Returning Home (1)
The work Sion played and Bail read was a romance fantasy. In the former case, a hidden route focused purely on power growth was also prepared, while in the latter, the fantasy elements were inevitable.
The villain group that opposed the protagonist could be considered a necessary presence.
But.
But.
We’re too busy romancing our kids to be playing with those villain bastards. In spring we should enjoy cherry blossoms, in summer we should go swimming, in fall we should step on fallen leaves, in winter we should make snowmen together while playing in the snow.
And the villains never seemed to have free time to mess around. No, rather, whenever we’re busy, it’s a blessing if nothing happens.
Of course, the kind of love that grows through hardship is also something we can’t ignore… but the seed has already sprouted. The shoot has already taken root and is growing vigorously. All a tender sprout needs is not fierce storms, but enough sunlight and water. So let’s just handle the parts we can manage on our end. We’ll leave the two of them to enjoy the mundane together without the fantasy stuff.
The two who gathered to observe Jeden and Cecil’s romance had already evolved into full post-service mode.
Especially now that we’re on break. I suspect this is the busiest period since the academy was founded.
***
Inside the train heading back to the hometown.
Cecil, tired of the long journey, began to doze off. Her head nodded once, twice, three times… Then the train lurched, and her head dropped sharply before snapping back up.
“……”
Whether she had briefly woken or not, Cecil blinked with a somewhat dazed expression.
“……Heh.”
She let out an unknown laugh and rested her head on my shoulder.
…My shoulder is uncomfortable. But since Cecil’s face looked happier than before, I didn’t say anything and closed my eyes too. Even if I couldn’t sleep deeply, it was better to keep my eyes closed. The road was boring rather than tiring.
***
The proper name of the hometown, or what one might call a rural village, is Kron. It’s a rural estate governed by some minor noble—baron or viscount—who rules a small town with nothing particularly noteworthy. Except, of course, that a 9th Realm monster lives on the outskirts.
Thinking about it, they hide it well. Anyway, because it’s such a village, the train doesn’t kindly stop at the entrance. The railroad isn’t even laid here to begin with. Just like when I first arrived at the academy in the capital, I’d have to get off in the nearest city and take a carriage.
And it had already been several dozen minutes since we switched to the carriage.
“This place is nostalgic.”
Cecil’s words broke through my thoughts. Thinking about it, Cecil was from here too.
“Remember?”
“Hm, no. If it were an alley I might remember, but this… it’s well…”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. When I was little I walked around with you, but after I grew up I moved around from village to village.”
“Why?”
“…Because of that guy.”
That guy.
Even though it’s hard to specify who, from the fact that Cecil—someone who believes in straight and pure words—used profanity, I could narrow it down to one person.
The bastard who stabbed me. Also the one who stole the person Cecil relied on. The cause of all the time Cecil had to wander around these past few years.
…Just thinking of that guy made my mood sour.
I turned my head left and saw Cecil doing the same, her eyebrows furrowed in the same 10:10 angle. Cecil must have been thinking the same thing.
This topic wasn’t to my liking. To change the atmosphere and get Cecil’s opinion, I opened my mouth.
“Cecil.”
“Hmm?”
“Want to eat something?”
“Want to eat?”
“Yeah. My father’s cooking is excellent. Especially Korean food.”
“Oh? Then… spicy? I heard Korean food is always spicy.”
By the way, Cecil can’t eat spicy food. Not just that she’s bad at it—it’s more like she simply can’t. When she choked a little from a pinch of pepper, it was clear.
“Is it okay?”
“Hm, maybe not…”
“Not everything Korean is spicy, so let’s try a bit of everything.”
“Hehe. Guuuk.”
When I sneaked a glance, the usual lazy Cecil had returned. Thank goodness.
After that exchange, we had finally arrived at Kron.
“Please get off here.”
“Yes, it will be two golds.”
“…That much?”
“Take a look around. Returning to Wabel’s already feels tight.”
“…Yes.”
Wabel was the terminal station for the train before transferring to the carriage. A few hours of riding later, it seemed like a reasonable amount.
“Jeden.”
“Yeah?”
“Illu.”
“Why?”
After paying the carriage driver, Cecil ahead of me gestured. Wondering what she was trying to do, I followed her instructions.
Tap.
“Hm?”
“Just… we can’t keep being like we’re dating forever.”
She grabbed my left hand firmly and started pulling me along. Her ear was faintly red, but she tried to look forward and avoid me. My face heated up too, but it wasn’t exactly the same shy embarrassment I felt during cherry blossom viewing. If it wasn’t embarrassing, it would be a lie, but rather, it was a bit more twitchy and satisfying…
What to call this feeling. I don’t know. I clearly knew the emotion, but not the name for it. Just… it feels good. That’s all I can say.
“Cecil.”
“Hm, yes?”
“Then what are we, exactly?”
But whether out of pride or wanting to show it, I threw a mischievous remark at her.
“……”
“……”
Cecil said nothing and only hurried her steps. I knew I was being playful with her by stopping, but that was the reason. The cute side of her that usually shows off only with these kinds of jokes. Because of this side I rarely show, I kept throwing jokes like this.
“Jeden.”
“Yeah?”
Suddenly, the Cecil who was walking ahead turned back with a serious gaze.
“If I do this to another girl, I’ll die.”
“Die?”
“No. I’ll die. So don’t.”
“……”
“To me… it’s okay, but…”
Ah.
“Kyah?!”
“……”
“Wait, this is too close…”
I yanked Cecil’s hand and pulled her toward me. One hand formed a heart shape, the other held her shoulder, almost embracing her. Recalling the male protagonist from my father’s comics with a 30-degree chin, I opened my mouth.
“Are you jealous?”
“Huh, ugh. I-I’m not jealous…”
“……”
Cecil’s voice gradually grew quieter until it vanished. In the end, Cecil buried her head in my chest. Because of that, I had to look up at the night sky scattered with stars. Pretending to be relaxed. Not trembling from the small skinship. But as a man, this sudden situation was overwhelming. Facing each other like this, the embarrassment was still present. If I continued like this, I’d cross a line, so I urgently separated her and started leading this time.
“The house is this way.”
“Yeah, okay…”
I had no idea what Cecil’s face was like. It seemed like if I looked at her, we’d make eye contact, and then she’d see my face. I didn’t want to reveal my expression. I looked straight ahead and guided the way.
***
After half a year had passed, we ended up walking a little more than necessary. Still, we reached the main house without much trouble.
“Here?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s… unexpected.”
“Right?”
Cecil’s impression of the house was unexpected. But it was natural too—the place we arrived after passing old, weathered houses was a spacious mansion with a yard. It felt somewhat distant. Since we arrived at night, we entered quietly, exchanged brief greetings, and Cecil said she would introduce herself tomorrow. I had sent a letter beforehand, but a formal greeting was better. The kids were probably still fast asleep.
The kids, Enter and Iril, stayed in the annex. The mothers used the same bedroom as the father, but after the children were born they moved to the annex, so we headed toward the father’s room in the main house. The moment I opened the door to the main house with Cecil.
“Wait! Stop!”
An urgent shout came from the annex entrance.
“Hm? Mother?”
“Jeden! You can’t go in!”
“Yes? Why?”
“Come here first!”
Ode burst out from the annex and pulled me and Cecil in front of the peach tree behind it. She looked around, then finally exhaled as if relieved.
“Sorry, sorry. But you really can’t go in. If you knew, you’d thank me, right?”
“What is it?”
“If I told you, I wouldn’t have brought you.”
Ode laughed cheerfully, then looked at the somewhat dazed Cecil and opened her mouth.
“So, who are you?”
“Ah…! I’m Cecil. I’m in the first year of the Magic Engineering department with Jeden.”
And then added.
“He’s your little brother… right?”
“Hm?”
“I haven’t heard you have an older sister, but please treat me well.”
“…Huh, say that again?”
“Yes? Ah, please treat me well?”
“Before that.”
“Older sister?”
“Huh, hehe.”
…From what I heard from my father last time, she’s over thirty. Ten years or so have passed since then, so Ode is stably in her forties.
“Jeden?”
“Hm, yes.”
“Your eyes are lewd.”
“It’s just the mood.”
“Hm-hm. Well, yeah.”
It wasn’t something one would say to a mother, but Ode, smiling faintly at Cecil’s “older sister” remark, led us to the guest room.
“There’s a guest room?”
“Yes. The annex is for the kids, and the main house… there’s often no time.”
“So it’s today?”
“Y-yes.”
The guest room was located behind the main house, opposite the bedroom, so rather than the annex being close, it was actually closer than the bedroom. And the Ode who brought us to the guest room began organizing the situation.
“You came down, so it’s break, right?”
“Yes. I mentioned it in the letter.”
“…Letter? I didn’t get any.”
What? Did it get lost?
“Well, it doesn’t matter. Let’s skip the trivial stuff. It’s getting late tonight, so shall we greet again tomorrow? Our daughter-in-law.”
“Okay………… huh?”
“There’s only one guest room, so you two will have to sleep together. Then sleep soon. …Well, you don’t have to sleep. Hehe.”
The situation wasn’t organized at all. She planted bombs everywhere, buried them, and only then was satisfied and left.
And Cecil who got hit with the bombs.
“……?”
She was stunned.
“Cecil.”
“I… I don’t know what’s what at all.”
“I’ll explain slowly. First, let’s lay out the blankets.”
“……?”
Her expression still didn’t make sense, but when I brought two blankets, one in each arm, Cecil’s brows finally relaxed a little.
