Chapter 4: A Little Trip
The evening gatherings for the fiancé selection had started to become less frequent.
While that was a relief, something else had been bothering me.
During these events, Milia carried herself with the usual grace of royalty. But the moment we slipped away, I could sense the tension beneath her composed exterior. She tried to act cheerful, yet unease flickered beneath the surface.
Had something happened?
After days of noticing this change, I finally asked her about itâ
âItâs nothing you need to worry about. Focus on choosing a fiancĂ© instead of sticking your nose in my business, idiot.â
That was her response.
And so, with no answers, a week passed. The festive atmosphere following the defeat of the evil dragon had begun to fade, and the townâs energy returned to its usual rhythm.
As for me, I transitioned from being a guest to officially joining the knight order, placed in the rather vague position of âHero.â
Well, the knights were good people, so it wasnât bad.
Thatâs how I found myself heading out on a mission to hunt magical beasts in a somewhat distant areaâ
I sat in a carriage, far more comfortable than the one weâd used during the evil dragon subjugation, though it still jostled me around.
Across from me, a girl with pale golden hair leaned on her elbow.
Milia.
This mission wasnât about hunting a specific magical beast. Ever since the evil dragonâs defeat, magical creatures had become more active in certain areas, and our task was to thin their numbers.
The extent of the problem was still unclear, but sending the entire knight order felt excessive.
Honestly, it would probably be faster if I just handled it myself.
Probably.
That must have been what the knight commander thought when he gave the order⊠or so I assumed.
â...This reminds me of when we were traveling.â
âIt hasnât even been a month.â
âI know that. But still⊠a lot has changed, hasnât it?â
Apparently, someone had to supervise my activities.
I guess the kingdom doesnât trust me muchâŠ
The knight commander had planned to assign someone, but Milia stepped in.
âIf Yusuke needs a partner, Iâm the most efficient choice.â
That was what she said.
The knight commander objected, but she pulled rankâusing her royal authority or somethingâto push it through. And just like that, we were outside the royal castle together for the first time in a while.
Maybe she just wanted a break.
She sat across from me, relaxed.
Instead of the elegant dresses she always wore in the castle, she had on the same practical coat and pants from our journey, a magical cloak draped over her shoulders.
It was the Milia I was used to seeing.
Or at least, it should have been.
But after getting so accustomed to her royal attire, seeing her like this again felt strangely out of place.
Then, out of nowhereâ
â...Yusuke, do you still want to go back to your world?â
She asked it so casually.
â...I donât know. Iâm not sure.â
I answered honestly.
A part of me does want to go back.
Hunting magical beasts like this is fine. But those evening gatherings in the castle⊠the fiancĂ© searchâŠ
Theyâre exhausting.
Sometimes, I just want to run away from it all.
â...When thereâs too much weighing on me, I feel like running away too,â Milia murmured.
âI get that.â
But even so⊠I donât want to leave her.
Not yet.
Not until I understand whatâs been troubling her. Not until she can smile when we say goodbye.
âYouâre amazing, Yusuke.â
â...Not really.â
âNo, you are.â
âMilia, youâre the amazing one.â
â...Thatâs not true.â
A small silence fell between us.
Back when we traveled together, weâd bicker over the silliest things.
Now, we sat in quiet companionship, exchanging only the occasional, trivial remark.
And just like that, the journey continuedâuntil we arrived at the mountain village that was our destination.
âTake this! âȘWind Cutterâ«!â
I channeled my mana and unleashed the spell.
Blades of wind sliced through the air, cutting cleanly through everything in their path.
For most mages, this spell would barely be enough to wound a target. But with my talent, it became a lethal forceâcleaving through trees and magical beasts alike in a single strike.
A boar-like magical beast fell in two, the trees behind it collapsing as well. I let out a deep breath.
Still got it.
Then, I glanced over at Yusukeâ
He moved effortlessly, weaving between the trees without breaking pace. In one swift motion, he cut down two⊠no, three of those beasts in an instant.
âŠHeâs still incredible.
His precision, speed, and sheer strengthâeverything about him surpassed me.
âPhewâŠâ
Unlike me, Yusuke wasnât even splattered with blood. He wasnât sweating either.
I had the advantage of taking enemies down from a distance, but for someone fighting up closeâdodging, countering, avoiding blood splashes while cutting down the next beastâthe difficulty was on a whole other level.
All around us, the corpses of magical beasts littered the ground. One, two, three⊠honestly, Iâd lost count.
Weâd been hunting from morning till night. By now, we must have taken down at least thirty.
Even a large magical beast had shown up, drawn by the scent of bloodâbut weâd dealt with it. With that, the biggest threat was gone.
Magical beasts, unlike normal animals, are creatures infused with mana. Theyâre vicious, but not endless in number.
With this much thinning, the danger should be minimal now. Any stragglers could be handled by the villageâs self-defense force or hired adventurers from the guild.
âAlright, letâs call it a day, Yusuke.â
âYeah, letâs. Itâs getting dark.â
Moving my body helped clear my mind a little.
You could call it escapism.
The sun was setting, painting the sky in deep shades of crimson.
At night, magical beasts become even more dangerous.
Unlike us, they can see perfectly in the dark.
I used a fire spell to burn the corpses of the magical beasts.
If you donât destroy them like this, they can turn into zombie-like creatures.
Theyâre not edible anyway, so burning them is the best option.
Magic flames are easy to control, so thereâs no risk of starting a forest fire.
âAlright, cleanupâs done. Letâs head back to the village.â
âYeah, letâs.â
Still, Yusukeâs really gotten used to this.
Even though heâs from peaceful Japan, he doesnât hesitate when taking down magical beasts.
Maybe itâs because they look grotesque compared to normal animals, making it easier to distance himself.
But mentally and physically, heâs grown a lot since we first started traveling.
Back then, I was too busy to really notice. But now that some time has passed⊠I feel nostalgic for those days, when he still had a bit of that childishness left.
By the time we returned to the village, a feast was already prepared.
It was their way of thanking usâa small gesture of appreciation.
Since we were staying the night, we had no choice but to join in.
Rabbit steak, stewâŠ
I got to taste commoner dishesâno, commoner luxury dishesâyouâd never find in the castle.
Oh, and by the way, they donât know Iâm the Ninth Princess.
To them, Iâm just the female mage traveling with the Hero. Only the nobility know the truth.
If word got out, it would just cause unnecessary trouble.
After the feast, we were led to a guesthouse prepared for us.
It had already been cleaned, meaning they mustâve made arrangements in advance.
That part was fine, butâ
âHey⊠thereâs only one bed.â
â...Oh, youâre right.â
A single bed, big enough for two.
This is clearly meant for a couple.
...Ah, I get it now.
The villagersâespecially that female village chief with her overly warm gazeâI understand what theyâre thinking.
â...Tch, they think weâre a couple. Itâs because of those bards, isnât it?â
âBardsâŠ? Wait, there are people singing about us?â
âTheyâve turned the story of the evil dragon subjugation into some exaggerated love story. Apparently, the popular version is that the Hero and the female mage are in love.â
âOh, uh, I see. I donât go to taverns, so I didnât knowâŠâ
âYou donât drink, after all.â
âWell, yeahâŠâ
I sighed at Yusukeâs flustered reaction and sat down on the bed.
Yusuke and I arenât that kind of relationship⊠but a lot of people seem to misunderstand.
I mean, thereâs no way a guy would fall for a girl who used to be a guy, right?
âBy the way, why donât you drink?â
âUh, I guess the laws from my old world are still stuck in my head?â
ââŠIf youâre not planning to go back, you should learn to drink a little. Youâll probably be offered alcohol at those evening gatherings eventually.â
âThatâs true, butâŠâ
âWhen in Rome, do as the Romans do, right? Soââ
I reached into my bag and pulled out a bottle filled with a pinkish liquid.
âHere, itâs fruit wine.â
âHuh!? âŠWhy do you have that? Did you steal it?â
âIdiot, the village chief gave it to me.â
The old lady had asked, âHero-sama, you donât drink, do you?â and Iâd panicked, blurting out, âI canât drink in public.â
In this world, adults who donât drink are often looked down on.
Trying to be considerate, sheâd smiled and said, âPlease, enjoy this wine together,â before handing it over.
It felt rude to refuse, so I accepted it.
âŠNot like I thought it was lucky or anything just because I hadnât had enough to drink.
âI donât know what fruit this is made from, butâŠâ
I opened the lid and took a small sip.
Sweet⊠but definitely alcoholic.
It tasted kind of like bananas. Yeah, easy to drink.
âHere, itâs mild, so itâs perfect for your first time.â
âHuh⊠me? Drink?â
âWhat? You saying you wonât drink my wine?â
âThatâs such a classic alcohol harassment lineâŠâ
âThereâs no such thing as âalcohol harassmentâ in this world. Too bad for you.â
I handed him the bottle.
Yusuke hesitated, his cheeks tinged red.
âŠIs he still worried about indirect kisses or something?
ââŠDo I have to drink?â
âNo, not really. If youâre genuinely against it, you donât have to.â
I was half-joking when I offered it, but I wasnât about to force him.
Still, if heâs going to live in this world, itâs better to have some experience with alcohol.
And more than thatâheâs not planning to go back, is he?
Thatâs what Iâm really trying to confirm.
âŠI know Iâm being a little sneaky.
And I hate myself for it.
Gulp.
Yusuke took a sip of the wine.
And thenâ
âCough, cough!â
He choked.
âAh⊠you took too big of a sip.â
âUghâŠâ
This time, he sipped it slowly, more carefully.
Well, itâs his first time. Thatâs normal.
ââŠHey, pass it to me.â
âOh, sorry.â
I took the bottle back and took another sip.
âŠDamn, itâs sweet.
The colorâs pink, too. What kind of fruit is this made from?
Well, itâs tastyâŠ
I glanced over at Yusuke and noticed his face was flushed.
ââŠHey, Yusuke. Your face is red.â
âHuh? Oh, is itâŠ?â
âAre you already drunk?â
âNo, I donât think so⊠well, maybe. Maybe I am.â
âWhich is it?â
It didnât seem like the alcohol content was that high⊠but my body felt kind of warm, too.
Probably not just the alcoholâmore like something in the fruit itself.
âŠWait. Now that I think about it, I have heard of a fruit like this.
Around this area, near the village⊠what was it called again?
I think it had other effects besides just warming the bodyâ
ââŠYusuke?â
ââŠâŠâŠâŠâ
He looked dazed, like his mind was somewhere else.
âHey, are you okay?â
I moved closer, placing a hand on his shoulder.
ââŠHuh? Oh, yeah⊠Iâm fine.â
âYouâre not fine. Youâre slurring your words.â
Was it because he took such a big sip at first?
He choked, but it seemed like heâd swallowed most of itâ
ââŠMilia.â
Suddenly, his hand reached out toward me.
âHuh? Whaââ
And thenâ
Squeeze.
Yusuke hugged me.
âH-heyâŠ! What are you doing!?â
ââŠYou smell really nice.â
âD-donât sniff me! Idiot!â
I shouted at the suddenness of it, but Yusuke just fell silent.
I couldnât see his expression.
âHey, donât go quiet on me! And where are you touchingââ
Squish.
He groped my butt.
âKyaahâŠ!?â
A sound Iâd never make slipped out.
It felt⊠strange.
My senses were heightened, to the point where even a normal touch felt overwhelming.
Panicking, I tried to figure out what had caused this.
There was only one explanation.
The wine.
But he wasnât just drunk. It was more likeâŠ
He was aroused.
He didnât seem like he was planning to do anything too reckless, but the way his hands were movingâdefinitely not appropriate.
Thatâs when it finally hit me.
The fruit that grows around here⊠it looks like a peach.
Itâs incredibly sweet and warms your body when eaten. But if you ferment itâ
It becomes an aphrodisiac.
Is it a common name? Love Fruit.
Straight to the point.
That village chief⊠that damn meddling old woman!
She mustâve thought we were a couple and did this on purpose!
This could be a crime, depending on the situation!
But I can handle this.
Thankfully, Iâm a genius mage.
Even if the aphrodisiac is kicking in, I can still use magic.
I channeled my mana, constructing a detoxification spell.
It worked on things like this too.
I circulated the magic through my body, neutralizing the effects, then focused it into my palm.
With all the force I could musterâ
âWhere do you think youâre touching, idiot!?â
âHuhâŠ!?â
I slapped Yusuke across the face. Hard.
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