Daughter of the Sun #2
Daughter of the Sun #2
"That was when I first learned Liquid Magic. It's been a while, so obviously I've gotten better at it, wouldn't you say?"
"Still, your growth speed is completely different from the mages back in my homeland. Maybe the magic of the outer continent is more advanced than Zakarta's?"
The reason wasn't regional differences in magical advancement—it was that my own growth was just fast.
Even Grace at the magic shop had a serious misunderstanding about my magical experience.
Probably because the book made it easier for me to advance my skills than it was for others.
"I've never seen the mages of your homeland, so I can't answer that."
"It's a shame I can't show you! In my kingdom, there are mages who breathe fire from their mouths. Their skin is pitch-black, and their hands stretch out like snakes."
Breathe fire from their mouths?
'What is she, a fire-breather?'
Mary, who had been watching us chatter, suddenly spoke up.
"Th-thank you, Luke oppa! What Mom told me was true. She said you suddenly became a mage one day."
"Yeah! I'm a mage! Amazing, right?"
"I want to learn magic too! I'll ask Mom to teach me!"
"Your mom doesn't know that stuff, squirt."
"Nuh-uh! Mom can do anything!"
Mary stuck out her tongue, went "Nyah-nyah," and then took off running at lightning speed.
Judging by the direction, she was probably heading home.
Her surprise taunt made the back of my neck prickle.
She dares to throw an insult at the guy who helped her and then bail?
"If it weren't for Ms. Wendy, I'd have dispensed justice with a good knuckle to the head."
"Why? She's just cute."
Rebecca glanced at me with a deep smile.
She reached into her bosom and pulled out a comb.
I recognized the comb instantly.
"I still keep the thing you pulled out of the well! I don't go around dropping it like an idiot anymore."
An ordinary wooden comb.
I remembered fishing it out of the well for her.
Back when Rebecca and I were still just distant acquaintances.
I went through absolute hell pulling that thing out of the well back then.
"You always carry that comb around?"
"Always, except when I leave the city. It makes me feel at ease to have it with me."
Rebecca looked at the comb and gave a meaningful smile.
"Do you remember when you pulled this out? I asked you back then—if you liked me."
"I remember."
"You acted all aloof and dodged it, but in the end, see! I guessed your true feelings, didn't I? You idiot."
Rebecca looked at me with a triumphant smile.
She was right, but it ticked me off a little.
Because it felt like this girl was making fun of me.
"What, I can't dodge? If I'd just put myself out there and gotten rejected, would you have taken responsibility?"
"W-Would I? I think I'd have taken responsibility."
Take responsibility? Does that mean you'd have gone out with me out of pity?
I kinda regretted hearing that. I should've confessed sooner and just snatched you up.
Maybe it was a good thing Rebecca carried that comb around.
If she hadn't dropped it by the well that day, we might've stayed distant.
I asked Rebecca out of curiosity.
"Did you say that was a gift from your parents?"
"Yeah! Well, actually, my mom gave it to me."
It didn't look like anything special.
You could buy a comb like that for 2 coppers at a general store.
Seeing her treat it like a treasured heirloom, was her family poor?
"What do your parents do back home, Rebecca?"
I stared at her as I asked.
It was funny, but I knew nothing about my girlfriend's past.
Only that she came from a kingdom somewhere in the desert and had an incredible swordsmanship teacher.
I knew nothing about her status.
And oddly enough, I'd never asked.
"My parents?"
"Why? Is there something you can't talk about?"
"No."
Rebecca said with a proud expression, placing a hand over her heart.
"My father is the high priest of the Zakarta Kingdom."
The high priest of a kingdom?
So he oversees rites in the kingdom? Is he some kind of salaried civil servant?
He probably had it better than me. But as I listened calmly, I realized her father's status far exceeded my imagination.
"My father was called Caliph by the people of the kingdom."
"Caliph?"
"It's the name for the head priest of the temple. Our kingdom's people all worship the sun god Jahad. In the order that worships the sun god, my father was the leader of the priests."
The Sun Cult.
According to Rebecca, the Zakarta Kingdom had the Sun Cult as its state religion.
Rebecca's father was the head priest of that order.
So wasn't he essentially the pope?
"Y-Your father's pretty impressive."
"My father wasn't too happy with his job. He said the Caliph used to be much greater in the old days. Now the Caliph's authority has fallen to rock bottom. He couldn't interfere in the affairs of the king."
So a mere religious official thought about interfering in the king's business?
Regardless of his decline, I couldn't deny that Rebecca's father was a formidable person.
Honestly, I don't get why this redhead girl ran away from home to be an adventurer. Couldn't she just live comfortably in her homeland?
"So what does your mother do?"
I couldn't help but anticipate her answer. If her father was like a pope, was her mother a politician? That would fit, wouldn't it?
"My mom... she used to work as a barmaid. Then she met my father and quit all that. They clicked, and she hit the jackpot or something."
"A-A barmaid?"
"My mom was a low-class commoner in the kingdom, unlike my father. She slept with him and got pregnant with me on their first night together... and ended up moving into the temple. Isn't my mom's luck incredible?"
A cross-class romance? Something like that?
"After that, my mom became the Caliph's third wife."
"Third wife?! So there are other wives?"
"Yeah. They're much more important than my mom. I was so intimidated I could barely talk to them."
"You said your mom was a commoner. So she didn't face any ostracism in the temple? Like the other wives tormenting you two?"
"There wasn't much ostracism. My father and mom had a close relationship. He resolved most issues. He even got me an amazing swordsmanship teacher."
Rebecca said her parents were close. But I didn't fully understand. He had multiple wives but was especially close to one? What, was she his favorite concubine or something?
"How close were your parents?"
"I think they saw each other about once a month."
"That's not close at all! Married couples should see each other every day, shouldn't they?"
"But when they met, he treated her really well. So I'd say they were close. Some of the other wives never even saw my father's face."
It was an incredible family in many ways. I suddenly felt a sense of distance from Rebecca. I was reminded anew that among the people of this other world, she was a woman who had come from a far-off place.
Her way of thinking was far beyond that of ordinary continentals. With my memories of the modern world, I couldn't quite understand.
Out of pure curiosity, I asked her.
"There are occasionally men like your father in the outer continent too."
"What kind of man?"
"A man who takes several wives. What about you? Doesn't it bother you, a guy having multiple women? If I were born a woman, I'd hate that kind of man."
Even a woman in this other world would prefer a man who only cherishes her, right? A guy who spreads his attention around like an octopus wouldn't be liked.
But Rebecca's next words surprised me.
"Why would it bother me? If he's a capable man, it's fine, isn't it? As long as he can take responsibility for all his wives, that's better. Better than stubbornly sticking to one woman and making everyone around you unhappy."
"Making everyone around you unhappy?"
"When my father met my mom, he'd already been married for a long time. To his childhood sweetheart. If my father had only stuck to one wife, I would never have been born. And my mom would have been executed for seducing the Caliph."
Rebecca spoke calmly, not a hint of distress. She seemed to just be reciting what she'd always thought. Was this a cultural difference?
"R-Right. That makes sense!"
A man who was already married yet had a one-night stand with a barmaid. Unbelievably bold.
Of course, I had no reason to badmouth Rebecca's father.
Because thanks to him begetting a pretty daughter, I had my first girlfriend in my entire life.
'So does that mean Rebecca would be okay with me dating other women? As long as I have the ability?'
I had a deep question, but I couldn't just ask Rebecca that. Wasn't that basically asking your girlfriend if you could cheat on her?
"It's getting too late! Let's head back to the inn!"
"Okay."
Rebecca didn't seem to mind my hesitant behavior. She apparently took our conversation as light chatter. Even though it was a conversation so incredible it warped my common sense.
"Thanks for coming out with me today, Rebecca."
"You're leaving early tomorrow, right? I hope you come back safe."
We returned to the inn, shared a brief kiss, and went to our respective rooms.
I went into my room, rested for a bit, then began magic training.
I filled a basin with water and repeated the process of drawing out a Water Whip.
Because the speed at which I could draw out a Water Whip was the most important thing for me.
I'd probably be swinging it so much I'd get sick of it during this promotion quest. At those filthy orc criminals.
The next morning came.
When I'd finished preparing to leave for the Adventurer's Guild, Rebecca suddenly came to find me.
She looked extremely tired, as if she'd stayed up all night.
"Are you leaving now, Luke?"
"Yeah."
"Then take this."
Rebecca handed me a strange object that resembled a cross.
The only difference from a cross was that the top was twisted into a round circle.
But aside from the shape, I was taken aback by the object.
"Isn't this your hair?"
"Yes."
Because the small pseudo-cross was made by twisting Rebecca's red hair.
The glossy hair was skillfully twisted into shape.
"It's a charm! In my homeland, they call it an 'ankh.' They say it protects the life of whoever carries it. It's supposed to work best when made from a virgin's hair, but..."
"Well, you took my virginity. So take a less effective charm instead. There's no helping it."
Because I was the one who'd taken her virginity.
Yeah, couldn't be helped.
So she'd stayed up all night making a charm for me?
I happily took the ankh Rebecca had made and kept it in hand.
I tucked it into the chest pocket of my shirt.
"Now go! You're coming back promoted to Silver, right?"
"Of course. Thanks for the charm."
"Don't mention it."
I didn't believe in superstitions at all, but tucking that ankh into my chest made me feel incredibly reassured.
How could I not feel empowered by a charm filled with my girlfriend's sincerity?
Just before I left.
Rebecca leaned into my ear and whispered softly.
"If you come back safe, I'll let you do it again."
"Do what?"
"M-Mana Charging. In the way you want."
"Oh."
In that moment, a memory surfaced in my mind.
The memory of pounding Rebecca from behind in doggy style, her killer backside.
I could pick any position I wanted, just like that time? I could ask anything of Rebecca?
I got so turned on that blood rushed to my lower half.
It felt like vitality was surging through my body.
Was there anything hotter than that?
"I'll be waiting, Luke."