Chapter 24: Date

The royal capital of a nation at war.

“…It’s still lively.”

And yet, despite everything, the capital of the Lunoa Kingdom still retained its vibrancy—its stubborn, almost defiant energy refusing to be extinguished.

“Cheap, cheap! Fresh potatoes for sale! Come take a look!”

“Hey there, young man with the lady! How about buying her a little gift?”

“Freshly grilled beef skewers! Hot and delicious—care to try?”

Voices overlapped in a lively chorus as merchants carried on their trade. Stalls lined the main street, colorful and crowded, as though the war existed somewhere far beyond the horizon.

“Hey, mister. One skewer, please.”

“Coming right up!”

Even meat—proper, savory meat—could still be bought here.

I took the skewer from the vendor and, without hesitation, held it out toward Shia walking beside me.

“Oh? Are you sure I can have the first bite?” she asked, tilting her head slightly with a teasing smile.

“Go ahead.”

“Fufu! What a good boy you are. That’s how a little brother should behave—always thinking of his sister.”

Leaning closer, she took a bite directly from the skewer, her lips carefully closing around the meat without using her hands.

“Well? Is it good?”

“Mm! It’s delicious!”

“I’m glad.”

Watching her nod with clear satisfaction, I couldn’t help but smile before taking a bite myself.

“…Yeah. It’s good.”

Out on the battlefield, expecting proper food was a luxury.

Moments like this—being able to eat something that actually tasted good—only existed far from the front lines. Even at command posts near the front, the meals were… well, best left undescribed.

Lunoa’s military rations were, without exception, terrible.

“So? Where are we heading next?”

“Hmm… I haven’t decided yet. Got any good ideas?”

“Hm… ‘somewhere good,’ you say? That’s a difficult question.”

“Yeah… I’m the one who suggested sightseeing, but when it comes down to it, I have no idea what to actually do.”

It wasn’t as though the city felt particularly novel.

It was like living in a place tourists adored—yet finding nothing remarkable about it yourself. Familiarity dulled the charm.

“I’m sure there are places worth seeing if we look.”

“Perhaps. But they’ll all feel a bit… late, don’t you think?”

As we wandered aimlessly, uncertain of our destination, the sound of music drifted into our ears.

“…A bard.”

Turning toward the source, I spotted a man playing a guitar, his fingers moving skillfully across the strings as a small crowd gathered around him.

“Now then—today’s tale is of a hero of the western front! A man who, single-handedly overturned the tide of battle and drove the front lines forward—let me tell you the story of Noah Willard!”

“Hey! That’s about you, isn’t it? Let’s go listen!”

Drawn in by the opening of the tale, Shia began to move toward the bard, her curiosity instantly ignited.

“Hey—”

Before she could take more than a step, I reached up from behind and covered her ears with both hands.

“Let’s go.”

“—Mmff?!”

Leaving just the slightest gap, I leaned close to her ear and whispered insistently, steering her away before she could resist.

“This should be far enough.”

Only after we had moved well out of earshot did I finally release her.

“Hey! You could’ve let me listen! I was interested, you know?”

“No way. That’s embarrassing.”

“Muu~ what’s there to be embarrassed about? As your older sister, I want to hear about your achievements!”

“Even so—no!”

There was no way I could let her hear that.

To make the story more dramatic, they would exaggerate everything—turning every reckless act into legend. Taking bullets to the stomach at the front lines. Burning wounds shut with fire to stop the bleeding. Filling the tale with shock and spectacle.

There was no way I could let her hear something like that.

She looked like she was recovering… but that was all it was—an appearance. Nothing more.

“….”

“Hm? What is it? Why are you staring at me like that?”

“…Nothing.”

When I had been by her side back at the estate, she had seemed like her usual self.

But whenever I stepped away—even briefly, like when I went to bathe—the servants said she would slip back into that unstable, dangerous state.

She wasn’t better.

Not really.

“Let’s do something else,” I said, shaking off the thought. “No need to get hung up on ‘sightseeing.’ Let’s just enjoy the day like we used to. We’ve only had that skewer so far—let’s find a place to eat properly, then maybe do some shopping after.”

“I still want to go back to the bard…” she muttered, though her voice softened. “…but I suppose it can’t be helped. Fine, we’ll do that.”

“Thanks. Let’s go.”

I wasn’t a doctor.

I didn’t know what I could do for her—what I should do.

But one thing was certain.

As long as I stayed by her side…

I would spend as much time with her as I could.