Chapter 38

Released:

The weekend arrived.

On the first weekend at the Academy, most students went out to explore the capital or spend time doing things they wanted to do.

It seemed to be because most of them were visiting the capital for the first time.

“Wow, Sir Theo! Let’s buy that too, together!”

“It’s my first time visiting a mart, and they really sell so many things here.”

“Estelle, don’t wander off alone, stay with us…!”

I too left the Academy and came to a large mart nearby with the two girls to do some shopping.

Although there were food options available within the Academy grounds, they were mostly restaurants and convenience stores, so the two of them, who had never been to a mart before, were eager to take a look. It seemed I had brought them along for just that reason.

“This one has such a long shelf life. You could keep eating it even if a war broke out.”

“Iris, don’t say such scary things. A war? No way. I prefer peace.”

“Of course, peace is my favorite too.”

Iris who could casually bring up the idea of war.

“Wow! It looks like you can ride on this cart! Look, kids are riding in them! Should I try it too?”

“Estelle, you’re not a kid, though.”

And Estelle who was struggling to climb into the cart as if it were the most natural thing to do.

I couldn’t help but feel a wave of regret. Perhaps I should’ve stayed back, practiced teleportation magic, or even visited home instead of coming out with these two.

Even if it was their first time! Did they really have to act like kids?

“Oh my, isn’t that the Crown Princess and the Saintess over there?”

On top of that, the two of them were so strikingly beautiful that they naturally drew everyone’s attention. It was as if they were openly advertising to the world, “Yes, I’m the Crown Princess, and she’s the Saintess.” The stares they attracted were exhausting to deal with.

“I guess we really should’ve worn disguises before coming out.”

“I didn’t think people would recognize us so easily.”

It seemed Estelle and Iris still didn’t fully grasp how much their appearances stood out.

“That’s why I suggested disguises in the first place. Aren’t you two getting tired of all these stares?”

“Hmm, I’m fine. Back in the Holy Empire, I often interacted with the citizens, so I’m used to it.”

Well, considering Estelle is the epitome of an extrovert, that made sense.

“…I’m getting a little tired, though.”

But Iris, being an introvert like me, was clearly starting to feel drained.

“Sir Theo and Iris don’t seem to enjoy being around people very much, do you?”

“No, it’s not that we dislike people. It’s more that we find the attention of a large, random crowd overwhelming.”

Even with a reasonable explanation, Estelle who was a capital E probably wouldn’t understand.

For someone who thrived on the attention of strangers, it must have been hard for her to grasp why we found it so exhausting.

“In any case, since the two of you are saying you’re tired, why don’t we try disguising ourselves now?”

Estelle spoke those words and used her magic to erase the star drawn on her forehead, then changed her hair to black.

Though the long hair still stood out a bit, if she tied it up and wore a hat, it would help hide her pretty appearance to a reasonable degree, making it much less noticeable.

“Iris, you should tie your hair and wear a hat too.”

Since I had anticipated a situation like this, I had brought two hats with me. I placed one on Estelle’s head and handed the other to Iris.

“Oh, yes! Please put it on for me too, Sir Theo…!”

Instead of just taking the hat and putting it on herself, Iris tied up her hair and cutely leaned her head toward me, asking for help. I smiled slightly at her cute behavior and placed the hat on her head.

Honestly, though, wasn’t it kind of cheating to be that cute with such a beautiful face?

She kept making my heart race and—wait—wasn’t this exciting? She was too cute!

“It was a good idea to wear plain clothes today!”

At the academy, we usually wore uniforms, but I had argued that wearing simpler, more ordinary clothes when going out would be better.

Since their usual outfits were too eye-catching, I had lent them some of mine, which were plain enough to keep things low-key. With the hats added, they now looked perfectly ordinary.

My clothes… really were quite plain, weren’t they?

“Anyway, let’s get going…ow!”

Estelle who was full of excitement started moving again but ended up bumping into someone because she wasn’t paying proper attention.

I knew it. I had a feeling she was going to cause trouble, and sure enough, she did.

“Hey, what the hell!”

Of all people, she had to bump into a group of guys who, judging by their appearance, looked like thugs.

It was the cliche scene that always seemed to happen when pretty girls went out in public, now happening right in front of me.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t looking where I was going…”

“Huh? What’s this? Turns out it’s a pretty lady. Well then, it’s fine~ as long as you agree to hang out with us as an apology~.”

“Ugh, this is such a cliché thug line.”

At first, Estelle apologized sincerely since it was her fault, but the moment she heard their typical thug-like response, her expression soured, and she hit them right back with her usual straightforwardness.

“Wow, that’s so lame. Do thugs have some sort of pact to all use the same lines? Why do you all sound exactly the same?”

She even asked with a serious tone, as if it had been on her mind for a while.

Classic Estelle.

She was anything but ordinary.

Despite her run-in with a group of thugs, I didn’t feel the slightest worry or any need to step in and help. It was truly remarkable.

“What the hell is this chick saying? Is she nuts?”

“Ha! Just because you’ve got a decent face, you think you can talk to us like that?!”

“My face being decent or not is my business. If anyone was letting things slide here, it was me since I bumped into you. And why do you keep talking down to me?”

Estelle had never really shown this side of herself in front of me before.

She had put a lot of effort into pretending to be feminine, innocent, and pure, but after the incident with Lina not long ago, much of that facade seemed to have disappeared.

Of course, when she talked to me, there was still a hint of that effort, though not as much as with others.

“Are you just going to leave it like that, Sir Theo?”

“Well, it doesn’t seem like there’s any need for me to step in.”

If Estelle had been weaker than those thugs, I would have stepped in to save her without hesitation.

After all, with the swordsmanship and magic I currently possess, I could have subdued those thugs in an instant.

But Estelle wasn’t some weak woman.

She was the kind of strong woman who would take care of things herself before I even had the chance to intervene. That’s just the kind of person she was.

“Shall we finish our shopping in the meantime? It might be easier while Estelle isn’t with us.”

“Oh, true. If we stay with Estelle, things like this might keep happening.”

With that, we casually left the scene after passing along a quick message to Estelle, telling her to handle it as she pleased.

Ah, and we also added a reminder not to kill anyone.

***

“Oh my, really now. How annoying. To think they’d separate me from Sir Theo… well, I suppose it can’t be helped.”

Though she was smiling, there was an unsettling chill to it, completely different from before, and the thugs standing before her couldn’t help but flinch without realizing it.

“Wh-What the… why am I…?”

These thugs were huge, and they’d never backed down before, no matter how strong the person in front of them was.

They weren’t particularly strong fighters, not to the point where they could confidently win a fight, but their sheer size usually worked in their favor. Acting tough and throwing their weight around often made people lower their eyes and back off. Yet, the woman in front of them, though much smaller in stature, exuded an inexplicably chilling aura.

“…Let’s just grab her and take her with us.”

They didn’t understand why they felt uneasy, but they figured it didn’t matter. Once they caught her and had their fun, it would all be over.

Just as the thugs began slowly closing in on Estelle, she spoke.

“Restraint.”

Her small lips moved, casting a spell in an instant.

“Argh…?! What—?!”

“Why can’t I move…?!”

“Damn it, is she a mage?!”

Ordinary thugs didn’t stand a chance against a mage, and it became painfully obvious in an instant.

“Haah, how annoying. Couldn’t you just shut those mouths of yours?”

As the spell extended to silence their voices, the thugs found themselves frozen in place. Unable to move or speak, they finally realized they had picked the wrong target and began sweating profusely.

“What should I do with you? Leave you here like this to be ridiculed by others, or should I make you a little more miserable first?”

Normally, Estelle would have stopped at this point, but she was far too irritated to hold back now.

After all, she had gone to the trouble of inviting Theo out on a date, only for Iris to tag along and ruin the mood, and now this had pushed her frustration to its limit.

Because of this ridiculous turn of events, she found herself stuck dealing with strange men while Iris ended up on a date with Theo. It was an absurd situation.

“Fine, I’ll just have to mess you up a little more.”

Of course, she had no intention of using offensive magic in the middle of an indoor market.

That would undoubtedly cause a huge commotion, and Theo hated drawing attention.

Even though Theo had already disappeared with Iris and was nowhere in sight, Estelle still refrained from using offensive magic out of consideration for him.

“I’ll give you a little mental attack instead. Something so horrific that it’ll haunt you as a trauma for the rest of your lives.”

The thugs, who had made the mistake of provoking an already frustrated Estelle, were now doomed to suffer a terrible mental attack that would leave them scarred forever.

Save us…!

They screamed those words silently in their hearts, but Estelle showed no signs of stopping.

3 responses to “Chapter 38”

  1. RiamuP Avatar
    RiamuP

    Poors thugs lmao

    1. F Avatar
      F

      Starting to think the two heroines might be the actual villains lol

      Even the end of the world in most/all of the endings is basically the fault of the two

  2. Jimmyjohns05 Avatar
    Jimmyjohns05

    fu*k around and very find out

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