Chapter Text
At any rate, I opened the windows and turned off the air ventilation so that I can adjust to the weather. I don’t really have anything to write about because of that, so I’ll write my notes about my arrival in Janina seven days ago. I’m used to taking spaceships as a means of interplanetary travel*, so I stayed awake and looked at the monitor the entire time. The planet felt familiar to me because I had heard the name so many times when I was a child. As that turquoise blue planet got closer, I thought about a lot of things. About my father and mother, and all the incidents that were the origin of my coming to this land. When the airlock of the landing module opened and a warm wind blew in, I said “whoa…” without even thinking, and all the other passengers laughed at me. If I were to use an expression from Eastern Space,” kind of person.
The first person to call out to me at the airport was a woman selling fried bananas. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have any worries about this planet that I was clinging to. Under ordinary circumstances, I don’t think it’d be necessary for me to set foot here. If the people here knew whose son I am, what would they think? They might throw stones at me. But I have things here I need to do. Even making up for the things my father did…
Someone with really scary looks came into the building today, and it turns out it was Baptistin. I hadn’t seen him since Haydée left Paris, so I wasn’t sure how to greet him. I had a lot of mixed feelings… But it brought back a lot of memories.
“’m on an errand for the Princess,” he said.
“Who’s the Princess?”
“There’s only one Princess, ain’t there?”
It wasn’t a straightforward conversation. When I thought about it, the only person Baptistin would call that is Haydée. If I asked Franz, he would probably make fun of me and say, “You’re still not the quickest person, are you?” Baptistin gave me a letter from Haydée.
“The Princess is lookin’ forward to seein’ you.”
Hearing that made me happy. When I thought of the hardships that Haydée had to endure at the hands of my father, the gentleness of her heart moved me anew. I said, “I’m sure she’ll make a good queen.” Baptisin said, “Ain’t that obvious?” I read the letter.
My dear Albert. You must be exhausted from your long voyage. It’s reassuring that you took up the position as a diplomat to Janina. I wish to meet you as soon as possible, but it may not be that simple. Our days in Paris are so nostalgic. This afternoon, I would like to hold a modest welcoming party. Please, by all means, come, I’m sure you have proposals from the legation office, so if you cannot make it, it’s fine!. Official business will take up much of their time here, so I’m not sure when it will be, but I believe Bertuccio or Baptistin will come to greet you. I look forward to that time.
Haydée.
I was moved.
In the busy time before the coronation ceremony, to hold a welcoming party for me… Still, I feel I don’t have the proper social standing to meet with Haydée freely. It’s been SO long, sorry to everyone who’s been waiting…! I’ve far from given up on this. It’s kind of like a long-term project for me. I still very much plan on translating the entire thing. For now, I’ve translated three more entries and will post them all separately (with the sketches in the journal!). a picture of mark, Albert's coworker, is included!
The streets of Janina I can’t pronounce the official name of the capital of Janina. The closest pronunciation is “Janina,” of course, but when the intonation and consonants’ reverberations identify the planet when someone says the country’s name when someone says the capital’s name, the names are all sublimely different… kind of. I say “kind of” because no matter how many times I hear them, I can’t tell them apart. I’m worried about being a diplomat for that reason. But Mark told me I’d get used to it and took me out to the streets of Janina. He said we should eat dinner in the bazaar. With him as a guide, we did some window shopping. Janina is a country on the border of the “empire” and “monarchy,” so aspects of both cultures exist simultaneously, and the bazaar is rather lively. Passing by a shop that had spices and precious ores lined up together, we reached a large plaza.
“I heard they used to hold slave auctions here,” Mark said, which startled me. Could Haydée have been auctioned off around here?
“Is the heat getting to you? You don’t look so good,” Mark said while leading me into a dirty-looking store.
“This place’s food is the best for when that happens.”The smell of spices filled the dark shop.
“I recommend the Janina sheep stew. It’s spicy.”
When we sat on the stain-covered rug, as instructed by the employee wearing traditional clothes, a large platter of food was immediately brought out. It had a powerful smell. So this is the taste of Haydée’s home, I thought. As I write this, about five hours have passed since then. My mouth is still tingling. I think it’ll still take some time for me to get used to Janina’s climate. An interesting rumor. Haydee’s coronation ceremony is soon. Today, in order to coordinate the program of the ceremony, I went to the royal palace. I say that, but I didn’t enter the “inner palace” of course. There aren’t any beautiful mistresses competing to see who’s most exquisite, though. Haydée lived in but stayed in the government office called the Prime Minister’s palace. I was holding onto the faint hope that I might meet Haydée, but that was foolish of me.
The preparatory meeting lasted until late into the night (See, I’m working hard! Just a comment to Beauchamp, who sent me letters saying, “I’m jealous that you get to laze around Janina”!
The empire’s envoy is also coming to the coronation ceremony. I don’t want to ruin the increasing feeling of peace just because of our insignificant disputes. As you know, from Lucien Debray’s efforts, before a formal peace treaty could be signed, the empire and monarchy went through a period of war. No matter what happens, we can’t go back to that time. That’s why the legation personnel’s minds are wearing heavy and they’re running around so busily.
I heard something interesting. It seems there are a few people within the Janina government who don’t agree with Haydée’s coronation. Haydée, who descends from the previous king, is a symbol of Janina’s independence from both the empire and monarchy, but there are people who held power under the monarchy’s rule who oppose Janina’s independence. Of course, Haydée was completely aware of this when she ruled.
I feel like I need to be her strength. I’m worried about whether I can be useful, but I did my best to become a proper adult and became a diplomat, so I’ll just do what I’m capable of. Still, bringing Janina out of a period of darkness is the responsibility of the person who descended from that man. The entire empire vs. monarchy stuff can be a bit confusing (it’s. As I know the “empire” refers to Paris and related areas, considering Lucien is referred to as the empire’s envoy and he’s still living in Paris. The monarchy has control of Janina. Janina recently gained independence from them as mentioned in the last episode.
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A letter from Raoul
Today has been exhausting since it started. My job is just to file a list, but it was a very long list in the end. I can’t believe I was so diligent. If Mom were back in Marseilles and saw me, she’d probably be too shocked to stand (when I got the news that I passed the exam to become a diplomat, she was dead for about five minutes. How are you doing!? I’m the same as usual, myself. I wanted to tell you about the terribly beautiful girl I started dating, but she dumped me before I had the chance. Beauchamp said it was because all I talked about during our date was my Traction Avant. Have I given you a ride in this beautiful car?
Because of all that, I went to Marseilles a while ago to get over my broken heart. I spent a week at the Morrell residence and it really comforted me. Valentine has just gotten more and more beautiful (I don’t have any lingering feelings for her!). Maximilien gained some weight, so he’s started doing muscle training. I told them “I’m jealous of how happy you two are together,” and Valentine said, “you’re the one who seems happiest '' and laughed. Why? I met with your mother, too. She’s as beautiful as always. She seems like she’s doing well, so don’t worry. I’m going to head there before the coronation ceremony. Lately, my little sisters have been talking about “remodeling me into a handsome man,” so I don’t really feel like going home. When I saw Lucien, I told him “Albert’s working but still isn’t used to it, so go kick his butt,” because your mastered way of lazing around doesn’t seem like it’ll just fade away. Until next time! Mind your own business!