Chapter 11
Chapter 11
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Duke's Visit (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I took Cynthia to a park within the district.
>As I've said many times before, the residents of this district consist of nobles and their retainers or servants.
>That means nobles, who in the provinces number only one household per castle stronghold, are here as common as dirt underfoot.
>“Alright, Cynthia, take a good look. That man over there is Marquis Rontoper, that one is the Count of the Perlands region, and that one is Otorbia Count, the cousin and retainer of the previous Marquis Rontoper.”
“Eek...!”
>Cynthia trembled violently, overcome with fear.
>“...I've been wondering about this for a while now, but why are you so terrified of nobles, Miss Cynthia?”
In truth, I'd wanted to ask since the very first day we met, but I held back, worried it might carelessly dredge up some trauma.
“P-Pardon...? Nobles are dangerous, aren't they?”
“Dangerous?”
“They have power...”
It felt like the instinctive fear one might have toward a lion or a wolf.
“Miss Cynthia, how about we visit the zoo together sometime?”
“Tutor, what are you talking about? What if the animals escape from their enclosures!?”
Exactly like this.
Anyone would fear a wild beast, but commoners don't fear nobles in quite the same way.
Unlike beasts, nobles need help from other people to survive themselves, and it's far easier to curry their favor.
And if they take a liking to you, they can bestow grand gifts. A wolf might like you, but the best it could offer is a gnawed bone.
“Someone who finds nobles so frightening—how did you agree to this job?”
“Well...”
Cynthia glanced at my face, then averted her eyes to the side.
“I-I like it... the conditions are...”
Of course she did.
How hard had I worked to serve the original protagonist? I'd funneled a huge chunk of my salary straight to Cynthia.
Her fear didn't seem born of any special trauma.
Then why?
“Were you always this timid growing up, Miss Cynthia?”
“Yes...”
It was?
That was unexpected.
I'd assumed she was the sharp, plucky protagonist type from childhood.
“More like, ever since I was little, whenever I see something dangerous, my body just shrinks back on its own...”
“I... see?”
As a few hypotheses swirled in my mind, one possibility surfaced.
A classic archetype among protagonist types.
“Where is your hometown, Miss Cynthia, if I may ask?”
“Shiv Village in the Parand region.”
“Is it the village nestled right up against a massive mountain?”
“Y-Yeah! How did you know that, Tutor?”
A bad feeling crept over me.
“There was a magic beast subjugation incident in those mountains ten years ago, right?”
“Yes!”
Cynthia nodded enthusiastically, beaming.
“Actually, I was incredibly lucky back then. I'd planned to go play in the mountains with my friends that day. But a great hunter who happened to pass by slew the magic beast that had awakened from its long slumber!”
Cynthia shrank back a little.
“If it weren't for him, me and my friends...”
The one who slew that magic beast in the region ten years ago was me.
Damn it.
It wasn't some vague butterfly effect after all!
Cynthia was originally supposed to head into the mountains with her friends, encounter the magic beast, and face that trial.
As the most timid one in the group, she would muster her courage to save them, forging the bold personality I knew.
In other words, it was her awakening event.
But my casual act of slaying the beast on my way past had cue-balled straight into the original protagonist's key event, knocking it clean off the table.
As a result, Cynthia grew up without that awakening, turning out like this.
'Damn.'
A solution came into focus. I just needed to help her overcome her fears.
'...Come to think of it, isn't this basically what I already knew?'
The problem remained the same. So how to go about it?
No matter how much I wanted to awaken the protagonist, I couldn't just drop her into danger out of nowhere. She might turn on me before she could save the world.
'This is tricky...'
I rubbed my forehead.
“Tutor? What's wrong?”
“Oh, nothing... I was just thinking how terrifying that must have been for you back then.”
“It was scary, but...”
Cynthia gave a shy smile.
>“It's not necessarily a bad memory.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
>Cynthia secretly stole glances at her pensive tutor beside her.
What could it be?
She stayed wary of strangers for ages, yet with her tutor, her heart settled unusually fast.
As she peeked at his profile, Cynthia suddenly pictured him wielding a massive bow.
'From ten years ago...'
Nah, no way.
It didn't match up in several ways.
The hooded stranger she'd seen that day, carrying a longbow on their back, had a much slighter build than her tutor.
'I wonder what that person is up to now?'
Still wandering the world on adventures?
Or had they settled down somewhere after catching the eye of some dashing noblewoman?
'Ugh...'
The latter thought stung her heart.
Childish as it was... after locking eyes with that hooded stranger in her youth, Cynthia had fallen into her first love with them.
The pure, innocent affection a girl holds as a child.
The kind that should naturally fade with age, replaced by more realistic crushes on the boy from the next village over or the handsome actor from the troupe that visited last time—turning into a fond childhood memory.
But...
Even grown up, Cynthia couldn't shake that fleeting glimpse of the stranger's face from her mind.
'Now that I think about it, maybe the tutor has a similar vibe.'
That stranger must have long since met someone even more wonderful than themselves... so maybe it was time for her to graduate from that childish puppy love?
“Cynthia.”
“Eep!? Y-Yes!?”
“Tomorrow or the day after, would you meet one of my acquaintances?”
“...?”
>
>The very next day, her tutor took her out. To a coffee shop in District B.
A striking woman waited out front.
'Is that her?'
She was undoubtedly beautiful, but her attire was in a completely different style from the surrounding nobles.
Someone from a distant region here, or perhaps another country altogether? It seemed plausible, given the hooded traveler's cloak she wore.
“Whoa~ It's been ages, Artie!”
The moment she spotted the tutor, the woman waved wildly, then charged over and threw her arms around him—leaving Cynthia stunned, her mind reeling.
'Th-They're t-touching! In places they sh-shouldn't!'
A lot!
But the tutor, seemingly used to it, unceremoniously shoved her away.
“Back off a bit, Ellen.”
“Aww, why?! You're so mean! It's been forever! Come on, play with me—whee! Mama wants her milkies!”
“Why is this lunatic pitching a fit in broad daylight again?”
“Ow ow ow...!! Mama's cheek is coming off...!!”
“My parents are alive and well back in the countryside, so cut the weird talk, please.”
Only once they were inside the café did the woman finally turn her attention to Cynthia.
“So, Artie, who's the kid?”
“My assistant teacher.”
“Oh~ Like a TA if you're the professor?”
“Yeah.”
With that, the tutor stood from his seat.
“Cynthia, order whatever you want.”
“P-Pardon!? What about you, Tutor...?”
“I have someone to meet outside for a bit.”
Cynthia's mind:
Eeeeeh!? You're leaving me alone with a total stranger!?
What Cynthia actually said:
“O-Okay...!”
Cynthia watched intently as the tutor really walked out.
As she began to shiver, the woman named Ellen spoke to her warmly.
“Your name's Cynthia? Can I call you Tia?”
“Y-Yes... Sure! Go ahead!”
“Does Artie treat you well?”
“Y-Yes, very well... More than I deserve...”
“What do you want to drink? What's popular among humans these days?”
Her speech was oddly phrased, as if she herself weren't human.
“Chocolate? You still into chocolate these days?”
“I-I think so...?”
“Tia wants chocolate too?”
“Yes...”
“You're the shy type, huh? Waiter, can you take our order here?”
Once the drinks arrived and she sipped the hot, sweet liquid, the tension in her body eased.
'She's a bit odd, but... doesn't seem like a bad person...'
Cynthia asked the question that had been nagging at her.
“Um... why do you call the tutor 'Artie'?”
“'Cause he's Artie, duh?”
“His name is—”
She started to say Jarvis, then realized. That must be his surname.
'Huh?'
Now that she thought about it, she didn't actually know the tutor's given name. The household staff all called him by his title or surname.
“Is... the tutor's name Artie?”
“More like a nickname. We call each other by nicknames!”
“And your name, Miss Ellen...?”
“Eleonora!”
An exotic name to match her exotic look.
“So the tutor's name is...?”
“Hmm~”
Eleonora looked at her and flashed a mischievous smile.
“Want me to tell you? But not for free... How about a little contract?”
“A... contract...?”
“In exchange for Artie's name...”
Eleonora slightly lifted the side of the hood she'd kept on the whole time.
A pointed, non-human ear peeked out.
“...wanna do some mischief with me?”