episode_0354

Side Story 68: Elraim – Vacation with Sister (1)

Vale offered words of appreciation to Elraim, who had returned after completing her mission.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“It’s nothing. It’s my duty.”

Vale chuckled at the reply. His sister was diligent as always.

It was this diligence that allowed her to become the knight commander and reach the master level. Of course, the latter relies heavily on talent, but even that is an impossible feat without diligence.

Vale thought he should reward his sister, who had finished her work perfectly, or rather, it wasn’t really hard work at all.

But before that, there was something he had to ask.

“How was Brother’s reaction?”

“He seemed to like it.”

“Was there any rude behavior…?”

“There was one instance, but he found it rather cute.”

“That’s a relief.”

Aileen was playful to begin with. Just like someone from her childhood. If she had shown that side from the first meeting, it could have been considered rude.

Afterward, Vale listened to other reports and nodded.

“Everything is going smoothly. If nothing goes wrong, the training is in 10 days, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“10 days…”

Vale calculated the time based on the information he received from others. Then he said to Elraim.

“You’ve worked really hard. How about taking a break for a while? About 3 days.”

“Are you suggesting…?”

“I’m saying you should take a vacation for a while.”

“Lord, that’s absurd.”

Elraim protested against her younger brother, no, the lord’s words.

The training scheduled in 10 days, as she just mentioned. Elraim had a lot of preparations to make for it.

Personnel, supplies, location. Most of it was decided after the training schedule was set, but she had to keep in touch and check to ensure there were no disruptions on the day of the training.

Moreover, this training was not just any training. It was a training schedule for the growth of knights who would lead the future of Arden, who were talented but still lacked experience and mastery.

A vacation before such an important event for the family. As one of the Arden’s knight commanders and a person responsible for the family, Elraim couldn’t understand it.

Hearing that answer, Vale quietly called out to Elraim. Not as lord and knight, but as family, as brother and sister.

“Sister.”

“Why, Vale…?”

Even though he called her sister, Elraim’s expression didn’t ease. The Arden family, which taught her the joy of the sword, was her other home.

Vale knew his sister’s heart well. So he said something she couldn’t refuse.

“If I leave you like this, you’ll work until the training without a single day off, and do you think Brother will stand for that?”

“……”

“I’m sure the blame will fall on me. Definitely.”

Vale massaged his forehead. He already had a headache thinking about what would happen in the future.

“But you can just talk to him…”

“Talk… It might be possible. I think he listens well to you or his wives, if not anyone else. But how many times do you think that will work?”

“……”

“Maybe only 2 or 3 times. And then what? He’ll definitely say something. Maybe he’ll be a pain in the ass to the point of threatening. In the name of the Saint. Damn brother.”

“……”

“If you think you can persuade him even then, I want to call you an idiot. Stubbornness should be used wisely. You know Brother’s personality better than anyone else.”

“……”

Elraim couldn’t say anything. Because Kyle was someone who would really do that.

“So, Sister. Please take a 3-day break, thinking you’re saving your beloved brother. You should spend some time with Brother, whom you haven’t seen in a long time.”

Of course, that’s not the only reason for his concern. Even though he’s a terrible brother, he’s still a beloved family member. As a brother, he wanted to take care of such a brother.

The opposite is also true. He wanted his beloved sister to spend time with his brother. Vale had watched their love longer than anyone else since he was young.

After thinking for a while, Elraim sighed softly.

“Haa… Should I…?”

In fact, Elraim also wanted to rest for a day or so. It wasn’t that she was tired, but because of the promise they made when they left.

The story of finishing what they were doing. That meant one thing, and it was her thought because she knew how tired she would be as a result.

Of course, according to Lana’s message, even a day might not be enough….

“Okay. I’ll take a 3-day break.”

“Since you’re taking a break, why don’t you go on a short trip? I’ll pay for the expenses.”

“…I’m not going on a trip. I have a feeling I’ll just stay at home.”

“I hope to hear some good news that I’m thinking of. Do you know? I’ve heard good news three times in less than two months.”

“…I know.”

Kyle was a saint, and the saint’s information quickly spread throughout the continent. Especially when it comes to women, the speed of spreading is on a different level.

The news of his marriage to Lana, of course, as well as the subsequent news of her pregnancy, didn’t even take 3 days to reach Arden.

The news of the Saintess Estrella’s pregnancy took a whopping one day. It spread so quickly that it was considered a new record.

In addition, there was also news of Chloe’s pregnancy. This one was a little late. Unlike the other two, she didn’t receive much attention.

After all, when it comes to Kyle’s women, Lana and Estrella are the most well-known.

Of course, Lana says that Chloe was pregnant before Estrella….

Anyway, perhaps because of the conversation they had in front of the gate last time, the rumors about Elraim spread far and wide. Thanks to that, it was a little noisy coming to the mansion.

Vale smiled as he looked at his only sister.

“I hope you can give us some good news, Sister.”

“I’m not ready yet… Haa….”

Elraim stopped talking, sighing a little deeply.

Then she bowed to the lord.

“Then, Lord. I’ll be going now.”

“Okay, Elraim. See you in 3 days.”

“Haa….”

After sighing deeply once more, she left the office.

***

The clear sky comes into view. Pure white clouds pass over me, and occasionally the sunlight shines on me. The temperature is just right, and spring is slowly approaching.

Then a shadow falls over me, and a welcome face fills my vision.

I smiled brightly and greeted the person.

“Sister, you’re here?”

It’s better to see my sister’s face than an empty sky. I quickly got up.

“Did you finish the report well? What did Vale say?”

“……”

Even when I asked that, there was no answer. My sister was looking at me with a very serious expression.

“What’s wrong? Is something wrong?”

“……”

Again, there were no words. She just hesitated to answer, moving her lips. Then finally, my sister opened her mouth.

“I… I got a vacation.”

“Vacation?”

“Yeah, 3 days.”

My sister said it with the most nonchalant expression possible. On the other hand, her ears were redder than ever.

I smiled broadly. Because I could see clearly what my sister was thinking.

“Vale told you to take a break?”

“Yeah, he told me to take a break.”

“Then what are you going to do for 3 days?”

“I’m just… I’m thinking of resting at home. It’s been quite a while since I went home.”

“Your parents’ house?”

My sister shook her head.

“No, my house.”

Not her parents’ house, but her own house. Usually, wouldn’t she go to see her parents at times like this? It would be nice to see them once in a while.

Contrary to my thoughts, I smiled inwardly. I also continued to speak as naturally as possible.

“How long has it been empty?”

“It’s been over a month. Recently, I’ve been traveling here and there and training, so I’ve mostly been staying at the mansion.”

“Then the house must be empty? There must be a lot of dust, and there must be nothing to eat.”

“That’s right….”

“Hmm.”

I pondered for a moment.

Cleaning can be easily done with magic. I don’t know how big my sister’s house is, but a moderate area can be cleaned in an hour.

Buying food can be done by stopping by the market. This is the central city of Arden, a territory as large as the capital. Of course, the market size is comparable to the capital.

“Then, shall we buy something to eat at home?”

“…Okay.”

I held out my arm. My sister looked at my arm and reluctantly locked arms with me.

After that, we enjoyed a date like last time. I had a great time because it was fun no matter what I did with my sister.

The only inconvenience was the attention we got.

One is the commander of the Arden Knights, and the other is the blood of Arden and a Saint. The two of them were walking down the street like lovers or a married couple, so they couldn’t help but attract attention.

I could hear a lot of talk too. It can’t be helped. In the past month alone, I’ve heard news of two weddings and three pregnancies. And seeing me with another woman in the middle of all that….

Of course, I didn’t care at all. Our happiness was more important than the eyes of the world.

After buying a lot of food, we headed home. My sister’s house wasn’t that big. It was a two-story house that was just right for one person to live in.

“But isn’t it a little small? You could buy a bigger one, Sister.”

The salary of a knight commander is high in any family. And what if that family is almost equal to a country? The salary is beyond imagination.

Compared to my sister’s salary, this house was very small.

“I live alone, so I don’t need a big house. I don’t come here often because I’m mostly in the family. I just bought it to store my things.”

“Well, it’s true that you hardly ever come home.”

A knight commander isn’t just a knight commander for nothing. She has to train the knights below and handle the office work. She would be staying at the mansion a lot.

After that, my sister grabbed the doorknob and poured mana into it. The door opened with a click.

Squeak….

My sister slowly opened the door and went inside. I followed behind her.

“Cough cough!”

“Ugh, the dust.”

The dust greeted us as if it wasn’t a lie that she hadn’t been here in a month. The floor and furniture were all covered in dust.

“You unpack your things, Sister. I’ll be cleaning.”

“I’m the owner of the house….”

“Just leave it to me and go.”

My sister leaves with a reluctant expression. I immediately used magic.

I sweep away the dust with the wind, gather it into one place, and burn it away. I cleaned the sticky places with water. It would have been difficult to do it one by one, but it was easy and quick to clean the house with magic.

In the meantime, my sister, who had changed her clothes, comes down from the second floor. She threw off her armor and wore her usual clothes….

“You wear that at home?”

“Yeah, I usually wear this….”

“Even in the family?”

“I don’t wear it in the family because it’s outside….”

She doesn’t seem to be lying. My sister really seemed to wear this at home.

I slowly approached my sister. Then I stood in front of her and hugged her.

“Haa, Sister’s smell….”

I buried my nose in her neck and smelled her scent. I could smell a slight scent of sweat because she hadn’t washed yet.

“Let go, Kyle….”

“Just a little, I’ll stay like this a little longer.”

I lowered my hand from her back. Stroking her waist, my hand landed on her butt.

“Isn’t your outfit too revealing?”

“…This is the way it is. It’s made to be easy to move around in.”

“It must be easy to move around in.”

At home, my sister was wearing what is commonly called workout clothes.

A gray bra top on top and short pants that only covered half of her thighs below. Both were tight against her skin, and the fabric itself was thin but not see-through.

“So you exercise in this state at home?”

“That’s right….”

My sister nodded slightly. Her blushing face was very cute.

Because we were close to each other, I could feel her heart beating fast. I whispered softly in my sister’s ear.

“Sister.”

“Uh, yeah, why, Kyle….”

Elraim rarely stuttered. I smiled and answered.

“Shall we eat first?”

We have to eat before we do anything. Don’t we?