Chapter 62: The Three Chattering Girls

While they waited for the sweets to finish baking, the three beautiful girls—each with a completely different personality—chatted among themselves. None of them had ever really spoken this casually with people from another country before, but working together had helped bring them closer, at least on a personal level.

At the moment, the topic of discussion had shifted to Toma's journey through the Forest of Demonic Mist with Alicia and the others, and each of them reacted differently to the story.

"Then, you see, even after getting covered in blood, Toma-kun never complained once and just kept pushing forward... Watching him made me want to cry."

"No, that's just because he's insane. How does someone who had nothing to do with fighting until recently manage to go that far?"

"...Excellent. Truly excellent. The Sword King really was exactly the kind of person I thought he was. Next time, we'll fight without any interruptions. Julia, when it's time for a King's Duel, use me. If it's the Sword King, he'll be able to withstand me."

"The fact that that's your reaction after hearing this story means you're just as crazy as he is. Seriously, are there this many dangerous weirdos in every country?"

Layla smiled happily, her cheeks slightly flushed as she recalled their recent battle. Julia looked at her as though she were trying to understand something completely incomprehensible.

To Julia, combat was a means to an end, not the end itself. Still, she felt she needed to start accepting that people like Layla would exist among her future subordinates and began seriously considering what that would mean for her leadership.

Normally, a King's Duel was a last resort, used only when negotiations had completely broken down—not something people actively looked forward to. However, Julia knew from firsthand experience after years of serving under the Spear King that denying requests like this would only breed dissatisfaction.

(Then again, I was exactly the kind of person who carried those frustrations myself. Wanting something badly enough to chase after it no matter what is perfectly normal...)

That thought led her to another question.

She had learned what kind of person and warrior Toma was, but what kind of king was he?

From what she had heard, he hadn't even been king for a full year, nor had he received any formal royal education.

"Does he actually do any work? I heard he's currently on a recovery break."

"To the point where the ministers have been telling him to take time off because he works too much..."

"...Yeah, I could never become a king. And I definitely wouldn't want to."

Nearly every day, Toma's schedule was packed from morning to night. He relied on the enhanced stamina granted by the Holy Sword to push through it all, which was why people constantly told him to rest.

In truth, he wasn't under quite that much pressure. The problem was that he kept tackling work that wasn't due for a long time, making it understandable why everyone worried about him.

Even so, he never skipped paperwork, never neglected military training, and still trained on his own afterward. Given that, it wasn't surprising that people wanted to use his recent injury as an excuse to force him to rest.

The only times Toma ever really took breaks were when Hikari or Alicia dragged him into town. Otherwise, he was almost always working.

Put simply, he worked far too much.

"That's why, Julia-san, if you're going to become the Spear King, you should be careful too. Apparently, when the person at the top never takes a break, the people below them feel like they can't rest either."

"But if you rest too much, people will probably resent you for that too. Like, 'Why do we have to work while that guy gets to relax?'"

"...Don't worry, Julia. Whether you work or rest, I'll do whatever I want anyway."

"You need to work more, not less!"

"Ahaha..."

Now that the stress caused by the former Spear King had disappeared, Julia's naturally serious personality had become much more apparent.

Alicia found herself thinking that Julia and Toma were actually quite similar in that regard.

Not long ago, Alicia would never have spoken this openly. As she reflected on how much she had changed, she realized she didn't dislike that change at all.

Thinking of the boy responsible for it, she smiled quietly.

(When did it start, I wonder? When did simply thinking about Toma-kun become enough to make me smile?)

The more time she spent with him, the stronger those feelings grew.

And she already understood there was no stopping them anymore.

"...She's smiling to herself."

"Were we really talking about something that funny...?"

"Eh!? Ah, um... i-it's nothing, really! A-Anyway, Julia-san, you're going to become the Spear King, right!? What about the King's Duel? Will you be okay?"

She had blurted it out as a distraction, but it was actually something Alicia had been concerned about for quite some time.

Just like Toma, Julia had inherited the title of King with virtually no preparation.

Unlike him, she had undergone years of training and education. However, judging by the nature of the Spear King's succession, Alicia doubted she had received anything resembling proper education for ruling a nation.

Worried that Julia would face tremendous difficulties, Alicia asked the question.

Julia responded with a fearless grin.

"Of course I'll be fine. That damned Spear King hijacked my body and forced me to use it, but the sensation still remains. He pushed my body far beyond its limits, but I still experienced those techniques firsthand. If I can reproduce them myself, I'll become a lot stronger."

"...For someone who lived for five hundred years, he was an unbelievably troublesome opponent. Strong, sure, but not the kind of fight that excites me. The greatest battles are when two people clash head-on."

"Easy for you to say. You can actually win fighting like that. The rest of us can't."

"Layla-san is incredibly strong, after all. Toma-kun said himself that he was completely overpowered and spent a long time wondering how he could possibly beat her head-on."

"...And that's exactly why I want to fight him."

"Could you stop making that smile? Looking at it feels like it'd give people trauma."

Realistically, there were probably fewer than ten people in the entire world capable of facing Layla's overwhelming physical strength head-on.

Most people relied on schemes, traps, and careful planning to achieve victory.

That had been true even during the selection process for Spear King candidates within Yaranri Kingdom.

Which was precisely why she had been searching for someone who could stand before her directly.

And she had found him.

The boy who became the Sword King.

Someone who could finally face her in battle.

Someone who could accept all of her strength head-on.

Trees that fell with a single sweep. Violent winds unleashed with every swing. Earth torn apart by the impact of her blows.

After witnessing all of that, he still looked directly at her.

To Layla, he was the person she had been waiting for all along.

"...That's why I want to fight the Sword King. I want to see it through to the very end and settle things properly. Then I'll finally be satisfied. And he's going to stay with me until the end too. Julia, make the arrangements."

"Like hell I will, you idiot! How many times do I have to tell you that saying things with a straight face doesn't make them acceptable?"

"H-Hwahhh...!!"

At some point, Layla had returned to her usual expressionless face.

Seeing Alicia turn bright red in panic, she suddenly clapped her hands, realizing what Alicia was embarrassed about.

"...Alicia likes the Sword King, but don't worry. It's not like that for me. Mine is just... just... what is it? It's not interest... but it is affection... hmm?"

"Why are you asking us? How would we know?"

"Hwaaaah!!!"

Having raised the question herself, Layla placed a hand on her chin and fell deep into thought.

Unable to figure out why she was so fixated on the Sword King, she retreated into her own world in silence.

Julia watched her with exasperation.

Ironically, it was almost the exact same expression Layla usually wore when looking at Julia.

"Anyway, enough about this muscle-brained idiot. What about you? Why do you like him?"

"W-What!? H-How did you know I like Toma-kun!?"

"Because it was written all over your face. Even if it wasn't, your reactions during this conversation made it obvious. Besides, who suddenly decides to start baking sweets for a guy they don't like?"

"J-Julia-san, you did the same thing! You brought sweets for Toma-kun too!"

"H-Huh!? Mine's just a hobby! I just happened to think that giving the leftovers to him would be strategically advantageous! In other words, it was a perfectly calm and calculated operation! There wasn't even the tiniest bit of any other motive involved!"

"M-Mine isn't like that either! It's more like... thanking him for everything he does for me, or wanting to reward him for working so hard... so it's not what you're saying either!"

"...You two are waiting for someone to point out the obvious, aren't you?"

The two of them kept striking directly at each other's weak points like boxers throwing punches with no guard.

Now it was Layla's turn to watch them with exasperation.

As for Julia, she was clearly being tossed around by feelings she had never experienced before. Combined with her longstanding dislike of men, she simply couldn't bring herself to acknowledge them yet.

Layla suspected that one decisive event would make Julia realize everything all at once.

The problem was that the same moment might also become the moment of her heartbreak.

As for Alicia, she was probably just embarrassed.

Layla didn't really understand the desire to hide such feelings out of maidenly shyness, but she accepted that it was apparently a thing.

"...If you like him, why not just confess already?"

"...I can't do that. Toma-kun already has Hikari-san."

Alicia understood that perfectly well.

Toma certainly treated her as someone special.

Not as the Saint, but as Alicia herself.

He had worked hard for Alicia, not the Saint.

He had understood her suffering.

He had risked his life for her.

He smiled naturally around her, laughed together with her, and freed her from the shackles of being the Saint.

She had fallen deeply in love with him.

Before she knew it, she was always watching him.

They went out together countless times.

They spent time together.

They laughed together.

And because of that, she understood Toma's feelings painfully well.

That was why, no matter how much she tried to appeal to him, part of her felt it would be pointless.

"Toma-kun has always loved Hikari-san. Hikari-san is the most important person in his life. There's no place for me to squeeze in between them."

"...You don't necessarily have to squeeze in between them, though. It's not like people are only allowed to treasure one person."

Layla completely rejected that way of thinking and gave a small smile.