Chapter 4: The Unicorn Hairpin

A week after closing the deal with Chloe's father, Mia went to the Newmoon District to inspect the situation in the infamous slums of the imperial capital. The visit was Mia's own idea, and her sudden proposal had forced Ludwig to hastily put together a small escort of imperial guards. Having been pulled from their regular duties without any prior warning, a couple of the newer guards were grumbling to each other under their breath as they gathered for their assignment.

"I swear, Her Highness can be a real pain in the ass sometimes. Like, seriously, the slums? That place is a shithole. Why does she want to go there, of all places?"

"Yeah, I don't get what there is to see. Unless you just want to watch crime happen, of course. Oh, I guess she wants to go take a look at that hospital she built. Makes it seem less like a popularity stunt, probably. You have to give her some points for giving enough of a damn to actually bother. That's the Great Sage of the Empire for you."

Considering that heads would roll if anything happened to the princess, the guards would much rather have her stay in the castle and mind her own business. It was a lot easier to protect someone who didn't go looking for trouble. The complaining soldiers were admonished, however, by one of the veteran guards who'd accompanied Mia on her first trip to the Newmoon District.

"Hey, quit grumbling, you rookies. And show the princess some respect. I know what you think of them nobles, and you're not wrong, but Her Highness is... different. She's not like them. There'll be no badmouthing her under my watch, got it?"

The veteran guard turned and gazed off into the distance, remembering his first encounter with the princess. In her he saw the courage to step boldly toward wherever duty led, even if it meant entering places where crime ran rampant. He saw in her the compassion to help the children of the street, running her hand through their dirty hair and picking them up despite their sullied clothes. And he saw in her the wisdom to build a hospital in a poor district that so desperately needed it. In other words, his opinion of Mia had suffered the same hyperinflation that Ludwig's had.

Then, as if on cue, Mia arrived on the scene.

"Good day everyone. I very much appreciate your timely arrival on such short notice."

She watched as the guards, who'd been caught slightly by surprise, rushed to arrange themselves and stand at attention. The sight of their orderly formation brought a warm smile to her lips. During the revolution, almost every last one of the imperial guards had stood with her until the bitter end. To this day, she remained rather fond of this loyal group of knights. Figuring it couldn't hurt to further strengthen their bond, she decided to reward them.

With a smile, of course. Money cost... well, money, and smiles were free.

Questionable motivations aside, her smile proved to be extremely effective at boosting morale, as evidenced by the newfound sparkle in the eyes of a number of the younger guards. After all, Mia was reasonably charming. Nobody was going to be writing songs about her peerless beauty for ages to come or anything, but between "passable" and "good-looking," three out of five assessors would probably consider her the latter. Plus, her status as the princess of a mighty empire might serve to bias their evaluations in her favor.

On top of that, she also happened to be wearing riding gear today, which featured a blouse worn over a pair of shorts. For the guards, whose image of noble fashion involved cumbersome dresses and way too much jewelry, Mia's sporty look was a breath of fresh air. Coupled with her friendly, disarming smile, it was hardly surprising that a few hearts were sent aflutter.

"Let us be on our way then."

"Y-Yes, Your Highness!"

Flanked by her extra peppy retinue of guards, Mia headed out of the castle.

"My, this place certainly feels a little different."

Immediately upon entering the district, Mia noticed that the atmosphere had changed. There were more people out on the streets and there seemed to be more smiles on the faces of passersby. The foul stench that had permeated the area had waned, and the whole place just generally felt less... unwelcoming.

"The hospital is now in operation. I've also doubled their rations. There are fewer deaths in the streets. Slowly but surely, life is returning to the district."

Survival was at the top of everyone's priority list in life, and when it was threatened, everything else — like hygiene, for example — took a backseat. No one was going to bother with showering and laundry if they weren't sure whether they were going to live to see the next sunrise. Humans are a resilient lot, though, and while poverty had stalled their other priorities, it had not erased them. Funnily enough, as soon as death stopped looming on the horizon, people's attention immediately turned to the next items on the list, one of which was the cleanliness of their surroundings. At first, the staff members that had been assigned to the hospital were the only ones who had volunteered their time to clean the streets. Gradually, however, the practice began to spread to the locals. If the upward trajectory of the area continued, it could very well become an important district of Lunatear one day. Being part of the capital city, the land in the district was valuable and could be put to use in a variety of ways.

The imperial capital had no shortage of people, and comfortable, spacious places to stay were always at a premium. Ludwig, who'd seen the potential in the Newmoon District to alleviate this issue, had arranged for a new inn to be built at one end of the district and staffed it with local residents. By creating employment opportunities in the places that were stable enough, he got money flowing through the area. Once the inn was established, merchants would start flocking to it to build new businesses. Rather than leaving the gangrenous district to fester and die, he'd revitalized it with an infusion of capital into its circulation.

After listening to Ludwig's report, Mia nodded in satisfaction. "I see. That's most pleasing to hear."

Just then, they heard a voice from afar.

"Ah! Your Highness!"

They turned to find that it belonged to a young boy who had been playing in the streets with his friends. He jumped to his feet and ran toward them.

"Hey, kid! Stop right there!"

The guards tensed immediately, and a couple of them quickly flanked Mia, their hands on their sword hilts. Mia, though, regarded the boy with a curious frown.

"Hm... Oh my, I remember. Aren't you the..."

She waved back the guards and looked the boy over. The last time she'd seen him he'd been lying in the street, all skin and bones and barely breathing. He was still a little on the scrawny side, but there was now at least some meat on his frame. His skin had a healthy tone, and his eyes glowed with life.

"Are you getting enough to eat these days?"

"Mmhm! Thanks to you, Your Highness!" the boy said with a sprightly nod. "Thank you!"

Then, he smiled, took something out of his pocket, and handed it to Mia.

"What might this be?"

"A present! Because you helped me!"

It was a white hairpin.

"My. How gracious of you. Hm..." She studied the hairpin, intrigued by how its surface had a prismatic luster that changed in color as she turned it in her hand. "What is it?"

"It's a unicorn hairpin!"

"A unicorn?! My!"

She held it up and stared, her eyes even wider than before. The way it glistened was indeed unlike anything she'd seen before. The more she looked at it, the more it seemed like it had been cut from the horn of one of the mythical steeds.

The boy watched her for a few seconds before breaking into a fit of giggles.

"It's made from a tree that grows in my hometown. Where I'm from, we call it a 'unicorn hairpin.'"

"Is it now?" She studied it for a little longer. "This really is quite lovely."

Delighted by the pin's unique beauty, she happily pushed it into her hair. Then, she turned to the boy and said with a smile, "Thank you. It's a wonderful present."

The boy's cheeks reddened, and he ran off without another word.

"It's his mother's keepsake, you know?"

"Hm?"

Mia turned to find the priest she'd met last time standing beside her. The man ran the only orphanage in the area.

"My, Father, how long it has been since we last met."

She curtsied politely using the lower hem of her shorts in place of a dress.

"Come, come. This way please," he said as he led her into the church.

Upon entering the priest's room, she found it was as frugally decorated as before and there was a general dearth of furniture.

"I'm very sorry that I can offer only such meager hospitality. You've been exceedingly generous in your support, but we've been so busy that we couldn't find the time to fix up the place," he said with an embarrassed grimace.

Mia looked around. The room was indeed unchanged. However, she remembered seeing a number of repairs done to the walls of the church and orphanage on her way here. Aesthetics notwithstanding, the buildings were certainly in much better shape. At the very least, they didn't have to worry about drafts anymore.

Leaving his own room for last, I see. It is so very like him to do that.

Not everyone who worked in the slums was of unimpeachable character. There were always people who came with the aim of filling their own coffers with the Empire's money. This priest was not one of those people. Despite receiving the relief funds that Ludwig had authorized, he remained committed to his stance of helping the disadvantaged. Faced with the Father's saintly integrity, Mia felt a wave of admiration rise up in her chest.

Before it sank back down with the exchange that followed.

"Ah, Your Highness," said the priest, as if he'd suddenly recalled something that had definitely not been on his mind previously. "I heard that you became friends with the Lady Saint..."

"Lady Saint? Oh, you mean Miss Rafina. Yes, we have indeed become friends."

Not that she'd ever meant to be... But she refrained from mentioning that.

I mean, she's just so scary... Ughh...

Meanwhile, Rafina seemed to have taken quite a liking to Mia and, despite being an object of utter terror for her, continued to write Mia letters during the summer holiday. It wasn't like Mia could just ignore them either, as social custom required her to write back.

Ugh, I hate this! It's so stressful! If I write something bad, it might make her hate me. And that would be a complete disaster!

The thought left her feeling miserable, and she sighed in frustration. Conversely, the priest perked up.

"Really? Goodness! So the rumors are true!" he said, eyes sparkling with excitement.

For someone who belonged to the Central Orthodox Church, like him, Rafina was a literal idol. Hearing that Mia was friends with such a lofty icon of the church was understandably exciting, but...

Something didn't feel right.

Is it just me... or is that the reaction of an idol fan?

By which she meant not the idol of religious worship, but the kind that gets up on a stage and twirls around. She thought back to the time she went to the amphitheater to watch a show by a particularly popular actress. Something about the way a bunch of guests had crowded around her and kept flailing their arms up and down reminded her of the priest...

"Um, if it's not too much trouble, Your Highness, the next time you see her, could you... ask her for a signature?"

I was right, damn it! He is a fan!

The priest handed her a portrait of Rafina, which she accepted with a look of utter disgust, before giving her a bunch of detailed instructions such as how he'd like his own name to be included in the signature.

The portrait was one of many that had been commissioned in the Holy Principality of Belluga when Rafina was born. Mia could almost imagine the duke calling in a bunch of artists and having them all draw portraits of his newborn daughter, before gleefully handing them out to anyone and everyone who cared to receive them. After all, she was no stranger to overly affectionate fathers, and the duke's behavior was suspiciously reminiscent of how the emperor behaved around her.

Miss Rafina doesn't have it easy either, does she...

She felt a slight twinge of pity for the duke's daughter. Then she turned her attention back to the priest she'd lost all respect for, and pulled their conversation back from its delightful digression.

"Ahem. Now, Father, I believe you were saying something about how this hairpin was a keepsake?"

"Ah, yes, yes. Of course," replied the priest, who seemed like he'd been on the verge of launching into a passionate speech about why Rafina was the best and why everyone should love her. With a slow nod, he settled back down and reverted to the humble director of the church and orphanage.

"That boy's mother was born into one of the small tribes that live in the forested regions near the empire's border. As I understand it, she met a man from another tribe and went on to have his child. This led to a fight between her and her parents. In the end, she took her newborn and left her home for the imperial capital. Unfortunately, the child grew sick at a young age and died shortly thereafter."

As soon as Mia heard the words "small tribes" and "near the empire's border," she felt a dreadful chill run up her spine. The portentous words of her diary resurfaced in her mind, and she knew with an instinctive certainty that she was already standing knee-deep in her own grave.

"...W-Would that small tribe happen to be known as the Lulus?"

"My goodness. I see that Your Highness was already aware..." said the priest. His look of surprise, however, was soon replaced by a nod of comprehension. "Ah, but of course. Your Highness is friends with the Lady Saint, after all. It would be natural to assume you've inquired already..."

The priest came to an assumptive but nevertheless favorable conclusion about Mia's competence. However, his membership in another fanclub ensured that his appreciation for her remained merely that of a casual supporter. The Mia fanclub would see no growth for now.

Moving on...

"My! Then this must mean so much to him! I can't accept something like this!" said Mia in a tone of exaggerated surprise to drive home the point that she definitely hadn't known what this was beforehand.

She stared at the hairpin, feeling a rising sense of unease at what kind of terrible future it might trigger. Her best bet was probably to give it back.

"Please keep it, Your Highness. The boy wishes very much for you to have it," the priest said with a gentle smile. "Ever since Your Highness brought him here, he has been wanting to repay your kindness. He'd mention it to me time and again. That hairpin is a token of his heartfelt appreciation."

Well, no duh! It's his mother's keepsake, for crying out loud! You don't have to spell it out for me!

"So please, Your Highness, I ask that you hold on to it. It may be a simple item of little worth to you, but if at all possible, please don't throw it away..."

"D-Don't be ridiculous! Of course I won't throw it away! I'll take perfect care of it!"

Realizing that returning it was no longer an option, Mia chose the next best option.

"And if I may be so bold," continued the priest, "could I ask you to wear it when you visit us here? Even if it's only sometimes..."

"I'll wear it everyday!"

With her escape route cut off, she had no choice but to charge forward. Not only was she going to wear it, she was going to treasure it. And make it very obvious that she did so. If the boy was a critical actor in how this whole predicament was going to play out, then she was going to make sure he stayed on her side. She'd sleep with that hairpin on if that was what it took to win the boy's affection.

"Would you please let him know that his present was wonderful, and that I will treasure it very much?"

"I certainly will, Your Highness. I'm sure he'll be delighted to hear you liked his gift," replied the priest with a relieved smile.

Little did Mia know, however, that her actions that day would have significant consequences for events down the line.