Chapter 22: Crossroads / Divide of Fate

「...She'll probably just keep coming like it's nothing...」
「I suppose so.」

After seeing Violet-san and Ultramarine off, Nina and I nodded to each other. It seems Ultramarine doesn’t really grasp what’s going on. Violet-san tried hard to explain, but she said completely off-base things like, “As if I’d ever fall for a monkey.”

Well, for us it’s actually convenient that we’ll get to see Ultramarine again—and hear how Violet-san and the others are doing through her—so that’s fine.

「Still... humans and elves are a hassle.」

With a self-mocking air, Yutaka let out a deep sigh.

「Think you can sort that side out?」
「No. ...In the end, they decided we can’t make Yuuka the next Head of the Sword Clan.」

Yutaka shook his head weakly at Nina’s question and slumped his shoulders.

The Head of the Sword Clan—these days that’s almost synonymous with the village chief of Hiiro.
No one explicitly decided it or declared it so, but whenever there was a major decision for the village or a dispute among villagers, the final judgment was always entrusted to someone of the Sword Clan.

That tacit understanding gradually became an unshakable fact, and the Sword Clan changed in kind. In the past the strongest of the time would simply become head, but in recent years those with better judgment and popular trust have been chosen. The current head, Yutaka, is precisely such a case.

And unlike strength, such harder-to-see standards are difficult for a single person to judge. At some point, who would become head came to be decided by a council of senior Sword Clan members.

「I think Yuuka’s better suited than Isana.」

Nina said it offhandedly. I couldn’t speak lightly, but to be honest I agreed with her.

From Yutaka’s perspective, Isana is his cousin. Of course she isn’t unfit to be village chief either—she’s strong and brave, decisive, and has a broad perspective. But she’s a bit stuck‑up and has a tendency to look down on others. Well, she’s still young; that will likely settle with age.

「I can see why people would push for Isana, though.」

If Yuuka became head, she would probably remain so until she found a partner and became human, like Light Blue. That, too, doesn’t feel very healthy. At the very least, it’s only natural that the Sword Clan would feel some resistance to it.

There’s also the chance she might marry quickly and retire like Light Blue did, but if she were to join with an elf like Yutaka, her lifespan would surely become eternal. It’s understandable that the Sword Clan’s long, unbroken history might feel as if it were being taken by the elves, and that wouldn’t sit well.

「Aniki... do you think Isana’s the more qualified?」
「I didn’t say that. To me you’re all like dear children.」

In that respect, Yuuka and Isana are the same to me. And if I carelessly endorsed either one, the Sword Clan would follow it regardless of their private feelings. I didn’t want to do that. It’s unmistakably they who have led, supported, and developed this village.

「Even so... I want Yuuka to be head.」

In a voice wrung out of him, Yutaka appealed to me. It struck me as odd.
He’s a simple, good‑natured man—utterly unconnected to greed for power. He’s the current head besides; it’s not as if he’s foisting an unfulfilled dream onto his daughter.

「Light Blue, Yuuka—what do you two think?」
「Honestly, I’m fine either waaay, buuut...」

With a look that said she had more to say, Light Blue glanced at Yuuka.

「I... if possible, I want to be head. I want to remain Tsurugibe. I want to take what Father entrusted to me, give it form, and—as Tsurugibe—give it back.」

Yuuka fixed her eyes on me and pleaded. It didn’t feel like something pushed on her by a parent; her gaze was serious and full of zeal.

「What exactly were you entrusted with?」

Nina suddenly cut in.

「That’s...」

Yuuka faltered and flicked a glance at my face.

「Is it something you don’t want to say to me?」
「A little...」

I see... I was more than a little shocked as Yuuka nodded apologetically yet clearly.
I'd assumed "what was entrusted" meant tradition, pride as Tsurugibe, technique—things like that. I never imagined it was something she couldn’t tell me.

「N-no, that’s not it! It’s just... we don’t even know if it’s possible, and we’d feel bad if we got Aniki’s hopes up for nothing...」

Yutaka hastily offered that explanation.

「No, it’s fine—don’t worry. You two surely have one or two things you’d rather I didn’t know.」

There’s a twinge of loneliness, but it’s normal for children to hide things from their parents. And I can tell they aren’t hiding it out of ill will. In that case, prying would be boorish.

「Anyway... I get that you want to be head for a reason. But is it something that absolutely requires being head?」

It was a simple question. “Head” and “village chief” sound fine to the ear, but it’s not as if there’s great power or wealth attached to the post.

We’ve established currency, but we don’t collect taxes, and Sword Clan folks make their living by ordinary hunting and farming. At least for now, becoming head doesn’t earn you a single mon.

「It’s not that it has to be head... I just want to remain Tsurugibe.」
「Huh? It’s not like only the direct line counts as Tsurugibe, you know?」
「Eh?」

When I said that in surprise, Yutaka and Yuuka stared, eyes round.

「Well, true, those outside the direct line—relatives of someone who became head—don’t often call themselves Tsurugibe, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t. At least, that’s not how I see it.」

And since I’m the one who decided the name would be bestowed and carried on, I can say that without a doubt.

「So in this village there are hundreds of Tsurugibe. Numera at the sake shop, for example.」
「Ah, that’s true. Counting from Jilgo, um... the twentieth generation?」

I nodded along as Nina counted on her fingers.

「What!? But Numera‑san has silver hair.」
「Well, after twenty generations of mixing with other lines, hair color can change. The reason yours stays red is mostly because you lot tend to pair up within the Sword Clan.」

They don’t seem conscious of it, but it’s a small village. Trace the family trees and you’ll often find marriage partners are second cousins. Well, we didn’t even have paper until recently so no one drew family trees, but Nina and I remembered them all.

「That silver hair is from Ken’s line. That color is pretty strong, too.」
「Even now you still occasionally get a silver‑haired child. From your side, it’d be your great‑great‑great‑grandfather—Kimaga—who had it.」

It’s like an atavism. Even when both parents are redheads, a silver‑haired child can be born. After all, every current Sword Clan member is a descendant of Dalgo, the second head, and Mika, Ken’s daughter.

「Sooo, even if Yuuka doesn’t become head, from Sensei’s point of view Yuuka and her kids still count as Tsurugibe foreeever?」

While the two redheads sat there stunned, Light Blue asked coolly.

「Yeah. Well, it’s not like my remembering it does anything by itself...」

In the end the head is chosen from the direct line, so it doesn’t mean much, strictly speaking.

「No, that’s fine.」

But Yutaka, seeming to have recovered, shook his head.

「Then I don’t need to be head after all.」

Yuuka said it lightly. For all her earlier attachment, she now looked positively relieved, as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

Nina and I didn’t understand and could only glance at each other in puzzlement.