Third Arc: Tenth Chapter

"Candy sculptures, hm. Delicious."

The candy sculptures we had bought in Medius came in all sorts of shapes and were bright and pretty to look at. I often saw them at festivals in Japan too, but here most were shaped like butterflies and flowers, and of course there were no cranes or the like. I was back in the carriage bound for Lumelica, and we were all eating the candy sculptures I had bought in bulk.

I had been nervous when I introduced Anje to Lady Julia. But Julia, who has a surprisingly manly streak, accepted Anje's apology without any fuss. The way she put it, nothing had really been done to her, so there was no need to apologize.

"They're good. They remind me of a festival."

Anje said this as she licked at a flower-shaped one.

"Mm, they say the Medius festival sells far more kinds. Still, even in a fine carriage, riding this long makes my bottom ache..."

This carriage belongs to the marquess's house and is very well made, and we had plenty of cushions piled up, but the jolting quietly wears you down. My bottom felt like it might turn square.

"This is the first time I've traveled by carriage for so long too. My bottom does ache."

Lady Julia was rubbing her bottom as well. Anje had only joined us at Medius, so she still seemed fine, but she murmured, licking her candy,

"If only there were suspension..."

At that, Lady Julia and I blinked, our eyes round.

"Sus-pen-sion??"

"Huh? If there were suspension, the shaking would be easier to bear, wouldn't it."

Anje looked at me with a face that said, you know about this, right? She did, but... I had told Anje that I have memories of a past life. I figured the products I had developed had already given me away, and there was no particular need to hide it from her. But I didn't want the people around us to know, so I had asked her to keep it secret. And yet.

That aside, suspension... what was it again?

"S-suspension, right. Suspension. ...And what was that, exactly?"

Anje gave me a flat, unimpressed look, but I couldn't remember, so what could I do.

"For carts and such... no, um. I was thinking you could put springs between the wheels and the body, to soften the shock from the ground."

"Oh my!"

"What a wonderful idea! Can springs really soften the shaking?"

"Are you a genius...?"

At Anje's words, Dora, Lady Julia, and Sissi let out sounds of admiration. Me? I was desperately digging through my past-life memories. I had a feeling my husband used to mutter about that sort of thing, but all I have is a vague "it was something to do with cars," and I can't remember a bit of it, so there.

"Suspension... Anje, do you know a lot about it? Could you make one?"

"I used to be really into a game like that. I don't know if I could make one, but... I have a rough idea of how it's built, at least."

Anje answered my question gazing into the air, thinking. By "used to" she surely meant her past life. As I had learned when we talked, just the two of us, in Medius, Anje had been quite the otaku in her past life.

As I mused on suspension, beside me Sissi's eyes gave a sharp gleam.

"...Let's make one!"

"Huh? Surely it's not something you can just whip up so quickly..."

"We can make it during our stay in Lumelica. We plan to be there a month, and even if it isn't finished by then, we absolutely should make it. I'll support you with everything I have."

"S-Sissi..."

Sissi's momentum was something. She gripped Anje's hands in both of hers and pressed in, breathing hard.

"Sissi, you really are... your bottom must have hurt that badly."

"So that was it," said Anje. "You poor thing."

"Sissi, do you want to use another cushion?"

"That's not entirely wrong, but! This is the invention of the century! We should sell it through the Signora Trading Company!"

Sissi took the cushion even as she cried out.