It's Been Three Days! (2)
Lily, of course, had to keep tending to the wounded. Once she threw herself into that work, she inevitably neglected everything else around her. To prepare for any unforeseen trouble, I left Gerard and Iris to watch over her. Gerard would handle most of the actual guarding anyway.
Iris declared she hated crowds and said she would stay at Daisy’s residence. There was a wide open field there, perfect for loosening up her body, or so she claimed. I warned her that Daisy alone was more than enough when it came to smashing things, so she should be careful.
Ester, as expected, disliked crowds even more than Iris. Wandering the royal capital was hardly a rest for her. I simply told her to stay in her room and relax.
“This lord does not require your concern. I wish to be alone for a while.”
Even Master ended up waving me off. Judging by her subdued expression, something was clearly weighing on her mind. I wondered if she had glimpsed some fragment of enlightenment while fighting the Fragment of the Demon God.
“So with only the two of you left, why are you acting like this?”
I had clearly promised they could do whatever they wanted while resting in the capital for three days. Yet here were Garam and Jenia, growling at each other again.
“You go with Master tomorrow. Today is my turn.”
“I don’t want to. Who decided that on their own?”
“Hey, second disciple? Quiet down and listen to your senior.”
“Still going on about being the great senior? Get lost. Today is mine. Tomorrow is yours.”
“…This elf. I really want to twist those ears off.”
“You think ears don’t twist? Look. They bend just fine. And your ears aren’t any prettier. What’s with that tail anyway? It’s not even a proper furball. Looks more like a dusty broom.”
Why were they fighting again? Whether they went out together today or tomorrow, the result would be the same. Were they monkeys? Was this the very definition of “three in the morning, four in the evening”? They were not fools. Why were such clever girls behaving like this?
“Fighting again?”
“Ah, Master!”
“Master, please decide for us!”
“Decide what.”
“Who gets to go with you today. And who gets to go tomorrow!”
“…I was thinking of just taking both of you out today and resting tomorrow.”
It was not a joke. I meant it. I was not exactly a shut-in, but I did not particularly enjoy going outside either. Besides, I had already toured the capital plenty with the others. Repeating the same sightseeing today and tomorrow felt excessive.
“Th-that’s not fair!”
“Exactly! You have to go out both today and tomorrow!”
“…Couldn’t I just take both of you today?”
“Absolutely not! One today, one tomorrow! That’s how it has to be!”
“That’s right! Garam is absolutely correct!”
…
They had been at each other’s throats moments ago, yet the instant their interests aligned, they formed an alliance again. I thought that temporary alliance they had whispered about a few days ago had already dissolved, but apparently they became allies the moment they needed to present a united front.
“Fine, I understand. I get it. Then today Garam, tomorrow Jenia. Let’s do it that way.”
“I refuse!!”
“…Then today Jenia, tomorrow Garam…”
“I refuse too!!”
……
Damn it. What the hell did they want from me? Honestly, whether they went today or tomorrow made no difference. It was not as if missing today meant missing tomorrow forever. Why were they making such a fuss?
“This won’t do. Jenia. How about we settle who goes first today with a fair match?”
“Are you sure? Your throat still isn’t in great shape.”
“Hah! This doesn’t even count as an injury. Besides, I’m already healed!”
“An injury is still an injury. Anyway, if you want a fight, come at me. I’ll face you with everything I have.”
“Good. Master! We’ll be right back, so please wait for us!”
They seemed intent on heading outside the capital for a proper bout. Of course, I had no intention of watching that.
“Garam. Jenia. Come here for a moment.”
At my words, both girls approached with sparkling eyes. They were grown women now, yet traces of their younger selves still remained. Remembering Garam and Jenia, my first and second disciples, from back then—
Thwack!!— Thwack!!—
“Kaeng!!”
“Hiyaaak!”
I delivered a Heavenly Demon head-flick to each of their foreheads.
“Kaeng!! It hurts so much! Kaeng!!”
“Hiyaaak!! Ow! It hurts!! Hiiik!!”
“Both of you, be quiet. I told you not to fight over pointless things, yet here you are breaking that rule immediately.”
“It’s not pointless, Master! This is incredibly important to us!”
“I said be quiet. Seriously.”
When I raised my hand again, both Garam and Jenia flinched and shrank back.
“Both of you, put your right hands forward.”
“Huh?”
“Extend your right hands. Now.”
Though they tilted their heads in confusion, they obeyed and held out their hands, watching me expectantly.
“In the end, what you both want is a proper contest with an acceptable result. Am I right?”
“Yes, that’s correct, Master.”
“So this is what we’ll do. From now on, we’ll play rock-paper-scissors. The winner goes today. The loser goes tomorrow. Any objections? If you have any, keep them to yourselves. I’ll just hit you again.”
At my kind warning, the two girls who had been about to speak quickly lowered their hands. It was obvious they had been about to protest, “Why does the winner get today?!” They were probably considering the possibility that they might lose.
“Now. On the count of three, throw out rock, paper, or scissors. If anyone is late, they’re disqualified on the spot. Not only will you miss today, you won’t get tomorrow either, so be careful.”
“Hik!”
“Kaeng?!”
“Here we go. Focus. Single match. No best of three nonsense. It ends in one round.”
“Understood, Master!”
“We’re ready!”
“Good. Then… one, two, three.”
Whoever wins, just win already.
“Heeheehee! Hehehehehe!!”
…
In the end, the victor was the Spear Hero, Jenia Violet. I could still picture her letting out that triumphant roar the moment she won. It had been so loud that Iris, resting inside, had peeked out to see what was happening. Meanwhile, Garam had let out a despairing scream.
Honestly, the scene had been a little ridiculous. Losing did not mean they could never go together. If today was Jenia’s day, then tomorrow would naturally be Garam’s. I could not understand why she had been so devastated.
“I bet that fox… ahem! Ahem! Garam is probably bawling her eyes out inside right now!”
“I can already see you crying tomorrow.”
“No way. Tomorrow I’ll be smiling while remembering everything that happened today.”
Calling it a memory after just one day felt a bit much. Muttering that to myself, I stepped out of Daisy’s residence. This time neither Jenia nor I wore hoods. After all, everyone in the palace already knew my face. As for Jenia, even though she was a Hero, most people did not actually know what she looked like.
Was it because she was an elf? Absolutely not. In this world, elves and beastkin were quite common. They were just as beautiful or wild-looking as anywhere else, but no one was kidnapping them to sell as slaves. It was treated the same as different races on Earth. Of course, just as racial discrimination existed on Earth, species discrimination was not entirely absent here either. There were apparently some who got overly familiar with elves…
“Jenia. Let’s make one promise.”
“Yes?”
“Be as kind as possible to people. Don’t bare your killing intent just because someone approaches you.”
I had heard that Jenia had already struck down quite a few nobles. There was even a persistent rumor that the autonomy granted to Heroes regarding noble punishment had been established because of her. Jenia’s personality was genuinely cold and sharp. She had been abandoned by her family for some reason, and that was probably why. Even when we first met, she had attacked me immediately. Raising her as my disciple had improved her quite a bit, but she still remained as wary of others as Ester was.
The difference was that Ester did not bare her fangs, whereas Jenia would thrust her spear at anyone who got too close.
“If it is Master’s order, then of course I will.”
“…Right. That’s a relief, at least. So, what do you want to do today?”
“I want to stay glued to Master’s side all day.”
“I understand that, but we can’t just stand around doing nothing all day.”
“I’d be perfectly happy just looking at Master’s face all day, though?”
“Well, I wouldn’t. I don’t think I could stare at your face all day… ahem.”
As I said that and looked at Jenia’s face, an involuntary cough escaped me. It could not be helped. Every Hero character was of the highest grade. That naturally meant their illustrations had been rendered at the highest quality as well. Thanks to that, every single one of my disciples—from Iris onward—was a beauty. Except Gerard. That guy was just a sturdy disciple.
Anyway, Jenia’s appearance alone proved the point. Her base race was the “elf,” the official race of handsome men and beautiful women. Her beauty was beyond what words could describe. Add to that her silver-blue hair and blue eyes. That mystical aura and perfectly balanced color palette were exactly the kind of points that drove male players crazy.
If you found her face too overwhelming and looked down instead? You would only end up even more flustered. If Garam boasted the voluptuous figure unique to beastkin, then Jenia, true to her elven heritage, had long, slender limbs, a narrow waist, and a chest so ample it felt like cheating.
I did not want to harbor such thoughts toward my disciples, so I had sung the national anthem more times than I could count.
“Why? Can’t you look at me all day? I can look at Master’s face all day long.”
“…It’s not that. It would just be a waste to spend the entire day doing only that.”
“If Master says so, then it must be true. So what shall we do?”
The girl who had been so eager to spend the day together had no plan whatsoever. It was beyond absurd. I had been planning to just go along with whatever she wanted, but now it looked like I would have to take the lead instead.
—This is my own fault.—
Yeah. I brought this on myself, so I should clean it up. If I told Jenia to handle it, she would probably feel wronged instead.
“How about we start with a cup of tea and think it over slowly?”
“Tea?”
“Yeah. You really like drinking tea.”
“That’s true, but… I thought Master didn’t care much for tea…?”
“I don’t drink it often, but that doesn’t mean I dislike it. I heard there’s a good café inside the capital, so let’s go have some tea and catch up on the conversations we haven’t finished. That should be a decent start.”
Jenia seemed to hesitate for a moment before nodding. Just as I was about to step forward, she quickly slipped to my side. Naturally linking her arm with mine, she grinned and said, “Let’s go!”
…
This was the same girl who had cursed while stabbing her spear into the Fragment of the Demon God’s body and twisting it around…
Yeah. In the end, there was only one conclusion.
Those damn developers. Those crazy bastards.