episode_0066

A truly uneventful and boring journey followed. Actually, it might be a bit odd to call it a trip. Since no one even went out of the carriage unless something really important happened… it might be more appropriate to just call it a move.

Of course, I also only went out for a quick bite to eat in the middle of the trip, so I have no right to criticize anyone. In any case, the carriage continued running without stopping for half a day, and we were finally able to arrive at our destination, Ayla’s hometown.

The coachman dropped us off near the village entrance, and immediately went back after receiving the balance from Ayla. It seemed like he had hired us from the beginning on the condition that we would be taken back. Of course, he must have hired us until we returned, knowing how long we would be here. Of course, even so, wouldn’t it have been better to rest for a day or so and then return?

After loosening up my stiff body in the carriage, I approached the village entrance. Compared to what Ayla had said, the village seemed quite large, and some men, who were either vigilantes or guards armed with appropriate equipment, were blocking the entrance.

“Uh.. Is that Aila?”

“Yes, it’s been a while, Uncle Mag.”

Looking at the shabby and ill-fitting suit of armor, which was obviously worn by the people on duty, the man with the armor gaped open.

It seems that he knew Ayla. Of course, he would be surprised if it was a girl he knew who got out of a splendid carriage with six horses. It wouldn’t be strange at all to think of her as a nobleman.

“..Those, uh..friends..are they?”

“That’s about it. I’ll pass?” Work hard.”

Ayla waved her hand as she passed by. We entered the village, leaving the old man behind who was staring at us with a blank expression.

It was late at night, but surprisingly, there were quite a few people on the streets. There was a bar with the lights on and people were talking loudly, and there were quite a few couples walking arm in arm. It was quite different from what Ayla had said, an ordinary countryside with nothing to see.

“Isn’t that a small country town? It looks quite lively.”

“That’s right… That’s strange, there shouldn’t be anyone on the streets this late at night…”

Ayla scratched the back of her head as if embarrassed. Seeing that Ayla also looked embarrassed, it seemed that the village had developed a bit during the few years that Ayla had been away.

“Well.. It’s a good thing there are a lot of people in the village. Let’s go home first.”

We followed slowly behind Ayla, who was walking in front. The five of us in the Academy uniforms and the long-haired man following behind us were naturally a very striking combination, so they murmured as they watched us here and there, but since this was a common occurrence, we didn’t think much of it.

As I followed Ayla, a fairly large building came into view. It was a fairly tall building, and judging from what looked like a cloth-covered stall, it seemed like the first floor was used as a store and the upper floors were used for residential purposes.

As expected, Ayla walked straight into the building, stopped in front of the firmly closed door, and began banging on the door with her sword in hand.

“Rudiger! Hey! Open the door! Sister’s here!”

We were even more surprised by Ayla’s hand banging the door as if it was going to break. Was the door okay? Were my parents inside? While I was wondering, there was a loud banging sound from inside and the door opened wide.

The boy who came out from inside was a boy with hair similar to Ayla’s. No matter how you looked at him, he had the appearance to be Ayla’s younger brother, and Ayla’s height may have been a family trait, as he was younger than Ayla, but his height was similar.

“What, what is it? What is it?”

My younger brother, Rudiger, opened the door, but he seemed quite surprised to see our group behind Ayla. If my sister had returned from a brief absence, I wouldn’t have thought anything of it, but if there were a suspicious group of people lined up behind him, I would have been speechless for a moment.

“What? They’re my sister’s friends. I’m tired, so get out of the way quickly. What about mom and dad? Are they in the pharmacy?”

“Uh.. Both of you are here..”

Rudiger gave up his seat with a blank expression, and Ayla went straight into the store. We followed Ayla, bowing slightly to Rudiger. There was a door inside the store that Rudiger had not been able to close, and it seemed like it might be the passage to the upper floor.

As I went up the stairs after passing through the door, I came across a hallway that looked like an inn. Ayla walked briskly and opened the door at the end of the hallway, and another staircase appeared. Why did they split the stairs? It was a strangely structured building.

Anyway, as I climbed up the stairs, there was a separate door at the end of the stairs, and Ayla banged on the door and shouted.

“Mom! Mom! I’m home, see you tomorrow!”

And Ayla didn’t even wait for an answer, just started going back down the stairs. Cosette said, her expression clearly flustered.

“Ah.. No. Are we just going to keep going like this?”

“If you’re working in the pharmacy, don’t answer even if I hear you. It’s late, so just rest for now and I’ll greet you properly tomorrow.”

As I followed Ayla back down to the second floor, I saw Rudiger glaring at Ayla with a tired face.

“Please be quiet. Do you know it’s broad daylight?”

“I should have done it, but it’s still early for me to go to bed. Why are you being so weird? My cute little sister.”

Ayla answered calmly, but Rudiger shouted back.

“I have to go out at dawn! Please go to your room quietly and sleep!”

Just like that, Rudiger went into the room on the left side of the hallway and slammed the door. Ayla shrugged and turned to us.

“I think my little brother is a little upset.. For now, the rooms on the right side of the hallway are all empty, so use them however you like. They’re probably well-maintained, so they won’t be dirty. The key is probably in the table or in the drawer next to the bed.”

“Why are there so many rooms? Is this also an inn?”

Even if each person occupies one room, there are still quite a few rooms left, so Agnes said as if it was a surprise. Ayla nodded slightly at Agnes’ question.

“Well.. It’s not a side job, but this building used to be an inn. The first and third floors were remodeled in various ways, but the second floor was left as is.”

As we continued to chat in the hallway, there was a loud knock on Rudiger’s door. Ayla heard the noise and giggled.

“Okay, let’s go inside and rest for a bit. We’ll talk about the details tomorrow.”

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As you can guess from the size of the building, it seemed to be a rather luxurious inn, and the furniture in the room, including the bed, was quite nice. However, unlike a real inn, there was a little dust in the places that were not well maintained, but that wasn’t something to be too concerned about.

After a quick shower, I came out and saw Yugram already waiting in front of the door, and I ran into Cosette, who was coming out of the next room. Cosette looked at me and snickered.

“The princess is wearing a uniform even though it’s not an academy?”

“The same goes for Cosette, right?”

The Academy uniform was expensive, but the material was excellent, so it didn’t get dirty or worn out easily. It was much more comfortable to wear this than to bother with clothes, so I wore it whenever I wanted. And it seemed like Cosette was the same.

Is it okay for girls in their prime to walk around like this and act so carelessly? However, looking at the fact that there are no clothing stores in the shopping district within the Academy branch, although there are other things, I think that business there was worse than expected and it disappeared. If this thought is correct, then it’s not like we’re the only ones who are strange.

“What, are you both awake?”

“Oh, Ayla. And Mathias.. Did you get some exercise?”

Ayla, who suddenly appeared from the stairs, was wearing wide-legged pants and a simple shirt, and was quite dirty with dirt and sweat. And Mathias, who was behind her, was wearing ordinary clothes, not a uniform. Mathias probably didn’t bring much luggage, right?

“Oh, this? It’s the clothes Rudiger wore. I borrowed some.”

Ayla seemed to notice my gaze and answered instead. Even though she was my sister, I wondered if it was okay to treat someone else’s clothes like that, but when I thought about the height of Rudiger that I saw yesterday, I knew that they were already unwearable. Then, maybe it wouldn’t matter if they got a little dirty?

“Aila. You two are having fun together.. I’m sad.”

“What did you say? Cosette and the princess both knocked on the door and called? Since neither of them answered, we just went and came back.”

You’re saying I slept so soundly that I didn’t even notice the knocking?

Cosette was like that, but it was a bit surprising that I fell asleep like that. Maybe I had accumulated a lot of fatigue without realizing it? I looked away, embarrassed.

“Oh my… Anyway, no, wait in the room for a bit. Mathias and I will wash up and then go eat.”

“..We’re not washing together, are we?”

“Hey!”

Cosette ran off to Agnes’ room in a hurry, and I slowly followed her, smiling to myself as I watched Ayla getting angry.