CH 66

“Today is the last day of the holidays, and there were a lot of things that happened.”

Kanata reflected on the past ten days.

At the start, he brought Maria, Alphana, and Mira home to meet his family and acquaint them with the locals.

Then, Kanata became sick and was attended to by Alphana. In the latter half of the Holidays, he enjoyed a leisurely time in the capital without any significant disruptions.

“But that was… good.”

Kanata remembered when he was taken care of by Alphana. Although he had recovered enough to have a conversation when Alphana came to his room, there were moments when he felt too weak to even get up.

Although it subsided quickly, Alphana seemed unable to relax unless she kept an eye on Kanata, so she ended up staying the night.

“If your condition worsens again after I leave, I’ll be worried. So today, please let me take care of you, Kanata-sama.”

Even for a guy, being taken care of by a beautiful girl when you’re feeling unwell is probably in the top three things they want from a girl, Kanata thought to himself.

However, Alphana is also a saint, so he had some concerns about her staying in Kanata’s room in the boys’ dormitory.

“I stayed at Kanata-sama’s home, so it’s no big deal. Besides, I already got permission from the person in charge, thinking that something like this might happen. I was surprised that the permission was granted relatively easily, but that’s how it is. So, please don’t worry about it, okay ♪.”

With all that said, Alphana stayed overnight. She fed him, wiped his body with a towel soaked in hot water, and slept next to him.

“… Seriously, how devoted is Alphana?”

Kanata thought, having received her care and attention directly from her pure feelings for him as a girl rather than just as a compassionate saint. Her existence was significant enough for Kanata to hope he would have such time with her again if he fell ill in the future.

“Fufu, I’m sure other people besides me would do the same thing. If something like this happens again, let’s tell Maria.”

“We can’t keep hiding it from the princess anyways.” With such a remark, she laughed it off.

“Well then, before I stroll around the city again, let’s go to the Magic Bank.” 

The Magic Bank is a bank operated by magic, where all of Kanata’s income from donations on his stream and Haishin merchandise are stored. 

“Magic really is convenient, isn’t it? Even the donation system is thanks to it.”

Anyone with a handheld device can access the Magic Bank, and it’s easy to transfer money to other accounts. The donation system simply sends money from the listener’s account to Kanata’s account on the stream. It’s simple, but it’s strange that there’s no physical contact even though large sums of money are moving around. However, since he has been doing this for a long time, it’s not surprising.

“Let’s see, let’s withdraw 100,000 yen for now.”

[EDN: About $724 USD.] 

Kanata withdrew ten gold coins, equivalent to 100,000 yen. 

“But really, the amount of money being transferred is eye-popping.”

One gold coin is worth 10,000 yen, and one platinum coin is worth 100,000 yen. When you think about it, the income he’s earned as Haishin is really amazing. He’s not really thinking about making more money, but being rich means he doesn’t have to worry about his future.

“There’s no tax return either. This is the best in another world!” 

Although he has to pay some tax, it’s not too much of a burden, so the more he earns, the warmer his wallet becomes.

He withdrew money from the bank and started strolling around as usual, but it’s lonely to be alone like this. 

“Mira, you here?”

“Yes.” 

Mira appeared beside him, and Kanata suggested they walk together, so their walk began.

“… Ah.”

“What’s wrong?”

Although he had wondered about it before, he was now completely used to Mira appearing immediately when called. There was no malice in Mira’s gaze as she looked at Kanata, so Kanata chuckled a little and patted her head.

“Um, well…”

“Mira really is like a little sister to me.”

“Sister… Am I Kanata-sama’s little sister?”

“Yeah. Somehow, aside from Maria and Alphana, I spend a lot of time with Mira.”

“…”

Mira repeated several times that she was Kanata-sama’s little sister. 

Afterwards, she smiled happily, so Kanata’s words must have been very kind to her.

“Kanata-nii-sama… Hmm, Kanata-sama sounds better.”

“I’ve gotten used to that too.”

So they both chuckled and decided not to use ‘brother’ or ‘sister.’ 

Then Kanata and Mira were walking around town, but when they passed by the guild, they felt an unusual commotion.

“What happened?”

“I wonder what it is.”

Kanata and Mira looked inside the building, where four men and women with sturdy appearances were being sympathized with by many people.

“I can’t believe they cleared that dungeon!”

“White Fang is amazing, after all!!”

“Is that the legendary sword they found in the deepest part!?”

It seems a party called White Fang had cleared one of the toughest dungeons. It was a dungeon no other adventurer from any country had been able to complete until now. It was highly anticipated which country’s adventurers would be the first to clear it.

“They probably went to the Illusion Spine, located between the Kingdom and the Empire. I heard that magical beasts living there are powerful, and there have been many confirmed deaths.”

“I see.”

The toughest dungeon was a place where adventurers were always close to death, but it was also a place of dreams. Kanata might be able to use his infinite magic cheat to clear it, but it didn’t matter to him anymore.

“Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Let’s go, Mira.”

“Yes!”

Since neither Kanata nor Mira were particularly interested in their achievements, they resumed their walk, snuggling up like siblings.

****

“Well done. I never thought we would have a conqueror of Illusion Spine from our country.”

“It’s an honour to hear your kind words. I wanted to achieve something that would allow me to have an audience with the king.”

“Hou?”

The White Fang members in front of him bowed their heads. Their achievements were worth the blessing of the kingdom’s top leaders.

(… I can’t wait for it to be over.)

Meanwhile, Maria, wearing a dress and having returned to the castle, looked bored as she watched her father and their conversation.

If she had returned to the dormitory yesterday, she could have spent time with Kanata or even gone to the church to help Alphana.

As the Third Princess, Maria had no interest in the achievements of these adventurers… It was unbecoming of a princess, but there was no one who could be interested in something they had no interest in.

“Maria, you’re showing your emotions on your face?”

“… I apologize for that.”

Her brother Julius scolded her, but he was likely the same.

“I’d rather look at Haishin-sama’s merchandise than this.”

The Second Princess, Leona, one of Maria’s sisters, had already spoken her mind.

As the boring time passed like this, when the king proposed rewarding them, the leader, Matt, spoke up.

“May I ask you something?”

“Very well, speak.”

There was no trace of the pitiful appearance the king had shown when facing Kanata before; there was only the strong figure of a king carrying the weight of his country. 

Without being intimidated by the king’s overwhelming presence, Matt opened his mouth wide.

“May I request for my engagement to Maria-sama?”

The atmosphere in the room froze at his words.

Maria herself looked foolish with her mouth open, but Matt continued his words as if feeling a sense of accomplishment.

“I’ve been smitten with her since I first saw her. I was already a successful adventurer but I have always wanted to be with her. That’s why I thought that merely being an adventurer wasn’t enough, and achieved what I have now. It’s because of my feelings for Maria-sama.”

Well, it’s somewhat common for someone to express their aspiration for a princess when they get some achievement. He must have worked hard just for that purpose.

(… Although, from my perspective, this is the first time I’ve seen him.)

On the other hand, Maria had no recollection of him at all. While her older brother and sister laughed merrily next to her, the silent king spoke up.

“Keep your dreams to yourself. Why do I have to give my cute daughter to someone like you?”

“… Eh?”

And this king was quite a doting father. He thought the First and Second Princesses were adorable, but he was even more indulgent with Maria and her younger sisters. Even if it was to strengthen ties between nations, there was no way he would give them away in marriage.

“Feel free to express other wishes. But my daughters are off-limits.”

Matt was dumbfounded by the absolute rejection, and Maria silently declared her love for her father.

“If Maria were to be married off, it would have to be to someone as great as Haishin, so just give up.”

Maria then declared her love for her father even more. Matt hit the ground with his fist, looking frustrated.

****

“… Ah-chooo~~~!!”

Kanata let out a beautifully artistic sneeze.