“So you wrapped yourself in magical power and swung a great sword, and this is what happened?”
“…Yup.”
“Did you two not fight?”
“W-Why would I fight with Rubia…?”
Charlotte, who had taken a deep puff, looked back and forth between me and Rubia.
“Phew… I thought it was a love quarrel.”
“A love quarrel?! There’s no way…!”
“Well, yeah. I guess it wouldn’t count as a fight for you two.”
What’s with that expression?
Wait… A love quarrel between me and Rubia…
Love… love quarrel…
Hik-
The previous hot and stuffy situation popped into my mind.
Even my body seemed startled, gulp gulp-
“Yeah, well… Noah said so, so it’s believable. But what’s wrong with Rubia?”
“Rubia…? Well, um…?”
“Don’t mind her, just keep talking.”
“How can I not care when she’s doing that right behind me?!”
“This is unavoidable.”
Muttering “I can’t stand it anymore,” Rubia had me sitting on her lap, rubbing my waist and stomach.
My heart was racing like crazy.
Breathing felt really strange.
And those hands were so… so pervy.
“Rubia, do you realize you’re acting super pervy right now?”
“I don’t think you should be saying that, Charlotte.”
“I only do it at the right time and place.”
“I don’t touch people’s chests in front of others like some people.”
What are these two even… talking about?
“By the way, Noah, can you already handle magical power?”
Finally breaking her silence while elegantly sipping coffee, Yuria chimed in.
It’s a bit odd to keep a coffee set in a pocket dimension…
Did the warm water come from a thermos?
Or was it magic…?
I’ll have to ask later.
Now that I have magical power, if I learn to boil water, I could make coffee for Rubia!
And I could wash myself with warm water while camping outdoors.
“Um… Yup.”
“So you can control it freely enough to boost your physical strength?”
“I can’t handle it freely… it’s just enough to boost my strength…”
“Wow… I thought you were impressive enough, but this is a whole different level.”
“Our Noah is amazing. Hehe.”
“Ugh, you crazy girl…”
Charlotte shook her head as she stood up.
“First of all, it’s late, so let’s rest and talk tomorrow. There’s something to convey.”
“Something to convey…?”
“It’s good news, so you don’t have to worry. I want to tell you now, but it might take a while, so we’ll do it tomorrow. Oh, and sleep on the 7th floor above. The 5th floor is no good.”
“Ugh… S-Sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing? Noah, even if you destroy this building, I won’t say a word. Don’t apologize.”
“B-But… I’m really sorry…”
Bowing my head, Charlotte came closer with a smirk.
“If you’re really that sorry, let Rubia touch your chest.”
“Don’t joke around, Charlotte—”
“I don’t want to do that.”
As my cold voice came out, silence lingered in the room.
In that silence, one question popped in my head.
Wasn’t it supposed to be “no way” instead of “I don’t want to”?
Why did I say “I don’t want to”?
And why was my voice so cold…? Hmm…
Why did I do that…?
Besides, even though we’re close, Charlotte is a princess…
No matter how I think about it, that felt way too rude.
Yeah… I should apologize.
To loosen up my stiff face muscles, I inflated my cheeks and mumbled-
Then just as I was about to slowly open my mouth,
“Eep…”
Yuria covered her mouth and stared at us.
“Come on, it’s a joke… why are you reacting so scared…?”
Charlotte took a step back.
“I’m not holding back anymore. No, I can’t hold back.”
Rubia lifted my body and stood up in an instant.
“Wha—?! R-Rubia?!”
Then she immediately turned around and headed to the 7th floor.
*
“R-Rubia… why are you suddenly carrying me—”
“Why are you doing this to me?”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“No, you keep… you keep, um, making this… awkward…”
As soon as we entered the room, Rubia threw me onto the bed and started tugging at her clothes with a grinding noise.
“It was heavy, right…? But you could’ve just walked on your own…”
Crack- The sound of her teeth grinding was unbearable.
Rubia is acting strange.
“Did I say that it was hard for me?”
“Of course you did?”
Rubia, whose forehead I had poked, sighed heavily and plopped down beside me.
“Noah.”
“Yup?”
“Be careful.”
“…Careful of what?”
“Take care of that great sword.”
“Of course I will…”
“Now that you have magical power and are stronger, don’t trust people too easily.”
Ah, right. Magical power.
I felt good again thinking about the magical power in me that I had forgotten momentarily after causing so much trouble.
Even Charlotte, who I thought would be furious, was passing it off, and Rubia was worrying about me… my mood soared three times higher.
“Whew…”
Besides, if Rubia hadn’t told me, I would’ve lived my entire life without ever using magic…
Thinking all this was thanks to Rubia made me feel I had to express my gratitude somehow.
So, I rose up and tightly hugged Rubia!
Then lifting my face to smile brightly at Rubia.
That was the best thank you I could give her right now.
“I might not believe anyone else, but I trust you, Sis…! Hehe, eek…!”
After saying that, I felt goosebumps all over my body, felt shy, and trembled, letting out a weird sound.
Seriously… I could never call her “Sis.”
Only when I feel really good could I barely do it.
On a normal day, I definitely can’t ever do that.
Hiding my flushed face, I buried it back in Rubia’s embrace.
We stayed like that for a while.
Rubia showed no reaction.
Usually, when I’m cuddling with Rubia like this, my heart races, and my breathing goes all strange…
Why is there no reaction?
I said it with a lot of courage…
I sang before asking her to call me “Sis” back then, but does she not want to hear it now?
Uh… Did I say it for no reason?
I hugged her tightly and couldn’t gauge her reaction…
“Um… Rubia…?”
“Noah.”
“Yup?”
“Go wash up.”
“…Suddenly?”
“Yeah. Hurry. I can’t take anymore.”
In a hurry?
What’s going on…?
Is Rubia really sleepy?
“Okay… I’ll wash up then.”
I let go of Rubia and stood up.
“Oh, and I’m going to wash alone today… So, if you come in, you can’t! Got it…?”
Thinking she would have heard that, I dashed to the bathroom.
She must be really tired.
Today has been a whirlwind of events.
Both Rubia and I feel the same.
It’s mentally taxing day.
Just in case, I made sure to lock the door and started undressing.
It’s clear… my body feels smaller now.
My clothes are looser.
And there’s still a lot of bandages left…
I’ll need to cut the ends a bit more.
“Ugh… I was already small…”
To think I shrunk by 14 centimeters…
Every morning, I prayed to the sky to make me taller.
But it seems like the sky hates me.
Not only is it not letting me be, it’s making me shrink.
That’s just too much.
I can’t help the size that has already shrunk, but… I don’t want the length of the great sword to shrink.
That’s definitely my last pride, and if that shrinks too, I can’t have that…
I absolutely have to keep the great sword.
It might be super inconvenient to carry around, but it’s a must.
I stacked my clothes neatly and turned on the water.
The warm water coming out immediately soothed my body.
“Ahh…”
This must be what it means to be a princess.
To have a bathroom this good in a hideout I rarely visit…
And there’s a bathtub, too.
It’s even the size of the room I lived in back on Earth.
It’s seriously huge.
I’d love to fill it with warm water and soak, but…
Agh, I’d better wash up quickly since Rubia said she’s tired.
Shaking off the temptation of a half bath, I focused solely on the shower.
After thoroughly soaking my hair, I set the great sword aside for a moment… and lathered up the soap—
Click-
Huh?
Creek-
Huh?!
“W-Who’s there?”
Splash splash-
The door opened, and someone came in.
It must be, of course, Rubia, but… just in case, I crouched in the corner.
“…Is that you, Rubia?”
“Yeah, it’s me.”
“Uh… how did you get in? I locked it tight…”
Clatter clatter-
“R-Rubia…?”
Clatter clatter-
“Wha—? W-Why are you putting away the great sword…?”
“I told you to be careful.”
“What do you mean…?”
“I said to take care of the great sword.”
“Yup…? But since you’re here, I can relax—huh?!”
Before I knew it, Rubia had lightly hugged me from behind.
That slender curve.
Soft breasts.
Sticky legs.
My heart felt like it was going to explode.
Rubia felt different today.
My head started spinning.
I could hear the sound of water falling.
I felt the water flowing over my body.
My hands and feet felt numb.
All my strength was draining away.
“Ugh… Rubia… my body feels strange…”
And then, moments later…
I collapsed from dizziness.
*
Clang- Squeak- Bang!
“Hey! Rubia! Noah! Wake up!”
“Whew… Charlotte? What’s going on so early?”
“Ughhh…”
Startled awake by the loud noise, I immediately buried my head under the pillow.
I’m so tired…
“Sorry for barging in without saying anything, but we have a big problem.”
Rubia threw the blanket over me and sat up.
“Haah… What is it? If it’s nothing serious, I’ll really get mad.”
I peeked my hand out to grasp the great sword’s hilt.
“The Mage Tower collapsed.”
Images of the surroundings started to form.
“Sirin…”
Charlotte, fully armored, appeared in my mind.
“Sirin destroyed the Mage Tower in just a day.”
Pulling my head from the pillow, I got up.
“She killed all the wizards and butchered all the elders.”
Quickly throwing on the scattered clothes, I stood up.
“She kidnapped the Mage Tower Master.”
“But, Charlotte, why are you in armor?”
Charlotte pulled out a cigarette from her pocket as she gritted her teeth and struggled to speak.
“A subjugation order has been issued… for the entire Empire.”
