CH 77

“Oh, this is… this is it!!”

“… I can die now. For real… Uwaaaaah ♪.”

The strongest twins were dancing wildly in front of Kanata, who had an indescribable expression on his face.

He gave them a badge, one of the Haishin goods, and they both held it up high and shouted with excitement.

“You want the shirt too, right? I’ll give you… Here.”

Needless to say it was something scary.

When he said he would give them a shirt and held it out, it moved at the speed of light and ended up in Anise’s hand.

“Thank you, Kanata! This is… what I wanted the most!”

“Y-yeah.”

Anise said so while licking the shirt.

It was an action that ruined her beautiful appearance, but it was heartwarming to see Fest cutely rubbing the badge on his cheek next to her.

Well. There is a slight feeling of discomfort when a man does that kind of thing, but Anise’s eccentric behaviour was too shocking.

“…?”

While watching the two of them moved, something flickered in the corner of Kanata’s vision.

He confirmed that someone was there, but since there was no sense of unease, it was probably Mira.

There was no need to be wary of Fest and Anise, but she watched over Kanata wherever he went.

“… Hmm?”

“Hmm?”

However, it was as expected of Fest and Anise.

They seemed to have noticed Mira’s presence slightly and looked in that direction, but they couldn’t find her.

They probably judged there was no need to be on guard, and soon they were absorbed in the goods again.

(… Well, but it’s not a bad feeling to know that I’m loved like this, or rather, they are fans.)

Since he understood their abnormal behaviour was purely because they were his fans, Kanata was quite happy.

He asked the two who were residents of the Empire, whom he would never meet under normal circumstances.

“By the way, what do you like about Haishin?”

When Kanata asked this question, they both turned their faces toward him simultaneously, which made him nervous. 

First, Fest spoke with an air of nonchalance, leaning in and spitting out his words with force.

“I fell in love with the casual policies he proposed and his feelings for the many people they included. Of course, not just me, but many others including the current Emperor sympathized with and were fascinated by him. When we put his words into action and implemented the policies, many slaves and commoners were saved, and at the same time, nobles like us were able to realize the importance of certain things.”

“Oh, I see…”

“There may be people in this world called heroes and brave warriors. However, only Haishin has brought about visible change like this! I am deeply in love with his heart that values the preciousness of everyday life that everyone desires…” 

“… I see.” 

Fest’s words were suffocatingly passionate.

(Well, it’s not just me, but I think everyone ultimately wants peace in their daily lives. I was just talking about how we could achieve that.)

Of course, Kanata did not have any noble ideas. He simply spoke about what he thought could work to achieve peace. Kanata’s style was mostly small talk, so Fest was overthinking things. 

Now, Kanata’s gaze turned to Anise, but he quickly averted his eyes.

“W-why are you taking off your clothes!?”

“Huh? Oh, sorry. I just wanted to put on the shirt quickly.”

Anise had taken off the school uniform she was wearing until a moment ago. Despite being seen in blue, frilly underwear, the same colour as her hair, she didn’t show any signs of embarrassment and quickly put on the Haishin-sama shirt as she said.

“Hey, Fest, I feel like I’m wrapped up in Haishin-sama… Ahh, I’m coming ♪.”

[EDN: Why. Just why.]

“Hey, make sure to let me wear it later too.”

Although Anise’s words were somewhat shocking, Kanata decided not to worry about it, having seen many strange women in this world.

(… I’ve met many, including the Goddess and such. Compared to them, she’s cute.)

Kanata, who had a distant look in his eyes, stared at Anise, who had changed into a shirt. 

Anise met Kanata’s gaze and began to talk about Haishin like Fest did.

“For me, I just really love Haishin-sama. His voice is amazing, and he seems really kind, too. It’s like… he’s an idol I can have faith in, you know?”

“Oh?”

Kanata’s cheeks loosened a bit as she was drawn in by Haishin’s good voice and kind demeanour, but she took a small step back from the conversation.

Kanata tilted his head, wondering if Anise was trying to avoid him, but he soon learned why.

“So, you know…” 

Anise’s aura shifted slightly. 

She took off her shirt and once again stood before Kanata in her underwear. Then, she pressed her face against the part of the shirt with Haishin’s face on it.

As she rubbed her face against it, she eventually lifted her head and said, 

“You know, I’ve been a fan of Haishin-sama since he started streaming, so I’m a pretty long-time fan. I’ve donated quite a bit of money to him too, even though I’m like this.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah, really. I’ve been a fan for so long… I thought I was his number one fan, but why did that princess and saint meet him first? I can’t say it often, but sometimes I feel like I want to crush that beautiful neck of hers, you know?”

“Oh, this one’s dangerous too,” Kanata took a step back.

Anise continued to mutter something, but she seemed to be too absorbed in the shirt she was holding to say anything more.

“… Your sister is quite dangerous, isn’t she?”

“I can’t really say anything about that, but at least there are a lot of girls like her in the Empire, you know?”

“Really?”

“Yes. It’s because he’s an unattainable figure that we’re able to hold back… but then again, for the princess and the saint to meet him like that… that’s so unfair, you see?”

“…”

Kanata looked at Anise again.

To be honest, he was afraid of her, but he had seen women like her who spoke like this on social media in his past life. 

Even if Kanata didn’t intend to, it was a common sight of a woman jealous of another who gets to meet the idol-like entity they worship.

“Well, I don’t want to cause any trouble for Haishin-sama. I won’t lay a hand on the two acquainted with him nor will I give them a hard time. I know my limits.”

“… I see.”

“Anise also has a girly side where she fantasizes about dating Haishin-sama. There are cute parts to her, I can tell as her sibling.”

It’s questionable whether fantasizing is girly or not, but Kanata decided not to think too much about it. 

Afterward, Kanata parted with the two while they thanked him profusely.

After the two left, it seemed that someone was still watching them. It was Mira who quickly landed beside him.

“Good work, Kanata-sama.”

“… Yeah, I’m exhausted.”

“Those two are quite skilled, huh.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. If I were to face them, my chance of winning would be about sixty percent. If they were to detect me head-on, I would probably cut it to fifty percent.”

“I see. But still, you’re so amazing, Mira.”

“Hehe, I’m your bodyguard, after all, Kanata-sama!”

“Thanks. But would your winning percentage be lower if you faced the two of them at the same time?”

“Oh, was it hard to understand? It’s a sixty percent chance against the two at the same time!”

“…”

Kanata realized once again how high Mira’s potential was and was glad she wasn’t an enemy.

“By the way, Anise has a habit of unleashing her magical power when she listens to Haishin’s voice because she loves him too much. Of course, it may affect those around her, but it has no impact on the human body. In the Empire, it’s like a kind of festival.”

He was curious about what those words meant. Kanata urged Mira to return to the room first and joined Maria and Alphana, who had finished talking with the mayor in the hall.

“Where have you been?”

“You weren’t there during the meeting.”

“I had a chance to talk to the Gravatt twins.”

When he mentioned it, the two looked surprised but then relieved they could make good connections as they were trustworthy personality-wise.

Fest was one thing, but he kept quiet about Anise, who seemed to be carrying a huge bomb.

“Well then, shall we get started?”

Since he wasn’t using the usual terminal, today’s stream was as simple as the one in the Principality.

While being watched by the excited Mira behind him, Kanata began today’s live streaming.

“Hey, everyone! Let’s get started with today’s stream!”

As usual, the comment section was bustling, and Kanata spoke while grateful that many people were watching again today.

However, in the middle of it, a wave of magical energy visibly rushed through his body.

It was a chilly feeling, but it didn’t seem to affect his body, so he stopped speaking for a moment, but it didn’t seem necessary to worry as Mira only tilted her head slightly.

“Today’s letters… huh?”

At that moment, Kanata stopped speaking as he looked outside. It had been training just moments ago, but now, all the raindrops were frozen mid-air and were glittering.

(… Ah, could it be the magical excitement they mentioned earlier?)

It seemed this was indeed the result of Anise’s excitement and magical energy. Kanata chuckled wryly, then resumed the livestream.

****

“Oh, hey, Anise! Today’s livestream was amazing… hmm? Is something wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Then why are you staring over there like that? That’s where the students from the Kingdom are staying… Oh? Do you have a crush on someone there besides Haishin-sama?”

“I don’t have feelings for anyone but Haishin-sama, you know that. Don’t ask such obvious questions.”

“Is that so? Well, tomorrow is the mock battle. So get some rest, okay?”

“Yes~.”