Chapter 107
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ED: LonelyMatter
Chapter 107 – All I Want is a Quiet Day
Since this morning? To be exact, it started last night, but it was a reasonable uproar. As Olivia herself said, she first told Chris, who came to work early this morning, about Ain. Since Krone was supposed to come to the castle in the afternoon, she would also tell her what happened in the afternoon.
The season changed from spring to summer. The beauty of the greenery shining in the morning sun began to gently soothe Ain’s troubled mind.
The trees along the streets of the Academy District were beautifully maintained, showing the effort Ishtalika had put into the Academy District.
“Hey Chris?”
“Heh… Y-yes! What is it?”
The two of them were a little more open than usual, and the distance between them was a little wider than usual.
The distance between them was a little wider than usual, and their posture was more restless. Chris, walking around with a lot of feelings of fear and confusion… could not treat Ain with her usual att.i.tude.
“It’s okay then, you see, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.”
“R…really…? I’m not going to be wrapped up and absorbed?”
——I don’t think so.
Even if Ain thought that, there was no way Chris could know that.
By the way, the story Chris heard from Olivia was a simple one. Ain had reached adulthood as a different race, and in Ain’s case, he not only had the power but also absorbed a lot of magic stones, so there should be a contingency plan.
“…Be careful not to get absorbed afterwards, okay Chris?” Said Olivia.
Early in the workday. After receiving this explanation from Olivia, Chris wondered why Olivia was in a rare good mood despite the situation. And why was she holding a tree root so carefully?
“I’m a totally dangerous person.”
“Ugh… I-I guess so…”
You could say it was a criminal record. In the past, Ain had a history of using absorption everywhere. Perhaps because of this past, Chris was a bit suspicious.
“Don’t worry. I’ve never been interested in Chris’ magic stone… so I don’t think there’s anything dangerous about it, you know?”
“Mmm.”
It would be scary to be asked to absorb it, but that was not the way to say it. The fact that the words sounded as if they were saying, “I’m not interested in you,” made Chris a little irritated.
“It’s rude to say that you’ve never been interested in me… It’s okay, do you want to absorb a little? What if it tastes good?”
“Eh-ehh… is that what you’re upset about?”
Seeing Chris approaching, Ain was puzzled as to why she had become like this. Ain thought that the magic stone should be treated separately from its owner, but it seemed that this was not the case for Chris, who the stone belonged to.
With her long blonde hair swaying, Chris approached him at the same or slightly closer distance than usual. The fear she felt a few moments ago was long gone.
“Come on, Ain-sama! My magic stone is here… a little, then… if it’s a little…”
The elf’s magic stone seemed to be around the right side of the chest, and Chris approached Ain to claim it. But she must have finally remembered what she was doing. Chris’ face instantly went red in a blur of sudden embarra.s.sment.
“Um, uh, that… well, I’m not ready yet, so when I am… would that be okay with you…?”
“I’m not sure what you are ready for. After all, I won’t absorb the magic stone, you know?”
Since it absorbed the life force, it was only natural that it came close to death. There was no need or reason to bother absorbing it.
“Eh…! You don’t absorb it?”
“No, of course not. It’s not safe. So, Chris, calm down a bit.”
She had a sad look on her face, but why did she think she could make him absorb it? It seemed that there was a part of her that was convinced by Ain’s words, and she seemed to have calmed down more than before. However, there still seemed to be a part of her that remained unexplained.
“Hmm… What should I do about this unbearable feeling…?”
The parties were unaware that the distance had returned to how it used to be. On the other hand, the fact that it was only a matter of returning to the distance that was normal for the two of them had an element of feeling right at home. Since becoming Ain’s bodyguard, Chris had shown more of her own personality.
When she was happy, she was more honest than before, and when she was sad, she did not hide it. Chris, who worked hard at everything she did, always showed that she worked hard at her emotions as well.
While Ain was happy to see her still showing her Chris-ness, he remembered her from before and went back to school with a wry smile on his face.
＊＊＊
“——And so the study of His Majesty the First will now reach a further climax.”
Ain, who had mysteriously come of age that night, received the sword from Mouton. But at the academy, he took his seat as usual and waited for his instructor as usual, surrounded by the usual members of his cla.s.s. Ain approached the second day of the general cla.s.s with a half-truthful look on his face.
“Then the future task is to discover the birthplace and environment of His Majesty the First. Research into the family structure was mentioned… Leonard, please answer why that is.”
“Yes.”
Leonard, who was sitting right next to Ain, was nominated. He stood up quickly and began to give his answer in a brisk voice.
There was not enough data on the unification of the country before and after it was achieved. The research had no tangible results because they could only be studied based on verbal traditions, traces of those traditions, and other small influences.
“This is true. One theory is that he was born in the plains near Magna, and although such a hypothesis has been advanced, it is not yet convincing enough to prove it.”
The lesson continued. However, Ain’s mind was occupied with other things. It was about the phenomenon of his own adulthood. The current situation did not make him feel particularly uncomfortable, but rather, he felt that his senses had become more acute. This was not a bad thing in itself, but if it took a lot of energy, for example, he would subconsciously absorb it just like he did in the past. Could that be the case? There was a concern.
It didn’t particularly affect Chris, but maybe it was just a coincidence. If he thought about the possibility that… he might start absorbing it when he was hungry, he could not be very calm about it.
There was a hypothesis in his mind, and it had to do with Olivia. Why did absorption not work for Olivia? Maybe it was because of the way Ain was born. That was the hypothesis.
The unique birthing method of the dryads. He thought that in a so-called “stock split” type of birth, there would be little feeling of parental love for the original being.
Originally, it was an act of creating a turn for oneself, not a parent-child relationship. The purpose was to increase the population by procreating with the opposite s.e.x created by that birth. Therefore, it made no sense to worship them as parents.
If that was the case, then maybe they were connected by something that cannot be compared to a red string.
This was a fantasy, but it was because of this connection that the absorption did not take place. This was what he was thinking about.
“…Therefore, I look forward to future research…”
While Ain was repeating his thoughts, the instructor was continuing with the lesson when the bell rang. It was two o’clock in the afternoon, and since both the morning and afternoon cla.s.ses had been completed, the school was dismissed for the day.
“It seems that’s all for today. We’ll continue later. That’s all for today’s cla.s.s.”
“Stand up. Rise and bow.”
After the customary greeting from Leonard, the teacher acknowledged them and left the room. Then, without a signal, the four of them gather and begin their usual conversation.
“Well, Your Highness. Is there something troubling you…?”
“Huh? Why?”
Leonard asked Ain with a worried look on his face. Butz and Roland both looked worried and had questioning looks on their faces as they wondered what was going on.
“You seemed to be thinking about something very serious…”
“Oh I see, it’s no big deal.”
It was a big deal, but he couldn’t talk about it. Ain couldn’t talk about this kind of worry, so he had to cover it up with a wry smile.
“What’s bothering you, Ain? Why don’t you go swing your sword, it’ll clear your head, you know?”
“He’s not Butz, you know…”
Roland looked at Butz with a stunned expression. But even Ain thought that swinging the sword might clear his mind, and he realized that Butz’s words were surprisingly not that bad.
“Too bad, Roland. Actually, I’m starting to think that Butz is right, maybe it’s not so bad.”
“Fufun. I’m sorry, Roland.”
“No need to look so proud of yourself…”
“What’s wrong, Ain? If you want, we can go to the terrace and talk about it.”
Butz was a very pleasant man at such times. He was like a big brother who took care of everyone and sometimes showed his reliability.
“Don’t worry, don’t worry. I’ll probably figure it out in a couple of days.
He would solve the problem even if he had to force it. Ain said this with such firm determination. In fact, if he didn’t solve the problem, he wouldn’t be able to feel safe.
“If that’s what you want to do, that’s fine. But if things go wrong, let us know, okay?”
“I understand, and thank you for your help.”
Ain was also greatly helped by his words, which conveyed that the other party was not offended by the declination and that he could always count on them. Despite the fact that he had a muscle-brain side, he did this kind of thing, so it was hard to make fun of Butz.
“But really, are you sure you’re okay? …How about it? We don’t need to talk about your problems, so why don’t we all have dinner together on the terrace?”
“Hmm…”
It was certainly not that bad. Not bad; in fact, he even wanted to have some fun. But today, he wanted to get back to the castle as soon as possible, and he wanted to consult with Katima… that was his only intention.
“I have plans for the evening, so I’ll pa.s.s on it for today. Sorry Leonard.”
“N-no, no, it was my fault.”
He was blessed with such good friends, and he was grateful in his heart.
…The four of them continued to talk together in a friendly atmosphere. Suddenly, a student entered the cla.s.sroom and caught everyone’s attention.
“Huh? Who is that kid?”
Roland said, and Ain and the others also paid attention to the student. He was a boy with an unfamiliar face, and his silver hair was carefully set in a reasonably good-looking style. It was generally not recommended to enter other cla.s.ses’ cla.s.srooms, and perhaps that was why the male student was the center of everyone’s attention.
“He kind of walked over here, do you know him?”
“I don’t know. Butz, was that you?”
“No, I don’t know either. That would be Ain…”
“I don’t know him either.”
The whole group seemed to have no memory of the guy, and there were only question marks in their minds. The student, who was unaware of such a thing, gradually closed the distance between Ain and the others until they were within a meter of each other.
“Who are you?”
Butz was the first to open his mouth and address the male student. Despite a bit of caution, he stood in front of Ain and said.
“Excuse me. I am Roddy, a fifth year student. You must be His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?”
The boy looked at Ain and spoke to him without looking at Butz. Ignored, Butz’s mouth fell open, and he was simply stunned.
“Oh, yes, I am. I’m the Crown Prince.”
Ain did not like the fact that he was ignoring Butz. Even though Butz was by no means a va.s.sal, it still didn’t feel good to be treated like this.
“It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time. I have come to ask a favor of Your Highness.”
“H-hey, wait, you! …You’re not just meeting him for the first time, you suddenly come in front of His Highness and show your disrespect!”
Leonard scolded Roddy for his att.i.tude. But Roddy just glanced at Leonard and immediately turned his attention back to Ain.
“Well, that’s fine, Leonard. Now, what do you want me to do for you?”
He had seen a lot of disrespectful behavior. There was no need to be irritated by it. …But Ain didn’t like the way he behaved towards Butz and Leonard.
“…Would you please release Krone-san? We have feelings for each other.”
——Ain, who had no idea what was going on, then asked Roddy the reason for this.
＊＊＊
“I’m sorry, Ain. I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
After the conversation with Roddy, Ain returned to the castle in a panic. He had planned to go to Katima first for advice, but that turned out to be an unfulfilled dream. In a great hurry, he went to Krone’s office, and the first thing he asked was about Roddy.
“N-no, I don’t understand either… But that’s what Roddy said.”
“This Roddy said that he and I are in love with each other?
“That’s what he said.”
“Hmm. …You came home because you were worried about that? And in such a hurry.”
There was sweat on his forehead, and his breathing was very heavy. All his clothes were in disarray, and his hair was in a very rough state.
“Well, it’s better than not being in a hurry… But it’s a little disconcerting.”
The words she murmured in a low voice did not reach Ain’s ears. Krone’s voice was drowned out by the sound of his ragged breathing.
“So? What was this Roddy boy like?”
“…A silver-haired, rather popular-looking fifth-year student.”
Hearing this, Krone put a finger to her lips, closed her eyes, and began to think. Was she thinking about how to explain it, or was it really…? Many emotions stirred in Ain’s mind. Now he waited for Krone’s answer, but a minute pa.s.sed, and she still could not answer.
“U-um… Krone?”
Finally, in desperation, he decided to ask her what she was thinking about. Seeing Krone in the same position, thinking all the time, Ain’s patience had run out.
“Huh? What’s wrong, Ain?”
“Don’t just stand there, I want to know what’s going on.”
“Oh, about that. I’m sorry, you’ll have to wait a little longer, I’m trying to remember this Roddy boy.”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean, huh? I’m trying so hard to remember.”
——H-huh
Was this something unexpected for Ain? It seemed that they were in love with each other, but Krone, on the other hand, couldn’t remember who he was even after thinking about it for a few minutes, and Ain had no idea about what was going on.
“Ah… maybe.”
She seemed to be convinced of something and picked up the bell on the desk. She rang it lightly, and after about ten seconds, a servant came to the desk.
“How may I help you?”
“On behalf of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and his a.s.sistant. Please summon the president of the August Trading Company, Graff-dono, to the castle.”
“Understood. May I do so immediately?”
“Yes. Tell him to come as soon as possible.”
“Very well. Then please excuse me.”
After ordering the servant who came to the desk to do so, Krone rose from her seat at the desk and came to Ain’s side. Then she stood on the sofa where Ain was sitting and put her hand on the teapot that was on the table.
“I’m sorry, Ain. Wait a little longer, I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”
“Why Graff-san…?”
“Grandpa probably knows best. Why don’t we wait and have a cup of tea together?”
“Well, Graff-san knows a lot… Can you give me some more information…?”
It didn’t change the fact that he was curious. It was natural to want to get more information from her, and Ain’s mind was never at peace.
“Since you even said “my Krone,” I hope you feel a little more secure…”
With Krone’s gaze, which had become a regular occurrence these days, Ain was in a delicate state of mind and comfort, waiting for Graff to come to the castle at any moment. As she said this, the star crystal Ain had given her shone brightly in her hand today.
——There has been a lot of excitement lately, but it would be nice to solve these problems one by one.
A few minutes later. Ain and Krone greeted Graff, who had arrived in a panic to see what was going on.