“…Yes?”
Ah, was it too abrupt to show up after a while and hand over a weapon?
“By the way, have you been well, Inein?”
Dark-brown hair and those cold yet arrogant eyes, with a muscular body. In a way, he looked more like a typical tyrant from an R-rated tragic novel than Redian did.
I thought he’d ask with a sunken voice why I was making him do this.
“Yes. Hello, Princess.”
Today, Inein was as diligent and polite as ever.
“Thanks to you, I have been well. Have you had your meal, Princess?”
“…Yes, I did.”
I had seen angels with unangelic personalities, but this was the first time I saw the opposite. Used to dealing with guys who always wanted a fight from the first meeting, I wasn’t sure how to handle this gentle soul.
“Anyway, how about trying this instead of that bow? It seems to suit you better.”
I approached Inein and handed him Astra, which was kept in the armory.
“It looks similar to a gun, right? You’ve seen guns, so it won’t be unfamiliar. Just pull this trigger here.”
I couldn’t lie that it wouldn’t be difficult. Although looking like a rifle or revolver on the outside, Astra was ten thousand times more difficult to handle. It was a magical weapon, so one either needed to have the power to control magic or be a magician… One of the two was required to handle it skillfully.
“Kikikiki, idiot, idiot!”
“Um, yes. I’ll try it.”
Despite the flying monsters continuously teasing, Inein seemed undisturbed. Moreover, he didn’t seem to think it was a big deal when Aster was handed to him.
“Princess, if he were a magician, it would have been obvious by now. Besides, he can’t even properly use ordinary weapons, how could he handle Astra—”
It was when Aeron started to approach, nagging.
Bang!
“Goodness.”
A sharp, accurate sound of impact followed.
“Idi… Kiing.”
The training monster that had been teasing fell to the ground with a thud.
“W-what’s going on?”
At the sudden turn of events, Aeron seemed lost for words, his eyes widening.
Even if there was a one in a hundred chance of him being a magician, I thought he would miss it at least once or twice… Oh my, is he a genius too? Or is he just too lucky?
“Shall we continue?”
Unlike me, who was shining with excitement, Inein remained calm.
“Raise the level of the monsters a bit more, Aeron.”
“Ah, yes, Princess.”
As Aeron gave instructions to the communication zone, a heavy, thudding sound followed, shaking the air. Now, larger monsters started to emerge.
This won’t be easy.
However,
Bang, bang, bang! Inein shot the monsters rushing towards him without hesitation. The monsters, casting dark shadows, fell to the ground with a groan. He had used only three shots to defeat the 5th circle monsters, which even amateur monster hunters found challenging.
“Wow…” Aeron, who was watching it, expressed his admiration.
“Am I doing this right?” Inein asked me. His face was calm, as if he didn’t fully understand what he had just done.
“Have you ever hunted monsters before?”
“No. When I was young, I occasionally hunted wild animals in the mountains with my bare hands, but other than that, not really…” His tone was nonchalant.
“Ah, yes. I see.”
Normally, ordinary people, especially children, can’t hunt wild animals with their bare hands. Hmm. He doesn’t realize he’s a magician, does he?
It seemed that Inein was unaware of the fact that he was a magician. He never had the chance to know.
After all, magicians usually enter the imperial palace from a young age for specialized training. In contrast, Inein traveled through the slave markets as an orphan and was later imprisoned in the underground castle, inadvertently keeping his abilities hidden. So, this must be the reason why he survived until the end.
“You did well, Inein.” I simply smiled at Inein without saying much.
Every noble family wanted to have a magician, but it was a dream-like story. The empire’s magicians were monopolized by the Rixon imperial family. Since their numbers were small and the imperial family took them, others hardly even got a glimpse of them. And now, this precious magician had rolled right into my lap…
“You know how to sign a contract, right?”
This was truly a jackpot.
* * *
“Aeron, please ensure this news doesn’t reach the magic department until the hunting competition.”
“You want to keep it hidden?”
As we moved to the next training ground, Aeron lowered his voice. “It will be revealed that Inein is a magician at the hunting competition anyway. Won’t the imperial family intervene?”
“What if they don’t intervene?”
“Yes, yes?”
I shrugged my shoulders as if I were wondering what the problem was.
“I didn’t forcibly take him away from the magic department. He came to me on his own.”
“That’s true, but… it would be unprecedented for a noble family, not of the imperial family, to have a magician.”
“It’s not forbidden though. As I always say, the one who claims it first owns it.”
Aeron gave a look as if saying, ‘Is there no fear in this woman?’
Then we saw the 5th Circle training ground, where the youngest, Francis, was.
“How is Francis doing?”
“Ah, he’s good. He’s very smart and has the basics, so he’ll be fine once he gets used to handling Astra.”
As we entered, the young prince of the glass castle was holding out a bow. Every time he pulled the bowstring, his faint purple hair swayed.
Whoosh. As the arrows pierced through the monsters, their remnants fell.
“What does he usually do outside of training?”
“He seems to spend most of his time in the annex library of the duchy, which the princess has already allowed.”
As expected, Francis was a model student. Although he had spent most of his late teens in the underground castle, he was smart enough to become the emperor’s strategist. I wonder what he could become if I properly guided him from now on.
“Please also assign a private tutor for Francis. Allow him two hours a day for studying, focusing on politics.”
“Politics? Yes, I understand.” Aeron looked puzzled but soon nodded.
I wonder if Redian knows that his master is paving his way for the next ten years.
“Uh...”
Then Francis, who turned his head, seemed to have found me.
“Princess!” The boy rushed towards me.
“How are you, Francis?”
“I’ve read all the books you recommended. The duchy library is amazing.”
Francis seemed pleased to see me after a long time. His gestures grew larger. Consequently, his bow also swirled around. Despite his innocently smiling face, the traces of monsters on the end of his bow were quite something…
Right, he’s also a Norma. Of course. I thought that even if he was a model student, he was a Norma too.
“There are always so many books to see, right? And also!”
“How about you put down that bow while talking, Francis.” I just saw you pierce a monster’s eye with that.
“Ah…”
Then, the boy hid the bow behind his back and smiled. He used to be so busy glaring at me when we first met. How cute.
“You’re doing well with the homework I gave you, right?”
“Yes! It’s fun!”
Francis nodded vigorously. Even the youngest had his charms among other Norma.
“How about starting studying from tomorrow? We’ll start with politics and then add more tutors in other subjects if you want.”
“Uh, really…?” Francis’s eyes wavered in surprise at my words.
“Of course. I told you. I’m very generous to my people.”
“Uh, that’s, not even my father, no, the count did for me… Thank you. I’ll do my best!”
Francis, who gave strength to his eyes as if he was about to cry, smiled brightly.
“I’ll definitely be Princess’s number one Norma, surpassing Redian and Vallentin!”
Uh, okay?
* * *
After leaving the 5th circle training ground, we headed to the 7th circle, where Vallentin was.
“Um, what is that?” As I entered the training ground, I frowned for a moment.
“Ah, his attitude might be a bit poor, but his skills are exceptional…”
Vallentin was sitting on the shelf, casually killing the monsters. It was the 7th circle monsters, which professional monster hunters usually faced.
“Huh?”
Then Vallentin, who had noticed me, had a strange expression. His unusually bright red hair and slanted smile suit him well.
“You’ve finally graced me with your presence.”
He’s being sarcastic, right?
As I approached, Vallentin stood up.
Is this the real battle now? After meeting Inein and Francis, my combat power had decreased. But now, it was time to fully recharge again.
“Have you been well?”
“Ah, I’ve been well, but…” Then Vallentin looked at Aeron standing at the door. His unique eyes quickly turned cold. “I have something to tell Princess, but I’m too scared because of your aide.”
“…Scared?”
“Yes. Can you ask that bas, I mean, aide to step out for a while?”
That look doesn’t make him convincing at all. But, I had planned to do whatever my Norma asked for until the competition.
“Aeron, please stay out for a moment. Give me that communication port that connects to the control room.” I turned my head to Aeron, who was standing in front of the door.
“Will it be okay?”
Aeron looked at Vallentin with a disapproving expression.
“What are you looking at? You can’t even cut off my finger.”
…Huh? What did he say? Just then, a chilling voice came from behind me. As I quickly turned around, Vallentin’s shoulders trembled.
“I’m scared. Please send out that aide, Princess.”
This crazy novel with crazy supporting roles. It wasn’t even surprising anymore.
“Step outside, Aeron.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Eventually, Aeron left.
“Do you want to say something? Why? Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s not that…”
Suddenly, Vallentin’s expression hardened as he looked at me.
