Chapter 33
Thus began the outing.
It was my first outing with the Young Lady, but honestly, it didn't really feel like one.
Because…
“Oh my, look! It’s Gareth’s Blacksmith.”
“Indeed, it is.”
“You bought the sword you have in your house there, right? How did you get it?”
Terra was the one chattering away next to me, more so than the Young Lady.
Daren and Kaiden looked over in shock when Terra mentioned the sword made by Gareth that was on display, but they quickly returned to scanning their surroundings, focused on their bodyguard duties.
While the two of them diligently glared around, Terra kept talking to me…
“Lowell, where are we?”
“According to the map, we are here, Young Lady.”
Lowell expertly guided the Young Lady.
Come to think of it, the Young Lady probably doesn’t know this area well.
Although she's taking the lead, she doesn’t actually know the way.
Lowell is practically glued to her side, explaining everything around us.
“Doggy, look! A blacksmith!”
“Ah, yes…”
“Whoa… so many people! Should we go in?”
“Ah, pardon?”
“Let's go!”
Go to the blacksmith?
Having said that, the Young Lady marched straight towards the blacksmith.
“Excuse me…”
“Huh.”
The unusual group following the Young Lady caused the people in line to stir.
Lowell clearly looked the part of a Noble Family’s butler.
Daren and Kaiden, being bodyguards, were lightly but visibly armed.
Terra, even at a glance, had the distinct appearance of, well—a Magician Woman.
And me…
“That person…”
“Is he a slave? Why the leash?”
Dressed normally, yet with a leash around my neck.
I’m the one attracting the most attention.
Quite a lot of stares, aren’t there?
Well, I’ve experienced worse back in the Colosseum, so it doesn’t bother me.
“Hee… This is where you buy weapons, I see.”
“It’s the most popular place in the Capital.”
“They wouldn’t sell Magician weapons, would they?”
“They might have some small, secondary weapons, but for anything proper, you'd need to go to the Magic Tower.”
“Then forget it!”
The Young Lady briefly looked around the blacksmith shop, but soon lost interest and turned away.
She’s at an age full of curiosity, so she’ll probably spend the day sightseeing like this.
Well, we brought plenty of bodyguards, so we might as well cover the whole Capital while we’re at it.
Anyway, just like that…
“Let's go there!”
“Uh… what’s that?”
“Wow… should we buy it?”
The Young Lady spent the entire morning going around the high-end commercial district, buying all sorts of things.
She really bought everything under the sun.
Watching Lowell pay without any change in expression really drove home the fact that the Young Lady is a Noble’s Young Lady.
I wonder if this is just pocket change for her.
Anyway…
“Doggy, wear this!”
“Ah, yes…”
Since she bought so much, naturally, a lot of it ended up on me.
Ornaments, of course, but also hats, coats, and other clothing.
Fortunately, since the Young Lady is a teenage girl, she’s usually interested in these kinds of clothes, so they’re actually quite stylish.
And since they were bought from the high-end commercial district, I ended up looking like some kind of young master.
“Look over there…”
“Woooow…”
Of course, with the leash still around my neck, the number of strange looks I received only increased.
Still, since our group clearly looked Noble, people didn’t say anything and just passed by, but I wonder what kind of rumors will spread through the Capital tomorrow.
Whatever rumors spread, Lowell must have approved this.
Judging by the reactions of the other people who saw me at the mansion, my situation, while unusual, isn't entirely unheard of.
And so…
“Phew, shall we go back now?”
Finally, after shopping from morning till midday, the Young Lady seemed satisfied and decided to return.
Afterward, we had lunch at the mansion.
“Aria, you have supplementary Lessons.”
“Huh?”
“That’s why we’re here.”
Terra, finally revealing her true intentions, took the Young Lady to the second floor of the mansion.
…She said she was just visiting, but it was for supplementary lessons.
Well, it’s clear that Terra cares for the Young Lady, so she'd naturally want to teach her something whenever she gets the chance.
“Let’s go too.”
I didn’t mind being left at the mansion and headed straight for the Training grounds.
“Right now?”
“I’ve been waiting.”
It was none other than Daren and Kaiden who were beside me.
Since they weren’t needed to guard the Young Lady during her lessons, we planned to spar.
We haven’t sparred since the Young Lady started Magic School, so I've been looking forward to it.
Sparring with Aura Users is definitely helpful.
Arriving at the Training grounds, we each picked up a Wooden Sword.
“Who’s going first?”
Seeing their enthusiasm, likely due to the lack of proper training at Magic School, I flicked my wooden sword.
“Both of you, come at me at once.”
“Hmm?”
“You think you can handle that?”
How many times have I faced life-or-death situations?
I’m certain my senses are different now.
Therefore.
“I’m gonna beat you up.”
I declared to the two staring at me as if asking if I was serious.
A 2-on-1 seemed doable.
***
“Dog, why are you so banged up?”
The result of the 2-on-1 sparring.
I got thoroughly thrashed by two Aura Users.
…Two is still too much.
It wasn’t just *two* people, it was *two* of everything.
Two Rushes, two Fleets.
On top of that, they were individually skilled.
It was literally like a dog getting beaten on the hottest day of summer.
“I trained a bit too hard.”
“Heeh, nothing too serious, right?”
“I’m fine…”
Later, I was relaxing in the doghouse.
The Young Lady, who had lessons until late in the evening, came to visit, so I was entertaining her.
“Ahh, I’m exhausted!”
“Young Lady, it’s cramped.”
The Young Lady squeezed herself into my doghouse and lay down.
Whitey, who had been snuggled up next to me, freaked out and ran back to his own house.
“I used to lie down here all the time!”
“It’s a bit different now.”
Two years ago, there was still space.
But now, hadn't we both grown?
Plus, with all the junk I had accumulated, it was incredibly cramped.
“I don’t care!”
But as if oblivious, the Young Lady burrowed deeper and settled in.
“Ugh… I want to stay in the Mansion forever.”
It seemed like she was trying to escape reality because she didn't want to go to Magic School.
“How’s school?”
“Eh? It’s… okay…”
“Tell me, just between us.”
I was curious anyway, so I asked her about school life.
Seeing her hesitate, it seemed like there was a reason she didn't want to go.
She'd always been relatively open with me, so I figured I'd listen.
Besides, there’s that thing, like complaining to a doll or a pet at home. The Young Lady had always grumbled to me like that.
“Come on, tell me.”
As I started to subtly press her…
“Well, actually…”
She finally couldn’t hold back and started talking.
“Yes, yes, what is it?”
“It’s… it’s hard to make friends…”
And surprisingly, she voiced a rather cute concern.
“Friends?”
“Uh, yeah… I don’t know how to approach people. They all seem intimidated by me.”
Well, her Family *is* her Family.
It’s understandable that others would be intimidated.
“So I just attend classes… I’m worried I’ll become a loner.”
It was such a typical adolescent worry.
I didn't realize she'd be thinking about this kind of thing.
“Why do *you* have to approach them?”
“Huh?”
But was that really necessary?
The Young Lady was still young and didn't seem to understand.
“You’re in a position to be approached, Young Lady.”
As the Young Lady of the Void Family, I didn’t think she needed to fret like this.
“Approached?”
“Yes, haven't you been taught?”
She probably had some training.
Like, kingly studies or something.
Ah, Nobles probably learn something different.
Anyway, I’m sure she had lessons on handling people.
“I’ve learned… but, is it okay to do that?”
“That’s what you learned it for.”
“They taught me how to order people around…”
“You’re in the position to order, that’s why you learned.”
If you have power, you should wield it.
I, for one, beat up and boss around Mercenaries weaker than me.
“Just maintain your composure and others will come to you.”
“Really?”
“Yes, you don’t need to be anxious.”
Besides, this isn't just any world, it’s a damned Fantasy world.
It would be better than fidgeting and trying to talk to other students at Magic School and getting looked down on.
What did our Young Lady lack?
Appearance, talent, family background—she was clearly superior to the other students in every aspect.
“Uh, okay…”
The Young Lady nodded as if she understood.
Well, she looked a bit confused.
But once puberty passed and her mind matured, she’d understand the world better.
“And if anyone disrespects you…”
Anyway, that night, I gave the Young Lady some advice, or something like it.
“Okay, I got it…!”
The Young Lady nodded innocently.
“Then, go back to the Mansion and sleep.”
“I don’t wanna!”
Thinking back, maybe this was the turning point.
“Hmm, I’m special, right? Then it’s okay if I sleep here.”
This was when the Young Lady started acting like the true heiress of the Kingdom’s highest ranking Family.