Familiar Faces (1)
In the command room of the Crimson Flame Dragon Knights, after Robin and Orphe had departed.
“Ugh...”
Leona let out a sigh as she watched Agatha, the Flame Sword King, lying in bed and groaning in pain.
“You really got yourself thoroughly beaten, didn’t you?”
“Beaten?!”
Agatha shot upright, face flushed crimson like a beet.
“I was not beaten! After taking down hundreds of Birix soldiers, I fought those two in turns—that’s all!”
“That’s not what you said earlier. Didn’t you claim the Birix Queen was abnormally strong, so you temporarily teamed up?”
“She vanished all of a sudden and dumped everything on me!”
“For the finishing blow, of course. Quite the strategic decision. Looks like the Runaway Ninja is smarter than our captain.”
“What a rotten thing to say!”
“All right, all right, calm down. Get too worked up and you’ll reopen those wounds.”
“Hmph. One-on-one, neither of them would’ve stood a chance against me.”
Agatha clamped her mouth shut and whipped her head away.
If pure stubbornness ever took human form, this would be it.
“You’re not a child.”
Leona sighed at the ugly refusal to admit defeat.
The fight with the Runaway Ninja.
After they took down their common enemy, the Queen, Agatha had clearly charged in alone, shouting about avenging Aileen. If the Runaway Ninja had truly seen her as an enemy, it wouldn’t have ended with mere injuries.
Leona found herself feeling a little grateful to him.
“You always charge in alone, all fired up. Think of this as the price for that big nose of yours.”
“My nose is not big.”
“Sure it isn’t. You’re reflecting on this, right?”
“...Yeah.”
“You’re not alone. How do you think the knights would feel if something happened to their captain?”
“They’d be devastated, of course.”
“Who’d be devastated? They’d be fretting about whether they’d get this month’s pay.”
“...”
Agatha fixed Leona with a quiet glare.
Leona snorted and let the look slide right off her.
“If you’d stuck with the Rehabilitation Unit, you wouldn’t be lying here like this.”
“There might have been captives. I had to go rescue them...”
“You need to look after yourself first. Are the Seven Sword Kings immortal? A sword through the head kills you just the same.”
“...I can dodge.”
“And the hole in your shoulder? Did you get bored and poke it yourself? You can dodge, so why’d you take the hit? Showing off?”
“Like I said, the Queen was abnormally strong...”
Her voice trailed off into feeble excuses.
“No. I’m sorry.”
Somewhere in the middle of speaking she must have realized how pathetic it sounded, because Agatha finally admitted the truth.
Leona had been saving a sharp remark to snap her back to reality, but now she only looked at her with pity.
“At least you grew a little, even if late. I’ll be going now. Ring the bell if you need anything.”
“Leona.”
Agatha’s voice stopped her in her tracks.
“Why did the Runaway Ninja save those people? Was it true that Aileen tried to kill that father and daughter? The thought keeps circling in my head.”
She looked thoroughly lost.
“‘I protect the innocent.’ Was that message he left on paper sincere? He just said something about not being a samurai and vanished. I can’t even ask him now.”
Agatha’s bowed head was heavy with sorrow.
The Flame Sword King who was nothing but faith and passion without a body—seeing her this fragile made Leona’s chest ache.
“...When I said I wanted to bring Aileen into the Crimson Flame Dragon Knights, you and the entire order opposed it.”
Agatha’s voice stayed weak.
“It’s far too late, but I want to hear the reasons in detail.”
“Aileen was...”
If she told the truth, could Agatha face it? Leona hesitated.
“What kind of girl Aileen was...”
No. She had to make her face it.
Even if it meant her dearest friend would suffer and writhe in pain.
“...Captain. Do you remember Michael, the one who ran the flower shop in Silivan?”
“Of course. I saved him myself. Every time I stopped by Silivan he piled bouquets into my arms. I remember his wife and daughter too. Such a happy little family...”
“You also remember the argument between Aileen and Michael, don’t you?”
“Just a minor misunderstanding. We smoothed it over nicely, didn’t we?”
A minor misunderstanding. Leona’s brow furrowed at the words.
“Two months after that, Michael and his entire family were dead.”
“A tragic accident. Heartbreaking.”
“Tragic accident, my ass. Michael’s family was murdered by Aileen.”
“Wh-what?”
“You never suspected a thing. Not even a little.”
Leona clenched both fists tight.
“Captain. Aileen was garbage.”
Time to force the truth down her throat.
Time to spill every last one of Aileen’s atrocities.
[So this is Neo-Solitron? Completely different from the Solitron stored in my records.]
“That’s what ‘Neo’ means, genius. It means it’s completely fucking different.”
The second we arrived, Tribo started spouting nonsense, so I gave his rear a light kick.
A TriWiki map that hadn’t been updated in centuries. Pure trash.
“This is so exciting~! Such a big, beautiful, lively place is Neo-Solitron~! Another melody’s coming to me~!”
“How wonderful for you. Our journey together ends here. It’s been exhausting, so let’s never meet again.”
“The pain of parting~! Don’t turn away—greet it with joy~! You prim little Robin~!”
“...”
Muka, the walking invitation to a beating. Keep talking to her and I’d turn into a yakuza.
I grabbed Orphe, who had been sightseeing with Diana, and dragged her over to stand in front of Muka.
“You deal with her.”
“Miss Muka, thank you for all your hard work. I think it’s time we part ways—might I receive the commission fee?”
Orphe handled it with practiced ease.
No wonder rich bosses keep secretaries around.
“Here you go~! You worked hard too, Miss Orphe~! Bye-bye, Mr. Tribo and Diana~! See you next time~!”
“Bye-bye, big sis~!”
Muka flashed Diana a smile and left.
Monsters really do understand each other.
“All right, let’s go find a house.”
Was unleashing Goldon’s sonic weapon on Neo-Solitron the right call?
No way to know.
We just keep moving forward.
Tribo shook his head and lifted our luggage. He hoisted it lightly—pretty strong for a guy who shatters into pieces when you hit him once. His raw power was definitely above average.
“I want to look around! I want to eat tasty things and look at toys!”
Diana bounced up and down, unusually energetic today.
After nothing but backwater villages, a big city must have her thrilled.
Letting her play hard for a day wouldn’t hurt.
I nodded at Tribo, who was waiting for orders.
[We’ll drop the luggage off first, then sightsee. Orphe, can you spare a little more money?]
Orphe, who managed “my” assets, pressed a few gold coins into Tribo’s hand.
Why ask her when it’s my money? I almost argued, then decided it was too much trouble.
Making a big deal about cash looks ugly.
“I gave you plenty. Let Diana do whatever she wants. As for meeting up... right back here.”
[Understood. Until then.]
Diana and Tribo headed off.
A robot and a kid. Somehow a heartwarming combo.
Ready-made Hollywood family blockbuster material.
“Shall we go too?”
“Sure.”
Orphe and I walked the streets of the absurdly large Neo-Solitron.
“Nin?!”
Something important suddenly hit me.
How the hell do you buy a house in this world?
I’d never even house-hunted back on Earth.
“How do you get a house around here?”
I asked Orphe straight out.
I could just dump everything on her, but this would be my first home. I wanted to know the process.
Maybe you just grab one off the shelf like snacks at a mart?
“Huh? I thought you already knew.”
“Nope.”
“I figured we were walking around looking for a place you liked...”
“I was just following you because you were walking.”
“...”
Thud.
Orphe froze mid-step, unable to hide her flustered expression.
Perfect pause frame.
“Getting all quiet like that is scary. Give me a little ‘reaction,’ will you?”
“Reaction?”
“It means the attitude a listener should take for the speaker’s sake.”
“...Right. Reaction. I’ll remember that.”
Released from freeze-frame, Orphe gave a small nod. Time for the explanation.
“So how do you get a house?”
“First you have to look into listings that are up for sale, then find the landowner...”
“Stop right there.”
My head already hurt. I switched questions.
“How long does house-hunting take?”
“Even if I rush... it’s noon now, so probably until evening? Plus the time for the contract...”
I stopped hearing the rest.
It takes that long?
“I’m leaving it all to you. Find us a good place. I’m going for a walk.”
I really hate complicated stuff.
“By myself?”
“Obviously.”
A pair of blue eyes tinged with mild resentment turned my way.
But a real man doesn’t feel guilt that easily.
I looked up at the sky. This too shall pass.
“...Fine. Any conditions?”
“Big, with a room for weapons, cool-looking, and... big? I dunno.”
“A weapons room? Couldn’t you just use an attic?”
“Oh, right. Anyway, go with those conditions and figure it out.”
“I’ll do my best.”
With that, Orphe strode off without a backward glance.
Her attitude had cooled a few degrees.
Couldn’t be helped.
I didn’t want to waste precious time on complicated nonsense I barely understood.
“Tch.”
Is she really sulking? For some reason she kept popping into my head.
When I get the chance, I should cheer Orphe up.
Maybe buy her a present?