Chapter 20 - Remember Death (2)
The next day during drill training, Ernest tried to spot the young Baltracher cadet who had been dragged away the day before.
However, the boy wasn't present for the drill, and the look of fear on the other Baltracher cadets' faces had only grown more pronounced.
"At least you won't have to be the flag bearer, right?"
Robert remarked as soon as they arrived at the training ground, noticing how Ernest's gaze immediately swept over the Baltracher cadets.
"I don't really want to, anyway."
Ernest replied evenly.
In truth, Ernest had wanted to be the flag bearer so his father could see him during the city parade.
But knowing all too well the sorry state of his own concentration, he realized it was impossible—and even if he did become the flag bearer, there was no telling what kind of disastrous mistake he might make.
He figured it was best not to try.
As they continued their drill training, Ernest observed his surroundings with a broader view than he had the previous day.
Soon enough, he realized that cadets from other years were watching the first-years very closely as well.
Naturally, the one drawing the most attention was Wilfried, the fourth son of Duke Ravid.
News of the Duke's son enrolling in the academy had caused quite a stir, and there wasn't a single person who didn't know who the striking first-year boy with golden blond hair and blue eyes was.
'They're really staring…'
And next, the first-year cadet attracting the second-most attention was none other than Ernest himself. He could feel the eyes on him, most belonging to the third- and fourth-year senior students. Not much time had passed since the notorious incident right after the entrance ceremony, when a seemingly crazed first-year cadet had singlehandedly wrecked the Cadet Corps. It was too soon for the upperclassmen to lose interest in him.
What Ernest didn't know yet was that the training instructors in charge of the mock battle training were also talking about the "Mad Dog" Thomas and the first-year cadet he'd singled out as a stand-out: Ernest Krieger.
Unlike Wilfried, who was drawing attention simply for being the Duke's son, Ernest was being noticed purely for his own abilities.
Wasn't that, in its own way, even more impressive?
Smashing up the Cadet Corps was, by no stretch of the imagination, a good thing.
That afternoon, they attended another Military Science lecture. Fortunately, Thomas gave a standard lecture today, just like usual.
Later, during the evening free time, Ernest was startled when he saw the other first-year cadets riding their horses somewhere.
"Oh, I forgot."
Enough time had passed since their admission that the first-year cadets were now allowed to bring their horses onto the academy grounds.
Ernest had meant to ask Haires to send Drek when he wrote to him.
But, owing to his unfortunate lack of focus, he'd completely forgotten, and the letter in which he asked for the favor had probably only been sent this morning, after being requested last night.
"What did you forget?"
"My horse. I need to ask my father to send him…"
"Oh, right! I need to tell them to send my horse too!"
"Not that you can actually ride."
"It's fine—you, Teacher Ernest, will teach me, so I have nothing to worry about."
"..."
"…You will teach me, right?"
Ernest just gave Robert, who had been teasing a little too much lately, a vague smile and said nothing. In the end, only after Robert solemnly swore not to tease the great Teacher Ernest ever again and to faithfully follow his teachings did Ernest agree to teach him how to ride.
"To think a friend would go this far…"
"You're the one who made your friend go this far…"
Ernest and Robert clicked their tongues at each other.
Annoyed, they started poking and shoving each other for no reason, which quickly escalated into an all-out pillow fight.
"Argh! I surrender! I surrender!"
As the battle intensified, Ernest—clearly superior in both strength and technique—managed to snatch Robert's pillow away, leaving him defenseless and at Ernest's mercy.
In the end, Robert had no choice but to surrender.
"That's so cruel…"
Robert muttered as if he were genuinely wounded, but Ernest wasn't worried about him. Even now, there was a fire of revenge burning in Robert's eyes; he was surely already plotting to tease and hassle Ernest again with that ever-running mouth of his.
Ignoring Robert's grumbling, Ernest considered writing another letter to his father to ask for his horse, Drek, to be sent.
After a long bout of deliberation, Ernest ultimately decided not to send the letter. He didn't want his father to find out that, despite saying in his last letter that he was doing well, managing everything, and working hard, he had made such a trivial mistake.
Instead, he would casually mention Drek to his father at the Founding Declaration Day party, as if he had deliberately omitted it from his letter.
The Krieger family lived in Grimman, and since mail from cadets at the Imperial Military Academy would never get mixed up with that of commoners, Ernest figured he'd get a quick reply.
However, more than five days had passed since he'd sent his letter, and there was still no response. Ernest was growing anxious.
Could something have gone wrong, and my letter never got delivered? Or did Father perhaps leave Grimman for a while?
"Ferdinand Hartmann! Step forward!"
"Yes, sir!"
While Ernest was lost in thought about his father's reply, Ferdinand, who had been called, responded vigorously and stepped forward. The Disciplinary Officer in charge of drill training handed him the Imperial Military Academy's first-year cadet flag he had been holding.
"Hartmann, on Founding Declaration Day, you'll be the face of the first-year cadets. I trust you won't make any mistakes, but since I'm entrusting you with such a vital task, let me warn you not to slip up. Don't you dare let that flag droop from nerves or hesitation. Hold it high, stand tall, and carry this honor with pride."
"Yes, sir, Disciplinary Officer!"
"A round of applause for Hartmann!"
Clap, clap, clap, clap!
Ferdinand was chosen as the flag bearer. The cadets gave him a rousing round of applause. The most authoritative and handsome first-year cadet was Wilfried, but when it came to strength and flawless drill technique, Ferdinand was second to none among the first years. Naturally, the position of flag bearer belonged to him.
Knowing this, even Wilfried—though a bit disappointed—could join in the applause wholeheartedly.
"······."
Unconcerned with all of that, Ernest, who had given up on becoming the flag bearer from the start, clapped as ordered, but his mind was completely absorbed in thoughts of his father's reply. He grew uneasy as he recalled his father—huddled alone in a dark room, hands clasped tightly in prayer, looking painfully lonely.
Drill training progressed steadily, and by now, hardly any cadets were making mistakes. They had drilled every morning for two weeks—it would be stranger if anyone still messed up at this point.
However, a few of the Baltracher cadets from the Special Training Division were unable to keep up with the drills in the end. They were excused from training and never came back. As a result, only one Baltracher cadet who seemed younger than Ernest remained.
"Hup! Hup! Hup!"
The girl, who looked anywhere from eleven to thirteen years old, bit her lip hard, doing her best to keep up with the marching drills. Ernest, who had been closely observing the Baltracher cadets, noticed that this small, young girl had never once fallen behind or made a mistake during the drills.
Because her hair had been cut short and tied back tightly, her red curls looked like a rabbit's tail. Beneath them, her muddy blue eyes and pale face radiated fierce determination. Ernest, after noting her sharp gaze and stony expression, soon lost interest—he knew there was nothing more he could learn from continued observation.
That afternoon, after training ended, the evening free time arrived. With only five days left until Founding Declaration Day, Ernest finally received the reply from his father he'd been waiting for.
Excited, he rushed almost at a run back to his room, tore open the envelope, and began to read the letter in a hurry.
To Ernest,
I'm relieved to hear you're doing well Sorry for the late reply. I was away from Grimman for a while due to some work. As soon as I returned home and saw your letter, I sat down right away to write you back.
Seeing his father's familiar handwriting, Ernest let out a deep sigh of relief. He couldn't quite explain why he'd been so anxious; after all, there was no reason anything would have happened to Haires.
'It feels to me as though so much time has passed since you entered the academy.
The house feels so quiet and dark without you that it's almost unfamiliar.
I didn't light up the whole house like you did, but I did leave some lights on in the living room and my room because it's rather uncomfortable without any light.'
With a small sigh, Ernest pictured his father lighting candles and lamps, and he let out a quiet chuckle. The moment when Haires, faced with his young son's stubbornness, had finally given in was, for Ernest, the first real memory he had of building something together with his father.
'Ernest, I'd like to tell you to cherish your friendships, but I'm not certain whether that friend of yours, Robert Jimman, will truly be a good influence on you. Since you've been assigned to the same room, you can't simply avoid him, but wouldn't it be wise to keep a bit of distance?'
"Pffft…"
"What's so funny?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
Robert gave Ernest a puzzled look, scanning him up and down like he was a mischievous child, then turned his focus back to his studies. Now, Robert had learned to study even without Ernest having to scold him. Whether or not Robert was a good influence on Ernest was debatable, but at the very least, Ernest could confidently say he was a good influence on Robert.
Ignoring Robert, Ernest grinned and went back to reading the letter.
But soon, Ernest's face turned stiff.
'And as for the Founding Declaration Day party, I'm sorry, but I won't be able to attend. Something came up unexpectedly, so I'll have to leave Grimman again. I only stopped by the house briefly. It looks like I'll be gone for quite a while. I probably won't be back in Grimman until a few days after Founding Declaration Day.'
Ernest stared silently at his father's handwriting. He could sense a hint of hesitation and regret in those words. As he traced that hesitation and regret with his fingertips, he tried to soothe his feelings of disappointment and sadness.
Since Haires would be away from Grimman for all of Founding Declaration Day, he wouldn't even get to see Ernest in the city parade.
With that thought, all his efforts fell apart—his young heart, unable to steady itself, completely plummeted. Even so, Ernest did his best not to show his disappointment as he continued reading the letter.
'But still, since you've already earned three merit points, it looks like you'll be able to go out before summer arrives. You only need to earn two more—so I believe that won't be too difficult for you. Be sure to write to me before you request leave. If we set the date in advance, we can avoid another timing mishap like this, don't you think?'
Leave. At that word, Ernest managed to push aside his disappointment and cheered up again. Now, if he just earned two more merit points for a total of five, he would be allowed to leave the academy. Then, he could see his father in person.
But earning merit points was harder than he thought. At first, the merit points had been handed out freely in the Empire's history lecture, but since then, no one had received any more. And never had they been awarded to the same cadet twice.
If Ernest wanted to collect enough merit points, he would have to work extremely hard.
'It seems you're about to run out of tonic. I'll send word, so you should be able to receive more soon.'
Ernest was almost out of the 'tonic'—his heart medicine. Just yesterday, after taking his dose, he had wondered if he should write another letter to request more, but Haires had pinpointed the timing exactly.
Realizing that his father kept track of not only how much medicine he had left but also when new supplies would be needed, Ernest let out a small smile.
'I believe you will always do your best, and that you will accomplish great things. Write to me whenever you want. I'll be waiting.
Haires.'
Reading the letter, Ernest was able to smile again. But when he read the final note at the very bottom, he pouted in embarrassment.
'P.S. It seems you forgot to ask about Drek. I'll make arrangements, so after you receive this letter, you should have Drek within two days at the latest.'
Haires was not the kind of father to overlook the fact that his son, who loved horseback riding, hadn't asked for his horse to be sent. In fact, given how thorough Haires was, he had probably been waiting for Ernest to finally make the request himself. But since there was no mention of it in his letter, his father immediately realized that his son had made a mistake.
Ernest felt a little embarrassed that his father had caught his slip, but he was also a bit pleased that his father had noticed. That's why, as Ernest neatly folded the letter and put it back into the envelope, the disappointment on his face gave way to joy.
Although he couldn't show his father the city parade on Founding Declaration Day or invite him to the party, he was still satisfied that he had felt his father's affection.
…Well, to be honest, he wasn't completely satisfied, but there was no point in whining about it.
"I'll have my horse within two days at the latest."
"Oh, really?"
Robert's face brightened at Ernest's words.
"That means we'll finally get to learn horsemanship from Teacher Ernest!"
In fact, Robert's horse had already arrived some time ago.
His wealthy father, wanting to make a good impression on the noble young masters, had sent him an absolutely magnificent and imposing stallion.
The problem was that Robert hadn't learned to ride and was actually afraid of horses. The stallion was not only too big and impressive for Robert to handle, but it was also quite temperamental. Sensing its owner's unease, the horse refused to let Robert mount it. Because of this, Ernest hadn't forced Robert to get on the horse—one wrong move and the animal could bolt, causing Robert to fall.
However, Ernest was confident, and since he had excellent riding skills—not to mention an almost uncanny knack for bonding with horses—Robert's stallion, while never letting its owner on its back, allowed Ernest to ride it without any fuss.
"Your name is Bereteranda. It means 'traitor.'"
Robert had named his striking stallion 'Bereteranda,' which meant 'traitor.' Until Ernest's small, gentle gelding Drek arrived, Robert's horsemanship lessons couldn't even begin. But with Drek arriving soon, Robert would finally get the chance to learn to ride.
"Oh, right. So is your father coming?"
Robert, humming cheerfully, asked the question. Ernest shook his head, looking gloomy.
"…No."
"Oh, I see. That means we're both in the same boat, then. At least, the situations are similar, even if the reasons are different. Just like when we first met. And look, there's even a horse between us again, just like back then. I wonder how the horse we rode that day is doing. Well, horses are valuable property, you know. Especially for a coachman, who makes his living from them. I'm sure it's being well cared for. By the way, you said your horse's name is Drek, didn't you? Why did you name him Drek?"
Robert kept chatting away in a jovial tone, trying to lift Ernest's spirits.
"Drek has brown fur, but his legs are a dark, almost black brown. It looks just like he stepped in mud."
"Oh, just like you running through the forest, right?"
"I think he looks more like you, actually—you kept slipping and falling and ended up a complete mess."
"That was all because I was trying my best to follow the great Company Commander Ernest's orders. Unlike Company Commander Ernest over here, who got chewed out for disobeying orders!"
"So if I told you to die, would you do it?"
"If our dear Teacher Ernest became my superior officer, maybe I would. Not that that's ever going to happen!"
"I bet I'll get promoted before you do."
"Well, I'm going to retire the moment I pin on my Second Lieutenant bars, so I won't even give you the chance to outrank me!"
"That's right, I remember now. You coward."
When Ernest grumbled, struggling to keep from laughing, Robert just shook his shoulders and snickered.
Shaking off his gloomy mood, Ernest bantered and joked with Robert for a long time before finally falling asleep as he always did.