Chapter 81

Princess.

In the current imperial royal family, where only princes have been born, there is only one person who is called by that name.

"Wh-what... That Holy Princess!?"

Amu let out a surprised cry.

Holy Princess Fiona.

The only daughter of the current Emperor of Ulldwight, born to a priestess serving the Central Temple.

Due to her rarity, she has been sung about by many bards, and her beauty has been captured in numerous portraits and statues, making her widely known among the people.

Such a person... was standing alone in the courtyard of a rural noble's mansion.

Grai, looking at Amu who had cried out, said,

"Hey, that's disrespectful!"

"That's you, Grai. Haven't you been treating me rather roughly lately?"

As they were talking, Amu shook my shoulder.

"Hey, hey! Why is the Holy Princess at your house!?"

"That's... because she was staying here at the moment..."

"You never said a word about it!"

Because, if I had said it and been refused, I would have been disappointed.

"I wanted to meet you, Amu."

"Whoa!"

Amu reacted with surprise to Princess Fiona, who had somehow gotten close to her.

The princess, with a somewhat elusive smile, spoke as if floating in the air.

"I'm sorry for startling you. I was on a tour of the provinces, but I asked Count Lamproug to let me stay. I really wanted to meet you... so I asked his son to bring you here during the school break."

"Oh, oh... I see..."

Amu glared at me out of the corner of her eye. Sorry.

"It seems that the message didn't get through. But please don't blame your schoolmate. I was the one who made the request."

"Y-yes, that's fine, but... why me?"

"Hehe, I've heard about you. Two years ago, you were the top student to pass the magic academy entrance exam, weren't you? With unprecedented scores."

"Oh? So that's who you were talking about. No wonder the sword felt heavy."

"Grai, please be a bit quieter."

Without even looking at the silent Grai, Fiona spoke to Amu.

"Not only do you have a talent for all attributes of magic, but you are also said to be an exceptional swordsman. Hehe... like a hero from a fairy tale."

"Ah, thank you... I used to hear that a lot."

"Hehehe."

Fiona, with her dull eyes, stared intently at Amu.

"Red hair and grass-green eyes... just as I saw. I'm sure your mother saw you like this... in her last moments."

"..."

"... Lady Seika Lamproug."

Suddenly, Fiona turned to me and continued with a smile.

"I am grateful that you have indulged my sudden whim."

I was taken aback for a moment, but I recalled the noble's manner of speaking and returned a smile.

"Not at all. If the princess wishes it, I will do anything to the best of my ability."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"... Is there something?"

"No, nothing. Hehe. If possible, I would like both of you to be my Holy Knights... but that's not possible, is it?"

Fiona, who had been murmuring in a daze, then seemed to come to her senses and said,

"I plan to stay a bit longer. If you would like, could we leave together when the new semester starts? It's in the same direction as Rodnea. You will have to stop by the capital first, but a squad of guards will accompany us, and we can arrange for good lodgings along the way."

"Y-yes. That would be wonderful. I would be honored..."

"Then it's settled."

Fiona, for the first time, showed a somewhat human-like smile.

"Please be friendly with me while I'm here."

She said, "I'll see you at dinner," and walked away.

She was heading in the opposite direction of the mansion. Maybe she was just taking a walk in the garden.

Lauren followed her on Grai's orders, so she should be safe within the grounds... but she's quite a strange woman.

"The Holy Princess is like that... I didn't expect it to be so different from what I imagined."

Amu muttered. I felt the same way.

"Sei- Sei- Sei- Seika-kun!? That was really the princess!?"

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Ah, well, that's... Brother Luft! C-come on, let's go to the room quickly."

"Hehe, right. I'll introduce everyone to the princess at dinner. You must be tired from the long journey, so please rest in your rooms for now."

I lined up next to Luft, who was leading the way, to escape the questioning from Eifa and Mabel, who had run over.

"Phew, really..."

"Did you bring her here without telling her about the princess? That's not good."

"If she had refused, you would have been in trouble too. You should be grateful that I brought her. Besides... why didn't you stop him just now?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, Grai."

"Oh... Grai has always had a competitive spirit against Seika. I felt bad about interrupting them."

Luft said with a wry smile.

"Besides, I didn't think anything would happen."

"Why not?"

"They are both much stronger than I am. It's said that there are fewer injuries in training between skilled individuals, right?"

"It wasn't training though..."

Well... I understand what he means.

"Hey, Sei- Sei- Seika!"

Grai, who had somehow gotten close, was walking nearby.

He looked down at me from his height.

"Remember this, I'll beat you to a pulp someday."

"Hmm? Why not try now?"

"... I don't fight battles I can't win."

Grai averted his eyes and muttered.

I frowned.

He had been so confident just a moment ago, but what happened? He suddenly became like this after talking to the princess.

Whether he knew about my doubts or not, Grai asked in a bored tone,

"Still, bringing only women back... What are you doing at the academy?"

"Only women... Eifa was already with me, and it was the princess who asked me to bring Amu."

"What about the other woman with gray hair?"

"Oh, Mabel."

Mabel's hair, which no longer needed to be dyed, had completely lost its color and returned to its original gray, the same color as her brother Kyle's.

I said,

"She is the daughter of the Crein baron. I brought her to avoid causing trouble for my father and brother."

"Why did you bring her?"

"I thought it would be better to have more people... so I wouldn't have to entertain the princess."

"! Hmph, a dropout..."

Then, Grai lowered his voice by two octaves and said,

"... Not bad, thinking of such a considerate thing. Well done."

"..."

It seems that even Grai found it difficult to entertain Fiona.