Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Chapter 1

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The ingredients that composed me were:

a teaspoon of selfishness, tears and white camellias;

a tablespoon of loneliness, irritation and Alberta;

a pinch of sadness from being treated as a tool;

and a dash of apprehension and hope towards the future as a finishing touch.

I was made of such things.

A teaspoon of artificiality, detachment and indifference;

a tablespoon of an emerald brooch, innocence and devotion;

a pinch of secrets from the past hidden within blue irises;

and a dash of a spirit bearing no fear towards a search for the unknown, along with an ability to take action, as a finishing touch.

Violet Evergarden was made of such things.

After falling in, coming to know about and receiving love, I changed. While staring outside in the depths of a forest, I suddenly found myself pondering over how much that eccentric Auto-Memories Doll might have changed by now.









The Princess and the Auto-Memories Doll









“This is a traditional event, so to speak.” Alberta told the woman following her from behind as they stepped onto the carpet laid throughout the corridors, on which were drawn white camellias as the motif of her nation.

She occupied the number one seat of royal court lady in the Drossel Kingdom as its governess. Such was her role and profession.

A moderately frilly white apron was tied over her long black dress, which was perfectly buttoned-up to some extent. The distinctly dressed figure of Alberta, an elderly woman with white strands mixed in her hair, left a different impression on viewers in comparison to the other younger court ladies. The fact that the people who passed by her, enveloped as she was in a deep solemnity, maintained politeness and nodded on sight made known that her status in the palace was quite high.

“Our country of Drossel has since the old days been solving political issues and avoiding war through heightening marriage with the royal families of neighboring nations. Not a single princess born here has stayed in the country. They all marry into foreign ones. However, there exists a national sentiment of those who do not think well of this, and the event has its formalities, so there was a need to show that the princesses marrying out of the nest of their nation have been doing so in the name of full-fledged love for the foreign princes.”

While speaking, Alberta had noticed that the one she was talking to walked in a disturbingly silent way. Regardless of how smooth the carpet they were stepping onto could be, she was unable even to feel the other’s presence from her back. It was similar to the pacing of covert-action knights, which she had only had a few opportunities to witness during her long time working in the court.

Unlike ordinary knights, covert-action ones had their existence itself undisclosed and belonged to a secret organization of the king’s personal use. In order to exterminate people and eavesdrop on conversations, they did not make sounds when walking.

Becoming slightly nervous and turning around, she found a woman not lesser than the gorgeous interior of the palace behind her properly standing there.

“That would be the Public Love Letters, right?” the words spewing from her rosy lips sounded as beautiful as the singing of birds.

Although Alberta was someone of the same gender as her, she was dumbfounded for an instant at such beauty. Her golden hair gleamed as it bathed in the sunlight pouring in brightly from the palace’s windows. Framed by lashes of the same shade of gold, her eyes were blue gems. What encased her body was a Prussian-blue jacket over a snow-white ribbon-tie dress. Precisely on the middle of the ribbon-tie was a conspicuously outstanding emerald brooch. Black gloves covered the hands that held onto her trolley bag. Lastly, her feet were decorated with cocoa-brown knit-up boots. Said boots stepped steadily onto the carpet, so walking without producing any noise was probably the woman’s technique.

“Yes, correct. This is why you were called, Lady Violet Evergarden.”

Pronounced by Alberta’s hoarse voice, even her name was elegant. Albeit feeling some sort of extraordinary aura from the Auto-Memories Doll, who was well-featured to an uncommon extent, Alberta pulled herself together and guided the latter to her client – the third princess.

The Drossel Kingdom was a small nation, with its palace located by the riverside. Overflowing with artistic beauty, its constructions were famous, making tourism industry the main source of income for the people. As manmade flowerbeds were widespread in the capital, it was nicknamed the “City of Flowers”.

Although the palace and royal family existed, the political affairs had been transferred to the parliament and the royal family was to the citizens a symbol of history. Should someone born into the royal household be a man, his job would be to take part in events from all sorts of countries, but the present condition of the women, as the court lady Alberta had explained, was of political assets coerced to marry into other nations.

“Lady Violet Evergarden from the CH Postal Service is here to have an audience with Your Highness, the third princess Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel.”

And such was the current situation of the country’s only princess.

“You have arrived, amanuensis.”

At the far back of the audience room, the third princess of Drossel lay carelessly on the reverently arranged royal seat, embracing stuffed toys. Lighter than brown, her pinkish, amber rose-colored hair cascaded like the flow of a river. Her tiara, which had probably been on her head, was thrown on the floor along with used paper tissues, and the person who had done so bore the face of someone that had wept her soul out. Had her nose not been abrade and her eyes not red and bloodshot, it could be noted that she was an adorable girl in her teens. Although she was clad in a magnificent royal blue dress, at the moment, she looked like nothing but a grumblingly sniffling child.

Alberta covered her face with one hand and let out a prolonged sigh at the princess’s figure.

“Pleased to make your acquaintance. I rush anywhere my clients might desire. I am from the Auto-Memories Dolls service, Violet Evergarden.”

Meanwhile, as the invited woman, Violet, stood up from her kneeling position, she expressed gracious etiquette without undoing her doll-like deadpan. She could not make sense of the country’s only princess very well, but also did not illustrate an aspect of nervousness as the latter displayed her loss of temper.

“I am Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel. As this country’s third princess, from this point on, I am set to marry the prince of a neighboring nation, Damian Baldur Flügel. I will have you ghostwrite the public love letters that I am supposed to exchange with Lord Damian.”

Her voice still sounded young.

“Princess, even if you speak with such high-leveled dignity, your appearance is unbecoming.” Alberta offered a candid comment, at which Charlotte puffed her cheeks.

“Women about to get married are emotionally unstable. You would know this since you got married two times, right, Alberta? Two times! Must be nice! People from the lower classes are able to get divorced!”

“Leave me out of it… Princess, even though this person is hired, she is from a different country. You are not setting an example. Please sit back properly on your throne. You girls, too, do not mind the princess and go fix her hair.”

Once Alberta clapped her hands snappily, the other court ladies, who had been in-waiting, revealed themselves and put both the floor and the princess in order. In a matter of few minutes, on the account of rice powder, blush and the right sitting posture, Charlotte was reconstructed into a presentable figure. Upright, she was a figure worthy of praising as a lovely and fine-looking princess.

As if her poise had been there from the very beginning, Charlotte sharply pointed the gemstone-laden rod within her grip at Violet. “The Public Love Letters are a traditional practice in this entire region. Whether the beautiful texts will indeed communicate love and whether they will indeed cause people to believe that the marriage between the two of us is something superb – all of it depends on your skills.”

“I am aware. I shall work not to betray the expectations.”

“Somehow, it doesn’t feel like I’m talking to a human being. You’re like a person’s shadow… sometimes, amanuensis. How old are you?”

At the question, Violet’s expression changed into one of surprise for the first time ever since she had arrived at the place. She briefly put on a thoughtful facial expression.

“Hey, are you going to lie about your age? Please hurry and answer.”

“I apologize. The truth is I do not know how old I am.”

Charlotte blinked. “You lie. There’s no one who wouldn’t know their own age.”

“I am an orphan.”

At the answer, the room that had already been quiet was enveloped even further in the sounds of complete silence for an instant. Charlotte realized that there were people who were exceptions to what she deemed as logical common sense.

The princess could have pretended that she had committed no blunder right then, but after the bewilderment, she closed her eyes as if in shame. “That was wrong of me. I did know the reality that there are people in these kinds of unfortunate circumstances amongst the lower classes. There’s no way of telling what they’re like until meeting them personally, huh? Could you forgive my rudeness?”

“Please do not mind it. Such words are a waste. I have never felt that it was unfortunate. But back to the topic, why inquire my age?”

Slightly underwhelmed by the not at all sorrowful reply, Charlotte responded, “You’re a commoner, so I wanted to know how you feel about something, since you have the looks of someone still young… Up until what age do you think one would have a chance with an older man?”

“By ‘chance’, you mean…?”

“Until what point it is possible to see him as an object of romantic interest.” Alberta whispered into her ear complementarily.

At that, Violet made the same thoughtful face of before. “What… might ‘romantic interest’ be?”

Now everyone in the room had question marks over their heads.

“Wait, I’m the one asking the questions, you know?”

“I… do not understand… the feeling of romantic love.” Violet took her emerald-green brooch into her hand and caressed its gleaming surface. “I apologize. I am in the middle of studying this subject. But if I were to try answering in the way I can… There are countless married couples and lovers with age gaps. Aren’t there no particular societal borders for age?”

“Even if the other is ten years older?”

“I believe that is unrelated.”

“Even if there’s no love?”

Silence.

“What is it this time?”

“I am reflecting… about the love part.”

That single word had most likely knocked Violet down even deeper within a swirl of thoughts. She wound up falling silent.

“What’s with you!? How have you lived your life until now!? The conversation isn’t carrying on properly! Rather than about myself, I’m worried for your future! You’re going to write love letters in this condition?! I called you over because I heard that your ghostwriting is highly rumored. Make sure not to disappoint me!”

As Charlotte’s legs and arms squirmed in indignation, Violet said concisely, “Certainly.”

“Say that with a little more expression on your face! It kinda feels like I’m the only one who’s angry!”

“But I am not angry.”

“I don’t like being the only one exposing my feelings! Cease this inexpressiveness!”

Being told so, Violet brought her hands close to her cheeks, pushing them lightly. As though concluding that something was not right, she halted midway. “I will attempt to make an effort, so could I have you wait a moment?” She then started touching her soft cheeks again. Apparently, she was attempting to do something about her lack of expression with physical strength.

Unable to withstand it, Charlotte stepped down from her throne and clung onto Alberta. “Alberta! This amanuensis is a deception!”

Alberta retorted as if to admonish Charlotte, who had set her feet onto the wooden floor, “Lady Violet is someone greatly promising in the world of Auto-Memories Dolls. Humans are creatures that show sides different from their private lives when working.”

“Someone who doesn’t understand romantic love can’t possibly write a delightful love letter!”

Charlotte’s desperate shout echoed throughout the palace, yet her lamentation was annulled a few days thereafter.









“‘Lord Damian Baldur Flügel, if I said that merely uttering your name or writing it like this causes my heart to quiver, what would you think? My days in this capital of flowers consist of sighing at uniting with you through several sorts of circumstances. When I observe the Moon in the night sky, for instance, I think of the eclipsed Moon as a petal dancing down flutteringly. And, in sequence, I ponder about the following – what do you think of when you see the same thing? Might it be the claw of a cat, or perhaps a shining curved sword? As one would expect, do you see the Moon as simply a moon? I am certain that I will deem whatever you answer as wonderful and likely break into a smile. Out of the pitch-dark nights in which the stars reflect beautifully on the sky, is there any in which you think of me in your moonlit palace? No, I do not mind if it is not under the Moon. Even should it be under the skies of gleaming dew at dawn, by a riverside of perfectly clear blue that steals hearts away, or within a mob where not even standing still is permitted, is there any situation in which you think of me as I think of you? Lord Damian Baldur Flügel, at what times do I cross your mind? While lovingly admiring white camellias, I am always thinking of you.’”

In front of the palace, where the citizens gathered in a commotion, a well-dressed young court lady read the princess’s love letter aloud from a scroll made of parchment. Having listened to it all, the audience had their hearts pierced through by the princess’s innocent maiden-in-love traits and raised their voices in cheers for the love letter.

“Lady Charlotte is adorable.”

“Right!! And she is very relatable! I often wonder about what the person I like thinks of me in the dead of the night.”

“We absolutely cannot miss how Lord Damian will reply to this!”

Primarily, the first phase of the Public Love Letters consisted of a voiced announcement done by someone from the court, and the second phase consisted of affixing the letter to the city’s bulletin board. Next, the other party’s love letter would be delivered and the people would watch over the exchange of the love letters together.

“The Auto-Memories Doll is a specialist in heartrending texts this time round, huh.”

“With this, we gotta see what kind of Auto-Memories Doll was hired by Flügel, yeah?”

In actuality, the population had no idea that the exchange was merely a courteous one. To them, the Public Love Letters had already turned into a festival that occurred once every few decades.

“Even though you don’t understand romantic love, aren’t you pretty good with love letters?”

A while after the public presentation, in a garden within the palace’s premises, Charlotte and Violet sat face-to-face at a table and had tea inside of a dome-shaped resting spot, on which were carved sculptures of goddesses and angels. In the garden of rather clear skies and dazzling sunlight, flowerbeds of white camellias swayed and blew off along the breeze.

“I myself do not have a grasp of romantic love, yet ever since being employed in this profession, I have read many books as a matter of course. Romance novels included. Once you retain as information the vocabulary, writing style and clichés that they comprise, all left to do is piece them together.”

“What’s with that? You talk almost like it’s math. Well, that’s fine as long as it had a good reception from the citizens. But you made a lot of things up, didn’t you?”

“In every corner of the world, the so-called ‘maidens in love’ ponder about their significant other all day long and keep wishing to know the latter’s feelings. In romance novels, statistically speaking, that is.”

While Violet gracefully drank her black tea, Charlotte snorted. She wanted to make the expression of that woman who was practically perfectly doll-like collapse somehow, but could not find a deft way to do so.

“I won’t forgive it if the reply loses to this!”

“Is it a matter of winning or losing?”









The love letter from Flügel was sent to Drossel soon afterward.

“‘Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel, this is for you, who bears praiseworthy beauty in your castle of white camellias. On the subject of what I think about under the moonlight, it is not an easy question to answer. I imagine all sorts of things concerning our future. What kind of sound would my heart make once we see each other face-to-face? When the time we exchange a kiss eventually comes, will you be bashfully smiling as you open your eyes? Once I embrace your thin body, will I be able to keep my touch as gentle as if you were made of glass? My racing feelings in regards of you, the object of my passion in my love story, overflow constantly. From this point on, you will be the person I shall pay most attention to in my life. My eyes already belong to you, and your existence has enraptured my thoughts as well. Despite being a princess, you are almost as a water spirit that sinks ships with your silky singing voice. It is extremely difficult to convey to you that I am drowning in love. The only thing I can say straight away is that I believe I want to touch you, once you become mine, soon enough.’”

At the love letter from Flügel, which a messenger had read with a resonant voice, the faces of young Drossel women grew pink, and there were those who fainted on the spot. Meanwhile, upon listening to said love letter, the face of its recipient, Charlotte, became beet-red, then her body shuddered, and finally, she locked herself in her bedroom while shedding tears.

Violet and Alberta, who had been reading along, eyed the enemy together in front of the room’s closed doors.

“Might she be embarrassed?”

“That manner of crying is not so. It is the crying face of when things do not go as the princess envisioned.”

“You understand her quite well.”

“I have known the princess since before she was born. When she came into this world, she was set apart from the hands of her mother, the queen, and I watched over her growth… Since our statuses differ, this cannot be revealed to the people of this country, but she is as my own daughter. I know her crying faces.”

“So the crying face of just now was of disgust towards the fervent response?”

Alberta fell silent for a moment at Violet’s question.

“The princess has met her marriage partner, Lord Damian, only one time. It seems the two of them had a conversation other than during their greetings. That was still before the engagement was discussed. Back then, the princess had been crying. In the end, she never said why. For all I know, she might be thinking about whatever that is…”

“I see.”

Alberta wound up laughing a little at the Auto-Memories Doll who spoke in-between the breaks in conversation impudent and skillfully. “That person is still a child. However, she has a prominent adult-like side. We have raised her this way, in an ambiguous condition. Perhaps because her childhood was cut short, the princess goes back to being an infant every now and then. She wails and loses her composure. Lady Violet, the princess might be inadequate as the face of her people, but please do forgive her.”

“I am the Doll of my clients. Such consideration is not necessary. Speaking of which, I have not yet seen the king and queen; is it needless for me to greet them?”

At the question, Alberta shook her head. “The king has governmental affairs to take care of. The queen has… been living in the Imperial Palace for several years now. They will most likely attend the wedding’s arbitration ceremony, however… Excuse me; I will check the princess’s situation for a moment.”

Violet bowed once and left the spot.

Alberta took a ring with several keys out of her apron’s pocket and inserted the most neatly polished one of them into the door’s keyhole. “Princess, even if you hide, I will know where you are right away.”

Inside the princess’s bedroom were numerous pieces of furniture unified by the color white and brimming with a sense of high quality. Heading past a dresser and enormous bed that seemed like places a person would hide in, Alberta made her way to beside the curtains, which clearly bulged in a human shape. As she turned one of the layers over, there Charlotte was, hiccupping and sobbing within the lace screens.

“I do not understand this mentality of hiding even though you want to be found…”

“Alberta, you meanie! You mother-in-law!”

“If I were your actual mother-in-law, you would have lost points with me by now. Princess, when you become emotional, you quickly forget about your position… I am worried. In Flügel… I will not be with you.”

At those words, Charlotte’s tears stopped completely and she was momentarily petrified just like that. She continued staring at Alberta wordlessly, and then, tears slowly started coming out of her eyes again.

“How can you say such a thing?”

She was aware of the fact, yet had not wanted to hear it from the person in question. Such feelings seeped out from her voice.

“I am the imperial governess of the Royal Palace. I believe that a number of young court ladies will follow you as you leave the country, but I cannot join them. My role is of raising the princesses born in this country.”

“You could just raise my children. Say, when I have them, I’ll call you over. Alberta, you’ll want to see my children too, won’t you? Living in Flügel will surely be fun if we’re together. Isn’t that right?”

As Charlotte stared at her with imploring eyes, Alberta turned her head to the side. “This is not a proposal I can straightforwardly nod to. I belong to the Royal Palace, not you, Lady Charlotte.”

Charlotte’s lips trembled erratically. She swung her small fists and hit Alberta’s chest without any force. “You… pulled me out of my mother’s womb, and you… raised me! I have forgotten what my mother’s face looks like! You belong to me…! At the very least, I belong to you! You’ve raised me from the beginning of my life until this point! That’s a part of your own life! Even so… Even so… how can you cut me away… so easily…?”

“Princess, it is for your sake.”

“If it’s for my sake, you’re supposed to stay beside me… Enough already… It feels like those letters, you and a lot of other things will split my head open…”

“Princess…”

“Go away… Just go away!” Wrapping herself around the curtains, Charlotte crouched on the spot and concealed her face.

“No, I will be by your side.”

Alberta did not leave even after being told to do so. She retracted the hand that was about to touch Charlotte and instead mutely embraced her from behind.

Such gentleness made her happy. Such gentleness was hateful. Such gentleness was something she feared losing. Fury, sorrow and joy welled within Charlotte, making her disoriented.

“If you won’t be with me, don’t treat me kindly.” She did her best to say so.

“It is precisely because I cannot go with you… that I want to treat you kindly. Even if only for now.”

Regardless, Alberta’s reply caused her to cry once again.

The sounds of her sobs ensued continuously for a while, and, after a moment of silence, Charlotte asked with a shaky voice, “Hey, when I get married, what will happen?”

It was an extremely abstract question.

“By ‘what’, you mean…?”

As Alberta inquired back more remarkably softly than usual, Charlotte asked like a small child, “I won’t be able to come back here anymore, right?”

“You are the princess, after all. You cannot carefreely return.”

“Then, who should I lean onto over there? What if I ever need someone’s help?”

“That is…”

“I will dedicate myself to Flügel. To Lord Damian as well. That’s what I was born for. I’ve lived as a princess because it’s my social status. This is what I can do for my people. But…” Charlotte added in a rapid succession before Alberta could say anything, “But, even though I’m a princess, I’m a crybaby.”

Conspicuously large teardrops traveled from Charlotte’s eyes down her white cheeks.

“A crybaby and a scaredy-cat.” She touched the hands of Alberta, who remained embracing her from behind, as if clinging onto the latter. “There are lots of things I can’t do.”

It was a huge mission for a small body. Its inside was filled to the brim with anxiety.

“Up until now, you have been with me. It’s because you were here that I was able to do my best at many things. You… All that’s left for you to do is see me off. But after being sent away, what will happen to me…?”

As she turned her neck to look at the face Charlotte was making, Alberta swallowed a breath. Charlotte was completely pale and terrified, her tears pouring like rain.

“I’m… in a situation that I won’t be allowed to run away from.”

Reflected in Charlotte’s orbs, Alberta had an expression of being at loss. No matter what she said, it was but her selfishness, and she could not replace her. However, the fact that the girl was currently truly suffering was conveyed to her. Her suffering became Alberta’s own.

“Lord Damian will surely become your strength.”

“Even though… our marriage is arranged?”

“That is…”

“Will he be able to cherish a woman he doesn’t even like?”

“With time, you will build a good relationship.”

“Alberta, I plan to do make an effort. Of course, this is my intention. I’ll give my very best… but, what about Lord Damian?”

Alberta was unable to answer.









With the one on the giving and one on the receiving end not knowing each other’s actual feelings, the Public Love Letters continued.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

did you know that there is an anecdote in my country that states presenting a gold ribbon to a loved one will make said love bear fruit? Gold is the color of the stars. Be it during day or night, they twinkle right above us in spite of visibility. No matter how far apart we are in physical distance, we are under the same light. The gold ribbon fulfills the role of emissary from the stars and communicates these feelings even when we are unable to be with each other. Please think of it as me and have it by your side.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

I have certainly received the gold ribbon. Right now, the golden color of the stars is emitting a soft luster on my arm.

Since you have told me about Drossel’s love anecdote, let me tell you about how there is a charm credibly spoken of amongst couples over here in Flügel as well. I have sent to you a handkerchief embroidered with Flügel roses, which the knights of Flügel leave to the lovers that remain in the country when they head to the battlefields.

Flügel roses bloom with a red as passionate as the feelings of couples and are roses that have been improved by our country. There is a reason why we chose them. Their flower language stands for “you are mine for eternity”.

When I reflect about the future, in which your beauty will elate its greatest, I even wind up thinking that I wish to take you in my hands soon and lock you up somewhere without ever letting anyone look at you.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

the other day, perhaps because I had been staring at a portrait of you all day long, just from the wind swaying a door, I ended up wondering if you were there. Strange, is it not? There is a large river between our countries, and you are beyond it, in the kingdom within a forest of abundant green. There is absolutely no way you could have come here. Regardless, I find myself thinking so.

From now on, too, I will surely recall you in several instances. Will the pain and trembling that spread in my chest during these occasions disappear once I go to where you are?

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

your pain is my pain. The sound your heart makes must be definitely similar to mine. We both count the days we will see each other on our fingers. This truth alone is what comforts me about your absence.

In my palace, the preparations for me to welcome you are proceeding steadily. This buzzing in my heart during this time in which I cannot see you is a trial to how long it will take until the day I will be able to hold you, is it not?

You might believe that you will be coming to an unknown country completely by yourself. However, the one waiting for you is your servant in love and the one who will protect you. If you leave everything to me, I am positive that anything will go well.









As per the pattern of the Public Love Letters, in order to give further depth to the exchange, the arrangements for the wedding ceremony were progressing as well.

Violet’s stay would last one month. In that meantime, the imperial court of Drossel gradually became frantic. The country’s only princess would depart to a foreign nation, after all. It was no exaggeration to say that the list of items to assemble for the wedding went from a corner to the other of the long corridors.

The difference between the princess and civilians was that the ones taking care of her necessities were people other than herself. Despite being the person at the center of such whirlpool, Charlotte was disconnected from the tumult. In order to contemplate the contents of her letters, she was once again having a meeting with Violet over tea.

“Violet, pass the milk.”

“Understood.”

“These sweets are delicious. Do eat more.”

“Thank you very much.”

They had naturally become used to each other’s way of keeping a distance from one another due to being face-to-face. Away from the royal court ladies, they tasted black tea by themselves in the garden’s dome. It was a very quiet tea party, in which the light breeze caressed the hair of the two maidens and retreated. Perhaps because she was under the influence of the ever-so-silent Violet, or because of the pre-marriage emotional instability, Charlotte’s conduct and tone were passive as well.

“How should I respond… to the next letter?”

As Charlotte muttered in pauses, Violet replied with a calm voice, “If you obediently agree to the words of the other side, the romantic tactics will come to a closing, so I believe we should stretch them for a little longer.”

“Somehow, I don’t care…” A deep sigh ensued.

Although Charlotte’s heart had been restless during the first stage of the letters’ exchange, as of now, she had become as serene as a still ocean. Her face was weary as mirrored on the black tea. She did not spare even a glance at the vast assortment of sweets arranged on the table, her hand fiddling with her fine strands.

“I bet an amanuensis like you was hired to ghostwrite for him anyway. They might not even debate over the contents as we do, in a way… Unlike a third princess, the youngest child, Prince Damian of Flügel is someone waiting for his right as the next to succeed the throne. This is surely the case.”

“Princess, it seems you are unsatisfied with the other side’s replies…” Violet put sugar into her tea and mixed it with a silver spoon.

Maybe because of the silence, the sound of it rang loudly. Clatter-clatter, clatter-clatter. It was a disturbed noise, much like the one from within Charlotte’s mind.

The marriage was a political one. A sweet taste of happiness was not all there was to it.

“No, it’s not like th… I think the contents are passionate and they make my heart palpitate. Right now, amongst the young women of this country, it seems that Lord Damian’s rank is in a state of rise. It’s just that…” Charlotte raised her cast-down face, the flowerbeds of the garden reflecting in her eyes.

The heaps of white camellias held their necks high. That year, too, the most prosperous season of those white camellias planted throughout the country had paid off. From such a sight, Charlotte was able to see the past.

“It’s just that… the Lord Damian that I only met once was not the sort of person to use such words.”

Within her orbs, a scenery from her memories faintly resurfaced.

Violet had not particularly incited a conversation. She was wordlessly drinking her black tea. If the other party facing Charlotte were the court ladies that loved to chitchat or Alberta, who could be considered her foster parent, she would probably not have felt like continuing with the following words.

“That person… is completely different from those letters.”

Not saying anything, Violet earnestly directed only her blue eyes at Charlotte. Noticing her gaze, Charlotte touched the tiara on her own head. The symbol of the royal family shone silver. It would get on her way when she was crying, so she would always toss it off.

Charlotte delicately unraveled it from her hair and left it on the table. “Just for now, I want to quit being the third princess of Drossel.”

Hers was not the tone of someone telling a joke.

“Violet, just for now, quit being an amanuensis and listen to my story as your original self. Simply listening to it is fine. I don’t need advice or pity. Just… listening to it is fine. Listening alone is fine,” she said repeatedly.

Violet settled her teacup onto its saucer. “Understood.” And, as expected, she nodded just like a doll.

Such attitude and aloof voice, which had primarily irritated Charlotte, granted her nothing but a feeling of ease now.

——This Doll definitely doesn’t turn her back to her superior’s orders.

Charlotte smiled a little. It was the first time that the princess flung a smile at the Doll. She had always showed nothing but herself crying and lamenting over her fate.

No longer a princess, Charlotte began narrating to Violet, “On my tenth birthday, a grandiose banquet was held in the castle of Drossel.”

The day had also been the one in which Charlotte had joined society. Since she had been raised inside the palace as if being hid until that point, it had been a complete change of environment.

There had been famous princes and envoys from neighboring countries, as well as face-to-face meetings with a number of marriage candidates large enough for her not to remember them all. Dances and conversations she was unused to had extended late into the night. Absolutely exhausted by them, she had fled to the garden without taking along a court lady to accompany her.

“Age-wise, ten-year-olds are considered children, but amongst royalty, it’s safe to say that we have entered a marriageable age by then. I didn’t have the slightest impression that my birthday was being celebrated.”

Whenever anyone would open their mouth, it was about matrimony. The quick-witted ones had even started thinking up names for her children. Even though her partner had not been decided, the fact that Charlotte would get married already had.

“I was annoyed. Why did I have no choice but think about marriage? Why did everyone want to rush things up? Why did I have to be born a woman? Why are women the ones to give birth? Why did I have to be a princess? Why did nobody ask me what I wanted to do? I was thinking about these things a lot, and all those superficial words of congratulations wounded my heart… so… I naturally ended up crying.”

The main star of the banquet tearing up by herself was not something that anybody should have found out. It would paint the face of Drossel, the host, with mud. Despite being a small child, she was aware of that much.

Her outfit on that day had been a pure white chiffon dress. Surely, if she mingled with the loads of white camellia flowerbeds, no one would find her. Thinking so, she had sneaked into a flowerbed slightly exposed by the moonlight.

“I was weeping nonstop in the middle of white camellias. Many things had made me depressed.”

There was no going back anymore. She had become unable to return to the times when her birthday was merely something to be happy about ever again. She had already joined the adults. Had ceased being someone who belonged only to herself. She had already become a political tool of a princess in the true meaning of the term. She was simply Charlotte no more. Thinking about that, she had grown grief-stricken and tears had poured from her eyes incessantly.

“That evening, the Crescent Moon was really beautiful.”

In a world of darkness, which the veil of the night had descended upon, what had consoled Charlotte was the not-so-reliable moonlight alone. Had it been complete pitch-darkness, her fear would have added up to her sadness and she would probably have cried more.

“But, y’know, the moonlight was suddenly blocked. I was startled when my field of vision blackened and raised my face. When I did so… that person was…”

A man had been standing before her line of sight, which she had turned upwards without wiping her tears, concealing the Moon.

“…that person was staring at me as if looking at something extremely amusing.”

With an indescribable smile on, said man had spoken first, saying nothing but a single “yo”. It was an improper word usage unthinkable to have come from someone who had entered that palace. And so, squatting on the spot just as Charlotte had done, he had asked, “Has nobody come to find you?”

“He had greeted me, so he knew I was Drossel’s princess… but he treated me as if I were some child playing hide-and-seek. That pissed me off… yet I had no idea how to reply, so I ended up crying more.”

As she did so, the man had stroked her head roughly and encouraged her fabrication of tears with a “cry on, cry on”. The caressing had been similar to what one would do with a dog or cat. Not even Alberta had ever done something of the sort to her.

“While still sobbing, I asked of him, ‘don’t say that to me when what I want is to stop crying’. Still, no matter what, that person didn’t tell me to stop crying. He gently patted me on the back and said, ‘you can cry some more’. When I asked, ‘how come?’…”

Positioning himself in front of Charlotte, the man had cackled and said, “During the banquet, I thought you were a disturbing kid. Because you were behaving almost as if you were more adult-like than anyone else. I was relieved to see you crying outside. It’s accurate. This birthday party is the worst. It’d make anyone want to bawl.”

“After hearing those words, I looked at his face seriously for the first time.”

She had been certain that he was the prince of a prosperous country located in a basin deep within the woods. She had not been able to recall anything about him other than that. Not many recollections from when they greeted each other had remained in her, either. In such a garish world, everyone appeared to have the same features. However, unlike everybody else, who laughed as if wearing a mask, he had on a slightly ill-mannered smile.

His short hair was the color of bronze. His face was freckled. His traits were by no means gallant. He was exceedingly normal.

“Still, back then, I thought he was a wonderful person.”

There were other much more courteous princes. There were other far more fine-looking people.

“He didn’t speak arrogantly to me or treat me like I was being too over-the-top for crying. I understood that he had left our statuses aside to talk to me when I saw his smiling face.”

The people in question had been a man in his mid-twenties and a ten-year-old girl. He had spoken to her because she had been wailing. Since she was a child, he had told her to cry as any child would. That was all the man had done. It had been his sole accomplishment.

However…

“It made…”

However, that alone…

“It made…”

That alone had been extremely…

“It made me really happy.”

At that time, that night, that instant, her heart had been stolen.

Charlotte’s eyes probably looked at no one, only seeing that person’s shadow as it surfaced in them. Flushed cheeks, overlapping fingers, shaky lips. They all brought to attention that she was in love.

“Our conversation only lasted a few minutes. I was soon found by Alberta and brought back into the palace. Four years after that, until now, we haven’t seen each other. When the topic of marriage proposal was brought up, I was shocked. I believed it was a special opportunity that God had granted me. I absolutely couldn’t miss it. I… researched information on how it would be of political interest if Drossel and Flügel united, as much as I could. I continuously talked about nothing but that with Father and the parliament members during our dinners. I don’t know if it was because of this, but in the end, Drossel chose Flügel.”

The illusion of a person that Charlotte appeared to be looking at in a part of the garden had already disappeared from her eyes.

“Yet, I… became very scared after everything was settled. I’m so happy about this wedding that I can’t help it, but I what about that person? Perhaps he already had someone in his heart, but wasn’t able to marry them because of me. Was it okay for me to decide on that person just because he was kind to me only once? Even though I’m an asset for Drossel’s sake, I’m mixing my feelings into this, so what will I do if it leads to a result that will work out for the citizens afterwards? There’s an age gap between that person and I. We might not be on the same wavelength. Without my status as princess, I’m nothing but a crybaby girl. He might come to hate me at some point. If that happens, how should I keep on living in an unfamiliar country away from my homeland…?”

She continued pondering in endless worry over such things. Her head was filled with her own reasoning and helplessly noisy. Her anxiety overflowed subsequently.

“I think and think, and then everything starts to become a chore.” With her consciousness back to reality, Charlotte unsteadily lowered her head and fell prostrate onto the table. “Those letters are all frauds. I can’t see in them what I or that person really think. This unclear situation… gnaws at my heart like a disease and makes me unstable.”

Saying no more than that, Charlotte closed her mouth. Surrounding them from afar, the women who were watching over the duo’s tea party moved their necks as if nervous.

Having her forehead against the cool table had chased away her idle thoughts for a little, but her head soon started soliloquizing once again. Tears wound up slowly forming in Charlotte’s eyes.

——We haven’t even sealed our marriage yet; I look like an idiot.

Yet she was so, so anxious that she could not withstand it. She was inevitably afraid of every day, of the present moment and of the future.

“Lady Charlotte, you are a crybaby.”

It was a bristleless, warm and gentle voice tone.

Charlotte looked at Violet. “Violet?”

Violet had stood up from her seat. She had the face of someone who had made some sort of decision. Bringing one finger to her lips, Violet whispered, “We, Auto-Memories Dolls, are the ghostwriting Dolls of our clients. We do nothing outside of our role. That is why what I am about to do… is an obtruding action of my original self, same as Lady Charlotte putting down the tiara. Please be aware that this is unrelated to my firm, the CH Postal Service.”

“What do you intend to do?”

“I will go on an excursion. The truth is the writing of the Auto-Memories Doll from the other side rang a bell with me. That avid and charming manner of entreaty… If it is from the person I have in mind, she will most likely offer assistance. I will go see her.”

She meant to say she planned to visit the Capital of Woods across the river. What on earth was she plotting?

“I wish to stop your tears.”

Violet’s figure as she whispered so while standing amidst the lush vegetation looked like nothing but gleaming light to Charlotte, who was unable to see the world properly due to her tears. When she asked why, Violet merely responded that she did not know and simply wanted to do it. While observing her, for some reason, Charlotte concluded that, if it were that Auto-Memories Doll, she would be able to lead her to a good direction.

To Charlotte, who lived in a world of egotism and would continue doing so from now on as well, that Auto-Memories Doll was much too innocent and there was no falsity in her.

“I understand, Violet. I’ll leave it to you. Please.”









A few days thereafter, a public love letter was delivered from Flügel. In actuality, Drossel’s side was supposed to be the one in turn to send a letter. Such situation had never happened before in history.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

do you remember me from that night?

The contents of the letter were nothing but that. There were no words of love or ardent sighs.

Expectant as they had been of fervently pleading words, the civilians fell into bewilderment. However, the ones bewildered were not the people of Drossel alone.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

I do. You laughed upon seeing my crying face, right? You laughed as if poking fun at me – or, putting it negatively, as if making a fool out of me. I was very irritated. However, I always reminisce to the kindness of your voice back when you said that it was okay for me to cry.

The citizens of Flügel, too, were skeptical at the text delivered from Drossel.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

I laughed because you crying like anyone of your age would was cute. It’s not like I had any ill intent. But I’m sorry.

My title is of prince, yet I don’t have the personality everyone wishes for. You might be shocked after we get married. Please don’t look forward to a mature man just because I’m ten years older than you.

What about you? We’ve only seen each other once, on that night. What kind of girl are you?

The princess and prince had suddenly initialized a letter exchange with informal vocabulary. The population started a scandal about what the meaning of it was. Even those who had no interest in royal affairs found amusement in the rumors of astonishment about them breaking the tradition. “Drossel’s princess and Flügel’s prince are exchanging love letters for real”, they would say.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

I am… a crybaby and hot-tempered. I always mope over small things and get scolded by Alberta. Alberta is a court lady who is something like my caretaker. I’m surely not the kind of young woman that would make you go crazy.

There were people who questioned the royal palaces about it, but neither of the countries had an answer. That raised further awareness. The ones concerned were probably not expecting it, but were gathering attention from both nations as never before in the past.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

I’m also not that great of a human being. But, I’m used to crybaby girls. I have a little sister as my youngest sibling. She’s as old as you. I embrace sad and negative feelings at that. I plan to cherish you, but I don’t have enough charm to make you go crazy about me either. Sorry.

The princess and prince exposed everything and hid nothing within the range appropriate for their ages. Voices of criticism came sporadically from veterans that honored the tradition, yet the youths mostly had faith in the exchange and piped down the repelling.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

no, I am already crazy about you.

Charlotte appended words together as nothing but one girl, while Damian continued to dedicate texts with no lies or fakeness to her as nothing but one young man. The citizens watching over the unadulterated letters of the two, which were unlike the first love letters of mutual feelings interchanged at the beginning, grew worried. Eventually, they even started sending letters of encouragement to each palace.

In response to the sentiments of the public, the letters’ exchange accelerated.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

the me of those letters wasn’t my actual self. They were written by a skilled Auto-Memories Doll.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

I was not referring to you from those letters. I meant you who patted my head four years ago.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

I’m seriously surprised. I mean, I merely consoled you when you were crying just once.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

I treasure this “just once” like a gemstone.

The fact that memories of the past had sprouted her romantic feelings was what Charlotte had wanted to convey to Damian the most. Until reaching such point, Charlotte had disposed of countless sheets of stationary into a wastebasket. She would write and discard, write and discard, and, after being scolded by Alberta about wasting government funds, she thoroughly practiced her handwriting with small letters on a single sheet and later made a clean copy of it.

Violet mostly took the role of guidance regarding the texts. The contents were Charlotte’s unadorned feelings. She simply worked to make sure the latter would write neatly as to transmit her sincerity only with words to the other party. Charlotte’s handwriting, neither bad nor beautiful, improved before her eyes.

At the same speed as the love grew.

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

I’m overwhelmed. That wasn’t my intention. Please don’t create prospects of me. There are countless men much dreamier out there. You’ll have encounters with several people in the process of growing into an adult, too. I’m insensitive and don’t get how women think. I believe I’ll constantly leave you alone and go hunting. I’m aware that I’m no fine man. I can’t answer your hopes.

To anyone who saw it, Damian’s reaction was obviously unfavorable. In his viewpoint, the marital union with Charlotte was plainly a political marriage. From the very beginning, no love existed there. Although he had consideration for the young princess who was below him in age, the passion that a man would offer to a woman was not mixed in it. However, Charlotte even so wrote a letter containing her unalloyed thoughts.

Lord Damian Baldur Flügel,

pardon my words, but I have been courted by numerous young men. Ever since I turned ten years old. What kind of person is a “wonderful man”? One with beautiful looks? One from a rich country? I think a wonderful person is the type that comes in contact with others without being untruthful to themselves. Amidst people who have but their outside polished as if it were glass, you are the only one I know who has said you are not a fine man. I am all right with that. It is all right this way. Should you go hunting, so will I. Please do not underestimate a princess from Drossel. We are educated to marry any sort of gentleman. If it is long rides, I am faster than you.

After transcribing, Charlotte regretted it many times. Why had she not been able to write in a more lovable way? If it would turn out in that manner, rather than conveying her own views, would it not have been better to leave it to Violet?

She distressed Alberta with her specialty – her hot temper. Nevertheless, whether she cried or laughed, there was no way to stop the letter that had already been sent. The citizens, too, were holding their breaths.

The last letter from Damian went as below:

Lady Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel,

my, my, I feel that you’ll beat me to being considerate. By the looks of it, seems like my future bride is a clever, headstrong and interesting person. You’ll make a great queen. Let’s get married. I’m off to pick you up, Milady.

On the day said letter was affixed and made public, the cheering of the citizens echoed loud enough to be heard from the castle.









It was customary for the sealing of the marriage to occur in the princess’s country. Afterwards, a nationwide festival would take place for a week. The people would see off the bride as she wed into the groom’s nation.

Charlotte Abelfreyja Drossel was clad in a white chiffon dress, just as she had been on her tenth birthday. The difference was the fact that such dress was a so-called wedding one.

Having completely finished dressing up, she sat by the windowsill, observing the country that she had been born in and would depart from within a few days. From the window of the dressing room, the city around the castle’s premises was visible. Said city basked in great bliss at the marital union of the young duo from the two nations.

In both countries, the national flags interconnected one house to the other and the streets showered in storms of white and red confetti that represented white camellias and Flügel roses. The bulletin boards in which only the parts of the exchange that came from the duo had been presented to the public were turning into visit spots for lovers.

“Is Violet somewhere in that multitude?”

As Charlotte muttered intermittently, Alberta, who was watching over her unstable self by her side before the signing ceremony, answered, “She is probably already leaving the country. The truth is that her job ended as soon as the last letter was written. Since you made her stay for a few more days, it will likely affect her next duty.”

Upon being told something callous, Charlotte puckered her lips. “That’s because I’d wanted her to see me wearing this dress. I did manage to have her take a look in the end. It’s thanks to her that I’m not tossing off my tiara and crying right now. Violet requested the amanuensis of the other side to make Lord Damian write letters with his own words.”

“It can also be said that she tainted the tradition… In actuality, those of royal clans must not expose their real selves. Absolutely do not forget you must revolve with dignity, as to set an example for the people.”

The subject was one that ached in Charlotte’s ears.

The abrupt change of direction caused by the two Auto-Memories Dolls was a deed that had overturned the history of the Public Love Letters of until then. To entrust something to an Auto-Memories Doll was likely marked in antiquity as exchanges with beautiful phrasing. No one could compliment theirs or consider it a proper way of writing letters. It did not contain neat handwriting or words that could shake others.

“However…”

The governess that occupied the first seat of court lady of the Drossel Kingdom, who was over seventy years old, smiled bitterly as she spoke, “In my long time working in the court, these were the Public Love Letters that will linger in my heart the most. Yes… in a good sense.”

Charlotte directed a stunned look at how a statement other than one of rebuttal had come from the old woman that would always only throw strict words at her.

Moving slowly, Alberta knelt down and took Charlotte’s hands, which were enveloped in long silk gloves. Her own hands, covered in wrinkles, were the ones that had been coming for Charlotte’s aid ever since she was a baby. As they squeezed Charlotte strongly, even her heart tightened.

“Lady Charlotte, are you not anxious anymore?” completely changing from the ceremonious court lady face of a moment before, Alberta asked with the expression of a gentle elderly woman.

At the question, Charlotte’s entire body was assaulted by an indescribable loneliness.

“I am. I’m always anxious. I actually feel like crying even now.”

Her voice delated her wish to cry. She firmly bit her lips as they trembled uneasily.

“You must not cry. It will end up dissolving your precious make-up.”

“I want to marry into where Lord Damian is.”

“Yes.”

“But I don’t want to part ways with my country.”

“Yes.”

“Yet what I don’t want the most… isn’t to be separated from my father or mother, but from you, Alberta.” Charlotte squeezed Alberta’s hands back. The palms that used to feel big when she was a child now seemed quite small.

——Aah, I look like an idiot. I really am selfish.

Right then, at that instant – that moment in which she did not yet belong to him – she was thinking about how she wished to return to her childhood, where merely being spoiled by Alberta was enough. Back in the times when they would always walk holding hands, she simply did not ponder over her own nervousness towards the future or the meaning of her existence.

——I… want to go back to being a child, when just following you was enough.

Nevertheless, Charlotte had already grown up.

“If you say something of that sort, even this old lady will cry.”

Unable to help themselves, the two women embraced each other.

“Don’t cry. If you do, I won’t be able to hold it in.”

“Princess… out of the princesses I’ve raised, you were the smartest and most toilsome.”

“Stop it, I said… Aah, the tears are already…”

Stroking Charlotte’s hands as if to warm them up, Alberta whispered something. It gave place to the trail of a single teardrop on her cheek, decorated as it had been with rice powder and blush.

“Princess Charlotte. Please find happiness.”

Despite them not having blood relations, that voice of hers reached Charlotte as the tone of a mother.









A lone small boat sailed across the river that separated the territories of Drossel and Flügel.

Arriving at the riverside of Flügel, a land of greenery and sunshine, a woman handed copper coins to the boatman and disembarked. Wearing a wide-brimmed hat ornamented with white camellias, said woman mutely moved forward onto firm land.

After a while, she reached an uncluttered plain. The woman’s blue orbs caught sight of someone clad in a dress-coat of a red shade that was ardent even. Said person, whose large travel bag was on the ground as she squatted down, waved upon taking notice of the woman. She was a captivating beauty.

The closer to the ends, the laxer her dark hair was. Her finely shaped ears and earrings modeled after the Moon were but a little bit visible. Her almond-shaped amethyst eyes were a part of her allure. The front of the dress-coat with a waist ribbon tight around her voluptuous body was slovenly open, half-displaying her milky white cleavage. Her height was conspicuous once she quickly stood up.

The two were of different types. If Violet was as impeccably beautiful as a pottery doll, the aura, flirtatious look and many gestures of the woman clad in the dress-coat possessed a devilish exquisiteness that spoke volumes about her glossiness and sex appeal.

“Cattleya.”

“Violet.”

While calling for each other’s names, they approached one another.

Cattleya, who was taller than Violet, nimbly took the hat that the latter was wearing once she came to her side. “What’s that? Did you always have a hat on?”

“I received it from the princess. It seems that female attendees of their ceremonies wear dress-hats like this as accessory. I was unable to attend, but I was given it as commemoration. It will be a good sunblock.”

“This is definitely expensive, isn’t it? No way, it’s got white camellias made of jewelry. So adorable. Gimme?”

“I decline.”

“Violet, you’re indebted to me this time round, right? Convincing Lord Damian was a hassle, after all. That person kicked up a fuss about how he couldn’t possibly write a letter to a girl and how embarrassing it was, like ‘wah~, wah~’. So gimme that as a token of gratitude towards me, the one who had a hard time.”

A wink and air kiss were blown. The person on the receiving end did not budge an inch of her facial expression.

“If you say so, then what happens to the countless instances in which I accepted changing places with you for assignments, Cattleya?”

Whistling instead of answering, Cattleya put on the hat without permission. Then, she spun around in twirls to show it off. The hem of her dress-coat swayed flutteringly.

“How’s it?” Her figure as she laughed and stroke a pose was of a loveliness that erased her luster.

“When Cattleya wears it, an adult charm comes to light.”

Perhaps because Violet’s response was different from what she had wanted, Cattleya puckered her lips. “Say it’s ‘cute’. Even I myself am concerned about that. It’d be okay if I had a face like yours, though. If so, I’d be able to wear as much lace and frills as I pleased.”

“Cattleya, would it not be all right if you wear those as well? Surely they would look good on you.”

“I don’t wear them. I mean, this is the kind of outfit that the President picks for me.”

Violet observed the main charm of Cattleya’s dress-coat – the cleavage. “Must the front be that wide-open?”

“There’re no buttons from here up. It’s the President’s taste.”

“I believe it must be cold.”

“That’s what you comment on? Well… I myself know it’s a selling point, though this is a sad thing… Hey, let’s go eat now or something.”

“I am in a hurry, so I will pass. I must head as fast as possible to where my next client is.”

“You’re really unfriendly. Didn’t our company just inaugurate? Don’t you have any intention of getting along with your colleague Doll? I wanna eat meat.”

“What might you be going on about?”

“About the meal you’ll treat me to. We’ll be even this time if you do that.”

“As I said, I was going to rush ahead…”

“Ah! Those flowers are pretty! I’ve never seen them before!” Cattleya simple-mindedly walked forward.

Violet followed her, seemingly having no other choice. “Cattleya, please return the hat.”

“Dooon’t wanna. If I return it, you’ll leave before me, won’t you? Now look at these flowers. How pretty. Ah, should this big sis make you a flower crown?”

Silence.

“It’s sunny. Good weather for a wedding today. Don’t you think so?”

From the opposing shore, the sounds of the gun salutes could no longer be heard.

The golden-haired Auto-Memories Doll turned around once. She was able to see the castle, almost as if it were reflected on a water surface.

“Yes, that is right.” Violet’s voice tone was soft, even for herself. “It is a fine wedding weather.”

The lovely little flowers bloomed along the green road. Not losing to said flowers, the figures of the two women side-by-side were just as beautiful as them.

The spread-out land was endless. The two Auto-Memories Dolls then started walking towards their next masters.

All the while thoroughly appreciating the wonderful moment.