Chapter 59
“Wow, it’s been ages since I’ve seen this train.”
The express train bound for the capital, filling the entire platform, seemed especially huge today.
As I tilted my head back so far that my neck cracked, Elli, her arms laden with luggage, opened her mouth.
“Haven’t you been to the capital recently?”
“Yeah, it’s my first time since enrolling at Luminus.”
Of course, I had attended social gatherings held by nobles based in the capital, but such large-scale banquets were generally held at estates outside the capital, not within it.
The last time I had actually entered the capital was… yes, four years ago, when I went to congratulate Father after he became the vice minister of the Ministry of Magic.
“What about Big Sis Erica’s appointment ceremony as a secretary?”
“How could I go in the middle of the semester? Big Sis also told me to come visit properly later, when she became vice minister herself.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Elli nodded and wiped the sweat from her forehead with her collar.
I asked while looking at the luggage she had set down on the floor for a moment.
“So what did you bring all that luggage for? You look almost like you’re immigrating.”
“Oh, this? It’s all clothes.”
“Clothes?”
Were there really that many clothes?
“After this workshop ends, I’m planning to stay at a relative’s house in the capital for about three days before returning. So these are enough clothes to change into for a total of one week.”
“Ah.”
Well, the Clostermann family did have an enormous number of relatives.
“You sure have it rough too, Elli.”
“What hardship? I’m taking the opportunity to go have some fun.”
As she answered as though it were obvious, Elli pulled a blue pass about the size of my palm from her waist.
“Here, Big Brother. This is your temporary pass to the capital.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
It had also been ages since I’d seen a capital pass in person.
I accepted the familiar yet unfamiliar object and immediately slipped it into the inner pocket of my clothes.
“You don’t have much other luggage, Big Brother.”
“I only packed what I really need. A few changes of clothes and some basic toiletries.”
“Uh… is that all?”
“Yeah.”
Was there anything else I needed to bring? The basic necessities, like towels and soap, would be provided there anyway.
“You really can be surprising sometimes, Big Brother.”
“What?”
“It’s just… You always seem to act perfectly, but every now and then, some surprisingly careless side of you stands out.”
“……?”
I had no idea what she was trying to say.
When I merely blinked at her blankly, Elli shook her head as if to say never mind.
“Ahem, anyway, it would be a good idea to pack some basic skincare products and a comb. There are quite a few lodgings that don’t even have those basic things properly stocked.”
“If they don’t have them, can’t I just get by without them?”
“……?”
Elli looked at me as though she were asking what on earth I meant.
I looked back at Elli as though I couldn’t understand her either.
Ding-ding-
“The express train bound for the capital will depart shortly! Passengers boarding the train, please come inside~”
At that very moment, the conductor’s departure signal rang out in the distance, breaking the awkward silence between us. As though by prior agreement, both our gazes turned toward the train at exactly the same time.
“Shall we head inside now, Big Brother?”
“Yeah, let’s.”
We stepped aboard the train together, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
※※
“……Huh?”
Several hours later, we finally arrived at the central station of the Imperial Capital.
The moment I stepped off the train, Big Sis Erica immediately caught my eye on the other side of the crowded platform, holding a sign that read [Ministry of Magic Workshop Participants].
“Why is Big Sis holding something like that?”
I stopped walking without realizing it and turned toward Elli.
Elli’s lips twitched as though she were trying to hold back a laugh, then she shrugged and answered as if it were nothing.
“Who knows?”
Elli looked strangely awkward.
“Elli! Over here.”
At that moment, Big Sis Erica’s delighted voice reached us from the other side of the platform. She had spotted us first.
Without even looking back at me, Elli whipped her head around and raised a hand in reply.
“Yes, Big Sis! I’m coming right now!”
Then Elli immediately trotted over to Big Sis in quick little steps.
‘What is with this awkwardness….’
I stood there for a moment, tilting my head.
Before long, Big Sis Erica turned toward me again and raised her voice abruptly.
“Rene, what are you doing over there? Hurry up and come here.”
“Ah, yes. I’m coming now.”
Whatever the reason, meeting Big Sis in person like this was pleasant, of course.
As I approached quickly, Big Sis Erica continued speaking as though she had been waiting for me.
“There will be ten students participating in today’s workshop. I’ll explain the details after we reach the lodging, but there won’t be any physical activities or dangerous practical training, so you can relax.”
“Yes.”
“Ahem, so Rene, how have you been lately? Have you been eating well? Sleeping well? You aren’t sick anywhere, are you?”
A sudden barrage of questions poured from Big Sis Erica.
Feeling a little flustered, I turned toward Elli.
“Big Sis, calm down for now. You’re making Rene nervous.”
Elli smiled awkwardly and grabbed Big Sis’s arm to calm her down.
Only then did Big Sis Erica seem to realize her mistake and lower her voice sheepishly.
“Ahaha, sorry. It just feels like it’s been such a long time since I’ve seen you.”
“No, you don’t have to apologize.”
I said that for the moment, but even so, Big Sis Erica’s behavior today was plainly strange to anyone who saw it.
I stared into both of Big Sis’s eyes for a moment.
At that very instant, one ominous possibility flashed rapidly through my mind.
‘Could it be… she still suspects Rene?’
Since she had shown no sign of making a move throughout the first semester, I had naturally assumed that Big Sis had given up suspecting Rene.
But that was merely my one-sided assumption; it wasn’t as though I had any clear evidence.
Erica was the kind of person who could easily spend four months dealing with the enemy who had done that to her only sibling, if that was what it took to dispose of them completely.
‘Could it be… I’ve fallen into a trap?’
A chill ran down my spine, and I involuntarily hunched my shoulders slightly.
Big Sis Erica cleared her throat for no particular reason, then stared at me once more and opened her mouth.
“So how have you been lately?”
“I’ve been fine. I’ve been eating well and sleeping well, too.”
“You aren’t suffering from any particular pain or discomfort?”
“Yes, yes… well….”
“You’re not having a hard time because of your period or anything, are you?”
“What?!”
For a moment, I felt as though my breath had been knocked out of me.
Why was she suddenly asking such a sensitive question? Without realizing it, I tugged at my collar and quietly nodded.
“Yes… I’m fine….”
At first, my periods had been uncomfortable enough to make me throw up, but after going through them about four times, they had become something I could more or less endure.
‘Why am I talking to Big Sis about my period….’
Of course, that self-reproach remained as unchanged as ever.
“Really? That’s a relief.”
Only then did Big Sis Erica step back as though satisfied.
After staring blankly for a while, Elli immediately continued the conversation.
“So are we heading straight to the workshop venue?”
“No. One more participant will arrive on the next train, which gets here in ten minutes. Let’s leave as soon as that person arrives.”
“I see.”
Elli nodded and glanced around the area.
Noticing her gaze, Big Sis Erica smiled gently and made a suggestion.
“You can go take a break for a little while. Big Sis will look after the luggage.”
“Oh, really?”
“Of course. That’s why I came to meet you in the first place.”
Big Sis Erica nodded with a benevolent smile.
Without the slightest hesitation, Elli said, “Then I’ll leave it to you for a moment, Big Sis!” and set down the luggage she was carrying in front of her.
“Then I’ll go to the restroom for a moment too….”
“Rene, stay and talk with Big Sis a little longer.”
“Huh?”
Talk? Just the two of us?
“Yeah, keep her company for a bit. Big Sis will get bored if she’s left alone.”
Even Elli nodded so decisively that it felt downright mean.
“W-wait….”
Elli’s footsteps became quicker than ever.
Before I could say anything, she set down the rest of her luggage and vanished into the countless people on the platform in an instant.
“……”
My breath caught. After staring blankly at Elli’s retreating back, I turned hesitantly toward Big Sis.
She smiled sweetly.
I had no idea what Big Sis was thinking as she stared at me with an enigmatic smile.
When I involuntarily lowered my head slightly, Big Sis smoothly continued as though she had been waiting for that moment.
“Rene.”
“Y-yes, Big Sis.”
“Is there perhaps anything special you’d like to ask of me, or anything you’d like to say to me?”
“……No.”
“Really? Anything is fine.”
I felt as though I was about to go insane. If only I could know what Big Sis was thinking, I might have felt a little more at ease.
“You don’t have to think about it too hard. Just think of me as… yes, your real older sister.”
“I-I really don’t have anything.”
The word ‘sister’ sounded even more significant than before.
In that suffocatingly awkward atmosphere, a long, uncomfortable conversation continued for quite some time—so long that I couldn’t even remember what I had answered.
Toot-oooot-!
Finally, at the sound of a train horn in the distance, I raised my head with delight.
Even Big Sis, who had been chattering away about one thing or another, smacked her lips regretfully and turned her gaze toward the platform.
“So who is coming this time?”
I asked.
“A male student from Luminus, just like you, Rene.”
A student from Luminus? A male student, at that?
A tremendously ominous feeling suddenly struck me.
‘No way….’
Given my unfortunate experiences so far, the person who appeared at moments this perfectly timed was always ‘that guy.’
I swallowed hard and looked toward the platform. The train doors opened, and countless people began filing out one after another.
And a moment later,
“Huh? Big Sis Erica.”
A tremendously familiar voice came from the complete opposite side—not from where I had been looking.
And it wasn’t even the voice I had secretly expected.
“Huh.”
I turned my head, literally dumbfounded.
“Oh? There’s a cute young lady here.”
Standing there was not me—that is, Rene—but Evan’s one and only best friend.
“Hans?”
A hollow laugh escaped me before I knew it.