80 - The Brat of Menhishumi Church
After Lusio started sitting in the seat behind me, the Menhishumi Church became a comfortable place. Nils next to me taught me what I didn't understand, and during boring arithmetic time, I lent my fingers to Mirshe who sat on my other side. Teo was made to sit in the very back row, so even if he stood up to try something on me, it was immediately noticed and he was stopped by the surrounding adults and teachers. Truly peaceful.
...I didn't expect religion class to be a collection of god gossip.
The religion class that started with "God created the universe, the seas, and the earth" became interesting when it moved to stories about the gods after they finished creating the stage like the earth. The Great God Abassitor is in the Zeus position, so to speak, in terms of Greek mythology. He's a womanizer, and if he finds a beautiful woman he likes, he'll abduct and rape her without caring whether she's a goddess, a human wife, a doe, or a swan. And then impregnates her. He even rapes beautiful boys. For some reason they get pregnant. The anecdote about him even mating with a chair made by Yupins, the god of craftsmanship, inspired a sort of respect in me. In the sense that I couldn't keep up with the absurdity.
...Shouldn't he be called the god of lust rather than the Great God?
That's what I think, but there's a separate lust-type deity, so it's confusing.
...But do I really need to memorize this? Being told to memorize all the names of the gods feels a bit impossible.
There are twelve gods under the Great God and his wife-goddess, and I could memorize up to that point, but when it splits into their attendant gods, their attendants, spirits, and fairies, I can't tell who's who anymore. But I thought since it's taught in class, I probably need to memorize it, but it feels more like a moral education class than stories about what the gods did. Is it the same as how fables use kids or pigs as characters? I think it's just moral education with gods as characters.
...Well, I don't think the Great God Abassitor is good for children's education though.
Especially the episodes involving women are blurred for children, but the men in the very back row are way too excited. No matter how old they get, boys are boys.
The history class that I had to put off on the first day seems to progress backwards from the modern era. The first class apparently only explained the rough flow in chronological order, so it was almost the same as what Nils had taught me. Maybe it's a style of class that draws students' interest by focusing on local history, as it started with the founding of the city of Grenore and I even heard about the current fortress and the Black Knights.
"The current lord of Grenore Fortress is a Black Knight named Leonardo."
...Oh?
The name Leonardo suddenly came out of the teacher's mouth, surprising me a bit. If they're teaching history from the modern era, maybe it's not surprising that Leonardo's name would come up, but still, hearing it for real is startling.
"There are many anecdotes about him. As the youngest knight in history, he was allowed to join the Order of Silver Knights as a boy knight, and was celebrated even in the capital at the time."
...I've heard of the Order of Silver Knights, but this is the first I've heard about him becoming a knight at the youngest age.
When I asked Nils how old you have to be to become a knight, apparently you can take the entrance exam from age twelve, go through three years of training at Vilup Fortress, and if recognized as having sufficient strength, you can become a full-fledged Black Knight. To become a Silver Knight, it seems you need to demonstrate your ability and talent while at Vilup Fortress, and obtain recommendations from all twelve knight order commanders as well as approval from the Order of Silver Knights' commander and vice-commander.
...In other words, Leonardo-san has a bunch of sweaty, athletic-type seniors who dote on him?
Just imagining it is stifling.
"In the Battle of the Epinant Plains five years ago, he displayed such strength that he was hailed as an incarnation of the War God Herkayles or a second coming of the Hero Bertrand, and for his achievement of driving back Prince Conrad of the Saenard Kingdom, he came to his birthplace of Grenore."
...Wait, wasn't coming from the capital to Grenore considered a demotion?
I feel like I heard something like that. That the commander of the Grenore Knights at the time challenged Leonardo at the martial arts tournament, saying he wouldn't let a demoted Silver Knight put on airs, and Leonardo won.
...Huh? But that means the former commander didn't welcome Leonardo-san, who was a Silver Knight? Even though they recommended him as a Silver Knight?
I tilted my head in confusion as the history class ended.
After class, when I left the Menhishumi Church building, I spotted Bart waiting for me near the main gate. Once my care was handed over to Bart, Nils and Lusio's work was done. I waved to Mirshe to say goodbye, and as I turned toward the main gate to head home, Teo blocked my way. He blocked me, but the moment he saw Bart's face, he straightened his back, spun around, and ran away. Apparently he remembered being hit with a fist by Bart before.
...See, isn't brute force the most effective method?
When I brought this up to Bart, who wore a gentle smile, he told me that was their job and that the young lady should stay quiet and act like a young lady.
And so, classes at Menhishumi Church continued relatively peacefully. Protected by Nils and Lusio, and sometimes with additional attacks from Mirshe, I wasn't too terribly harmed, but Teo kept bothering me as always. Mirshe told me that the reason he calls me a "coward" is apparently because I used the service gate at the martial arts tournament instead of lining up with the general crowd. If that's why he calls me a "coward," I asked those around me if what I did was actually wrong, but I was told that Black Knight families having priority entry has been the case for a long time, and I'm not the only special one. And apparently this is something everyone in this city knows.
I reported this to Leonardo and confirmed what happened on the day of the tournament, but apparently Teo was told inside the punishment room that I was under the Black Knight family framework. That using the service gate isn't cheating or cowardly.
...So why does he still come after me?
If he realized he was wrong, that he just pulled my hair out of a misunderstanding, I wish he'd either apologize or stay away from the victim (me) out of shame for his mistake. What's with him persistently coming to pull my hair, seizing moments when Nils and Lusio aren't looking?
...I don't get boys.
And they're annoying. His sister Mirshe is obedient and cute, but why is Teo such a problem child?
...When I try to fight back, Nils stops me, so Teo never learns.
Against Teo, who takes advantage of gaps to make a move on me, I've secured permission from the highest-ranking Guide at Menhishumi Church to fight back, and I'm undefeated in all matches. I make him cry every time, but Nils stops me midway, so I can't land the finishing blow.
...I think if I could land the finishing blow, he'd quiet down, you know?
I fight back, but I can't finish him off. This is pretty stressful. And so, I ended up venting my complaints.
"Is the Menhishumi Church... the only one in town, reshu?"
During the relaxed time after dinner, I asked Leonardo, who sat across the Reversi board as usual. Recently, I've been complaining so much that he can figure out what led to these words without me even explaining. In response to my question, which was close to an ultimatum, Leonardo furrowed his brow as if troubled.
"...Boys want to tease cute girls, so it can't be helped..."
"I heard that before, mashira. I also said that being cute or interesting isn't a reason to bully, nyaranai, deshu."
I don't care about boys' romantic notions related to first love. A bully is just a bully.
I thought things were peaceful lately with Nils and Lusio protecting me, but it's not like Teo isn't bothersome. On my end, I've been trying various things like changing days and attending the morning session, making sure not to be in his sight and not to have him in mine. But no matter whether it's even or odd days, morning or afternoon, among the four total class sessions, I always run into Teo, which only adds to my irritation. When I asked Mirshe, it turns out Teo completely mistakes the Menhishumi Church for a playground. Every day, all day long, he attends the Menhishumi Church classes and disrupts them. Guide Anna must have her hands full too.
"...If Tina hates it that much, you don't have to go to the church. But please wait a little longer for a tutor. I'm looking for one properly this time, checking their character."
"Okay, mashira."
Leonardo negotiated, and for a while, Nils from Menhishumi Church will come as my teacher. Guide Anna gave her seal of approval, saying the classes I was taking were basic knowledge, so Nils should be able to serve as a teacher without any problems. It's a shame I won't get to see cute Mirshe anymore, but considering the trouble Teo's antics cause for those around me, I can bear it.
...If only I could somehow make Teo behave.
[Author's Note]
There are a lot of god names, but you don't need to memorize them. It's just that instead of a monotheistic religion, it's a loose polytheistic religious form.
Next will probably be a Side Story from Mirshe's perspective. But I'll take a break from updating tomorrow.