Otome Game no Heroine de Saikyou Survival-Chapter 114.1

The Young Ladies

“Why are you here? I remember meeting you with His Highness the Crown Prince before, didn’t I?”

I lightly intimidated the boy, who had fallen on his back, pressing down on his chest with my knee and thrusting the blade of my dark weapon between his eyes, he narrowed his eyes slightly and appeared composed, as if he had made up his mind.

“After all, you are the adventurer’s son I met at the Royal Capital…why are you serving at the side of Her Highness the Princess? Are you her highness’s bodyguard?”

“I am the one asking.”

The person on the Crown Prince’s side was not necessarily a nobleman on the royal side. Even if they were allies, what was the reason for their sudden action that could be taken as an “attack”?

I tried to determine this for myself, but he gritted his teeth and met my eyes with a strong gaze.

“I am Mikhail Melrose of the Melrose Frontier Count House, who oversees the dark side of the Cleydale Kingdom. Knowing this, would you still turn your blade against me?”

“…alright.”

The Melrose family… that was the name that Spirit had said was my bloodline, and now here it came up? And being a frontier count family that oversees the dark side, means that they were a great aristocrat on par with Dandol.

Mikhail knew me only as an adventurer, but it was possible that the Melrose family had received information about me through Sera.

It was not the answer I wanted, but it was not safe to antagonize them “just yet”. I would have to do some research, but if he was from the dark side, then he would currently be an ally.

I stood up and reached out my hand to Mikhail, who was lying on the ground. He was staring at me, but then he put away his hand and turned his head to the side with a red face.

“I can stand alone …Kuh.”

Mikhail’s face contorted in anguish as he tried to stand up. I think he might have a crack in his bone somewhere. I composed a magic in my head and pointed my hand toward Mikhail.

“–[High Heal]–“

The light that was released healed his body, and Mikhail, who looked at me with a surprised face, stood up and checked that there was nothing wrong with his body, then exhaled as if to let out what he had endured.

“In a manner of speaking… you should be thankful. That power… are you still Her Highness’ bodyguard? Did you go from being an adventurer to joining the dark side?”

“The request was made via the dark side, but my employer is Elena-sama personally. I am not a member of the Dark Side, but an associate of yours. If you want additional information, please ask her directly.”

Mikhail’s eyes widened slightly when he heard me say the word “request”.

“I heard that Her Royal Highness made a request to the Sword of the Rainbow… was that regarding you?”

“No more questions. If you’re Melrose, you’ll have the information, won’t you? And I apologize for pushing you down, but from now on, I suggest you don’t try to touch another person’s body out of the blue.”

“That’s…oh, I’m sorry.”

I didn’t know how it was in the aristocratic world, but suddenly doing something like that in the underworld would be tantamount to antagonizing them.

Mikhail may have his reasons, but he bowed his head honestly with a red face. I didn’t know what part of my words made him blush, but since some of my actions were also a bit too far out of line, I guess I should let the subject drop already.

“Well then, see you soon. I’m sure we’ll be involved in the business side of things at some point.”

“Wait!”

I turned my back and was about to walk away when Mikhail’s voice stopped me.

“Your name…can you tell me?”

“…Aria.”

“I see…Aria.”

He smiled a bit as he muttered this, and I thought I caught a glimpse of “mother” on his face. Why did he look like that, even though we were of different genders and ages?

Was it blood? I wondered if it was the same for him. I felt as if his eyes were reflecting me, but looking at someone else.

“Aria…I will provide you some information. At this academy, as soon as you enter, children of noble families above the rank of baron are required to go to the suburbs to observe the knights’ exercises. Women are only allowed to participate if they wish, but Her Highness the Princess will probably take part. The dark side should provide escorts, but this time the Knights will be the escort, and the dark side will be behind the scenes. Be careful.”

“…Okay.”

The Knights, the Dark Side, they protected this country from the front and the back, and they were the sword and shield of the nation and the royal family. But if the Crown Prince and Elena were to be at odds, which side would they be on?

***

“…Haah…haah…”

In a room with lace curtains closed, a girl releases her crossed hands and exhales roughly.

The window was covered with glass, which is rare even in this world where magic and alchemy have developed in place of science. Even a small plate of slightly distorted glass could be worth a single gold coin, so a room with half a wall of windows would be the residence of a powerful noble family.

The girl, who kept even the attendants out of the spacious room and was catching her breath, soaked a quill pen with ink and scribbled a series of words on one of the scattered sheets of paper as if she were writing scribbles.

*Kon-kon…

“–Young Lady Clara, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is here to visit you.”

“… please let him in.”

Clara took a moment to reply to the voice of the attendant who seemed to be peeking out from outside the room.

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A few minutes later, Ervan, the only one allowed in to “visit” his fiancée, saw Clara writing so much that the white stone table was stained black, and hurried over to her side.

“Clara, you can’t keep quiet, you have to be calm.”

“Ervan-sama, I still think you should stop joining the training exercise. I’ve been trying to calculate it, but it keeps coming back as “dangerous”.”

“Clara… you used the Gift again.”