Ripples on Calm Waters
The calm surface of the water rippled. “Haa, my clothes are all wrinkled now. A few buttons even came off in the end……”
—Pat, pat, pat…! I muttered to myself while brushing the dust off my clothes. I should have just crushed him with force from the start. Playing along for no reason only ruined my outfit. I barely have any spare clothes as it is, and that worthless guy keeps causing trouble in every way. Acting all high and mighty with strength when he has nothing to show for it……
“Damn mutt……”
I’d have to ask Yugo to mend it later. With the buttons missing, my collarbone was completely exposed. No matter how much I tried to pull the collar together, it kept slipping down.
“How am I supposed to face the lady inside looking like this……”
“Grrrr……!”
“Huh?”
A sudden growl came from behind. A low, heavy voice scraped against my eardrums. That wasn’t all. A chilling killing intent pressed against my back.
“……What? Did he completely lose his mind?”
When I turned my head, a wolf was glaring at me with a vicious expression. —Thud…! Then it suddenly dropped onto all fours. Seeing that, it really was no different from a wild beast. As expected of a half-man, half-beast, it had easily lost all reason.
“Grrraaah──!!!!”
Before long, it charged at me in a form no different from a wild wolf. It kicked off the ground with all four limbs and rushed forward, baring its sharp fangs to the fullest.
“Ha, still trying to be a nuisance till the very end.”
But I didn’t feel the slightest bit intimidated. Only irritation and annoyance welled up. There was no sense of crisis at all. Let it bare its fangs all it wants. It wouldn’t do a thing to me. After all, I was someone protected by the power of the Dragon Heart.
—Shwaaaaaak…! Yugo, unaware of this fact, cut through the air and drew closer. Even this moment felt slow, almost like it was playing in slow motion. It felt alien even to me. That was only natural—my body had changed far more than I could compare to before.
‘That aside, I can’t just leave someone who showed killing intent toward me alone anymore. This time, I’d like to try using the flame or ice Dragon Heart if possible……’
Even in that brief moment, I was calmly considering how to deal with Yugo.
—Rattle!
“……Hm?”
Just as I was about to use Yugo as a training dummy for an experiment, the window of the rest lounge above my head swung wide open.
“Stop right this instant—!!!”
“Lady Seirin?”
Seirin suddenly appeared at the window. She scolded in a firm voice—directed at Yugo, who was charging toward me.
“Grrrr—!!!”
But Yugo showed no sign of stopping. Before I knew it, he had bared all his sharp teeth and was right in front of me.
“Didn’t I tell you to stop?!”
Seirin shouted even louder at the sight. Then, surprisingly—
—Swaaaaaaaaah!!!!
A massive pillar of water suddenly erupted from directly beneath Yugo. It was like a geyser bursting forth. If I had to compare it, it looked as if water was shooting up from a fountain installed in the ground. This was probably Seirin’s ability as a Water Dragon and Blue Dragon.
—Splash…!
“Yip—?! Gurk……!”
And that wasn’t all.
“Wh-what?! I’m trapped inside the water pillar……?!”
The pillar rising from the ground had swallowed Yugo whole.
“──!!!”
—Bubbles, bubbles…! Of course, Yugo was in agony. He must have suddenly been unable to breathe. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but it only turned into precious oxygen becoming bubbles. The only thing he could do was struggle pointlessly. Even when he tried to slash at the water pillar with his claws and teeth, it was obviously futile.
—Tap, tap…!
“I can’t just let this slide. To think he seriously tried to harm someone……”
“My lady, were you watching the whole time?”
“Yes. I was planning to stay out of the staff’s affairs as much as possible, but I couldn’t just leave such an ill-mannered mutt alone.”
Seirin, who had jumped down from the windowsill, looked at me and murmured. For some reason, her gaze seemed to be directed a little lower.
“……By the way, Servant?”
“Yes?”
“Could you fix your collar a bit?”
“Ah, my apologies. The buttons came off, so……”
“Ahem…! Then it can’t be helped. Just leave it as is.”
With those words, Seirin’s eyes, which had been coldly lowered, softened slightly.
“Gurk, keck…! Glurk…!!”
“But my lady? Are you going to leave him like that?”
Yugo, who had been thrashing inside the water pillar, soon went limp. He looked like he had reached the brink of suffocation.
“Phew, no. I don’t have the nasty hobby of carelessly taking the lives of the weak. I only intended to give him a sharp lesson.”
—Snap!
At that, Seirin lightly flicked her fingers.
—Splash……!
Then the water pillar vanished without a trace, as if the moisture had evaporated into the air. As expected of an SSR-rank Water Dragon’s ability.
—Thud!
With the pillar gone, Yugo collapsed weakly onto the floor, soaked like a drowned rat.
“Cough, cough…! Keck—! W-water…… I hate water so much……”
He had swallowed a lot of water and was now retching it up alone with a pained expression.
“Tsk! You can’t even endure that much, yet you tried to harm someone weaker than you?”
—Click, click!
Seirin spoke in a cold voice as she approached the drenched Yugo. Her brows were deeply furrowed—she was clearly furious.
“Cough! I-I’m sorry……!”
Yugo scrambled to his feet at her voice. Still, he was a beastkin after all. His vitality was quite tenacious.
“Is saying sorry with words enough?”
—Thud!
“I-I’ve committed a sin worthy of death! Please forgive me, my lady……!”
Yugo, who had barely regained his senses, immediately prostrated himself without even fixing his posture. He was already gripped by fear. It was as if he trembled at the mere mention of water. He was no different from a dog that hated baths……
“Hmph, don’t say that to me. Say it directly to the Servant.”
“Kuhk? Th-that’s……!”
“Oh? Maybe you didn’t swallow enough water yet?”
“It’s not that…… How could I possibly apologize to a mere human servant like that……!”
“It seems you still don’t understand the situation. And you hate water so much…… Aha!”
“???”
—Clap!
Seirin, who had been glaring at Yugo through narrowed eyes, suddenly clapped her hands as if she’d had a good idea. Then, with a bright smile, she spoke.
“For your sake, since you hate water so much, I’ll extract every last drop of moisture from your body. Maybe then you’ll understand the situation?”
“Hiiiik…?!”
“For me, a Water Dragon, extracting moisture is an extremely simple task, you know?”
“N-no……!!! I’ll apologize right now! So please, show me mercy as vast as the sea……!”
Yugo trembled at Seirin’s single remark. She still kept her narrowed eyes, her gaze impossible to read. Anyway, the water torture was remarkably effective.
—Drag, drag, drag……!
Yugo, who hadn’t fully recovered yet, desperately dragged his four limbs and crawled painfully toward me, looking even more wretched than a beast.
“B-Breeder? I’m truly sorry…! I’ll never push my work onto you again! S-so please, accept my apology……!”
—Grab!
He clutched at my pant leg and begged desperately.
“Please…… I’m begging you……”
“Huh? Are you trying to ruin my pants too? Let go first and talk.”
“S-sorry…! B-but I mean it! So can’t you forgive me just this once……?!”
“Haa……”
I didn’t want to accept it at all. But if he really evaporated, I might have to take over the landscaping work myself.
‘I absolutely can’t let that happen.’
—Pour……!
Dark green tea filled the teacup, with faint steam rising above it. The warm, subtle aroma of the tea made me feel calmer.
“Thank you, Servant. I’ll enjoy the tea.”
“Not at all. I’m the one who should be grateful.”
After the noisy commotion had passed, Seirin and I were enjoying tea together, basking in the warm sunlight through the wide-open window.
—Slurp……!
“This tea is quite nice. Is it the same as what you drink back home?”
“This is called green tea.”
“Hmm~? I’ve never heard of it. But I like it.”
“I’m grateful that you enjoy it, my lady.”
“Uhehe, you’re quite humble, Servant. Not only did I get to eat delicious food without intending to, but now I’m even being served tea…… I’m being quite shameless.”
“Not at all. Didn’t you just help me earlier?”
—Clink……!
Seirin, who seemed to truly like the aroma of the green tea, emptied her cup cleanly. She set the cup down and spoke.
“Uhehe, that was nothing. It was just repayment for the delicious meal.”
“Ah……”
Seirin smiled softly with narrowed eyes. Although her pupils weren’t visible, sincerity could be felt from this smile alone.
…….
Just as we were silently gazing at each other, Seirin’s face suddenly flushed red for some reason. She quickly turned her head away. It seemed my bare skin was visible through the gaps in my collar again.
“Hey, you dung-puppy~? The flowers are all bunched up on one side! Try arranging them a bit more nicely, will you? If possible, I’d like you to plant some forget-me-nots that I like as well!”
Seirin called out toward the window for no reason—directed at Yugo, who was planting flowers outside. She probably didn’t want her reddened face to be noticed.
“A-ah, understood, my lady……!”
Yugo, who had been thoroughly scolded earlier, moved obediently like a well-trained puppy at Seirin’s words. He was running around alone, planting trees and flowers around the rest lounge. As the price for having his life spared, he was diligently working with dirt all over his body.
“Lady Seirin? Thank you sincerely, regardless. Now that I think about it, I didn’t properly thank you earlier.”
I looked at Seirin and offered my gratitude. Even without her, I could have handled someone like Yugo on my own, but since the condition-based rapport flag had already been raised, I had no choice but to be mindful of her pride.
“H-hmph……! I told you it’s fine. And while watching you all this time, I’ve realized something.”
“Yes? What is it?”
Seirin soon withdrew her gaze from the window and looked at me again. A faint blush still lingered on her face.
“I think I understand now why Raylin fell so hard for you.”
“Ah, yes? What do you mean by that……”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know. Like I said, I’ve been watching you from the very beginning. Starting from when you casually broke the beastkin’s arm.”
“……!”
“Servant? You received Raylin’s heart, didn’t you? Right?”
Tsk, so she even saw me arguing with Yugo earlier? Well, that superhuman strength was indeed unbelievable for a human.
“……You don’t have to be so surprised. I’m not trying to say anything about it.”
“Th-that’s a bit complicated to explain……”
“It’s fine. I have no intention of meddling in your affairs.”
“Yes? Then?”
“It’s just…… your delicate yet caring side. M-maybe even I……”
“……?”
Seirin suddenly trailed off and lowered her gaze. The blush on both her cheeks was spreading wider and wider, even reaching the tips of her ears. Just what was she trying to say to me?