You Must Never Do This to Other Girls
You Must Never Do This to Other Girls
Once I turned sixteen, I started preparing for the academy with my heart full of hope.
"So, nobles are exempt from the ranking battles?"
"Yeah. Commoners who major in combat are required to participate, but those who enroll through the noble track don't have to."
"Can nobles not join the ranking battles at all, then? I'd like to try it..."
"A few do it for fun, but most avoid it. Commoners can't fight seriously against nobles. Mar even tried it in first year but forfeited halfway through—being treated like a guest left a bad taste in her mouth."
"Tch. That's a shame."
I grilled Albert for detailed information about the academy.
"Huh? You're enrolling too, Nibuer? What about the merchant company?"
"Please don't worry. I've already found a capable person to serve as acting head."
"Hmm... do you really need to enroll? Your company's already being called the Empire's Foremost Merchant Company, right? Seems more like you should be going there to teach, not learn."
"Heh heh. I'm honored by the overestimation, but I'm hardly at that level. At any rate, once I enroll, we'll be able to spend more time together. I'll see to your comfort in many ways then."
"Well, if that's how it is. I'll be counting on you, Nibuer."
I shook hands with Nibuer, who had suddenly announced her own academy enrollment, promising to get along.
"Chloe, what about you? Finished your preparations for the academy?"
"I'm enrolling solely as your escort knight, Young Master. I'll be attending to you exactly as always, so there's nothing particular to prepare."
"That's no fun. Aren't you looking forward to the academy?"
"...Not especially. Unlike at the estate, I won't be able to attend you constantly, which makes it even less appealing."
"Don't make that face! Hush! Here, I'll let you stroke my chin!"
"..."
Swish, swish.
"Heuuu... Ah, once we enter together, I'll let you pet my chin every day...!"
When Chloe, who was enrolling to serve me, seemed oddly unmotivated, I promised rewards to encourage her.
Each and every day passed in a very fulfilling manner.
* * * * * *
"Yune, I'm here to play... what are you doing?"
I was standing with my back pressed flat against the wall, a fountain pen balanced on top of my head.
Ignoring Kir's questioning look, I drew a line on the wall with it.
"Measuring my height. I have to order my uniform in advance, and I'm trying to figure out what measurements to give."
"True, boys have to take a lot more measurements, don't they? For girls, it's bust, waist, and hips. Boys also need thigh circumference and inseam length. I can see why you'd be stuck."
"There's that, but I'm also going to grow a ton. So I'm trying to buy one with a little extra room."
I checked the inked line on the wall as I chatted with Kir.
The mark was still fresh, the ink not yet dry. Seeing that it had risen only a fingernail's width from the very first line I'd drawn when I started measuring my height, I sighed despite myself.
It's a foregone conclusion that a manly man like me would grow enormously tall. So why on earth, at sixteen, was I still this height? Could I possibly be any more desperate to grow?
"Seriously. How much am I going to grow later that I'm still not growing now? Am I going to end up so tall I hit the ceiling? That would be pretty inconvenient."
As I heaved a sigh, fearing my own latent potential, I felt a gaze fixed on me from behind.
"What're you staring at?"
"Nothing. Just because."
When I turned around, there was Kir, hands clasped behind her back, smiling as she looked down at me.
...Right. She was looking down at me. With a body that had shot up in height, unlike mine.
"Are you bragging that you're all grown up now?"
"Heh heh. No?"
Kir was smiling at me suspiciously.
Deeply displeased by this sight, I folded my arms and looked Kir up and down.
A height now nearly matching Maman's. Curves filled out here and there. And the revealing clothes that generously showed them off.
The image of the frail girl bundled up from head to toe when we first met was nowhere to be found. I sighed once more.
"Really. Why are you the only one growing so fast?"
"I diligently chewed up every last elixir, you know. Unlike you, who threw tantrums about not wanting to eat even carrots."
"..."
Kir wasn't about to give an inch.
At a loss for a comeback, I felt my lips pressing into a pout.
"If you keep this up, I'm not teaching you the dance..."
"More importantly. Yune? Ta-da~."
"...Huh? What's this?"
"New cookies. They're almond and green tea cookies. They won third place at a patissier competition, apparently."
Kir had spent the last five years as my friend, perfectly learning what it took to soothe my temper in moments like this.
The moment she pulled out the basket of cookies she'd been hiding behind her back, my heart, on the verge of sulking, melted away completely.
"Wow! You're the best, Kir!"
"Pfft. Same as ever. Let's get some milk too and eat them together."
"Yeah!"
* * * * * *
After that, we sat leaning against each other's shoulders, picking up and eating cookies.
And what's good snacks without a good conversation?
The flower of talk naturally bloomed between us.
"Kir, you're only going for two years, right?"
"Yeah. Since I'm the heir who'll inherit the family, I'll receive separate intensive education afterward."
"Huh. That's impressive."
The academy was a mandatory four-year stint for imperial nobles, but a special rule was made because heirs destined to inherit their families couldn't be tied down for that long. Thanks to that, Kir only had to attend for two years.
But Kir drooped her eyebrows as if this were unwelcome news.
"I want to stay with you for all four years, Yune."
"That's a surprise. Most people are dying to finish early. You want to stick it out for the full four?"
"It's not that I want to attend for four years. It's that I hate finishing before you do."
Kir seemed genuinely disappointed that she couldn't stay with me at the academy until the end, so I rubbed my cheek against her shoulder to comfort her.
Swish, swish.
"My friend. Do not be so disheartened."
"Pfft. What kind of tone is that?"
I comforted Kir in a solemn tone I'd started practicing in advance, preparing for the day I'd become a Grand Mage adventurer.
I couldn't conceal my satisfaction, thinking it was a truly manly voice, but far from being moved, Kir chuckled and placed a hand on my head.
And then she began petting me.
"Seriously. I need to watch over our Yune here for four years, you know. To keep other women from flocking around you."
"Ahem. There's no need for that. Rather, I should be the one protecting you. Just like back then, when I saved you from that wicked black mage."
"Pffahaha! Yune, that tone really doesn't suit you at all. You sound like a baby pretending to be a grandma."
"...Ugh. Isn't it cool? I practiced it and everything."
"Yeah. Cool, cool."
Kir patted my head like she had no choice. My head slowly swayed with the motion of her hand.
I closed my eyes at the pleasant sensation and began to purr.
But then a question popped into my head, and I lifted my face to look at Kir again.
'Kir said that friends pet each other like this. Is that really true?'
"But honestly, is it normal for friends of the opposite sex to lean on each other and stroke each other's hair like this?"
"...I told you it is. Why are you suddenly asking?"
"No reason. It's just, I'll be making friends when I go to the academy too. I was wondering if I should pet them like this as well."
I hadn't paid much attention to it before since Kir was the only friend I could make. But that might change once I got to the academy and met people my age.
I asked, wondering if doing this with anyone other than Kir might be rude. Kir's face instantly stiffened.
"...You wouldn't do that with a boy. Are you saying you'd do it with another girl?"
"Well, if I make friends, sure? You were the one who said this is what you do among friends, Kir."
"Haaa..."
"Why the sudden sigh?"
I looked at her with concern, wondering if a cookie had gone down the wrong way. Kir emptied the remaining milk in her cup in one go before continuing.
"I told you. This is something done 'between a girl and a boy who are like no other, the very closest of friends.' You absolutely cannot do this with an ordinary friend."
"Really?"
"Yes. So even if you do make other friends, you must never do this. The only person you can do this with is me."
Then Kir pulled me into a tight hug against her chest.
My face naturally sank deeply into her bosom. My nose slipped right into her cleavage, and the scent of her skin hit me strongly.
"You understand? You must never do this with other women. I'm not letting go until you do, so once you understand, nod your head three times."
'...There she goes again, Kir.'
Kir began threatening me, demanding I nod my head to show I understood, saying she wouldn't let go until I did.
This was something Kir sometimes did when she was trying to seriously drill something into me, but... being subjected to it while she was dressed like this was a first.
I knew from experience that once Kir got into this state, she wouldn't listen to anything I said.
So I obediently nodded three times.
Swoosh. Swish. Swooosh.
As I nodded, the cloth resting against the bridge of my nose lifted slightly and fell back again, over and over.
...At this rate, I might end up seeing something I shouldn't.
I nodded as carefully as possible to avoid any awkward situations.
"Ahem. Looks like you understand."
Perhaps she also realized that hugging me in that outfit was a mistake. The moment Kir confirmed my three nods, she peeled my face away from her.
Kir's face was slightly flushed, maybe from the heat of me clinging to her.
Then Kir pinched my cheek with an affectionate touch.
Pinch.
"You got it? If any other woman does this to you, you shout loudly, 'No! I don't like it! Stop! My body is my own!' I'll always be by your side watching over you, but still. Just in case."
"Alright. But then, do I have to do all those 'friend things' you taught me only with you? Like the massages and all the other stuff?"
"...Those are even more off-limits. That's really only with me. Only when the two of us are alone."
"...? Okay."
'It kind of doesn't seem right... but nah, no way. If Kir says so, it must be true.'
I tilted my head, wondering if there really needed to be specific skinship reserved solely for one's dearest friend...
But Kir had no reason to lie about something like this to me, her best friend. Letting go of my doubts, I soon smiled brightly.
"Thanks for telling me, Kir! You're the best!"
"...Yeah."
But unlike me, who was all smiles, Kir for some reason wore an expression that was deeply guilt-ridden.