Vacation Gains and a Thigh Pillow Catastrophe
Instead of marveling at the scenery beyond the carriage window like Lene, I spent the ride back to the estate after our vacation organizing the fruits of this trip in my head. Why had Lene entered the island in the original story’s ending? The most likely reasons for it. And since I was her twin, I too shared a connection with the spirits and might be able to aim for a contract someday. All in all, the harvest was pretty good. A faint smile crept across my face as I basked in that satisfaction—right before the carriage suddenly slowed down.
“Uh, whoa…”
The moment I turned my attention to the carriage, Lene—who had been leaning forward in an awkward pose to watch the passing scenery—tilted dangerously. I shot my hand out, grabbed her clothes, and yanked her toward me with all my strength before she could crash into the floor or wall. Her eyes flew open wide, then she gave me a sheepish little smile as I let out a breath of relief.
“Thanks for catching me.”
“Seriously… be careful.”
“Hehe, sorry.”
When I scolded her, Lene scratched the back of her head in apology. Worried she might topple again, she quickly scooted right up against my side and shifted her gaze toward Father to see what was going on.
Father had opened the small window connected to the coachman’s seat to find out why we were slowing down. He soon learned there had been a carriage accident on the road ahead and we would need to turn back. He clicked his tongue.
“If we take another route, can we still reach the estate today?”
“Well… if we hurry, it should be possible before sunset.”
The coachman’s vague answer made Father press him for a definite yes or no. The startled coachman quickly confirmed it was possible, and Father immediately ordered him to turn the carriage around before settling back into his seat.
“Ooh… You really do seem like a noble.”
“Hehe, if that’s how I looked, I’m glad.”
“Yeah. Like the evil nobles from fairy tales!”
“…That one isn’t quite so pleasing to hear.”
Father’s expression flickered between delight and dismay at Lene’s clapping declaration. Mother hugged him and offered comfort while I watched. I reached over, pinched Lene’s cheeks, and told her she shouldn’t say things like that to Father. When she stubbornly held out with a face that said this much is nothing, I dug my nails in. She surrendered instantly and gave Father a polite little bow.
“Mother. Are you sure René is the younger sister?”
“No matter how you look at it, this one should be the older sister.”
At Arlan and Aran’s question after witnessing the scene, Mother simply offered a bitter smile and kept her thoughts to herself.
After taking the long detour, we arrived at the estate right around sunset. Even though it was late, the staff greeted us with spotless appearances and polite bows as we stepped down from the carriage.
“Sorry for making you worry.”
“Not at all, my lord. We’re relieved you arrived safely.”
The head butler explained that if we hadn’t returned by today, they had been ready to send people out in case something had happened. Father smiled and patted the man’s shoulder, waved to the bowing servants, and walked into the estate. We followed, unpacked our things in our rooms, then gathered in the dining hall for a late dinner.
“Mmm, delicious!”
“Eat slowly or you’ll get indigestion.”
The food had cooled a little, but after spending even longer in the carriage than yesterday, we were tired enough that it didn’t matter. It was a thoroughly satisfying meal. Once dessert was finished, we sisters returned to our room, leaned against each other on the sofa, and let out languid sighs.
“I wonder when next summer will come…”
“Next summer comes in a year. That’s why they call it next year…”
She must have already started missing Undine; regret floated across her face. When I teased her, she puffed out her cheeks and poked my side with a finger.
“Uwaaah…”
“What are you doing?”
I exaggerated my fall, flopping sideways onto the sofa. Lene found it funny and chuckled, then grabbed my arm and pulled me back upright. She changed the subject, chattering excitedly about how special we were.
Seeing her face lit up with delight at a specialness no one else possessed, I felt the need to calm her down a little. I rested a hand on her shoulder.
“We still don’t know for sure what we can actually do with the spirits.”
We had only met Undine so far, I whispered. We needed to be more cautious. Lene quickly settled down. To drive the point home, I added an exaggerated tale about how revealing our connection to the spirits might force us to study even harder than before. She shuddered as if the mere thought was horrifying.
“So let’s keep it a secret as much as possible. Got it?”
“Yeah. When the time comes to tell, let’s do it together.”
We intertwined our fingers and made the promise. A satisfied smile spread across her face—until I poured cold water on that warm feeling by pointing out that even if the amount of studying increased later, it would increase for both of us.
Well, that’s how kids should be.
It was far more endearing to watch her honestly speak her mind like this than to see her carefully gauge everyone’s reactions and only say what they wanted to hear. Still, I pinched her soft cheek as petty revenge for the cold water I’d just dumped on her warm sentiments.
“Wow, it’s really pouring out there…”
“Yeah… I hope nothing bad happens.”
A few days after returning from vacation, the rain poured down without end. After finishing our morning studies, we played inside the estate for a while but soon grew bored and went looking for Arlan and Aran.
“Guh…”
“Yeah, this isn’t going to work.”
“Let’s go see our big brother instead.”
We had gone to find Aran first, only to discover him sprawled out in an unflattering heap on the study floor, fast asleep. Without hesitation we turned our steps toward Arlan. I thought I heard a small chuckle as we closed the study door, but I decided I must have imagined it and let it slide.
“Ooh, everyone’s working hard.”
After searching empty rooms and poking our heads into various places, we finally found Arlan at the indoor training hall. We couldn’t help but gasp in admiration. He stood among knights with magnificent physiques and didn’t fall behind them in the slightest.
“Ah, Lady Lene and Lady René. What brings you all the way out here?”
At the knight’s words, everyone who had been training stopped and turned toward us. While Lene smiled brightly and waved at all the attention, I shrank back and tried to avoid their gazes. Arlan approached slowly, and I gave him an awkward smile.
“Sigh. You came because you want me to play with you, didn’t you?”
“That’s right.”
Arlan let out a soft chuckle at Lene’s enthusiastic nod. He said he was busy and tried to pass us off to Aran. While I was busy picturing a public official trying to shuffle paperwork, Lene puffed out her cheeks and explained that we had already gone to Aran first. He had been sleeping in the study, so we came here instead.
“He was sleeping in the study?”
Arlan looked puzzled, as if that were impossible. Then something seemed to click; he clicked his tongue. Annoyance began to spread across his face. I cleared my throat and quickly spoke up to redirect the thoughts clearly filling his head.
“Once we grow up a little more, we won’t come asking you to play like this anymore.”
“Hmm…”
His face clearly showed he thought that wasn’t such a bad idea. But when I added that the age difference might eventually put distance between us, he immediately brushed that thought aside. He reacted to my deadpan words with interesting little groans and mouth movements. Eventually he let out a long sigh and agreed to play with us.
“Yay! Then right now—”
“Instead. I’ll play with you after I finish today’s training.”
To the delighted Lene, he firmly nailed down that he would only play once he had completed the training he was scheduled to do today.
“Are you perhaps using training as an excuse…”
“Ahem, René. What exactly do you take this older brother for, saying things like that?”
When I narrowed my eyes, he quickly cut me off, told us to wait just one hour, and hurried back to his position.
Before long the training resumed. We found a suitable spot to sit and watch.
“What’s so interesting about this…”
Lene watched with a face that said she couldn’t understand the appeal and quickly grew bored. On the other hand, I focused even harder than I did during study time.
“Oh… so that’s what it looks like.”
Swordsmanship that no man could simply ignore, along with all sorts of other training—I was completely absorbed. Lene, unable to endure the boredom any longer, leaned against me and fell fast asleep.
It was so incredibly cute. Careful not to wake her, I let her rest her head on my thigh like a pillow so she could sleep comfortably. Her face soon relaxed into a peaceful smile.
“Ah, this is harder on the leg than I expected…”
I stroked her hair while continuing to watch the training. Only a few minutes passed before I realized my leg was starting to lose sensation. With this young body, it still wasn’t easy to endure something like this. But the remaining pride of my former male self refused to let me pull away. I recalled the desperate struggle to stay awake during military mental training and held on.
“Phew, you really were waiting for me.”
“Y-yes…”
“Looks like Lene became the big sister and used her little sister as a pillow.”
Before the hour was even up, Arlan finished his training for the day and walked over. Seeing Lene mumbling in her sleep as if dreaming, he placed his hand on my leg—which had gone completely numb from all that endurance—in an attempt to wake her in one go.
The moment his hand touched me, a sharp tingling shot through my leg. I let out the loudest scream of this life—or perhaps even including my previous one.
Everyone still training turned their heads at the sound. Lene, who had been sleeping soundly, jolted awake in surprise and asked what was wrong. In that moment none of it mattered. I rolled around in embarrassment for what felt like forever. Once time had passed and sensation finally returned to my leg like a receding wave, a tsunami of shame crashed over me. I used every ounce of strength I had to flee the scene.
“Ouch!”
In my panic I pushed the door that needed to be pulled, slammed into it, and fell. I squeezed my eyes shut. Fortunately, thanks to everyone’s considerate silence, the day’s events were quietly buried. As payback, I spent the rest of the rainy day pestering Aran, who had been sprawled out in the study—or more precisely, pretending to sleep so we would leave him alone.