Nidome no Yuusha - Chapter 16

「My lady, I’ve brought you your meal.」

「…Thank you.」

I, Shuria, responded to the knock at my door by placing a bookmark in the novel I was reading and setting it aside. Only after looking outside the window did I realize that it was already noon. The book had been so entertaining that it’d caused me to lose track of time.

The exact piece of work I had been reading was one a lot of the other ladies had started to talk about as of late. It described a romance, one between an earl with fairy blood and a young female slave. Its plot focused particularly on the troubles that they had to overcome in order to realize their burning passions for one another. I’d only just started reading it, but was already intrigued and couldn’t help but wish to know how it would end.

I really did think the novel was a wonderful one, but the l-lewder parts embarrassed me and made it a bit difficult for me to read.

「Your lunch today is a Muroo Beef Steak, a Potato Potage, and a salad made of Naruna Herbs. I’ll have a chilled Eppla waiting for you as dessert once you’ve finished.」

I moved over to the large table upon which one of the maids, Sori, arranged my meal and sat myself down in the seat closest to the windowsill. Sori had been working to take care of me for the past three years, and had really been doing her job well.

Though she was basically expressionless, she was quite gentle and kind. Moreover, she knew exactly what it meant to be a maid. That is, she didn’t talk too much, and made sure to never overstep her bounds.

「Would you like to join me, Sori?」

「I’m terribly sorry my lady, but I am merely a lowly maid. I could not possibly bring myself to eat at the same table as you or Lady Yumis, your elder sister.」

Sori bowed to apologize as she answered my question.

I couldn’t help but think of Sori as someone really accomplished. Though she worked as my caretaker, she also found enough time to do much more than just that. She would often help make decisions regarding our territory when need be, and even acted as my elder sister’s confident. In fact, the two had been friends since childhood.

Her gallant, cool looking face, blue-purple tied up hair, and charming, womanly body made me feel a bit jealous of her. She was very different from me, who, despite being human, had obvious, thick, Elven blood. I was already 14, but still looked really childish, mostly due to my height and chest.

「How do you feel about the dishes’ tastes? I believe the chef decided to use a slightly different recipe today.」

「They’re so delicious they almost seem wasted on me.」

「That’s great. I will pass your compliments onto the chef.」

I was really filled by the time I finally finished off the Eppla I had for dessert.

Sori had her subordinates carry off the empty plates after I finished eating.

「Umm… what about the usual thing…」

「You must mean the new stuffed animal. Please wait for just a moment.」

Sori left the room and returned shortly after.

「What do you think of this one?」

「…Thank you. It’s wonderful.」

The stuffed animal Sori bought for me today was one that looked like a large teddy bear. Its red and yellow patchwork body, sewn mouth, and brown button eyes made it look really cute. Best of all, it was really fuzzy and fluffy.

「Please excuse us, as we will now be leaving you to your business. Do let the maids stationed outside your room know if there’s anything you happen to need.」

Sori left the room after making the exact same statement she always did.

I took the teddy bear to my bed and played with it a bit by hugging it, rolling around with it and stroking its fur to satisfaction before finally doing with it as I had all the others and turning it into one of my room’s decorations.

「This one’s really cute, so I guess I’ll have to put it right over here.」

I ended up moving the brand new stuffed animal right beside my pillow.

「…Okay! Time to go through my daily routine!」

I purposefully pumped my fists and spoke out loud as if to encourage myself. The act I was about to repeat for the nth time was one I tried to do every single day: exercising.

The manor I was living in was a noble’s, or more specifically, one belonging to the lord that governed the area. The food the maids served me was delicious, and the portions were always really big. I, as an ordinary village girl, was sure to start gaining weight if I continued eating such luxurious food day after day, especially since I was confined to my room. I’ve been making sure I got exercise everyday, both to prevent myself from getting fat, and to mitigate the stress that built up from being cooped up all day. But no matter how hard I exercised, I was never able to build up any muscle, mostly due to my elvish blood. That, I was actually a bit thankful for, as I really didn’t want myself to develop a muscular looking torso.

I entered and used the shower in the bathroom connected to my suite after working up a sweat. Showering wasn’t something I’d been able to do back when I lived in the village. There, I only ever bathed in the river around noon, when it was still warm out.

I was a bit worried about how odd I would feel upon returning to my old life and losing access to the shower, so I’d thought about restricting my access to it, but I couldn’t. I wasn’t able to resist the comfort it brought.

「…That felt great.」

「That’s quite the immodest appearance right there, Shuria.」

「Y-Yumis!?」

My sister, Yumis, appeared to to have been waiting for me to finish my shower, as she was sitting in the chair I always used, the one by the windowsill. Her face was pretty, and her smile gentle as always. Her hair, which reflected all the natural beauty of a lush, green forest, sparkled in response to the light beaming through the window.

As if to contrast her, I myself was dressed in nothing but a bath towel.

「I-I’m sorry!」

I hurriedly grabbed a set of clothes and changed into them.

「You don’t need to be in a hurry of any sort, especially because I’m to blame as well. I could have been more careful with my timing.」

「I-It’s definitely not your fault! I know you’re really busy, so don’t blame yourself!」

I sat myself across from my elder sister after ensuring I was wearing clothes and not seemingly nearly as unsightly as I’d been just moments before.

「I happened to get my hands on some delicious sweets, and was wondering if you’d like to share them with me. Oh and I’ve also got the usual letter for you too. Feel free to read it at your leisure.」

「Thank you! Thank you so much for everything you always do for me!」

I took the Audio Message Letter Yumis handed me and placed it inside one of my desks’ drawers. I wanted to listen to its contents immediately, but decided that I’d rather spend time with her because of how rare an opportunity it was.

「This letter will probably be the last. I’m on the verge of completing the spell, so you’ll soon be able to see your family again.」

「Thanks so much! These Audio Message Letters you’ve been giving me have really helped me feel at home.」

「Don’t worry about it. I’m sure I’ve been making you really lonely these past few years, so it’s only natural I try helping you cope with it. Besides, my Grandmother’s the one who invented the Audio Message Letter, so getting a few for you every month really isn’t a big deal at all.」

Yumis smiled in her usual, kind manner. Her smile was so pretty that it charmed me and caused me to stare at her every single time.

「Alright, why don’t we start eating? The tea will probably start getting cold soon if we don’t.」

「Okay.」

And so, the two of us spent a bit of time together over tea. Yumis was a really busy person, and had to rush around extensively, so we didn’t really have many chances to spend time together. However, she’d always try to visit me so we could enjoy each other’s company regardless.

Though we’d only met each other three years ago, I couldn’t help but feel that she, my elder sister, was my pride.

☆

I first learned that I was Yumis’ younger sister about three years ago.

The village I grew up in was a small, remote one to this city’s, Elmia’s, northeast. It was surrounded on all sides by dense woods, and lay at the foot of a mountain.

My family had consisted of me, my mother, and my younger sister.

I didn’t have a father, a fact my mother had never even attempted to bring up in conversation. Despite that, we never really went hungry, in part because my Elven ancestry had blessed me with a frightening talent for magic.

I had always had golden blonde hair, fair skin, and the sharp pointed ears that you’d normally only ever find on Elves. My mother had always told me that it was because her Grandmother was of elven blood.

I also had an innate skill, one called “Scarlet Eyes.” It allowed me to perceive magical energy even before it was formed into a spell. It was a very convenient spell that helped cast magic.

As the village had been founded by adventurers, it’d always been a peaceful place that accepted both beastkin and demi-humans like elves and dwarves. I had managed to make enough money to get by through the acts of using magic and emulating adventurers. I was never able to make enough for us to be considered wealthy, but I was happy nonetheless.

One day, all those happy days suddenly came to an end.

Shurumii, my younger sister, contracted a disease. It wasn’t something that put her life in danger, but instead something that caused her to suffer constant, intense pain.

It could be cured if we just had an elixir, but, that wasn’t something my family was able to afford no matter how far we stretched our finances.

I tried, I tried my hardest to save up as much money as possible, but I never managed to get enough to buy the elixir we needed. By then, we’d run out of options. We’d even started considering whether or not we should just sell Shurumii off.

And that was when I finally met Yumis, my older sister.

I learned that my mother had once been a maid in the service of Elmia’s lord. He took her as one of his lovers, and in doing so, caused me to be born. Shurumii was conceived in the same way. The lord’s wife, however, had hated my mother, and thus, drove her away after giving her a bit of money as consolation. She ended up taking me, who was just a child at the time, away with her. That was how the two of us then ended up living in the village at the foot of the mountain.

In other words, I’d learned that Yumis was my, our older half-sister.

She had come to the village because she’d heard of my magical abilities. Specifically, she offered to have me perform a ritual in order to give her my powers. In exchange, she said she would provide the elixir Shurumii needed, enough money to support my family for the rest of their days, and a promise to aid us in times of need.

It was an offer I accepted without so much as a moment’s hesitation. I was a bit disappointed going through with the ritual would cause me to lose my magical abilities, but that wasn’t worth nearly as much as my family’s happiness.

I left together with Yumis after watching my younger sister drink the elixir and recover.

The ritual needed me to several conditions for it to succeed. I wasn’t allowed to leave my room nor meet any of my blood relatives aside from Yumis.

Yumis knew that spending three years alone in my room would make me lonely, so she went out of her way to allow me the opportunity to interact with the rest of my family once a month through an Audio Message Letter. It was a really convenient item, as neither Shurumii or my mother knew how to write.

She also went out of her way to spend time with me every time she managed to get any fancy snacks even though she was busy with both researching magic and functioning as the area’s temporary lord. Despite that, she taught me how to read and write so I had more to do. Yumis had even also told Sori to bring me all the stuffed animals and books I could ever ask for. It took no time at all for me to really start thinking of her as my elder sister.

Yumis told me that she’d have both my mother and Shurumi move to Elmia so we could all live together as soon as I finished transferring my magical abilities to her. Apparently the lord and his wife had already moved into one of their manors in the royal capital and left all their duties to Yumis. There weren’t any problems with my family moving back into the city.

Yumis was so kind that she would still always apologize to me for having shut me in my room for as long as she had even though she was already doing so much for me.

I couldn’t wait to finally be able to see both my mother and Shurumii in person again.

Hearing their voices alone wasn’t enough. There was still lots that remained untold.

I really wanted to see how much Shurumii had grown. She, didn’t seem to have taken up too much of her Elven heritage, so I suspected that she might’ve already grown to be even taller than I was.

I also really wanted to eat my mother’s freshly made Ricol pie. It was one of my personal favourites, and something I was sure Yumis would enjoy too.

It would be just wonderful if the four of us could all sit down and have tea together some day.

Just the thought of it made me incredibly happy. I couldn’t wait!

I’d thought that my days would continue passing just as they would over the course of the past three years.

But then one day, things once again changed, as I happened to catch sight of an odd looking ghost.

Or rather, an odd looking spirit.

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Note: This character says their own name instead of “I,” “me”, “my,” etc. It sounds childish and cute in Japanese, but like cancer in English, so I refrained from it.