Chapter 45 – A Woman Not Worthy Enough to Exchange Talismans With
After I finished shopping, I called out to Yuzuriha-san.
“Hmm? Are you finished already?”
“Yes, I found a good one.”
“That’s good to hear… But if possible, I wanted to do the so-called shopping play of choosing a present together with you…”
“Yuzuriha-san?”
“F-Forget it! It’s nothing! So what did you buy?”
“Two hairpins.”
When I showed her the hair clip I had bought, Yuzuriha-san nodded in agreement.
“With this, you can wear it even on the battlefield, and it has a little bit of defensive magic imbued into it. However, I have never seen Suzuha-kun with twin tails…?”
“Not the twin tails again……”
I gave Yuzuriha-san one of the hairpins and said,
“This is for you, Yuzuriha-san. Thank you for all your help.”
“W-W-W-WHAT!?”
“Thank you so much for always helping Suzuha and me.”
“W-What are you saying!? I-I am the one who always gets helped by you! You have saved my life so many times, and I have an immeasurable debt that I can never repay!”
“What are you talking about, it’s natural to help each other on the battlefield.”
“Besides, this hair clip is probably not a cheap item for you, so you can’t just give it to me! I have a defense stone passed down from my ancestors, so this is something that you should have—”
“Oh, I see. Yuzuriha-san deserves to have a more powerful defensive magic gem than this. Well then, I’ll thank you another time…”
“—So I thought, but I changed my mind.”
“Huh?”
Yuzuriha-san pulled back my hand holding my hair clip, which I had once retracted.
“How about we exchange our talismans?”
“…Yes?”
“You can give me that hair clip as a gift, and I’ll give you a defensive stone imbued with defensive magic. It’s a common practice among those who recognize each other’s true strength on the battlefield to exchange items. Let’s do the same, shall we?”
And the pendant that Yuzuriha-san dragged out from her cleavage was a giant emerald that emitted a dazzling light.
“This is my defensive stone. Please take it. And in exchange, give me your hair clip!”
“Wait a minute! There is too much of a difference in value in this exchange!”
“For two people who have recognized each other on the battlefield, the value of the items is a trivial matter… A-And it’s not like I’m trying to force my family’s heirloom defense stone onto you just because I don’t want to miss a once-in-a-lifetime chance to receive a gift from you! So, don’t get the wrong idea!”
“Of course I won’t get the wrong idea!”
“Or do you think…I’m a woman not worthy enough to exchange talismans with…?”
“Why are you suddenly feeling down!? Ahhh! Here, take this!”
“T-Thank you…!”
When I handed Yuzuriha-san the hair clip, she received it with sparkling eyes.
I’m glad she seemed to like it.
In exchange, I was given a huge emerald, but I promised myself that I would return it to the Duke of Sakuragi when the time was right.
