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Chapter 28
“I heard he was that fool’s grandson, but this kid seems perfectly fine.”
Watching Kamine swing his sword, Louis fell into a bout of nostalgia. Looking closely, he could see traces of the predecessor’s features in the boy’s face—light golden hair, clear and well-defined features.
“What’s your name?”
—A name? I don’t have one. I’m just a sword.
“You’re not just a sword. You’re my friend—you can talk to me. I think you should have a name.”
—Don’t say such pointless things. Calling me an Ego Sword is more than enough.
If only I’d given him a name while he was still alive.
Back then, Louis had been a newly born Ego Sword and had stubbornly clung to his pride. In the end, his first master passed away without ever hearing his name.
That first master’s name had been Louis.
Ugh, am I getting old? I keep dwelling on the past.
Why had he even come here in the first place? By now, Riena was probably awake.
I should just go back.
Thinking that, Louis turned to leave, floating lightly away—when—
Kamine, who had sensed Louis’s presence, spoke toward him.
“Why do you keep glancing over here? If you have something to say, come out.”
I wasn’t glancing over!
As if he would ever admit that he’d been secretly watching. With wounded pride, Louis shot forward and began buzzing loudly.
—I was just checking to see whether you were training properly! Hmph! T-Terrible! Absolutely terrible!
Lying awkwardly made him stutter. But Kamine, who wasn’t even his master, couldn’t possibly hear his protest.
Seeing Kamine listen with a serious expression—something that would have made Riena burst out laughing—Louis let out a deep sigh.
This is the first time it’s been this frustrating not being able to communicate.
All the fools who had passed through him before hadn’t been able to talk to him either, yet he’d never felt this irritated. Perhaps because he’d been talking so much with Riena lately, the situation suddenly felt unbearably stifling.
Misinterpreting Louis’s disgruntled buzzing, Kamine spoke with a solemn expression.
“I’m sincere about Riena. Of course, my original purpose was to obtain the Ego Sword—but that’s no longer the case. I also respect your will in choosing Riena as your master.”
There was no wavering in his blue eyes. He meant it.
That only made Louis even more frustrated.
Damn it, why is this guy such a good person?
Just say I’m your objective. Say you’ll steal her away through marriage like some villain.
As Louis glowed and buzzed louder, Kamine tilted his head.
“Are you telling me to try wielding you?”
No!
But the suggestion tempted him.
J-Just a little bit wouldn’t hurt, right? I do need to check whether this guy is worthy to be my master’s partner.
So Louis entrusted his body to Kamine. Eyes wide, Kamine gripped him—then, with a serious expression, carefully repeated the movements he’d practiced earlier with the wooden sword.
A heavenly sword meeting an exceptional swordsman—what else could the result be? Even Louis could feel how perfectly he fit in the hand. Louis beamed in delight, then suddenly snapped out of it and groaned.
Damn it! Why is he so talented too?!
Why was someone like this becoming emperor after leaving the Empire? Annoyance and dissatisfaction burst forth, and Louis buzzed loudly again.
Sweating heavily, Kamine faced Louis once more, still serious.
“I know what you’re trying to say. You’re allowing me to wield you when it’s to protect Riena, right? Thank you.”
Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!
That’s not it!
But still… it feels good that he wants to wield me!
What was he supposed to do with such contradictory feelings?
Just as Louis was whining pitifully, a familiar head of red hair appeared on the path connecting the training grounds and the garden. Without thinking, Louis flew straight toward it.
—Master!!
“Louis-Louis?”
It was practically a flying tackle. The problem was that what would already be powerful coming from a child became downright dangerous when done by a heavy chunk of metal.
“Eek! Wait! I’m holding wild strawberries right now!”
Riena, who had been carrying a shawl full of wild strawberries, shrieked in surprise. But blind with guilt, Louis clung to her like a puppy.
—Master! Scold me! I’m a bad sword! A bad sword with a body and heart as light as paper!
Stumbling backward while hugging Louis and dropping the shawl of strawberries, Riena gave a wry smile and scolded him.
“What kind of paper is that light? My whole body nearly toppled over.”
—Master!!
Not knowing what had happened to make him cry like this, Riena gently patted Louis. Then her eyes widened—Susan had deftly caught the strawberry-filled shawl.
“Wow, thank you! You’re really agile. Thanks to you, I didn’t spill them!”
“Oh, it’s nothing. But… did a sword just fly over? This is… an Ego Sword, isn’t it?”
“Ah, well…”
Susan was staring at the snow-white sword in Riena’s arms with fascination when—
“Susan?”
Kamine, who had come running after Louis a moment later, pointed at the short-haired girl holding the shawl.
“Why are you here?”
Apparently, the strange woman who’d been picking wild strawberries with me is my future sister-in-law.
Kamine explained that the suspicious girl named Susan, who’d been following him around, was actually his younger sister. I stared at him in disbelief.
She could’ve just said she wanted to see who her future sister-in-law was. Why was she lying down next to me? She made me look like the weird one.
I was relieved I hadn’t flown into a rage. But no sooner had I sighed in relief than another trial befell me.
“Is this how you wash them?”
Susan had asked to make wild strawberry iced tea together.
My first cooking class with my sister-in-law! I’m nervous!
I explained gently, in an even kinder voice than usual, as Susan rinsed the strawberries.
“You don’t need to scrub hard. Just rinse them lightly.”
“Like this?”
“……”
No. That still looks really forceful. Can’t you see the red juice spreading through the water like paint?
Does she naturally have a strong grip?
Well, Kamine looks lean too, but he’s incredibly strong. Must be in the blood.
It’s fine. You need to mash them well when making purée anyway.
Maybe because I was thinking of her as my future sister-in-law, everything felt positive. I clapped my hands and said,
“Alright, then I’ll teach you how to make delicious wild strawberry iced tea.”
Making wild strawberry iced tea isn’t difficult.
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Brew black tea.
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Add sugar to the brewed tea (the trick is to add so much you wonder if it’s too much).
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Add a little lemon juice.
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Once the sugar has fully dissolved, strain in finely sieved wild strawberry purée.
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Chill and serve in a glass.
“And there you have it—sweet and tangy wild strawberry iced tea!”
Following the recipe step by step, it took less than an hour to finish.
And I can store the leftover purée and use it in other recipes later.
It took longer this time because we had to make the purée, but next time it would be much quicker.
“Go on, give it a try.”
At my urging, Susan took a sip. She looked doubtful at first, then her eyes widened.
“Wow, it’s sweet and tart. It’s really good!”
“Right?”
I puffed out my chest proudly. Just then, Susan’s expression turned conflicted.
“But when I think about how much sugar went into this, I can’t enjoy it wholeheartedly.”
“…That’s true too, isn’t it?”
Desserts are best enjoyed in ignorance.
Carrying the finished iced tea, I headed to the lady lord’s room. Kamine, freshly bathed after his morning exercise, was sitting beside the lady lord.
Walking in without thinking, tray in hand, I froze.
No, that man—who is he trying to kill, sitting there dripping wet like that?!
He had wiped himself down, and his hair was still damp… but all I could see were the beads of water clinging to it.
He was dazzling enough already—now that he’s wet, he’s blinding.
Without realizing it, I stared at his damp nape, then hurriedly shook my head and looked away.
Begone, you lustful demon! Begone!
But my eyes kept drifting back.
If I ended up with a nosebleed while holding the tray, it would be a household scandal. I hurried over and set the iced tea down in front of them.
Then I said softly to Kamine,
“Kamine, go dry your hair. I’m worried you’ll catch a cold.”
Actually, I’m worried about my heart.
At my words, Kamine’s cheeks flushed slightly as he murmured,
“I hurried back because I thought you might be waiting…”
Gah—was this for my sake too? My own face flushed in response. Just as the two of us were awkwardly fidgeting, the lady lord spoke.
“My, what is this?”
“Please enjoy it while it’s cold. It turned out really well.”
I told her about what had happened during my morning walk. The lady lord smiled broadly, her cheeks tinged with pink.
“You picked wild strawberries during your morning walk? I didn’t even realize there were so many growing in my garden.”
