Later that night, I waited for Julia as I pretended to sleep. It didn’t take long before I heard the door creak.
…She’s here….
As I kept pretending to sleep, Julia sat down and placed her head on my chest. I felt slightly more nervous than usual… is it because I decided to not see her as a little sister but as a girl?
Am I really that easy…?
‘Aska,’ Julia whispers, ‘I love you.’
‘ba-dump ba-dump’
Ahhhh! My stupid heart is racing? Are you kidding me?!?!?! We-well… sh-she’s never directly told me so! I got caught off guard!
“...Aska, I know you’re awake,” Julia said. Her voice was gentle, and as I slowly opened my eyes, her face was flushed as she sheepishly gazed at me while resting her head on my chest.
“Good morning,” she said, gently smiling.
‘ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump ba-dump’
“It’s night, though,” I replied, trying to hide the fact my heart was being stupidly loud.
“You’re red,” Julia said and cutely giggled, “I can hear your heartbeats too,” she later comments. “Are you seeing me as a girl now?” she also teased me.
“...What will you do if I say: yes?” I replied.
Upon hearing my response, her eyes widened as she looked at me in puzzlement and became flushed. “Hu-huh!? Aah-um… I’d be very happy.” she replied.
Figures….
“In that case… I need some space. I-I can’t spend the night with a girl I’m not going out with, can I?”
“....” Julia pouted. “Valid point,” she complained. “But… you’re not trying to rid of me, are you?”
“...If that sounds like an excuse, then… my heart wouldn’t b-beat so fast….”
“I-I see,” Julia responded, happily smiling, fidgeting and suddenly asked, “S-so… we’ll be like childhood friends?”
To which I chucked, saying, “Sooo~ you want to auto-lose?”
“H-Hmpf! St-stupid brother!” she cried, lightly hitting me on the chest as she sat up. Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth for a reason, “I-I mean stupid Aska….” she hurriedly corrected herself.
…Old habits die hard, huh?
“Oh? Could it be you’re actually into that fact I’m your brother?” I teasingly asked and grinned from ear to ear.
“......”
“......”
For real?
Julia turned completely red as steam practically came out of her ears, and she’d abruptly get up, headed to the door, “A-anyways! I’ll go now! Good night!” and hurriedly left the room.
……..
….
What the hell!? Was she always this cute!? Her honesty is way too cute!
…But, as I calmed down, I looked up at the ceiling, reaching out my hand.
“...Is this some sort of psychological phenomenon as well? Or… am I trying to run away, not admitting that I may be attracted to her?”
Shit…. I don’t know.
— :::: —
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
The next day, brother Al brought a girl with him. A girl! Well… it isn’t unusual since he’d be with Saint Amethely sometimes, but… this time, it wasn’t… is he cheating? Well… jokes aside.
They seem to be good friends, or rather… birds of the same feather, perhaps?
Well, whatever the reason, she looked about our age, pretty, black and silverish hair, silver eyes, she generally reminds me of the moon…. She’s also as tall as Julia. Well… Julia isn’t that tall, to begin with….
“This is Luna Ilifel. She’ll be instructing you along with me, and yeah… I suppose it turned out that I lied… subsequently, the staff that would keep guiding you is me… I found out about it yesterday that it’d be me….” Brother Al said, seeming apologetic.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1062138533323735124/1094636797532848169/1681051758794.jpg]
Ahh, duh, her first name literally means moon. Wait! Brother Al will still be with us? Yeye~!
The girl beside him giggled and said, “Well, you’re not a trainee anymore,” as she softly smiled at him.
“I suppose,” brother Al responded to her comment.
This Luna Ilifel girl seemed cold and expressionless at first, but she can be cute like that, too, huh?
Hmm? Haa? Ehh?
Ilifel? Like… from The Imperial Family? HUH!? She’s a princess?!?
…Ilifel is the heart of the empire and, well… where The Imperial Family lives. From what I’ve learned, it’s one of the safest places in the world.
The city's base was built on anti-magic materials as well as magic-resistant materials. Not only that, there is a physical barrier and an anti-magic barrier that only allows selected spells, other spells or unauthorised mana to get destroyed….
And the Ilifel family controls the distribution of those anti-magic materials as well as the advanced magic barriers…. About 1000 years ago, they were the only prosperous kingdom to survive a great calamity…. Not only that… apparently, the only princess is exceptionally competent in fights….
That Princess? She’ll teach us?
‘Gulp’
“A pleasure to meet you all, as you may or may not know. My name is Luna Ilifel, the first-born child of Emperor Enon and Empress Ririsa. I’ll be instructing you alongside Alum from now on.” she elegantly introduced herself and was very princess-like.
And as everyone rose to form their seat to clap their hands, she’d sweetly look at brother Al. as if to say, “Praise me!”
…Later, we learned about the labyrinth and… apparently, it’s like another part of the city until floor 15, where monsters become dangerous, and there was even an academy on floor 10…. How massive is the labyrinth? Wait… is that why Ilifel technically isn’t the largest city in the Empire?
Anyways… what caught my attention was…
“There is a beach on floor 3, and we’ll head there a week from now, since we’ll be celebrating the graduation of the trainees, like Al. and… since there will be otherworlders as well, we’d like you to get along with them too, as they’re close to your age.” Princess Luna announced.
When she announced that, everyone was surprised, not only by the beach part but meeting otherworlders as well. Well, except for brother Al, he kinda tilts his head in confusion, as he didn’t seem to get the appeal of beaches.
And the princess noticed this as well and giggled.
“My? Don’t you want to see Ame in a swimsuit?” she teasingly said and poked him with her elbow.
“......”
“Oh my, oh my? Are you perchance imagining it?” Princess Luna said with a smug grin.
“...I am not.” bother Al answered.
“Highly doubt. Look at you, blushing,” Princess Luna said as she giggled, then pointed out more things, “not only that, your reply was delayed as well. Though, I suppose Ame would be happy if she heard this~.”
“.......”
Ah… brother Al, how cute! I mean… the saint is super pretty~, so he and the other boys are probably imagining her like this:
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1062138533323735124/1092028548602150994/swimsuit_Ame_2.jpg]
Wait… since she’s brother Al’s fiance, isn’t he supposedly imagining her like this?
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1062138533323735124/1092028559528296509/swimsuit_Ame.jpg]
W-wait! Ma-maybe eve—
Before I could finish my train of thought. Brother Al coldly glared at all of us, his eyes were empty, and it was as if they said, “I’ll rip your atoms anew with [Droplet Pulsar] if you imagine her in any funny ways.”
‘E-Eep!’
Hooooly shit!? He’s terrifying!!!
I-I swear, brother Al! I had no strange thoughts! I only thought of the strange thoughts I assumed ‘you’ and the other boys had!
Wait! Then I did have some strange thoughts! I’m hella guilty as well!
Ah…! Hilda, Julia… p-please don’t look at me like that…!
And sensing brother Al’s strange aura, Princess Luna dragged him out of the room to presumably calm him down….. ‘Slap, slap.’
Or not….
He later came back seeming pretty chill as his cheeks were red, presumably slapped to his senses by Princess Luna… he’d chuckled and scratched his head, apologising, though… his eyes were kind of scary still…. Until he slapped his own face until they swelled….
Wait… he was the one slapping himself? Ah… from the looks of it, it appears so since the princess was facepalming….
From that day, we learned that the first rule to not anger brother Al was: never to have improper thoughts about The Saint…. NEVER.