Chapter 26: Baaath Tiiime!
“Alright then, dismissed!”
“””””Thank you for your hard work!”””””
Having finished yet another monster extermination, we disbanded in front of the Baumgarten Mansion.
“Phew, I’m beat. Bach, sorry to trouble you when you’re tired too, but could you get the bath ready?”
“Understood!”
Nodding at Bach’s brisk reply, I was wondering what to do until the bath was ready when Cornelia, in her armor, approached.
With her outstanding strength, Cornelia had once again snatched away the MVP award this time. Roughly seventy percent of all the monsters were slain beneath Cornelia’s blade.
It was a complete victory, without so much as a scratch, let alone any major injuries.
Cornelia’s Gift is also steadily growing.
It’s great that Cornelia is strong, but the challenge is that I can’t keep up with her strength. For starters, even our movement speeds are on a whole different level, so I just get left behind. Coordinating with Cornelia? As things are now, that’s a pipe dream. My current goal is to use 【Un-Limited】 to somehow catch up to her.
But, when I use Un-Limited, my body hurts like hell… My muscles and tendons tear to shreds, and my bones snap. Even if they heal right away, that doesn’t lessen the pain.
But, this is all to protect Cornelia. I can’t afford to be whining.
I’ve got to somehow master Un-Limited, and make sure I’m ready to use it at any moment.
The mere thought of it is enough to bring tears to my eyes, but I must persevere…!
As I was steeling my new resolve, Cornelia came before me.
“Onii-sama, are you going to take a bath too?”
“Yeah. Ria, you must have worked up a sweat too, right? You should go in first.”
Cornelia absolutely loves baths. Since she hadn’t been able to bathe for three days, she must have been eager to get in right away. So, I let Cornelia take her bath first.
“If you want to get in too, Onii-sama, let’s get in together!”
“That’s… I’m not so sure about that.”
I glanced over Cornelia from head to toe.
Cornelia is small. Even though she’s about to turn eleven, she only looks to be around six or seven. Naturally, there was no sign of her chest developing, so I could tell that puberty hadn’t hit her yet.
コルネリアはまだまだ子どもだ。だが、年齢はもうすぐ十一歳である。普通はそろそろ男親や男兄弟に裸を見られることを恥ずかしがってもいい年齢のはずだが……。
「ね？ 一緒に入ろ、お兄さま？」
「リアがいいなら……」
まぁ、コルネリアからの提案だし、あまりこちらが勝手に気を回すのも変な話か。
「やった！ お兄さまとお風呂ー！」
I wasn’t sure what made her so happy, but Cornelia was practically bouncing with joy. Her heart, much like her appearance, was probably still that of a child.
Coming to that conclusion, I took Cornelia’s hand and led her towards the bath.
◇
I quickly rinsed off, then plopped into the bathtub. I managed to restrain myself from letting out the “Aahhh~” groan, the kind an old man would make, that usually escaped me.
Inside the narrow bathtub, there was Cornelia, so close our skin was almost touching.
“Ehehe, it’s warm, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it is.”
Even in a bathtub I could stretch out in by myself, with the two of us, it was a tight squeeze.
“Like this, it might be even warmer.”
Cornelia, beside me on my right, shifted, making gentle splashing sounds in the hot water. She clung to my right arm and rested her head lightly on my right shoulder.
I wonder if Cornelia wants me to dote on her?
It’s true that lately, I’ve been so fired up about turning Cornelia into a proper lady that I might not have been pampering her much. Did that make her feel lonely, I wonder?
Perhaps due to the hot water, Cornelia’s cheeks were slightly flushed. Beneath them, her girlish, slightly plump, fair body was tinged pink.
I remembered the emaciated Cornelia I had seen sometime before. Looking at her then, I’d felt nothing but anxiety and fear, but now I felt a sense of relief.
Cornelia is a little short, but she is developing into a fine young woman.
“Onii-sama…?”
Cornelia looked up at me. We found ourselves staring at each other from a startlingly close distance.
“Onii-sama…”
I don’t know what came over her, but Cornelia closed her crimson eyes and lightly pursed her lips with a soft “mmh…” It looked just like she was asking for a kiss… No way, right?
“Hmm…”
I leaned in and kissed Cornelia on her forehead.
Perhaps because she was sweating, Cornelia’s forehead tasted a little salty.
“Cheh…”
Looking dissatisfied for some reason, Cornelia touched her forehead. Was she really hoping for a kiss?
“That sort of thing, you should save for your future husband.”
“But, Onii-sama, you said you’d marry me!”
Did I say that?
Ah, was it that talk about if she didn’t have a fiancé by the time she turned twenty?
The nobles in this country marry young, so if you pass twenty, you’re considered an old maid. Cornelia will probably marry before she’s twenty, too.
Cornelia… getting married…?
Would I be able to accept that?
At the very least, if it’s not someone who’ll cherish Cornelia even more than I do, I won’t approve, right?
Haaah…
If I keep this up, Cornelia will probably find me annoying in the future.
I need to exercise some self-control.