Claustrophobia of Cages
Even after that incident, I continued following Epindel's training schedule for a while.
That day, as part of her Orlan curriculum, we were to train by taking on a quest together.
...As noted in the report, we'll be heading out to a rather remote area this time.
We'll borrow horses from NOA's official stables.
Did you happen to read the riding manual I gave you?
...Squeeze with your legs to go forward.
Pull the reins to stop. Right?
...
You only remember the first two sentences on the first page.
Well, it's fine. The horses there are well-trained.
You'll learn better by riding anyway.
Fair enough.
...There's... only one horse left?
Yes, we got an urgent request from Apocalypse.
It's rare for the stables to be this empty...
...
All right. We'll take the one that's left, then.
This is inconvenient. Of all days...
Can't we ride together?
NOA's horses are a bit small for that.
We could just sit close?
...
You're not having any indecent thoughts, are you, Captain?
You're the last person who should be saying that...
Regardless, firstly, it would put too much strain on the horse.
Secondly, it might stir up inappropriate rumors.
What kind of inappropriate rumors?
...
It might stir up certain inappropriate rumors.
Understood?
Yeah, yeah.
That leaves us with no choice, I suppose...
Ah, actually, we do have one spare carriage.
Would that work?
It's a bit small, but light enough for one horse to pull with ease.
That's a relief. Thank you.
...
...Epindel?
Y-yes?
You look a little pale...
N-no, not at all.
There's no need to worry about me.
...Except there was a reason to worry.
Standing in front of the carriage, Epindel was frozen stiff.
D-doesn't it seem a little cramped?
Will your sword even fit in t-there...?
We can strap it to the roof.
I see...
But it's tight enough that our knees might touch.
You have a larger stature, so it might be uncomfortable for you...
I've slept in worse places.
I... see...
Um, Epindel...?
Are you... afraid of carriages?
A-afraid?
Th-that's absurd, ridiculous, baseless slander.
Me? Afraid of a carriage?
It's just a cart pulled by a horse...
That shakes... Feels suffocating... And leaves you no place to escape... It's nothing more than a rattling wooden box...
W-who in their right mind would be afraid of that?
So it's not the carriage...
Then are you afraid of small spaces?
Afraid of small spa—
...Ngh!
Who'd even be afraid of something like that?!
House Orlan does not tolerate baseless accusations.
So allow me to put your doubts to rest.
We'll take the carriage to the appointed location.
Captain, you have no objections, do you?
This doesn't seem like a great idea...
You have no objections, do you?
...No.
Epindel took a deep breath and stepped into the carriage.
Do carriages usually require taking deep breaths before getting in...?
All set? Then let's go.
Drive slow, please.
Once we were on board, the carriage began to roll forward.
For a two-seater, the ride wasn't too bad.
But Epindel, sitting across from me...
She has turned completely pale, eyes squeezed shut, not saying a word.
*Clunk*
Eek...!
When I offered her my hand, she gripped it so tight my knuckle turned white.
A-aren't you squeezing it a little too hard?
Focus on your breathing, Epindel... Deep breathes...
You're not hearing a word.
...This clearly wasn't going to work, so I asked the coachman to stop.
Epindel, time to get off.
...Eh?
...Oh. W-we're here already?
Th-that was so fast!
I must've been so relaxed, I didn't even realize we'd arrived!
...Then why aren't you standing up?
...
...Could you wait just a moment?
Need help?
Help? What, do I look like my legs gave out or something?
I appreciate your words, but I assure you, I'm perfectly fine.
I looked down at my hand.
It was red and drenched with sweat.
Do you even remember what you were holding the whole way here?
...
...I must've!
I must've been sound asleep. I don't remember a thing!
...Wouldn't it be easier to just admit it?
That you're claustrophobic?
...
I told you, that's not true.
B-but if you insist, I could stay here all day just to prove it!
...So that's how you're playing it.
In the end, I canceled the quest and just wrapped up with training.
It was unprecedented, but for the first time, Epindel didn't argue and quietly went along with what I said.