Chapter 62 - After the Festival
Does the saying "a dripping woman is a beautiful woman" apply to real life too?
Seeing Lady Gladys up close, she is truly beautiful. Having been doused with holy water from head to toe, her moist appearance is quite nice. Bridget-san and Katherine-sensei are also quite beautiful, but there's a certain power—or rather, an overwhelming difference—because she's royalty. Perhaps only Will, when she's silent, could compete.
Beatrix, who is usually talkative, is gazing at her in enchantment. Unlike Will, there's no way her inside is that of a middle-aged man, so she can probably watch her with peace of mind. She'll surely burn the image into the back of her eyelids and sell it as a portrait later.
Beatrix and I sat around a table at the vigilante corps' assembly hall with the two of them and the Headmistress. As for how this happened, it was simply because the Headmistress brought the two of them to the after-party. It seems the two of them had business to discuss directly with Adolf-san. Since there was a festival, they had gone to the trouble of timing their visit to match.
While we were securing a table with the intention of meeting up with Beowulf and Will, the Headmistress crowded in on us. The vigilante corps welcomed them with thunderous applause, especially since they had splashed holy water on each other. Lord Roberts led a grand toast just now. Now they are making noise elsewhere so as not to be a nuisance. Although the attendant soldiers are sitting at the next table, Owen-san is quite something for placing strong men near the entrance.
That's when Will arrived. Since I hadn't told her who we were with, I'm looking forward to her reaction. Don't call me mean; I hadn't seen Beowulf or Will since I told them as they were leaving that I'd be joining the after-party, as they were busy with venue security.
As soon as she found us, she strode toward the table, shouting, "There you are! There you are!" She plopped down next to me and ordered a beer. It was business as usual. Beatrix was covering her ears and looking only at Lady Gladys.
"The Headmistress was also present? That's rare."
Her smiling face is quite a picture, though.
"And who might these people be? Would you mind introducing them to me?"
Before the Headmistress could try to introduce Will to the two of them, Lord Roberts bowed and offered his hand. His palm was facing upward.
"I am Roberts."
"I am Wilhelmina. It is a pleasure to meet you."
He casually took Will's offered hand and gave it a kiss that barely touched the back of her hand. In response, Will gave a slight nod. Although it was an informal greeting while seated, it was a sight not seen among commoners.
"I am Gladys. Nice to meet you."
"It is an honor to meet you. I look forward to your acquaintance."
They smiled at each other and gave a slight nod.
Beatrix was sighing. In terms of elegance, Will was not losing. As expected of a former noble from the continent. If only she didn't talk, Will would be perfect.
"Are you acquaintances of Bishop Catherine?"
"That too, but..." Lord Roberts smirked.
He looked at me.
"I really wanted to have a drink with my comrade-in-arms over there."
Pfft!
I accidentally spat out my drink. Lady Gladys was stifling a laugh.
This is no joke. It's true that I ended up splashing water on the Eastern Plains side due to the circumstances. If I'm treated as a comrade-in-arms just for that, I don't know what kind of rumors will start in town.
"Then, are you a fellow rat-exterminator?"
What kind of interpretation is that? There's no way that's the case.
Lord Roberts burst out laughing. Even Lady Gladys started laughing. Lord Roberts and the others had already been told that we were doing monster extermination, starting with rats. He said that knowing full well. I'm glad he didn't get angry.
Since any more would be a breach of contract, I explained the situation to Will. Clatter! Will stood up from her seat. She was staring intently at Lady Gladys. Lady Gladys also had her eyes wide open.
"Then, you are that famously rumored..."
Will looked at Lady Gladys with an expression of disbelief.
And for good reason; the romance between Lord Roberts and Lady Gladys is famous. Thinking about their single-minded love since childhood, many middle-aged maidens would recall their own beautiful past loves, then look at their partners beside them and sigh at reality. Of course, for young unmarried maidens, it's a future they long for.
"You are that famously rumored Ogress of the Spear, Lady Gladys."
Lord Roberts and the attendants at the next table were laughing loudly, saying, "This is great."
Will... you, just shut up already.
"How hurtful. So that is how I am rumored in this country... Even though I've been putting my heart into embroidery lately..."
Lady Gladys looked completely dejected.
"Ah, no, please forgive my rudeness. The rumor is that you are the bride Gladys, who is as beautiful as she is stronger than an ogre when she holds a spear..."
Your way of abbreviating it is wrong! In any other country, you'd be hanged.
"Roberts. You don't have to laugh that much, do you?"
Lord Roberts seemed to have found it hilarious and was choking from laughing too much. The Headmistress stepped in to soothe them.
"This girl was born on the continent, so her way of speaking is a bit unusual. Please be lenient with her."
Is that so? I don't think it's just that.
In short, Will said that as a fellow female spear-user, she admired the highly praised Lady Gladys. Hearing that, Lady Gladys regained her spirits and asked, "Do you also use a spear?"
"Yes. However, I'm told that I tend to lean too much toward offense, which creates openings. What should I do?"
When Lady Gladys looked at Lord Roberts, he gave a slight nod.
"In that case, from now on, during your practice, do not attack at all and only repeat defensive forms."
"Am I not allowed to attack?"
"That's right. Your opponent will strike at you unilaterally, but you must endure. Try to endure for half a year as if you've become weaker. Eventually, you will master how to defend and become stronger than you are now."
A dignified voice. Such persuasiveness. The attendants were also smiling. Will also straightened her posture and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your guidance."
"Actually, Roberts taught me that when I was little. I was just like you."
Lady Gladys felt bashful. Her cheeks were a little red. This might be the story of Lady Gladys's first love. It's a beautiful memory. If many maidens heard it, they would surely listen with sparkling eyes and beg for more.
"Actually, I was taught by Bishop Catherine when I was little. I was the same."
Lord Roberts looked at the Headmistress and smirked.
"You were quite a good student."
"For all that, my backside was struck with a ceremonial staff many times. It was quite painful since I was a child. There was even a time when my older brother was struck with such force that he went flying and hit his head against a wall."
A shocking revelation came out. Lord Roberts' older brother is the current King. I wonder if the people around us knew that? Lady Gladys was covering her mouth. Surely, if such a thing happened in Medioland, the culprit wouldn't be allowed to live.
"Was that so? I didn't know my own strength back then, so that might have happened. But it's fine now. I'll use my hands properly and hold back so you don't cry. Thanks to that, it was a good experience for me too."
"Are my brother's backside and mine just practice targets?"
Good grief, he shook his head. The attendants were also looking down, their shoulders shaking. The reason they didn't make a sound was because they had to pretend they didn't hear it, right? Could it be that the reason the Headmistress came to Nakanohara was related to that?
In any case, the beautiful story of first love had somehow turned into a story about backsides. I can't let the dreaming maidens hear this.
"By the way, did you finish your talk with Adolf?"
Perhaps thinking the direction of the conversation was bad, the Headmistress changed the subject.
"Yes. We'll finalize the details tomorrow, and execution will be around next weekend."
"You're quite busy. Gladys, are you going too?"
Before I knew it, she was calling the princess from another country by her name without an honorific. Is this also the dignity of a hero?
"Yes. That is the plan."
Lady Gladys glanced at Lord Roberts, and seeing him nod, she answered happily.
"We might even ask for Bishop Catherine's help."
After thinking for a moment, the Headmistress said, "That might be impossible."
"Instead, Adolf will select someone to take my place, so it'll be fine."
I don't know if anyone in this world could take the Headmistress's place, but it's none of my business. I decided not to worry about it.
After that, Beowulf joined us. For some reason, Adolf-san, Paul-san, and the Marcelo couple came along too. Since it became crowded, we joined the table where the attendants were sitting, and Owen-san brought out extra chairs so we could all eat and drink—or rather, have supper—together.
It was funny when Paul-san said, "Is it really okay for me to sit here? I'm going to brag about this later."
Adolf-san received a welcome from the men in the shop and made another toast, after which he talked about the usual monster extermination as the two of them asked. Both of them listened to Paul-san's stories with interest. It was impressive that even though he was drunk, he replaced the goblin stories with other content.
"How about it? Do you want to try aiming for something big once?"
"The Marcelo Company will certainly take you up on that!"
The "something big" mentioned by the famously brave Lord Roberts would be no joke. It wouldn't be just about rats. There was even a moment where everyone hurriedly stopped Paul-san, who had gotten carried away. They were wonderful people.
I realized something after returning to the orphanage. Will and Beatrix had received greetings for noble ladies from Lord Roberts and had their hands kissed. Beowulf had been given a handshake as a soldier. Yet, I had only been introduced by name and splashed holy water on each other while wearing my patched-up work clothes with a hand towel around my neck.
Could it be that I missed a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be properly greeted by royalty?