It had been a month since I came to this world. I think for now, I could say I had become friends with Luke, Amelia and Elena and was on talking terms with Cecilia. I still hadn't gotten around to meeting Charlotte yet. I was also getting good with horse-riding as well.
It was the usual day of me sitting next to Cecilia but lately Elena had changed her seats to sit next to me.
As the professor walked in, everyone went silent.
"So, from next week, tournament will start for sword fighting. The winner will be award with a place in student council. It will also reflect on your final grades, so, be prepared." She announced.
"But how am I supposed to fight? I don't have magic." I raised my hand.
"Students will be barred from using magic. So, if you have the skills, you will do just fine. Winning or losing isn't the point. How we judge students is based on technicality. You may lose the tournament and still be awarded with good grades and you may win the tournament but not get good grades. All depends on technicality." She answered.
"So, you going to win?" Elena asked.
I'm not exactly weak. I have received sufficient training to subdue even adults. After all, my family only had one son and they wanted me to at least survive. I'm not sure if I would win or not but if magic is prohibited then, I may have a chance.
"Who knows." I answered.
...
I was in the student council office sitting with Luke, Layla, Elena and Amelia wondering what to do next regarding the tournament.
"Maybe practice with Luke. He is the top student, right?" Amelia suggested.
"Nope. I'm good. Anyways, I made these for you, too." I handed the three a box full of mochi as well. "I made them when I was at Elena's house and they turned out really well."
"Oh? You went over to her place?" Amelia glanced at me and took the box anyways. Now, I'm not exactly dumb. I know her tone meant she was not happy with it but in all honesty, I did not care. Last thing I want in this world is to be tied down again to just one or two people.
"They're good!" Luke ate a bunch of them instantly. "So, going to share recipe or what?"
"I'm opening a restaurant once I graduate. You can come there to eat. Since I'll be taking care of a child, a steady source of income is important."
"Wouldn't taking on some actual role help more? Like nobility? If you marry into Amelia or Elena's family, you will have enough to take care of Lord Ahankar." Layla suggested but I shot down the suggestion immediately.
"First, no. Second, a noble is a busy person. Too busy. I want to be able to be there for Ahan... Aisha instead of being tied down to the position. I will not take a position of power under any circumstance."
"Yeah, marrying any of the women in this room comes with lots of responsibilities." Luke added in.
"By the way, when do people usually marry in this world?" I asked.
"We are already marriageable age actually. In fact, we are getting too old." Elena answered. "I think in a couple more months, I will start looking for a husband too."
"Same here." Layla said.
"I'll be the saint after graduation. I have a lot list of suiters to go through."
"Me too. Sooner than later actually." Luke chimed in.
"Oh? I see." I said. Once they all get engaged, whatever we have will end too. Sooner than later that is. Should I start maintaining more distance from them? I wonder... I don't want to get hurt again and for that I'll go to any lengths.
"Speaking of Aisha, how's the expedition for mountain Badhsara? Have they gotten sigil from Lobh?" I asked.
"About that, we did receive a letter that the team has managed to settle a date for meeting with Lobh directly. It may take another few days but we will surely get it. On the other hand, Lord Kaam has refused to answer to our requests for a meeting. Their dominion is currently under a lot of internal turmoil. Some higher ups want to remove Kaam as their sole leader. It's really annoying." Amelia said.
"I see. Nothing can be done about that I guess. For now, I'll leave. I have some preparations to do and meet up with some people." I left the room and walked out of the building. I was meeting up with the queen of this kingdom to further talk about how to deal with monsters and the war.
...
"How's academy going?" She asked as a maid poured a cup of tea for two of us.
"How I expected. Nothing too interesting. How's the situation?" I asked.
"Some smaller nations are being attacked too. If it continues, sooner or later the entire dominion will be overtaken by monsters." She answered.
"Why is that guy not doing anything..." I sighed. "A lot of issues may arise when I adopt Aisha. Technically, I'll be the one in charge of the dominion of nature. But because of my relations with dominion of wind, things may become complicated."
"How so?" She asked.
"Me adopting Aisha is still far into the future. If I fall in love before that and marry into some important family... let assume... Elena, then, other dominions may get worried about potential shift in power dynamics. A single man holding one of the highest position in the strongest nation of dominion of wind while also being the careta- father of the lord Ahankar. You see, other smaller nations will follow in your lead, that is, this nation's lead or they may oppose the idea of two dominions becoming too friendly. I may end up becoming an anomaly."
"An anomaly, indeed. What was the purpose of you being summoned to this world and who even summoned you?" She wondered.
"I don't know what my purpose is... But does it matter?" I asked.
"So, let's talk marriage for a bit. If you were to marry, what kind of woman would you choose?" She asked a question I had never once thought about.
"A dominant woman. Someone who knows what she wants from life and is determined and someone who understands what a family is and what restrictions and obligations comes with it."
"Bare minimum. Is that really all that matters to you?" She asked.
"It's not as bare minimum, actually." I answered.
"Hm? Really? I thought given the fact that you come from a different world, there may be different expectations but I guess not. I've also received information that you rejected the possibility of marrying Elena when Duke suggested it and also that you kicked that poor lady."
"Eh? Kicking her was my fault and I apologized. About marriage... I wouldn't lie. I'm interested but it's just that some things are better left the way they are."
"I need the reason for kicking her. Technically speaking, you committed an act of violence. That too on the future duchess."
"Okay but whatever I say stays between the two of us. If not, I'll leave the dominion and have fun defeating those monsters." I answered.
"Fine." She answered and the maid left the room. A sound proofing spell was placed in the room.
"Well... you see. Let's just say-"
"I need a proper answer. Not your analogies."
"I got scared. When she fell onto me, it reminded me of some incidents from my past. I then acted in self-defense because my brain assumed that I was in a similar situation. I was sexually assaulted continuously for as long as I can remember by some woman."
"O-oh." She just looked at me in utter disbelief. "Ah! I see. I apologize. It was insensitive to ask you that."
"Nah... being discreet or dismissive doesn't help. And you needed answer too. You're the queen and I kind of attacked one of the most important person in the kingdom."
"Is that connected to you rejecting Duke's proposal?" She asked and I nodded.
"I can't possibly trust women. I know Elena is a good and prideful person who would never do me wrong but we are speaking of current Elena. I've seen people change for worse. I'm always worried that people I've befriended now can become like that too."
"You're worried about what can happen. I wouldn't say 'That's not a way to live life.' because it wouldn't help. But I can say one thing." She stood up and walked over to the window. "That is the beauty of human relation. We give them the power to potentially ruin us but also the power to elevate us. That's what makes it romantic. Sometimes you have to just blindly trust them. It happens everywhere. Even right now I'm trusting my knights to protect the kingdom knowing they have the power to just not do it. I think you should at least try to struggle here. This world and this queendom is not the world you come from. Once you're done with the tournament, go for it. Elena is a great person and you're interested in her too."
"I'm trying to trust Amelia... it would be too much of a hassle to add another person but I'm just scared." I answered.
"It sure is a process. Take your time. She is not exactly running away. But moving past your personal struggles, let's talk about the defense. How are spells going?" She asked. The mood quickly changed and I took out a notebook and placed it on the table.
"I worked on some fire spells and have improved them greatly. Activating the spells leaks out too many magic points. On an average, an adult can shoot 57 fire balls before exhausting their points but with this, they can shoot over 70 fire balls. And with this spell, they can even move around and change their targets. Whenever using magic, the mages are locked into one position since it requires a lot of attention but if they use these spells, it will not only activate faster, it will consume less magic and it will let them move around freely."
"So many benefits seems... to good to be true." She said as she read through the spells.
"I think whoever created these spells placed restrictions to avoid something from happening. Either they were made for weaker people or... to make people weaker. I would say latter is more probable."
"I see. I'll have more expeditions into dungeons then."
Our meeting went on for a few more hours before I went back to my dorm. Tournament, huh? Also... Elena. Am I disrespecting their feelings? I wonder. My friends are not bad people but I'm running with the possibility that they can hurt me. I should do something about that. Maybe read something or watch some videos about it.