery.”

“…Who? Which sister did you come to see? Tell me her name.”

“It’s–”

Right as I started to say her name, I heard someone call the boy’s own name from inside the building.

“Denis! Don’t be so impolite to guests!”

A single nun ran up to us.

She had clear white hair and red eyes. And somehow, she looked to be a little fuller than she had been five years before.

Once she arrived before us, she bowed her head in apology without looking at our faces.

“I’m terribly sorry! He’s really a good boy, but he’s turned a rebellious age as of late–”

Germaine realized who the nun was too. She looked shocked.

“Well this is a surprise. I can hardly believe I’d run into you here, in a place like this…”

At Germaine’s words the nun abruptly looked up, staring into her face.

“Huh? What’s going on here?  Miss Germaine!? What are you doing here?”

Next the nun shifted her gaze to me, beside Germaine. But she seemed to not know who I was at first, just looking me over with a puzzled expression for a moment.

That was understandable. I had been only nine years old, five years ago. I was a lot taller now, and I figured that my countenance was a little bit more grown-up.

There was the me in her memories, and the me before her eyes now. It appeared as though the two images gradually became one inside her mind, as I could see her red eyes quickly filling with tears. And then it was the both of us that were on the verge of crying.

Unable to bear it any longer, I ran into her arms and hugged her as hard as I could. She gently patted me on the head, just as she had when we’d parted five years before.

“…You’ve become quite big, young miss Yukina.”

I cried loudly, not caring what people around us thought.

“I wanted to see you so much, Clarith…!”