CH 181

Now that I had managed to persuade Aina, I was heading for the gate.

“Oh, yes, I should say hello to those two.”

As I was muttering to myself that there was someone I hadn’t said hello to, I saw that person walking up from the front and called out to him with a gentle laugh.

“Oh, little Lars, are you going out?”

“Grandma! No, I’m going to live in the Royal Capital today. I’ve been in the care of Grandma since I was a little, so I thought I’d say hello. Thank you for everything, Grandpa.”

“Mhm. You seem busy lately, and it looks like you’ve graduated from the academy. I’m going to miss you, but do your best. I’m sure you have friends in town and it would be nice if you come once in a while.”

“That’s right. We have to live long until we see you again …… Really, you’ve really grown up finely. Even though you were so small when I first met you.”

I used to be shorter than grandma, but now I’m much taller, so she stretches and pats me on the head. Grandpa crossed his arms and patted me on the shoulder with a little tear in his eyes.

“But we’re not going to die so easily, so we won’t say goodbye. See you later, Lars!”

“Yeah, thanks! I’ll be back to see you!”

“Fufu, It’s okay if you look like a child, you know? See you later.”

“Haha, see you later!”

I can’t stop my face from turning a little red and I run off. Considering that my brother and Nora got married, that kind of thing isn’t too far in the future for me either …… I think as I run along, greeting people I recognize on the street.

When the gate came into view, familiar faces were waiting for me, looking at me. Kudelica, who was standing at the front, waved and jumped up and down.

“Oh, here you are! Lars-kun, over here!”

“Oh, you’re late!”

“Kudelica and Ryuuze, sorry for being late! Sorry, Makina.”

I apologized while high-fiving Ryuuze and stood in front of Makina. Makina says to me with a giggle.

“Ahaha, It’s okay! I’m not in a hurry. Is Aina-chan okay?”

“It wasn’t okay at all …… but I managed to convince her. I said I’d show my face once in a while, so I guess I’ll be back? …… I don’t think I’ll be back for a year, though.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, hey, you can talk to Makina from now on, so why don’t you say hello to us?”

Yogus, who is now much taller than us, smiles and says so to us as we put on our determined faces. Yogus is already in another town studying for a new degree, but he came to my brother’s wedding, and when we told him we were leaving in three days, he stayed at home until then.

“Oh, sorry! Thanks for waiting for me, Yogus. Are you going when we leave?”

“Yeah, I guess so. I’ve already been sent off and I’ll see you two off for the last time, give my regards to Helena.”

“Of course!”

“Hmm. a trip as lovers, huh. That’s nice.”

“Jack, that outfit …… aren’t you supposed to be at work?”

Jack approached me, replacing Yogus, wearing a fishmonger’s apron and a hood. He’s running a fish shop with his father, in order. In fact, there’s a rival fishmonger on the other side of town, but Jack’s friendliness has helped boost sales here.

“Well, I’ve told Dad, so it’s okay! Lars, Makina, I’m sure you guys will be fine, but be careful. I really enjoyed my five years at the academy, and I made good memories at Luitzar Country!　Hahahaha!”

At that time, Makina and Nora were followed by Jack in hiding, right? I’ll never forget the devilish look on Tigre-sensei’s face. And then Urka, dressed in dragon robes, laughed and said.

“It’s true, I was also called in afterwards, but thanks to that I gained confidence in [spiritual art]. Thank you, Lars.”

Urka, who used to be short, has grown to be about the same height as me, and we shake hands with a gentle smile. It’s the fastest growing rate that has grown in a year. Then Ryuuze shrug his shoulders in front of him.

“In fact, [Spiritual Arts] is amazing. The actual party is made up of Me, Naru, Kudelica, and Urka, but thanks to Ghost and Undead, we have the advantage in numbers.”

“But remember Mizuki-san told me that Ryuuze has had a good streak from the start?”

When Makina said that, Ryuuze smiled as he touched the large sword in its sheath. 

“It’s thanks to this. The blade won’t chip, and the sharpness is excellent. It can slice through even a deadly bear, you know? This armor is many times better than any other armor out there. But I don’t think it’s right to rely on my equipment all the time, so I try to use a regular sword every once in a while.”

As expected of Ryuuze. It’s a good thing to learn that you don’t enjoy getting stronger. I’ve been training with him for a long time, and I’m sure he’ll get stronger.

“Ryuuze can [Magic Sword], and I can defeat most monsters with my [Superhuman Strength]! When Lars-kun comes back next, we’ll be even stronger, so you can count on it!”

Kudelica winked at me as she twined her arms around me, and Makina stared at her. As she quickly moves away from me, sticking her tongue out, Luciela and Luciel start talking to me. 

“It’s finally happening! Be careful from injuries and illnesses and good luck, you two!”

“Seriously, you’ve dumped my cute little sister, so you’d better take care of Makina, okay? Well, if you get bored, Me and Luciel can keep you company.”

“No thanks!”

“Fufu, I’ve heard that there are a lot of pretty girls in the outside world, so don’t let yourself be taken in, okay? Well, Lars is a noble, right? Maybe I can aim to be a mistress? Right, Luciel, Kuu.”

“S-Sis! No, you can’t do that ……”

Luciel, who was angry, chased after Luciela, who was running away, and I and Makina laughed aloud. We grow and change, but some things never change. I think this is probably a very precious thing.

“I’d like to say hello to you too, if you don’t mind?”

“So we made it.”

“Looks like it. Tilia-chan, let’s say goodbye to Lars-kun and Makina-chan.”

“Is Lars-niichan and Makina-neechan going somewhere?”

And finally, of course, the teachers came to talk to us. It seems that the headmaster has also come.

And Tilia-chan, who is holding hands with Verna-sensei and Tigre-sensei, looks like she’s about to cry. This girl is also attached to me because I used to play with her and Aina. Of course, Makina was also playing with her because she was often with me during my training with Tigre-sensei.

I was wondering if she would cry.

“T, Tilia-chan will play with me, so it’s okay! It’s sad that you won’t be with your brother …… but, you won’t be lonely because I’ll play with you, right?”

Nina’s son, Trim-kun, said this while crying. Wiping his runny nose and tears, and shouted.

Then Hauzen-san , startled, scratches his head and holds out his hand to me.

“Oh, Trim’s shouting like this …… but more importantly, it’s Lars! You’ve been a great help to me, when you go over there, you should show them what you can do, okay? The Royal Capital is a nice place, but it’s a big city, and the people are different.”

“Hauzen is right. There are people who have no power, but they have strange wits about them. I know you’re strong, but don’t let them catch you off guard, okay?”

I nodded my head, shaking hands with Tigre-sensei. It is true that force alone can be problematic, and I need to be more careful, I decided as I looked at Makina.

“Lars-sama, this is a talisman. It’s to pray for the blessings of Crest, the god who created this world.”

Nina smiles softly and offers the talisman to Makina and me. In contrast to Makina’s crescent moon shape, she receives a sewn mascot-like amulet. 　

“…… Thank you, Nina. I’ve been with Nina since I was born, right?”

“Yes, you have. I miss the time when you asked me to help you with your confrontation with Brao-san. You’re going not going to do anything dangerous …… well, I’m sure you will, it’s Lars-sama, after all.”

“Chie, on the other hand, Nina knows too much about me, so I’m not good at that.”

I scratched my head and pointed my mouth at the giggling Nina, and everyone in the room laughed. I continued to speak.

“I’ll also take Hauzen-san and Tigre-sensei’s advice to heart. I won’t waste what I’ve learned so far. Next time I see you, I’ll have grown even more.”

“Oh, that’s nice of you to say. Verna, you should say something to him.”

Tigre-sensei said, and Verna-sensei, who had been smiling all the time, came in front of me and Makina. 

“…… You really worked hard back then, Lars-kun. You’ve become so strong that there’s nothing more for me to teach you. But you’ll always be my students, remember that. I’m going to miss you, but we all have to go our separate ways …… I met Tigre and made peace with my father because of you, thank you so much.”

“Mom, are you crying. Nn-!”

“Fufu, thank you, Tilia-chan.”

Then Makina looked around at all of us and smiled. Then the headmaster also shakes hands with me and Makina.

“I have many acquaintances in the Royal Capital. If you need anything, ask for the person in this letter, I’m sure he’ll be able to help you if you show him this.”

“T-Thank you very much.”

I know Helena and Anthea, Flugel-san who fought with me in Luitzar, Eagle-san, and Hawk-san too.

In addition, I have not seen the king and prince for a long time, so it is difficult to rely on the people who work in the castle, let alone Helena and Anthea, so I appreciate the kindness of the headmaster. I put the letter away in my bag, and the headmaster nodded and stepped back.

Then Makina put her hands on her hips and opened her mouth.

“Take care, everyone! If anyone is missing when we return, I won’t forgive you!”

“I’ll use Spiritual Arts then.”

“Well, you can’t die! …… Lars, when you get back, I’ll ask for a match again, okay?”

“Yeah, Ryuuze. We had a rough start …… but I’m glad I met you, my best friend.”

“……! H-Hmph, get the hell out of here already.”

When the embarrassed Ryuuze turned his back, Luciel approached and asked him.

“Now that I think about it, are you going to walk until you reach the Royal Capital?”

“I’m going to take it easy since the carriages have already left. As I said before, I’m not in a hurry.”

“That’s amazing, too …… As expected of the combat veteran couple……”

“Well, these two have been like that since the academy ……”

“Then, here’s our present for you!”

Jack and Yogus smiled and muttered, and Luciela went into a nearby alleyway and soon came out with a carriage.

“What’s this?”

“This is our carriage! I’ll give it to you guys. Your classmates and I paid for it together, you know?”

“Really!? I’m sorry about that ……”

Makina said she was sorry, but everyone told her not to worry about it, and we decided to take it.

I was about to replace the driver coachman, but I noticed that he didn’t get off, and I tilted my head. He was wearing a hood so tightly that I couldn’t see his face, which was eerie.

“Um, what about the coachman?”

“He has some business to attend to in the royal capital, so he’ll have to stay on as the coachman. It’s okay, you can trust him …… probably.”

Luciela looks away and says something disturbing, but I guess she knows him. Not really caring, we climbed into the back of the cart and the carriage slowly began to move forward.

“I’m off! I’ll welcome you when you come to the Royal Capital!”

“See you later, guys!”

“Take care!”

“Be sure to come back!”

“Don’t lose!”

I waved to everyone who was getting smaller and stared at the back of the cart until I couldn’t see them anymore. By the way, I didn’t see that guy.

“What’s wrong, Lars?”

“‘Oh, no, I just noticed that Mizuki-san and Basleigh-sensei weren’t there. I was expecting them to come for some reason or another.”

“Oh, yeah, you’re right …… Well, could it be that she’s being chased by Yifa-kun right now?”

“Is it possible? …… Yeah, I think it’s possible.”

We were laughing and staring at the town of Gast in the distance.

◆ 　 ◇ 　 ◆

“…… Was it alright that you didn’t see him off?”

“Mm. I don’t mind, as long as I get one last look at him like this.”

“You really liked him, didn’t you?”

“……”

“Well, I’m here. So please don’t cry. Now, let’s get today’s request out of the way and go to a bar or something! …… It pains me that I can’t say I’ll buy you a drink!?”

“Fufu, you’re right. “Let’s have a drink. Then, let’s go to the request.”

“Yes!”

Well then, they’re off!

Are you worried about coachman? It’s probably just your imagination, you know?

Thank you for reading!

[Afterword Theater]

“Without a lively crowd, two serious people won’t be interesting, will they?”

There are too many of them crying!? …… I’m hoping we can do something like that when they get there ……

“You can’t help but rely on the coachman ……!”