Sis, Save Me (3)
Sis, Save Me (3)
It was a deep, dark night.
Reluctantly, I brought Rosemary back to the dormitory. Wearing nothing but a single dress meant for going out, the young noblewoman looked utterly pitiful.
That was by the standards of her station, of course — the one-piece she had on underneath was still a high-quality garment woven from fine silk. The point was simply that it was too flimsy for early autumn weather.
"You're back? What took you so—"
Naturally, Rote was in the dormitory where I stayed. She'd started to ask how my outing had gone, then froze stock-still like a statue.
"Huh...? What brings the young lady here at this hour?"
"My apologies for arriving unannounced. An unavoidable matter came up, and I was hoping I might stay the night."
Rosemary lifted the hem of her skirt with a placid expression, as if she hadn't just turned up out of nowhere.
Blueberry harbored a profound dislike for humans — imperial humans especially — because of events in her past.
And yet Rosemary inclined her head toward Rote without a trace of hostility. You could call it professional, if you wanted to be generous. A professional attitude.
"May I come in?"
"Huh? Oh... yes. It's fine."
The young lady's sudden invasion actually left Rote the one who couldn't collect herself. Rote nodded as if she had no choice in the matter.
Anyone could tell that showing up with no notice and asking to spend the night was an imposition. I'd been preparing to ask Rote for her understanding. I'd been working on excuses the whole way here.
Still, I had to save Vermel somehow. That was the only thought in my head. The longer I kept Rosemary occupied, the more breathing room the guy would have.
Now, I needed to start picking my moment to speak...
"I must apologize again. For intruding so presumptuously."
"No, not at all! More importantly, have you informed Duke Blanton?"
"Yes. I told Father in advance that I'd be staying out tonight."
So this was noble-to-noble conversation. Going by face value, they were only a year or two apart, but the mutual deference was refreshing to watch.
...In truth, Blueberry was old enough that she could've dropped the formalities with Rote and no one would've batted an eye.
"Ah.... Now that I think about it, the dormitory only has two beds. I'll lend you mine."
"That's all right. I'm fine with a fur on the floor."
"Absolutely not. How could I be that discourteous to a young lady?"
"It's fine. I'm used to sleeping on the floor."
"Pardon...?"
Rote blinked and tilted her head. Before things could spiral in an odd direction, I cut Rosemary off.
"I'll squeeze in with her. The bed isn't that narrow, so we'll manage."
Rote didn't know Rosemary was a Magic Beast.
Conversely, Rosemary was in a position to kill Rote whenever she felt like it.
She probably wouldn't lay a hand on Rote, if only for my sake. But impulsive behavior wasn't limited to physical gestures. I never knew when this one might spout something bizarre. Like trying to bring up some irrelevant old story, the way she'd almost done just now.
Sleeping wedged between this hazardous substance was the safer option. Explosives were meant to be handled by a professional, after all.
We took turns washing up in the bathroom and then lay down on the bed. Rosemary went on the inside, and I lay on the outside.
It was a fairly strategic arrangement. This way she couldn't move an inch without my knowing.
"Ugh... It really is cramped."
"Should I just move to the floor?"
"No! That'd be a sin worthy of divine punishment!"
"I'm fine. I'm used to it."
"Ah."
I liked sleeping on the floor. No, saying I liked it was wrong — I'd gotten used to it was more accurate.
It'd been that way on Earth, too. Until I entered a high school with a dormitory, sleeping on the floor had been my everyday life. And that everyday life had resumed after I finished college. Ah, thinking back on those days made me nostalgic... is what I would not fucking say.
"Why would you, Sis, sleep on the floor? Just stay like this."
Rosemary closed her eyes softly. When she kept still, the girl had quite the appearance. You'd never guess she was a Magic Beast from her looks.
It was only because I was in this body that I could handle her comfortably. If I'd been Vermel, it would've been pure agony. Was this the Goddess's way of being considerate to me, who'd had no knowledge cheat? I found myself thinking the difficulty had been tuned pretty well.
"Ugh."
After lecturing Rote for eleven hours straight today, my head felt like it was splitting open. Turning my head, I saw Rote sitting at her desk with the lamp on. She was writing something.
"What're you doing?"
"Reviewing what you taught me today."
"Diligent. You could just ask me tomorrow if you don't get something."
"If I study before sleeping, it moves into long-term memory."
The more I watched Rote, the more remarkable she seemed. Didn't most people start drinking and partying their first year of university?
Back in my own fresh-faced freshman days, I'd loosened up a bit too.... This girl looked like she'd study Magic Arts even if the country collapsed. It was proof of how desperately Rote longed for a world without Magic Beasts.
Rote scratched away with her pencil in an unmoving posture. For over an hour, no less. Someone might say an hour of focus was no big deal, but it was a big deal. Rote had sat through over ten hours of lectures today. Without a single break, even.
Even I, a member of the Gold-Eye Tribe, was so drained that my eyelids kept drooping. And yet Rote kept at it until the small hours.
Finally, Rote set her pen down with a yawn. Rosemary was pressed against the wall, snoring softly. Once I confirmed Blueberry was asleep, I spoke to Rote before closing my eyes.
"...All done?"
"No. The rest is for tomorrow... no, today, I guess. I'll have to do it at the club today."
"Right. You must be tired. Hurry up and lie down."
Rote slid between the beds like a figure skater. Once I saw her pull up the covers, I let out a silent sigh of relief.
I'd managed to get through it somehow. A relief that Rosemary hadn't done anything particularly strange.
Then, goodnight! I shouted internally and turned my head the other way.
"........."
"........."
A pair of brilliant golden eyes was staring fixedly at me.
"...Club?"
......I took back what I'd just said.
**
Research indicated that people living on battlefields were more likely to suffer from insomnia than those who didn't.
Source? I was a civilian, so I could know this sort of thing without needing a source.
In any case, that was why I'd stayed wide awake until dawn. I had to know if and when the Rosemary creature would wake up, after all.
Going through this, I began to understand the party in question's perspective. Surveillance and stalking weren't something just anyone could do.
On top of that, Vermel slipped away like his body was coated in oil, so it must've been maddening. Yeah, intelligence work really was no ordinary challenge.
"Sis, are you ready?"
"Not yet."
I was brushing my teeth when Rosemary flung open the bathroom door and barged in. I'd already been half out of it, zoning out, so when the enemy threw the door open and walked in I was a little startled.
"What are you doing?"
"That human told me to brush my teeth."
In Rosemary's right hand was a new toothbrush I'd stocked for emergencies. Judging by the generous squeeze of mint toothpaste on it, Rote was responsible.
"Then come in."
"Aw, damn...."
The bathroom was a space of just under two pyeong. Perfect for making a claustrophobe recoil in horror.
"You were fine squeezing into the bed with me. What's this about?"
"That was bearable because I was next to you, Sis."
Well, that was something.
"And this bathroom doesn't even have a window. I'd rather die than set foot in here."
"Good grief. Wait a moment."
I spat out the water and went to ask Rote, who was changing clothes, for her understanding. The young lady was throwing a fit about the bathroom being too scary, and it seemed it'd take a while, so could she head to the club room first?
"Sure. Catch up when you're ready."
Rote, who'd been buttoning her blouse, nodded. Without delay, she left as soon as she'd finished changing.
Only after the front door closed did Rosemary start brushing her teeth.
But... her method was a little strange.
"Now what's that?"
"This? It's a toothpaste called WD-50. Want to try some?"
Rosemary pulled a palm-sized spray bottle from her pocket and promptly started spraying it into her mouth.
-Pssht, pssht
An odd, peculiar smell, distinct from mint toothpaste, saturated the room. Sensing that things had gone south, I hurried to open the window and air the place out.
"Moisture makes teeth rot. Isn't that common knowledge?"
Whose common knowledge, exactly?
"It's a low-grade product, but it's decent enough for portable use. Or we have Gangjungyu at my house, so would you like to come try that? Well, you see, it's remarkably effective at removing tartar...."
I truly wished I could get out of this body as quickly as possible. Between this and the time she'd used beryllium granules as parfait garnish, I couldn't take the sensation that all common sense I'd known as a human being was collapsing.
After that, I kept brushing my teeth for five minutes while listening to Blueberry's infomercial-host pitch. It looked like it'd take a solid hour for the smell to clear the room.
But that wasn't the only awkward thing.
"There's a saying that the flower of academy life is the club, isn't there? As it happens, I've been itching to join a club myself. But since they don't take new members in autumn, I was at a loss, wondering if I'd really have to wait until next year. So it's truly a stroke of luck that you're here, Sis!"
Having eavesdropped on Rote's and my conversation at dawn, Rosemary piled excuse upon excuse and pestered me to let her look around the Alchemy Hall. Unsurprisingly, Rote was the one who'd agreed to the suggestion.
Right. Rote knew nothing. This was entirely on me.
We skipped breakfast and headed to the club room. Rosemary fluttered her robe as if doing a butterfly dance and trotted lightly down the hallway.
[Alchemy Club]
"It's here?"
One little pipsqueak, pointing at the sign. Somehow, looking at her felt like looking at an unusually polite Frey.
I nodded helplessly. It was far too late to deny it now.
Rosemary grabbed the doorknob with the utmost restraint in her strength and turned it. Creeeak, the wooden door slowly swung open.
And then.
"...Ah."
A shadow fell over Blueberry's head.
The shadow of an object shaped like a single horizontal stroke stood on end.
"Ah."
Right.
I'd left that thing out yesterday without putting it away.