CH 76

“Hey Kanata, are you having fun?”

“Huh? Oh, it’s Ron.”

Ron approached Kanata, who was sitting in a corner of the grand hall where a lot of food was laid out on the table. 

With a quick adjustment of his glasses, Ron looked like a capable man. Kanata chuckled at his appearance and asked if Thomas was not there. 

Ron nodded.

“Thomas is over there.”

“… Oh.”

Thomas was eating a luxurious meal one after another where Ron pointed at with his gaze. Although it was not a quantity that one person could eat, he kept putting it in his mouth one after another like a competitive eater.

(He’s going to be a match for Mira… No, Mira’s stomach is already inhuman, so she’s not an opponent.)

That just shows how amazing Mira is. 

Now, let’s briefly look at the current situation.

Kanata and the others arrived in Fortuna, and it was already nighttime. The dinner party with the members of the Empire was currently taking place after they had met each other. They were students who spent their days striving to improve themselves, and tomorrow they would be fighting each other with all their might, even if it was just a mock battle. 

“Did you make any acquaintances from the Empire?”

“To some extent, yes. What about you, Kanata…”

“… Don’t make me say it.”

Kanata sighed at Ron’s gaze, which was fixated on him.

Despite this being a place of interaction at a banquet, Kanata had not interacted with anyone. He didn’t feel the need to, and above all, he felt out of place.

“Well, we probably won’t meet again after this event is over, right?”

“Yeah. I’m fine with that.”

“Well, not that it concerns me. But you’re usually getting along well with Princess Maria and Saint-sama, so you’re probably having fulfilling days already, huh.”

“You…”

Kanata gave Ron a sharp look, and Ron apologized before walking over to Thomas.

Once again alone, Kanata took a piece of bread from a nearby table and took a bite.

“What toppings are on this meat and vegetable dish? It’s delicious.”

As he savoured a combination he had never tasted before in the capital city, two unfamiliar voices approached him.

“I understand your excitement, but I wish you had a little more sense of tension.”

“It’s fine. This is like a festival, and we should enjoy it our own way.”

They spoke and stood a little away from Kanata. 

(Oh, I think these are the…) 

Kanata had some information about them beforehand. It was said that skilled students from the Imperial Academy would come this time, and the teachers had warned them specifically about the two of them during the mock battles.

“Anise, you’re a little too relaxed.”

“No-no. You’re the one who’s being so uptight, Fest.”

Their names were Fest Gravatt and Anise Gravatt, respectively. They are twin children of a well-known noble family in the Empire.

Fest had fiery red hair, while Anise had a freezing light blue colour, which, combined with their similar facial features, formed a contrasting beauty.

(Fest, who controls flames that burn everything, and Anise, who controls ice that freezes everything… the strongest twins who’re said to be the future of the Empire, huh?) 

Kanata sighed at why they brought those people here, but it was certain they would fight them in the mock battles tomorrow since they were here.

“This is going to be a mess.”

“It’s going to be a mess.”

“It’s definitely going to be a mess.”

“Huh?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Oh?”

Kanata unintentionally responded to their overlapping words, but it seemed they did the same.

The handsome boy and beautiful girl, with similar facial features, looked at Kanata. He bowed his head slightly, and they bowed their heads back to Kanata. It was immediately apparent that Kanata was not accustomed to such a situation, but he thought that perhaps they would taunt him for being a commoner, but there was no need to worry about that.

“Are you not enjoying this dinner party?”

“Huh? No, it’s not like I’m not enjoying it…”

“Really? I felt a vibe that you’re uncomfortable here. Hey, let’s just go outside.”

“Huh?”

Kanata was suddenly taken by the arm of Anise and taken outside.

“Ah, hey!”

“Oh, it’s raining. Let’s freeze it all!”

Despite not minding getting wet, she froze all the rain ahead to avoid getting wet.

However, Kanata realized that she was not just freezing in the rain.

If she had only frozen the rain, the ice should have fallen to the ground, but all the ice remained suspended in the air as if time had stopped.

“What is happening here?”

“Hehe, it’s a piece of cake with my power~ ♪.”

And this girl was a very high-energy person.

She was only slightly shorter than Kanata in height, but the softness of her body was comparable to Maria’s… in other words, Kanata was feeling the sensation of a woman’s chest for a while.

(… What the heck is happening?)

Presumably, Anise had no other intentions based on her behaviour and didn’t seem to be thinking anything.

She probably just got curious when she saw a student from another school who seemed bored.

“Anise, don’t trouble him too much.”

“Mmm! You’re too strict, Fest.”

“Anise…”

“… Tch.”

So she finally let go of Kanata’s arm.

Although he was surprised to be taken outside like this, he didn’t have much to complain about since there was no ill intent.

When he saw Fest catching up with them later, he thought he might be that type and struck up a conversation.

“Are you the type who has been struggling a lot?”

“Do you understand me?”

“Not really. But she seems stubborn.”

“That’s right! This one is always causing me trouble like an unruly horse!”

“Hey, wait a minute! Isn’t that harsh? You shouldn’t say that to a cute girl who hasn’t gotten married yet!”

It seems that Fest is having a hard time with Anise.

“Oh, sorry for the sudden introduction. I’m Fest Gravatt, and this is Anise Gravatt.”

“I’m Kanata. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Kanata.”

“Nice to meet you too, Kanata!”

Although he was brought here without his consent and had to introduce himself, Kanata could not have expected to speak to the famous twins from the Empire first.

However, seeing them up close, he could tell they exuded a different aura.

Their appearance is impressive, and the quality of the magic they wield somehow feels similar to Maria or Alphana.

“Kanata, are you a commoner?”

“Yeah. So I’m a little surprised you guys are treating a commoner like me normally.”

“I see… Well, there was discrimination based on social status within the Empire before, but after the end of the civil war, it was thoroughly stopped. So at least for us who pledge allegiance to the current Emperor, there is no need to worry about such things.”

“I see…”

Kanata was curious about whether the current Emperor had implemented policies close to the common people. However, Fest suddenly opened his mouth with excitement.

“By the way, Kanata!”

“Y-yeah…”

“I had the opportunity to greet Princess Maria earlier, but there was something I couldn’t ask her. Anise said it would be fine, but it’s still inappropriate to ask in public…”

“…?”

Kanata felt a sense of deja vu in the atmosphere that Fest exuded.

“Kanata, you’re from the Capital, right? Can you tell me about Haishin-sama? Did Kanata get any goods?”

“Hey, you’re too close! Too close!”

The handsome man’s demeanour crumbled, revealing himself as simply a fan. It seemed that he, too, was a victim of Haishin poison, and Kanata felt a complex emotion as the fan appeared with joy, but the man’s dignity crumbled.

(… Here too, huh? Well, it seems like it’s becoming famous even in the Empire… But man, this handsome guy is a mess.)

“Hey, Fest, now you’re the one causing trouble for Kanata…”

“… Ahm. My apologies. We are also Haishin-sama’s fans but we haven’t been able to get any goods. So if you’ve got any, we just wanted to know how it feels to have them.”

“I see…”

Oh, right! Kanata remembered something. 

The Haishin badges were mainly sold in the capital, and the shirts were mostly in the Kingdom and Principality, so they weren’t really circulating in the Empire.

“Come to think of it…”

He only had one shirt, but Kanata remembered having two badges attached to his bag.

“I only have two badges and one shirt, but… do you want them?”

Kanata was naive to offer, but Fest and, above all, Anise reacted greatly.

“You have them!? Will you give them to us!? If you do, let’s work together tomorrow behind the scenes and knock down everyone else except us!!”

“No, no, that’s not okay—”

“Yes. There’s nothing better than Haishin-sama goods. Of course, we’ll give you something in return too, Kanata.”

“… This is not good.”

It was no surprise that nothing good came from getting involved with Haishin. 

The twins, who had been promised a future in the Empire and had their power recognized, were also a bit too extreme as fans.