(Part 2)
After finishing the main dish and the dessert, I took a breath as I wet my throat down with the wine. Though I have been properly taught table manners, all this formality still stiffens up my shoulders.
By the way, Aya and Mururu were brought fruit juice. Alcohol is only after they become adults. Both seemed to look at me implying not to treat them as children but on this matter alone, I won’t yield.
“Renji-sama, Aya-sama, would you perhaps have some time after this?”(leo)
“Is there something you need?”(renji)
“Need, or rather, there’s something I want to discuss about.”
He must have something he really wants to talk about it seems. Judging by his side glances, it must be about Ms Francesca. The fact he asked for Aya as well was……..well, probably because he’s treating her in the same way as me as she has the status of a hero like me as well. Honestly, I’d like nothing more than to be treated normally but with Aya here as well, I hesitated to say that.
“I do not mind. Feirona, can I leave Mururu and Solnea to you?”(renji)
“Sure.”
Somehow I feel like I have been asking Feirona to act as babysitter quite a lot of times recently. But if I said that I feel like Mururu would get angry so I won’t.
“Then, Francesca, go take your friends to your room to talk will you?”
“Ah, yes.”(fran)
“Melentia, Kalafina, both you also go and get acquainted with them as well.”
When leonhart-san said that, everyone else left their seats silently. And at the same time, I handed over Ermenhilde to Feirona as well.
[I can finally talk.]
Her voice resounded in my head. Since Melentia-san and others are still there, I wanted to tell her to not talk yet. Well, Feirona should be able to take care of that. I feel like I rely a lot on him. Or maybe Ms Francesca might introduce even her to her sisters.
I’ll leave that aside for now. Though I don’t want too many people to be able to hear Ermenhilde’s voice either. As everyone left, only me, Aya, Leonhart-san and Mrs Arteria were left in the room. The maids silently cleared away the dishes and left as well.
“Once again, you have my grat.i.tude to have been helping my daughter till this day.”(leo)
Once again, Leonhart-san and Arteria bowed.
“Please, I said this before as well but your daughter has helped me many times as well. And she has even been helping Aya here at school as her senior as well.”(renji)
“Yes, Francesca-senpai has been very kind to us at school as well so please raise your heads.”(aya)
Now if I only I could tell how much I dislike such formalities. But that’d only make it sound even ruder. Since they are the ones welcoming us here, we have a duty act accordingly as well. That’s what we refer to as courtesy.
It was too stiff for people like me and Aya who were commoners to the core but this also comes as a part of having the t.i.tle of a Hero I believe. This’d sound like worthless nagging but I really don’t think the t.i.tle of a Hero suits me. I wasn’t born as a n.o.ble and lived such a life after all.
“So, what is the matter you wanted to talk about Leonhart-san?”(renji)
“Yes, that’s……this may sound rude but from your point of view, how is Francesca?”(leo)
“Meaning?”
Unable to get what he was asking, I asked him to explain.
Leonhart-san looked towards him straight, and with a strong gaze.
“I always thought that she was the type who hated fighting. Raised almost as a princess, she grew up as a tender-hearted girl……..but then she awoke to magic, and began to head on that path.”
Looks like the topic was about ms Francesca after all. As he spoke while slightly shivering, I almost felt sadness from him. And as his face bent lower and lower as he spoke, I got worried for a second that he might even be crying.
……….Beside him, mrs Arteria seemed to be looking at him with a chilly gaze though.
“I do not wish for her to get involved in such dangerous things, we are from a merchant family after all. Now though it’d be difficult for her to inherit the family business, at least I want her to live the life as a daughter of a merchant house would, and one day marry a man in the same business like Kalafina.”
“uh, okay……….?”
Aya spoke sounding troubled but Leonhart-san seemed to have not heard that. After that, for a while, he told us about Ms Francesca before she went to the magic Academy. Like how she hated bugs, and even used magic to get rid of them. That was how the [magician] Francesca Barton was born in fact.
It seems though the people of this family posses magical energy, they can’t use magic itself so they were very surprised at first, and then became very happy. But as a result, she got completely absorbed in magic and finally enrolled in the academy. By the way, Leonhart-san was against that decision apparently. He even gave fervent speech about it. Just how much does he like his daughter? At first I thought he was the mild type of person but looks like inside, he’s quite the pa.s.sionate man. That part of him quite resembles Ms Francesca as well to be honest.
“I apologise. When it comes to our daughters, my husband stops seeing everything else.”(arteria)
“No, as a man, I do understand his feelings as well.”(renji)
I think every male parent is like this when it comes to daughters.
I’ll get really worried whenever Yui-chan would be reckless or do something dangerous and if she ever got a boyfriend I won’t be able to calm down I think.
Well, before me, that boyfriend would have to pa.s.s the tall wall that is KNIGHT and Fafnir though. And she’s just 16 right now anyway, such things are still far away.
I thought that but then again, Aya was 15 back then, and Masaki-chan was 16………..realizing that, I guess they were this age as well when she began clinging to Souichi. Then there was also Yuuichirou’s case but when it comes Yui-chan, I don’t think she’d get a lover without telling anyone. When I met her in the capital, she showed no such signs as well and even that over talkative Anastasia didn’t say any such thing.
“Is that so?!”(leo)
I got a bit surprised by leonhart-san as he suddenly rose his face and said that but something happened underneath the table that he shook once and then seemed to calm down a lot.
What the heck just happened under the table? His foot must have been stomped on I think. Happens a lot to me as well after all. I won’t say by whom though.
“Well—–this is the main matter but, can Francesca survive and achieve accomplishments as an adventurer?”(leo)
“As an adventurer, is it?”
“Yes.”
“After returning home, we heard a lot about Francesca’s travels with Renji-sama from her.”(arteria)
“………I see.”(renji)
Now, what did she tell I wonder. She didn’t go through anything that might make this father of hers so sad though. In contrast, Mrs Arteria didn’t seem to show much unrest like her husband. So, she was the one who continued the topic.
Even though he looks like such a firm man, is he that weak mentally? Or was it only because it concerned his daughter?
“She spoke about it very happily, in fact she showed a smile we never saw from her when she was at home.”(arteria)
“I see…”
“After getting saved by Renji-sama, everything started when you decided to help her with her academy a.s.signment supposedly?”
“Yes, that’s right. Now that I recall, the first time I met her was when I saved her from that goblin attack eh?”(renji)
How nostalgic. It’s almost been half a year from that time.
After getting almost killed by some goblins, she cried a lot. Even though now I think she has grown strong enough to manage even a group of goblins alone.
“But, though she was very lively at first after returning home, recently she has been sighing around a lot.”
“Sighing, you say?”
I glanced at Aya but she shook her head. Looks like even Aya has no idea what’s this about.
Of course, neither do I.
After a few months, she’ll also graduate from the academy. Now I don’t know what she plans to do after that but I believe that she’s been sighing because she’d be unable to travel with Renji-sama and your group any longer.”
“Did she say that?”(aya)
“No. That girl, I wonder who she’s taken after, but she always tries to carry her burdens and problems alone.”
“I see.”
Giving vague replies, inside, I agreed as well.
Back when we first met, she had been trying to do everything alone after all. Even though she wasn’t even used to travelling, she tried helping me as well. Even though she couldn’t cook, she tried hard to.
She did all out of good intention and she did help me a lot. And above, all it was lonely to travel alone so travelling with her made me feel lively as well.
But, she wasn’t in any way perfect at everything and there were many times she got depressed due to not being of much help to others. Because I know that, I could understand what Mrs Arteria was saying.
“So, how does this concern to being an adventurer?”(renji)
“……..if she had the ability to excel as an adventurer, would it be possible for her to continue to travel along side you Renji-sama?”
“I see. So that’s what you mean.”(renji)
Fumu, I rested my chin on my fingers.
I didn’t expect something like this. I didn’t see any difference in Ms Francesca when she came to meet us at the inn and she didn’t seem to show any reaction when I talked about travelling to Elfreim either.
That’s why, I was sure that she had also somewhat resolved herself to part ways with us.
“Did Francesca-san say something like that even once?”(renji)
“No. Like I said before, she—-”
“Now this might sound very harsh of me but our journey from hereon will be very dangerous. Honestly speaking, I cannot guarantee that even me or Aya would return back safe.”
I could sense the two in front of me gulp.
I said this to Mururu as well but we aren’t strong enough to be able to protect her in that kind of place as well. The divine protection of the G.o.ddess didn’t make us omnipotent.
I can’t even fight properly unless against an apostle or a descendant of a G.o.d and Aya only specialises in attacking. I hired Feirona and Mururu solely to protect Solnea. There was not much margin to add Ms Francesca into it as well. Then, she’d have to protect herself.
“If she understands the danger, and wishes and openly speaks to still travel with us, and……”
And…
“If Leonhart-san is still willing to send his own precious daughter to such a dangerous journey, I am willing to conduct a test.”
I wonder will he allow it? To let her daughter go off on a dangerous journey…..where she could even die?
If it was me—— I don’t know. I wonder what it’d be. I have never truly had a daughter and I am currently taking Aya, who was closest to a daughter to me, on said journey but somewhere deep inside I wish for her to be somewhere safe as well.
If Yui-chan ever said that she wanted to go on such a dangerous journey, how would I answer?
“I a.s.sume you are aware of the Griffin nest near Merdior yes?”(renji)
“Wha, yes.”
“Information is life to merchants, I guess.”
It should be obvious that’d they’d be aware of such a thing.
“Soon, we’ll be subjugating those griffins. If she says that she wants to come with us, she’ll have to prove her strength there.”(renji)
Saying all that without a pause, I took a deep breath.
If Ms Francesca were to travel with us again, Mururu will be happy, and Solnea will also have another opponent to play chess with. And honestly, it’s never bad to have too many beauties on a journey.
But, the journey is very dangerous. Death is a possibility.
If she fully understands that, gets approval of her parents, and shows to have strength enough to protect herself, only then——
“From when I first met her, she has definitely gotten much stronger. But the question still remains whether she’d be able to protect herself in the upcoming journey.”(renji)
But, I thought. It was like this back when I first met her as well. Even when I said that she might die, she still looked ahead. She completed the Orc subjugation.
These two asked whether she’d be able to become an accomplished adventurer but I wouldn’t know that.
I may have travelled around the world in order to subjugate the Demon G.o.d but still I have only been an adventurer for just 2 years.
But then again, I do think I faintly understand what’s important to an adventurer.
Will and effort. Talent comes second. Though one might need talent to make some great accomplishments as an adventurer but to an adventurer, what’s more important is the will to survive and to put in effort for it.
“Is that all you wanted to talk about?”(renji)
“Uh, Yes.”
“I see. Then, we’ll take our leave. Thank you very much for this enjoyable time tonight.”
Taking another breath, I gave a meaningful smile.
Relaxing at that, both clearly broke their expressions. I may consider the t.i.tle of a Hero as a burden but that’s not so to the society. They will see me as the Hero no matter what. Even now they seemed to be acting sorry wondering if they had angered me by anything.
Even though they are much more amazing having so much wealth, and ships that were the corner stone for trade, than someone like me whose only accomplishment is to have killed a G.o.d.
But no matter what I say right now, it wouldn’t reach these two. I’ll ask Mururu to tell it to Ms Francesca later.
“We’ll prepare a carriage so can you please wait a while?”
“Of course. I need to talk to Francesca-san as well. When the carriage has been prepared please call us.”(renji)
Saying that, I stood up. I’ve eaten my fill and also got to hear a lot about Ms Francesca and her past as well. In the end, it became slightly awkward but I can call this an enjoyable night I think. I really must be a commoner to the core to be already thinking for a way to apologise for tonight later.
“Aya, let’s go.”
Holding out my left elbow, Aya entwined her arm around mine. Looks like she still hasn’t gotten used to the heels. How charming, really.
“Sorry to have decided all that by myself.”(renji)
“It’s fine. As long as Francesca senpai wishes for it and Renji-san is fine with it.”
“……….It’ll be a dangerous journey though.”
“fufufu.”
Did I say something amusing as Aya gave a small laugh.
Leonhart-san gave a clap and the door to the dining hall was opened and a few butlers came in. Looks like they’re here to lead us to ms Francesca’s room. So we followed after the butler.
“I’m with you as well. Let’s protect them together.”(aya)
“Yeah.”
How rea.s.suring, really.
“I’ll be relying on you then.”(renji)
“Yes. Please do—-as much as you want.”(aya)
The moment she said that, due to the heels, she stumbled even though there was nothing in the way.
She didn’t fall as she was supported by my elbow but how should I say it………..yeah..
“I’m still uneasy about this.”(renji)
“……..I’m not wearing heels ever again.”(aya)
That’s not okay on its own though.