← Previous · Series overview · Next →
“Sniff… sniff… Why is it always Levia…?”
Ney sat curled up in the corner of the room with her knees hugged to her chest, quietly crying.
They were inside a room at the inn, so there was no one around to see her. Liz was the only witness.
After Gawain’s bombshell earlier, Ney had fainted and been carried back to the room by her two companions. Some time later she woke up and immediately declared, “Ah! It was a dream!” only for Liz to deny that convenient conclusion on the spot. This was the result.
“It’s fine, isn’t it? One of your companions might finally find happiness. You should congratulate her.”
Liz, meanwhile, sat on the bed with a gentle expression.
Apparently she was still operating under her misunderstanding and sincerely hoped that her friend with the tragic past might finally find happiness. Levia herself had made a distinctly unpleasant face at the words “marry me,” but Liz had pushed her into talking things over, and she was currently in the lounge downstairs.
Gawain had seemed like a serious and kind young man. Judging from what he had done earlier that day, that impression was probably correct. Marriage aside, perhaps spending time with a kind man might help wash away some of Levia’s wounds.
There was a saying that wounds caused by a man were best healed by another man. Liz had no idea whether that was actually true, but it was surely better than doing nothing. That was why she had encouraged Levia to go.
“Companion, my ass. She’s a traitor. Getting liked by the man I thought was nice…”
“That’s not Levia’s fault at all. Stop sulking. I’m sure there are men out there who would prefer someone like you too.”
“Shut up. And the men are just as bad. All they care about is looks. They don’t even bother looking at what’s inside. Idiots. They’re all idiots. Men are… men are…”
Should Liz point out the hypocrisy here? That was a strange thing to hear from someone who had been sparkling at Gawain’s looks earlier. But pointing it out would probably just make things more troublesome, so she kept quiet.
Ney lowered her face and continued sobbing. Nothing Liz said seemed likely to help, and a sigh slipped from her lips.
As they sat there, footsteps approached from the hallway. It was Levia. Perhaps because they had known each other for so long, Liz could somehow tell from the rhythm of her steps.
Levia opened the door and entered, and her expression was… strangely subdued.
“What’s wrong? Was he no good?”
“…No good? He was no good? Hah, I see. I see, I see! Of course! He was no good!”
In contrast to Liz’s concern, Ney looked delighted. Their personalities could hardly have been clearer.
Levia looked at the two of them and spoke apologetically.
“I owe you both an apology. Due to personal circumstances, I would like to leave Poppy Anemone.”
“What?!”
Both of them shouted in surprise. Levia continued.
“The truth is, I have decided to get married. I believe I shall be retiring from adventuring upon marriage.”
“Retiring to get married?!”
Retiring to get married meant leaving one’s job in order to marry and devote oneself to the household.
Liz had been the one pushing Levia toward Gawain in the first place, but even she was stunned by the speed of things. At most, she had expected them to begin seeing each other with marriage in mind.
Ignoring Ney, who dropped to her knees and died on the spot, Liz turned back to Levia.
“I-isn’t that way too fast? You only met him today.”
“Tsk, tsk. These things are all about timing. When the chance comes, it is best to decide quickly.”
Levia wagged a finger from side to side as she answered.
Liz thought that even an arranged marriage would normally take more time than this. Meeting someone and immediately deciding to marry them was worrying. Far too worrying. Was Gawain really fine with that too? Even if it had been love at first sight, surely…
“Um, what about Gawain? Did he already leave?”
“Yes. He said he had to report to Lord Arthur.”
“Arthur… That’s the person Gawain serves, right? He must really admire him if the first thing he does is report something like this to his lord.”
“Of course. I gave my answer to Lord Arthur, after all. Why would he not tell the man himself?”
…Hm?
Something was wrong.
Her answer to Arthur? Hadn’t she answered Gawain?
“…Wait. You’re getting married, right? To Gawain?”
“Hah? Why would I marry Sir Gawain? I am marrying Lord Arthur.”
Levia answered with a displeased look.
Liz stared at her in confusion. What had happened to Gawain?
Apparently realizing what Liz was thinking, Levia’s expression changed to one of understanding.
“Oh, that is what you meant. Sir Gawain was merely the messenger. The one who proposed marriage was Count Arthur, the lord of Pendran. Apparently he saw me in the square and fell in love at first sight.”
“What? Wait, hold on. Arthur? When did you even meet him?”
“I haven’t. Apparently he was inside the carriage, but I could not see him from where I was.”
“You haven’t met him? Then you don’t even know what he looks like?”
“I have no idea what he looks like.”
“Th-then Lord Gawain is still free…”
While the two were talking, Ney rose unsteadily like a ghost and joined the conversation. Levia looked over at her.
“I have no idea whether he is free, but at the very least, he has nothing to do with me.”
“Nothing to do with you… Nothing to do with you! I see!”
The ghost transformed instantly into joy. Ney’s face practically lit up. Learning that Gawain had not been the one proposing meant there was still at least some possibility that he was single.
“I see, I see! So that’s how it was! You know, I actually thought that might be the case!”
“Liar. You were completely dead a minute ago.”
“Oh, never mind the little details! I see, so that’s what happened! Well, congratulations! I have no idea what kind of grubby old man this Arthur fellow is, but congratulations anyway!”
Ney slapped Levia repeatedly on the back as she congratulated her. There was a faint trace of malice in the wording, but apparently Levia was in too good a mood to care.
“Thank you. You do your best too, Ney.”
“Indeed! And Levia, I have one request. I would very much appreciate it if you could introduce me to Lord Gawain—”
“Wait! Are you seriously okay with this?!”
Liz sprang to her feet and shouted.
Levia, startled by the sudden volume, turned toward her. Liz stared straight back at her.
“I don’t know what Gawain is really like either! And I still think getting married this fast is crazy! But at least after talking to him, I thought he seemed like a good person! That’s why I thought maybe he could help you! But what about this Arthur person?!”
“W-what about him? Well, for one thing, he has money.”
“Forget the money! What matters is whether he’ll treat you well!”
“O-oh.”
Levia actually recoiled a little.
Having shouted once, Liz’s emotions only grew stronger, and tears began spilling from her eyes.
“Money, money, money! Yes, money matters! But if you think money alone is enough to make you happy, you’re completely wrong! Levia, think this through!”
“Liz…”
Levia wore an expression somewhere between touched and troubled. After a moment, however, her face suddenly changed as though something had occurred to her.
“You’re right. Of course you’re right. I should have made sure I knew what kind of man he was first. How careless of me…”
“…You understand?”
“Yes. Thank you, Liz. Truly.”
Levia smiled gently and hugged her. It was a hug of gratitude.
“We are supposed to meet tomorrow evening. So I shall make sure to assess him properly, just as you said.”
“You will…? But you can’t judge him based on money alone.”
“Of course not. I’ll make sure to take everything else into account too.”
“…Okay. Then that’s fine.”
Levia patted her gently on the head.
Liz felt relieved by her answer, but now that the moment had passed, embarrassment suddenly began catching up with her. She was not exactly old enough to say she should know better, but she had still shouted everything she felt without restraint. It had come from concern for her friend, but looking back on it now, it felt painfully earnest.
“A-anyway, make sure you judge him properly.”
She spat out the words and crawled under the covers. Turning away and curling up in embarrassment, she heard Levia answer, “Yes. Just as you say.”
Ney, who had been watching the exchange, sounded impressed.
“Hmm. Liz really is a good person.”
“She is. Unlike you.”
“Hah! Right back at you. You’re a bad person.”
“How direct. Couldn’t you dress it up a little?”
The conversation continued entirely in praise of Liz. Growing even more embarrassed, Liz squirmed under the blankets and shouted, “Both of you go to sleep!”
Her reaction apparently pleased them—or rather, made them realize how much fun she was to tease—and both immediately broke into grins.
“Heee!”
“Liz is seriously awesome!”
“The best!”
“We’ll follow you forever, boss!”
“Idiots!”
Liz shouted once and pulled the blanket over her head.
The two continued praising her just to tease her, but she refused to respond after that.