Chapter 134
"Hot springs?"
"Yes, hot springs. How about we all go together?"
It was a sudden proposal.
The day after my adventurer experience with Linfia ended.
Perhaps because I'd been going out for several days in a row, my body ached all over when Elna suggested I go to the hot springs.
The destination was Heilung, a long-established hot-spring resort near the Imperial Capital. It was said to heal wounds and relieve bodily fatigue, and had long been known as a place frequented by emperors and renowned warriors.
Still, honestly, I didn't want to go. For one thing, it was a hassle. To be blunt, I was tired and not in the mood to go out. Why should I have to tire myself out to get rid of my fatigue?
The other thing bothering me was Elna bringing it up at this particular time. I had a feeling there was some ulterior motive.
As I thought that, Elna sighed, apparently reading my mind.
"It's not like I have some ulterior motive."
"Then why are you inviting me so suddenly?"
"Mother said that Al seems to have been working hard lately, so I should go relax at the hot springs. I don't get opportunities to go when I have Imperial Guard duties, either."
Although Elna's house arrest had already been lifted, there was still no prospect of her returning to the Imperial Guard.
Father probably wanted an excuse to bring her back, considering that he'd blamed her for failing to protect Christa and removed her from the Imperial Guard. He wanted her back, but presumably couldn't reinstate her unconditionally.
However, with the twenty-fifth anniversary of his accession approaching, we couldn't afford to let Elna remain idle forever. An imperial edict ordering her return to the Imperial Guard would probably come before long. Once that happened, Elna would be busy again.
It would make sense for her to take it easy while she still could.
But.
"If that's what you think, then leave me alone... To be blunt, I don't have the energy to go out."
"How pathetic."
Elna sighed and sat down in a chair in the room.
Then she crossed her legs and said to me,
"You may not want to go, Al, but I wonder how everyone else feels?"
"There's no reason for me to go all the way to the hot springs with you..."
"You don't need to, but I think someone wants you to come."
"Who?"
"Who could that be?"
Elna put on an innocent expression as she said that.
Why was she so confident? Usually she'd force me to come by saying, "Just come along." What was going on?
I had a bad feeling about this.
Just then, the door to the room opened.
"Big Brother! If you're going to the hot springs, I'm coming too!"
Leo came in, brimming with excitement.
He was grinning more brightly than usual. He was completely fired up.
I sighed despite myself and looked at Elna.
Elna wouldn't meet my eyes.
"...Leo. I never said I was going."
"But I've already invited Christa and Fiene-san, too."
"Why do you always..."
I covered my face in exasperation.
Leo loved doing things together and going places as a group.
Ever since he was little, he'd dreamed of going on family trips. That was only a dream, though. Whenever the emperor, empress, and princes traveled, they needed guards, and the whole thing became a major production. It could never be a fun trip for just the family.
Once he was grown, the struggle for the throne began, and there had been no time for such things. For Leo, this was probably a good chance to make his dream come true.
"What are you going to do about commanding the Imperial Capital Guard?"
"I'll be fine for one day. I'm an honorary general, after all."
"The succession struggle is at its most intense, you know?"
"Elick is leaving the Imperial Capital by noon today. He's the foreign minister, after all. Gordon's faction isn't going to make a move either, so it'll be fine."
"..."
Damn it, everything was falling into place too neatly.
From the standpoint of public perception, Leo going to the hot springs was a good move. Choosing not to act when he could do something would signal that he had no intention of going against Father's wishes.
It was quite a sound strategy from the perspective of the succession struggle, too. But that still didn't give me a reason to go.
"If you want to go that badly, you and Elna go without me."
"I can't leave you behind, Big Brother."
"No, please do leave me behind."
"You haven't taken a break lately, have you? Let's relax with people we're close to for once."
"Listen... I don't want to go because I want to relax."
As we went in circles, Fiene arrived with Linfia.
She looked pretty excited, too.
"Al-sama! Are we going to the hot springs?! I want to go, too!"
"No, it hasn't been decided that we're going yet..."
"See? Fiene-san is eager to go, too!"
With that, Leo forced me to choose.
The three of them had actually joined forces.
I looked to Linfia, believing she was my last hope.
"If this is a hot-spring cure, I'm in. You may feel too tired to move right now, but soaking in the hot springs will properly relieve your fatigue."
"Even you, Linfia..."
I thought she'd take my side...
I let my shoulders droop, but I still couldn't give up.
Hot-spring treatment? I wasn't so badly injured that I needed it. I was simply tired. A little sleep would be enough to recover.
If anything, going to the hot springs could make me even more tired.
"I don't want to go."
"But..."
"Big Brother, this is for your sake."
As if.
Your face says you want to go, Leo.
I grimaced at the thought that they expected me to fall for it, when another visitor arrived.
"Big Brother Al... hot springs..."
Christa stuck only her face out from beyond the door and stared intently at me.
Her gaze made it obvious how badly she wanted to go.
Rita then popped her head out from behind Christa.
"Rita wants to go, too!! Take Big Brother Al with us!"
"Even Rita...? If everyone in this group goes, adjusting our schedules will be..."
"Leave it to me. I've arranged everything."
"..."
Sebas appeared without a sound and had the nerve to announce that he'd already taken care of everything.
Why!? I'm the master here!?
His competence usually saved me a lot of trouble, but at times like this, it was nothing but a nuisance.
I glared at Sebas as hard as I could, but he was completely unfazed. What's more,
"If Arnold-sama doesn't go, rumors might spread around the Imperial Capital. They might say that Prince Leonhart went on an incognito trip with Elna-sama and Fiene-sama. That could ruin Prince Leonhart's image."
"It'd be the same if I went, wouldn't it!?"
"It is common knowledge that Arnold-sama, Prince Leonhart, and Elna-sama are childhood friends. With Fiene-sama joining those three close friends, and Christa-sama and her friend coming along, it will look like a perfectly respectable family trip."
What kind of logic was that?
Would the people of the Imperial Capital really accept that?
Would the girls who idolize Leo and the boys who idolize Fiene really back off just because I was in between them?
"If we say that everyone went along to accompany Arnold-sama for his hot-spring treatment, everything is resolved. In other words, Arnold-sama is indispensable."
"Why are you going so far to make me come...?"
"The struggle for the throne is growing fiercer, and both Arnold-sama and Prince Leonhart are pushing themselves too hard. You have both suffered injuries and accumulated fatigue. This is a time for rest, so you should make the most of it."
"Sigh... Fine, fine. I'll go, all right? I'll go."
"Really!? Hooray!!"
Leo rejoiced with childlike innocence, frolicking with Christa and Rita.
How badly did this guy want to go?
"So the group is me, Leo, Elna, Fiene, Linfia, Christa, Rita, and Sebas. Eight people, right? With this group, we won't need guards, will we?"
"Hey now, don't forget me, kid."
Zeke entered the room with a broad grin.
"The hot springs... a man's ideal paradise! A bewitching garden lies beyond those walls! Should a man rise to the challenge or turn back? That's where a man's courage is tested! You might be nervous since it's your first time, but don't worry! The great Zeke-sama will make your dreams come true! Kid! Follow me!!"
"You're staying behind."
"What!?!"
Zeke, lost in his own heroic fantasy, was yanked back to reality and stared in shock.
I was shocked that he was shocked, though.
Obviously, we weren't taking a peeping Tom with us.
"You'd peep. You just announced that you would."
"I-I wouldn't peep. That was just a metaphor for how it takes courage to get into hot water."
What kind of analogy was that?
There was no way to interpret it as anything but an announcement that he intended to peep.
"Nothing you say will change my mind. You're staying behind."
"Hey!? Are you even a man!? Isn't this too cruel!? As a fellow man, don't you feel sorry for me!?"
"No. Not one bit."
"You heartless devil! So you plan to peep by yourself, don't you!? You're going to pretend you don't want to go while carefully planning a way to peep, aren't you!? I won't let you have all the fun! A beautiful woman's bare skin is the common property of all men!"
Saying that, Zeke leaped toward me. But at that instant, I increased the weight of his collar, sending him crashing to the ground.
"Agh!!"
"I'm making you stay behind for your own sake. If you peep even once, Elna will cut you down, you know?"
"I-I'm not afraid of some hero... I can peep just fine... T-take me with you... Take me with you!!"
"Admirable, but no."
"What the hell!? Take me with you! I want to go! I want to go!"
Zeke rolled around on the ground as he said that. He was like a spoiled child throwing a tantrum.
The difference between him and a spoiled child was that, wherever he rolled, he tried to look up Fiene's skirt.
Linfia knocked him away before he could get close, though.
"That's settled. If we're going, let's leave now. Is the carriage ready, too?"
"Of course."
"Then let's head out."
"Damn you... Remember this, kid. Even if you leave me behind, a second and third me will appear...!!"
"The second and third versions of you would be cut down by Elna, so don't worry."
And so we left and headed for Heilung, the long-established hot-spring resort.