by CHIROLU
He couldn’t deny what she was saying. It was true that she possessed a great deal more offensive capabilities than her friends. But she didn’t have a strong sense of danger.
“M-Maybe I should come pick you up?”
“It’s fine. I’m not a little kid anymore.”
That was precisely why he was worried. Why didn’t she understand that?
However, he was hesitant to tell Latina all about the dangers of men the world over. If she came to see him as some repulsive creature too, he wouldn’t be able to recover. It would kill him. Latina’s cold gaze would cut through him and damage him greater than any blade or magic ever could.
“It’s a difficult choice...” he muttered without thinking.
“Hmm?” Latina tilted her head, truly perplexed.
Still, he decided that he wanted to raise Latina to be honest and pure.
“It’s nothing... Ah, right, it looks like Theo’s up.” Trying to change the topic, he directed Latina’s attention towards Theo, who was starting to stir.
“Really? Are you awake, Theo?”
“Hrngh...? Sis?” His eyes shot open and, realizing that Latina was there, he reached out for her to hold him. Latina, meanwhile, was perfectly happy to dote on him. “Sis.”
“What is it, Theo?”
Rather than responding, Theo simply gave a happy laugh and a smile.
While Dale watched them, Vint rubbed his head up against him.
“What is it...?”
“Woof!”
“It’s not like I’m jealous of Theo or something.”
“Woof.”
Dale ran his fingers through the grey fur of the cub shooting him a knowing glance. All the while, he thought about just what his current position was as her father, unable to come up with an answer as his thoughts went in circles.
†
That customer stayed at the Dancing Ocelot until a few days before the Ahmar night festival.
When the door swung open and a young man entered, the hustle and bustle of the shop stopped for a moment. As he looked over the shop, the regulars grew tense. He had a refreshing, orderly appearance to him. Though he himself appeared calm, the travel outfit he wore was disheveled. It was proof that he had hurried here.
“Welcome!”
The regulars were on edge because they realized this unfamiliar young man was quite skilled, but the shop’s adorable signature waitress greeted him as always, totally unfazed. After a quick jog over to him, she approached with a smile and said, “This is your first time here, right? Have you been to Kreuz before?”
“No...”
That smile of Latina’s froze when she heard what he had to say next. His ice-blue eyes opened a little wider in surprise, and he muttered, “So you’re the Fairy Princess Dale mentioned, huh?”
Latina turned with her stiff smile toward Rita, who was holding back her laughter with a poker face.
“Rita, it’s alright if I get mad at Dale, isn’t it?”
“Go for it. To your heart’s content,” Rita responded with a nice smile on her face and a thumbs-up, and all the regulars watching added a cheer.
It was a sort of entertainment to see someone else get chewed out, as long as no harm came to you yourself.
There was an impatient feeling in the air, and no one was able to say anything as they saw her heading into the kitchen, where the stairs to her and Dale’s room were. Her footsteps sounded rougher than usual.
The young man was left behind, not understanding what was going on.
After a while, Dale came down to the shop from their room, looking haggard.
“What’s wrong...?” the man asked.
“It’s all your fault, for crying out loud!” Dale yelled in an outburst.
Dale was also at fault for having broken out in a smile at her cute, puffed-up cheeks while she was angrily lecturing him. That had driven Latina into a complete rage, forcing Dale to beg and grovel and plead. In that way, he finally managed to somehow earn her forgiveness.
However, he avoided using the phrase “I won’t do it again” as part of his desperate attempt to negotiate his way out. He didn’t want to lie to Latina, after all. So it wasn’t all that unusual that he avoided it, as he had no intention of changing his ways.
“Still, you got here awful quick, Gregor. Did you rush here the very second you got the letter?”
“Yeah. I can move relatively freely when it’s just me, after all.”
Gregor had sat down in a corner of the Ocelot, where he had calmly waited for Dale without paying any attention to the gazes of the people around him.
The aura about Gregor was that of a warrior. It was no surprise that the regulars rudely gazed at him with great interest. In addition to his obvious good breeding for an adventurer, Gregor was also a skilled enough swordsman to catch the interest of such elites.
He also realized that the regulars of this shop were quite skilled themselves. Internally, he was full of admiration. Even in the capital, you wouldn’t run across such talented folks very often. He once more realized that Kreuz was one of the greatest towns in this nation thanks to its ability to attract travelers and adventurers.
“Is Rose alright?”
“She’s in a room on the second floor right now. I heard the rough details, but... was she really kidnapped?”
“Her carriage heading from her territory to the capital was attacked. The Cornelius family isn’t all that wealthy, so she only had a suitable number of guards and servants with her... Apparently, the attackers had investigated Rose’s personality. They took the people around her hostage first.”
“Ah...”
He hadn’t thought the Rose Princess would let herself get kidnapped so easily, but that explained it.
The Cornelius family was a viscount household, making them of a lower status compared to the Eldstedt ducal household to which Gregor belonged. However, the two still interacted because their territories were adjacent and because the Eldstedt family was the main client for the unique products of the land the Cornelius family held. That’s how the two families were connected.
With the birth of Rose, who had a mana trait and unusually strong divine protection, that bond had only grown stronger. As they were one of her backers, Rose received the patronage of the ducal family. This was also essential for Duke Eldstedt. It was important to not hand over the influential card of a beautiful woman with strong divine protection to a political enemy, and to instead keep her where his influence could reach.
Those were the circumstances behind Rose and Gregor’s acquaintance. Gregor’s elder sister’s affection for Rose, who was like an adorable doll, was also part of the reason they had gotten to know each other. They’d seen each other often ever since Gregor was a young boy.
“Anyway, you want to see that Rose is okay firsthand, right? I’ll have Latina go call for—”
“No, I’m going to her. Tell me where her room is.”
Dale stopped cold for a second, at a loss for words.
“No... No, no, no. That’d be bad, right?! Think about Rose’s reputation! It’d be a problem, even if you don’t do anything!”
The young princess meeting a man in a locked room... If that fact got out, it would be more than enough to turn into a scandal. If it also became known that the man was part of Duke Eldstedt’s family, then it would become an even bigger story.
“As long as you don’t say anything, then Rose’s honor won’t be harmed, right?”
There wasn’t even the slightest hint that he was joking in the gaze of his cold, ice-blue eyes, which implicitly threatened that he’d cut Dale down if he said anything he shouldn’t.
As sweat ran down his back, Dale thought, You’re always coldly criticizing me, calling me a doting idiot for putting Latina above everything else, but you don’t have room to talk, do you?
He continued on, saying to his friend, “Um... Rose’s room is on the second floor, right at the top of the stairs, but... You don’t need me to accom
pany you, right? Yeah?”
With that single gaze from Gregor, Dale had immediately decided on his course of action. Dale was crestfallen, and his shoulders dropped as he watched Gregor climb the stairs to the second floor.
Worried about him, Latina brought him a glass of water. She had just been angry with him, but her kindness won out in the end.
“Dale, is everything alright?”
“Yeah, it’ll... probably be fine, right?”
They were both worried about someone different, but paying no heed to such details, Dale unusually muttered a prayer to the gods.
Just from hearing the knock on the door, Rose sensed who it was on the other side. The surprise almost caused her to drop the borrowed book she was holding.
He likely didn’t realize it himself, but Gregor had hesitated for just a moment. Ever since they were young, he always looked forward to seeing her, leading to this now-familiar habit.
“Rose.”
The moment she heard his voice, Rose sprang towards the door. It should’ve been simple enough to unlock it, but her anxious heart caused her hand to shake.
“Sir Gregor...!”
Her voice trembled as she opened the door and saw him standing there.
“I’m glad to find you well, Rose.” No clear emotion showed on Gregor’s face, but there was a gentle, relieved tone to his voice.
“Sir Gregor!” Rose cried, throwing herself into Gregor’s arms. “Sir Gregor, I... I...”
“I’m glad you’re alright...”
While embracing Rose with her thin, trembling shoulders and her tear-filled eyes, Gregor quietly closed the door with his free hand.
To Rose, Dale was ultimately just an acquaintance. No matter how frightened and hurt and haggard she may have been from being kidnapped and encountering the Second Demon Lord, who was fear incarnate, she didn’t let any of that show to Dale. That was proof of just how prideful and stouthearted she was, but she most certainly wasn’t alright.
With Gregor, whom she was close to and had trusted ever since they were young, before her, everything she had been burying deep inside came bursting forth.
She couldn’t speak; she simply clung to Gregor and wept.
Gregor knew Rose very well. He knew that she had been unable to cry and had held everything inside up until now. That was why he had insisted on visiting her room by himself.
He silently held her tight, stroking her unique, rose-colored hair that was the source of her name.
Before long, she looked up at Gregor with her tear-stained, indigo-blue eyes, only to bashfully look back down immediately.
“Please forgive me. That was ill-mannered...”
“You don’t need to act tough.”
With those kind words, her tears started flowing again, and she hurriedly wiped them away with her fingers.
“Please give me just a little time, Sir Gregor. At this rate, I will not only not be able to talk... I will not even be able to show you my face.”
“There’s no need to force yourself.”
“That will not do. And I have caused Dale quite a bit of trouble... Since I lived through all of that, I have a duty to tell of what happened,” Rose plainly stated, having regained her natural composure. Gregor loosened his grip and made a faintly awkward smile, taking care that she didn’t see it. She was a noble girl like a beautiful flower blossom, truly fitting of her namesake. He didn’t want to do anything that would injure her pride.
“I’m going to talk to Dale for a while. When you’re ready, come call for me. Is that alright?”
“Yes.”
After hearing her response, Gregor once more headed to the first floor.
Down in the bar, Dale was waiting on Latina with a tea set. He looked somehow relieved upon seeing Gregor.
“What is it?”
“It’s nothing.”
Without asking the reason behind Dale’s reaction, Gregor sat opposite of him.
“Rose said she wants to talk once she calms down. I’d like you to be there, but do you have a place we can use?”
“How about my room? It may not be much by your standards, but we shouldn’t have to worry about being overheard there.”
“That sounds good.”
“It’s messy right now, so I’ll go clean up.”
As Dale said that and stood up, Latina looked flustered.
“Dale, I’ll—”
“You’re busy with work. And it won’t take me long, anyway.”
Latina liked things tidy, so she was attentive in her cleaning to make sure the attic room they lived in didn’t get messy. But because it was a private space, there were clear signs that it was lived in. Even if Gregor was a friend, that all still needed to be hidden away if someone was going to visit.
After watching Dale leave, Latina hurried into the kitchen. In no time at all, she brought out fresh tea and stood before Gregor. After placing the tray on the table, she gave a quick bow and apologized, saying, “I’m sorry for before.”
Gregor thought for a bit before realizing what she was talking about.
“Not at all. I was impolite myself. Lately Dale has been referring to you as his ‘Fairy Princess, the cutest in the world’ without even a hint of hesitation. I said it without thinking.”
“Dale...”
Gregor felt a quiet yet palpable anger unfitting of her adorable face coming off of Latina.
Interesting...
He’d put up with plenty of his friend’s bragging about the girl up until now, so surely this much revenge was fair play.
It was a fresh experience, seeing his friend haggard from the young girl scolding him. He’d love to show this to the castle guards, who saw Dale as a hero.
“Just the other day, he finally bragged to my father about you.”
Latina gave a single sigh, then regained her composure. She realized that there was no point in acting angry towards Gregor about this. It seemed she’d need to discuss things with Dale a little more thoroughly later, though.
Rita had overheard their conversation despite not intending to, and so she wore a terribly strained expression on her face.
Rita was familiar with Dale’s work. That young man was close to Rose, who was a noble, albeit a low-ranking one, and he was about Dale’s age. She was able to guess at who Gregor was, and as a result, she was also aware of just who Gregor’s father was as well.
“That idiot... He doesn’t know when to restrain himself...”
By the way, in regards to this chain of events, Dale said, “I did hold back! For over five years!” Apparently, this was a declaration that his period of self-restraint had concluded. One big reason was because Gregor’s elder sister had had a child, whom the duke was doting heavily over. That said, nobody else was concerned about that.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Dale. He says you’re his most trusted comrade in arms... Nice to meet you. I’m Latina. Sorry for the late introduction.”
“I’m Gregor Nakiri.”
“That’s an unusual last name.”
“It’s from an eastern frontier nation.”
Gregor wasn’t giving her an alias. Rather, he knew that the influence held by the Eldstedt name was too great, so he used his mother’s family name when out and about.
Latina smiled as she thought on the word, which had a different sound to it that she wasn’t familiar with. It was a dazzling enough smile, and it made Gregor think that Dale hadn’t exaggerated about how cute this girl was at all.
“Still, I’m surprised...”
“Huh?”
Latina stopped pouring the clear tea, which she had carefully timed the brewing of, and tilted her head. Gregor made a bit of an awkward smile upon seeing that.
“From what Dale had told me about you, I got the impression that you were a little kid.”
“I see...”
“Thinking about it, it’s been several years since he first told me about you... Of course you’ve grown up.”
“Dale still thin
ks of me as a little kid he can’t take his eyes off of, though...”
As this was her first time meeting Gregor, Latina wore a more composed and proper expression than usual. As a result, she had a more mature air to her than her age would suggest. She’d always been sharp, so she definitely understood how to act appropriately for the situation. But when she let her guard down, her natural childish appearance would pop up. Since it was Gregor’s first time meeting her, though, and he didn’t know Latina that well, she gave the impression of a more mature, composed, and polite girl than what he had expected.
The teacup that Latina offered with a practiced motion was plain and simple, but the scent wafting off it wasn’t half bad. As he sipped the tea, even Gregor was satisfied enough that he found it hard to believe it was being offered in a pub in the rough part of town. It of course was no match for what was served in the duke’s home, but the taste was a testament to the careful scrutiny of the shop’s owner. Gregor thought he must be quite a skilled chef.
And he thought the same of the girl before him now. From the way she handled the tea set, he could tell that she knew her manners full well. Her beauty was out of place in a dingy pub like this. He didn’t want to accept it, but he now understood what had made his friend become so fawning and pathetic.
Even if she were placed amongst the noble young ladies of the capital, she’d still stand out. Her brilliant, glamorous platinum hair would steal the gazes of those around her more than any gemstone or golden jewelry.
In addition to her beautiful looks, she had the air of a wildflower, with a gentle warmth to her that soothed the heart. It would be a great relief if there were anyone like her in the plot-infested imperial court.
Now that I think on it, he’s always saying that...
Dale said things like, “I don’t have enough Latina to soothe me! Let me go back! I need to return to my Latina even a moment sooner!” And despite trying to forget it, Gregor also couldn’t help but remember the deplorable appearance of Dale at his worst—when he’d been muttering his daughter’s name while sharpening his blade.
It was all the more deplorable that that state actually made his friend work more effectively. It wasn’t as if he normally slacked at all, but when he reached his worst, he gave everything he had to get back even a little bit sooner.
