Sword, Magic and Academic Society

Vol. 1 - Ch. 9 - Mother and Sister

After getting exactly three hours of sleep, I quickly ate a portable emergency ration and quickly positioned myself in front of the train door to be the first to disembark. I would bet my money that my sister would be here to pick me up.

If she were to be seen by that dangerous girl by chance and the latter suddenly decided to introduce herself...... Well, I didn't know what would happen.

Speaking of which, this emergency ration was truly amazing. In my previous life, I had worked for a food and beverage company, notable for its beer. So, I believe I could appreciate the enjoyment of a meal, and truly, I was impressed by the quality of this solid food. The taste was not bad, and it was quite filling.

Despite their dry and crumbly appearance, they were easy to eat and didn't require any drink to eat at all. There were plain and dried fruit varieties, though I preferred the plain types.

But I must say, the Royal Capital was indeed something else. Unlike the trains of my previous world, the magic train only reached speeds of about 50 kilometers per hour, however, it had been traveling through the city for over an hour now.

There were occasional glimpses of buildings that seemed tall enough to be ten stories, something you couldn't imagine in the idyllic Viscount territory located in the middle of nowhere.

I wasn't particularly surprised since I had memories of my previous life, but for a young noble who had left the countryside for the first time, it must have been like moving from fighting a rabbit to facing a behemoth.

The train gradually slowed down and arrived at the platform. As soon as the doors opened, I leaped out onto the platform. I was the first to exit the station.

Now, who would come to pick me up?

I walked at a brisk pace while scanning my surroundings.

"Allen-kun!"

I heard a nostalgic voice calling out to me. She had waist-length pale pink-colored hair neatly woven into a single braid and was dressed in a simple dark green dress cinched at the waist with a belt evoking the image of rain-soaked summer grass which complemented her hair beautifully.

"Sister... You look beautiful."

"Fufufu, thank you. Allen-kun too, you've become even more handsome."

This surprised me a little.

?

I wouldn't deny that I knew she would have enough sense to not appear in her boorish padded jacket, the attire she wears during research — which often became her daily wear — but such a dressed-up appearance was something I never expected even in my most daring of daydreams.

Could it be that she was in love?

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the time to delve into useless thoughts…… While I had an ordinary face, she had an attention-grabbing, adorable appearance.

She might be lacking in the chest department a bit, but the feminine charm that she was exuding, an elegance unique to those on the verge of adulthood, was constantly capturing gazes akin to a rose surrounded by white lilies.

People were streaming out of the station.

And there was another reason people were staring in our direction, which was—

"Aren't you glad, Rose? What Allen said wasn't just flattery. Spending hours in the morning to choose clothes was worth it, wasn't it? But sheesh, you kept going round and round changing them out. Even though all of them suit you so well."

Said the person as she appeared from behind my sister, who was just around 150cm in height. She was a beauty a step above my sister, with a sharp glint in her eyes.

A glance at her flawless appearance evoked a sense that she was anything but an ordinary person.

"Mother~! Please, you don't have to add that!"

At the words of our Mother, a shade of red crept on her face as she turned around while embarrassingly putting her index finger on her lips.

Yeah, please listen to my sister, Mother. I also didn't want the backstory.

However, Mother immediately cut off her protest, saying 'I expect you to tidy up that mountain of clothes when we get back'.

"Mother, it's been a while."

"You look so different, Allen."

She had dark brown hair like mine, tied up in a bun. Even to put it mildly, she was still a striking beauty, one such that people would involuntarily think, 'Why in the world would such a beauty marry a no-hoper like my father?'.

She was wearing an ivory-colored blouse with lace on its three-quarter sleeves, paired with dark blue pants that reached her ankles. She was like the refreshing image of a spring.

......Conspicuous. They were too conspicuous even if they weren't trying to be!

"By the way, Allen."

Thump

Mother spoke as her azure dragon blade rested on her shoulder.

An overwhelming tension filled the station square.

A man who appeared to be a member of the kingdom's knight order, who had been glancing at us for a while now, hastily averted his gaze.

Hey, weren't you supposed to be the Kingdom's trump card? Please do your work.

"Did you really come here alone with such a large backpack for someone so small? ...... Lord above...... What's going on in that person's head?......"

Can someone get me a ticket back to the countryside, please?!

It hasn't even been 5 minutes yet and I have already succumbed to the frightening atmosphere of the Royal Capital.

?

After that, I first somehow convinced my Mother to get into the carriage as she pressed me for an immediate explanation, saying it didn't need to be done in public.

I also wanted to get away from the station as quickly as possible, continuing just like that would have garnered a more conspicuous gaze, even without considering Fey.

"Well, that's the situation. My studies have been going well, and since I had to travel to the Royal Academy, I wanted to act responsibly as an independent individual and take responsibility for my travel here, so I proposed my intention to Father. Of course, he was strongly opposed to it, but he relented after my persuasion. And of course, I was properly escorted until Dragreid by a guard. This is the long story as to why you see me coming here alone."

After a lot of effort, I managed to finish my explanation in the carriage while performing a 'seiza'.

It was a small carriage pulled by a single horse. The interior was cramped. Mother's face, sitting opposite me, was just a breath away.

Her gaze never left my face even for a split second as I muttered the long explanation.

No, not only did she not shift her gaze, she didn't even blink once at all.

It was no use lying to her as I had learned since childhood. That was why I said it as it was.

"Alright, I got the gist of it...... Fine, I guess. You, too, have really become understanding enough to see things in a completely different light."

Finally, Mother loosened the air of intimidation around her.

Hooray~! Your son has successfully completed the trial, Father!

"Noooo~! My adorable Allen-kun is! Allen-kun is! Allen-kun is~!"

Elder Sister, who was sitting next to me and clinging to my arms, let out frantic voices like a broken tape recorder.

"But Allen..."

Perhaps just waiting for me to let down my guard, Mother swiftly raised the tension in the air and said with a frosty voice.

"Are you sure that person really put up a 'strong' opposition?"

My head turned blank as Mother cross-interrogated me intensely, and finally, I ended up averting my gaze.

"O-Of course he did."

And I stuttered......

On the other hand, Mother kept the tense air, her lips distorted into a grin as she murmured 'It seems like I need to have a serious discussion with that person'.

Sorry, Father...... Your son did all that he could......

Editor's note - May you rest in pieces, Father-san. Press F to pay respect…

T/N - MC has no chill eh, didn't even spare his Father. And do your work, Kingdom's Ace!