Chapter 159
"Go! Enta!"
"Chupii!"
With her spirits high, Orihime threw a small ball and had Enta fetch it.
Despite being a penguin, clever little Enta deftly picked up the ball and brought it back to Orihime.
Orihime was absolutely delighted.
"Oh! Good boy! Enta! Amazing! You're so good!"
"Chupii!!"
Honestly, it was noisy.
Well, it wasn't as if the noise was anything new, but the problem was...
"I have something to ask you."
"Hmm? What?"
"Not 'what.' Why are you in my room?"
"Because you are here?"
Orihime answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
But it wasn't obvious at all.
"Your room isn't here, is it!? Don't you realize you're not officially supposed to be here!?"
"What, that's all? Don't worry. I have permission."
"Permission from whom...?"
"The chancellor. I asked him to let me go to Arnold's room because I was tired of always staying in the same room."
"He gave you permission...?"
"Of course, not unconditionally. The condition was that I put barriers around the room. I properly set up a people-repelling barrier, as well as a sturdy defensive barrier in front of the door. Everyone will somehow avoid this room because of the people-repelling barrier, and even if someone does approach, they won't be able to open the door because of the other barrier. So everything is fine!"
"Nothing about this is fine... If people realize that an imperial prince's room has been sealed off by barriers, there'll be an uproar..."
"It won't open right away, so I can use the barrier as a foothold and retreat through the window in the meantime. Perfect!"
"What about the uproar?"
"I don't know. Deal with it yourself."
She really just said it...
She was so free-spirited that it was almost awe-inspiring.
"Sigh..."
"Don't sigh while you're with me. It makes it seem like being with me is boring."
"It's not boring; you're exhausting..."
"That can't be helped. You're in charge of entertaining me, after all!"
Saying that, Orihime wore a smug expression for some reason.
I meant that she was troublesome enough to wear me out...
Orihime was completely free-spirited. If she wanted to play, she played; if she was sleepy, she slept. She immediately acted on whatever came to mind, and whenever I got angry with her, she quickly drooped.
Even though she insisted that I respect her because she was the Celestial Princess, whenever I showed her respect and kept my distance, she demanded that I pay attention to her.
I was starting to think she was basically a cat or a dog.
Though she'd probably get angry if I said so.
As I thought this and looked at Orihime exasperatedly, she resumed playing fetch.
She threw the ball and made Enta fetch it, then lavishly praised and petted him when he brought it back.
I had no idea what was so fun about it.
What was the point of doing it in my room, anyway?
I found myself thinking about something so pointless. Then I realized that it was foolish to assume there was any reason behind Orihime's actions.
"Hmm? What's wrong, Arnold?"
"Nothing. It's nothing."
"Hmm? Oh! I see, I see!"
When I developed a headache and clutched my head, Orihime seemed to notice something. Probably—no, definitely—she had misunderstood.
We hadn't known each other long, but I was beginning to understand her well enough to know that much.
"I was wondering why you kept looking at me today. So that's it. Forgive me, forgive me. I was being dense."
"Well, yes. I agree with that much."
"But I've figured it out! You wanted to join in with us, didn't you! You have quite an adorable side, unable to say so outright!"
"No, that's completely wrong."
"Don't be shy. I'm not heartless. If you really want to, I suppose I could let you throw the ball too!"
Saying that, Orihime folded her arms and puffed out her chest with a smug little hmph.
How could she say something so wrong with such confidence?
She really was something.
"No, that's why..."
"Don't hold back!"
Saying that, Orihime showed me the ball.
Behind her, her tail was swishing furiously, and her eyes were shining with anticipation.
In short, she wanted me to play with her.
"..."
"Come on! It's fun!"
Orihime persistently urged me to play fetch. Since I couldn't understand what was fun about it, I remained completely unresponsive.
Then Orihime flattened her ears, and her expression quickly darkened.
"...If you don't want to, it can't be helped. I won't force you. I suppose I'll play with Enta instead..."
Looking utterly dejected, Orihime went back to playing fetch with Enta. But she threw the ball without any force, and even when Enta fetched it, she only petted him a little.
Seeing Orihime so completely dispirited made me feel as though I was in the wrong, even though I hadn't done anything.
"All right, all right... I'll do it, okay? I'll do it."
"Really!? Hmph! You should have just said you wanted to from the start. What a troublesome fellow!"
Saying that, Orihime happily handed me the ball.
Then she wagged her tail and waited for me to move.
"I'm the one throwing?"
"Yes! You throw it. I catch it before it can even touch the floor! That's all!"
Saying that, Orihime urged me to throw it quickly.
I couldn't understand what was so fun about it, but I reluctantly tossed the ball halfheartedly. Orihime reacted instantly and moved into the spot where it would land.
"Hmm? I can't enjoy throws this weak!"
"...Are you serious?"
Her reaction was like that of a predatory animal.
She moved in an instant. She was a beastkin, so it wasn't surprising that she could move like that, but using those movements for a game was something else.
Orihime demanded that I throw faster, then tossed the ball back toward me.
Since she had said that, I had to play properly.
This time, I seriously threw the ball at the wall with all my strength.
It would bounce off, and she wouldn't be able to catch it properly. Or so I thought.
But she caught it effortlessly before it even hit the wall.
"Yes! That one was pretty good!"
"...Tch."
"Did you just click your tongue!?"
"I didn't. You imagined it."
"Did I? I thought I heard you click your tongue..."
Tilting her head, Orihime threw the ball back to me.
That had hit me right in the pride. I had thrown it with almost all my strength, and she had caught it effortlessly...
This was probably something I had inherited from Father, but whenever someone acted completely at ease, I felt compelled to land at least one hit on them.
If she wanted to have fun so badly, then I would entertain her. She could enjoy being frustrated when she failed to catch it.
Behold! This is my full-power throw!
Thinking that, I threw the ball as hard as I could in a wildly wrong direction. It wasn't the sort of throw one made indoors. It was the sort of throw meant for outside.
Yet Orihime caught it with ease.
My full-power throw, that was.
"Yes! That's the spirit!"
"What...!?"
As I caught the ball she threw back, I was stunned.
No matter how fast Orihime was, she shouldn't have been able to catch that... It was less as if she had seen it with her eyes and more as if her body had reacted on its own.
Damn. Her tail was wagging wildly. She looked like she couldn't have been having more fun.
I had gone all out because I wanted to catch her off guard!
This couldn't be where it ended. If she was chasing the ball by instinct, then I just had to make use of that.
If pushing doesn't work, try pulling.
If throwing far doesn't work, use close range. Don't underestimate me, Orihime. I'm not the sort of man who goes out of his way to do things his opponent hates, but once someone makes me do it, I'm a genius at it.
I would make her understand that.
"Here I go!"
"Bring it on!"
I raised my leg to throw the ball at Orihime with all my strength.
Seeing that, Orihime braced herself.
But I immediately lowered my leg and lightly tossed the ball right in front of me.
"See that! There's no way you can—whaaaaaat!??"
Orihime fell for my feint for only an instant, but then she reacted like an animal and charged toward me.
She caught the ball before it touched the floor, then rolled across the ground and took me down with her.
Orihime knocked me over with all her strength, and I ended up on my back, clutching the back of my head. I had hit it when I fell.
"Ow... Wait, you're heavy!"
"Hmph! How about that! I caught it!!"
Orihime was straddling me. The expression on her face was the smugest one she'd worn all day.
She was showing off the ball she'd caught so triumphantly.
"What if I got hurt...? I mean, me?"
"Oh! I hadn't considered that! Sorry! But it's your fault. This happened because you tried to trick me."
After saying that, Orihime turned her head toward me.
When I gave her a puzzled look, wondering what she was doing, Orihime announced it with a beaming smile.
"I caught it magnificently! Praise me!"
"Uh..."
"Praise me! Praise me!"
Though her words were imperious, with her tail swishing as she waited to have her head petted, she was obviously a cat or a dog.
Orihime twitched her ears and urged me to pet her.
It was obvious that she would keep pestering me if I refused, so I stroked Orihime's head with my right hand.
"There, there. Good job."
"Yes! Praise me more!"
"More...?"
What did she want me to do?
As I wondered that, a sound like shattering glass suddenly rang out. It was a sound only those skilled at handling magic could perceive. Ordinary people couldn't even hear it—the sound of a barrier being destroyed.
Then the door slowly opened.
"Honestly! Al! What is this!? You put up a people-repelling barrier, and another one on the door! And they're absurdly strong! It took me forever to break... them..."
Elna stood beyond the door.
As her words suggested, she must have struggled to break through the barriers. She was gripping her sword and breathing heavily.
But when she saw Orihime straddling me, her expression grew fiercer by the second.
At the same time, a flood of cold sweat broke out across my body.
And so, at the worst possible moment, the spear and shield came face-to-face.