Volume 8
Chapter 11
Nozomu left Victor's study with an indescribable weight in his chest. His steps were heavy, as if he were carrying a stone statue on his back.
He had been told about
Irisdina's past. How she, though young, held a firm resolve in her heart and
moved forward.
He had thought he
understood her in a vague way, but now he realized he hadn't understood her
resolve at all, and he was filled with shame.
"Hmm? What's
that...?"
At that moment, he
noticed a light leaking from the mansion's great hall.
A light leaking from
the crack of a slightly ajar door. Wondering what was going on, Nozomu peeked
into the room through the crack in the door.
"Iris?"
"Nozomu? What are
you doing at this hour?"
In the great hall was
Irisdina, dressed in what appeared to be comfortable silk clothes. Beads of
sweat were on her forehead, and her clothes were damp.
A large full-length
mirror was placed in front of her, and the light of a candle was illuminating
her attractive figure through her sweat-soaked clothes.
"I couldn't
really sleep, so I was taking a walk... Are you practicing dancing until this
late?"
"Ah, well. As a
daughter of the Francilt family, I can't show an embarrassing sight at the
opening festival."
"..."
At the sight of
Irisdina, who was practicing so late as not to show even a single opening,
Nozomu felt the weight in his chest ache even more.
For Irisdina, dancing
in high society should have been something she was used to. She should have
been able to handle it as easily as waving her hand.
Still, she did not cut
corners. Because on her back, she was carrying something incredibly large.
"That's right,
why don't you practice a little too, Nozomu? We didn't get to practice the
dance itself much today, so this might be a good time, don't you think?"
In today's practice,
Nozomu had stumbled at the stage before the dance, and had hardly practiced the
dance itself.
Although he had had a
little time to practice, his appearance was better described as a frog's dance,
and it was by no means a dance that could be shown in high society.
At Irisdina's sudden
proposal, Nozomu was momentarily stunned, but since it was a rare opportunity,
he decided to try practicing dancing once more.
"Y-yeah, you're
right."
"Well then,
Nozomu, if you would..."
Nozomu gently
supported Irisdina's extended hand from below.
A slender, beautiful
hand. However, on that hand, he could clearly feel the sensation of hard sword
calluses, the proof of her efforts.
The depths of his
chest ached with a throb.
"Umm, from
here..."
While suppressing the
ache in his chest, Nozomu tried to escort Irisdina as he had been taught today.
But from the fact that he was doing it while trying to remember, and from the
trembling tension, his movements inevitably became clumsy.
On the other hand,
Irisdina, while looking at the stiff Nozomu, had her eyes relaxed as if she
were looking at something interesting.
"You don't have
to be so tense. Madam Parline also said it, didn't she? A good dance is only
possible when you're relaxed, you know."
"N-No, I know
that, but..."
The expression on
Irisdina, who was talking to Nozomu in a light tone, was happy from beginning
to end.
On the other hand,
Nozomu began to dance with his hand on Irisdina's waist, his hand stiff with
tension, but his footing was also unsteady, as if he were struggling.
The white-haired girl,
with a smile on her face, let out a sigh as if to say it couldn't be helped,
and put strength into the hand she had placed on Nozomu's shoulder.
"Still a little
stiff... Nozomu, I'm going to get a little closer."
"Eh?"
As Irisdina moved
closer to Nozomu, the distance between the two shortened by a little.
The distance had
closed by less than five centimeters. But just that alone made Nozomu's heart
pound as if a bell were being rung.
Her sweet scent and
body temperature gave Nozomu's head an intense stimulation.
At the same time, the
heat throughout his body rose at once, and his thoughts became jumbled, as if
his brain had turned into melted sugar.
"Hmm, this is
just right. Nozomu, let's start like this."
"Ueh! Ah,
yes!"
Irisdina, without
noticing the confused state of Nozomu, began to move her body.
Nozomu, prompted by
her, who had suddenly picked up the tempo, hurriedly began to move his feet.
However, by forcibly
moving his feet while his timing was off, he was on the verge of losing his
balance.
"Whoops..."
"Nozomu, your
feet are slow. Half a beat faster."
"O-Okay...
woah!"
"This time it's
too fast. Relax your shoulders a little more."
"W-Well, I know,
but..."
"Even when you're
swinging a sword, you don't just swing with your arms, do you? It's the same.
Your stomach and back. And then, your 'breathing'."
"Stomach and
back, and breathing..."
"That's right. Nozomu,
look at me."
In a light tone,
Irisdina leaned her body against Nozomu and looked intently into his eyes.
Her obsidian eyes,
which were looking at him softly. The unnecessary strength naturally left
Nozomu's body. At the same time, the ache in his chest also faded.
"Phew..."
While letting out a
deep breath, Nozomu, while accepting her weight, moved his body as if he were
flowing.
The naturally flowing
feet of the two, at a perfect timing, began to trace the exact same movements.
With the stepped-out
foot as a starting point, this time they made a turn. While switching their
body positions, Irisdina's body drew a beautiful curve.
"Oh, that's good.
I'm going to speed up a little."
"Got it."
To get closer to the
original tempo of the song, Irisdina's movements became even faster.
With a light rhythm of
"tap, tap, tap! tap, tap, tap!", the bodies of the two continued to
glide smoothly across the hall like the flow of a river.
"Like this?"
"That's it! Yes,
yes..."
Before he knew it,
Nozomu was naturally matching her lead.
The tension that had
been stiffening his entire body had at some point been released, and in its
place, a welling excitement was racing through his entire body as heat.
The breaths of the two
were already synchronized to a point that could be called almost perfect.
The sweat that had
appeared all over his body danced as drops, and the scenery of the hall flowed
as lines. In the midst of that, the eyes of Nozomu and Irisdina met.
At Nozomu's heated
eyes, Irisdina deepened her smile and accelerated her movements even more.
"I'm going at
about the same speed as the real thing. Keep up with me."
"Yeah!"
The tempo that had
naturally matched had now reached its climax.
However, the moment
the two of them put strength into their feet to accelerate, the foot that had
been bearing their weight suddenly slipped.
""Ah.""
Perhaps his foot had
slipped on the scattered sweat.
Although they tried to
somehow regain their posture, Nozomu and Irisdina, whose bodies were in close
contact, had no time for that, and their bodies were thrown to the marble floor
with great force.
A loud thud! echoed
through the quiet night hall.
"Ouch... Iris,
are you okay?"
"Ah, yes. Since
you were under me, I'm not in pain."
Irisdina, who had been
resting her body on Nozomu's chest, replied with some bewilderment.
Since Nozomu had had
his hand around Irisdina's waist, his body had naturally come to protect her.
The white-haired girl,
while looking up at Nozomu, who was wincing in pain, couldn't help but gulp.
"Iris, what's
wrong?"
"N-No, it's
nothing..."
With a timid look,
Irisdina moved her body from on top of Nozomu and sat down on her bottom next
to him.
When the fallen Nozomu
glanced to the side, she was looking down at him with a mischievous smile.
"Fufu, you can
dance too, can't you, Nozomu?"
"But I fell
spectacularly at the end."
"Ahahaha!"
the two of them laughed at each other.
Even though they had
been dancing with such vigor, the sight of themselves, which had ended
anticlimactically like a comedy, was strangely funny.
"You're amazing,
Iris..."
"Hmm? What's this
all of a sudden?"
"That dance just
now, you were leading me the whole time, weren't you? And you've helped me with
so many other things..."
Saying that much,
Nozomu gulped.
The weight in his
chest, which he had forgotten when he was dancing just now, was now rearing its
head.
"...Nozomu?"
While looking up at
the suspicious-looking Irisdina, Nozomu was remembering the story he had just
been told by Mazarinette and the others.
"I heard. About
your mother, Iris... And the real reason why you're trying to join the Silver
Rainbow Knights."
"I see..."
The reason why
Irisdina was aiming for the Silver Rainbow Knights. The oath with her deceased
mother, and by becoming the head of the Francilt family, to set Somia free.
When Nozomu stated
that he had heard about this, Irisdina let out a deep sigh with a somehow
troubled expression.
"Are you
disappointed?"
"Eh? Why?"
"I, while saying
that I'm joining the Silver Rainbow Knights for everyone's sake, in reality,
I'm only thinking of Somia. I'm only thinking of my own family."
Irisdina's tone, which
made one feel a certain tragicness. Her expression was tense, as if she had
been cut.
Nozomu, while being
surprised at the Irisdina who had suddenly made such an expression, continued
to listen to her soliloquy.
"Even today, when
I invited Madam Parline, in reality, my purpose was not just to practice
dancing. It was to use her name to become one of your supporters. I'm not as
noble as you think."
"Protecting your
family is a normal thing, isn't it? It's not strange at all. Rather, I respect
it. I don't think I had any sense of responsibility when I was about
six..."
Nozomu affirmed
Irisdina's self-deprecating words while simultaneously asserting that what she
did was natural.
He felt sadness at the
sight of Irisdina calling herself "dirty" and didn't want her to
belittle herself in that way.
"The matter with
Lisa, and the matter with Ken, if I had faced them, things probably wouldn't
have ended like that. Unlike you, Iris, because I kept running away from
looking at them, and from myself, we all ended up going our separate
ways."
While reflecting on
the mistakes he had made in the past, Nozomu spoke.
If he had faced Lisa
and the others from the beginning, like Irisdina, then Ken might not have met
such a tragic end, and a slightly better result might have been reached.
"But you overcame
the hatred of being betrayed and saved Lisa-kun. That about you, Nozomu, is
amazing..."
"...Eh?"
"You are a person
who can forgive others. Even if you hate the person who betrayed you, you are a
person who can swallow the hatred you hold in your heart and become stronger.
I probably can't do
that. I can't forgive if I'm betrayed. If someone important to me is hurt, I
can't stop my killing intent. If I'm broken, I don't think I can get back
up."
That was, without a
doubt, Irisdina's true feelings.
The anxiety about
herself that she, who was continuing to advance straight towards her goal, held
in her heart.
Nozomu held his breath
and closed his eyes.
The one to answer the
girl's true feelings was his own true heart.
"I want to stand
by your side... I don't want to waste everyone's feelings..."
Nozomu Bountis admired
Irisdina Francilt.
Her noble soul, her
strength to not run away from her own responsibilities.
Her nature, which was
different from his own, who had once run away.
"You are dazzling
to me. Even with that monster hidden in your heart, even if you're betrayed,
your strength to swallow your hatred and maintain yourself..."
Irisdina Francilt
respected Nozomu Bountis.
His figure, as he
tried to move forward, overcoming his hatred.
His heart, which would
stand up again even if it were broken.
"Nozomu..."
A person who had a
strength she did not have. That was precisely why Irisdina was drawn to Nozomu.
I am in love
with him...
In her heart, Irisdina
repeated her own feelings.
The feeling that had
sprouted from him having saved her beloved younger sister, and which had been
nurtured by continuing to overcome difficulties.
That feeling of love,
which had already swelled to fill her chest, at this time, had reached its
limit the moment she had heard Nozomu's feelings for her.
As if water were
overflowing from a vessel, the trickling feeling of love was now about to reach
her beloved next to her.
"I, to
you..."
But the moment she was
about to put her feelings into words, the wound on Nozomu's right hand caught
her eye.
The just-dried blood,
the fresh wound, and above all, the faint remnants of magic power that remained
on that wound had dammed up Irisdina's overflowing feelings.
"Nozomu, that...
wound is?"
"Ah, no. Shina
was just helping me with my training. I just happened to get it then."
Nozomu spoke of how Shina
had just been helping him with his Tiamat control training.
A powerful contract
through blood. And that he had become able to sense the spirits because of it.
Of course, there were
also contents that he hesitated to speak of honestly, so he said nothing about
that.
However, Irisdina's
heart, upon hearing Nozomu's story, was raging like a storm.
"So... what will
you do, Nozomu?"
Irisdina suppressed
her inner turmoil with all her might.
However, her voice
when she asked back was clearly trembling.
For elves, whose
society was built on contracts with the spirits, the ritual of the blood pact,
which directly connected their own souls, was the most solemn act, and was
tantamount to entrusting half of oneself to the other party.
The weight of the
connection, due to the direct connection of the souls by the contract, might be
heavier than that of a marriage between humans.
Nozomu and Shina had
performed the ritual of the blood pact. That meant that, from an elf's point of
view, it had a meaning greater than the two of them having been married.
"Eh? What do you
mean?"
But contrary to
Irisdina's agitation, Nozomu just tilted his head.
It was clear that he
had not been told anything about the meaning of the ritual of the blood pact.
"I see..."
"Iris?"
Understanding that
much, Irisdina understood Shina's true intentions.
She, without a care
for her own circumstances, without seeking anything in return, was trying to
support Nozomu with all her might.
After understanding
the meaning of that contract, she had swallowed it within herself.
Nozomu's current
situation was by no means a state where he could let his guard down. The power
he could not control, the calamity he had taken on.
And Nozomu himself,
from the self-reproach of having turned his blade on Irisdina and the others in
the previous incident, was still overdoing it. The fact that he had been
training despite having been told to rest by Zonne was proof of that.
"To such
a him, what was I about to say just now..."
She had been about to
throw her own one-sided feelings of love at him. When she thought that, a
fierce sense of defeat and a feeling of resentment welled up in Irisdina's
chest.
Because she had
reflected on her own current state and the figure of Shina, who was trying to
support Nozomu while swallowing all her own feelings.
"No, it's
nothing. Let's go back soon. Tomorrow will also be tough."
While putting a lid on
her own feelings of love that had leaked out with all her might, Irisdina stood
up and turned on her heel.
Because she didn't
know what would happen to her if she were to stay by Nozomu's side any longer.
"Hmm, mhm!
Nozomu, that's two more favors you owe me for this dance practice. No, counting
everything so far, the total is considerable. I'll be collecting soon, so you
better be ready."
"...If it's
expensive accessories or jewels, I'll be bankrupt."
"Well, I'll
decide by the real thing. For now, it's under consideration..."
Nozomu, who had seen
the meaningful smile on her lips, raised his voice in concern.
"It's really not
jewels or anything, right...?"
"...Now, what
should I do?"
Desperately holding
back the tears that were about to overflow, Irisdina tried to act cheerful.
For a moment, the
smile on her back seemed to Nozomu as if she were crying.
However, before Nozomu
could ask, Irisdina had slipped beyond the door.
"!"
The moment Nozomu's
gaze was cut off, at the passion that had overflowed from the depths of her
chest as if it had burst, Irisdina bit her lip.
The emotions that were
flowing out one after another like a muddy stream. While suppressing the dull
ache in her chest with the pain of biting her lip, Irisdina disappeared into
the back of the cold hallway, with a single tear flowing from her eyes.
Even if they confirmed
the other's feelings, they were fundamentally at odds.
The boy, because he
did not yet have a true pillar in his heart.
The elf girl felt
guilt at her own actions, and the white-haired girl had come to feel ashamed of
her own emotions.
Because all three of
them were too used to "enduring," the path that had been about to
cross was divided.
And from this time on,
as if ripples were spreading on the surface of a lake, their relationship would
also begin to change.
***
In the midst of the
beginning of the snow, a group of carriages arrived in Arcazam.
The knights, who
seemed to be their guards, also had almost no excessive decorations, and only
the dull glow of their dangerous weapons colored them.
The carriage that was being
escorted by the knights was also a rugged one, far removed from splendor.
There was a single
alluring woman who was approaching such a carriage.
She stood in front of
the carriage and bowed deeply.
"I have been
waiting for you, Egurodo-sama."
"Umu..."
The one who had gotten
out of the carriage was a tall man, nearly two meters tall, and also rugged.
His gaze, as he glanced at the kneeling Mekuria, was hard and full of an
intimidating presence.
Egurodo Fabran.
He, who, combined with
his height, exuded a certain dignity, looked up at the prepared mansion with
his hard eyes and disappeared into the mansion, accompanied by his subordinate
woman.
The season of trials began.
-----
Thank you for my Patrons !!
[Platinum]
-
[Gold]
B random
DavidA
Nepheos
ShitaiNoKootoRyuu
[Silver]
Creris
Frédéric Bertrand-Hudon
Good or Hype
Matthew Fraser
Anton Lim
Ctdela
Curious Panda
nick nasca
SD Fox
Read Advanced Chapters only on my Patreon
-----
