It was a beautiful day. Sitting on the carriage side with the window open, I gazed at the wide empty plains beside us. The grass swayed in the gentle breeze, going left and right as we made our way down the empty road.
We were on our way back from our grinding. Usually, Fortis would help us by teleporting us back home. After gaining access to the secret library, though, he had been busy studying. Flying onboard Maya would be quicker, but since we didn’t have Fortis with us, we needed another high-level person to watch over us in case something went wrong, hence the knight accompanying us through our entire grinding trip. As a knight, he would probably be fine flying with us, but we decided against taking risks.
Taking it slow every once in a while wasn’t bad, either. I quite enjoyed the relaxing trip back.
“And after that, the president chose her as the knight in shining armor,” Solicea said, reminding me of the conversation we were having.
“The knight?” I asked, recalling what she had told us before. Solicea was in the middle of talking about a play their club held a while back. It was about a dragon and a knight, about how the knight fought a hard fight against the dragon to rescue a princess.
“Yeah. Every time she arrived at the scene of the crime, she would go, ehem, ‘My name is Knight Salvandor. I have come to save you.’” Solicea mimicked Maya’s flat expression. Maya did have a kind of flat expression when she spoke. She occasionally showed color in her face, but that was pretty rare when compared to the frequency of a regular person.
“Is her tone always that flat?” Brother asked.
“Flat? It's colorful,” Maya replied.
Solicea shook her head. “I have to agree with His Highness on this one. You didn't change your tone at all.”
“You simply can’t see color.”
“You…” Brother gritted his teeth. He disliked being insulted, but he put up with Maya and Fortis. We couldn’t face the difficulties ahead without them, so it was for the best. Besides, I think he’s having a lot more fun with us compared to when he was alone doing his tasks.
“But, why didn’t she get picked as the dragon?” Maya is already a dragon. There would be no need for props or make-up were she to be the one to take the dragon’s role.
“Well, her dragon form is too big to fit in the auditorium. The president probably wanted to change things up a bit as well.”
“Ah, right.”
“Hold on a moment.” A magic symbol appeared on Brother’s right eye. The symbol for Connect.
We remained silent as he had his Connect. A smile appeared on his face as he nodded.
“Who was that?” I asked after he finished.
“Nayala is here.”
Ah, Miss Nayala. She’s already here?
She had told me of her visit before. I wasn’t expecting her to arrive so early, though.
“Nayala?” Maya tilted her head.
“It's Her Imperial Highness Nayala for you.” Brother scolded. “Although, like with Emori, she probably wouldn't mind.”
“Her Imperial Highness? I wasn't expecting a visit from Nanawak,” Solicea said. I think she mentioned it some time before. Her family ruled the Misyonoer province in the East, near the sea. She had a fleet of ships, both for protection and for trade.
“Isn't that where that gold musket you gave me came from?”
Brother lifted his eyebrow. “A gold musket? Just what are you buying her, Solicea?”
“It's a miniature musket.” Solicea waved her hands. “It can't shoot anything.”
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“Is that so?” Brother leaned back in his seat.
“Oh, by the way, is Her Imperial Highness the one marrying you?” Maya asked.
Brother jerked his head my way. “Emori.”
“... Sorry…”
It wasn't supposed to be announced just yet, but I accidentally spilled it back when I was in Solicea's home for spring vacation.
“Sigh… whatever. It's too late at this point. Also, why the heck do you treat her with respect but not me?”
Maya stared at Brother. “I don't think you deserve my respect.”
… Emori doesn’t mince words, does she? I smiled wryly.
“You…”
“Ple- Please don't fight.” I interfered before things could get worse. “Anyway, can I come with you? I want to see Miss Nayala.”
“Nayala asked to meet you, actually.”
“Okay then.”
I wished the carriage would go faster.
* ••
We first dropped off Maya and Solicea at the school’s gate, before continuing our ride to the castle. The driver drove us straight to the front gate, where knights saluted us as we passed. One of the knights escorted us to the guest room.
“Please excuse us,” Brother said before we entered.
Nayala sat on the sofa, enjoying a cup of tea. Mister Akareseki, the Bearer for Nanawak, was with her. I wonder if he had something to do during this trip.
I bowed to the two of them. “Miss Nayala, Mister Akareseki, welcome to Syla.”
“It’s an honor to be here. Thank you for your hospitality.” He bowed his head. Even when bowing, Mister Akareseki was taller than me. His figure was quite imposing, but he had always been kind to us, so I was comfortable around him.
“Emori. You’ve grown.” Miss Nayala put her cup of tea down on the table and stood up. She approached me and hugged me. “Been a while since we last talked to each other.”
“Haha, yeah…”
Despite coming from different countries, I and Miss Nayala talked with each other often using Connect. Not as often as Brother, though.
Miss Nayala let me go and turned to Brother. “My. It’s been a while, Prilus.”
“We talked to each other last night,” Brother said, a smile on his face. We both sat down across from her while Mister Akareseki stood by Miss Nayala’s side. A servant came to offer us tea.
“Thank you.” I took a sip from the sweet tea. It had a familiar honey-like taste. “Is this from Zurowa?”
“Yes.” Miss Nayala nodded. “How do you know?”
“I tried it during breakfast at a friend’s house.”
It was during my spring vacation trip to Lasiona, the coastal city where Solicea and her family lived. As an importer of Nanawak’s goods, they knew how to find good tea.
“Are you here in preparation for the betrothal?” I asked.
Miss Nayala giggled. “A certain someone spoiled that to her friends, I hear.”
“Sorry...”
“It’s alright, I’m just having fun with you. I’m here to prepare for the announcement, and for something else.” She looked toward Brother. “And it’s something quite serious.”
“What is it?”
“I already told Fortisbel about this, but we’re facing strange monsters in Nanawak.”
So Miss Nayala already met with Fortis?
“Is that why you asked about him yesterday?” Brother asked.
Miss Nayala nodded. “Yep yep.”
Mister Akareseki continued the explanation. “We have found signs of the demon king’s suspected return in the form of strong monsters. When they died, they left magic stones with demon symbols on them. The strength of these monsters forced us to deploy many troops to the dungeons. This is embarrassing to admit but we are not prepared for another war against the demon king.”
“So they’re already in Nanawak…”
“And they’re just like what you told me.”
I raised my hand. “But why did you meet with Fortis?”
“Fortisbel? He’s the one that told you all about the demon king’s return, right? He may know a thing or two about what we’re dealing with. Besides, where else do you find a level 100 his age?”
“So you’re here to ask for his help?”
Miss Nayala nodded. “If you can help then I don’t mind extra people. You did face them before, didn’t you?”
“Yes, with Fortis.”
“I can’t come,” Brother said. Being the crown prince, he had to deal with a lot more things compared to me. My workload was little when compared to his. “But I’m sure you can go. I’ll handle things back here.”
“If that’s the case, then I’ll love to help. I think Fortis and the others are willing to.”
“That’s good news.” Miss Nayala smiled. “I’ll reward you all handsomely.”
“Ah, there’s no need. I’m happy to help.”
“Don’t say that, Emori. Hard workers deserved to be rewarded.”
I could only nod. Miss Nayala had helped me a lot in the past, so I would take any chance to repay her kindness.
After that, we chatted for a bit more. We discussed various things, from our school lives to our hobbies. After the sun set, it was time to part ways. I headed back to the school to get some good night rest.