Leave a comment

Swords are surprisingly hard to handle. Should we carry it by hand, rest it on our shoulder, or wear it at the hip? Which is the best choice, I really have no idea. Since Ciel is a sorcerer, there’s no need to constantly keep it on her body. So we eventually decided to try putting it in our magic bag and it went in without any issues. We were told that it had as much space as a backpack, and so I thought that it might not fit due to its length, but it seemed like it’s only a matter of volume.

Considering that, the fact that it has a thin blade might have helped as well.

After returning to the inn to wait for Chasse and party to come by, Ciel quietly muttered 「Just being a Song Princess can change people that much, huh.」

It was as if she was thinking out loud. Her voice didn’t have much feeling behind it, and it felt awfully cold; I was at a loss for words. And perhaps I was so silent this time, Ciel then worriedly called out to me.

「Ain, is there something wrong?」
『Well, if being discovered as a song princess would get you treated horribly, I was thinking that… maybe it would be better if I stop singing at pubs and just keep our Jobs unknown instead.』
「But you love singing in front of people, right Ain? You told me before that being able to earn money from singing made you happy. More importantly you always look really delighted whenever you sang.」
『Still, you’ll experience more awful things because of this, you know? Besides, since it seems that my barrier gets sloppy when I’m singing, I might not be able to protect you as well.』
「That would never happen. After all, Ain is amazing.」

Somehow, Ciel ended up praising me.

「Even when the control gets somewhat sloppy, there’s no way that Ain’s barrier would get destroyed so easily. That’s why it’s nothing to worry about.」

After saying that, Ciel’s eyes narrowed into a gentle smile. The next words that came out of her lips tickled my ears.

「And besides, Ain is awfully adorable, you see?」
『T-that’s thank to your looks, isn’t it?』
「That’s not what I meant. Ain, as an individual, is adorable. This isn’t about your appearance.」
『Umm, that’s… really?』

This time she called me adorable in a completely earnest tone and I have no idea how I should even react. How should I say this, I just can’t help but feel… flustered about it. The fact that I felt this way shocked me.

Does being flustered mean that I’m happy about being called adorable then? While I’m aware that I’ve been leaning considerably towards the feminine side, does this mean that I’ve changed to the point where I feel happy about being called adorable? It’s not unpleasant, but it feels like an indescribable fuzziness is swirling around my chest.

No, Ciel probably meant adorable as a compliment in a general sense and I’m just happy that she has a positive opinion of me. It’s similar to how girls on Earth might call something cute when they don’t have any negative feelings towards it. If someone as beautiful as Ciel called me cute when I was alive, I would have been happy about it. As I imagine this scenario, I feel myself almost cringing, but I’m sure that it’s just my imagination. It should be.

As I was drowning in my thoughts, Ciel spoke with a gentle, almost maternal, expression.

「But you see, Ain, you’re most adorable when you’re singing. That’s why you should never think that it’s better to stop singing, alright? When Ain is singing, I’ll be the one doing the protecting.」

Hearing Ciel’s somehow reassuring words, 『Understood.』 I couldn’t think of any other reply.

◇

A short while after an exchange that left me wondering who’s the more mature one between us, I heard a knock from the door and we were told that Chasse and the others have arrived. Since we don’t have any reason to stay in this inn anymore, we brought all our things and headed to the reception area. While I would have preferred if they were led to our room instead, I suppose they wanted to avoid any potential impropriety of men going to a room of a lone girl.

Waiting in the reception area were only two people, Chasse and Viviana. Though, since it’s not like everybody in their party has something to say, I don’t really mind that.

Since I’m not the one in control today, Ciel will be the one interacting with them.

「Kept you waiting.」
「Don’t worry, it’s fine.」

Hearing Ciel’s curt greeting, Viviana casually replied.

「As this incident is the result of our… or rather the Hunter Guild’s mishandling, there’s no need for you to worry about it. After all, we are the ones asking for your time here.」

Is Chasse’s awfully courteous response due to his own personality, or is he trying to avoid displeasing Ciel considering how large this incident ended up being? Whichever it is, I still intend on receiving due compensation.

After telling the receptionist that we’ll be vacating the room, we headed to a different place since this matter isn’t really something to talk about in front of an inn. The place they brought us to was a small house in the residential district. While keeping watch around the area, Chasse unlocks the house door and enters inside. It has a simple interior, but the table and two sofas look somewhat expensive in comparison.

「This is?」

Ciel asked in a tone seeping with caution.

「A building owned by the Hunter Guild. It’s used in particular circumstances when the guild or the requester can’t make a move in public, but still has the need to meet and discuss… I guess? While it can only be utilized when authorized, it was approved pretty quickly this time around.」
「I see. So how was it then?」

As usual, Ciel doesn’t seem interested in other people. On the other hand, this means that she only has interest in me, which does make me feel happy. It’s definitely not something I should be happy about though. I really do want Ciel to make proper friends.

Since Chasse and Viviana didn’t give attention to Ciel’s way of speaking, I guess they see it as how Ciel speaks in private, which is a relief.

「To start, the Guild Master will be a slave until he completely pays off a specific amount. After that, he can decide to either stay doing subordinate work or quit. It would’ve been different if we can establish further evidence about what happened yesterday, but we really didn’t have enough time to do that. So in the meantime, he’ll be working as a slave until the next Guild Master arrives. In addition, all his assets will be confiscated. While the stipulated amount will be deducted from his assets, he’s definitely not going to be able to pay off his fines anytime soon. Concerning the noble, the Hunter Guild has filed a complaint against said noble, but this isn’t really something that can be resolved immediately.」

After Chasse explained so in a serious tone, Viviana then continued the conversation.

「As for Tolt, he’ll be discharged from the Hunter Guild on top of having his assets confiscated. He’ll be monitored in the meantime, which will be lifted when it’s judged that he won’t do anything foolish. If it’s observed that he’s planning to misuse his Job during this period, at worst, his head will be flying off on the spot. As for the ten that ambushed us yesterday, they’ll be demoted in rank.」

So far, a lot of people have been demoted after getting involved with Ciel, but with ten more added to the record, I feel like this might end up landing us an alias, which is somehow scary. Though Ciel, on the other hand, just seemed absolutely uninterested about it.

「And me?」
「For you, you’ll be granted the second largest magic bag in the possession of the Royal Capital Guild as well as safety within the guild.」
「Within the guild… is it?」

Being somewhat displeased, Ciel repeated Chasse’s words. He then hurriedly continued the conversation.

「But in exchange for that, in the event that the Royal Capital is hit with the stampede, you won’t and can’t be coerced into fighting. The involvement of nobles was acknowledged, but it’s written in the papers that this is for safety reasons. After all, there’s no way that the Knight Commander won’t get involved when a stampede occurs. Not wanting to work with someone that tried to take your life is understandable. At worst, you might even get assigned to work under his command after all. That should be why it was approved, if I had to say.」

『I suppose that was unavoidable. After all, the guild probably can’t guarantee our safety if we get into trouble somewhere they can’t monitor. Let’s just be glad that they approved of us not needing to work when a stampede happens.』
『If Ain says so, then it can’t be help. It’s good news as long as we get the magic bag.』

「Then Chasse. Go shop for me.」

Immediately as Ciel said that, she took out an unneeded sheet of paper and wrote down the things we need for our trip, such as a sleeping bag and so on. Upon writing down everything, she took out some coins and handed these to Chasse.

「Uhhh…」
「Not a surprise considering that we can’t guarantee her safety. Give up.」
「I was glared at in a weapon shop earlier too.」

While Chasse had a stumped look on his face, Viviana patted him on the shoulder and Ciel told them about what happened some time ago. It’s not as if it had no connection to the conversation, but Ciel definitely omitted too much information. I’m glad that Viviana understood what Ciel meant.

Chasse shook his head in resignation, and asked, 「Viviana, can you come with me?」

「Absolutely not. I told you that I have business with Cielmer, didn’t I?」

Being rejected by her, Chasse looked like an abandoned puppy.

「Then in that case, can I bring along the magic bag we were supposed to give you now? Since I’m shopping for your things anyway.」
「I don’t mind.」
「Well, I’ll be off then. It’ll be a problem if we miss each other, so stay here until I come back.」

As Chasse was leaving by himself, Viviana casually sent him out, 「Yeah, yeah, see you later.」

I can’t tell who’s the leader between them, but it’s insensitive to care too much about others peoples business. Rather, in the case of the Fools’ Gathering, they might actually see the leader as a being that have the most annoying work assigned to them.

「Business with me?」
「I’ve finished writing the letter of introduction. Also, to thank you for yesterday, I guess. It’ll be best to keep the letter inside the magic bag. It has a wax seal, so it’ll lose its validity if opened by accident.」
「Understood.」

Ciel received the letter of introduction and put it inside the magic bag we’re using as a purse. Considering how the sword is also inside, it should be near its maximum capacity, but the letter entered without any issues.

「Once again, thank you for yesterday. When I tried using sorcery, the result was literally beyond my imagination. This does change the way I have to handle it, but I should be able to manage somehow.」
「I see. That’s good.」
「Really, you have my gratitude. Forgive me for not being able to pay you back adequately.」

Viviana lowered her head but as if to say she doesn’t mind it, Ciel shook her head in reply. After that, Ciel and Viviana had an on-and-off chat while waiting for Chasse to return.

◇

As Chasse returned, Viviana checked if he bought everything and we confirmed that the magic bag is authentic. By the time we arrived at the gate leading northwards, the sun had already started to set. Timewise, it should be about 3 pm. There’s still some time before the day ends, but it’s a bit too late for starting something new.

For that reason, Viviana and Chasse who came to send us off asked Ciel if she could consider leaving tomorrow morning instead. In reply, Ciel only answered 「It’s fine」 but they didn’t ask any more questions after that.

「I’ll be going then.」
「Yeah, see you again.」
「See you again sometime.」

Hearing Ciel’s short goodbye, Chasse and Viviana bid their farewell. In these sorts of situations, it makes me imagine some touching goodbye scene; but in the world of hunters, where the people you know might be dead by tomorrow, having curt farewells aren’t particularly unusual.

Without turning back, Ciel ventures onwards to a new land.

Heya~! What a great gifts for the holiday (not quite the exact date, but still) to have: one magic bag, two adorable princesses, twelve fools punished, and a goodbye to this troublesome little place~

Once again, Ciel proves to be the heart-throb of the pair, lol. Meanwhile, Ain is busy hilariously trying to convince herself that she’s not happy for being specifically called “adorable”, but is instead happy because she was complimented by a pretty girl in general regardless of what the compliment was. She subconsciously cringed from how painful her attempt of self-justification was though, lol. Still, it’s quite nice to how much Ciel has grown. Ain worries too much, while Ciel cares too little but as a result, they both complement each other, with Ciel being somewhat more mature in certain occasions. Also, Ciel was the one talking the whole time in the second half! Yay~! Slightly pissed Ciel tho.

Now on the other hand, poor Chasse, lol. First, having to clean up the hot dripping mess the guild master made, now being a gofer and also being rejected by his own teammate. As for Viviana, it seems like the hours of tickle torture really paid off considering that she just had a huge power upgrade from the incident. A price to pay for salvation indeed. On to the guild master, well, it seems like he still has his job for now (only it’s not really a job but free labour, and he now has not even a single penny to his name) but only until his replacement arrives, hopefully to smite more judgment upon him. Have fun working to earn the right to decide whether you’ll be sent back to the lowest position in the guild or just have no job at all in the future~

And so our princesses have finally left the royal capital behind before the troublesome knight commander even had the chance to be a greater nuisance and before the steaming hot mess of a stampede hits the metaphorical fan~! What lies ahead in their journey~?

Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!