A Low-Key Chapter
“――【Levitate】――”
Using the Level 5 Dark Magic, 【Levitate】, I floated gently into the air. As I kicked off the wall of the Guild training ground and leaped up, Theo, using his full Physical Enhancement, hurled a short-cut log at me.
“――【Dancing Reaper】――”
I activated the 【Battle Art】, and the eight consecutive strikes unleashed from the black knife and dagger I held shattered the armful-sized log in an instant.
Only the sound of wood fragments falling, like raindrops pattering on a roof, could be heard. As I landed silently on the floor amidst it, voices akin to a stir escaped from the staff members who had been watching.
It seemed that almost all the staff members who were free had come to observe the rare event of a Rank 5 certification, even in the Royal Capital. Among them, Rockwell Dandole, who was also watching, clapped his hands in admiration, though he looked slightly awkward.
“There are no Rank 5 individuals in the current Knight Order, but this is truly tremendous… I’m grateful to have witnessed your capabilities anew.”
“You honor me.”
While thinking I was being praised quite a bit, I obediently bowed my head to the words of a high-ranking noble. His demeanor was a little strange, but I understood a moment later when Theo, looking like he had a headache, pointed at my feet.
Even ordinary women show their legs from the knees down, and female adventurers don’t mind exposing their limbs, but noblewomen are different. A noblewoman’s legs are always hidden down to her ankles by the hem of her dress. Therefore, showing one’s legs is considered indecent.
None of the commoner staff members cared, and Theo, though he clutched his head, was used to it. In short, because I had been flying around in my maid uniform, he must have seen my legs.
“Well then, I apologize, Miss Aria. Might I have a little of your time? Your younger brother as well.”
“Of course, Dandole-sama.”
After the former bandits who had been bothering Rockwell fled, he had said he wanted to talk for a bit, but when he heard I was updating my rank, he asked to observe it.
Being the kind of man who embodied knighthood, perhaps he simply prioritized my errand, or maybe he just wanted to see a high-rank Battle Art as a warrior. However, after seeing my technique, he wore a serious expression and bowed his head for taking the time of someone like me, who was merely the adopted daughter of a mid-ranking noble.
“So, what is it you wished to discuss?”
I was able to borrow the Guild’s reception room using my authority as a Rank 5 adventurer. I learned about this kind of authority for the first time, but according to Mary-san, who suggested it, high-rank adventurers sometimes take on requests involving nobles, so the Guild accommodates them.
He had requested that from this point on, we converse not as high-ranking nobles but as fellow students. So, Theo and I sat down on a stiff sofa made of thick monster hide, and when I spoke to Rockwell, who sat opposite us, he stood up once and bowed his head again.
“Regarding the trouble my sister caused at the royal castle the other day, and my inability to rush to Her Highness the Princess’s side… I apologize.”
“…Please raise your head. That was not your responsibility.”
The “trouble the other day” likely refers to the incident where Elena and Clara, who weren’t on good terms, created a delicate atmosphere, and Karla got involved.
Elena is somewhat aware that Clara is maneuvering behind the scenes. The fact that she merely offers a mild rebuke and leaves it at that means Elena also condones it.
In reality, the Crown Prince’s matter has already become a royal family issue. His Majesty seems to have somewhat given up, but he probably can’t fully come to terms with it yet… or so Elena had said.
Finding a resolution for that is Elena’s job. In that regard, Elena and Clara agree on who the troublesome individuals are. But, if Clara were to take any strange actions, then I would deal with everything.
However… seeing Clara’s attitude at that time, Elena saw the younger version of her and is hesitating to cut her off.
Is Rockwell worried that his younger sister, Clara, isn’t building good relationships with either Elena or the Crown Prince?
But the matter with Karla is not something he needs to worry about. He is not Elena’s knight, and even the Royal Guard knights couldn’t rush to the scene at that time.
“Certainly, those present were members of the royal family and those of quasi-royal status; a mere knight wouldn’t have been able to stop them. But I… regret not being there. As a knight, at least to be her shield…”
“Is that so?”
I nodded vaguely, feeling a slight sense of unease at his words.
As a knight, isn’t one supposed to dedicate their life to His Majesty the King? Only we, her close aides, and His Majesty the King should know that Elena has decided to become queen.
His words sounded as if he wanted to protect Elena alone, even at the cost of his own life.
“I was feeling the limits of my own abilities. In the incident where we were attacked in the forest, I saw your strength and realized just how arrogant I had become for reaching Rank 3 as a student.”
“So that’s why you were dabbling in being an adventurer?”
“Dabbling, huh… That’s right. I deluded myself into thinking that if I became an adventurer, I could catch up to the strength of people like you or Count Lester’s daughter.”
“I understand, Dandole-sama!”
For some reason, Theo nodded as if empathizing with Rockwell’s self-deprecating remark.
It’s the same with Theo, but he too is mistaken in his comparisons. Both Theo and Rockwell possess more than enough skill for students.
Not that I’m in any position to say that, so I won’t.
“Strength isn’t acquired immediately. First, you should consider what you need strength for. What needs to be done… Don’t graduating students have things they should be doing right now?”
“That is… true.”
Looking at the two men empathizing for some reason, I didn’t quite understand what they were trying to say in the end, but it was a matter to be discussed after they’d done what they needed to do. However, his response to that seemed to react more to the word “graduation” than to becoming stronger.
“I had started to feel as if I was qualified. However, it seems I still have things I must do. It was good enough just to understand that I can’t become strong immediately. So, if it’s alright with you…”
“…What is it?”
When I prompted him, as he momentarily hesitated, Rockwell opened his mouth after a slight pause.
“…When you have time is fine. Even just a little. Would you teach me the mindset needed to fight against the strong?”
“――That’s what he asked me.”
“…………”
If it were just a conversation between students at the academy and involved only me, it would be one thing, but with the other party being a Dandole, I couldn’t refuse or accept without Elena’s instructions.
So, I had no choice but to report it to Elena. She let out a light sigh, then gestured with her eyes, and a lady-in-waiting brought her a letter, which she took.
“What a coincidence. Just a little while ago, a formal proposal arrived from the Dandole Family, you see? For Rockwell, who is graduating, to have me as his partner.”
“I see.”
I also understood why Elena sighed and couldn’t help but sympathize with her.
It’s not a bad thing for a graduating student to invite an underclassman to be their partner. However, it also carries the meaning of conveying one’s feelings to the person one fancies, and for the other party to accept it means accepting those feelings.
First, as a premise, students who have fiancés take that person as their partner to the graduation party.
Even so, a certain degree of dalliance between students is permitted, and there are cases where partners of mismatched family status are chosen. This is evident from the fact that the current King chose a Viscount’s daughter, who was not his fiancée, as his partner.
However, because His Majesty ended up taking that Viscount’s daughter as his Queen Consort, the current royal family is viewed with considerable scrutiny.
Several noble families have sent invitations to Elena so far, but all of them were proposals for “engagement” on the premise that Elena would eventually “marry down.”
The fact that this proposal came not from Rockwell personally but from the Dandole Family meant it was such a proposal.
“It’s a matter of course, but the Dandole Family is operating on the premise that my elder brother will become king. It’s natural, since Clara is a candidate for Queen Consort, right? That said, it’s not wise to refuse them outright. My mother is from the Dandole Family, so they are also my backers.”
I recalled my conversation with Rockwell and surmised that he himself desired this.
He himself has distanced himself from the Crown Prince’s close aides, who are devoted to the Viscount’s daughter. While Clara becoming Queen Consort would create a connection with the royal family, the Dandole Family, considering the relationship between Rockwell, the next Commander of the Knight Order, and the Crown Prince, has proposed an engagement with Elena.
However, if Elena becomes queen, marriage with him, the heir of the Dandole Family, becomes almost impossible.
It would be a different story if he had the resolve to defy his family and become Prince Consort, but the current Rockwell regrets not being by Elena’s side during her crisis and believes he is not qualified for such a role.
But, according to Elena-san—
“Is he perhaps spineless?”
“……”
Even while cutely tilting her head, she dismissed it so bluntly that not just I, but also the Escort Maid who had looked after Elena-san since she was young, were unintentionally left speechless.
“Both invitations and refusals, if they had come from him personally rather than his family, might have been manageable, but… Listening to Aria’s story, I wonder if he’s just not good at that sort of thing? The people of the Dandole Family are so capable, yet truly awkward, aren’t they?”
Elena-san isn’t particularly adept at such things either, but she completely separates her public and private life, so she doesn’t let personal feelings interfere with marriage proposals concerning the nobility.
Setting aside Elena-san’s own engagement matters, she thought it wouldn’t be good to leave him be, now that he had departed from the Crown Prince’s faction. A smile, as if plotting something, graced her lips for the first time in a long while.
“Aria, I have a favor to ask, but… is there something on my face?”
“No. It’s just… I was glad to see that Elena’s expression now looks more like her old self than when she was in the desert.”
“…R-Really, you think so?”
No matter how challenging, this was indeed the place where Elena-san was meant to live.
As she smiled, a smile reminiscent of her childhood mixed with her current, slightly bashful one, I couldn’t help but smile back. The Escort Maid, watching us from a short distance away, looked on with the gentle expression of an older sister watching over her younger sibling.
Afterward, I headed to a certain place for Elena-san’s “favor.” However, on my way there from the Princess Palace, still within the castle grounds, I was approached by someone I never would have expected.
“Please wait, Miss Aria Layton!”
“…Melrose-sama.”
Mikhail Melrose, that young man with whom I also share a complicated past, caught up to me as if he’d been dashing down the hallway. He stopped before me, lightly catching his breath, and then suddenly knelt right there on the spot.
“Please, would you be my partner for the graduation party?”
Next time: The First-Year Graduation Party.
Elena’s Unexpected Move (Unsweetened)
This part of the story was supposed to wrap up in two or three chapters, and we were meant to quickly move on to the second year, but…
That’s my excuse for this rather low-key storyline creeping in.