511 - Anschelique's Perspective: The Runaway Princess and the Children of the Spirit Territory 2
"Please come inside for now," a woman who felt familiar invited me, and I entered the house. The interior of the house, which had a simple exterior, was also simple. There were no flashy decorations or ornaments like those in the detached palace, and the room felt the warmth of wood and plants. In the living room with a large fireplace, there was a long sofa with three cushions adorned with exquisite embroidery lined up. A sewing box was also placed there, and a half-finished pattern, perhaps from an embroidery project in progress, lay on top of the sewing box.
...Um?
What a strange person, I thought as I looked around the house and then looked up at the woman walking ahead of me. In various places throughout this house, various spirits were hiding. If I were not mistaken, there were more of them than in the detached palace.
And the spirits of this house worked very diligently.
The spirits of the detached palace would not move unless asked, and more often than not, they would not listen even if asked, but the spirits of this house were different. They moved as if following the woman just by her walking, and they opened the door before the woman stopped in front of it and reached for the knob. When I was guided inside, I handed my hat to the woman, but before the woman could even glance toward the hat rack, the hat rack walked toward her, and if anything, the hat jumped onto the hat rack of its own accord. The spirits around this house, or around the woman, were truly hardworking.
...Come to think of it, this is the first time I have met an adult who can talk with spirits.
At least, none of the adults in the detached palace could converse with spirits. There were adults who could see them, but even Low, who was said to have been trained by the Spirit Knights, could not converse with spirits. And yet, the woman before me exchanged words with spirits normally, and when she warned them about their mischief, the spirits immediately obeyed her words.
"Please sit wherever you like. I will go brew some tea now... hm?"
Oh? The woman, who had opened the door and was heading toward the kitchen, stopped. Just as I thought I heard a slightly bewildered voice, the woman stepped backward in a strange posture.
...Ah, it is a goblin.
A goblin wearing an apron was clinging to the woman, as if to stop her feet. Rather than clinging, it seemed to be trying to push her out of the kitchen.
"I am happy that you want to help, but I can at least brew tea myself, you know?"
--No. This. Our. Job.
--Mother. Important. Sit.
"No, it is true that I am at a stage where there is a baby in my stomach, but it is better to work a little..."
--No. Absolutely.
Apparently, there was a baby in the woman's large stomach. The spirits seemed to be concerned for the woman's body and were trying to keep her from standing in the kitchen.
While the woman was bewildered by the goblin, who would not let her enter the kitchen and began preparing the tea, another woman's voice could be heard from the back. Since my ears picked up the voice, this next woman was a human. It was not the voice of a spirit.
"Christina-sama, we will prepare the tea, so please leave it to us."
I could make out that she was talking about attending to the small guest, but the words that followed were perhaps lowered and could not be heard. It seemed they were having a secret talk, so I glanced at the White Owl (Low), but the White Owl remained silent. Normally, if someone tried to have a secret talk within the detached palace, the White Owl would pick up everything and tell me, but it seemed he would not tell me here. This was quite rare.
I could not see the face of the woman facing the woman called Christina, but after some whispering sounds were heard for a while, Christina's bright voice could be heard.
"Eh? That child is Anschelique-chan?"
No wonder I felt like I had seen her, I thought as Christina's gaze turned toward me. I still could not remember where I had seen Christina's face, but Christina seemed to have remembered where she had seen mine.
Turning her body around, she took my hand and guided me to the long sofa in the living room. Next, as Christina tried to sit down in the opposite chair, spirits gathered in a swarm and piled cushions onto Christina's chair.
"...Amazing."
Rather, a chair that looked difficult to sit in because it was too loved by spirits had been created, I thought, staring at the mountain of cushions in amazement. Christina, perhaps being used to it, only gave a wry smile. She said that because there was a baby in her stomach now, the spirits (everyone) were being considerate.
"So, Anschelique-chan... -sama? I wonder if it is alright to call you without a title?"
Since it seems to be an incognito visit, should I try calling her by a nickname? As Christina worried about how to address me, the White Owl answered, "Calling her Anschelique without a title is correct." Apparently, in the eyes of the spirits, this woman called Christina was greater than a "Princess." In human terms, she seemed to be in a subtle position, and I think that is why Christina worried.
Not liking how the one and the bird proceeded with the conversation while leaving me behind, I interrupted. I said that since it was an incognito visit, I preferred a nickname. Then, "Shelly" it is, Christina said with a beaming smile. Even though I committed the rudeness of interrupting the conversation, she showed no sign of getting angry.
...She is a great person, is she not?
"I am happy that Shelly came to see me. You remember me... no, that is impossible. You were a baby when we last met."
Saying that I overall resemble my father, but the area around my eyes resembles my mother, Christina's smile deepened. I was truly small when we met before. I felt a bit troubled as she told me things like how it was cute when I gripped her finger with my small hand. Christina smiled nostalgically, but I have no memories from when I was that small.
"...So, why is Shelly here? I heard that this house is made so that it is not easy to approach..."
"Is that so? The White Owl (Low) brought me here."
Hmm? Both of them shifted their gaze to the White Owl at the same time. As for the White Owl, who received the gaze, perhaps because other guests who use perches sometimes come here, he straightened his posture on the perch prepared in the living room.
--Since it is the Princess's first outing. This grandmother chose a safe place.
A place where there are humans who are protected by spirits and can talk with spirits, that seemed to be the White Owl's selection criteria. To the conditions the White Owl listed, Christina agreed that this house indeed fit those conditions.
"After all, we only have children who can talk with spirits in this house."
"...Are there others?"
"There are!"
Before Christina could finish saying there are plenty both inside and outside, energetic footsteps echoed from beyond the kitchen. I heard voices exchanging a word or two with the woman who had been talking with Christina earlier, and soon the door opened.
"I'm home, Mother."
"I'm home!"
"Me!"
Just as I thought the door had opened, three children jumped out from the back. The children each gave their homecoming greetings to Christina and then, with a delay, noticed my presence. When the oldest child came to a sudden halt, a boy who was clearly just below him and could not stop suddenly bumped his nose into the oldest's back. The youngest seemed to be a girl, and as she clung to the back of the boy who bumped his nose, she peeked out with only her face. I could tell at a glance that they were close siblings. They were somehow different from my sisters and me.
"Who? A child I don't know."
"A new child?"
"Child?"
"She is not a new child."
Saying she is Alfred-sama's child, Christina introduced me to the boys. After saying that since she is the child of my older brother-in-law, she is my cousin, Christina tilted her head.
"I wonder if cousin is alright? Since she is currently Christoph-sama's adopted child... on paper she is a cousin, but since she is Rannvald-sama's son's child, she should be a second cousin..."
"Alfred and Ariel's child, huh."
Saying that she overall resembles her father, the oldest child smiled. Since this was the first time I had seen a human other than my grandfather call my father without a title, I was a bit surprised. If Christina, who calls my father her older brother-in-law, calls me without a title, it is understandable since he is my father's brother, but I do not understand why the son of my father's sister-in-law calls my father, who should be his uncle, without a title. While I do not understand it, I also somehow knew that it was correct. The oldest child of Christina is somehow "special."
The children seemed to have come home to eat lunch. The uncle did not seem to be home due to work, but it seemed that Christina and the others always ate at the same table. This too was different from the detached palace (my home). My meals are separate from my sister's, and I only see my parents around tea time. It is almost impossible to gather around one table with my family.
...It is fun.
They were supposed to have come home to eat lunch. However, since that lunch was to be made now, I also ended up helping.
Today's lunch seemed to be sandwiches.
While the maid made the fillings in the kitchen, Christina sliced the bread thinly, the middle child called Jiro sandwiched the fillings, and the oldest child called Taro shaped them and cut the bread with the fillings inside. The job I was entrusted with was to keep the youngest child, named Tina, who was moving around the worktable, in place.
Since knives were being used, it was dangerous for a small child to wander around. I took on the job after receiving that explanation, but Tina seemed dissatisfied. Saying that she also wanted to help, she struggled a bit, and that is why I was given the duty of securing Tina.
And as for Tina, who could no longer move around because she was secured by me, she now seemed to be in a good mood and was singing a strange song. Because she was childish and stumbled a bit, the lyrics were difficult to hear, but I think she was probably repeating the sandwich fillings.
"Ni-tama, love it, egg sandwich♪ Jiro-tan love love, roast beef♪ For fruit sandwiches, put in plenty of sweet sweet fruit♪ Ananabu, ananabu, cursed strawberry♪ One more for a bonus, ananabu pudding♪ Nama-nama, nama cream, plenty puri♪"
...I understand ananabu. It is the one where the chocolate cake is delicious. But I wonder what a cursed strawberry is?
Ananabu is a fruit with soft flesh. It is delicious whether eaten raw or cooked. However, I had never heard of something called a cursed strawberry. Since Tina mentioned it as a sandwich filling, I could imagine it was food, but since "cursed" was specifically attached, I felt it was something different from the strawberries I knew.
"I wonder what a cursed strawberry is?"
"If you eat it, you get cursed."
When I asked Tina in my arms what a cursed strawberry was, a somewhat ominous answer came back. Apparently, if you eat a cursed strawberry, you get cursed.
"...I do not want to eat such a thing."
"It is delicious."
"Did you eat it?"
"I got cursed."
She answered with a sharp face, but I wonder if this child called Tina is alright. I feel like she just casually mentioned something of great importance, but Christina and the others showed no sign of noticing Tina's statement. Each performed their own role, and they only gave a wry smile at Tina's "cursed strawberry" comment.
"Shelly, say ahh."
"Ahh?"
Jiro, who had been lining up the fillings on the bread, offered one of the red berries to me. As prompted, I opened my mouth, and a fruit with a sweet scent was placed on my tongue.
"...It is sweet. It is very delicious. It tastes like happiness."
"That is the 'cursed strawberry'."
"What kind of thing are you making me eat!?"
I had been relaxing my cheeks, entranced by the blessing of the fruit juice spreading throughout my mouth, but at Jiro's word, I felt as if cold water had been poured over my head. The sweet fruit that had been tossed in without my knowing was actually a "cursed strawberry." While I trembled in fear of what kind of curse would fall upon me, Jiro carried the red fruit to the mouth of Tina, who had started to get angry, saying it was unfair for only one person to sneak a snack. It seemed to be something they could casually put into their younger sister's mouth while calling it a cursed strawberry.
"Only Tina would get cursed by this."
It should end in one more time... I think.
I made a thick and thin one. If you are interested, please take a look at the activity report or the production blog.
