Ch.32First Date (3)

Ahem.

I’m Miren Justitia.

Irefi’s one and only little sister.

My sister told me that I was asleep for a whole 8 years, and Nepy was the one who woke me up.

It was surprising that my eyes turned golden, but I’m used to it now.

At first, it was awkward seeing my sister suddenly go from eighteen to twenty-six years old in an instant.

But it didn’t take long to realize that the Irefi I knew hadn’t changed at all.

But you know what?

Irefi has been acting a bit strange since she came home.

Sometimes she stares blankly at the sky, and she often shows signs of feeling empty inside.

Whenever that happens, she starts cooking, and each time, I use all my strength to run away.

I think that might be one of the reasons why my rehabilitation has been so quick after lying down for 8 years.

… Ugh, it’s horrifying just thinking about it.

It was about a week after we came home, I think? I asked my sister:

[Irefi, I want to see the person with two souls. I haven’t even thanked him yet.]

Her reaction to my request is still vivid in my mind.

[Nepy?! Hmm, well… it’s not like I particularly wanted to see him, but you’re right. I do owe him for helping you, so I suppose I could visit him once.]

I knew very well that if it were the usual Irefi, she would have simply said, “Sure, let’s do that.”

After all, I am Irefi’s sister, aren’t I?

I wasn’t some naive fourteen-year-old girl who couldn’t understand the meaning behind my sister’s sunset-colored cheeks.

‘This is the first time I’ve seen Irefi act like this…’

To be honest, until then, I didn’t like this kind of reaction from her.

My sister was an old maid without a marriage prospect at her age, but that was her voluntary choice.

No matter how much of a life-saving benefactor he might be, I couldn’t like a man who was constantly rumored to be involved with my sister.

And a man who never even exchanged letters with her must surely be nothing but a frivolous fool… that’s what I thought.

Besides, my sister joined the knights at an early age, just two years after her debutante. She was bound to be overly naive about relationships between men and women.

‘I need to enlighten my sister.’

Ridiculously enough, I was full of such determination.

My prejudice was shattered right after my first meeting with Nepy.

It was when I bowed my head and greeted him.

[I’m Miren Justitia. Nice to meet you for the first time, Nepy.]

It was a mistake.

I should have called him Marquess, but I carelessly treated him like I would with Irefi.

But it was a good mistake.

[Kuhuck!?]

He trembled as if an arrow had pierced his heart. While I was panicking and flustered because of my rudeness:

[How…]

‘How could there be such an ill-mannered child, he’s going to say?’

I closed my eyes tightly. Until Nepy let out an exclamation:

[How can you be such an angel!!!]

[Nepy?]

[Yes, Miren, was it? Won’t you come in with your big brother? Oh my! Your legs must be tired.]

[… Are you crazy?]

[Yes, I am. How could I not be when I’ve opened my eyes to a new worldview? Now, Miren, is there anything you’d like to eat? Unlike your sister, the chef here is an amazing cook.]

[What’s wrong with my cooking!?]

For a moment, I thought I’d become a sand castle that would collapse if touched.

He was so doting that if I hadn’t refused, he probably would have given me a piggyback ride right then and there.

After chatting a bit, I realized one thing:

‘These two are alike…’

I was convinced that both Irefi and Nepy were the same kind of fools. They’re exactly the same in their inability to be honest.

They probably pride themselves on being honest and smart, when in fact they know nothing.

Rather, I think that’s what makes them so well-suited for each other.

So I made one decision:

‘I’ll be the bridge between them.’

My sister, who can’t find an excuse to meet him because of her pride.

Nepy, who doesn’t even realize what his expression looks like when talking about my sister.

They’re a pair with plenty of potential. Besides, if someone who treats me so well the first time we meet gets closer to us, what could happen?

From my perspective, it would clearly be a very good thing.

‘Well… I want to choose my brother-in-law myself, at my age.’

◇

“Why did you endure such looks? And why reveal the truth now?”

“The pointing fingers of everyone in the world don’t bother me. It’s just… as time passed, your distrustful gaze became too difficult to bear.”

“And I… I resented and was wary of you without knowing! *Sob* If you’re alright with it, Marquess, may I get to know you now?”

“Of course. Though it may seem new, will you… continue walking with me, my lady?”

“I should be the one asking that…!”

The woman threw herself into the man’s arms with a passionate tone.

Thunderous applause erupted from all directions at the beautiful scene that brought tears to everyone’s eyes.

We were no different. We gave a standing ovation and cheered enthusiastically.

Miren looked at me and Irefi alternately with sparkling eyes, seemingly worried that we might be bored.

When I gave her a thumbs up to show I enjoyed it, Miren’s face suddenly turned pouty.

“What’s wrong, Miren?”

“Nepy is stupid.”

“Yes, yes, if Miren says so, then it must be true.”

“Ugh…!”

As I was patting the adorably frowning Miren, a man who appeared to be the director of the theater troupe emerged on stage, puffing out his chest.

He proudly spread his arms and proclaimed:

“The story of this play was written by His Majesty the Emperor himself, who left a message of gratitude to the mysterious couple who inspired this masterpiece!”

I couldn’t help but be amazed at this unexpected fact.

“Wow, His Majesty seems to be quite versatile.”

“I heard that in his younger days, people called him the reincarnation of Astelnerca, the first emperor.”

“… Both my sister and brother are fools.”

Miren grumbled quietly like a dejected puppy. Perhaps the play wasn’t quite to her taste.

We left the theater with refreshed spirits and wandered around the central square of Eldrion.

Among the sights, one facility caught my attention.

“Oh.”

A fountain vigorously pumping water displayed its grandeur with dynamic decorations. It was so large that its top looked dizzyingly high, taller than most shopping districts.

‘It’s been almost three months since I threatened Netionpiece to dance naked on top of that thing.’

Except for the days when Irefi visited, I spent most of my days like a hikikomori.

Perhaps that’s why the incident still feels as vivid as if it happened yesterday.

“Is there something special about the fountain?”

Irefi turned her head toward the fountain as well and asked.

“No, it’s just a place with a special story.”

Did my wistful gaze pique her curiosity? Irefi narrowed her brows and pressed me.

“A special… story?”

“Ah yes. I was planning to create some special memories here, but unfortunately, it didn’t work out.”

“H-hmm. You must be quite close to that person.”

I answered nonchalantly.

“Well, we’ve seen each other at our best and worst.”

“What did you say?!”

Irefi’s eyes twisted into diagonal lines. She looked like someone who had been betrayed by someone she trusted.

“What’s wrong, Irefi?”

“… You must be very close to them.”

“Physically speaking, we could be considered one body, one mind.”

“One body?!”

Irefi asked in shock.

“D-does that mean you’ve… mixed bodies?”

“Depending on how you put it, I suppose you could see it that way.”

“…”

“Irefi?”

Her body trembled. Her lips twisted and pressed tightly together in a concerning way.

Just as I was about to reach out to her:

A desperate cry echoed from somewhere in the central square.

“Pickpocket!”

“Ah, my money pouch?”

“Come to think of it, my ring is gone too!”

“I saw them! There were definitely two of them!”

In the suddenly chaotic central square, our priority was clear. They couldn’t have gone far yet.

I touched the ground and whispered.

“Sensory activation.”

As if we had rehearsed it, Irefi silently expanded her spiritual perception.

Before long, without exchanging a word, we ran off in different directions.

Irefi and I were heading in opposite directions. The pickpocketing duo had surely split up, planning to reunite at a specific point.

I tracked the pickpocket relentlessly, detecting the clearly audible hurried footsteps and the stolen goods.

“No matter how nimble a pickpocket is, they’re still just ordinary humans.”

They were no match for someone who could travel from the capital to the Great Cavern in just five days.

In fact, the silhouette of a man laughing with vile satisfaction was already visible.

“W-who are you?!”

“If there’s one thing I learned from Irefi, it’s that in situations like this, actions speak louder than words.”

“Keck!”

I struck the back of the man’s neck with moderate force. He collapsed to the ground with a thud, as if hit by a tranquilizer dart.

I hoisted the pickpocket over my shoulder and returned to the central square, where Irefi was already returning the stolen goods to the victims.

“Oh, Irefi. Where’s the pickpocket?”

“There happened to be a guard where I subdued him, so I handed him over right away.”

“Good timing.”

As soon as I dropped the pickpocket down, the victims who hadn’t yet retrieved their belongings swarmed around like wolves.

“Please take only what belongs to you. I won’t stop you from giving him a light knock on the head, but that’s it.”

As soon as I stepped away from the pickpocket, their reaction was intense. The angry victims began beating him to punish him.

… Well, he brought it upon himself.

Amidst the scene of curses and violence, I quickly returned to protect Miren’s mental health.

“Did you wait long?”

“Yes, brother.”

“…”

Irefi kept her mouth shut with a sullen face. I couldn’t guess her psychological state at all.

“Irefi?”

“… What?”

“You just look uncomfortable.”

“Not particularly.”

“No, anyone can see you’re angry right now.”

“I told you I’m not…!”

“Aaaaaaaaaah!!!”

While Irefi and I were going back and forth, Miren, caught between us, screamed with an expression that suggested she was dying of frustration.

Both Irefi and I stared at Miren with dumbfounded faces, shocked by her outburst—something we’d never seen or even imagined before.

“This is as frustrating as eating a handful of sweet potatoes! What are you two doing?”

“Miren…”

“I was just…”

“Cuuuuut! Sweet potato cut! Let me clear this up.”

Miren turned to Irefi with an obviously irritated expression.

“Irefi. Why are you lying unnecessarily? You are in a bad mood! Can’t you just talk about it? Do you think if you keep it bottled up, someone will read your mind and magically comfort you? Even the first emperor couldn’t do that!”

“Ugh…”

Next, Miren turned her axe-like gaze toward me.

“And you, Nepy. The person you were talking about was your darkened other soul, right?”

I answered, feeling bewildered.

“Huh? Yeah, that’s right.”

Then Miren, pounding her chest in indignation, pressed on.

“Oh my goodness! Why does Nepy unnecessarily omit the subject and cause misunderstandings? And your expressions are so vague and ambiguous! Even plays would get criticized if they were made like that these days!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too, Miren…”

Irefi and I apologized meekly under Miren’s fierce momentum.

“Why are you apologizing to me? Why are you only apologizing to me?”

“Gulp.”

“Urk.”

“Nepy is bad enough, but Irefi, I think you’ve become more foolish than before I fell asleep. Ah, that’s not to say Nepy is any better.”

“…”

“…”

We could only blanch at Miren’s festival of harsh truths that left us speechless.

Glance.

Irefi’s and my gazes met awkwardly.

Unable to withstand Miren’s piercing golden eyes, I opened my mouth.

“… I’m sorry for causing a misunderstanding.”

“… No, I’m sorry too. I don’t know why I got upset over something like this.”

“To begin with, Nepy spent all day with my sister before. And since my sister came back home, she hasn’t gone out at all, even earning the nickname ‘NEET noble’ in social circles. Who else would she be making appointments with?”

“Miren’s right about that.”

“Eh? I got such a nickname?”

I felt considerable shame at the existence of such an accurate nickname.

Meanwhile, Irefi kept glancing at me with eyes full of guilt.

‘What are we even doing…’

We couldn’t continue spending time awkwardly like this. I awkwardly extended my hand to Irefi and said:

“Ahem. Since we both made mistakes, let’s just forget about it.”

“Y-yes, alright. Thank you, Nepy.”

“What would you two do without me? At this rate, I’ll be stuck between you two and never get married.”

“Huh?”

“What did you say?”

Mar…ried? Did I really hear that correctly?

Is she talking about some kind of mansion people live in these days? Or maybe a book of poems?

Our shocked gazes converged on Miren after her bombshell statement.

“Miren? Marriage?”

“Marriage? Who? Our Miren?”

To our question-filled reactions, Miren calmly replied:

“What’s strange about that? I may have been asleep, but my actual age is twenty-two. Even if you count me as fourteen, I’ll be of marriageable age in 3 or 4 years.”

“That’s…”

“True, but…”

Our responses came in order.

We were all shocked, as if hit by stones, at Miren’s straightforward words.

While staring blankly into space with a dazed expression, I barely managed to come up with a brilliant idea.

“R-right. Miren will have to get married someday.”

“Nepy?”

“But! Naturally, we’ll have to carefully select the partner. I think they just need to satisfy two simple conditions.”

“Conditions? That’s fewer than I expected from you… what are they?”

Miren asked, tilting her head. I grinned confidently and declared:

“First, they must be able to defeat Irefi in a duel. They need to be strong enough to protect Miren!”

They’d need to be one of the strongest in the world, at least.

“Nepy?”

Ignoring Miren’s narrowing eyes, I continued:

“Second, they must have a longer lifespan than me. They need to be able to take care of Miren even when I’m gone.”

About 500 years or so?

“That sounds good, Nepy!”

Irefi agreed enthusiastically, her face lighting up. She even clapped her hands cheerfully, as if it were such a brilliant idea.

Of course, Miren’s reaction was the complete opposite.

“What’s good about that?! Both of you are talking nonsense! Am I not allowed to fall in love?”

“Tut-tut, what recklessness is this, Miren, when the head of the Justitia family agrees?”

“That’s right, Miren. I am the head of the family.”

“Ugh…! You two only get along well at times like this…!”

Miren looked up at us with teary eyes.

Normally, I would have gone into indulgent mode and allowed anything, but… this time was different.

Hmm! If that’s not enough, I might have to invoke the authority of a Founding Noble.

While our bickering continued:

A deep voice caught us from behind.

“Oh, I thought that familiar back looked like Unit Commander Justitia, and indeed it is.”

“Who?”

Thump. Thump.

The street lights brightened the darkening streets. Thanks to that, the approaching figure quickly took on a concrete form.

As the owner of the voice became clearer, I could only mutter to myself in dismay:

“Ha! Is this even possible?”

Despite being in Netionpiece’s body, which couldn’t possibly be wrong, I rubbed my eyes three or four times as I looked at the man.

The man whose existence here was biologically and physically impossible…

He was a man whose robustness seemed to tingle through one’s skin.

A man with such a large build that even with Netionpiece’s height, which I consider quite tall, I had to tilt my head up.

The traces of accumulated training suggested both strong muscle power and agile movements.

His brown hair, fluttering like ripe ears of rice, enhanced the man’s vitality.

I muttered his name blankly.

“Bartlant Chester…”

The central figure of heroic tales of might that have been passed down for over 500 years.

A fragment of the first family head existing in Netionpiece’s mental world.

The figure of a man who shouldn’t exist in this world was standing right there.