“What’s with you two, all fidgety… so innocent! It’s making even me embarrassed! I was going to ask when and where you met, but if you’re going to give off such a lovey-dovey vibe, it’s going to kill me, so I’ll hold off for today. More importantly, Akito, how old are you?”
“I’m eleven.”
“Don’t lie. You’re using magic to deceive your age, just like me, aren’t you? To have that level of skill at eleven… can you believe it?”
“But it’s the truth. My full name is Akito Ashcroft. I’m the second son of the Ashcroft Family, famous in the Royal Capital as a family of Light Magic users. You can find out easily if you look into it.”
“Hmm. I know of the Ashcroft Family. And about the recent scandal. So you’re the second son… The curse that was thinly enveloping the Royal Capital, if its resolution had been delayed any further, I was considering intervening directly. It was right after I heard that the Ashcroft Family was the mastermind, and that their second son played a major role in resolving it. And that’s you… I see… Alright, I’ve decided! I’m going to live in this village too!”
“That’s sudden.”
“It’s not sudden for me. I was thinking of checking on Mizuha’s condition from time to time anyway. It’ll be easier if we’re in the same village.”
I tilted my head, puzzled.
There was no event in the original story where a person named Rosette came to see Mizuha.
Probably, in the original world, Rosette withdrew from Mizuha’s maintenance after she retired as a Saintess.
So, why is Rosette being so meddlesome in this world?
“Rosette-san, you’re moving to Emilie Village? Yay! Now we can see each other anytime!”
Mizuha smiled and grasped Rosette’s hand.
Ah, I see, I thought.
The personalities of the original Mizuha and this Mizuha are completely different.
Rosette had called Mizuha a “people-charmer” earlier.
She must be captivated by Mizuha’s smile.
I understand how she feels. I’m the prime example of that.
“Yes. Let’s go out for snacks together again. That aside, the problem is Akito. To have that combat power at eleven years old, and the skill to exorcise curses. Regardless of whether it’s for good or evil, you’re a target for surveillance. And I also have a personal interest.”
Rosette said that, then smiled meaningfully.
Then Mizuha,
“Eh!”
Let out a strange cry.
“Even though it was in a pseudo-world, you did kill me, after all. I didn’t think there was anyone who could do such a thing in a one-on-one fight. I’m sometimes called the strongest human, and I even thought I might be, but my confidence was shattered.”
“Ah, so that’s what you meant by interest…”
Mizuha sighed in relief.
“Kufufu. Mizuha really does love Akito, doesn’t she?”
Rosette seemed amused.
Teasing Mizuha is addictive. I understand how she feels.
“I was able to kill you because I took advantage of your carelessness. If we fought again now, I think the result would be different?”
“Hmm, that might be true. But for a long time, I haven’t met anyone who could threaten my life. It’s only natural that I’d be interested in you, who stabbed a knife into my heart, wouldn’t you say?”
“I don’t really understand… but Rosette, there’s something I want to ask you. You seem to have stopped your aging with magic, but could you teach me that technique?”
I want to live forever with Mizuha.
Rosette, who has lived longer than a Saintess despite not being one herself, might have the answer I’m looking for.
“Hmm. Unfortunately, I can’t teach you. Because it’s not a technique. I’m ashamed to say it, but when I was young, I was afraid of the concept of lifespan. I wanted to study magic forever, but humans die in less than a hundred years. That would make it impossible to pursue the truth. When I thought about that, death became impossible to get out of my head. What happens when humans die? Are we trapped in darkness, or are we reborn? The more I thought about it, the more scared I became… It was a magic that I activated by chance, out of a desperate desire not to die. I couldn’t do it again even if I tried. Much less teach it to someone…”
“I see. But your aging is still stopped in the present, right? Then, I’ll observe you and try to find a hint.”
“So, you’re welcoming me?”
“You’re the one who has been protecting Mizuha all this time. It’s reassuring to have someone like that in the same village. With that kind of title, you must have political power, right?”
It’s better to have more allies.
Especially adults with titles are reliable.
I’m confident in my pure combat power. But I have virtually no social power. Rosette seems like she can make up for what I lack.
Also. I was a fan of the magic books she wrote. It’s an honor to have the author nearby. Would it be embarrassing to ask for an autograph…?
“Leave it to me. Even the king listens to my words, and I have connections with the True Holy Order. I’m reliable, so it wouldn’t hurt to be friends with me, you know?”
Rosette held out her hand. I shook it back.
“Hmm. Shaking hands with a child is a novel experience. Everyone around me was bigger than me. Akito, you might be a little shorter than me, aren’t you? Kufufu. How nice. I feel relatively bigger. Don’t grow up too fast, okay? Let me enjoy this feeling a little longer.”
“H-Hey, Rosette-san! Aren’t you getting a little too close to Akito-kun!? Get away, get away!”
Mizuha hugged me in a panic, then glared at Rosette with puffed cheeks.
Rosette and I watched Mizuha with a smile.
What is this? I feel a tremendous sense of sympathy. Maybe Rosette and I could talk all night about ‘Mizuha’s cute points’.