Sunlight streamed into Daru’s room. Soft light filtered through the delicate lace curtains, scattering lovely shadows. Rubel’s face was bathed in gentle fragments of light, and Mika desperately wanted to keep looking, but she resisted and averted her gaze.
The sound of melting ice clinking in the empty glass tickled her ears.
After a long silence, he asked how she had been, and she decided it was time to tell him about her advancement.
“Recently… around the time of the midterms, I became a Sword Master.”
“…Huh? A Sword Master? You became one? Already?”
“Yes… but it’s nothing much. It’s just that the amount of aura I can use has increased… Edwin Kiadris also reached 6th Circle before graduating, didn’t he?”
“But, but you…”
“Yes?”
“You… well, you entered early, Mika.”
“That’s true.”
“…Then it’s definitely amazing. Congratulations.”
He leaned closer, as if to embrace her, and she leaned back, afraid of touching him. The admiration and affection in his eyes made her thirsty. Ruben, belatedly realizing that she was retreating every time he approached, apologized softly and sat back down.
What was there to be sorry about? She should be the one apologizing. She swallowed a sigh.
“I mentioned before that I have my own Mind method, right? A way to refine aura and store it in the body.”
“Yeah. Using Divine Power… you said you were trying to harmonize aura and internal energy?”
“Yes. That method was successful, and I can now handle more aura. I already knew a bit about using internal energy… or rather, Refined Mana… so I can now emit Sword energy.”
“…”
“This is just the beginning.”
“…I see. What about the Sword Art you were creating?”
“I’ve created 20 forms so far… but I’m not really satisfied. Most Sword Arts should embody a lifetime of enlightenment, but this is less than a third of that…”
When he asked about the form and meaning of the Righteous Sword, she explained it in detail.
Rubel was very curious about the circumstances that led to her enlightenment and her thoughts on it, so he asked her many questions. She was pleased by his interest and talked more than usual.
Rubel listened intently, his eyes shining, then smiled sweetly and needlessly cut a piece of tart on the table with his fork.
“Then, next time we meet, will you demonstrate it for me?”
“…Next time?”
“Yeah. Next time, I’ll definitely wait in the carriage.”
She was speechless. Right, she had said that. She couldn’t ignore the expectation shining in his shy eyes, so she nodded.
“…Um. To demonstrate, next time… it would be good to meet at the academy. But Ruben has already graduated.”
“It’s okay if I apply for a pass in advance. Then I’ll… come to Mika’s room.”
“…”
“Right after the final exams, right? What if I want to see you before then…”
“…”
“I’m planning to prepare a separate room for you at the Hunting Festival this summer, but, well, maybe, this time too, with Miss Philodendore…”
“…”
She felt dizzy.
She hesitated for a moment. Had she imagined something she shouldn’t have? No, that wasn’t it. She liked things to be clear. She had to be decisive. How could she tell others so easily and then try to break her own rules?
She pulled her chair closer and sat facing Rubel.
“Ruben.”
“Yes?”
“I’m… or rather, I’m a little confused.”
“Huh? …Uh-oh?”
He blinked, looking tense. She didn’t want to feel guilty looking at his clear face. Since they would be together for more than just a day or two, it was better to be clear from the start. Taking a long detour was not her way. She cleared her throat and asked in a clear tone.
“Do you have any intention of confessing to me?”
“Huh?”
Ah.
Rubel’s face turned white.
Seeing his already pale face turn even paler and anxious, she couldn’t help but chuckle. She had misunderstood. She had made a needless assumption. Seeing him trembling, clutching his fingertips, she waved her hand.
It wasn’t funny. It wasn’t…
“No, never mind. I seem to have made a mistake.”
“What, what, what’s not…?”
“I heard some strange stories and worried unnecessarily. It seems like nothing, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
“What, what worries…”
What else? That you, that I…
She reached out a hand that she had been hesitating to extend all day. His soft hair brushed against her fingertips. She swallowed a sigh, trying to suppress the sigh that threatened to escape at the increasingly soft texture.
As she gently stroked his hair to soothe him, the color returned to Rubel’s face, which had been pale with shock.
Ah, right. Seeing this, she had misunderstood and been unnecessarily reserved. Seeing this shy and reserved boy become so cute when she touched him, she had entertained a hopeful expectation and been anxiously pacing.
Now it was okay to stroke him like this. They were close enough that it was okay to get a little closer… Needlessly. Really, needlessly… It was ridiculous.
She pulled the anxious Rubel closer and let him lean on her shoulder. She did it because she didn’t want him to see her face. As she gently patted his back, he stopped fidgeting and quietly hugged her waist. The sound of his pounding heart made her thirsty.
“It’s really nothing to worry about.”
“…That’s, Mika.”
“Ruben just needs to stay as he is. I decided long ago to be Ruben’s sword.”
“…Yeah. …Yeah. Thank you… Thank you…”
“Yes.”
Rubel smelled sweet. She held him quietly until her empty chest was filled with contentment, until she could smile without betraying herself. Rubel didn’t push her away and remained in her arms for a long time.
Cute and pitiful. He didn’t know what she had been thinking about him.
She took the bewildered boy by the hand and led him out to see the sights. She didn’t want to sit alone with him in a closed room. There was a large play advertisement on the street, so they watched the play together. They also had a delicious meal.
Rubel kept fidgeting and glancing at her.
He was afraid that she would distance herself because he had given up on his feelings.
Her heart ached a little, but she had no intention of becoming an obstacle in the path of this beautiful boy, let alone removing anything that might hinder him. She reassured him, telling him several times that he was precious and that she was on his side.
They said goodbye in front of the academy gate.
He insisted on taking her all the way to the gate, saying that it was a shame to take separate carriages, and she smiled again at his devotion. When she pretended to be nonchalant, he quickly smiled brightly. He was a precious boy.
“Take care, Mika.”
“Yes. If anything happens, write me a letter.”
“Yeah, I will…”
He tilted his head, then quickly lowered it.
She couldn’t help but smile and gently stroked his round head. She couldn’t help but touch his soft ear. She petted and admired the boy, who flinched, as if soothing a young puppy, and then put him in his carriage, telling him to go. She watched the back of the carriage for a long time before turning away.
She thought she would feel good after seeing Rubel after a long time, but she felt a little depressed.
That night, she couldn’t fall asleep easily and tossed and turned a little.
❖ ❖ ❖
The next day, Sunday morning, Marianne grabbed her sleeve and shook it, a sly smile on her face. She was already feeling uneasy and disturbed, and seeing her smiling as if she had seized a great opportunity made her feel resentful.
“Yesterday was the day you met Your Highness, right?”
“…Yeah.”
“How was it? Was it fun? What did you do? What did you talk about?”
Should she tell her? She hesitated, but this was the girl who had always been in charge of counseling her about Rubel. She opened her mouth easily.
“He said he had no intention of confessing to me.”
“Huh?”
“He didn’t answer.”
There was nowhere else to vent her frustration. Had Marianne put false hope in her? Lost resentment pricked at her. She ran a dry hand over her face and swallowed a sigh. Marianne, looking up at her, asked again with a bewildered expression.
“…What did you ask him? No, how did that come up…”
“Just… I asked him if he had feelings for me.”
“Gasp.”
“I don’t think he does. He turned white.”
“…Yes? No, that can’t be.”
“It is.”
Marianne opened her mouth, then closed it. She tried to say something again, but stopped. It was funny that she and Marianne had both made the same mistake. But she couldn’t laugh. She couldn’t shake off the bad mood.
“That… no, no, how did that happen… I’m sorry…”
“It’s not Marianne’s fault.”
“Well, do you need cheering up today?”
“Um.”
“Okay, okay. Let’s finish our training today and go eat something delicious. Should I call all our friends? No? Do you want to eat just the two of us?”
“No, thanks. Fifteen laps today.”
“…You’re jumping from ten laps to fifteen laps?”
She knew perfectly well that the girl, who made an exaggeratedly surprised noise, was pretending to be weak. She could easily see that she was trying to comfort her in her own way. She didn’t reduce the number of laps again. In the first place, physical strength increased as much as one worked hard. There was no room for compromise.
“Yes. Fifteen laps.”
“By any chance, Mikael, are you taking it out on me right now?”
“Why would I take it out on Marianne?”
“Ah… Really, really, really not?”
“I wonder.”
She knew she was being spiteful. But it was also natural to increase the amount of training now that the time had come. Marianne continued to grumble as she walked towards the starting point.
“No, I’m really wronged.”
“I’m more wronged right now. Doing something embarrassing…”
“What embarrassing thing did you do? No, wait, I don’t think this is the time to train!”
She cut her off and started running first, and Marianne quickly followed.
Even though they had trained for two hours in the morning, Marianne didn’t grab her by the collar. She was curious about that and asked her why she wasn’t grabbing her by the collar today, and she said that she would let her off the hook today because she felt so sorry for her, and she finally laughed.
Spring was passing quickly, and it was time to drive out the spring breeze that had flowed into her heart.