A Duel Request and a Rather Obvious Scheme
Something white and tattered slammed straight into my face.
It hurt more than I expected, and above all, it was incredibly unpleasant.
What fell to the floor with a dull thud was a white training glove. No matter how I looked at this development, it was clearly that.
Especially since the one who threw the glove was Leo.
“It’s a duel!”
Looking rather lively today, aren’t we?
“Let’s compete fairly for the representative spot!”
“Kid. That kind of thing is what knights do.”
“I’m going to become a knight in the future!”
“Even so, I’m not a knight.”
“……Anyway, it’s a duel!”
Throwing a glove was a time-honored way of formally requesting a duel. And usually, it was a dignified method exchanged between knights.
But throwing a glove at a girl’s face like this was nothing more than rude.
Not that I ever looked like a lady to this guy.
Should I be happy about not being treated like a lady, or should I be offended?
“Haah. What a pain.”
Leo’s pathetic duel request looked like nothing more than childish nonsense to me.
So I simply lifted one foot, stepped lightly on the glove Leo had thrown, and walked right over it.
Leo’s face twisted as if he had been the one stepped on, and he chased after me.
“Hey! I said let’s fight!”
“No thanks.”
“If you’re not scared, then don’t avoid me!”
“Sorry, but I have zero interest in playing with kids. Go bother someone else.”
It was morning and I was in far too foul a mood to leisurely play along with him.
I hadn’t slept enough, and after mana training my stomach was growling.
I tried to ignore the annoying fly and head into the dining hall, but Leo’s hand clamped down hard on my shoulder and refused to let go.
Tsk, the little brat has quite the grip. Must be from the combat class.
It didn’t seem like a hand that would come off with a casual shake, so I frowned and reluctantly met Leo’s eyes again.
Straight on. And unwillingly.
“Jeanie Crowell! Your current behavior is an insult to me!”
“What about what you’re doing?”
“This is…… because you’re ignoring me!”
“Then learn to accept being ignored. Bye.”
I wanted to coolly disappear, but the hand gripping my shoulder made that impossible. Damn it.
[Rai.]
Leo’s eyes widened in shock as Rai suddenly appeared from nowhere and wrapped tightly around his hand.
“What the hell is this?!”
[Master, what should I do with this guy?]
“Kyaah! It’s a snake?!”
A terrified Leo screamed and tried to shake Rai off, but there was no way Rai—who hadn’t even lost to Kenta and his monstrous strength—would be overpowered by some brat’s puny arms.
That’s right! I suddenly thought of a clean way to get rid of Leo.
Meet force with force!
“Hey. My snake says he wants to play with you.”
“What!”
“His name is Rai.”
“Who cares about that! Get it off me right now!”
Being overpowered by force is pretty unpleasant, isn’t it? Have a little taste.
“Beat him for me first. Then maybe I’ll consider dueling you.”
“Ugh! Grgh!”
“Hohoho! You can’t even beat my pet snake and you want to duel me? Dream on. Good luck!”
“You…… wait! Hey! You little—!”
Having successfully dumped the annoying Leo onto Rai, I headed to the dining hall with a much lighter step.
If I was late, the good stuff would be gone, so I had to hurry. Busy, busy!
The luxurious meal I hadn’t seen in a while was positively enchanting.
It felt a little empty without Rai, who was usually wrapped around my waist, but eating in peace wasn’t so bad either.
I had chosen veal steak for breakfast and began cutting into the meat with satisfied movements.
I was just about to bring a perfectly sliced piece to my mouth when……
“Jeanie Crowell!”
Tsk, they say even dogs don’t disturb someone while they’re eating. This dining hall must be cursed.
When I looked up, there was Leo accompanied by the Knight Commander and Instructor Dinel. What a little snitch.
I popped the steak into my mouth first, chewing as I waited for them to approach.
The Knight Commander had a meaningful smile on his face, like he was plotting something. As expected, he really was an unpleasant guy.
“I’ve been looking for you.”
“Why?”
“You’re either eating or sleeping. Oh! Or causing trouble, I suppose.”
Excuse me? I train too, you know?
“I didn’t realize you were so interested in me.”
“You’re a brat who gets on my nerves in the worst possible way.”
He’s openly picking a fight. Fine. In return for that courtesy, I’ll consider him my enemy for the rest of my life.
“Jeanie.”
Instructor Dinel from the combat class wasn’t exactly someone I liked either.
Come to think of it, all three of them were people I disliked.
“When an adult is speaking, stop rolling your eyes and answer properly.”
“What is it?”
“First, get that snake off Leo. I don’t know how a snake can be that strong—Leo nearly broke his arm trying to pull it off!”
[The two of them tried together but still couldn’t remove me. Looks like they’re pretty mad about it.]
[Of course they would be.]
Men who polished their weapons always got their pride hurt over the smallest things.
Was that what half-baked strength looked like?
To my eyes, the Knight Commander, the combat instructor, and Leo all looked like the same kind of idiot.
Three grown men crowding around and cornering one little girl. What a charming sight.
“Rai.”
With one small gesture from me, Rai slipped off Leo’s hand and quickly returned to my side. The three men glared at us with rather resentful eyes.
Were they angry that they couldn’t do something so simple?
“Are you out of your mind, siccing a snake on your friend?”
“It didn’t bite him, did it?”
“Do you even know how dangerous snakes are?!”
“Rai doesn’t attack without my permission. Not unless someone points a sword or fist at me first. Leo was the one who threatened me. He keeps picking fights with me.”
“You really don’t lose a single argument, do you?”
I just don’t like losing.
“If you’re going to scold someone, scold Leo instead. I didn’t want any of this, but he keeps demanding a duel. Isn’t that against the knight’s code?”
“Of course it is! But that doesn’t make siccing a snake on him and leaving fair either!”
“Exactly!”
“Fairness, my ass.”
I muttered quickly and clicked my tongue. The two bulky men trembled with rage, which was quite satisfying to watch.
From the very beginning, three men crowding around and intimidating one young girl was already far from anything resembling fairness.
Why don’t they ever think about their own actions?
“Rai is basically a part of me. As long as I’m not in danger, he won’t be either. The world is dangerous, not me.”
“I know your specialty is wordplay. And that you rarely ever lose.”
As he continued grumbling, the Knight Commander pushed Leo—who was rubbing his wrist—forward.
“Jeanie Crowell? I have a proposal for you.”
“I’m in the middle of eating, so can’t it wait? You people really have no manners.”
“You’re planning to slip away like a loach again!”
“It’s not like I have any reason to let myself get caught.”
“……Jeanie Crowell!”
He always raises his voice when he’s losing an argument.
The Knight Commander ground his teeth with an expression that said he wanted to hit me.
It seemed he really didn’t like me either. Well, the feeling was mutual.
“Fine. Since I’m the one with at least a little manners, I’ll compromise. What’s this proposal?”
I set down my knife and fork as a sign for them to speak. Instructor Dinel immediately opened his mouth as if he’d been waiting.
“I heard from Leo. You don’t want the representative position?”
[Master! I overheard them. These guys came up with a really sneaky plan!]
A plan?
Rai climbed onto my shoulder and whispered directly into my ear. Even though he was a snake who spoke straight into my mind anyway.
Those humans probably never imagined a snake could understand everything and report back to me.
Rai relayed exactly what he had heard.
[They said they’re going to pin everything on Master this time.]
[What do they even have to pin on me?]
[It seems the two of them can’t avoid disciplinary action for losing track of Master. But if Master is branded as a serious problem child, their responsibility decreases, right?]
[Hmm, keep going.]
[They’re trying to turn Master into an uncontrollable problem child who even refuses the representative position, then blame the whole disappearance on Master’s carelessness! It’s a big picture to dump all the problems on Master and avoid their own responsibility.]
[So they’re going to make me look like a weirdo so they can save themselves. Got it.]
Calling that a plan? Their heads must be rotten. My expression immediately soured.
[And that Leo kid? He’s actually related to the Knight Commander! He was calling him “Uncle” all friendly-like.]
That explains it.
Rai was an excellent source of information. He generously reported everything so I wouldn’t miss a single detail.
The fact that only I could hear Rai’s voice was both a weakness and a strength.
I sometimes forgot, but this guy was my loyal spirit.
“Why aren’t you answering?”
“What answer?”
“I heard you don’t want the representative position.”
“I don’t particularly want it, but since it was decided from above, I was planning to do it. Isn’t that the duty of a citizen?”
“……That’s different from what I heard?”