CH 76

[Hierarchical Relationship]

“Sakurai-san~!”

As I’m practice-swinging in the courtyard of the academy, I hear a cheerful voice calling me.

When I turn my eyes, I see Iris running toward me with a smile, and from behind her, Luisina slowly approaching on the back of a brown-haired horse that is making trotting sound.

“Wafuafinihefuhahahefuhonhe, herafuhaffuahohe.” (Luisina)

“Don’t talk while eating an apple candy. No one can understand what you’re saying.” (Sakurai)

“…………” (Luisina)

“Don’t choose the apple candy over talking with me.” (Sakurai)

“Leaving that aside, please look at this, Sakurai-san!” (Iris)

Leaving the Diva who is on festival mode with a goblin mask on her head for the time being, I turn toward Iris.

She proudly throws out her chest and thrust something like a passcase in front of me. It’s a student ID card engraved with the academy emblem of this academy.

“Finally, I am also a student from today! Now I can stay with Sakurai-san and co in the daytime, too!” (Iris)

“I’m a low-class student, while Higaki is an upper-class student, so we don’t take classes with an intermediate-class student like you.” (Sakurai)

“No way, you’re lying!” (Iris)

You were intending to stick with us even in class, huh — so I want to ask Iris who is huffing in anger.

But I don’t care about that now, so I just congratulate her on her admission and calm her down, while turning my gaze to Luisina, who is left alone… or to be exact, to the horse she’s straddling.

Compared to a thoroughbred which is synonymous with horse racing, it has a smaller and more delicate physique, reminding one of a pony. And its sleepy eyes give off an unreliable impression at first look.

However, perhaps it has big guts, the horse doesn’t care about the hustle and bustle of the crowd, and with Luisina on it, it doesn’t make a slight movement even when kids clap its feet as they pass by. Anyway, it’s dangerous, so stop it, you brats! Shoo!!

“This is why kids are… Anyway, this is the kind of horse I wanted.” (Sakurai)

“I was a bit peeved when you asked me to ignore the opening ceremony and go to the stables first. Well, I didn’t mind because I was getting my student ID card and couldn’t make it time for the opening ceremony anyway, though.” (Iris)

“……Gulp. To ask me to run an errand, you’ve been getting ahead of yourself these days, it seems. If you make me do something boring like this again, I’ll beat you to death.” (Luisina)

After eating the apple candy, Luisina glares at me from the top of the horse.

The force of it coupled with her beauty is quite something, but my heart isn’t perturbed at all. It’s probably because I’ve gotten used to being glared at by Higaki. It’s an unpleasant way to get used to it, tho.

By the way, Iris is also accustomed to the sight of me being glared at; she just casually ignores it and brags about her student ID card to the horse.

“By the way, is it okay to prepare the horse on your own for the competition?” (Iris)

“I’ve confirmed it with Higaki, though the chariot is a set with the rental items, you can prepare the horse on your own, as the chariot race is very disadvantageous for the adventurers.” (Sakurai)

“I see… oh, right. I have already registered us as a participating party, so we can participate in the competition together!” (Iris)

“Good. Next is how much I’ll be able to handle this guy by tomorrow, I guess.” (Sakurai)

Now then, when I decide to go to the sports ground to hone my horsemanship, Luisina suddenly grabs the horse’s reins as though she just recalled something.

And then, without saying any words, she has the horse to turn around, before it began to move away while making brisk clip-clop sounds.

“Now hold it right there! I don’t care where do you want to go, but I’m gonna use the horse, so leave it here!” (Sakurai)

“Excuse me? I was the one who fetched horse. So, this horse is mine, too. Besides, walking is tiresome, if you’re a man, you should take the hint.” (Luisina)

“Umm, I am the one who paid for it, though.” (Iris)

“……I’m the one who brought it here.” (Luisina)

“Your counterargument is too weak, y’know.” (Sakurai)

Are you a kid— Thinking so to Luisina who hugs the horse’s neck after realizing she’s in an unfavorable position and puffing up her cheeks, I, an adult, decide to ask where she wants to go for the time being,

“Julia’s house. She promised to serve me tea and baked sweets after the opening ceremony.” (Luisina)

“Julia who?” (Sakurai)

“Julia von Knaust.” (Luisina)

“Hold on a sec, why did the name of a royalty come out of your mouth?” (Sakurai)

Speaking of Julia von Knaust, she is one of the heroines who belong to the royal family who governs the nation and is also the student council president of the military school.

However, because she belongs to the military academy rather than the adventurer’s school, although she is involved in the story, due to the fact that you have to do a separate event in order to turn her into a heroine, she’s treated like a semi-hidden character.

In addition to that, depending on the result of the event, you might even open up a special route— a special treatment matching her status as a royalty, I would say; though depending on how you want to beat the game, you can choose between completely ignoring her and interacting with her closely.

Why is such royal-born beauty and the unemployed, homeless, and should be in a coffin Luisina so intimate that she even invited her over to her place?

Come to think of it, Luisina’s daily routine is strolling; she’d suddenly take a stroll anytime she feels like it. However, I never thought she would meet Julia, a royalty, while taking a stroll.

It’s possible that the other party was the one who made contact with her… or perhaps, Luisina happened to sneaked in a mansion in where Julia was, huh.

Dammit, as long as the possibility is not zero, as a gamer, I cannot deny the latter!

Or rather, even among others in the villa area, Julia’s mansion is rather conspicuous, so I’m most sure that Luisina got interested in it, went in to check it out, and was discovered!

(No, it doesn’t matter how they met. If Julia had met Luisina, then them getting close is an inevitable result.)

Frankly speaking, Julia is a genuine talented people enthusiast. Perhaps it’s a trait of a royalty, she likes to have talented people close at hand.

In the original game story, having an eye on the protagonist who had achieved excellent results at the academy festival, she approached him and told him to quit the adventurer academy and join her knight order at the military academy, and thus the beginning of their interaction.

If she met Luisina, the former diva, she would most likely invite her, who has a solid track record, to get along with her, at least ‘for the time being’.

As a person who knows the original, I can easily imagine Julia inviting Luisina over, and I’m sure she pays no attention to the fact that Luisina is a former terrorist who should have been dead.

Anyways, I don’t care where and what kind of connection the unemployed freeloader Luisina makes, but I would be troubled if she were to take the horse due to it.

However, it is troublesome to persuade this pretty selfish princess. Worst case scenario, I probably would only be able to handle the horse at walking level of speed by tomorrow, so I decide to offer her a compromise.

“Can’t be helped, I’ll follow you on the horse to your destination. On the way back, just ask that madam royalty to prepare a horse-drawn carriage for you.” (Sakurai)

“……Fine. Instead, you hold the reins.” (Luisina)

“Yes! Can I come with, too!” (Iris)

Iris, who has been left out of the conversation, raises her hand vigorously and says so.

I don’t mind she coming with, but no matter how you look at it, the horse can only carry up to two people. Someone definitely have to be left out.

“I can’t, is it?” (Iris)

Iris must’ve realized it too. However, the expression of ‘I don’t want to be left alone’ with her eyebrows lowered surfaces on her face, and she’s even surrounded by atmosphere that feels like she would even run to come with if told so.

Then Luisina, who doesn’t have even bit of consideration toward her, seems like going to tell her so for real, so I, who can’t neglect Iris in order to win the chariot race, interrupt Luisina’s words while feeling exasperated.

“Then, Brown can just ru——” (Luisina)

“Iris and Luisina go take the lead on horseback. I’ll follow you guys by running.” (Sakurai)

“——Well, if you say so, why not?” (Luisina)

“Thank you!” (Iris)

Iris hugs me to show her gratitude and then sits behind Luisina on the horse.

Having made sure of that, Luisina pull the reins whilst snorting and have the horse to get going.

To express its running speed, it is too fast to be called walking and too slow to be called running, if don’t run seriously, I might lose track of it.

While vowing to throw Iris to Higaki until tomorrow on the way back, I come to the realization that I could train my body by running, so it’s better than riding the horse.

“Meaning, I can get experience points, can’t I!” (Sakurai)

And the fact that I can get experience points means that I’m gonna be one step closer to leveling up.

What, running is definitely better, ain’t it! Mou~, in that case, please say that sooner, me~. I almost missed on experience points, didn’t I~.

“Alright, my legs have been thoroughly trained anyway. Shall I first teach the likes of that not-thoroughbred horse the difference between us!” (Sakurai)

I thought so in anticipation of the horsemanship practice that we would be having after this. Because I believe it would be best to display my ability to make the horse obey.

The monsterology teacher also said, “If you want to become a monster tamer, you must first show that you’re superior to them,” so the relationship between a horse and its owner must be similar!

Animals act on instinct! Horses live by the rule of the jungle, too! As the big first step in training it, I shall get a splendid victory over it in its own field!

After a quick light stretch, I break into a run with all my might.

I catch up with and overtake the leading Luisina and co, and then Luisina swings the reins and hurries the horse.

I try to further increase my pace all the while laughing like I’m not gonna be defeated, appealing that I still have room to spare.

“Hahahaha! Don’t think a mere horse can win against me, a running monster that has been running on the river bank every day without fail for nearly 10 years!” (Sakurai)

“Look who’s so confident. Brown, hold tight. I will put him in his place.” (Luisina)

“Ah, yes… Or rather, if Sakurai-san runs ahead, how will he find the way to the destination? Wouldn’t he get lost?” (Iris)

“I’m superior to a horse!!” (Sakurai)

I jump over an obstacle whose name is disciplinary committee member, which occasionally appeared, and run through the city along with the horse with all my might.

Then, although there were many twists and turns, by the time we arrived at the destination, Julia-jou’s grand mansion——I’ve became something like a baggage carried and tied up on the back of the horse.

“Wheeze… wheeze… wheeze…!” (Sakurai)

“You’re quite unsightly, Tōru. But it was a lot of fun.” (Luisina)

“Sakurai-san, are you okay? I’ll take you down now, okay?” (Iris)

My legs, which has been overworked so much that they could no longer be used, are quivering like that of a newborn fawn’s, and I’m so tired I can’t stand without Iris’s support.

Still, I look back at the horse staring at me, and say with a firm determination,

“Next, time… next time, I won’t lose, horse…!” (Sakurai)

“I think Sakurai-san is the first person ever to see a horse as a rival.” (Iris)