Picnic
It has been a week since the nuisance Prince Mistgart turned up at our house. Clarie-san, who carried Prince Mistgart and went back, came to our house by herself on a later day and apologised to us so extensively that I thought she’s going to prostrate herself.
After all, we didn’t have a particularly lousy impression of Clarie-san, far from that, we sympathised with her for being the aide of such a moronic prince.
Hence, although it might be soft-hearted, we told Clarie-san that she could come and rely on us at any time when she feels that her life is really in danger. It rubs me the wrong way to help that moronic prince, but I cannot bring myself to let Clarie-san, who’s accompanying that person, become a victim.
Clarie-san, who heard that, thanked us apologetically, and happily nevertheless. I suppose there won’t be any problem if I leave it to Clarie-san. Probably. It seems they’ll be around until the end of the year, but she swears that we won’t meet.
And then today
“Is everybody ready?”
“”””Ye~s!””””
We’re all going to an out-of-season autumn-leaf viewing together. We’re actually supposed to go around the middle of the 11th month, but we didn’t have the free time to go because there were various things that happened this year, so we’re going today. Well, it’s more of a picnic than autumn-leaf viewing today.
The location is the mountain near the villa that I played with Alexia and the others in swimsuits previously. I’m thankful that the King gave us his permission readily.
He even arranged a carriage for us, so we head over on that. Our lunchbox is Priscilla’s handmade lunchbox; Mei-chan and Haku were saying that they helped out as well. I’m looking forward to it.
“Alright, let’s go then, shall we”
We, who finished our preparations, then get on the carriage that the King arranged for us and set off.
◇◇◇
“Uwaa~! Onii-chan! It’s snow! It’s snowing!”
It started snowing just right when we arrive at our destination. Mei-chan, who saw that, alights the carriage in high spirits, and Roy follows behind her going, ‘It can’t be helped’. It looks like Eclat is also following Mei-chan.
“Don’t wander off too far from the villa!”
“Yee~s~!”
I think it’ll be fine since my Presence Sense only picked up on animals around this vicinity, but just to be safe.
“Let’s have a little stroll as well, shall we”
“Yeah. Since it’s snowing after all”
Alexia and the others say and start playing rock-paper-scissors. What? Thereupon, somebody holds my right hand. When I look in that direction
“……Onii, let’s hold hands?”
Haku says and holds my hand. I don’t have any particular reason to refuse, so I hold her hand with a smile. Haku also holds my hand back happily. Then
“Yahoo! I won! Lei-san, hold hands with me!”
“Yahoo! Lei, I’ll take the other si……aah!”
I hear those voices from behind. Helen is rejoicing, and Ferris is in shock when I look in that direction. Alexia and the others are there still playing rock-paper-scissors. I guess they’re deciding the order to hold hands. Helen, who’s the first to win, holds my hand on the other side without a care, and Ferris is all shook up.
“Lei-san’s hand is warm”
“Is it? Helen’s hand is also warm”
“……me?”
“Haku’s too”
“That’s cheating~!”
Haku out-played them huh. Well, it looks like it’s in order, so Ferris, wait until the next turn.
Well, I’m glad that Ferris is humming and back into a good mood after she switched with Helen. It’s adorable how she rubbed her tail against me for affection.
Noon came as we leisurely strolled and explored the villa’s vicinity, so we decided to return to the villa and eat Priscilla’s handmade lunchbox but
“Lei-san, Mei-chan and the others still haven’t returned”
Priscilla told me.
“Are they not in the vicinity?”
“Yes, I went and looked around the villa’s vicinity, but I couldn’t find them anywhere……”
Priscilla looks at me anxiously. Everybody else is looking worried as well. I activate Presence Sense and Magic Power Detection and look for Mei-chan and the others. ……this is
“I’m going out for a bit”
“Le, Lei-san?”
I ignore Priscilla’s voice and leave the villa. To think that they’ve gone deep into the villa’s forest! I headed towards Mei-chan and the others right away.
◇◇◇
“Mei, didn’t Aniki tell us not to wander too far from the villa”
“It’s just a little~! Roy-kun too, let’s go~”
“Kyururu~”
Mei says and turns around while waving her hand with a smile. Eclat-san, who’s on top of her head, looks like she’s having fun as well. Well, the me who allows that is also reproachable though.
I was together with Mei when I realise. When I realise, we have our meals together, raise vegetables together, and spend our time together.
I didn’t tell anybody, but I was delighted when Mei told me that she’s coming along as well when I said I’m going to follow Aniki. This is the feeling that belongs only to me, that I won’t tell anybody.
As I’m thinking about such things, Mei suddenly stands still and starts looking around. What’s the matter?
“Mei, is something wrong?”
“……somebody is shouting”
“Kyuru”
“Eh?”
Somebody is shouting? I prick up my ears and listen, but I hear nothing of that sort. It looks like Eclat-san can tell though. When I look in Mei’s direction again
“Somebody is shouting, ‘Help! Help Okaa-san!’, !”
Mei says and starts running into the forest.
“Ah! Mei! Going into the forest is…..eh, so fast! Shit!”
We’d ended up wandering off quite a distance when I realise. I’ll probably get scolded by Aniki afterwards, but I chase after Mei. Aniki has given me a sword with a blade to hold onto for use if something happens.
He actually didn’t want to let me hold onto it, but he says it’s for precaution. I make sure I can unsheathe my sword at any time and activate Body Enhancement. I can’t do it as well as Aniki, but if it’s just to run after with Mei.
I run after Mei for several minutes. After running through while avoiding the branches, Mei comes to a halt. I finally caught up to her
“Mei! Why did you suddenly r……u……n”
Just as I was about to ask Mei, whom I caught up with, what’s the matter, I looked at where Mei’s gaze is directed and over there
“Guruu”
“Nyaa~, Nyaa~”
were a collapsed blood-stained horned tiger and a tiger cub that appears to be its child. The mother is albino, and yet the tiger cub is black instead. I wonder why? Eh, Mei, why are you approaching them!
“Mei, you can’t approach monsters!”
“Garuruu!”
The mother tiger is intimidating Mei as well. I don’t know whether it’s because she couldn’t gather her strength even when she tries to stand up, or whether it’s because of her wounds, but she falls over right away. However, she doesn’t take her eyes away from Mei.
“It’s fine. I won’t do anything, okay?”
When Mei says with a smile, the mother tiger lies down as it is while looking at Mei. Is, is it alright?
“Gururuu, Gurururara? Garuru”
(It looks like that person there understands us huh. I have a request; can I entrust this child to you? I can’t make it anymore)
“But, I’m a human, you know? Are you sure?”
“Gurururu, Garuraraa”
(This child will just die even if it lives in the forest like this. In that case, this child will be better off in your care)
“Nyaa! Nyanyanya!”
(I don’t want to, Okaa-sann! Don’t leave me behind!)
One person and two creatures are having a conversation, but I can’t understand. I guess Mei can have a conversation because she understands them. Eclat-san, who’s on top of her head, is also listening silently.
“Garururaau. Garuru, Guraaa”
(Stay alive. Stay alive and become strong)
The mother tiger purrs a final something and lowers her head onto the ground. The tiger cub licks the mother tiger’s face over and over again, but the mother tiger no longer opens her eyes. Mei is crying as well. As I was about to move closer to Mei’s side
“Gyurururuu!”
Eclat-san looked deep into the forest and started chirruping suddenly. I look in that direction as well and
“Bumooo!”
roughly three Orcs were running over from there. They were lured by the mother tiger’s blood huh! I unsheathe my sword right away.
“Mei! Carry that tiger cub and get behind! Eclat-san, I’m leaving Mei to you!”
“Kyuruu!”
“Roy-kun”
I activate Body Enhancement once again. ……they’re huge. Their size is about twice of me, but I’m not gonna let you get past me!
“Bumoo!”
Perhaps the Orcs noticed us, they raise their voices and increase their running speed. The first Orc to make contact is the one on the left side huh. I start running towards the Orc on the left side. Our speed is right on par huh.
“Buraa!”
I crouch and dodge the Orc that swings the club it held in its hand at me horizontally, and carry on to slash at its flank. It’s tough! It’s pack with fats, and my sword couldn’t really get in. On top of that, perhaps the Orc is mad at the fact that I sliced it, it starts shouting loudly.
It’s bad if it carries on like this……shit! Before I know it, the other Orcs had also caught up and were surrounding me. I jump to the side and avoid the club that’s swung down at me from behind. Woah, the ground that’s struck by the Orc caved in.
“Burararaa!”
Woah! Another Orc punches at me……I can’t avoi……
“Roy-kunn! Noooo!”
Haha, I can see it extremely slowly. I’m sorry, Mei. And then the Orc swings its arm down as it is……
“Gyuraraa!”
the moment I thought that; a beam of flash that clads a bolt of shining lightning pierces the Orc’s arm. Wha, what? I looked at the source of the beam of flash and
“Kyururuu!”
Eclat-san, who has clad her body in Magic Power, was flying over there. And then when Eclat-san chirrups once, spheres of light that are flying while making electrifying sounds appeared around Eclat-san. And then
“Gyurararaa!”
those spheres of light, they were released at the Orcs. The spheres pour down while making the sound, ‘Zudodon!’. A dust cloud arises because of the impact of the collision on the ground. Geho Geho! What power. And then when the dust cloud settles
“Se, seriously”
there were the figures of hole-ridden Orcs that were pierced throughout their body by Eclat-san’s attack over there. Am, amazing. Right then
“Mei-chan, Roy! Are you alright!?”
, Aniki turned up. I felt at ease and sat down. We’re saved~.
◇◇◇
As I’m running towards where Mei-chan and the others, who were caught in my Presence Sence, are, there’s suddenly the sound, ‘DoDoDon!’. They’re fighting! And then when I arrive, over there is; Mei-chan, who’s carrying a black tiger?; Roy, who’s frozen with his sword ready; hole-ridden corpses of dead Orcs
“Kyurururururuu!”
and a chirruping Eclat. Did Eclat do this? Amazing. Oops, more importantly
“Mei-chan, Roy! Are you alright?”
I have to make sure that both of them are unharmed; when they realised that I came, Roy sits down, and Mei-chan runs to me. But, she feels somewhat awkward.
“Mei-chan?”
“……I entered the forest wilfully! Roy-kun didn’t do anything wrong! If you’re going to scold, scold me!”
Aah, she’s bothered by the fact that I said not to enter the forest huh. I pat Mei-chan’s head with a smile. Mei-chan jumped the moment my hand touched her head, but when she realised that nothing is happening, she timidly opens her eyes.
“Mei-chan, I won’t scold you if you know that you’re at fault. But don’t do it next time. There’s no saying that Eclat will be around, and there’s no telling whether I can come. Wait until you’re slightly older, alright?”
Mei-chan nods when I say that. I go to Roy
“Are you alright, Roy?”
“……Aniki. It’s no good at all. I would’ve died if Eclat wasn’t around”
Roy says and hangs his head. I’m not going to ask why he calls her Eclat-san, but I ruffle Roy’s head.
“What, you just have to work hard from now on. You managed to survive your first battle. Just that in itself is a victory. All that’s left is how to make good use of that experience. Keep at it”
“……yes”
Roy can become stronger if he keeps at it. Don’t give up.
“Gyurururuu! KyuruKyuruu!”
I guess she saw that I finished talking to Roy, Eclat flies over. She clings to my face like she’s saying, ‘Praise me Praise me!’. I tear her off
“Buha, Eclat. You saved them, right? Thanks. As expected”
“Kyuu Kyuu!”
Eclat lets out a pleasant voice when I stroke her. But how would it have turned out if Eclat wasn’t around. I’m really glad. I’ll caress her a whole lot today.
