Supportive Parents and Bloodthirsty Anticipation
“Not killing them isn’t even an option, I see.”
“It’s not. Why would I? Do you think I stayed up all night training just to go easy on those brats? There’s a saying: if a Spirit Master summons a spirit, they ought to kill something……”
“There’s no such saying, is there? I’m not a Spirit Master, but I don’t think that exists.”
After they learned I was the Saint, the frequency with which Enk and Gail threw jabs at me had noticeably decreased, but Chad remained exactly the same. I was glad he was the type who never changed.
“That’s right. But if I say it, it’ll become a famous quote, you know?”
“……I can’t even refute that! How annoying!”
“Hehe. Later you can brag to your grandchildren that you knew me.”
“Oh…… Can I tell them about the time you stole my bread and ate it?”
“Of course! Provided you ever get married! Uahaha!”
“You laugh exactly like a villain. You’re thinking it’s impossible right now, aren’t you? Aren’t you!”
Who knows. Maybe Akia would discover this guy’s hidden merits and their relationship would turn positive.
Lately I had picked up the hobby of stealing glances into the inner hearts of people around me, so I knew better than anyone that Chad harbored some ticklish feelings toward Akia, and that Akia had noticed but didn’t dislike it, so she was pretending ignorance.
Chad was simple-minded with plenty of flaws, yet he also possessed upright and courageous sides. As expected of the first person Ash chose as a guardian, he had his own reliable qualities.
“Jeanie? So when exactly do we need to leave? I need to know so I can prepare.”
“Now. We have thirty minutes until the appointment.”
“……I’ll go change.”
“I’ll give you five minutes.”
I had overslept and was now rushing Ash into action.
I took the seat Ash had vacated and stole a little of Chad’s breakfast. My stomach was empty after skipping breakfast, but we would soon be eating lunch, so I couldn’t take much. How tragic.
“Um…… Jeanie? I have some too, you know.”
“Oh, Bright senior. When did you get here?”
“I’ve been here the whole time…… since you came down the stairs.”
I knew. It was difficult to miss those sparkling purple eyes that shone like a puppy’s. I was simply imposing the ‘ignore him’ penalty at the moment.
“Until you bring the tickets, you’re not among the living, so could you stop pretending we’re acquainted? Chad? Have you ever seen a ghost? This is one.”
“I got them!”
“What? Already?”
“Look! Now you’ll treat me like a person, right?”
He had claimed he would confidently sit with my party, so it seemed he had something to back it up. I roughly wiped the breadcrumbs from my hands, accepted the tickets, and counted them.
“One, two, three…… six tickets. Perfect.”
“Then……!”
“As promised, I’ll spare your life.”
I really am too soft-hearted.
To forgive a capital offense with something like this. This was the terrifying power of affection born from hatred.
Master. As you very well know, you look exactly like a loan shark here to collect a debt.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about?”
As expected, Master’s disposition is…… evil……?
There was no need for confusion. I was the Saint of this very district!
I decided to clearly demonstrate my elegant and refined character to Rai. Our relationship had become too familial, so it seemed he had forgotten what a respected figure I was.
“And I’ll give you some praise as well. Senior? It must have been difficult to obtain these. Well done.”
Behold my generosity.
“……Are you sick? Jeanie? Are you okay?”
“Do you want to die?”
“Phew, you scared me for a second. I thought you were still angry.”
Damn it. Being nice only made them more frightened. Just what had my image become?
A disaster greater than a deranged Sword Master but less than a dragon?
“Shut up.”
“Yes! Thank you for treating me like usual, Jeanie!”
It would be better if he stayed quiet. Otherwise I really would split him in half. Once Bright sensed that my mood had improved, he began chattering with excitement.
“Fortunately, getting the tickets wasn’t difficult. The moment I dropped your parents’ names, they handed them over immediately?”
“You did what?”
“But don’t worry! I didn’t use your name.”
“……Ohh.”
It really was a dilemma. Did I truly need to keep this guy alive? Upon second thought, there seemed to be far more reasons to kill him……
“Jeanie!”
While I was lost in serious contemplation, Ash’s voice cut sharply across my ears. In that time he had finished preparing and descended to the first floor.
“Yes?”
“What did I tell you……? When looking at people.”
“People are not prey, so don’t stare at them like you’re about to devour them.”
“Right. Shall we head out now?”
Ash even made jealousy look adorable. I postponed my glare at Bright for later and rose from my seat, snatching one more piece of bread on the way.
“I looked into it. There’s a sightseeing carriage that circles the castle if you go toward the east gate. Let’s take that. This way.”
As expected, my decision had been excellent.
Bringing Ash along was the right choice. This was the first time being with my parents hadn’t felt awkward at all.
Ash seemed accustomed to dealing with adults and knew exactly what they liked.
Even when I stood one step behind in silence, staring blankly, he exercised his social skills and continuously supplied conversation topics.
“The legend says that statue glows in five colors because it received the blessing of the five angels. If you toss a coin onto its palm and make a wish, it will come true.”
“My goodness, how fascinating……”
“This is the first time I’ve seen stone with such a mysterious hue. What kind of stone is it?”
“Analysis shows it is ordinary marble. Once it falls from the statue, it loses its light and becomes normal stone. Isn’t it mysterious?”
Stone is stone……
I was bored, but my parents seemed to be enjoying themselves, so that was enough.
Come to think of it, had Ash always been this good with words? It felt like he was performing filial duty in my place…… What a grateful prince. It was good I had saved him.
If my parents knew this was actually a prince tour, they wouldn’t be enjoying it so comfortably. Who would ever think Ash was a prince?
When my throat grew dry, he quickly bought drinks. When hunger approached, he naturally guided us to a restaurant.
My parents appeared quite pleased with the existence of such an attentive guide.
“His status is low, but he is a very diligent young man.”
“Isn’t he? I rather like him.”
“But is that all right? Young Master Kenian seemed to like you as well.”
This was while Ash had left us seated at the restaurant, saying he had something to fetch. It seemed my parents had already realized why Ash was devoting himself so completely to us.
“Our daughter is quite popular.”
“Indeed. There’s Ash, there’s Young Master Lasshamu Pedri…… just the ones we know about already make three, don’t they? It seems Jeanie takes after me.”
Now that I thought about it, the part of her that loved herself seemed to have been inherited from Mother. It wasn’t only her beauty I had received.
“Are you dating Ash?”
“Not particularly……? It’s not like that. It’s not that simple either.”
“What’s the problem? Jeanie, if you need advice, tell us anytime. We might be able to help.”
“Ask us anything. Sometimes an adult’s perspective is surprisingly useful.”
“Hmm, well. If you two could choose, what kind of son-in-law would you prefer? To be honest, I’m not sure myself. Maybe that’s why marriage is so difficult……”
I couldn’t even finish the sentence.
“Jeanie, as long as you like him, we don’t care at all! Status, wealth, we already have everything, don’t we? The person just needs to be solid!”
“That’s right! Even if he comes with nothing but his body!”
“Isn’t the most important thing that he loves you?”
“A person must be reliable above all! Just know that if you like him, we like him too!”
The two of them suddenly grew excited. The table became lively in an instant, and I nearly spat out the tea I was drinking. They had said I didn’t have to marry if I didn’t want to, but it was obvious they were fiercely hoping otherwise.
“I heard that a good man is someone who, if you slap his left cheek, offers his right as well, so that’s my current goal.”
“……Who told you that?”
“Anelia. An older sister I know.”
A strong woman from a matriarchal society. She had personally taught me that men existed to be hunted.
“Ah, if you have worries, it’s not about what kind of man is good, but…… that. That thing.”
“What is it?”
“Do I really have to choose just one?”
“……”
“……”
“Why aren’t you answering? You two? You said I could ask anything.”
A long silence followed, lasting until Ash returned to the restaurant.
He arrived carrying local specialties my parents had shown interest in while riding the sightseeing carriage earlier, both hands full. How meticulous.
Ash smiled kindly, perhaps sensing the awkward atmosphere the moment he arrived.
“Did something happen?”
My parents gave me one deep, loving look before turning pitying gazes on Ash.
“Hang in there……”
“Hang in there!”
“……Thank you.”
Somehow I was the family member yet felt like the one being left out. Even Ash. Wasn’t he thanking them a bit too naturally?
“Jeanie, my daughter. We have unfortunate news.”
It was Mother who brought it up as lunch drew to a close. Usually the husband led conversations when a couple was together, but in our house Mother clearly took charge.
Father nodded with an expression that said Mother’s decisions were always correct and added his support.
“It seems we must return today. We’re sorry.”
“We want to stay longer too.”
“Today? Didn’t you say you were leaving tomorrow?”
“We did. But…… didn’t we originally reserve the warp for this evening? After meeting you we planned to postpone it until tomorrow. But apparently that’s impossible. If we don’t go today, the next available slot is three days from now.”
It was a story I could understand. The day after tomorrow was the legendary duel that had set the entire continent abuzz, so it seemed many important people were coming to watch.
Warping thoroughly exhausted mages, so there was a clear limit to manpower. You needed mages to warp, mages tired easily, recovery took a long time, and replacements were hard to find.
Therefore, each city had a fixed number of daily warps. Cases where every slot was filled were rare, but they did exist. Like now, when the city had an enormous hot topic.
It meant the pressure from nobles trying to come here was so great that even the Crowell family’s reputation couldn’t resolve it.
“The territory isn’t as quiet as before. There are many things that need our attention…… including the tasks you asked us to handle. It seems we must leave today.”
“Goodness…… what a shame. What should we do?”
“Jeanie, your mouth is smiling.”
Ash whispered secretly in my ear.
I quickly exercised my mouth muscles to feign a sad expression and stood up.
“It’s a shame you must leave, but I should see you off. Shall we go?”
But Ash grabbed my hand and pulled me back into my seat.
“It’s evening, they said.”
Ah, it wasn’t time yet. I made an effort to sit obediently.
When we had entered the mages’ tower there had been four of us, but when we left only Ash and I remained. My steps were heavy as I returned after seeing my parents off.
“……Jeanie, cheer up……”
“Puha! I thought I was going to suffocate and die!”
“Yes, I knew you would.”
“Now, where shall I freely enjoy some blood! Ash! Where was the betting place? Betting! They said we could start today!”
Helicke after my parents’ departure even felt refreshing in the air. I strode energetically through the streets like something evil that began with a seal being broken and ended in slaughter.
“Where is it! Where!”
“I don’t know. Chad would know.”
According to the latest information, the current expected win rate was eight to two.
Of course, Count Trenpe held the eight. He was a hero of his own nation, and this was his country, Heidricke. Naturally he enjoyed overwhelming popularity.
Moreover, he already had a record of defeating Robenin once, and rumors were widespread that Robenin had recently been injured by some assailant.
The thought of watching Robenin suffer a humiliating defeat already had my blood boiling.