Chapter 104: Queen Maker (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 104: Queen Maker (4)
"So, I'm planning to stay in Lupus for a while. It's going to take a considerable amount of time to restore the collapsed administrative system."
The first-floor hall of the inn.
I explained our upcoming plans to the party members over breakfast.
"I feel bad for you two. But given the circumstances, please bear with it, even if it's frustrating."
Eri and Ophelia had been waiting for me in Lupus the entire time I was traveling the continent. They must have thought they were finally leaving this godforsaken city, so having to stay put again was bound to be annoying.
But what do you know?
"If that is what you wish, Hero, I will gladly do so."
"It's fine. My research isn't finished yet, so I was reluctant to leave anyway."
Neither of them showed the slightest hint of displeasure. I could understand Ophelia, but what was with Eri? She was the one who always complained.
"For you to say that, it must be pretty important research, huh?"
"That's right. If you hadn't brought it up, I was going to suggest we stay in the city for a while myself."
"Oh my, now that you mention it, I'm curious what kind of research it is."
Leslie, who had been eating quietly beside me, suddenly spoke up. Perhaps surprised that Leslie had commented on her research, Eri's eyes widened slightly. But she quickly shot Leslie a sulky glare.
"Why are you so curious?"
"It's research that a mage as brilliant as you considers important, Miss Eri. As a fellow mage, how could I not be curious?"
It seemed like a subtle compliment, but Eri's expression only soured further.
"A fellow mage? Right. If you're a fellow mage, then you should know how rude it is to pry into another's research, shouldn't you?"
"Pardon? Is that a custom? I'm sorry, I wasn't aware. I was only asking because I was genuinely curious."
"Ha! You talk about being a 'fellow mage' but don't even know the basic rules of the Magic Tower? Don't make me laugh."
Eri spoke with disgust, but the reply she received was nonchalant.
"Ah, so that's a Magic Tower rule? My apologies. I've never been to one, so I wouldn't know."
"...Never been to a Magic Tower? Does that mean you're entirely self-taught? Are you that much of a genius?"
"Oh my, calling me a genius is too much praise. I simply followed the inspiration I found in books."
"Found inspiration? You say that as if you've created your own original magic."
"Original magic? I suppose you could see it that way. After all, no one can copy my magic."
Eri narrowed her eyes as if to say, Are you messing with me?
Leslie smiled and held out her palm.
-Swoosh.
A swirl of cold air flowed from her palm. The chill morphed from a sword to a spear, from a spear to an axe, and from an axe to a horse.
The horse made of frost snorted, its mane scattering. It looked just like a living horse resting on her palm.
"As you can see."
"How can you control your magic to that degree..."
The displeasure was gone from Eri's face. Instead, her expression hardened, as if she'd seen something she shouldn't have.
Leslie tilted her head.
"Magic control? Are you perhaps talking about this?"
The snorting horse dissipated, reforming into an eagle. The eagle flapped its long wings, hovering in the air.
Eri said nothing, her eyes just trembling.
Leslie spoke to her in a tone that suggested it was no big deal.
"I could just do it."
"You... just...?"
"Yes. Just like that. I've been able to do it since I was born."
"...You're lying."
"Lying? What would I possibly gain from lying to you, Miss Eri?"
Her voice remained perfectly composed.
Eri bit her lip hard, then slammed her hand on the table and stood up, striding toward the stairs.
"Eri, where are you going in the middle of your meal?"
"Lost my appetite."
She spat out the words and went up the stairs.
I watched her go, then turned my gaze to Ophelia.
"Ophelia, sorry to ask during the meal, but could you go up and comfort Eri?"
"Yes. And I'll make sure she finishes her food while I'm at it."
"It's a pain, but thank you."
"There's no need to thank me. It is your command, Hero."
Ophelia bowed her head, took both her and Eri's plates, and went upstairs. After confirming she was gone, I spoke.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
"On purpose? Whatever do you mean?"
"..."
When I narrowed my eyes and stared at her, her feigned look of confusion melted into a sly grin.
"So you knew."
"Of course. There's no way someone who doesn't even know what 'magic control' is could reach that level."
"Couldn't it just be that my talent is exceptional?"
"The more exceptional someone is, the more faithful they are to the fundamentals. You know that, right?"
"That's true."
Leslie closed her palm. The eagle-shaped frost scattered into the air.
"Separately from that, it's true that I've been able to do this since birth. I'd appreciate it if you believed me on that."
I nodded.
What she said this time was the truth.
Her power was closer to a psychic ability than magic.
She manifests her body's mana by converting it into cold energy. It's what's known as a Mystic Physique.
Thanks to this, she could achieve a high degree of magic control and even skip incantations, but it also came with clear limitations.
Because all her mana was converted into cold energy, she couldn't use ordinary magic.
As a result, she couldn't use other elemental spells like Fireball, or even basic magic like a protective shield.
"So, why'd you do it?"
"There wasn't any grand reason. She was just a little arrogant, so I did it."
"Arrogant?"
"Yes. The way she spoke, it was as if she thought it was perfectly natural for you to be tied down here for the sake of her research, Lord Cloud."
"That's how you heard it? You've got a pretty twisted personality yourself."
"...It wasn't just because of that. I know her type well. With people like that, the first impression is crucial. If you let them look down on you, they'll think you're beneath them."
"How would you know that?"
"Because I'm that type of person."
Leslie grinned.
"More importantly, Lord Cloud, why didn't you stop me when you knew my intentions? A single word from you and I would have shut my mouth."
Why didn't I stop her? Well...
"So she'd get fired up and work harder. She can be a bit prickly, but she's talented and competitive."
"Don't you think her spirit might break instead?"
Her spirit might break?
I suddenly recalled our time in the Giant Root Herb Dungeon. Those days when I made her juggle combat and magic studies on only three hours of sleep a day.
A smirk escaped me.
"I didn't raise her to be that weak."
She's the girl who stubbornly remained a mage even when I tried to make her change class to a Battle Mage. There's no way she'd break over something like this.
"I'm not sure I fully understand, but I can see how much you trust Miss Eri. It makes me a little jealous."
"Then you can work just as hard and show me some results. You have the perfect job for it, don't you?"
"Are you talking about the administrative work? Very well. I'll handle it brilliantly and monopolize all of your trust, Lord Cloud."
"I'll hold you to that."
No taking it back later.
As I smiled, thinking about the current mountain of paperwork, Katarina spoke up from the side, her voice weary.
"You two are just... Poor, poor Miss Eri."
Katarina shook her head back and forth.
I narrowed my eyes.
"Why are you talking like you're not involved? You're the most problematic one here."
"I'm not twisted like you two."
"But you're the weakest."
"...I might not be the absolute weakest."
"Then is there anyone in this inn you could beat in a fight?"
Katarina's mouth snapped shut.
Her eyes darted around before she mumbled in a small voice.
"Miss Ophelia...?"
"You're picking the Saint Candidate? I'm sorry, but do you have no conscience?"
"Ugh...!"
Leslie asked incredulously, and Katarina's face flushed with embarrassment.
I shook my head.
"Conscience isn't the issue. The issue is the fact that you can't even beat Ophelia."
"...What? No, I know you look down on me, but... isn't that going a bit too far?"
"I'm not looking down on you. In fact, I rate your potential highly. You're the only human who can commune with spirits, right?"
"Then why are you saying I can't win?"
"Potential and reality are two very different things. What's the level difference between you and Ophelia right now? And how big is the gap in your combat experience?"
In terms of skill, Katarina is definitely superior.
While Ophelia's fighting is all about swinging a blunt weapon quickly and powerfully, Katarina specializes in an unorthodox sword dance and the use of ki.
But the overwhelming difference in their stats is insurmountable.
What if Ophelia cast her buffs and charged at Katarina with all her might? She'd be turned into minced meat. I'm not kidding.
"If it's combat experience, I also..."
"In our party, we don't count bandit subjugation as experience."
"..."
In the end, Katarina fell completely silent.
But it didn't seem like she had fully accepted reality. It was probably because of the immense pride she had in her mother's sword dance.
'I've been spoiling her too much.'
It seemed I needed to give her a reality check.
Sparring would be the best way. And for Katarina's opponent, Neria would be the best choice, right? Since they're both sword-wielders.
"By the way, Neria didn't come down today either. She didn't show up yesterday morning, either."
"Miss Neria? She didn't come down for lunch or dinner, either. If I'm not mistaken, I think she's been in her room the whole time."
"What? Hey, why are you only telling me this now?"
"Uh, oh? Is it serious?"
"Does it sound like it's not?"
"No, I just thought she was training in her room. Like how Miss Eri does her research..."
"What kind of knight in this world trains while skipping meals?"
As I said that, I put some sausages on a plate. She must be starving, so I picked the thickest and longest ones.
"Keep eating. I'm just going to go check on Neria."
Leaving them, I went up to the second floor and knocked on Neria's door.
-...
There was no response.
I knocked again.
"Neria? Are you sleeping? Can I come in?"
Again, no response. Was she not inside? I was wondering as I reached for the door.
Just then, a loud clatter came from inside the room, and the door, which had been slightly ajar, was slammed shut.
"Neria?"
-Cloud? Wh-why?
"What do you mean, why? You haven't come out since yesterday. I came up because I was worried."
-Worried...? You're worried about someone like me?
"Someone like you? What are you talking about? It's natural to worry when a companion is acting strange."
-Ah... right... We're companions...
"Right. So stop with the nonsense. Can I come in? There's something I need to ask you."
-Uh, huh? W-wait! Just a moment! I'll come out!
Neria cried out frantically as I pushed on the door. When I eased up, she let out a sigh of relief.
I waited patiently for her.
A moment later, the door opened and Neria emerged with an awkward smile.
"Have you been waiting long?"
"Not that long... but more importantly, what's with your complexion?"
Seeing Neria for the first time in two days, she was a mess.
Her eyes were sunken as if she hadn't slept at all, her gaze was dazed, and her hair was a mess.
On top of that...
"Why are your eyelids so swollen? Don't tell me you've been crying."
"Huh? N-no. Who said anything about crying?"
"What do you mean, no? They're completely puffy."
"I said no... B-besides, you said you had a favor to ask me, right? What is it?"
Neria shook her head vigorously and changed the subject.
Her attitude made it clear she wouldn't answer if I pressed further. I waved my hand dismissively.
"Forget it. Seeing the state you're in, I can't ask you. Just eat and get some rest."
"No, I'm fine. I'm really fine, so just tell me. I'll help with anything I can."
I refused a few more times, but Neria clung to me persistently, even grabbing my arm.
As if she absolutely had to hear the request.
Faced with her stubbornness, I had no choice but to back down.
"I was going to ask you to spar with Katarina."
Neria flinched and froze.
I sighed.
"I guess sparring is too much..."
"I'll do it."
"You don't have to push yourself. You can rest up and do it later."
"No. I want to do it today."
Neria's eyes were filled with a determination to do it, and I held back what I was about to say. If she insisted, what could I do?
"Thanks. But let's eat first. You've skipped four meals."
I held out the meal I'd brought for her. She took the plate and smiled.
"Ah, thank..."
For some reason, her smile froze stiff when she saw the sausages on the plate. Not only that, but she began to tremble like a leaf.
"Aaaah!?"
She threw the plate.
Holy shit?
I scrambled to snatch the plate and catch the falling sausages one by one. Only after catching every last one did I breathe a sigh of relief and turn my gaze to Neria.
I was about to scold her for what she'd done.
But then...
"Urp...! Blech...!"
Seeing Neria retching and vomiting bile, that thought vanished.
...Did the sausage go bad?
I sniffed it, but it didn't seem spoiled.