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Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? (Light Novel) - Volume 8, Chapter 3: The Birth of a Magical Girl!?
Volume 8, Chapter 3: The Birth of a Magical Girl!?
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Part 1
Monday, February 1
“I'm back~... Oh, there's no one here.”
When Koutarou returned to room 106, he found it empty. Because of their various circumstances, none of the others had come back yet. Koutarou's greeting was left without response.
Koutarou took off his shoes by the entrance, passed by the kitchen and entered the inner room. With the lights off, the room was dark and quiet.
“That's pretty unusual.”
Koutarou put his backpack in a corner of the room and turned on the lights. Despite the light, the room was still silent.
“That's right, this is a good chance.”
However, there were things he could do with no one around. Having remembered that, Koutarou brought the bracelet that Clan had given him closer to his mouth.
“Cradle, can you bring out my belongings?”
“As you wish, my lord.”
After giving orders to the bracelet, a black hole appeared in front of Koutarou. It was the same kind that Theia and Clan would use when they summoned weapons. However, what came out of this hole wasn't a weapon, but a plastic container which was several dozen centimeters long.
“Alright, let's do some organizing.”
Inside the container were Koutarou's belongings. They were items that he had gotten during his travels with Clan, and they were things that he couldn't show the invaders. That's why now was the only time he'd get to organize them.
“I need this... I don't need this...”
Inside the container were clothing and the likes that he had used on site, but there were also knives and whetstones mixed in. Though he had called them belongings, there were all kinds of items in there.
Koutarou flipped the container upside down and took out all of the goods, only returning what he didn't need back into the container. He left the things he needed on the tatami mat.
After he was done, Koutarou was planning on putting away the container back on Clan's spaceship. He had considered throwing the things he didn't need away, but because of the method used to obtain them, they were things he could never get again. And since he was attached to a lot of it, he couldn't bear to just dispose of them.
“Hm? This is...”
After working for a while, Koutarou's hand unexpectedly stopped. He had found something interesting among his belongings.
“I guess... I'll keep this close by.”
It was a necklace with an odd design. It consisted of gems and beautifully polished teeth of beasts, strung up by threads of several colors. Since it was something he'd rarely seen, Koutarou had taken a liking to it.
“If I lose this, I'll never hear the end of it.”
Deciding to keep the necklace, Koutarou put it back on the tatami mat. He remembered the face of the person who gave him the necklace.
Now that I think about it...
There, Koutarou stopped moving once more. There was something he had remembered about the person that had given him the necklace.
“...No, that can't be right. It's not possible.”
However, Koutarou shook his head and began organizing his belongings once more.
Since the container wasn't all that large, Koutarou was done after a short while.
“Cradle, return the container to its original position.”
“As you wish, my lord.”
After Koutarou's orders, the plastic container passed through a black hole and was returned to Clan's spaceship, leaving several goods behind in the room.
It wasn't just the necklace; Koutarou had a lot of memories with the goods that remained. This included items like Charl's handmade insignia. It had absolutely no use, but it was something he wanted to keep close. In fact, there were very few things he had kept for use.
“Alright, I guess this is good enough.”
After putting the goods into a paper bag, Koutarou put them away in the wardrobe, the same place where his half-knit sweater was.
“I'm back~~!”
“I’m back too~”
At that moment, the energetic voices of Sanae and Yurika could be heard from the front door.
“To the TV, Love Love Heart is about to start!”
“W-Wait up, Sanae-chan! If you pull me too hard―”
The sound of something heavy hitting the floor could be heard. The next moment, Sanae appeared in the inner room.
“Ah, you're back, Koutarou!”
“Welcome home, Sanae.”
“I'm back! Look, Koutarou, we bought this!”
After finding Koutarou, Sanae showed him a large smile. She moved her fingers and made a small box float in front of Koutarou. It was some anime merchandise that she and Yurika had bought.
“Good for you, Sanae.”
“Yes!”
Quick on the nod, Sanae hurried off towards the TV, with the box floating after her. It was almost time for the anime where the merchandise had come from to be broadcast.
“Ah, ow ow.”
“Welcome home, Yurika.”
Yurika staggered past Koutarou. For some reason, she was holding her head in her hands with tears in her eyes.
“I-I'm ba~ck.”
“What's wrong, Yurika?”
“No, i-it's nothing.”
“Yurika, it's starting! It's starting!”
“Oka~y.”
While tears began forming in the corners of her eyes, Yurika sat down next to Sanae.
The next moment, a familiar song began playing on the TV. It was the opening theme of the anime that Sanae or Yurika made sure to never miss.
Part 2
“Next time on Magical Girl Love Love Heart! 'An enemy!? An ally!? Sparkling Heart appears!' A bouquet of flowers will be delivered to your maiden heart!!”
After the flashy preview, the anime ended and Sanae and Yurika who had been sitting still in front of the TV all this time began moving.
“Yurika, I wonder who Sparkling Heart is!”
“It must be the character we've seen peeks and glances of!”
“That might be true!”
“Do you think she's an enemy!? Or an ally!?”
“I wonder!?”
Sanae and Yurika were excitedly talking about the anime that had just ended.
Based on the name, Sparkling Heart is probably Love Love Heart's ally. Well, pretending not to notice is part of the fun of this kind of anime.
Koutarou watched over the two girls.
“Maybe some new magic will appear too!?”
“It probably will! It sure feels like it will!”
The two of them were cheerfully chatting while repeating the magical gestures used in the anime. It seems this week’s episode had left them very satisfied.
Magic? Right, I had that!
Watching over the two, Koutarou remembered the existence of a certain something. Koutarou approached the wardrobe and pulled out a long stick wrapped in cloth. It was one of the things he had gotten a hold of during his time with Clan, It was too long to store in the container, so he had to keep it separate.
“Yurika, could you come over?”
With the stick in his hand, he called for Yurika.
“Y-Yes!?”
Having been called out during the middle of her conversation she was slightly surprised. But she soon crawled up to the tea table at the center of the room.
“What is it?”
“Actually, I wanted to apologize to you.”
Koutarou put the long stick still wrapped in cloth on the table and sat down, straight and formally. He couldn't really sit cross-legged when he was about to apologize.
“About the hot water you used to wake me up this morning?”
“No.”
“Then is it about kicking the ball in my face during gym class today?”
“It's not that either.”
“I know!! It's about Yurika's taiyaki that you ate, isn't it!?”
“That was you, Satomi-san!?”
“No, no. Sanae, don't make things more complicated.”
“Even if you say that, you did eat it.”
“I ate it, but that's not what I wanted to talk about.”
“Fueeeeee~! You're terrible, you're unfair! I was looking forward to eating it!”
“I got, I got it! I'll buy one for you later, just calm down!”
“Really!?”
Yurika had been crying for real, but when she realized that Koutarou would buy a new one for her, she stopped.
Yurika, can't you have some more pride...
While feeling sorry, Koutarou couldn't help but worry about Yurika's future.
“Bean jam... Cream... Chocolate... Cheese...”
“So, Koutarou, what are you apologizing for?”
In place of Yurika who was busy dreaming, Sanae asked Koutarou.
“About that, actually―”
“Satomi-san, how many taiyakis will you buy me!?”
“Listen to what I have to say!”
“...Oka~y, sorry.”
Waiting for Yurika to shift her focus to him, Koutarou finally began speaking slowly.
“Yurika, I'm not sure what to say after calling you an idiot and whatnot every time you brought this up, but...”
“Yes...”
“Be happy, Yurika, magic exists.”
“Yes?”
Hearing Koutarou's words, Yurika's pupils turned to tiny dots.
“I know you won't believe me right away, but I have seen it with my own eyes.”
“You're kidding!? R-Really, Koutarou!?”
In contrast to Koutarou who was talking calmly, Sanae jumped with excitement and asked him to explain in further detail.
“Yeah. I can't go into details, but there's no mistaking it.”
“Oooo~h! Is that so!?”
Sanae's eyes were sparkling. She didn't believe in magic, but since she loved the magical girl anime, she believed she would be happy if it existed. And since the one claiming it was real was Koutarou and not Yurika, she believed him right away.
“W-Why now, all of a sudden?”
However, Yurika herself couldn't hide her confusion and she stared at Koutarou.
“Like I said the other day, I can't go into details. I would cause trouble for a lot of people if I did.”
Koutarou hadn't told the invaders what had happened during the time when he and Clan had vanished. All he had told them was that some trouble had happened and he and Clan had to work together, and during that time they had come to an understanding. He hadn't told them that a large amount of time had passed during the few minutes they were gone or of any of the events that had happened during that time.
“Instead, I got something cool for you.”
“Something cool?”
“I wish I got a souvenir too.”
As Sanae glanced at Koutarou, he stripped the cloth from the long stick, revealing a cane. Unlike Yurika's cane, it was made from wood that had a plain design using black and brown colors.
“T-This is!?”
The moment she saw that, Yurika was speechless. Powerful magic had been cast on the cane. She hadn't noticed it up until now because it had been camouflaged by room 106's magic power, but now that it was right in front of her, it was obvious to a magician like herself.
“That's right, it's a magical cane. By using this, even someone who has no talent for magic can freely use spells. Of course the power would be weaker.”
“Koutarou, you mean it's a real magical stick!?”
Sanae shook the anime merchandise she had gotten just today. Inside the box was a magical stick that had appeared in the anime.
“Yeah. Just look.”
Koutarou smiled at Sanae and grabbed the cane. He stared at the tip and concentrated.
“Fire! Appear!”
Immediately after Koutarou's word, a small fire appeared at tip of the cane. It was almost like a candle in the shape of a cane.
“Wow, fire really came out! Amazing!!”
“This isn't just a magical cane!?”
Sanae had simply been surprised by the fire appearing as Koutarou commanded, but Yurika was surprised over something else.
This cane isn't of Folsarian design!! And what's more, it read Satomi-san's mind and cast a suitable spell!!
Koutarou was using a different kind of magic from what Yurika used. The magic she was using was the kind of magic she had learned from her predecessor, Rainbow Nana. It was the general kind of magic used in the magical country of Folsaria. She could indeed feel magic at work when Koutarou had summoned flame, but it worked in a different way from Folsarian magic.
“S-Satomi-san, where did you get this!?”
Koutarou had met a magician somewhere. What's more, it was a magician not from Folsaria. It was neither Rainbow Heart or Darkness Rainbow, but a completely different magician. It was an existence Yurika was really interested in.
“Sorry, but I can't say. Like I said, if I carelessly tell you, I could trouble a ton of people. I don't want to bother the people who have helped me or those related. Please understand, Yurika.”
However, Koutarou stubbornly refused to tell her. His tone was calm, but it was a firm rejection.
“O-Okay...”
Yurika reluctantly withdrew. Sensing Koutarou's strong will, she realized that questioning him any further would be useless.
It doesn't seem like there's any danger, so I guess it's fine for now...
Yurika imagined that while he had been gone, Koutarou had met a magician who had helped him. And from Koutarou's words of not wanting to cause them any trouble, that person probably wasn't an evil magician. Yurika had no reason to get in the way since it didn't seem to be a magician who used magic for evil or from Folsaria. And since the owner of that cane was Koutarou, there was no need to worry.
“Here, Yurika.”
Koutarou presented the cane to Yurika who was being silent.
“Satomi-san?”
After taking a look at the cane, Yurika gave Koutarou a suspicious glance.
“I said I got it for you, didn't I?”
“You're giving this, to me?”
“That's right. Here, take it, Yurika.”
Koutarou nodded and shoved the cane into Yurika's hands. Not understanding what Koutarou wanted, she repeatedly looked at him and the cane in her hands.
Koutarou believed in magic. Despite that, she didn't understand the meaning of being given a cane when she could already use powerful magic.
I wonder if it can use some kind of special magic?
Yurika looked at the cane and tilted her head.
“Good for you, Yurika!!”
Sanae had noticed Koutarou's intentions first. While showing the anime merchandise box to Yurika, she continued talking loudly. On the box were a bunch of images of magical girls using the magical stick.
“With this, you'll graduate from being a cosplayer! Now you're a real magical girl!”
“Ah.”
That was when Yurika finally understood Koutarou's intentions.
Koutarou had said that he got this for her. He had gotten a magical cane that let anyone use magic as a souvenir to give to a cosplayer who couldn't use magic. He was definitely not giving a brand new magical cane as a present to the magical girl of love and courage ☆ Rainbow Yurika.
“Wow! I'm so envious, Yurika~! Now you're a real magical girl!”
“I've been a real one for a long time!!”
Sanae's eyes were filled with envy. However Yurika herself had begun crying.
S-Satomi-san believes in magic now, but he doesn't believe that I'm a magical girl!!
Having understood why she had been given the cane, Yurika couldn't help but cry. She was well aware that it was better if her secret didn't leak out, but at this point, she wanted Koutarou to know. However, reality was harsh: even though Koutarou now believed in magic, Yurika was still a cosplayer to him.
“Good for you, Yurika... A cosplayer that can use real magic, huh... there aren't that many lucky cosplayers around.”
“You're wrong, that's not it at all!”
“Sanae, you don't have to keep calling her a cosplayer. Her wish has finally been fulfilled.”
“Ah, right. Sorry, Yurika. That was a little insensitive of me.”
“Yurika has been a magical girl for a long time now. Let's just leave it at that, okay?”
“Koutarou, you're quite the man aren't you?”
“So you finally realized?”
“Fufu, I knew that from before♪”
“...I want to punch him. I want to beat up Satomi-san...”
Yurika wept bitterly while firmly grasping the cane.
Her position as the magical girl of room 106 had finally been established. However, the humiliation she had felt today far exceeded what she had ever felt before.
Part 3
Koutarou had brought the cane home so that Yurika had the means to defend herself.
In his mind, she was just a cosplay loving classmate. That's what Yurika herself had let him think. So to him, Yurika was a civilian mixed in with the invaders.
On top of that, Yurika was kind hearted and gentle, and disliked fighting. Though they were both civilians, unlike Koutarou who was athletic and good at fighting, Yurika had no means to protect herself from the troubles that occurred around room 106.
What if Yurika was to get involved in trouble caused by the underground people or Forthorthe?
Up until now, she had been lucky(?) and managed to avoid that, but that might not be true in the future. Koutarou had always been worried about that, so he had gotten her a magical cane so she could protect herself. If anything it was a tool for self-defense.
“So to sum it up, that thing can use a lot of magic, but it doesn’t have all that much power. So don't be overconfident and just focus on protecting yourself. Okay?”
The cane Koutarou had given to Yurika had been created to allow the user to freely use all kinds of magic, so it had the power to deal with any kind of situation. It was perfect for a civilian to use as self-defense. However, because it could use all kinds of magic, it lacked power. It couldn't be relied on when used for attacking.
“I understand.”
Yurika obediently nodded at Koutarou's words. She was planning on making use of this situation.
As long as I have this cane, I can use magic in front of everyone...
Her perception of the situation had changed, and she was planning on using her own magic while holding this cane. By doing that, it would look to the residents of room 106 like she was using the magic of the cane, but in reality she would be using her own. Since she could use magic while not being suspected as being anything but a cosplayer, there was no camouflage more convenient than this.
“Hey magical girl. Don't look away and press it harder.”
“O-Okaaay!”
Yurika was using the cane in her hand to press down on Theia's shoulders.
The cane was vibrating and massaging her shoulders.
“Ooh... so this is magic, huh.... it feels pretty good. Ruth, have her do it to you too later.”
“Would that be alright, Yurika-sama?”
“Ah, yes, of course~”
Yurika nodded with a smile. However, in contrast to her smile she was not very satisfied.
Something's wrong... This is wrong somehow... It's great that I can use magic without revealing myself... but something is wrong!
Yurika was in the middle of using her cane to massage Theia's shoulder via vibration magic.
Wait, this isn't a magical girl’s job!
Just before, she had used heating magic to iron clothes. Before that she had used supersonic magic to drive away cats from Corona House.
This situation was different from what she had dreamed off. She believed that if everyone knew she could use magic, they would start to respect her.
And I feel like it's getting worse and worse...
Yurika began feeling like she was better off being just a cosplayer.
It was indeed convenient that she could use the cane to hide her identity. From now on she could use magic bravely in front of everyone. However, Folsarian rules said that magic must not be misused, be it for evil or for private reasons. Of course, massaging or ironing were clear cases of misusage of magic. Although she wasn't using Folsarian magic, it was a bit of a grey area, hence Yurika was still a bit anxious.
“Hey Yurika, can I have your old cane?”
“N-No way!! You can't have that!!”
Sanae had pulled out Yurika's cane, Angel Halo, from the wardrobe. With it in her hand, she took various anime poses. Seeing that, blood drained from Yurika's face and she snatched the cane back from Sanae. Normally she was scared of ghosts and would never go against Sanae, but she couldn't give up on that cane.
“But you have a real magical cane that you got from Koutarou.”
“They're both real!”
“I want to be more like a magical girl too! You cheapskate!”
“This is a precious cane that I got from the person who saved my life! I definitely can't give this away!!”
Yurika threw her new cane away and embraced her old one as if trying to hide it from Sanae with her eyes full of tears.
“Geez.”
Seeing that, Sanae puffed up her cheeks and easily gave up on the cane. Instead she floated towards Koutarou.
“Koutarou, give me something too.”
“If it's a charm against evil spirits that you want, you can get one.”
“I don't want a charm that explodes whenever I touch it! I want something good!”
Seeing Sanae parting from her, Yurika let out a sigh of relief.
No matter what happens, I can't give up this cane...
Yurika's cane, Angel Halo, was the cane used by Nana, her best friend, teacher and savior. To Yurika, it was far more than just a tool, and she would never part ways with it.
“What would something good be?”
“Something that looks appropriate for a magical girl! And if that’s not possible, something love-like!”
“What would something love-like be?”
“Something like what boys give girls on White Day[1]!”
“White Day, huh... I've never gotten any chocolate on Valentine's Day so I'm not that knowledgeable in that area.”
Koutarou's and Sanae's carefree discussion continued while Theia was just watching over the two. And since Yurika had stopped with her massaging, she too was just wordlessly staring at them.
If I ask him to give me something, would Koutarou comply...?
Having understood her own feelings, Theia was jealous of Sanae who was honest with her own feelings as she relied on Koutarou. But she had problems regarding to acting like Sanae did. If she began relying on Koutarou like Sanae did, she was sure he would think of her as some strange woman. And she was also scared of being rejected. Because of her pride and hidden cowardice, she couldn't use that to appeal to Koutarou.
“Your highness... Alright...”
Noticing her master acting like that, Ruth took action to fulfill her wish.
For starters, getting closer and creating a chance to talk should be good...
Ruth began preparing tea at once. After pouring up enough tea for everyone, Ruth called for Theia.
“Your highness, could you help me a little bit?”
“...Ah, eh...?”
Having been so focused on Koutarou and the others, Theia had missed what Ruth said. Ruth then repeated her question.
“Your highness, could you help me a little bit?”
“Ah, yes, okay.”
After taking one more look at Koutarou and the others, Theia approached Ruth. Seeing that, Ruth smiled at her.
“I've poured up tea for everyone, so could you carry yours and Satomi-sama's? I will carry everyone else's.”
“Koutarou's...”
Theia looked at Ruth's hands. There she saw a fragile tea cup made of Forthorthe design and a plain looking mug.
“Can I ask you to do it?”
Ruth smiled and whispered to Theia.
“Ah...”
Realizing Ruth's intentions, Theia slightly blushed and then looked towards Koutarou behind her.
“Ah... yes... if that's all, I will help...”
When she looked back towards Ruth, Theia's face was beet-red.
C-Calm down.... I'm only bringing him some tea, what am I so shaken up for...
Theia tried to keep her heart from racing as she picked up a cup in each hand. Theia's shaken mind could be seen reflected in the cups as the surface of the tea shook.
“So I think you should show some gratitude to this beautiful ghost who always shows you her smile by saying ‘Thank you, Sanae-chan!’”
“K-Koutarou, I brought you some tea.”
Suppressing her anxiousness, Theia approached Koutarou who was chatting away with Sanae. On her way, she began worrying if her actions were strange or not.
“Yeah.”
Koutarou continued talking to Sanae while casually receiving his mug. During that time, his hand slightly brushed up against Theia's.
“!?”
Greatly shaken by the sensation of Koutarou's hand, Theia almost dropped her own cup. She barely managed to save it, but the tea was rippling. And just when Theia was recovering, it happened.
“Oh, this is delicious. Thank you, your highness.”
Having taken a sip of the tea, Koutarou put his large hand on top of Theia's head and gently patted her.
“...Funyaa~”
A strange sound unconsciously leaked from Theia's mouth. At the same time, she dropped her tea cup.
The contents of the cup spilled out as it rolled along the tatami mat. Seeing that, Koutarou finally realized what he had done.
Oh no, I just did what I always do... This is Theia, not Charl...
Charl was a young girl that Koutarou and Clan had met during their travels. She would often bring tea that her sister had poured for Koutarou, and in return he would pat her on the head.
Because he had been distracted by his conversation with Sanae, he had acted out of instinct and treated Theia like he did to Charl.
Did I make her angry...?
Koutarou believed there was no way that someone with as much pride as Theia wouldn't be angry after being treated like a child. However, no matter how long he waited, Theia's roaring never came.
“Oh?”
“...”
Theia stared at Koutarou with her large eyes wide open. Her expression had frozen but her face was red. Seeing that, Koutarou felt an even greater sense of danger.
Not good, I might have made her really angry!
Koutarou had no way of knowing how Theia truly felt. He couldn't imagine that Theia would be happy with him patting her on the head, so he believed she would be enraged like always.
“...You can do it your highness, you're almost there!”
Watching over her master's appearance, Ruth clenched her hands. She unconsciously put so much force into her hands that she almost crushed her own tea cup.
“Ruth, wouldn't something more direct work better?”
“What?”
Kiriha, who had been silently sipping on her tea, put her cup down on the table and picked up something that was lying on the floor.
“That's Yurika-sama's...”
“Fufu.”
With a somewhat happy expression, she held that thing in both hands. That was the souvenir that Koutarou had brought back for Yurika, her new magical cane.
“How about something like this? Magnetism. Magnetism. Bond.”
Kiriha cast three spells using the cane.
This magical cane worked by reading the user's mind and applying an apt spell. Because of that, it didn't need a long incantation like Yurika used. As long as she clearly imagined what she said, the cane would do the rest.
Three lights appeared by the tip of the cane. First there were two red lights. They connected with Koutarou and Theia, and the two of them were wrapped in red light. Before long their bodies became magnetic.
“W-What!?”
“Wah, Wawawa!?”
Having suddenly become magnets, Koutarou and Theia were drawn towards each other and collided. They got entangled and fell down onto the floor. At the same time, the red light faded and the magnetism vanished. Because the magical power used for each spell was very little, powerful magnetism wouldn't last for long.
“Owow... what happened?”
“T-This is!?”
While the surprised Koutarou tried to get up from behind Theia, the third orange light hit them.
“Uwah!?”
“Kyaa!!”
The two of them lost their balance once more and fell down. The orange light's effect was to create a bond between two objects that were in contact. Because of that, Theia and Koutarou were stuck, with Koutarou holding Theia from behind.
“Are you okay!?”
“What is going on? My body is stuck and I can't get off!”
“Uwah!? K-Koutarou, don't move so suddenly!!”
The two of them forgot what they were doing up until now and were struggling on the floor. The first magnetic spell had vanished almost right away, but the second one was lasting for quite some time. Since it was such a simple spell it had a longer duration.
“Your highness, Satomi-sama!”
Ruth hurriedly ran up to the two and tried to help. Because of that, the only ones left by the table were Kiriha and her haniwas. Looking at Koutarou and the others struggling on the floor, she disappointedly dropped her shoulders.
“Hmm... it didn't go as well as I had hoped. Adjusting your power using magic is surprisingly difficult.”
Kiriha original goal had been to bond Koutarou and Theia's hands together. However, she had failed at adjusting the effect and only created a more confusing situation.
“Ho-, that's because you're relying on something unknown like that, Nee-san, Ho-!”
“If you're going to rely on something, rely on us Ho-!”
“That seems to be better.”
Kiriha smiled elegantly, picked up her tea cup once more and took a sip. The tea that Ruth had poured was just as elegant as her smile.
“Hm!? Kiriha-san, is this your doing!?”
Seeing that smile and the magic cane still in her left hand, Koutarou noticed that Kiriha was responsible for this trouble.
“My bad, Koutarou. It didn't go as planned. It seems I'm not suited to be a magical girl.”
As she said that, Kiriha began twirling the cane around as if she was practicing baton twirling. Her skills at twirling were admirable and after avoiding hitting any furniture for a while, she stopped with the cane in both hands. She had claimed she wasn't suitable, but she looked far more like a magical girl than Yurika in her cosplay.
“Undo the spell right away!”
“No.”
Kiriha rejected Koutarou's demands without disturbing the smile on her lips.
“Or rather, I don't know how to undo it.”
“What!?”
Though her original plan had failed, Kiriha was still enjoying the confusion.
Part 4
The bonding spell that Kiriha had used had bonded Koutarou's chest with Theia's back. Moreover, since Koutarou had been holding onto Theia at the time, his arms were fixed to her.
At first, Theia's head had been attached to Koutarou's chest, but now she could freely move it. As time passed, the effectiveness of the spell dropped. At this rate, the two of them would be free within an hour or two.
At the same time, it meant that Koutarou and Theia would be stuck together for that amount of time. Koutarou was sitting down with his back against a wall. Meanwhile, Theia was sitting between Koutarou's legs, with her body leaning towards his chest. This was the most relaxing posture for the two of them.
Was Theia always this small?
Koutarou was puzzled by Theia's seemingly small body that he was holding in his hands. The image of her in his mind had always been that of a more powerful girl.
She's larger than Charl, but... she's quite small for someone of her age...
Koutarou was puzzled by the difference between reality and his own image. Meanwhile, he unconsciously put force into his arms-
“Funyuu~”
As he did so, a strange sound leaked out. It was a quiet, sweet voice similar to when a cat or dog snuggled with a person.
“Ah, sorry.”
Hearing that, Koutarou hurriedly eased up. He was worried that he might have made it harder for Theia to breathe and apologized.
“It's fine. I-It's not your fault.”
“So should we forcibly try to pull apart?”
In reality, if Koutarou seriously tried, he would be able to forcibly overcome the power bonding the two. However, after their skin had turned red when he had tried to do so, they had decided not to overdo it.
But if it was painful for Theia, he believed it would be better to pull them apart.
“I-It's fine like this! I'd rather endure this than have my entire back turn red!”
Theia quickly rejected Koutarou's proposal. She had said she would endure it, but in reality, Theia wanted to stay like this for a while longer.
“Really? Well, if you say so.”
“Good...”
Theia slightly nodded and relaxed her body and leaned against Koutarou.
“Kiriha, how did you use this cane!? I want to try it too!!”
“Well, you see―”
“Y-Y-You can't! You can't just carelessly use magic!”
“Cheapskate. I'm not telling you to hand over the cane. Can't I just try it a little?”
“That's not the problem!”
Room 106 was as noisy as always. But when she closed her eyes, Theia didn't mind the noise. If anything, it sounded more like a lullaby to her right now.
I wonder what this sensation is...
The parts attached to Koutarou felt hot. That sensation reached her heart and warmed her chest. But in contrast to that, the inner part of her heart was calm. She felt a deep relief and gentle peace.
This was the first time she had felt that weird sensation. If anything, it was similar to what she had felt when she relied on her parents at a young age. But they weren't the same sensations. And because of that, Theia was able to find joy.
I wish we were stuck like this forever....
There was a sense of security that she hadn't felt ever since she realized she had been born as royalty. As she leaned towards Koutarou, she felt that strong sense of security. She believed that she would be absolutely safe as long as she was here.
And...
At the same time, she wanted to let Koutarou feel the same sensation she had felt. That's because she had noticed that deep inside, Koutarou felt lonely.
“...Did you fall asleep, Theia?”
At that time, Koutarou whispered into her ear. With her eyes still closed, she slowly shook her head.
“No. I just woke up.”
Before she knew it, Theia was holding onto Koutarou's hands. A few days ago, after Koutarou had disappeared and came back safely, finally, she had realized what it was she really wanted.
“Sorry, did I wake you up?”
“That's not what I meant... fufufu, oh well.”
Theia laughed. Since her eyes were still closed, Koutarou couldn't understand why.
“Did something happen to you?”
All he knew was that there had been a change in Theia's frame of mind.
“No. I've just been thinking about a lot of things lately.”
“For example?”
“For example... let's see...”
Theia opened her eyes and saw her hands on top of Koutarou's. She also saw her loyal vassal gently watching over her from a corner of the room.
“For example... how I should repay Ruth who always helps me out.”
Theia also wanted Ruth to feel the same way she did. They had always been together, so she didn't want to be the only one feeling this way.
“If that's the case, then I'll help.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Ruth-san has always been helping me out too.”
“Fufu.”
Theia laughed.
“What?”
“It's nothing. Can I really rely on you to cooperate?”
“Of course.”
“I trust a knight to not go back on his words.”
“Yeah. I'm not a knight though.”
“Fufufu.”
Theia laughed once more.
If everything turned out the way Theia wished it, if the future turned out the way she desired, then―
“What is it, really?”
“I won't tell. Fufufu, I definitely won't. As if! Fufufufu.”
If this kind of trouble hadn't occurred, and if her back wasn't against Koutarou, she would never have felt that way. With that in her chest, Theia laughed out.
“It's a promise!”
From tomorrow onwards, Theia would probably return to normal. If she saw Koutarou's face she'd be obstinate, but if their hands touched she would blush; the normal Theia.
“I definitely won't forgive you if you regret it afterwards, Satomi Koutarou!”
“Why are you acting so serious for, we're just talking about repaying Ruth.”
“What's your answer!?”
“...As you wish, my princess.”
But now it was different.
Theia's smile was radiant.
Part 5
A rhythmical sound was echoing in the passageways of the warship, Blue Knight.
That was the sound of Ruth's shoes beating on the Blue Knight's white floor. After the residents of room 106 had fallen asleep, Ruth was heading one of the hangars onboard the Blue Knight.
“Hmm Hmm~♪ Hm~hmm♪”
Ruth began humming to the rhythm of her steps. She was mysteriously cheerful, the steps that she made were almost as if she was dancing.
“Fufu, fufufufu.”
She would sometimes stop humming and instead cheerfully laugh. She normally never showed any strong emotions, so it was rare to see her this obviously happy.
“Isn't that great, your highness!”
Ruth was so cheerful because of Theia and Koutarou's appearances.
Every time she recalled the two, her cheeks would naturally slack and her feet would move on their own. Several hours had passed since then, but Ruth still could not contain her joy.
“Well done, Kiriha-sama! I'll make sure to give her some proper thanks the next time I see her!”
All of that was thanks to the spells that Kiriha had cast. At first it seemed to have been a failure, but the results were a great success. Ruth was very grateful towards Kiriha.
“Hm Hm Hmm♪ HmmHm♪”
That being said, it wasn't all good things. Ruth's feelings were so heightened that she couldn't fall asleep. So she had decided to give up on sleeping and instead start on some untouched work.
“Woops! I almost went past it♪”
Ruth walked past the hangar once, and quickly walked back with light steps. She then opened the door by rhythmically tapping on a nearby panel and entered.
Ruth's goal was a small maintenance area in the hangar. There was something she had to perform maintenance on there.
“Blue Knight, bring out Satomi-sama's maneuver suit.”
“As you wish, my lady.”
As Ruth spoke that order, a set of armor appeared out of nowhere. It was a vivid blue armor with the words “Theiamillis's Blue Knight” engraved on its chest. It was the Blue Knight's armor that Theia had given to Koutarou. Ruth had come to the hangar to perform maintenance on the armor.
“Blue Knight, do a check-up on the maneuver suit and make a list of all damaged areas. Also count how many spare parts there are for those areas.”
“As you wish, my lady.”
The armor stood up facing Ruth while being held up by an arm coming out from the wall. A diagnostic device was surrounding the armor, giving it a thorough examination.
“...It looks... pretty worn out...?”
As Ruth stared at the armor from the front, she noticed various kinds of damage on the armor.
The armor had a lot of small wounds, and its graceful blue color had slightly dimmed. And there were also a few large dents and burn marks.
“Are they damage from his battle with Clan-sama? Even for that, there are a lot of dents...”
Being a bit bothered by that, Ruth brought up the data from the diagnostic device. There she saw a detailed list of what kind of damage the armor had taken, seeing that, Ruth instinctively tilted her head.
“The abrasion of the joint bearing part is moderate. The shock absorber has broken down at two places. Because of repeated heating and impact, the brittleness of the armor has increased, replacing the plate is recommended...huh...?”
The data display showed a list of damage often appearing after being operated over a long period of time.
The joints had worn down from friction, the energy absorbing material had cracked, and durability of the armor had been reduced because of repeated heating. The accumulated damage was far more than something that would appear just from using it as a stage armor or fighting against Clan. The armor required an overhaul.
“Just how has Satomi-sama been using this…?”
Koutarou and Clan had disappeared for about two minutes. Ruth hadn't really thought about it up until now. She had only heard that they had gone to a different space-time plane for a short period of time and returned.
However, based on the damage the armor had accrued, one could only imagine that those two minutes had been very intense. Or maybe a massive gravitational field had altered the speed of time. Either way, it couldn't have been a simple matter of going and coming back.
“That's right, if I look at the memory...”
Ruth operated a nearby panel and accessed the armor's memory storage. By looking at the armor's video and audio recording, the record of used equipment and the computer's flow of information processing, she should be able to learn what had happened.
“NO DATA”
However, the information that was supposed to be there had all been deleted. Because of that, Ruth was unable to get her hands on any data.
“It's been erased... did Satomi-san do that? No, it must have been Clan-sama... but, why...?”
If they had just visited and returned from a different space-time plane, there would be no reason to erase the data. Which meant that since it had been erased, there was something they wanted to hide.
“Just what happened to Satomi-sama and Clan-sama...?”
They had been thrown to a different space-time, but something had happened there that had made the enemies, Koutarou and Clan, cooperate. Something that had caused the armor to be covered in damage. And they had erased the data in the armor to hide that something.
Ruth was able to draw the conclusion based on the armor's damage and the fact that the data had been erased.
“I should ask Satomi-sama for more details when I get the chance...”
Koutarou had told Ruth and the others that he had no choice but to cooperate with Clan after cutting the repulsion shell in half in order to return home to his own space-time. Since he had brought back a magical cane, it must have meant that he had been sent to a planet where magic existed.
However, Ruth believed that Koutarou was hiding something very important from them.
Translator's Notes and References
1. ↑ The reverse of Valentine's day in Japan, where boys return gifts to girls who have given them gifts, it takes place a month after Valentine's Day on March 14
