Slayers: Volume 4

Crash! I fell over in my chair.

"H-Hey, Lina! What's wrong with you?!"

"What happened?"

"...Nothing..."

I picked myself up, trying my darndest to look unaffected. The truth was that I'd met the king's heir before, and... Well, we could save that story for another time. No need to burst Sylphiel's bubble.

"S-So just to be sure, Sylphiel... you told your relatives when you'd be arriving, right?" I asked, forcing a change in subject.

"Y-Yes. I contacted them via the courier at Kanon City earlier."

"And you're gonna work at one of the temples around here now?" I went rapid-fire on the questions to keep her from asking any herself.

"I certainly hope so. The truth is, my uncle serves as both a local priest and magical doctor. But I don't wish to be a burden, so I'd very much like to find work for myself. Granted, given the state of the city right now, I don't know how easy that will be..."

"Hey, once things calm down a little, I'm sure you'll be able to do anything you want."

Whew! Disaster conversation avoided!

"There. That building with the brown roof," Sylphiel said, pointing.

We were now in the center of the city, near the palace, on the kind of big avenue that would ordinarily be overflowing with stalls and sightseers, but, owing to the times, was currently only populated by a few odd stragglers. The air was so still we could even smell the little flowers blooming along the lane.

Down the way, I could see the high walls that encircled the palace. The house Sylphiel indicated was to our right. It wasn't especially large, but it seemed like a nice place. Well built. Needless to say, it was where Sylphiel's relatives lived.

She glanced back at me, then turned her eyes to Gourry.

"Um... would you please accompany me?" she asked meekly.

"Oh, uh, sure," Gourry answered, scratching at his cheek as he cast a glance in my direction.

"Yeah, we should go say hi to your relatives," I said.

Our job was only to make sure she got to the city, and she'd paid us in advance. There would have been no hard feelings if we split ways here. But I knew Sylphiel had to be nervous since she didn't know these relatives of hers all that well. Besides, it would be better if Gourry and I were there to explain how she'd ended up in this mess in the first place... seeing as we were sorta responsible for it.

And so we passed through the property gate together. Sylphiel rapped the wolf head door knocker a few times, then waited. No answer.

"Could they be out?" she asked, her head cocked to the side as she reached for the knocker again.

It was then we at last heard the sound of someone stirring inside. A few moments later, a middle-aged man cracked the door open and peeked out. Despite the streaks of white in his hair, he didn't look especially old. His face was keen and wary... but his expression changed the moment he laid eyes on Sylphiel.

"Oh! Sylphiel!" he exclaimed, immediately all smiles as he threw the door open wide.

"It's been a long time, Uncle Grey," she responded with a smile.

"It certainly has. My goodness, you were a child the last time I saw you... What a beautiful young lady you've become! Anyway, do come in. Let's not stand around-" His friendly demeanor suddenly turned suspicious when he laid eyes on me and Gourry. "Who are these people?"

Sylphiel looked back at us in turn and replied, "Oh, meet Mistress Lina and Master Gourry. They helped me in Sairaag and protected me on the way here."

"In that case... thank you." Master Grey continued to stand there in the entrance, a troubled expression on his face. He didn't seem particularly happy to see us. Granted, to him, we probably looked like your average mercenary drifters. "I really must compensate you for your trouble."

"No, she's given us enough already, honestly," I said awkwardly.

"They were involved in the incident in Sairaag with me," Sylphiel interjected. "I thought perhaps they could explain what happened."

"I... I see."

With that, Master Grey craned his neck around the inside of the house, looking strangely unsettled.

Hmm... getting some real unwelcoming vibes here...

"Well, I suppose we could go to a local cafe..." he muttered.

"Uncle..." Sylphiel said, almost pleadingly.

She was frowning, clearly displeased with this turn of events. I took the opportunity to step in.

"No, don't trouble yourself. We just wanted to introduce ourselves, but you seem rather busy. We'll be taking our leave, then..."

"Mistress Lina!" Sylphiel objected.

"No, nothing of the sort!" Master Grey declared, looking a little panicked. "It's really nothing, I'm just... Oh, I know! The house is rather messy. If you'll just wait here a minute..."

Wait, what was with that "Oh, I know"? Probably best not to read too much into it... the man slammed the door in our faces, and I could hear his footsteps dashing away.

"I wonder what could have possessed him," Sylphiel muttered uncertainly, then rested back against a pillar on the porch.

Some time later, I heard the hasty steps approach again and Master Grey poked his head out of the door once more.

"So sorry for the wait. Do come in," he said, beckoning us in with a slightly strained smile.

Gourry and I exchanged a glance, then shrugged.

"Welcome to our humble abode. Make yourselves right at home," the wife said as she served us tea with a strained smile to match her husband's.

"Thank you for your hospitality," I said as I took a sip.

The three of us had been shown to their parlor.

"Might I ask, where's Tran?" Sylphiel asked Master Grey.

"Oh, my son? He got married a while back. He opened up a magical pharmacy a little way from here, though he still comes to visit from time to time. So, what exactly happened in Sairaag?" he asked, blatantly speeding the conversation along.

"Oh, where should I start? I suppose Mistress Lina should explain," Sylphiel said, suddenly turning the spotlight on me.

Hmm... I guess this went all the way back to how I met Gourry. I'd have to abridge things a little though, or else this was gonna take us all night.

"Let's see. Me, Gourry, and this other guy-"

But just as I started my story...

"You! You're that magical girl!" called a loud, gravelly voice.

I whipped around and-Erk!-I could've dropped dead on the spot. A grubby old man was leaning out of the halfway open door to the next room. He was big and imposing, with a stout build that made him look like an oversized dwarf. He was about forty, bearded, and wearing clothes that seemed a little too small for his frame. If you handed him a crummy weapon and slapped some rusty armor on him, he'd look like your typical bandit.

And yes, I knew him.

"You've met?" Master Grey asked hesitantly.

Sylphiel and her aunt were also looking back and forth between me and the old man repeatedly. Gourry was the only one who seemed completely unfazed by the situation. I knew this wasn't due to any particular generosity of spirit, however. Obliviousness was just kind of his natural state of being.

"Hrmm... Some time ago, yes." The old guy nodded calmly. "She's trustworthy."

"I see," Master Grey said with a big sigh of relief as he leaned back in his chair.

"Er... Uncle?" Sylphiel asked warily. "Just who is this man?"

"Oh, that's... This has to stay quiet, all right?" Master Grey said, righting himself. He then continued in a soft but clear voice, "That is Sir Philionel El Di Saillune, first in line for the throne of the Holy Kingdom of Saillune."

...

"What...?" Sylphiel squeaked, then turned to me creakily. "That's... the... prince?"

I replied with a firm, pained, sympathetic nod, "Yup."

Sylphiel fainted dead away.

Once the introductions were out of the way and I'd finished rehashing what went down in Sairaag, Master Grey's wife finally came downstairs again.

"Oh, Maria. How's Sylphiel faring?" Master Grey asked.

"She's resting peacefully now," she replied with a small smile. "She spent quite a long time tossing and turning, though..."

"I'm sure her exhaustion just caught up with her now that we're here safe and sound," I said.

"Hm, perhaps," Master Grey mused in a strangely aged tone.

Obviously, that was an excuse. She'd actually fainted from shock trying to reconcile the Prince Charming of her imagination with the grungy forty-year-old dude she was just presented with. Not surprising that it was too much for her to take in. She was at a sensitive age, after all.

I'd run into the guy once while he was traveling in disguise, and we'd teamed up to take care of a certain incident... but good grief he was a lot to deal with. I was of course forced to suffer the same rude awakening Sylphiel was...