Chapter 12: Grancel Castle

As always Giliath demands your power stones!

*

"Are you ready to meet your Grandmother, Naoto?", Giliath declared, smiling at me. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. I'm pretty sure father meant every single word he just uttered to me.

Now there's the Giliath I knew. He really did have an ulterior motive. I wouldn't necessarily call this a bad one, but no doubt is he keeping this a secret from mother.

Sure enough, I have a Grandmother. Any sort of doubt I had about this matter was torn to shreds. I knew I recognized my shade of violet hair from somewhere. I really am related to THEM...

I didn't let that thought get to me. Just what sort of bastard child am I? The blood that is running through me...

Shaking that aside, I just glanced back up at Giliath. He saw my initial surprise, but it soon turned to doubt. This doubt wasn't targeted at the blood running through me, but doubt at the current situation.

"Will they even let us inside, dad?", I asked. Hearing that, Giliath laughed.

"Hahaha! I have my ways, son. It is a bit of a walk to Grancel Castle. Will you by fine walking the entire way, or do you want me to carry you?", Giliath questioned. We needed to cross around half of East Block and all of North Block to reach Grancel Castle. It was a bit of a walk, but I think I still had some energy to spare. Playing with Elie was a lot of fun, but I don't think I'm that tired yet.

"I think I'm okay!", I replied in confidence.

"Good. Make sure to stick to me. There's many festivities going on to celebrate life, so the swarms of people will follow. We're in another country's capital. It is very easy to get lost.", Giliath said, latching onto my hand again. I nodded my head, assuring him that I wouldn't wander around at all.

We might even catch Henry and Elie again having fun enjoying the festivities later. I'm sure we'll be able to explore around a tiny bit before the funeral takes place tomorrow, as father stated. As we began walking I saw father look back down at me, and spoke out.

"And you better stick with Henry's granddaughter, Naoto. She'll become quite an influential figure in the future, especially if Henry wins the mayoral election. That was a nice surprise to walk in on.", Giliath said, reminding me.

"...?", I replied, feigning ignorance at the matter, and only shot confusion out of my eyes. I tilted my head, acting like I didn't know what Giliath was talking about, but I very well knew. He's trying to set me up. Connections really go a long way, especially if it concerns politics and the military. Political marriages are huge here in Zemuria. Most nobles typically have their lives laid out without much say in the matter.

Or let's say, you just happen to be part of some random noble bloodline you had no clue until finding out just a moment ago.

Do I need to spell it out?

We're about to meet the one person who holds the highest authority here in all of Liberl. Her Majesty the Queen, Queen Alicia II.

Or in other words.

My Grandmother.

Despite being two blocks over, the walk was quite enjoyable. The structures here were very opaque and silvery. It had this certain ancient charm. Unlike other countries, this place held quite the historic value, and wasn't destroyed in the process. It has a long, running history of 1200 years. Whereas Heimdallr was once destroyed and reconstructed into its vermillion splendor that is seen today, thanks to what happened in what are called, the Black Records. I'm sure Heimdallr had a vastly different appearance before that dark dragon ran rampant across the city.

Here, you could see the history behind the buildings that stood here. But it was a nice sight to see nonetheless. While we did have to cross two blocks, the distance wasn't all that long, actually.

We reached our destination before noon struck. Before I realized it, a gigantic drawbridge came into view. This castle was built similarly to moats, but there was just one big difference. All around Grancel Castle was a natural body of water, Lake Valeria.

"Wow...", I uttered, taking in this grandiose sight. I'm sure Valflame Palace gives off similar vibes due to its size, but this place was huge! There were even two giant doors that separated us, and what was going on inside Grancel Castle. I could see an open courtyard on its higher floors further inside.

There was a reason why Grancel Castle was one of the only few structures that was impenetrable during the Hundred Days War. Not once did it collapse during the war, which eventually became a temporary headquarters for the Royal Army.

"Grancel Castle is quite imposing up front indeed. I've only been here on business a couple times, but this atmosphere never chances. The wakes of the lake beneath make it rather serene.", Giliath said, taking in the sights before him. I was also admiring the sight before me.

Will I strut along the inside of this ancient castle one day?

I saw a sole tower further up, which is where I assumed the private quarters of Her Majesty the Queen rested. I saw a couple guards, likely part of the Royal Army as I saw they were clad in green uniforms, patrolling the castle. The Captain held a Rapier at their waist while the rest of his squad held orbal rifles.

All of a sudden, the two of us heard a loud, screeching noise reach our ears. Loud flapping noises followed after.

"Schree~ Schree~", The voice called out, appearing to belong to a bird. It sounded rather happy. A fast shadow swooped downward, and circled above us for a few moments.

"Schree?", The bird asked, which appeared to be a white falcon of sorts. As if deciding on something, the falcon locked eyes with me. The falcon saw its target and I saw it arrive right above my head. It gently latched its claws on it, and began nestling its head against mine.

"Ahaha, stop that!", I said in response, feeling a bit ticklish seeing the bird suddenly do this. I know this bird.

"Oh?", Giliath responded,, watching this scene play on. It didn't take long for the large doors to crack open and have a couple soldiers rush out. One of them had an apologetic look in their eyes. She seemed to be a female officer, holding a higher rank than the guards around her.

"I-I'm very sorry about that! It isn't often Sieg flies out on his own like that. He's still a falcon in training. Sieg, you should know better than to cause trouble on our citizens---?", The woman tried to say as she arrived before us. I felt no danger from the white falcon, so I just let him do what he wanted.

Once she got close enough, she landed her eyes on me, spotting a young boy sporting pure violet indigo hair. She just blinked at me, even going as far as to rub her eyes with her hands.

"A-Are my eyes playing tricks on me?"

I observed the woman before me. She was quite young, almost is if she had just finished military school. I could easily tell she was part of the Royal Guard. She appeared to have a rank of Second Lieutenant. Later on during the Trails in the Sky games, she would be promoted to Captain. She had short green hair, and held a rather unique weapon, a Rapier.

Second Lieutenant Julia Schwarz, a popular side-character during Trails in the Sky. She played a major part during the coup d'état incident. She was much younger here, hence the lower rank.

"Is there a problem, Second Lieutenant Schwarz? You know Her Majesty isn't permitting guests right now into the castle. What made you so dazed all of a sudden---?", A second voice called out, appearing to belong to a young man. A second soldier whose rank was higher than Julia's came into view, sporting blonde hair. My mind paused seeing this figure.

Time seemed to have slowed down once I locked gazes with this man.

Future Colonel Alan Richard, the main figure behind said coup d'état. Right now, he held the rank of Captain.

"I-Impossible! This child looks just like the late Crown Prince when he was little...!", Captain Richard exclaimed in shock.

Captain Richard likely didn't know the Crown Prince back then, considering he was just a tiny kid himself. Captain Richard is around twenty years old now. Hearing this shock, Giliath showed a huge grin on his face. Father acted as if he had expected to see such a sight since we arrived here.

"Nothing is impossible, Captain.", Giliath said. He then ignored Captain Richard, only to shift his gaze up to the open balcony. My eyes also shifted upward, causing the soldiers nearby to pause in their tracks. A sole, aged woman calmly walked up to it, revealing herself for the first time.

She was wearing a royal ornate navy blue dress and had faded lavender hair. She carried a reddish-purple shawl around her arms. Seeing this figure appear, Giliath smiled.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, Your Majesty the Queen.", Giliath said, bowing his head at her.