[The Runaway Princess #4]
I stood face-to-face with Cecilia.
The two of us were standing in the imperial palace's training ground.
One might wonder, Why does the imperial palace have a training ground?
Furthermore, it was unnecessarily vast.
The reason was simple.
“This place is only for you, Brother, so why is it so big?”
Because it’s where I train.
Cecilia, having taken her position in the distance, stared at me intently.
To be honest.
Cecilia had no chance of winning. I could state that over and over again. My younger sister could not defeat me. That was a fact even Cecilia acknowledged.
However, she surely had one hidden trump card. Knowing her, that was exactly the kind of thing she would do.
I wonder what it could be.
I recalled the Cecilia from the original game.
She handled a variety of weapons, but fundamentally, she was closer to a ‘brawler.’
What I mean is, she wasn’t a craftsman who stubbornly mastered a single weapon; she was the type to think that any weapon was fine as long as it helped her win a fight.
If I pull out a spear when the opponent thinks I’m a swordsman, I can induce confusion, right?
Personally, I didn’t think that was a bad method. If you can handle everything well, that’s a weapon master. If you take it to the extreme, anything is good.
However.
“Hmm.”
“……Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I was just curious about what you might have prepared.”
“You’ll see for yourself.”
Cecilia didn’t have the talent for that. Even if she dug into a single weapon like a madwoman, she lacked the talent to reach the pinnacle of that field. Reaching the end by handling multiple weapons was a distant dream.
I wondered how such a Cecilia would try to attack me.
Silence settled between us.
And then.
“……!”
Without a word, Cecilia leaped forward. She had no weapon in her hands.
‘Bare-handed?’
It was a swift approach. I dodged her outstretched hand and scanned her entire body. There was no hidden weapon to be seen.
Don’t tell me, martial arts? If that was it, I’d be a bit disappointed.
Just as I was about to be disappointed, a heavy greatsword appeared in Cecilia’s hand.
“Oh.”
There was no precursor. It literally looked like it had appeared out of thin air. The greatsword, manifested from the void, was swung toward me.
At a glance, it was a weight that would be burdensome for Cecilia to even lift and swing. Its size alone was several times larger than her.
It wasn’t a weapon designed for a human to wield; even a decent knight would struggle to lift it.
There weren’t many blacksmiths who could craft something like this. Did she meet a dwarf during her travels?
I stopped my train of thought there and redirected my focus to the strike descending upon me. I could have dodged it easily, but instead.
Boom—!
I blocked it with my palm. The massive greatsword trembled violently.
“……That’s an attack that could crush an ogre.”
Cecilia said in a stunned voice.
“You’ve acquired a fine item.”
An artifact.
It appeared to be a type of sub-space storage for weapons. While there were likely limits to the types of items it could store, it seemed she could pull them out at will without any tell.
Even in the Imperial Treasury, treasures this useful were rare. It seemed my sister had obtained something precious during her travels.
“Is this your trump card?”
“You catch on fast……!”
Cecilia quickly let go of the sword. Her judgment was swift. Crack! The blade shattered against my hand.
Following that, a longsword was in the hands of the Cecilia who had retreated. Cecilia, having naturally switched weapons, lunged toward me.
Was she aiming for the moment my reaction slowed down while breaking the greatsword?
“Haa-!”
The longsword, aiming for my opening, was quite smooth and flowed like water. It seemed she hadn’t just been picking up treasures; she had learned quite a bit of swordsmanship.
However, I could see exactly where and how she was aiming. Just as I was about to catch it with my hand.
“Hmm.”
The weapon changed again. There was no delay in putting away the weapon in her hand and pulling out a new one. It was an item better than I had imagined.
This time, it was an axe. The blade swung toward me transformed into a thick axe head. The axe blade met the hand I had extended to catch the sword.
Crunch!
“Tsk!”
The axe blade shattered. Cecilia clicked her tongue.
It was quite impressive how she smoothly diverted the force, likely worried about the recoil that would come to her the moment I blocked it.
Cecilia, having missed her chance to attack, quickly gave up. I didn’t bother chasing her as she hopped back to retreat.
“What’s next?”
“You’re so relaxed…!”
From Cecilia’s perspective, she had lost two weapons in an instant. Even so, she didn’t stop, and this time, a spear popped out.
I lifted my hand to block the spear, then hesitated. Her attack patterns were ever-changing.
Should I block the spear? Or should I prepare for her to feint with the spear and attack with another weapon?
It was a very effective tactic, naturally leading the fight in that manner.
“These are all expensive items, you know.”
“If you need more, just go pull a few weapons from the treasury.”
“Is it that hard to say you won’t break them?”
“Controlling my strength is difficult.”
“Ha.”
It was certainly an effective tactic. It was, but.
The problem was that it didn’t work on me. I swatted away the thrusting spear.
“Ugh!”
Cecilia’s eyes narrowed, likely because she couldn’t divert the force this time.
And then, a sword again.
A lance, a blunt weapon, dual blades.
And then a spear again. We exchanged several volleys. To be precise, I was receiving Cecilia’s offensive.
I could end it whenever I wanted. But I didn’t. After all, hadn’t Cecilia issued the challenge knowing full well she couldn’t win?
If possible, I wanted to see everything my sister was capable of showing.
“Haa, haa.”
“Are you tired?”
“Of course I’m tired, you monster of a human being.”
Cecilia’s breathing was ragged. Dozens of exchanges had already passed. Dozens of weapons, now nothing more than debris, were scattered everywhere.
“……Brother.”
“Yes.”
“If this doesn’t work either, I’ll surrender.”
Did she have one last card?
Cecilia took a deep breath. Then, she lunged at me again.
‘Bare-handed again?’
No.
Looking closely, there was something on her finger. A ring.
A ring?
I realized it. That was it. Her true hidden trump card.
“……Huh.”
Immediately after, a strong sense of lethargy washed over me. Something powerful was ‘acting’ upon me.
It was an unpleasant sensation.
Cecilia’s movements, which had looked infinitely slow to my eyes, now appeared fast. My keen senses had become infinitely dulled.
I knew what this was.
“Tsk.”
Could I shake it off? I could.
I had a similar experience before. That power that forced feelings of affection when I saw Serena. It was similar to that.
If so, I should be able to use a similar method to shake it off.
But rather than that.
“You’ve prepared quite a lot.”
I decided to play along with the stage Cecilia had prepared.
Strength and speed.
A head-on clash where everything was at the same level as Cecilia’s.
I saw the world through Cecilia’s eyes as well.
“……!”
Cecilia’s eyes, gritting her teeth and looking only at me.
“I am, Brother, afraid of you.”
“I know.”
I remembered the time she knelt on the floor and sobbed. I had no intention of distinguishing that as something Khalid had done.
Because I am Khalid.
“It’s fine to hate me for the rest of your life. Do as your heart desires.”
“No.”
Cecilia said firmly.
“I hate you, and I’m afraid of you. ……But still, we’re family.”
Family, huh.
I diverted her outstretched hand. I swatted away the leg she swung toward me.
I saw an opening. I wouldn’t miss it. I was faster at diving in than Cecilia was at defending.
Boom—!
“Ugh!”
The conclusion was reached.
“……I lost.”
“Yes. I won.”
“…….”
Cecilia, slumped on the floor, brushed back her hair, which was a mess from the sweat.
“Still, for some reason, I feel relieved.”
“Is that so?”
“Brother.”
I waited for Cecilia’s words instead of answering. Cecilia looked up at me.
“Can we have another round next time?”
“…….”
I pondered for a moment before answering.
“As you wish.”
“Hehe…. Okay.”
It was a heartwarming conclusion, in a way. Honestly, I didn’t think the resentment my sister held toward me would be fully resolved with just this one fight.
Even if she looked a bit relieved right now.
Still, it was fortunate that there was room to improve our relationship in the future.
That was that, but.
“Cecilia.”
“……Wait. Why are you coming at me with such a scary face?”
“I told you I would spank you.”
“……That wasn’t a joke?”
I had to do what I said I would.
*
“Ughhh. I won’t forgive you.”
Cecilia sat awkwardly, glaring at me. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, likely because her spanked bottom hurt.
With this, the discipline of the empire was restored.
What could I do? There was no way I could let my younger sister go without punishment after she dared to rebel against her brother, who was like the heavens to her.
“You lay a hand on a grown woman’s bottom?”
“Were you the type of woman who cared about such things?”
“What?”
Her gaze was sharp.
“Anyway.”
“You’re changing the subject….”
Rather than changing the subject, this was more important.
“That thing at the end.”
“You were surprised too, right, Brother?”
Of course I was surprised.
“Where did you get it?”
The Shard of Abraxas.
That was the name of the ring Cecilia was wearing.
While the shard alone was powerful enough, the original item created by completing the shards was especially important.
It was an essential item for seeing the ending of the Tower Master route, and at the same time, it was a very powerful artifact in the lore, so it was a hidden piece I had given up on finding myself.
To think that a part of it had ended up with Cecilia.
“This…….”
Cecilia glanced at the ring on her finger.
“……You take it, Brother.”
“Hmm?”
“Because I lost. This is the price of the match.”
She had a face with no regrets. Cecilia took off the ring and handed it to me.
“I only need one sub-space storage. That thing is hard to handle anyway.”
Well….
Just because you have many artifacts doesn’t mean they’re all good. Especially with high-quality items, the more effort it takes to handle one, the more true that becomes.
For Cecilia, who had chosen to focus on using various weapons, a sub-space artifact might suit her better than this one, which was too burdensome to handle.
“Then I’ll take it. In return, go ahead and take whatever weapons you need from the treasury.”
“Don’t you think you should at least do that much, considering how many weapons you broke?”
I ignored the grumbling Cecilia and looked at the ring in my hand.
Since it’s in my hands now, should I try completing it later?
“Hey, Brother.”
“What is it?”
Cecilia squirmed while lying flat on her back.
“……I can’t move my body. I think I overdid it.”
“So?”
“Call someone for me.”
Why call someone?
I simply hoisted Cecilia onto my back.
“Eek?”
Eek, my foot.
“W-wait. Put me down.”
“Quiet.”
Cecilia, hanging on my shoulder, squirmed. I ignored her and left the training ground.
“Aughhh.”
I heard her groaning on my shoulder.
That’s what you get for overdoing it.