Kays Translations

Chapter 19 – How to Spend the Consecutive Holidays

The final two days of the consecutive holidays arrived.

Licia first left Elendil aboard a magic ship. She was expected back at night. Ren spent the day as usual, practicing his new technique and training at the Lion’s Holy Office, then returned to the mansion and took a bath.

Not long afterward, voices outside his open window suggested that Licia had come home.

Ren headed to the entrance hall and found her there, just as he had expected. She had only just returned.

When Licia saw him, she trotted over to his side.

“I’m back. I brought you a souvenir, so have some later.”

“Thank you. You must be tired after being called away so suddenly.”

“No, I’m fine. What did you do today, Ren?”

“The usual. I went hunting and swung my sword around.”

Licia laughed. “That sounds exactly like you.”

“Hey, Ren.”

Her voice was full of excitement.

“Would you like to go into town with me tomorrow? It has been a while. Father said we could spend the day however we liked.”

“That sounds good. I have not had much time to walk around Elendil lately.”

“Then it is settled! I hear many new shops have opened, so let us take the chance to relax together.”

With a radiant smile, Licia said, “I am looking forward to it!” and left him.

Lessard arrived in her place and addressed Ren. Weiss followed a short distance behind him.

“I reviewed a report on the magic ship home. It concerns the current state of the Ashton village.”

Lessard took a letter from inside his jacket and handed it to Ren.

Realizing he was free to read it at once, Ren broke the seal in front of him.

The parchment inside showed that the village had changed considerably yet again.

Someone had even taken a painter along, and the letter included a detailed picture of the settlement.

“Oh… Part of the village now has a facility merchants can use as a base.”

“I have heard about that,” Lessard said. “More merchants are passing through Clausel territory, and roads have been built around the village. It appears to be growing quite prosperous.”

Weiss joined the conversation with a warm smile.

“I have heard from the knights who remained there as well, boy. The money you send home has helped make the village incomparably safer than it once was. It may not be long before people begin calling it a town.”

“It was not only me. None of it would have happened without everyone’s help.”

Ren spoke with an embarrassed smile, and the two men before him laughed.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

The following morning, Ren and Licia met in the same entrance hall shortly after nine.

“You worked hard at your training too, Ren, so do not push yourself today.”

“I am fine. More importantly, are you sure you are not tired, Licia-sama?”

“Hee hee. Of course I am not.”

No guards accompanied them. Ren was beside Licia, and Licia herself had become a fully fledged Mighty Sword practitioner of Sword Adept rank. If some danger could threaten the two of them together, remaining inside the mansion would not necessarily make them safer.

“Are you ready to leave?”

Licia asked in her ordinary clothes.

By now, there was no other way to describe her skirt than perfectly suited to her. The clean white blouse she wore made her look even more refined.

Naturally, a Platinum Feather ornament adorned her lustrous hair.

“I have been ready for some time.”

“Oh, Ren. You are hungry, are you not?”

“Of course. Since we planned to eat breakfast outside, I cannot say how long I have before I collapse.”

“Yes, yes. Let us be off, then. Father, we are leaving.”

“Be careful. Ren, I am sorry to trouble you, but look after Licia.”

Ren could not bring himself to reply with a straightforward “Leave it to me,” so he merely offered a strained smile.

Licia looked dissatisfied, but she soon laughed at his expression, seized his hand, and pulled him outside.

The sunlight of mid-June was dazzling.

Summer was not far away, and the two narrowed their eyes against the brilliant rays pouring down around them.

As soon as they left the mansion, Licia released the hand with which she had been pulling Ren.

A sword hung at the waist of her casual outfit. It was Byakuen, the famous blade that had become her trademark.

Ren, meanwhile, carried the Iron Magic Sword at his waist. Its custom scabbard had been made by Werlich some time ago. The sword had grown to match Ren’s developing physique, so he might eventually need another scabbard.

“…?”

Licia noticed his gaze.

“Are you curious about my sword?”

“I was thinking that you look picturesque even when you wear a sword with ordinary clothes, Licia-sama.”

“Hee hee. Flattery will not earn you anything.”

“Nothing of the sort. I was not expecting a reward.”

Laughing together, they opened the mansion gate and stepped beyond the grounds.

Unlike the Clausel manor in Clausel, the family’s Elendil residence was a prominent building facing the main street. The two of them attracted attention whenever they emerged from it.

However, they also left the mansion together almost every day to attend the academy.

For the nearby residents of Elendil, the sight was already familiar.

Shopkeepers who had only just opened for the day occasionally called out to them, as did adults preparing their street stalls.

The pair eventually entered a cafe along the main street.

They chose seats at a white round table backed by a hedge and spent several minutes examining the menu before ordering their preferred sets. Licia chose warm tea with bread and salad. Ren ordered warm tea as well, together with a meal considerably larger than hers.

“Licia-sama, I would like to confirm one thing.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Even dressed like that, you intend to draw your sword if something happens, correct?”

“Naturally. That is why I brought it. Besides, you are no different, Ren. You are wearing ordinary clothes, but you still have a sword at your waist.”

“In my case, I am also serving as your escort.”

After several minutes of idle conversation, their food arrived.

They took up their forks and ate. Once they had filled their stomachs, they continued talking over warm cups of tea.

“Elendil has changed quite a bit.”

“Lessard-sama told me that nearly every room at the inns has already been reserved.”

Preparations for the Lion King Grand Festival were advancing throughout Elendil as well. Although the Imperial Capital was close, Elendil would still be crowded with overnight guests and travelers arriving by magic ship. Several competitions would also be held within the city, which likely added to the demand.

Many people on the streets already appeared to have come from abroad. Among them were people with beastlike features, some who reminded Ren of reptiles, and even some with wings.

The townspeople preparing for the festival held only once every several years looked much like Ren and the others, who had come to enjoy their organizing-committee work.

“Come to think of it, the representatives for the martial tournament will be decided soon, will they not?”

Licia spoke with her teacup in hand.

“Sera mentioned it the other day. The final students in the martial-event selection trials are competing for victory points, correct? Sera and Vayne already have enough points, so their places are nearly guaranteed.”

“I would expect so. The Hero Houses are formidable, and Vayne is more than capable himself.”

Neither Ren nor Licia would ever say so aloud, nor had they deliberately looked down on the students participating in the trials. Nevertheless, any objective observer familiar with their strength could easily imagine that either of them might have overturned the entire balance of the competition.

That aside, neither had a strong interest in the martial tournament at the Lion King Grand Festival. They still felt no regret about declining to participate.

“What would you like to do after this? Is there anywhere you want to go?”

“I need to buy some notebooks, and I hoped to visit a bookstore for the first time in a while. But I do not mind putting your plans first, Licia-sama.”

“Then there is no problem if the place I want to visit is the same as yours.”

“If that is truly the case, it would be very convenient.”

Licia laughed. Resting her elbows on the table, she folded her hands and tilted her head against them with a delighted expression.

“It is decided. After a short rest, we will visit the bookstore first.”

She smiled brightly.

After resting a little longer, the two left the cafe and followed the cobblestones toward the bookstore.

They enjoyed their holiday beside the bustling streets, chatting about nothing in particular.

Then Ren suddenly spoke.

“…Huh?”

“What is it?”

“I spotted an unexpected classmate.”

“An unexpected classmate…?”

Licia followed his gaze and recognized the student.

The daughter of House Altia, one of the Seven Hero Houses, was walking along Elendil’s main street with several adults dressed in work clothes.

Nemu noticed them as well and hurried over.

“Good morning, you two!”

Ren had only spoken to Nemu for the first time a few days earlier, but Licia had exchanged words with her several times since entering the academy. Because Nemu often spoke with Sera, Licia had gradually become friendly with her as well.

“What are you and Ren-kun doing here, Licia?”

“We came to look around town. What about you, Nemu?”

“Nemu is on her way to the Grand Clock Tower.”

According to Nemu, she had visited several times to inspect it since the disturbance the previous year.

Until now, House Altia’s servants and technicians had handled those inspections. This time, Nemu herself appeared to have been entrusted with the work.

When Ren and Licia thanked her, Nemu laughed.

“It is fine! Nemu’s ancestors built it in the first place, so the family has to take proper care of it.”

“You truly are impressive, Nemu.”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“You can already manage something as enormous as the Grand Clock Tower, even though the whole facility is itself a magic tool.”

“Of course! Nemu has been tinkering with magic tools since she was one year old. Nemu’s goal is to invent even more than her ancestors did.”

As Ren listened to the girls, he quietly took a step away.

Partly because he did not wish to intrude, he glanced toward a knight standing farther down the street and spoke as though he had just remembered something.

“Excuse me. There is something I need to tell that knight, so I will step away for a moment.”

He moved a dozen mel or so from Licia’s side.

From that distance, he could return to her in an instant.

Nemu leaned closer to Licia.

“There is something Nemu has been dying to ask. May she?”

“Of course. What is it?”

Licia answered casually, assuming the question would be harmless.

She was wrong, and immediately regretted having agreed so easily.

“…Is this a date?”

The lighthearted word sounded almost too informal to come from a noble lady, much less the daughter of House Altia, one of the Seven Hero Houses.

Licia repeated it silently.

A date?

Since Nemu had asked her, the other participant could only be the person who had been standing at her side moments earlier. After slowly processing the obvious conclusion for more than ten seconds, Licia finally reacted.

“W-Wha…!?”

Her cheeks, earlobes, and even the back of her neck reddened almost instantly. She blinked again and again.

Licia took half a step back from Nemu, folded her arms, and looked in a completely unrelated direction as Ren had done earlier. Only then did she attempt to recover her composure.

Sweeping one hand through her silky hair, she said,

“Could you refrain from asking questions that make no sense?”

It was a brave attempt at denial.

The daughter of House Altia shattered it effortlessly.

“Then Nemu was wrong.”

“W-Would it be a problem if you were!? Why should it matter to you, Nemu?”

“It does not! You were simply spending a holiday alone together, and the distance between you made it look that way. Ren-kun is also close to the daughter of House Ignat, is he not? Nemu became curious about the situation.”

“…”

“Nemu is sorry! Please do not glare at her with such an adorable face!”

Tears had gathered faintly in Licia’s eyes as she stared at Nemu with a bright-red face.

Her embarrassment was approaching its limit. At any moment, she might pinch Nemu’s cheeks and pull.

“To make up for it, Nemu will give you romantic advice. Will you stop glaring at her?”

That proposal unexpectedly restored some of Licia’s composure.

She remembered a certain fact and struck at Nemu’s weak point.

“What are you talking about? You told me before that you have no romantic experience and have only ever treated boys like friends.”

“Ah! You said it! You said something no one should say to a girl of Nemu’s age!”

“If you intend to complain, reflect on everything you just said to me.”

“That is different. But listen first. This information might actually be useful to you, Licia.”

Nemu cheerfully began sharing knowledge from an unknown source.

One would expect her advice about magic tools to be highly useful, but to Licia’s surprise, this advice was also easy enough to understand.

“Listen. The first thing is the way you speak to each other.”

“You mean the way Ren and I speak now?”

“Exactly! The proper distance between two people is important, but the two of you should be able to speak more casually. You could ask Ren-kun to stop using polite language, or ask him to change how he addresses you.”

“I already told him he could speak more casually, but he said he could not because he is a knight’s son. Besides, he already calls me by my name.”

“He still calls you Licia-sama, though.”

“Then… you mean I should ask him to call me simply Licia?”

“Yes! Just like Vayne-kun and Sera.”

Nemu gave her an emphatic thumbs-up.

Imagining Ren calling her simply “Licia,” she covered her cheeks with both hands and squirmed.

“Still, Nemu has no idea which would be harder: asking him to drop the honorific or asking him to stop using polite speech.”

“E-Exactly! Both would be difficult!”

Then Licia paused.

“Where did you learn any of this?”

“Nemu has nothing to hide. It came from a romance novel.”

“…I suspected as much.”

“But it was useful information, was it not?”

Unable to deny it, Licia nodded shyly.

The difficulty was that Ren was extraordinarily unlikely to agree to either suggestion. Even so, she began wondering whether there was some way to put the advice into practice.

Nemu checked her watch and announced that she had to leave.

Ren, who had been watching for a suitable moment to return, came back to Licia’s side. When he saw her flushed skin, he tilted his head in confusion, but she offered no explanation.

Nemu likewise said nothing about their conversation. She merely laughed.

“Goodbye, you two! See you at the academy!”

She departed before Ren could learn what had happened.

“You do not have a fever, do you?”

“…”

“Licia-sama?”

At last, she muttered,

“…Insensitive.”

Licia looked only slightly dissatisfied.

Surely she was allowed to complain that much. Perhaps for that reason, a lovely smile returned to her face almost immediately.

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