"Oh, thank god…I can finally relax." (Mizuki)
My inner thoughts slip out as I sink into a bath back at the mansion. We finished with the obligatory tour for all the guests, so I'm free.
Alto is taking Cera to the lake at his request, Alara and Zara are busy entertaining some of the guests with specific interests, Percivil is toiling away on his new projects, Nina is still orc hunting, Kara isn't back from her second train trip yet, and Cara is off getting settled in her room. This is the perfect time to enjoy a hot bath alone.
I sink deeper into the water and lean my head against the cool stone, and I involuntarily close my eyes and smile. I feel myself losing track of time, but I'm suddenly alerted to footsteps near me. I snap my eyes open and focus on the sound, and I swallow nervously.
Cara has walked into the room and is circling the bath to the entry stairs. Cara notices me staring at her and smiles mischievously.
This feels…very much like trouble for me. Why is every elf so comfortable with nudity!?
"Like what you see, Mizuki?" (Cara)
As Cara makes her inquiry, she slowly walks into the bath while keeping very uncomfortable eye contact with me. She slowly wades over next to me in the water, and I masterfully maintain an eye-level gaze through it.
"Hmm…I wonder, are you reconsidering my offer now? It seems like we're all alone here, you know?" (Cara)
Cara is leaning against the stone next to me, and she looks me over with an amused expression as she makes her proposition.
I roll my eyes at her.
"I'll admit, I was caught off guard and staring at you when you first walked in here, but I meant what I said earlier. We can have just the kind of close relationship you want without us sleeping together – you have nothing to gain by trying to seduce me, Cara." (Mizuki)
Cara directs a puzzled expression towards me.
"Mizuki…maybe you're confused. Even if you and Lady Nedonera moved into my territory and built all these absurd things for my people, that wouldn't change anything. I'd still prefer something more between us. I like your company, and I'm very curious about you romantically. Please stop accusing me otherwise." (Cara)
I raise my eyebrows at her in surprise, and I nod apologetically.
"Well, I apologize. Tell me, though, are all elven women this comfortable with nudity, because that's certainly been my impression." (Mizuki)
Cara sighs and leans her shoulder against me in the bath.
"Perhaps relative to human women. We live so long, and elves are so protective of one another, we feel more comfortable with such situations I suppose. Still, I wouldn't have climbed into that public hot spring like this…I'm just making an exception because it's you." (Cara)
Cara looks back over to meet my gaze, and she's wearing an amused grin.
"Fufufu…I hope this isn't all you meant by getting to know each other better when you asked to stay here." (Mizuki)
Cara's expression becomes very serious, and she shakes her head, then she looks at me intently.
"No. Actually, I've been thinking about what you said, and I believe I have a way to prove to you that you can trust me." (Cara)
"Oh? Well, let's hear it. I'm curious." (Mizuki)
I grin at Cara, but she just nods seriously.
"You promised me you'd never lie to me, and…honestly, I'm shocked by how seriously you seem to take that. I don't think you'd ever break it. So, I'd like to promise you that, if you tell me something in confidence and ask me to keep it secret, I will. I wouldn't reveal it to anyone, under any circumstances, and I'd take it to my grave if you asked. Does that sound like something that would earn your trust?" (Cara)
Cara is staring at me, and her face is very determined. I think she means it, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's true. I give Cara an amused smile.
"Very well, I accept. I think you mean it, too, but I'm not sure it's a promise you can keep. Have you really thought this through?" (Mizuki)
Cara doesn't waver.
"Yes, I have, and I can keep this promise." (Cara)
Let's test that, shall we. I turn my expression serious.
"Oh? What if I told you right now that it's my ultimate goal to kill your Queen? What would you do?" (Mizuki)
Cara's face goes pale, and she stares at me in shock. Yup, so she doesn't take this as seriously as I do.
"As I suspected, you haven't thought it through. So, I can't take your promise seriously. You may think you know me, what I may tell you, or what I may do, but you can't truly know such things. If you haven't resolved yourself for the most absurd of eventualities, I don't believe you should make promises like that. Before you ask…yes, I feel that way about the one I made you." (Mizuki)
Cara becomes frustrated, then thoughtful. After a moment, she looks back to me, and her resolve has returned.
"If you told me that…I'd kill you on the spot. That wouldn't violate my promise." (Cara)
Oh ho? Now we're getting somewhere. I give her a huge grin, and she becomes confused.
"That's great! Now we're making progress. So, what if my Lady were with me when I told you such a thing? You couldn't kill me. How would you act?" (Mizuki)
Cara is apprehensive, but after a few minutes spent thoughtful, she responds with a nod.
"I'd pretend I was accepting of it, and I would make other preparations to counteract you later. There's nothing in my promise to you that says I can't act on the information, just that I can't share it or knowingly have it revealed to others without your permission." (Cara)
I study Cara's face…oh yeah, she's determined. I don't think she's lying. I give her a huge smile.
"That's wonderful. Okay! I'll take your promise seriously then. So, is your promise to me in effect from this moment forward?" (Mizuki)
Cara looks relieved, and then excited.
"Yes, consider it done. Does this mean you're about to tell me something you wouldn't have before?" (Cara)
Cara leans towards me expectantly, and I'm once again distracted. As for her question…you bet I am. Nothing too detrimental to me, just enough to test her promise.
"Oh yes…you ready? Everything you learn for the rest of the day is our secret." (Mizuki)
Cara nods and her gaze becomes intense. I smirk at her, then I hold my hand out and mutter the incantation for a fireball…it appears in my palm. Cara's face freezes, and I stare at her with an amused expression for several moments before dispelling the fireball.
Eventually, she speaks with a dumbfounded expression.
"Mizuki…you can use magic?" (Cara)
I grin and nod at her patiently. Then, she becomes visibly angry.
"What the hell, Mizuki!? You said you couldn't use magic! Even after your promise to me! What was all that condescending talk about your promises being inviolable!?" (Cara)
Cara rises slightly from the water as she yells at me, and it's more than a little uncomfortable to keep looking at her while I respond.
I give a placating gesture and smile reassuringly. She stops yelling, but she doesn't look any less angry.
"Now, Cara…I can understand why you're angry, but I never actually broke my promise. Please tell me, verbatim, what words I said to you that were false. Did I say, 'I can't use magic'?" (Mizuki)
Cara's anger seems to lessen, and she stares at me in bewilderment as she thinks about my statement. Eventually, she becomes frustrated, and some of her anger returns.
"No, I suppose that wasn't what you said, but you still lied! You were incredibly detailed Mizuki! You said that you had a genuine magic assessment, which you did not tamper with, and you described the negative test result. You even offered to take it in front of me! How is that not lying!?" (Cara)
By the end, Cara is yelling again, and I must once again calm her down before responding.
"Good, so you do remember. The answer is simple – all of that is true, but I also have magic. The magic assessment was just misinterpreted." (Mizuki)
Cara seems calmer now and sinks back into the water, but she is very skeptical. She gives me a scathing look as she responds.
"Mizuki, I'm fully aware that humans don't understand magic as well as elves, so I'd be willing to think they misinterpreted something normally. However, you described the assessment result…there is no other explanation for that result except lacking a magic class, and every elf with magic training knows it. You had to have tampered with the test or lied." (Cara)
I shake my head patiently.
"No, there's a third option…elves are extremely arrogant, and you don't know everything like you think you do." (Mizuki)
I see Cara's jaw clench.
"Is that so?" (Cara)
Damn it…I'm losing her. I sigh deeply…I can walk the line on this.
"Yes, that is so. This can be easily proven by me retaking the test in front of you, but I don't have a crystal for it lying around. So, maybe it would be good enough to show you that your faith in the elves' understanding of magic is misplaced." (Mizuki)
Cara gives me an annoyed and confused expression, but I act before she can respond.
I drop my body enhancement, then reapply it only to my fingernail. I cut my palm quickly, and I show it to Cara – her expression becomes puzzled. Then, I heal the cut, and I show my hand to Cara again. She's confused for a moment, but then her eyes go wide in shock.
"Mizuki…you're a double class!?" (Cara)
I shake my head. Then, I drop the air temperature in the room until it's just above freezing, then return it to normal. I glance at Cara – all the color has drained from her face, and her mouth is hanging open.
I smirk at her and wait patiently for her response.
"That's…you're…Mizuki…" (Cara)
"So, are you going to apologize for calling me a liar, or do you need more proof?" (Mizuki)
Cara begins stammering with embarrassment.
"I-I was…y-you couldn't expect me to believe…" (Cara)
After another few moments, Cara just stops and sighs deeply, then looks back at me with an exasperated expression.
"I'm sorry, Mizuki…to the letter of your promise, it seems you never broke it." (Cara)
I flash Cara a smug grin.
"Exactly, thank you! So, are we…good?" (Mizuki)
Cara sighs deeply, then she gives me a warm smile and nods.
"Yes, I appreciate you trusting me. I'm looking forward to becoming friends…" (Cara)
A genuine smile spreads across my face. After a moment, though, Cara gives a mischievous grin and presses closer to me.
"…and of course, there can always be more later if you want?" (Cara)
I'm going to need a spray bottle for this elf. I narrow my eyes at her, then drop the water temperature around her to just above freezing.
Cara's eyes go wide in shock, and she lets out a squeal. She quickly jumps out of the bath, then confusion and suspicion wash over her face in quick succession. Cara turns her gaze towards me, and it's full of betrayal.
I suppress my urge to laugh.
"Wahh!? The water turned freezing! Mizuki, did you do that!?" (Cara)
I smirk back at her.
"Oh, it just seemed like you needed to cool off, you know?" (Mizuki)
Cara's expression turns murderous, but after a moment she sighs deeply and shrugs. Then, she directs a smug smile at me.
"If you wanted me to quit hiding my body under the water, all you had to do was ask, Mizuki." (Cara)
I direct a bewildered expression at her. After a moment, I sigh in exasperation and shake my head.
Yeah, I have a feeling I'm going to regret letting her stay here.
¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
"Mmm…a surprise visit? To what do I owe the pleasure?" (Ilina)
We're in Ilina's bedroom, and she's sitting on the couch enjoying a box of kur'kes that I left her. After my awkward bath with Cara, I got dressed and teleported here.
I grin at Ilina.
"Well, two reasons actually. I need to update you on some happenings in Eden, and I also want to give you a personal gift. Which would you like first?" (Mizuki)
Ilina's eyes sparkle curiously, and she quickly makes her way over to me from the couch and throws her arms around my neck with a dazzling smile.
"Definitely the gift, obviously. What is it?" (Ilina)
She's the last of my friend group who hasn't received a spell ring of her choice from me…I'm super excited to see what she picks. She doesn't even know about them, so I bet this is going to blow her mind.
I smirk at her.
"Well, first, tell me if you prefer silver or gold." (Mizuki)
Ilina gives me a puzzled look.
"Uhm…silver, usually. Why?" (Ilina)
I give Ilina a mischievous smile and grab her hand out from behind my head, then hold it between us. Her confusion only intensifies.
As I direct an amused grin at her, I use my alchemy spell to synthesize a platinum ring with a copper core. Then, I quickly place it on the ring finger of her left hand – her dominant hand for spellcasting. Since my wedding band for Nina is actual silver, platinum should be silvery enough without causing issues.
Ilina's eyes go wide in shock, and she looks between me and the ring in confusion. After a moment, an ecstatic smile breaks out on her face, and her eyes begin to look misty.
It's at this moment I realize…I've screwed up.
"Yes, Mizuki! We can't tell very many people, and we can't get it officialized yet, but my answer is yes!" (Ilina)
I feel a rush of anxiety and the color draining from my face. Shit, shit, shit…that wasn't…I…don't know how to follow up with this.
[Nina!? I was just trying to give Ilina a spell ring like I did you and Alto, and she thinks I proposed! She already started saying yes...what do I do!?] (Mizuki)
I sense immense amusement from Nina.
[Fufufu…if you are wise, you will make it a real proposal. Ilina may not give you a chance to make another if you don't.] (Nina)
That's not a solution, you damn dragon! I'm too young to get married!
I glance back at Ilina, and she's staring at me expectantly. I sigh internally…well, I'm technically dragon-married to Nina already, and this was going to happen eventually.
I turn my focus back to Ilina, then I press my lips against hers, and she squeaks in surprise. When I pull away, she stares back at me dazed. I grin at Ilina with a goofy smile…I guess I'm going to roll with this.
"Well, so long as you're saying yes, I don't mind the rest." (Mizuki)
Ilina smiles dopily and starts eyeing her ring fondly. Yeahhh...she can never know that this was an accidental proposal.
After a moment, she seems to realize something and cuts me an annoyed glance. What the hell?
"By the way, that was the first time I've seen you use this spell that can create platinum out of seemingly nothing, Mizuki. When I asked where all your money comes from, Alto told me, and I have to say…I was very disappointed in you. She managed to convince me that it's okay for now, but…" (Ilina)
Ilina gazes at me with a very disapproving expression, and my anxiety spikes. I had no idea that she'd been brought into the loop on that…I'm glad Alto had my back like she promised. I'll have to thank her later.
I gesture at Ilina placatingly.
"Woah, I'm open to better ideas! Eden is finally starting to take in money from some of the tourism. After it's a bit more established, I'll ask Alara if she'll divert a small share of ongoing profits from things like the train that I built to Alto as payment. Then, I won't need to produce coins directly anymore!" (Mizuki)
Ilina stares at me skeptically for a few moments, then sighs.
"I guess that's fine. You can't just flood the economy with endless money without consequences, Mizuki, so don't wait too long." (Ilina)
I nod frantically, and we fall into an awkward silence. Hmm…it's about time to redirect this conversation to something else that will distract her.
"So, you want the other half of your gift now?" (Mizuki)
Ilina looks up at me in confusion.
"The other half?" (Ilina)
I nod at her excitedly.
"That's right. I'm going to infuse that ring I gave you with the ability for you to cast a new spell. It can be almost any spell you want. Invisibility. Physical enhancement. Healing. Any requests?" (Mizuki)
Ilina's eyes go wide in shock, and she gives me a dumbfounded expression for several moments.
"M-Mizuki…you can really do that? Just give me a spell?" (Ilina)
I smile at her confidently and nod, then she becomes excited and looks away thoughtfully. She remains that way for several minutes. Jackpot…I knew this would take her mind off my counte…err, civilian coin production.
Eventually, Ilina looks back to me eagerly and nods.
"Okay, can you make it so that I can use physical enhancement? I'm still weak to attacks, and I'd like to change that." (Ilina)
Huh…for some reason that's not quite what I expected from her. Though, I guess her rationale makes sense, and alteration classes are very rare in the elven population.
I smile approvingly and nod. Then, I prime the ring on her finger and channel the spells for total body enhancement through it. I imbue the enchantment with the property that more magic increases the strength of the body enhancement.
"Okay, you're all set! Want me to take you somewhere to test it out?" (Mizuki)
Ilina stares at the ring in fascination, then nods to me excitedly. I smile back, then teleport us to the forest clearing in Elmesia that I use for training.
I gesture vaguely in front of us.
"Alright, try it out! Just focus on channeling your magic into that ring! The more magic you put into it, the stronger you should become." (Mizuki)
Ilina nods seriously, then looks at the ring and focuses. After a moment, she gasps softly.
"Mizuki…I feel so…light." (Ilina)
"Fufufu…good, that means it's working. Go on…test yourself!" (Mizuki)
Ilina nods and looks around the clearing, then walks over and grabs a small rock off the ground. She directs her attention to a nearby tree, then throws the rock as hard as she can.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like she's used to her own strength. She loses her footing and falls over as the rock leaves her hand.
I'm about to laugh at her, but I see the rock go screeching across the clearing and tear through several trees in a row before losing enough momentum to hit the forest floor.
"Holy shit…" (Mizuki)
I can't help but mumble in surprise under my breath. I…should be more careful teasing her from now on.
Ilina picks herself up from the ground and dusts herself off. She's wearing a huge smile.
"Mizuki, did you see that!? I'm so strong, I feel like nothing could stop me!" (Ilina)
Oh no…no, no…I hope she's not developing a god complex.
I give Ilina a nervous smile and nod. Without warning, she jumps over five meters to me and tackles me to the ground, then she leans over and kisses me. When she pulls away, she has a wild grin plastered across her face.
"Fufufu…this is the best gift ever, Mizuki! Thank you so much!" (Ilina)
Ilina looks at me expectantly, and her eyes are gleaming with excitement. I shake my head in exasperation, then I direct an amused expression at her.
"Fufufu…of course, Ilina. I'm glad you like it, and I'm happy to know you're a bit safer now." (Mizuki)
Ilina beams with happiness for a few more moments, then she gets a mischievous look on her face. I feel myself tense up instinctively.
"Mizuki… why don't we head back to the palace and…take advantage of the rest of our time together today?" (Ilina)
Ilina cuts a suggestive look at me as she proposes returning to the palace, and there's no ambiguity in her meaning. Oh, hell yeah.
I give Ilina an excited nod, then I smirk and respond in a teasing tone.
"I fully support that idea. What happened to it being too frustrating, though?" (Mizuki)
Ilina shakes her head and gives me a smug grin.
"About that, it seems we've…misunderstood…Nina's rules a little bit. Her and I talked it over recently, and she gave me lots of…suggestions." (Ilina)
My eyes go wide in surprise, and I direct a curious expression at Ilina.
"Oh? What kinds of suggestions?" (Mizuki)
"Hmm…why don't you take us back, and I'll just show you." (Ilina)
Ilina is staring at me expectantly, so I just nod obediently then teleport us back to her room.
When I return to the mansion a couple of hours after that, I make a mental note to thank Nina profusely for her suggestions.
¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
In the following days, developments happened quickly. Occasionally, one of the wolf-kin would not like receiving orders from an elf, and there'd be drama, but Zara's presence remedied their attitude very quickly.
Surprisingly, most of the remaining wolf-kin no longer complain about their new skills being useless – they are as prideful about their work as they are about their strength.
With the massive elf and wolf-kin labor force, construction of the neighborhood in the southeast housing quadrant is almost complete now. It would have been finished already, but Alara and I asked them to divert some labor to constructing the rec center and building Kara's and Cera's new house. Both of those projects just completed, however, so the neighborhood will be finished soon.
A couple of days ago, Alara came sheepishly asking for more money for all the work, so I just gave her the whole spare box of platinum coins I'd made and told her to 'go nuts'. She's been in much better spirits since.
The opening day workers were just contracted for a few days. However, since we've offered above-rate pay for all the jobs, and they saw how successful Eden was, almost all of them quickly asked to become full-time employees.
Several of them even wanted houses in the neighborhood, and Alara offered to let them move in immediately and pay with interest-free installments from their jobs. Now they basically worship her as a boss.
When Nina returned home the night of the opening, she brought enough orc tusks to make ten sets of pool balls. Since, Percivil has managed to make the matching pool tables, ball sets, racks, and numerous sticks. For the tables, he ended up using a very fine, thin black leather as the felt, and some nice rope for basic table pockets. The table itself is a solid wood, and the balls had to be hand-painted.
While the tables were being completed, I got to work on writing up the rules, and I made sure to include that magic use was forbidden – I plan to make that a standard rule for all these games. For pool, I wrote rules for two-person 8-ball and 9-ball, and three-person cutthroat.
After that, all the pool tables, equipment, and rules sheets were moved into a dedicated room at the rec center, and we opened it to the public. We decided to charge five copper per table per hour and keep the balls behind the service counter otherwise. Fees were tracked with a series of numbered tokens and hourglasses.
Percivil also completed a collection of reversi boards, which I again wrote rules for and were moved into a dedicated room in the rec center. We're keeping all souvenir item games in that room, with demo versions near the corresponding service counter.
After pool and reversi, Percivil moved on to checkers and ski ball. He claimed that he'd be able to replicate ski ball with nothing but wood crafting and stone ball synthesis from Nina, and that checkerboard preparations wouldn't take long either.
Sure enough, just yesterday, checkerboards were added alongside reversi in the souvenir game room, and about six ski ball tables were set up in the rec centers largest room, where we plan to add foosball and air hockey tables later.
Nina absolutely loves the rec center, and she has spent all her free time there outside of helping Percivil with the games' construction – she seems to like pool the most so far. Everyone else seems to love the rec center, too, because Eden has been a constant flux of people since it was completed.
Two completely full trains per day are still dropping off visitors, and the inn is almost at capacity. Alara had Kara start posting the number of inn vacancies on the train when she picks people up from Avalon, which I thought was wise.
The were some new employees hired as well recently. Percivil requested several elven craftsmen to help with cranking out replicate versions of the board games, so he could focus on developing the more exclusive items. The inn needed more staff as the visitors there grew, and its kitchen needed another chef.
Importantly, one of Kara's waitressing friends visited Eden and loved it. Kara was quick to alert us of her interest in living and working here, and the friend, Serina, became Cera's new caretaker for ten times the daily pay of her old waitressing job.
Alara generously promised Serina that she would be given another good job when Cera was grown, if she wanted it. Alara also allowed her to do a payment plan on one of the neighborhood houses to expedite her move. Everyone seems happy with the arrangement.
Since we'd been relying heavily on Kara for train operations, Alara has been sending Nina and I candidates regularly to interview. Thankfully, we found an older 50s-looking elven man, Uril, who Nina and I both approved of. He is more interested in getting to chat with people and operate the train than the actual pay, which is kind of wholesome. He and Kara now split the operation times for the train.
Finally, several of the invited guests have purchased land in Eden for their businesses. Ulta and Kudra, as well as several other guests I didn't speak with, bought street-side property. Kudra also bought lakeside land and commissioned a house to be built there.
Toki and Koda, the father-son farming pair, ended up buying large stretches of land near the railway to begin farming. Also, another guest that is apparently a rancher did the same to raise cattle.
With the influx of agriculture and livestock to Eden's economy, I added five cargo-only railcars to the end of the train under the cover of night, so that transportation of goods could proceed unimpeded.
One of the other guests from Alara's invites is apparently a big-time merchant. He negotiated with her to rent exclusive use of one of those cargo railcars for shipping his goods into Eden. He also purchased a street-side lot, and he plans to build a general store here.
On a personal note, Cara's presence in the city has been much appreciated, and we've grown closer during her time here. With Nina so preoccupied by the game developments in Eden, Cara and I have spent more time together than I was expecting. She's been very helpful with suggestions around Eden, based on her own experience running a territory, and I'm starting to feel a decent amount of trust towards her.
With the city development passing time so quickly, I hadn't noticed that my 'summons' to the Ralzen Empire by Emperor Belmod was approaching. From what I can tell in the letter, I'm supposed to arrive there tomorrow.
It's not clear if my full party must come, just Nina and me, or just me. However, the letter does use plural verbiage, and refers to 'my party', so I'm guessing all of us are permitted if not desired.
I'm currently sitting in the mansion conference room with the core members of my party. I asked Cara to give me time with them alone, and everyone else was already busy. I've just finished updating them on my trip to the guild several days ago and everything I learned while there.
Alto is intently reading through the stack of mail I gave her. Nina was pouting that she didn't get any, but she cheered up once I told her that hers filled an entire room.
"Fufufu…so, this human emperor claimed you as his subject and demanded that your party appear at his summons tomorrow. That is foolish, even by wolf-kin standards." (Zara)
Nina nods in amusement.
"Agreed, Zara…just as foolish as his ancestors, it seems." (Nina)
Alto looks up from her mail towards me with a serious expression.
"So, Mizuki, what do you intend to do about this summons?" (Alto)
Fair question…the letter sounds antagonistic and heavy handed, so I feel like appearing for the summons might result in an incident. On the other hand, not going will undoubtedly put us, and especially me, on the Empire's shit list.
I guess, so long as everyone in my party keeps their cool, the emperor is unlikely to be immediately hostile towards an S-rank party. I think going is worth the risk.
"I think I should go. This country's illegal slave trade was disrupted in a flashy way when I rescued you and Zara, then our S-rank party was endorsed by the Elven Kingdom. Now that we've gotten an angry letter from this emperor demanding our presence, I doubt they're unrelated. I want more information about how complicit the Ralzen Empire's leadership may be in the allegedly illegal slave trade. My only concern is whether to bring you and Zara." (Mizuki)
Alto looks up from her mail in surprise.
"The Ralzen Empire would love nothing more than to have the elves and our kingdom for themselves. If not for Gelrod's Pass, I imagine we'd already have faced an invasion attempt. We may have better magic, but their sheer numbers are dangerous. More importantly, I'd like slavery to end one day, and the Empire is the root of it. So, I'm going Mizuki, and it's not up for discussion – this is exactly why I joined you." (Alto)
Before I can comment on Alto's ludicrous disregard for her own safety, Zara joins the party.
"I would also like to join you, Mizuki. They freely kill, capture, and enslave my people, including our children. They treat us like pets or livestock they're entitled to. If this journey of yours may help change that even a little, do not force me to wait here. I will talk with Lady Alara about my leave of absence." (Zara)
Jeez…not both of them. I sigh deeply, then look between them in exasperation.
"Do you two really have no regard for your own safety? You just told me how hostile this place will be to you." (Mizuki)
To my surprise, Alto and Zara give me puzzled looks, then glance at one another and start laughing.
"Our safety? You're joking, right?" (Alto)
"Fufufu…Mizuki, I don't understand joking at such a serious time." (Zara)
What the hell are they on about now!? Even Nina joins in.
"Fufufu…now ladies, you know Mizuki worries about his friends." (Nina)
That was…surprisingly nice of Nina. Alto shakes her head in exasperation.
"Mizuki…not once since we became friends have I experienced fear for my safety in your presence. All I worry about is how you're treated and whether your secrets will be exposed if you're forced to protect me or others. I know that if someone tried to harm us, the only graves dug would be their own." (Alto)
"Fufufu…anyone who opposes you is foolish, Mizuki. My safety is a non-issue." (Zara)
They really shouldn't put that much faith in me. Sure, I'm strong, but I'm not a god. If I make a mistake and they're killed…that's it. I can't bring back the dead or rewind time.
I give them a very serious glare.
"Listen to me, both of you. I'll bring you with me, because you made your reasons clear and it's not my right to deprive you of those ideals. However, never assume that you're untouchable with me. I'm not all-powerful or all-knowing, and I can make mistakes. So, never let your guard down…please." (Mizuki)
Alto and Zara give me surprised looks, but they nod their agreement. Good, that's one concern addressed, at least. I sigh deeply, then smile at them all.
"Well then, I guess we're going to see Emperor Belmod tomorrow." (Mizuki)