A Misunderstanding in the Saint's Chamber and the Urgent Call to Arms
I heard a strange noise and woke up from my sleep. I didn't have a habit of making weird sounds while getting up, and there was a good reason for it.
…I fell out of the bed while sleeping.
“Ah… my head hurts…”
The headache from my hangover was worse than the fall. I awkwardly sat up and looked around. It was just me.
Where’s my potion?
“I should ask the Saint to fix my headache…”
I didn’t get drunk, but the hangover was always the problem. I quickly prepared myself and headed out to the room where Estelle, Celine, and Elfride were staying.
I wasn’t that much of an idiot as to burst into the room where only women stayed. In a gentlemanly manner, I knocked twice.
“…Why no response?”
I pressed my ear to the door, but I heard nothing.
Is no one inside? Did I oversleep?
“Hero-nim?”
“Huh? Celine.”
She was Celine, with her striking brown hair like good-looking strands and ruby-red eyes. Now that she was my companion, I greeted her.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes. Are you feeling all right, Hero-nim? You seemed to have drunk a lot yesterday.”
“Ahaha… actually, my head hurts, so I came.”
“…So you shouldn’t have forced yourself to drink.”
“That’s right.”
But the alcohol was so delicious yesterday. I couldn’t stop. If she had asked me to choose between alcohol and a woman yesterday, I would have chosen the alcohol without hesitation.
…For real.
“By the way, why aren’t you coming in?”
“I knocked, but there was no response from inside.”
“The Saint should be here. I just stepped out for a moment…”
But why isn’t she reacting?
“Well, let’s go in.”
“Ah, yes.”
Since Celine had approved, I could enter. Celine went first and opened the door, and I followed behind her. The scene before my eyes made my eyes widen in shock.
“…Ah, Abel?”
“Y-You’re the Hero-nim!?”
The two beautiful women were tangled up on the bed. Elfride’s hand rested on the Saint’s shoulder, while the Saint’s hand was reaching toward Elfride’s chest. Elfride was even wearing only a gown, so I couldn’t look anywhere.
…You two… have that kind of taste?
“…I respect every sexual preference.”
“Ah, no! Abel! It’s not what you think—!”
“W-What misunderstanding are you talking about, Hero-nim!?”
“Don’t make any weird sounds and go out immediately, Hero-nim.”
At Celine’s scolding, I immediately stepped out.
No, wait. I feel kind of wronged.
After all, Celine had brought me in? I had only followed behind. Why should I be kicked out!
…But thinking rationally, it wasn’t a situation where I could keep staying in the room forever. Celine probably hadn’t expected anything like this.
“…It was a feast for the eyes.”
I never imagined both of them had that kind of taste.
Haa… now what’s left for me is just Chloe…
At that moment, the door creaked open from behind.
“…Hero-nim?”
“Saint-nim, aren’t you going to finish what you were doing?”
“W-What are you saying!? It’s not like that!”
She was joking, right, you girl. I get why the joker would feel that way.
Estelle let out a big sigh and came out of the room to stand next to me.
“Why did you come out?”
“You said your head hurts, Hero-nim. Celine told me.”
“Ahaha.”
It was still throbbing. Time to work—hangover cure!
“Come closer.”
“Yes.”
“Sit down.”
I did as the Saint said. I plopped down on the floor in the hallway, and she knelt in front of me.
The Saint’s hand touched my forehead. She poured divine power into it.
I didn’t need a separate hangover cure after all. My mind felt clear. My head felt refreshed, and my mood improved on its own.
The Saint pulled her hand away, and I thanked her.
“Hehe, thank you.”
“Really… drinking so much makes your head hurt, doesn’t it? And you’re already an idiot. If you keep getting headaches, you might become even more of an idiot, ♡”
…What does that have to do with my headache?
“Ah, Saint-nim.”
“Yes?”
“By the way, what were you doing with Elfride earlier?”
“…You don’t need to know.”
Why hide it?
“Is there something between us that you’re hiding? I don’t hide anything from the Saint.”
“Eh…? B-Between us?”
“Yes.”
Yeah, we’re companions. True companions shouldn’t hide anything.
But Estelle’s reaction was a bit odd. She blushed slightly, twisted her hair with her fingers, and said,
“…What do you think our relationship is, Hero-nim? I’m curious…”
Why is she reacting like this?
“Huh? Of course, Hero-nim and the Saint. So, companions.”
“Ah… r-right. Companions.”
The Saint nodded. But her eyes looked a little disappointed.
“Did my answer not please you? Maybe I was the only one who thought that…”
“Ah, no! It’s not that… anyway, the incident with Elfride Hero-nim is really nothing. I don’t have that kind of taste that you’re thinking of either.”
…I thought I could see a beautiful yuri scene, but it’s a shame.
“It was just that the timing of your arrival was perfect.”
“What exactly were you trying to do when you touched Elfride’s body?”
Would that kind of situation ever happen? No matter how same-sex, it’s almost impossible to end up in a position like that on a bed.
“……I was trying to confirm something.”
“Huh? Confirm what?”
“…I wanted to confirm how much bigger Elfride Hero-nim’s chest is compared to mine.”
“Cough!”
…You’re crazy?
Did you even need to confirm it directly? Honestly, the Saint isn’t small either, but Elfride is definitely bigger. I could see it with my eyes.
“…Hero-nim♡ Where were you looking~?”
“Hah.”
As I thought about the two women’s chests, my gaze naturally drifted that way. The Saint gave me a teasing smile.
“You pervert♡ Perverted Hero-nim♡”
“……Hah.”
I had no excuse since I was caught. I quickly changed the subject.
“…But did you really need to confirm it yourself? People would have misunderstood for sure.”
“Huh? I was just curious. I wanted to touch and see what it felt like.”
“……Hehe.”
You really are a crazy girl.
“Ah, Hero-nim.”
“…Why?”
“Did Revius Hero-nim not come to the room?”
“…Why would he come to me?”
It was obvious we’d growl at each other. Why would he come at all?
“…I guess he didn’t come?”
“Yes, of course. He had no reason to come to me in the first place.”
“Hmmm…”
The Saint seemed to be thinking.
“Did Revius plan to come to me?”
“Ah, no. That’s not it. I was just curious.”
“???”
Conversations with her sometimes feel like they sink into a maze. I feel like I’m the only one missing something while we talk.
…Am I really that stupid?
#
After Estelle and I decided it was okay for Celine to come in, we entered the room. Elfride had already taken off the gown and was wearing proper clothes.
The first time I saw her in simple clothes without armor.
She must be a heroine, right? Unlike her usual tied-back hair, her loose blonde locks were incredibly attractive.
…Honestly, that’s my type. Blonde wall-eyed heroine? I can’t resist.
Plus, her figure that was usually hidden by armor was clearly visible now, so the destructive power was immense.
…Amazing, truly incredible.
Elfride looked down slightly, embarrassed, and said,
“Abel, please forget what happened earlier. It’s really not what you think…”
“Ah, I know. It was a joke.”
“…Is that so?”
Elfride let out a sigh of relief. She looked at me and gave a small bow.
“I’m sorry about yesterday. As a senior, I should have taken care of you, but I ended up collapsing first…”
“Hey, it’s fine. You can get like that after drinking.”
Come to think of it, did we make a bet yesterday?
“Elfride, did we make a bet yesterday?”
“A bet?… Ah, yes. We did. The one who collapsed first would fulfill the other’s wish.”
Oh, I remembered it correctly after all.
“…The wish?”
A voice came from beside me. The Saint was asking me, her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
…What are you misunderstanding?
“It was on the condition that you wouldn’t make the other party uncomfortable. It’s not anything strange that the Saint is thinking.”
“…When did I say it was strange?”
“You were looking at me with that kind of eyes…”
The Saint turned her head away. It was because she felt guilty, so she avoided my gaze.
“By the way, what do you plan to wish for?”
“Um, I haven’t really thought about it. Should I decide right now?”
“It’s not like that.”
“Then I’ll postpone it a little… Ah, Elfride.”
“Why?”
I pulled out the Holy Sword of Order from my back.
“This is the Holy Sword of Order. Do you happen to know the conditions for awakening its ego? It did change once, but since then it’s been silent.”
“Have you already released one of the conditions?”
“I don’t know what the conditions are, but somehow it changed. The handle part changed.”
Elfride looked at the sword’s handle and nodded.
“Um, it’s definitely changed. Last time I saw it, it was gray.”
“Oh, right. You remember.”
Good memory. Good observation, I guess?
“There are no known methods to awaken the ego of your Holy Sword. However…”
“However?”
“There was definitely a Hero who released some of the conditions in the past. Like you are now.”
…So I just have to piece it together like a puzzle?
Ah, but there’s no guarantee it’ll awaken. It might not be the end.
“For now, I don’t know in detail, but I know where the hometown and family of the Heroes who carried the Holy Sword of Order in the past were. You should go there and look it up.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Then I’ll tell you the places I know.”
Elfride looked around and picked up a piece of paper and a pen. She started scribbling quickly.
“However, it’s not certain. There’s no guarantee that all Heroes recorded the conditions.”
“Still, I’ll go hoping to find even a clue.”
“Yeah, that’s not a bad idea either.”
The pen stopped, and Elfride handed me the paper. Several place names and family names were written on it.
“Um…”
…Damn, what is written here. I only know the handwriting is pretty.
I casually handed the paper to the Saint beside me. She took it and read it aloud.
“The closest place is Caput City in the Vesta Kingdom.”
“Caput?”
Starbucks comes to mind.
“It’s not far from Poculum. If you go in the order I wrote, it’ll be convenient. I wrote it so the travel route connects.”
“Oh, I see.”
As expected from Elfride. She has good sense.
“Then it’s better to depart immediately?”
“Um? Are you going right away?”
“Yes. The audience is over, and there’s no reason to stay.”
Elfride stared at me quietly, then suddenly smiled.
“Yeah, I can’t stop you.”
“Huh?”
“No, go. I’m looking forward to seeing you again.”
“Yes, me too…”
Knock knock knock!
Someone knocked hard on the door.
I looked at Estelle and Elfride.
“Who was supposed to come?”
“No.”
“Not me either.”
Who could it be? I walked to the door and asked.
“Sorry for interrupting your rest, Hero-nim! I have come because of an urgent matter!”
A courier? I opened the door wide. A soldier in chainmail greeted me with a salute.
“Hello. What can I do for you?”
“Yes, Hero-nim! Is Elfride Hero-nim here too?”
“Yes, she is.”
I pointed to Elfride behind me, and the soldier spoke loud enough for Elfride to hear.
“Then I’ll get straight to the point! Currently, in the border region of the Vesta Kingdom, a Monster of Amon-rank or higher and one Mother entity are leading a monster wave and appearing! We from the Vesta Kingdom request your assistance!”
…A Monster of Amon-rank?