Chapter 109: Engagement Ceremony (4)
0QYNEver since the last day at Findias, Alicia spent every day feeling uneasy and distracted. It was partially because her body had yet to fully recover, but the other reason was that it was easy for her to be immersed in imagination when lying still, staring at nothing but the ceiling.RJjVPO
y1oktG“Ah…”wrA
kKtnfThese days, her emotions had been following a certain pattern over and over again.rZgRc
aSUIt was a peculiar relationship starting from the start of the semester. After the Sword Challenge against Lunia, her heart would oftentimes turn warm and her face tended to turn hot on top of that.ZOdcXRJ
XVVgy『You can do it. You can do a lot better than what you’re doing right now.』Hs6VGi
7JMzP『I will protect you, so you focus on one thing.』wC5BtGe
awTEEven when she was up against John Doe the Murderer of the City of Fog.2F5
MYR3『Alicia. You’re a lot stronger than someone like me who used to be a powerless kid back then. I want you to become someone who can be proud of themselves all the time.』MOD3fRG
VXy8iAlso when she was trying to overcome Lunia in her Sword Challenge.bchZCdE
XJm8『Trust me if you can’t trust in yourself. I can assure you… You will do a great job. Everything will be fine.』5uS
915INHe had always been there, cheering and supporting her, while also telling her that she could do everything and that she would never go astray from the path, and…psQTE4
KNcvFN“He said… he’ll be with me the whole time.”xfH
CHKA person who trusted her for no reason.MFY0
LftA person who supported her without anything in return.UC4yBi8
GEfWKEA person who will gladly help her whenever and wherever.yhd4CCT
VGUArThat was who Korin Lork was. Coming across someone like that was a once-in-a-lifetime miracle.kHQFOED
wqh6And a person like that…aCIRh8
Dr4dnJ『What do you think about marrying me?』WJU
XiCPiWas getting engaged to her older sister.15cLidT
MIm4fShe was going to become a family with him as an in-law.feSqaaD
d9F708dThat was something to be happy about. Korin was a great person, so Lunia would probably lead an immensely happy life after getting married to him.KsnB
MqPUOM2It was something to be happy for; she had to cheer for them so why…CERX
hSpC『Brother-in-law… Sister is not coming home tonight.』7ubbu4
LYg3Why was it that she had done something like that inside the illusion?8FTvLs
GqaBn1That was…Bidbbu
q70xjIt’s probably because…aBgG3
UbZB– Alicia. Are you there?aV9Qgxm
RFOv4DxThat was when the familiar voice of the boy echoed from outside the door. Alicia tried to immediately stand up from her bed but stumbled and ended up rolling on the floor.cYUe
M0Eqn– Kuguguugung!!RUWVtAe
PgEkJi“Yess? Yepp! I, I’m here! Mr. Korin…!”ZOdlqGq
fOqpvf– W, what was that noise? Did you fall?VeTeHCT
Wozjy“Ye-no!”Ut1bh
kmd-…What does that even mean?ABf
dTRkAs she was about to quickly leave the room, Alicia realized that she had just woken up and that she had yet to take care of her hair and clothes.5TvfR
g2es“W, wait! L, let me wash…! I mean, I’ll be out shortly!”9lyB
beBmIn a hurry, she stood in front of the mirror, tidied her disheveled hair with a comb, and applied makeup to hide the bags under her eyes.lA24Bw
X1Z5tOAnd in case she smelled, she took a bottle of hair oil and applied a thin layer of it on her hair. The gentle fragrance of her hair seemed enough to hide any unpleasant scent.9h3x
JoneF– Alicia… Are you there? I’ve been waiting for over 30 minutes now.he6
Lh3mCU“I, I’m coming out now! Sorry!”WM4qX
doDje6She was trying to get herself ready as perfectly as possible and took a bit of time in the process. She quickly slid the door open and welcomed the guest.AHZHwM
CueImL1Waiting in front of the door was the boy whose wild appearance was as attractive as always.vfW
yKlY7w“What took you so long?”uLyr
dnoXFne“Haa, haa… Sorry. The room was a bit messy.”ZiJyKo
W2f3“Really? Hoh? Do you usually put your hair down like that at home?”n16x3W5
6E8OPShe was in so much of a hurry that she even forgot to tie her hair into a ponytail.tkwZz
4gW“I, it is a lot more comfortable this way.”2S8
VBs“Is that so? By the way, why are you wearing perfume? Or is this hair oil?”6co
Adtzjp“N, no? I’m not wearing any perfume!”3gllo
4ZPZVuD“What do you mean no? Anyone would say this smells like some flowery oil.”OcMk99r
LodNg8u“T, this is my body scent!”4xhRT3C
Cxrm6J“…Really now?”oFUFg
tCz7jJThe boy asked with a mean smirk that reminded her of Immortan Lork.ATx
Di97“A, anyway…! Why are you here?”dPgko
J22khLE“Oh yeah. I’m going to the town right now, and I wanted to know if there’s anything you want me to get.”vkryiU
3iqQjin“Umm… How about we go together?”NcJlC
e8t“Nah. I have a date with Miss Lunia from now on.”kmLs
DELeAm“Ah…”3R7
7sC4Date.tfaQM
C8bXHearing that word made her head turn blank.VuDB
pbrRight. She remembered that Mr. Korin was… the fiancé of her older sister.7OWnAGx
3klCKhb****JixbhU
iBIma“Goodness. Looks like I had you waiting already.”SMscg
6qKqLQMost of our regularly scheduled dates, which were in place to deceive the eyes of those around us, started like this.XDQj
TRgnR“I’m thinking we should ride horses to the city. What do you think?”MBGU
Giwvycz“Sounds a lot more intriguing than getting on a carriage. By the way, what is that in your hand?”xxB6LD
ELI6Q6gLunia asked while looking at my right hand. In my right hand was a ranunculus that was as red as a rose.Ds31K
M4g7“Is that not one of the flowers in the garden? Why do you have it?”RiD
Ha1So“It was pretty so I took it. Would you please accept it?”uoDoa7
VH0“Hmph. It belongs to our household in the first place though.”P3gJN
Lq1Rtv“I heard there’s no lady who does not like flowers.”V9DO
Y8bFX“30 out of 100. That is very much outdated.”oz5QfVY
h2B“Really?”j0mv
ms4I placed the flower in her hair, while being conscious of the eyes around us.O18rNF7
KEPS“Do you know what it means?”KRrQLM
frjhB“Huhu. Although I do, I will wait for the gentleman to finish his words.”dAzzku
fuCxEu“‘You are charming’.”rBZk3
0a2“60 points. That is a pass mark.”2Lca
eAQyw4P“Where’s the other 40?”P4p9
jBbtw“I might give it to you depending on how you perform today.”IZyCgc3
gqoLRFGetting on our horses, we slowly rode towards the town.Bjq7CBp
K3Cp2dB“By the way, where have you learned such things?”q0X0qlV
TgfF“From a book.”BfYj5N
NBOkTn“That is a nice teacher to have.”Mb4MZ5V
UKiZWhat I realized by going on dates with Miss Lunia a few times was that she was more fond of quiet places than loud ones, and that she preferred simple over fancy.GJvPFm
CvLpB8jShe was the exemplar of a typical proud and traditional beauty. She was such a wonderful lady in all aspects that she was awe-inspiring.UxS
Sysy3After having a meal at a traditional eastern-style restaurant, we drank tea in an open room of a teahouse.Abb
F6Ot9LH“…”SZ5
NYhlMkp“…”nWhlhyR
T4gOLMgShe elegantly raised the cup of tea like the refined lady of a renowned household she was.glM
QduXKg“Why are you looking at me and not the tea? Does it not suit your tastes?”P3zn8kw
SOWg8s9“No, I was just thinking you were very cool.”nNof
fYH0w“Hopefully the date was not too boring. It is rare for me to go out on occasions like this with a gentleman, you see.”ULj
IfZf“It’s my honor.”gKXdjO
DDZEfk1Something I noticed even back in the last iteration was that she had no relationships with men nor the desire to have one.WFobO
oezqvUnlike the last iteration, the survival of Alicia caused pressure from the family which led to the threat of a semi-forced political marriage. If not for that, Lunia wouldn’t even be here going out on dates.XZM7
2cOkw9“I like spending some leisure time like this as well. Honestly, I would have enjoyed anything whatever they were.”2NKgUNe
XOWxA6c“I respect your positive mindset towards everything.”EaUa
VbZxzT“Or more like, it’s important who I am with. I’m sure any man going on a date with you would think the same, Miss Lunia.”2ZLBpeG
9DKtSJ“Huhu.”17m
RUOAs if she was pleased by that, Lunia let out a gentle chuckle. Then, she gazed at me for a while before slowly resting her head on my shoulders.9YjXfV
gjd0Z“Miss Lunia?”20fLe
WIPbR7V“There are still eyes on us. Let us put on a show for them to see.”uWGCzJD
De2OnWas there someone from her family looking at us? In that case, there was a need to put out a better act for this fake engagement.DteEY1
nd2u– TapSl7ffUI
5wbeBPutting my hand on her shoulder, I pulled her towards me until we were so close that we could feel each other’s breath.tZVX4i
P6OSZw“Right. Great work. If this engagement goes through, I will surely repay the debt by fulfilling your side of the contract.”5XeNbGm
AsfaQ2“You’re ruining the mood by saying that.”QDN
z2y“Goodness. It seems that it was inconsiderate of me to say that.”v9n2alV
njJqO“Well, it’s good that we are talking about something at least.”t06wwTO
0FEzkAfter similarly wrapping her arm around my back to my shoulders, she also pulled me in towards her. This in fact suited her a bit more.HYzHFqs
69a6d“I assume your conditions are probably related to ‘those guys’. Is that correct?”1nK60
GIwCJ“Yes.”ZOms
GLjuUx“Haa~. Seriously, I wonder what kind of enemy my fiancé has.”6iQ5G
SQS2X4“I’m not doing this for myself. It’s something that has to be done for everyone.”SHsfUmZ
WUla“What kind of people are they? I can tell just by looking at them that they are very powerful.”CjZAbhO
hnuWhat kind of people, huh.NCKV
7zTHow should I reply to that question? Their existence itself was so nonsensical in the first place that it was hard for me to explain them.W1I
OSAlkeHowever, the most accurate description for them would probably be…tqNv9b
jHCyH“Evil. Absolute evil.”osus0
VYAt“…Considering how that is coming from someone like you, I suppose they are not your run-of-the-mill foes.”vfTZg69
pLn“If I have your help, Miss Lunia and the Arden Family… or even just the Sword Squad that is directly under your command, it would alleviate a lot of my burden.”QfRnBJG
Oet“There is no need for you to worry. I will certainly help you without you even having to say that. However… I definitely was not expecting you to go against the ‘Royal Family’.”KZRto
L1Kon“If you think that’s crazy, you don’t have to be a part of this. I don’t want to cause you that much trouble either.”s9j0pE
FbrGHxo“Indeed, going against the 2nd Princess who has deep connections with the Old Faith is very concerning. Although they have fallen compared to the past, they still have a great amount of support both in the kingdom and continent.”P8YVGM4
e6mJdMy side of the contract that I introduced during the talk about the fake engagement with Lunia was this: a military movement of Lunia and the Arden Family when I called for it.Gk0Wq
UQJGBefore becoming the family head, all she could mobilize were probably the 1st Sword Squad that was directly under her command and a few demon-hunting troops that were a lot weaker than sword squads but… those would be plenty of help already.77ZdlLM
tyqH2fX“Is that perhaps… because of the 2nd Princess and her supporters’ hatred against demons?”vIvcSm
0pgLunia knew that Marie and Hua Ran were demons and that the Royal Family of this kingdom… especially those on the 2nd Princess’ side would feel threatened by it.yQx
MH4yThere were a lot fewer than before, but the reason why the old-fashioned Old Faith still had support from so many people was because of their consistent oppression against demi-humans.DvwSEr
isID1OExcept for unique cases like Marie, demi-humans were all ostracized and hated. People considered demi-humans to be a part of demons just like demonic beasts and spirits, and the consistent demi-human oppression of the Old Faith in contrast to the standpoint of the New Faith made faithful believers stand against one another.sJhU
Tr6dQX“Something I heard from the Guardian Alliance is that the Tower of Mages will soon start to move. They are one of the powerful sponsors of the Old Faith and the 2nd Princess. If you truly wish to protect your friends, you will need to keep an eye out for them,” said Lunia.rmI7Epj
MyOOf course. I knew about that already.cmSRxT
bxUThe main story of the 4th Arc – the stir in the Tower of Mages and the murder of Chairman Eriu Casarr.SjT
2BaThe incident caused by the Red and Black mage factions of the Tower of Mages led to the official death of Chairman Eriu Casarr. Following that were serial attacks of demons, and the actions of the incited group of werewolves from the demi-human village resulted in a terrible public perception of demi-humans.7q5oa
6FZs4NoWhat I had to stop was the death of Chairman Eriu Casarr. To be exact, I had to stop Master Erin’s clone from being crushed.RMSPyO
9paOriginally, it was an unstoppable event in the main scenario. The game had certain scenarios that could only be attended by the permitted party members but… as long as I had Lunia Arden and a group of elite swordsmen, modifying the scenario would no longer be impossible.BlMx1e
KfbuMThe stir in the Tower of Mages would be the first place where I gather all the connections and forces that I had built up over the past year.afofKd
IcQoae0In return for becoming Lunia’s fake fiancé, I would receive military support from her, under the pretext of her helping out her fiancé.TKS5w3e
YtBLNo matter how I saw it, that was way too good of a story for me.BSjrc
Gntm“Korin. Someone I know is very close. We need to be closer.”g52BCO
2MY“Alright.”p5rU
kU2bV0Grabbing my arm, Lunia brought her face towards mine. Depending on the angle, some might even think that we were sharing a kiss. Although I was slightly surprised by it, I gave a natural and fitting response.1Ml84o
McRxB“Hmm. That was a good response.”Ma1GTfJ
KPVD“Well, I believe I am quick-witted enough.”kcNY8H
eRGNJBy“Quick-witted? Not sure about that.”1r4qAe
dDm“Huh? Is there something I missed?”tPu1Md
cNm“Nothing. Looks like there’s a long road ahead of my sister.”Rrf5TZ
o8tHoLunia muttered while glancing somewhere. She was still tightly holding onto my arm so I gently tapped hers.C7cbxzi
mmNWe“Miss Lunia. Your hand.”mZWEx
rpn“Ah, my apologies. Did that hurt?”hLrHL
NmEsW“You have calluses on your hands so it did hurt a bit.”j0XGn
uMIC“I apologize. And I know they are unsightly for a woman to have.”FnpC
nlBBw“What do you mean? They’re cool.”bI0k1e
4OtThere were a lot of calluses on Lunia’s hands. These took a lot more than a day or two to form.hrd
xeV9MThose had layers and layers that were formed by her continuing to push herself beyond her limits consistently for a very long time. The training I had done for 3 years in the last iteration added to 1 year in this iteration was still far from reaching all the hard work Lunia had gone through.PkUf
9gFObbd“Open your palms for me.”u4Lhh0t
zZUWf5“Hmm?”1YPUS
g9zDespite her doubt, Lunia obediently opened her hands. While touching her hands, I stroked the thick and rough calluses.DnEZ
ahvr0f“As I said, these are awesome.”CMLC
yEj1qna“Is that… so?”hMD
s7RGY“When you look at someone’s hands, you can tell how diligent they have been.”CBE
bQUThat was the case even for students studying with a pen, let alone warriors. Having this many calluses would require an unbelievable amount of hard work.ck0vQ
bkj“Each and every one of these calluses prove your hard work and experience. What’s the reason you should be embarrassed by them?”lMNeT
TINEG1“I see…”P3bLQ
c2W“If someone says something about them, that just means they are narrow-minded as heck. This is a beautiful charm that only you have.”AOry
dGXQum“Huhu. You are very smooth with words, are you not.”c2lwRlQ
Q1zBaShe seemed pleased by my compliments.JJRo6
RF0Both in the last and this iteration, there were a bunch of things I had learned from her. How could I not respect this master of swords, who endlessly trained herself despite never being able to fully reach the Domain?wh67
kNduTW“Well. That was very sweet of you. So sweet… that it even made me ponder whether I should take you as is.”Rs3R
WempCp“Aye~. Now that’s an overstatement.”XmnRP
DEI“Huhu,” she chuckled before opening her mouth again. “You should go home first for today. There is a place I need to be.”nC0uo2
tu0Cu“Sending the lady off home is the duty of a gentleman though.”MdfBN5z
sDel5“I will gladly accept just your thoughtful consideration.”SeZU
3fgSaying that, she stood up and left first. It seemed that she really did have a place to be at.bkf6hi
aYmIJust like that, our last date before the engagement ceremony came to an end.qSoK
hILuTSoon after, we had a very simple engagement. Since this was, after all, just a means to officially state that Lunia had a fiancé, the ceremony was held with very few members of the household.qll
gMuVH“Are you ready, my fiancé.”lQbSY6u
0g24AH“Uhh…”JKMhCn
ThTay42When my engagement partner walked into the venue, I was so shocked that I was momentarily lost for words.EyLXy
GwuXLCWBecause she always wore suits and martial uniforms, I had rarely ever seen her all dressed up beautifully.NWBWO
caGHer bare face was already beautiful enough and even when counting all the years I had spent with her in the last iteration, I had rarely seen her dress up like this in the span of 4 years.IMu
MiqPcyStarting from the fancy decorations and a hairpin on her hair to a traditional costume of red silk and golden strings. A layer of lipstick was faintly brightening up her reddened lips.nNg
dEGwef0“You look beautiful.”Kek7
gkd“Huhu. You are indeed a gentleman who knows how to make a lady happy.”8Y3kKxI
RcQRl“I am not joking. You are truly and seriously… beautiful.”osk5m
9fVEven she seemed embarrassed by my straightforward compliment and her cheeks turned red. She then opened her mouth and started speaking as if it was a shame.BkO6tem
xvt“How unfortunate. I have actually started to think that taking you for myself would not be a bad option.”JgT
JsbnjYr“Sorry?”mTeo
0FXBefore I could even fully understand her words, Alicia appeared from the other side of the hall.qPN
Th74adF“What the heck is she doing there?”qDw
o9Q42Alicia Arden – she was Lunia Arden’s younger sister, who should be helping out and putting a crown of flowers on her head as the bridesmaid… So why was she here without even wearing a suit?XPRSZEw
j22sVIAs if she resolved herself for something, Alicia resolutely lifted her head and—yx4
72oXKad“I, I am against this engagement…!”znJuK
icbW, what?1q0s0Ux
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