Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Lion's Feast (8)
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But contrary to Ariel's actions, Kline already knew everything.
"Why tell such a pointless lie? If you were trying to be considerate, you shouldn't have let it slip."
It was embarrassing.
The fact that she'd been secretly watching him, and that Ariel had overheard Kline's cool line.
For some reason, she kept wanting to hide from Kline.
"Voyeurism means getting a thrill from seeing someone else's naked body."
Even so, his joke to lighten her mood eased her heart.
It was a ridiculously simple thought process, one even Ariel herself couldn't comprehend.
"I have nothing to do without you, Brother... That's why I wanted to watch you from afar."
So she confessed honestly.
Why she'd been peeking at her brother from a distance.
How her attempt to be considerate toward him had come out.
"Hmm."
Her brother didn't mock her.
He didn't scorn or recoil in disgust.
Instead, he listened seriously to Ariel's worries.
And then.
"Then this big brother will make something for you to play with when you're alone."
He flashed a meaningful smile and patted her head.
'Ah.'
It felt unfamiliar.
This sensation was utterly foreign.
The feeling of someone else's palm ruffling her hair.
A touch that would have been so uncomfortable from anyone else.
'It's warm.'
Ariel was so happy that she unwittingly rubbed her head against his hand.
That's why Ariel loved the ocarina her brother made for her.
She learned what an ocarina was that day.
It wasn't something she particularly liked.
But that didn't matter.
What was important was that her one and only brother—the most precious person in the world—had made it himself.
Even though she didn't yet know what a kiss was, she'd indirectly kissed it without thinking, and that too made her blush with happiness.
So Ariel mustered a little courage.
"Brother. Will you call for me next time too?"
It was her first-ever request.
From the girl who had only ever accepted others' judgments until now.
The girl who had never expressed emotions to anyone else.
Ariel's very first attempt at sharing her feelings.
And her brother—naturally, of course.
"Of course."
Replied with a bright smile.
'Ah.'
That was the moment Ariel realized it.
Why she had been born.
The girl whom everyone called a strange monster.
What reason she had to live.
'I...'
For Kline Leonhart—the brother she loved more than anyone—she vowed to live.
Ariel pledged it in that instant.
Her first origin.
The reason deeply engraved in the heart of the girl named Ariel Leonhart.
"Pardon? Ariel?"
Ariel blinked twice.
A moment ago, a servant had come while she was talking with her brother, and the atmosphere had turned tense.
Her brother frowned slightly and glanced at Ariel.
As if he were worried.
"I don't get it. Ariel was never supposed to go out there, right?"
"But Young Master, it's the Family Head's orders. To have Miss Ariel spar with a member of the White Wing Knights."
"Jeez. Dad's so weird. He's only ever tried to hide our little sister until now."
"Y-Young Master. Please watch your words..."
"Whatever. So why are you asking my permission? Just take her if you're supposed to."
"The Family Head said to at least ask your opinion. He's long since delegated full authority over Ariel to you..."
"Since when? This is the first I'm hearing of it."
"W-Well, about that... Haha..."
The servant gave an awkward laugh, sweat beading on his forehead.
Her brother looked really angry.
'Is Brother in a tough spot?'
Was it because of her?
Ariel didn't want her brother suffering because of his little sister.
So without thinking, she tugged at his sleeve.
"Brother."
"What is it, Ariel?"
"I'll do it."
"What?"
Kline's eyes went wide.
She rarely ever expressed her will.
But Ariel was stating her intentions clearly and honestly.
"Ariel, do you even know what you'll be doing? You'll have to go out there and fight a person."
"I don't care about that. What matters to me is that you're not in a bind, Brother."
"What? No, I'm not really in a bind."
"But... if this goes on, you'll fight with Dad, right?"
"Hm..."
Kline trailed off.
He had no intention of actually fighting.
But he would raise his voice, for sure.
No matter how he thought about it, this was something unacceptable to do to Ariel.
"I'll do it. If it makes things easier for you, Brother, I'll do it."
"Haa."
Her brother scratched his head vigorously.
If Ariel herself was saying this, Kline had nothing more to say.
How could he interfere when she wanted to do it herself?
In the end, Kline gave a wry smile and lightly tapped Ariel's head.
"Alright. Give it a go. It's about time our little sister showed her face to the people."
"Okay."
"Do your best out there. Since you're going, make everyone drop their jaws—do it cool, amazing, spectacular. You have to win. Got it?"
"Okay."
Ariel stood from her seat upon hearing her brother's words.
She followed the servant toward the arena.
The servant explained the sparring rules enthusiastically along the way, but she didn't really listen.
Such things were useless to her.
To Ariel, those were just information she could learn anytime if she wanted.
After all, the other world—what people called the shadow world—provided such functions in abundance.
So what Ariel needed most was her brother's encouragement.
That alone was enough.
Step by step—
She stepped onto the arena.
From far away, a boy about the same age as the knight her brother had faced appeared.
Compared to Kline, it was an even more lopsided matchup.
A 15-year-old boy versus a girl who had just turned 6.
By all common sense, a matchup that shouldn't even qualify as a spar.
"Woooaaah..."
But the arena was already swept up in excitement.
Everyone had witnessed Kline's prowess with their own eyes.
They had seen his talent and skill overturn an unfavorable matchup.
They had just felt how outstanding the direct bloodline of the Leonhart territory truly was.
So why wouldn't his little sister be a genius too!
The crowd's heated gazes turned to Ariel.
It held no value to her whatsoever.
Ariel casually shifted her eyes.
Far away, in the seat next to her father.
The knight called Ruin was staring straight at her.
It really got on Ariel's nerves.
'Why are you looking at me?'
Who gave you the right?
Daring to direct your gaze wherever you please.
Daring to grip her brother's hand so tightly before, and even pressuring him with that intangible aura.
That damn woman.
"......"
Ariel's eyes flashed white for an instant before returning to normal.
Not now.
She couldn't reveal her true nature here.
No one in this place expected it.
More than that, her brother didn't want it.
So she would play along.
A stage set by others.
She would gladly throw herself into this play they had dared to create to test her.
But she had no intention of going easy.
She wanted to humiliate her. That damn woman who dared to put her brother in a bind—she wanted to humiliate her.
How? Think. That knight is that woman's subordinate.
Then rip him apart. Separate flesh from bone completely.
The achievements, years, efforts they had built.
Crush it all with a single overwhelming strike.
'And also.'
Her brother told her to win.
To shock everyone, to do it cool, amazing, spectacular.
Then she would obey.
Because Ariel had no other reason to live than to follow her brother's words.
"Sparring begins!"
The announcer's words hadn't even fully echoed through the arena.
Kwaaaang!
Lightning struck.
It was thunder forged by a sword.
A bolt that slammed the knight—who had taken a lax stance upon hearing he faced a 6-year-old girl—straight into the ground.
The result of Ariel's single exchange.
An absurdly overwhelming gap.
Could a human punch at full force and shatter a mountain?
No.
It was an attack that defied the natural order to that extent.
Ariel was satisfied.
She had paid them back properly.
To that irritating woman, and as a bonus, to her irritating father too.
But soon, Ariel felt a suffocating unease.
As if.
She had made the wrong choice.
She looked around.
The first thing that caught her eye was the crowd.
"......"
Silence blanketed the arena.
No one in the stands could open their mouths.
The territory folk blinked in disbelief at the scene they had just witnessed.
Then, one by one, they began to speak.
"Wh-what? What just happened?"
"Lightning? Did lightning strike? Right?"
"No! Didn't you see? She swung her sword!"
"It wasn't even visible? She swung it?"
"But look at that guy! He's embedded in the ground!"
The commotion spread.
It was inevitable.
Her brother Kline had won in four exchanges.
That alone was an achievement for the history books.
Yet she had surpassed it in just one.
It would be abnormal not to feel something alien about it.
The chain of doubts led to one conclusion.
"That little girl... is she even human?"
Dangerous.
Ariel sensed it instinctively.
This flow would lead to bad results.
What others thought of her was something she'd already tuned out.
No point dwelling on it—it wouldn't change anything.
But right now, this was a test stage that woman had set up.
Any overly inhuman display here would surely bring ruin upon Ariel.
"......"
Ariel's gaze turned far away.
There, Ruin was watching her with gleaming eyes.
She sensed it.
Ruin saw Ariel as a suspicious element.
No—even "suspicious" didn't cover it.
It was something heavier, more terrifying—
A calamity.
"......Ah."
Ariel was scared.
It didn't matter what others thought of her.
But she feared this would bring a threat upon herself.
Because any threat to Ariel.
Would surely prompt her brother Kline to step in and block it.
'Did I mess up?'
She'd been foolishly naive and fallen for it.
For her brother's sake, she never should have done this.
She'd gotten excited over one word from him and committed a huge blunder.
Her mindscape bleaching whiter and whiter.
The moment Ariel's vessel was about to shatter—
Clap clap clap...
Someone gave vigorous applause.
A sudden burst of clapping that shattered the silence in an instant.
All eyes turned to one spot.
There.
"Incredible! As expected of my little sister!"
Ariel's brother.
Kline Leonhart was grinning ear to ear, cheering on his sister.
As if the result wasn't shocking at all.
Or more precisely.
As if there was no reason for it to spark wariness or fear toward Ariel herself.
"How did you do it? Knocking out your opponent in one strike—you're a genius among geniuses!"
A more formal tone for the public setting.
But just that was enough to melt away Ariel's tension.
The ominous haze filling her heart lifted.
"Right? Isn't it amazing when you think about it?"
Agreement followed from the stands.
"She took down a White Wing Knight in one hit? That's insanely impressive!"
"Yeah, and she's only 6. We might have just witnessed a page of legend."
The territory folk gradually forgot the sense of alienation and actively evaluated the spar they'd just seen.
It wasn't magic that changed their perception.
Kline's applause and smile had simply poured the lubricant of warmth into the frozen air.
Thinking about it, it was a logical progression.
When his little sister shone, the one hit hardest was the eldest son, Kline.
Yet Kline himself was praising Ariel openly.
So the folk thought.
'Ah, guess it's not a big deal.'
Whether Kline intended it or not, no one could say.
"......"
Ariel stared blankly at Kline.
Her brother was still beaming as he praised his little sister.
Yes.
So Ariel decided to forget about Ruin too.
Unnecessary negative emotions—hatred, wariness, fear, jealousy, inferiority—she'd toss them all far away.
Because the brother she loved more than anyone wouldn't be swayed by such things.