I first tried to steer the conversation.
“How did you make it here?”
“Last night, by car.”
“…Is there someone who drove you all the way here?”
“There are a lot of people in the palace. But I can’t ask for a train to move at a time when it doesn’t run, right? It’s not just a few coins.”
Taking a steam car all the way here probably wouldn’t cost just a few coins either.
No, more than that, coming from the Imperial Capital to here by ‘car’ is definitely not an easy task. The roads were somewhat established, but there were so many dirt paths. I mean, they’re somewhat maintained, but still…
“Don’t worry. I didn’t come alone; there are knights escorting me.”
While leaning back on the chair, crossing her arms, I felt an impulse to smack Alice’s forehead again.
If it were just the two of us, I might have done it.
“Is this about the time I called you ‘brother’?”
“Is it ‘just because of that’? You don’t think that’s a ‘trivial’ matter, do you?”
One eyebrow of Alice raised.
“……”
If that’s not ‘trivial,’ then what is it?
But I wasn’t dumb enough to actually say that out loud. Whatever the reason, Alice seemed pretty serious right now.
“You don’t use such… intimate titles for others. Doesn’t that mean there’s something important that needed you to come all the way here?”
That’s… sharp.
That this would be a huge bombshell of ‘Alice and Claire might be blood sisters’ and that we came here to confirm the truth of it, well, I couldn’t say that.
If I brought up the Emperor, Alice would definitely think it was my story instead of Claire’s.
Turning back time and all is fine since it’s a fantasy world, and who knows if goddesses actually exist; it would just end with the other party feeling scared or surprised. Of course, it’s not exactly something I could just laugh off either.
But telling her I came from another world and that this world’s story is just that of a game… that’s an entirely different matter. Telling her that, in fact, your will might not be very important and that you could be a being that was already predetermined to move as such is… well, that just doesn’t seem right.
“……”
Seeing me hesitating to answer, Alice let out a deep sigh.
“Well, fine.”
With her arms still crossed, she squinted her eyes and spoke.
“You came here to live, right? So I’m going to stay with you while you’re here.”
Snap!
I turned my head at the sound, and the Sword Saint Frederick was covering his forehead with his hand. His eyes were tightly shut, making the wrinkles on his face look twice as many as usual.
“Are you saying that two kids who aren’t even adults are going to stay at my cabin?”
“Don’t worry too much, Master.”
At that, Alice put on a gentle smile and looked at her master.
“If Sylvia says she’s going back, I’ll consider going back today.”
Then she turned her face back to me, looking at my expression and said,
“Doesn’t look like you want to go back that much.”
She murmured that.
“……”
I stared silently at Alice for a while and then slowly opened my mouth.
And then closed it again.
Hmm.
When I used the word ‘brother’ with Jayden, sure, I was embarrassed, and I regretted it now, but honestly, it wasn’t exactly a huge deal. I had originally thought I would just turn back time and find out the truth afterward.
Of course, there was no guarantee I would definitely find Lucas during those two weeks before the end of the holiday. Lucas might be in another country or might be training in the mountains to get a chance to bite me again.
But if I couldn’t find him, that was fine too. Surely I could think of another way after turning back time, or I could just take my time enjoying the remaining holiday and think about it later.
But saying ‘sister’ to Alice…
Even if I could turn back time, for some reason, I really didn’t want to do that.
This is just my thinking, but for some reason, it felt like it would become an enormous… flaw in my life.
“……”
Alice was still looking at me with a ‘say what you want’ expression.
“…Uh….”
“Uh?”
“Uh… uh….”
I took a deep breath and said.
“Can you just go home and wait for me? Instead of being here?”
I blurted it out like a rapid-fire gun.
“That was too fast; I missed it.”
“……”
I took another breath.
“…Sister.”
Only after I said that did Alice fully turn her head towards me.
Her face was filled with a victorious smile. Her eyes sparkled, brighter than the stars still left in the sky.
“Yeah? Why, Sylvia?”
Seeing Alice speak with a deliberately sweet voice, I began to seriously think about whether to turn back time and erase the incident with Jayden, but ultimately, I concluded that my embarrassment would probably never fully disappear.
“Just say it to big sis.” In that state, I slowly opened my mouth and said.
“Would you please…?”
“……”
Upon hearing my words, Alice smiled widely.
“I understand the heart of a sister thinking about her big sis,”
And upon hearing that, I was engulfed in intense anxiety.
“But you can’t just leave your little sister in a place like this and go back, can you?”
“In a place like this…”
The Sword Saint muttered in a somewhat hurt voice. No, just a moment ago, he was acting like it didn’t matter.
“Big sis will stay by Sylvia’s side.”
“……”
Feeling a different kind of irritation than Jayden, who had been facepalming, I finally understood what the anxiety I felt before saying ‘sister’ to Alice was.
…That’s right. Deep down, I knew that the method that worked on Jayden wouldn’t work on Alice.
“Is that alright, Master?”
“……”
The Sword Saint remained silent for a while before asking,
“What will you do if I refuse?”
He asked with a very serious expression.
“I’ll let every swordsman in the nation know your location. I will mobilize all the powers of the imperial family to do it.”
Then all kinds of people would probably swarm in.
Those wanting to learn swordsmanship, those asking for a duel. People seeking vengeance who had once been cut by the Sword Saint’s blade when he was younger.
It would probably become a massive headache.
I could just run away, but then I would lose the relationship formed in my old age again.
Though he was a cranky old man hiding in the mountains, saying he hated the world, the Sword Saint wasn’t a heartless person either.
“……”
The Sword Saint stared at Alice, letting out a sigh that almost seemed like the ground would swallow him.
“Well, if that’s the case, then fine.”
And he turned his gaze toward me.
It didn’t seem like he had any particular feelings behind his gaze, but somehow that sharp look felt very piercing. Like he was looking straight through me.
Just the other day, he said he wouldn’t let me sleep here, but maybe after seeing me meditating just now before Alice arrived, he changed his mind.
“However, don’t be a nuisance. I’m already teaching one disciple here.”
The Sword Saint’s eyes turned toward Leo.
Leo was standing completely stiff, standing at attention in front of us.
I thought his attitude had somewhat softened since the academy, but apparently, it was a different story outside the academy.
Well, that’s probably why commoners really dislike nobles and don’t want to talk to them. Even if they become friends and talk casually, once four years pass and they graduate, they have to treat them with respect again.
It was better to think that it was always that kind of relationship rather than getting into an awkward situation thinking they were ‘equals.’
“Instead, among you three here, you’re equal existences. There’s no one higher or lower.”
The Sword Saint said as he looked at Leo disdainfully.
“And,”
Seeing us nodding, the Sword Saint added,
“There are no genders here either. Just because the training content is the same doesn’t mean it will be adjusted based on gender.”
“I’ve already experienced that,”
Alice nodded readily at the Sword Saint’s words.
And I…
“……”
That was when I realized that I was in big trouble.
It was a relief that I wasn’t kicked out, but…
The way the Sword Saint looked at me was anything but normal.
Just like when I was meditating and training here.
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