The Distant Trail Of Ciara Badvia

The Saria Magic Academy
Part 5: Secret Revealed

TELLING VANILLA EVERYTHING

“Let’s avoid places with people for now,” Vanilla said as she led Tyril by hand. “How about… yeah, the art room should be empty at this time. I’ll take you there.”

Tyril followed her in a daze, not paying attention to where they were going. When she recovered, she found herself somewhere unfamiliar—the rear of some school building. Right next to the about five-meter-high wall that separated them from the royal castle stood a quaint and lonely small, wooden cabin.

She entered as directed, and the smell of paint instantly hit her nose. Inside the cabin were not more than a dozen easels, five of which had half-finished paintings set on top.

Usually, Tyril would take more interest in her surroundings, but she wasn’t in the right state of mind at the moment.

“The place is a mess, but for now, just sit here. I’ll make us some tea.” Vanilla entered a door that went further back the cabin and returned shortly, two cups of warm herbal tea and a plate of biscuits on hand.

“So, that person from earlier,” she began, “it didn’t seem like you knew each other. Do you have any idea who he is?”

Vanilla posed her question carefully as she placed the tea in front of Tyril, whose thoughts were still racing. She hadn’t yet recovered from today’s excitement or steadied her trembling body.

She warmed her hands with the teacup. “Um, you see… I have no idea. He was a complete stranger, so I don’t understand why he suddenly said all that…” Her gaze fell on its surface; it rippled slightly, obscuring her reflection.

“First off, was what he said true? You actually are her daughter?”

“Well… yes. It’s true. I think.”

“You think?”

Maybe I shouldn’t have said that. Her true feelings leaked out of her heart as if they had a will of their own. Not tacking in a “probably” for this sort of conversation would have brought it to a smoother end.

“Well, you see, I hardly know anything about my mother. As far as I remember, it was just my father and me. I met a childhood friend who moved close by when I was young, but it was also just him and his mother. Me and my father, my childhood friend and his mother—we lived in different homes, but it felt like a family, in a way.”

“Right… Now that I think about it, didn’t Badvia go missing right after the war ended?”

“Mm-hmm. My father… he only ever told me that my mother had passed away. As far as I’m concerned, my childhood friend’s mother was my mother, too. I never thought to question it until I grew up.

“Then about five years ago, my father also said he was going on a journey and left for… somewhere. He entrusted me to my childhood friend’s family, and I started getting raised like I really was one of them. My friend and I—we were basically real siblings.

“Since my father left home, he’s never come back, but he does send a letter once every two months. The letters are all trivial and I don’t really know anything important, but because those letters never stopped coming, I always believed he and I were connected.”

Like an unraveling diary, Tyril opened up and slowly recounted her past.

She didn’t have to reveal so much, she knew. But once the dam broke, her words flowed nonstop. Is it because it’s Vanilla? But this isn’t something I’ve shared even with Misty…

“Then… when did you find out you’re Badvia’s daughter?” Vanilla asked.

“About a week before I entered the academy. Well—my childhood friend—he’d gone on his own journey by then, and I was starting to feel like everyone around me was going to leave me alone. That’s also when an envoy from the castle came saying that I was Ciara Badvia’s daughter and asking whether I wanted to study magic here. And I did. I wanted to study at the academy and become a respectable mage, so here I am.”

Vanilla sighed, sounding somehow distant. “I see…”

A brief silence followed. The warm herbal tea was cooling down in their hands.

“Sorry for asking so many questions. I didn’t realize you came here with complicated circumstances…”

“It’s not you who should be apologizing. It should be me instead for not saying anything until now. I didn’t think it was something I should go around telling people.”

“Yeah, that makes sense. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have pried at all…”

With the apology returned, the rally continued. Seeing no end in sight to this, Tyril decided to remain silent and turn her thoughts elsewhere, like who that person earlier was. The stranger who addressed her by her name and knew her secrets—secrets she shouldn’t be sharing with anyone. As she pondered this, her anxiety morphed into fear.

“Are you thinking about him?” Vanilla asked.

Tyril wondered how she knew, then it dawned on her that she’d been tightly hugging herself. Her friend must have seen right through her. “I’m just feeling a bit scared…”

“Yeah, I get it. He suddenly came out of nowhere and started talking. It’s kind of suspicious.”

“I wonder what I should do…”

Vanilla let out a soft hum. Her voice reassured Tyril ever so slightly.

“For now, I think it might be a good idea to make friends in your other classes,” she suggested with a cheerful tone, wagging her finger and offering a slight smile. “I can’t always be by your side, so having people who know your situation and are willing to act with you is going to be reassuring. And I’ll be there for you as much as I can.”

It was clear she was speaking lightly to ease her worries. Tyril deeply appreciated her efforts, but it did not shake off her anxiety. Making friends wasn’t easy; if it were, she would be friends with that person a long time ago.

Eventually, the raging sea that was her emotions started growing still. Tyril took a huge gulp of her tea, audibly swallowing, and felt a sharp pain in her upper chest.

“I’ll be careful… That’s all I can do for now.” Tyril rose and forced a bright smile on her face. “I should go too. Thank you, Vanilla; I feel more at ease. I’ll go to my mentor’s office before afternoon classes start to talk about today.”

“Oh, yes, that might be a good idea.”

Vanilla nodded, trying to encourage Tyril with a warm smile of her own. That lifted her spirits.

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MTL/N: I’m unsure whether “I always believed he and I were connected.” is actually correct. The JP is “でも私は、その手紙が途切れずにずっと届いてくれるから、お父さんとはずっとつながっているんだって、信じてこられたんです” where “繋がる” could also mean “to be related” as in by blood (according to a JP dictionary, that is).

So… it might also be that Tyril is saying that she’s confident that Yuis is her real father, because he’s diligently updating her on his life—certainly not something he would do if he weren’t. That’s half the reason I’m doubting I’m correct. The other half is “he and I were connected” sounds super awkward to my ears.

For more from the author, visit:

Narou: https://mypage.syosetu.com/1258514/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/inui_takafumi

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Glossary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_D4XF1ID8j7zti3pG-fqtcd0h0T9aZHK_CXsCrr5gwY/edit?usp=sharing
Revisions: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jS9QeSLaJfl6P_-Gl-zAY0dnKPep3or9fUl-HPukc9g/edit?usp=sharing