Chapter 2: A Chat With Leisure

  “I’ll go make us some late breakfast,” Emilia said as she disappeared into the kitchen, rubbing her reddened cheeks.

  It was a particularly nice weekend afternoon. The sky was clear, with no sign of incoming rain or gloom.

  Ernst stared at the few clouds passing above him, watching them slowly drift over the roof of their building.

  After taking in some fresh air, he decided to head back into the bakery.

  The Adlers had a tradition of spending each weekend eating in the small dining area of the store.

  This ritual continued to be upheld by Ernst and Emilia despite their parents no longer being with them.

  “I’ll have the food ready in a few minutes. Just grab some cups for the coffee and wait at the table,” Emilia shouted from the kitchen.

  After grabbing a few mugs from behind the counter, Ernst made his way to a table where the daily newspaper lay on the surface. Taking a seat, his eyes sank into the text before him.

  “Tensions Rise Between Gaudner and the Fervian Empire: Prepare for War!”

  “More frequent peace talks have been announced between the eastern and western worlds. Ministers of Fervia wish to negotiate unsettled lands lying between the two nations. Fervia continues to send military forces to occupy unofficial territory—”

  Ernst let out a deep sigh as his eyes traced the newspaper.

  What should we do if war actually breaks out…

  Since the passing of their parents, Emilia and Ernst had only each other. Despite being only a few years older than him, Emilia had been forced into the role of an adult at a very early age.

  She had no time to indulge in the pleasures most young women her age enjoyed. Though striking in appearance, she had rejected many suitors over the years, her duties as a sister taking precedence.

  As her brother, Ernst felt responsible for protecting her sister from potential danger.

  As the man of the house, he felt a great responsibility to ensure that everything was run as closely as his late father would want it to.

  If any indicator of war were to reveal itself, Ernst would immediately take his sister and run off to the larger Eidenshire Empire. Although further out, the colonies overseas would also be a suitable option.

  Bauner resided on the coast of Gaudner, farthest from any direct threat posed by their aggressive neighbours. It had been declared the capital roughly two hundred years ago due to its accessibility to the ocean, which allowed easy overseas trade. Yet for centuries, tension had simmered between the eastern and western countries, with frequent disputes over the upperlands that had remained unclaimed for the past three hundred years.

  What had once been a thriving nation was now left in ruin. Through Gaudnarian public education, Iscalvia was taught as a peaceful land of barons and nobles from various factions. Textbooks recorded that its people had been slaughtered by invaders from a rival nation. The mansions and castles of high-ranking nobles and kings were destroyed, and even the common folk were not spared. Traces of blood, scorch marks, and the etchings of sharp steel were evident in buildings across the nation.

  With an unwillingness to risk losing military power, Eidenshire, Gaudner, and Fervia all avoided expanding their empires into Iscalvia. Legends would tell of large creatures that had overrun the land in the absence of sovereignty. However, many of these reports would come from sailors or travellers who would stray too close to the borders of the perpetual land of ice.

  Parents would tell such stories of Iscalvia’s monsters to keep their children in line. Ernst, however, considered this distasteful, seeing it as a cruel way to antagonize an entire nation merely to discipline a child.

  With their homeland in ruins and fraught with danger, the few surviving citizens of Iscalvia migrated outward intoneighbouringg countries.

  Many argue that the gods were involved in this incident, citing the lack of evidence of an attack. Yet it seems implausible that hundreds of thousands of people could simply vanish. It is more likely that the residents of the country perished due to famine or natural causes.

  Contemporary nations even provided historical records to confirm their noninvolvement. The western continent overseas would have had no reason to attack Iscalvia. Some speculate that the monsters themselves may have been former citizens of the nation.

  Iscalvia should be rich in resources with lumber, precious metals, and fertile land as its main attractions. However, the country has remained largely uninhabitable due to its harsh climate, vast landmass, and, of course, the various creatures said to roam it.

  Leading religious figures blamed the wrongdoings on the last king of Iscalvia. Even so, the last king was known to be an altruistic leader who cared deeply for his people.

  As for wanderers who venture into Iscalvia today, most believe they are more likely to be robbed or killed by savage nomads—who somehow survive in the area—than to fall victim to monstrous beings. Sailors avoid those waters, deterred by irregular storms and waves that seem almost alive, though tales of creatures lurking in the surrounding seas persist.

  The harsh weather makes it difficult for settlers to take root, with a relentless cold tormenting the land and the sparse life that still struggles to survive.

  This was a world of fallen kingdoms, mysterious in origin yet known through scattered records.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Ernst let his mind wander through a jumble of thoughts as he waited for brunch.

  Chk chk.

  Looking up from the newspaper, his stomach growled at the sight of steam rising from his favourite daily staple.

  Two toasted Gaudnarian sweet buns, halved and topped with cheese and fried eggs, made the perfect start for anyone living in Bauner. On the side lay two pieces of crisp bacon, their edges glistening with residual grease from the heated fat.

  The mingling aromas of toasted bread and cooked meat made Ernst salivate; he had skipped dinner the previous night.

  Sensing her brother’s growing impatience, Emilia spoke up, “Make sure to give thanks first.”

  Now sitting across from him, both siblings clasped their hands together and bowed their foreheads briefly. In unison, they uttered in a small tone,

  “Praise be to tLordrds.”

  After giving thanks to a deity he had no faith in, Ernst wedged two pieces of bacon between the eggs and sweet bread.

  He then began to stuff his mouth with nearly half of the entirety of his meal.

  “You eat like a savage. Have some manners,” Emilia glanced at her brother with disgust.

  As she watched her brother wolf down his plate, she carefully poured some coffee into his mug.

  “Can’t help it, I haven’t eaten since yesterday afternoon,” Ernst muffled with food in his mouth.

  Finishing his chewing, Ernst was hit with a realization. “By the way, your birthday is coming up in a few weeks, isn’t it? Is there anything you want to do in particular?”

  “I’m satisfied with the company of the two of us alone. I don’t want anything special,” Emilia said frivolously while sipping some of her coffee.

  Ernst already had a strong inkling of Emilia’s answer. Regardless, he still had some false hope that she would answer otherwise. The young man already knew that her sister was regularly busy and tended to be preoccupied with running the bakery.

  Surely there’s something she wants. A dress? Some jewelry? A vacation to the countryside? It’d be easier if she could just relax and act like other women her age, damnit! Ernst thought to himself as his eye twitched.

  “Find a good job, and I’ll be satisfied with that,” Emilia spoke, breaking the short silence while eating modestly.

  That isn’t much of a gift either!

  In previous years, Ernst was faced with similar problems while finding gifts for his sister. Each attempt at providing her with a sincere gift was met with immediate rejection.

  One year, he had bought her a necklace that held a pendant. He had put a lot of thought into buying the gift, as he imagined his sister fitting a picture of their parents or a potential lover within the little slot. Despite his efforts, he was immediately asked to get a refund.

  “That’s more of a responsibility on my part…” Ernst responded sheepishly.

  Emilia let out a sigh.

  “The sooner our family debt is paid off, the sooner we can relax a bit more.”

  Ernst could not argue with her on that matter. While their debt was close to being paid off, they still had a few more years to go. The average lower-middle-class household gathered about 2,000 Eidenshire markings a year. The Adler family’s bakery would rake in approximately 1,20marksgs a month in profit. Regardless, their debt still amounted to over 4,000 markings. Although they were meeting each monthly payment, they felt like they were barely scraping by.

  Inconsistent sales at the bakery made determining their monthly profits both a stressful and daunting task.

  “Fine then. But as soon as this debt is settled, we’re going on a trip to the countryside.”

  “Okay,” Emilia said plainly.

  With suspicion in his eyes, Ernst spoke, “You won’t have any reason to reject any future birthday gifts either.”

  “Okay.”

  “You’ll start looking for a spouse as well. You’re not getting any younger. The older you get, the more irritable you’ll become. At this rate, you’ll become some sort of hideous monster as you continue to develop such unladylike behaviours,” Ernst declared shamelessly.

  “...”

  As Ernst made his bold proclamation, he could sense an emerging danger in front of him in the form of a 163-centimetre woman.

  “For a person who just graduated with a degree in philosophy, you’re fairly careless, aren’t you?” the disturbed young lady said in a restrained tone.

  In a panic, Ernst immediately stood from his seat with his hands waving in front of him. “Wait! I only meant it for the sake of your well-being! Objectively, you are getting older — technically, we all are, so I’m not just limiting this mortality problem to you! You also have plenty of time to look for love, you’re still in your bright mid-20s after all!”

  Then, he spotted his sister’s refined hand inching toward the newspaper he had just been reading. The young lady rolled up the piece of paper into a rod-like shape and tapped it lightly against the palm of her other hand.

  “Since a fist isn’t any good at waking up your groggy brain, maybe a weapon will,” Emilia said as she slowly walked around the table.

  “This doesn't help with what I just said!”

  The legs of his chair screeched as he faltered in a backward motion.

  Upon hearing those words, the young lady immediately charged forward with her weapon in hand and whacked the defender.

  “...”

  Of course, as usual, no real damage was dealt.

  The young man stood still, accepting his punishment for his careless words.

  I really have to get better at reading the room. Although she is my sister, I don’t want this foolery to spread to any job prospects.

  Sighing inwardly, he contemplated his carelessness.

  Upon realizing the finality of her barrage of reprimand, Ernst spoke carefully, “I’ll wash the dishes today as well.”

  “That sounds like a wonderful idea, I’ll start clearing up the counter for tomorrow then,” Emilia said with a satisfied look.

  Taking advantage of Ernst's inability to read social cues has been another age-old tradition within the Adler household. To get out of any hard work or punishment, Emilia merely utilized Ernst’s poor wording and rash behaviour to cover her flaws.

  Although twisted, she made sure to make it up to Ernst in subtle ways.

  Of course, Ernst was fully aware of his own shortcomings as well.

  While he enjoyed teasing his sister, he merely got too carried away at times. Regardless, he did not mind being of help in this underhanded manner.

  As the two siblings began to clear the table, Ernst asked again, “Once we finish paying off our debt, and if we had the money, where would you want to move?”

  “I already told you, I’m satisfied with life as it is,” Emilia responded with a different tone from before.

  Despite her voice sounding initially blunt while responding to his previous question of a similar nature, her current demeanour was softer.

  “...”

  “Although mom and dad are gone, the debt we have left isn’t so bad…”

  Ernst remained silent as he carefully listened to his sister.

  “One day you’ll get a good job, find a beautiful wife, and have a family of your own. With the Lord’s blessing, I may very well experience those sorts of happiness too.” The small lady froze up while piling their dishes.

  “But, until then, right now we are each other’s family,” Emilia continued to ramble.

  Rather than making his usual insensitive comments, Ernst gently took the dishes from his sister's hand and piled them into his arms.

  “...”

  “You’re right, we are family,” he said with his eyes fixed on the dishes, making sure to avoid eye contact with his sister.

  As he disappeared into the kitchen, Emilia quietly smiled while continuing to prepare the bakery for the next day.