Morning Greeting (1)
“Hello.”
“….”
The moment I woke up, a crushing hangover slammed into me hard enough to make my head throb. I stepped outside for some fresh air and immediately ran into an unexpected face.
“…Uh, hey.”
Erinn—who had drunk herself stupid with us last night—was already out here ahead of me. From the look of her, she hadn’t slept at all. She’d just come back still drunk and held her post right here.
“Sleep well?”
“…You didn’t sleep at all, did you? You’ve been sitting here the whole time?”
“How’d you figure that out~?”
Erinn giggled. Something about it felt off. Her tone and expression were starting to look a lot like the way she used to act back when she still thought I was Allen.
There was no real reason for her to keep that up anymore. Maybe she just found it comfortable? Thinking back, she hadn’t only done it with me—she treated everyone else the same way.
That sealed it for me.
…She’s been completely swallowed by the bit.
She’d started it to dig up childhood-friend memories, and now the concept had eaten her alive. Truly tragic. Poor thing.
Lately the atmosphere hadn’t really allowed for that kind of teasing, so she’d reined it in. But now that she seemed to think our relationship issues were neatly resolved… the old habits were peeking through again.
Still, I no longer had any reason to put up with her nonsense. I wasn’t a party member anymore, and I sure as hell wasn’t Erinn’s childhood friend.
I’d been planning to give her a solid knuckle sandwich the next time she tried to mess with me—then her next words threw me completely off balance.
“You slept like a rock last night~ Someone could’ve carried you off and you wouldn’t have noticed~♡”
“What?”
“You were off in dreamland without even realizing Clara and I were talking~”
“……Talking about what?”
The second she mentioned talking to Clara, my mind jumped straight to the worst possible scenario. My face twisted before I could stop it.
“Don’t tell me you said something bad—”
“Hmm~? I never said it was anything like that.”
True enough. So why was she making it sound so damn ominous?
“Then what did you talk about? Was it something I should’ve heard?”
“It would’ve been nice if you had~ But you were snoring away like a sloth~”
“That’s because you kept pouring drinks down my throat.”
“Hmm? I didn’t force anything on you. You just ran ahead of the pack. I never asked you to match my pace~♡”
…Also true. I’d stupidly tried to keep up with Erinn, drank too fast, and got wasted early because of it.
But part of me had deliberately matched her on purpose.
“…You looked so pathetic drinking alone. That’s why.”
Watching her knock back booze by herself like some lonely wreck—so unlike the Erinn I knew—had gotten under my skin in more ways than one.
“Hmm….”
Erinn snorted a little laugh, then suddenly vanished below the wall. I was still wondering where she’d gone when she opened her own front gate and walked over to this side.
We’d been talking across two walls; now only the single fence of my house stood between us. Her sudden move left me a little wary.
“What’s this about all of a sudden?”
“Figured it’d be better to talk from here~”
Erinn said,
“Two walls is way too far, right? My neck was starting to hurt.”
“….”
Her logic wasn’t wrong… so why did a little unease keep prickling at me? Because she could vault that fence and be inside this house in a heartbeat if she wanted?
But with her agility, one wall or two wouldn’t make much difference. So what exactly was I worried about?
That thought had barely formed when Erinn actually hopped up onto the fence and sat herself down on top of it—exactly like a cat. I nearly jumped out of my skin.
“Hey, what the hell are you doing…!?”
“Hmm~? This way I can actually see you.”
She grinned mischievously.
“I’m short, remember~?”
…Not entirely wrong.
I could see her over the fence, but only the very top of her head. Erinn really was tiny. It almost made you wonder if all the nutrients that should’ve gone into her height had been spent growing something else instead.
“…Do you really need to look at me that badly?”
“When people talk, they’re supposed to look at each other’s faces. That’s just common sense~”
Every single thing she said was technically correct, yet the unease wouldn’t go away. Maybe it was because I had no idea what this girl perched on the wall like a cat was actually thinking.
I eyed her with a touch of caution. Whether she noticed or simply chose to ignore it, Erinn kept talking in the same breezy tone.
“Anyway.”
“…You got something to say?”
“Have you noticed anything weird around you lately~? Any suspicious vibes or anything~?”
So that was what this was about—the Holy Spear Hero who was supposedly tracking us. I nodded.
“Nothing. Clara hasn’t said anything either.”
“Then they still haven’t found us. Hiding this close might’ve actually been the right call~”
“…Hey.”
“Hmm~?”
I finally asked the question that had been bugging me ever since Erinn and the others decided to stay here and protect us.
“What happens if the Holy Spear Hero actually finds us?”
“‘What happens’? What a dumb question~♡”
“It’s not dumb… I mean, normally you’d fight it out and settle things, but you and that person are both Heroes. Heroes.”
I pressed on.
“Is a fight between Heroes… actually okay?”
“Pfft, you ask sharp questions every once in a while~♡”
“…Every once in a while?”
So the rest of the time I just ask stupid ones?
“Obviously Heroes shouldn’t fight each other if they can help it~”
“Then how—”
“But that stiff-necked guy doesn’t seem like the type to just back off either….”
Erinn smirked, reached back, and gripped the hilt of the Holy Sword on her back. With a light flick of her wrist the pure-white blade slid free.
“I’ll just beat him until he listens~♡”
“…You’re allowed to do that?”
“So trying to kill a Hero’s companions is fine, but I’m the one who has to hold back~? They’re the ones crossing the line. Why should I put up with it~?”
Companions….
I let out a small laugh.
“I already left the party. Am I still a companion?”
“Yeah.”
The answer came like a blade. Even with that same mischievous little smile on her face, there was a quiet seriousness underneath that said she meant every word.
“Why do you see it that way?”
“You said you’d come back, so you’re a companion~ Why ask something so obvious? Are you an idiot~?”
“No, that was…”
I’d only said that if I ever got ready enough, and if there was still a place for me, I’d return. Nothing was set in stone….
“We’ll always keep two seats open. So come back.”
“….”
I could feel how completely sincere she was. Looking at her then, I finally understood. Erinn no longer saw “Allen” when she looked at me. She was treating the real me as a companion, exactly as I was.
So enduring all those insane situations had been worth it after all. The day this brat truly recognized me as one of her own had actually arrived.
“Oh, by the way~?”
“Yeah?”
“This is just personal curiosity, but….”
Personal curiosity? Erinn being curious about something of mine was surprising enough to catch my interest. I asked what she wanted to know. The question that came out was… a little startling.
“So… how far have you and Clara gone~?”
I stared at her blankly in shock. She looked a little embarrassed and glanced away. I was too dumbfounded to do anything but ask,
“…Why do you even want to know that?”
“Ah, well…”
Erinn said,
“Um… after talking with Clara yesterday, it seemed like she was worrying about something~”
“Clara was?”
“Yeah~”
She turned her eyes back to me, then asked in a carefully careful voice,
“Since that kiss… you haven’t done anything else?”
“….”
She wasn’t wrong. We’d held hands and hugged, but after that day there hadn’t been another kiss… or anything beyond it.
Both Clara and I still found this relationship a little awkward. Even now, if I reached for her hand first she still jumped. When she took mine first it was fine, though.
And after I’d already told her I wasn’t sure yet whether I loved her, I could hardly go asking for more than that.
Erinn seemed to read the answer in my face.
“…Unexpected~”
“Unexpected?”
“You’re a guy too, right~? I always heard men are all beasts~♡”
“That depends on the person.”
“Hmm, but if you’re dating someone as pretty as Clara, isn’t it kind of… hard to hold back~?”
“…Why would it be hard?”
I rejected the idea outright.
“She’s precious. That’s exactly why I can hold back.”
“…Precious?”
“Of course someone who likes me is precious.”
I looked straight at Erinn.
“You were the same, weren’t you?”
“….”
Her eyes went round for a second, then she let out a soft little laugh. When she spoke again, her expression looked strangely lighter.
“Hearing you say that actually surprised me~♡”
“What’s so surprising? We already talked about all of this back then. I said I understood.”
“You did say that… but that was understanding, not empathy, right~?”
The corner of her mouth curved gently. Not the usual mischievous grin—something softer, almost kind.
“But now you’re saying you can actually empathize.”
“….”
“You’ve grown a lot, huh~?”
“What are you talking about? You’re younger than me.”
“We’re the same age~?”
“That’s this body’s age. I’m older than you.”
“Huh?”
Erinn and the rest of the party were all barely into their early twenties. Clara had just turned twenty, and most of the others were around there too. Erinn herself was only twenty-one as far as I knew.
…Well, pure-blooded elf Ser-Aria was the exception. In absolute years she’d probably lived way longer than any of us.
Anyway, they were all still green, while I’d already been twenty-four when I possessed this body. One more year and I’d be halfway to fifty—an old man.
“I was originally twenty-four.”
“…What.”
Erinn smiled playfully.
“So you were the senior? Should I start calling you Oppa~?”
“…Don’t be gross.”
“Oppa~♡”
“You crazy brat.”
“Pfft♡”
Erinn burst out laughing. The expression looked so free and cheerful I almost cracked a stupid smile myself.
Honestly, after watching her drink alone like a pathetic wreck last night, this face was almost unimaginable.
“But isn’t calling you Oppa the right thing? You’re three years older.”
“You don’t make the others call you Unnie either.”
“That’s because we were born the same year? My birthday’s just earlier, so I hit twenty-one first.”
“Ah.”
I’d completely misunderstood. Hearing “twenty-one,” I’d automatically assumed she was the older one.
…This damn Korean age system always messes me up.
“…By that counting I’d be twenty-three then.”
“Hmm? Ah~ you were counting by years lived?”
“Yeah. Birthday hasn’t come yet.”
“…When is your birthday?”
“Huh?”
I had no idea why she was asking, but it wasn’t anything hard to share, so I answered simply.
“September 17th.”
“…Really? I see.”
Erinn said,
“Not that far off, huh?”
“Well, yeah.”
“…Hmm.”
She made a little sound like she’d found something interesting, then turned her body. Looking back over her shoulder with just a tilt of her head, she giggled.
“Then I’ll get a present ready for you, Oppa~♡”
“…Thanks for the present, but cut out the Oppa already.”
“Pfft♡”
And with that she hopped lightly down from the fence and disappeared.
…Back to just the top of her head again.
“You done talking?”
“For today. And if I keep you any longer you’ll be late.”
“What?……Ah.”
What time was it? I was supposed to be at the Magic Tower— I checked the time and nearly had a heart attack.
“Oh for— I’m already late! Why didn’t you say something!?”
“Pfft~ You’re supposed to check the time yourself~♡”
That was also true, so I had nothing to fire back with.
“Well, have a good day~.”
Erinn teased me one last time and headed back to the house next door. That little brat had to get one final jab in so I couldn’t even land a knuckle sandwich.
“…Ugh.”
I needed to get ready and go. Fast.
Erinn secretly watched Albrecht’s back as he hurried home. A small smile tugged at her lips as she murmured,
“September 17th….”
The birthday she’d just heard.
She hesitated for a moment. Should she tell the others, or keep it to herself?
Clara would find out naturally soon enough, but the others… Letisia and Freya probably had no idea.
“….”
If she prepared something while the others didn’t even know… wouldn’t that let her score a few extra points? A birthday gift always carried special meaning, and the feelings that came with it were special too.
With that thought, Erinn whispered softly—to her precious companions who were still asleep.
“…Sorry, Letisia, Freya.”
People rarely realized it, but Erinn was quite the greedy one. Now that she had decided she wanted Albrecht, that she liked him, and that she was going to act on it…
“We’re rivals, after all. I don’t have any obligation to tell you everything, right?”
Just a little underhanded.