CH 25

Chapter 25 – Mom’s not around, so it should be fine, right?

Translator: Yonnee

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Recalling the past, I recalled the time I was guiding him. With how scalding the hand clutching my arm tended to be, the tongue that would sweep through my mouth was just as exceedingly hot.

His blue eyes were cold, but the look behind that gaze of his was, with no exaggeration, as fervent as an active volcano.

“Yeah. To be more precise, Father’s a swordmaster. I haven’t reached that level yet.”

Hearing Brother’s subsequent explanation, I snapped out of my reverie.

My eyes no longer glazed over, I asked back.

“Swordmaster?”

This was yet another word I had come across in a different book.

Swordmaster.

From what I read, a swordmaster was someone who had exceeded the limits of a normal swordsman.

Furthermore, they were divided into several grades.

…It seemed like grades were common, wherever you were in the universe.

It all came down to the labels. S-grade or first class. In this case, a swordmaster or a ninth circle mage.

Still though, wasn’t this kind of…

“Dad is… He’s that great?”

“…Uh-huh.”

So it’s really like that. In a way, it’s absurd how I’m hearing about this just now. I had no idea about it because I’ve just been staying cooped up at home all this time.

My everyday life consisted of seeing Dad getting scolded by Mom so often, but it seemed like Dad acted completely different outside our home.

Since Brother went to the garrison with Dad a lot, he must’ve seen Dad’s cool side a lot.

“I wanna see, too… Brother, can you show me around at the garrison?”

After hearing this, I was immediately overwhelmed with curiosity.

Was Dad stronger than the Espers I had seen in the past?

You never know. Maybe Dad was also easily more powerful than even that man.

If a swordmaster and an Esper were to face off, who would reign victorious?

Curiosity washed over me completely, and I looked up at Brother with round, pleading eyes.

For a trip to the garrison, I’m going to need Mom’s permission. And for that, it wouldn’t be enough to have just Dad on my side.

Unsurprisingly, Dad was utterly weak against Mom.

No matter how much I’d try to ask for it, I might really not be able to go there if Mom steps her foot down and shoots down the idea.

It’s not like a gift that could be given secretly—I’d have to physically be there, and that would be difficult to cover up.

“Ah…”

Brother must know, too. Mom wouldn’t easily give me her permission to go to the garrison, which was situated at the most remote place of our territory, and was a place full of only men.

The moment Mom hears that the baron’s daughter would go to such a place, she’d immediately, most definitely, oppose it.

Mom was adamant about never letting me go to dangerous places. Still, I’m an adult of marriageable age now, so maybe…

…Ah, no. I don’t think Mom would let me, even if it’s like that.

In any case, if I miss this opportunity, I might never get to see the garrison in my life—I might just marry and leave the territory without ever seeing it at all.

If we’re talking about Mom here, that’s definitely a likely possibility.

So, I made a fuss about this, even as I normally wouldn’t have done so.

“Ahh, Brother! I want to see where you and Dad work. I also want to encourage the garrison members who protect our land.”

Of course, I was curious not only of Dad and Brother’s skills, but also the abilities of the other garrison members. It was pure curiosity—I truly wanted to see how they fared.

Were they more tenacious compared to the members of the Special Forces I had met in my previous life?

Or perhaps, they were as tough as some of the Espers I had seen?

How exactly did they subjugate monsters with their swordsmanship abilities?

Well, maybe it’s not pure curiosity, but also tinged with a bit of a competitive spirit. I myself had fought against monsters as well after all.

At my persistent urging, Brother stood bewildered, and with a weak voice, he answered.

“Haa… Rin. Are you planning on stopping the heart of your older brother?”

Sweeping a hand over his face, David let out an exaggerated sigh. He always tried his best to give me everything I asked, and he was being tormented even more right now.

He had two options. One, to take me to the garrison and endure Mom’s ferocious glare and never-ending nagging. Or two, to not bring me to the garrison in order to avoid Mom’s nagging, but he’d have to make it up to me later.

It’s clear that he couldn’t decide easily as neither side sounded all that good.

With a smile, I lifted my bow. Then, I took on the proper stance and pulled on the bowstring—it was to show him that he could take a little more time to think about his decision.

Sailing through the sharp wind, the sound of the arrows hitting the center of the target clearly echoed across the field.

Really. This moment felt ever so peaceful.

* * *

The glow of the setting sun lingered as a red streak over the horizon. However, as the bright red glow slowly faded into cooler tones, the moon rose, showing off its warm yellow hue upon the night sky.

Tonight’s dinner consisted of meat stew, which was imbued with Hans’ amazing cooking skills, some bread that our family’s estate was famous for, and a few simple seasonal fruits.

The meal that was set in front of us could hardly be considered an aristocrat’s feast. Still, of course, it was something that I appreciated a lot.

I had already made a conscious decision to forget the past, but it’s not so easy to forget.

As my mind wandered, I inevitably thought of the meals I had in my previous life—however, I soon banished the image from my mind.

It would be generous enough to call the meals I had, from before I met my ex-husband, as ‘food’. It’s not worth thinking about them when I have such delicious food in front of me now.