Night deepened, and Bettina quietly left the room after putting me to bed.
The door to her private chamber closed behind her, and once the house grew silent, I began to stir.
Slipping down onto the floor, I crawled forward toward the door.
Operating the doorknob with the cloth string went smoother than last time.
I slipped out into the hallway and counted two doors down.
From beneath the wooden panels, light spilled out into the corridor.
After steadying my breath, I lightly tapped my head against the door once.
One breath, two breaths.
The door slowly creaked open.
“…………”
My brother stood blocking the way, silently looking down at me.
He showed no sign of surprise, as if he had expected this visit all along.
Eventually, he bent down and hoisted me up with a grunt.
Closing the door behind him, he gently set me down on the bed.
Then, settling into his usual spot—the chair at his desk—he let out a long sigh.
“I just can’t believe it… I even feel like an idiot sometimes.”
He muttered to himself before turning his gaze back to me and asked, “Could it be… do you really understand what I’m saying?”
I remained silent, refusing to look away from him.
“Whatever it is, it’s all unbelievable. I’m ready to believe in any miracle just to hold onto something. Could it be that you understood today’s strange events?”
Slowly after a pause I nodded, “Haaaah…”
My brother exhaled a long breath.
“Tell me. What’s going on? Today’s events, that vegetable, that strange light…”
“…Kago.” My mouth still didn’t move well.
So I was only able to say short words.
But still.
This was the first time someone had heard a meaningful word from me.
My brother’s eyes widened, and he fell silent for a few seconds.
He muttered, blinking repeatedly as if unsure what question to ask next.
“Kago? You mean the Blessing?”
“The ‘Light’ Kago.”
“‘Light’? — You mean your Blessing is Light?”
“Mm.”
“Your Blessing of Light was illuminating inside that shed? No way. You weren’t even there.”
“I can.”
“Eh? Even if a little apart…”
The Blessing of Light could shine from above, even if separated from the user.
My brother seemed to picture this example in his mind.
He thought for a moment, but then shook his head.
“That’s only right above your head, right? If it’s that far away—”
“How far… can you do it?”
“Eh?”
“How far… can’t you do it?”
‘…I don’t know. Or rather, I’m not sure.’
That made sense.
No one probably knew how far the Light could extend before it stopped working.
Whether anyone had experimented was unknown.
Most people likely hadn’t even felt the need to test it.
Few would ever need to create light where they weren’t physically present.
But I had tried—and it worked.
Three days ago, when leaving that shed, I tested lighting the inside with my Light blessing.
I looked back several times to see how far the light would stay.
It remained visible through cracks in the wall until I entered the back door.
Looking back from my room’s window, the light was still there.
The shed was very close—just a bit further than the depth of my own room.
If that worked, I could keep it lit during the day.
I spent most of my time in my room, and keeping the light on faintly would almost happen unconsciously.
If I could maintain it during most waking hours—nearly all the daytime—that would be enough for an experiment.
And I had done it for three days straight.
In the end, the experiment was a success.
“But—” my brother groaned again, “Maybe you’re the only one who can light it from so far away.”
“That’s… not the problem.”
“Eh?”
“The Blessing is useful. Important.” My brother muttered to himself again.
After a moment of thought, he said, “I see…”
“Mm.”
“There’s no need to be apart. If we actually do this, we can assign several villagers to the task. There are many people with the Blessing of Light. If they take turns staying near the fields, that should work.”
“Mm.”
“The only question is whether other people’s Blessing of Light will work as well?”
“Mm.”
“If that’s the case, we just need to bring someone and try the experiment. We thought it had to be sunlight, but your Blessing of Light worked fine. In fact, it produced better results faster than sunlight. That’s the important part.”
“Mm.”
“This looks promising!”
Sitting in his chair, my brother clenched his fist tightly.
To him, I wanted to convey the most important thing today.
How to say it, I thought over carefully and muttered , “Kuro…aos…ou…”
“Hm?”
“..Mot…her…”
“Mother?”
“Mm.”
“To feed Mother?”
“Mm.”
“That’s good, but why?”
“…works.”
“Works? What do you mean? For illness?”
“Mm.”
“I’ve never heard of that. Kuroaosou for an illness like Mother’s?”
“Mm—”
“How do you know that?”
“Mm…”
Unable to explain, I waved my hands anxiously.
My brother leaned closer, worried and he said, “Calm down. No, it’s fine, I’m listening properly. I’m not doubting you.”
“…Mm.”
“But you know, for something to cure illness, you need proof, right?”
“Mm.”
“Did someone tell you?”
“Mm-mm.”
I shook my head slightly and thought for a moment.
Then I held out both hands and said “Take me… Budo.” Â
“Martial Arts Room? Oh, the one downstairs?” Â
“Mm.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
He immediately picked me up and lifted a lamp with his other hand.
We went downstairs to the Martial Arts Room, and behind the teacher’s seat at the far end, he searched a bookshelf.
A handwritten Plant Encyclopedia.
If my brother’s memory was correct, the previous lord had studied and recorded the plants in the territory.
Opening it, he found the entry for “Kuroaosou.”
Below was a section titled “Effects.”
He traced the lines with his finger and said to me, “It says here it helps with dizziness. But that’s Mother’s illness?”
“Anemia.”
“What’s that?”
“…Lack of blood…”
“So that’s the illness? That fits Mother.”
“Symptoms… dizziness.”
“Hmm. I get it. The main symptom of Mother’s illness is dizziness, and this helps with that.”
“…Mm.”
“Alright. If Grandfather vouched for it, Mother and others would believe in it.”
More precisely, from the look of Kuroaosou, I had associated it in memory with spinach and Komatsuna.
Those vegetables are rich in iron and supposedly help with anemia.
Combining that knowledge with this encyclopedia entry, I became more certain.
I couldn’t explain all that to my brother though.
As we climbed the stairs, rubbing my watery eyes, my brother smiled at me.
“There are still many questions, but you’ve reached your limit for today. Let’s talk more from tomorrow.”
“…Mm.”
“You saved me today. Thanks.”
“Mm…”
Back in my room, I was laid on the bed.
The gentle touch stroking my head somehow felt familiar, as if I had felt it before.
That awkward care faded as I slipped into a drowsy dream.
I had agonized over it endlessly.
But in the end, I had to take the plunge.
My goal—to save the villagers and Mother.
To achieve that, I needed to combine my knowledge with my brother’s strength.
I decided to trust him and open up completely.
I was overwhelmed by anxiety.
What if I was seen as a monster, a heretic, and condemned?
It terrified me, but I resolved to trust him.
And that trust was accepted.
For the first time in days, I fell into a deep, uninterrupted sleep.