40. Vesteria Kingdom and Elite Guard [3]

After preparing for the trip, Ria and I headed to the schoolyard of Thousand Blade Academy.

A huge royal airplane was already waiting there.

(…It’s a bit bigger than the president’s private jet.)

As expected, the scale is different when it comes to the ones owned by the royal family.

In front of the plane, there was a group of five people wearing black dresses and bowed simultaneously as they saw Ria.

A woman at the head of the group spoke.

「-I’ve been waiting for you, Ria-sama, Filthy Worm-sama. We’re ready to take off, please get on board.」

Filthy Worm-sama, huh…

(What’s the point of the『-sama』even…)

It was a very nice greeting that let’s me know in an instant that I was not welcomed at all.

And then,

「Hey, if you say something like that… I won’t go.」

Ria, who was outright in a bad mood, said with a sharp gaze.

「…I am sorry. Ria-sama………… Allen-sama, please come this way.」

After a long pause, she called my name properly.

「Fuun… Let’s go, Allen.」

「A-Aa」

Then, with Ria pulling my hand, I got on the plane.

■

While flying from Thousand Blade Academy to Vesteria Kingdom.

Ria taught me a lot about the tourist spots of Vesteria.

The Hill of Hope that is said to make any wish come true.

The National Vesteria Museum which exhibits a variety of historically valuable art, antiques and relics.

The Great Arena where swordsmen compete with their skills and amazing battles unfold every day.

She is likely to be proud of her home country, after all.

Ria, who enthusiastically talked about Vesteria, seemed very happy.

「When the talk with my father is over, let’s definitely go sightseeing together!」

「Aa, sure.」

Then, as we made a promise, the plane gradually dropped its altitude and slowly landed on the ground.

「-We have arrived at the capital of Vesteria, Arlond. Please come this way.」

When I got off the plane and left the airport – I was shocked.

The air, the smell, the people – everything was different.

Well, I suppose it’s the most natural thing since it’s a foreign country.

However, for me, who left the country for the first time and crossed the sea, the impact was quite big.

After we left the airport, the woman in black dress spoke.

「Ria-sama. The meeting with His Majesty the King is scheduled for 8pm. We still have about an hour and a half to go, dinner-」

「-I’ll have it together with Allen. Just the both of us.」

「…Understood.」

She nodded reluctantly.

She doesn’t seem to agree with me and Ria going out together.

「…Then, we will take our leave here. As a precaution, once again – the meeting with His Majesty the King is scheduled for 8pm. Please don’t forget, thank you.」

「I know. I’m not gonna stand him up after coming this far.」

「No, that’s not why I’m repeating… Ria-sama has been a little scatterbrain since always, so I hope you will look at your watch and act precisely…」

「I-I’m not scatterbrain! Mou, leave already!」

「-Understood. Please take care.」

Then we parted with the group and slipped into the bustling crowd in the main street.

「Good grief… It’s a bit mean to call someone unreliable, and scatterbrain… right?」

「A-Ahaha, yes…」

To be honest, Ria has a little unreliable side to her, and I’m sure she’s also a little scatterbrain.

I know it well because we’ve been living in the same room for the past few months.

However, because it was not possible to say those things to her face, I decided to laugh and dodge the question.

Then I shifted my gaze to the main street we were walking on.

(…Unlike the capital Orest, there aren’t many big shops.)

Instead, there are small stalls lined up.

Although, the total number of shops seems to be overwhelmingly more than the ones in Orest.

(Even though it is already after 6pm… there is still a great number of people.)

A swordsman with a sword fastened on his waist.

A woman with shopping bags.

A man walking with a bottle of sake in one hand while humming unconcernedly.

Various people were walking along the street with cheerful faces.

It was as vibrant as the merchant town, Drestia.

And when I was looking around the street.

「Nee, Allen. We don’t have much time, so why don’t we have dinner?」Ria said, clapping on my shoulder.

「Aa, that’s right.」

The time was 6.30pm.

I was also getting hungry.

「Is there anything you would like to eat, Allen?」

「U-n, let’s see. If I have to choose… something with meat.」

「Really? Then there’s a shop I’d like to recommend! It’s my favorite shop that I’ve been visiting since I was a child!」

「Hee, in that case, let’s head over there.」

「Un! This way, follow me!」

Then I followed Ria and arrived in front of a restaurant that is still very much fresh in my memory.

「T-This is…」

「Fufu, it’s amazing right? An authentic Ramzac shop!」

Ramzac is a traditional dish of Vesteria.

A bite-sized triangular puff pastry filled with beef stew with plenty of beef.

(Ramzac is certainly delicious. And because it has plenty of beef, it matches my request…)

However, the problem is the amount.

When I went to eat this with Ria and Rose previously, Rose and I had to raise the white flag in front of the excessive amount.

(W-What should I do… refuse?)

As I was thinking about that,

「The shop here is run by a family, and it’s really good! The pie crust is really crispy! Full of rich beef stew! And, And! The meat is so soft that it melts in your mouth!」

Excited in front of the authentic Ramzac, Ria expressed so passionately.

「I-I see… I’m looking forward to it…」

There is no way I can say「I’m sorry, but why don’t we go to another shop?」,when she sounds so happy.

With a slightly stiff smile, I nodded.

(…If push comes to shove, I can just have her finish my portion as well.)

It’s not good to overdo it – this is what I learned from my last Ramzac meal.

If it becomes too difficult, let’s give her the rest.

「Come, let’s enter.」

「Aa.」

And when we entered the store,

「Hello, welcome… Oh! If isn’t Ria-sama! So you finally returned!」

A short, old-aged employee ran up to Ria.

「It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you, grandma Ram! I came back for a little while because of a few of circumstances.」

「Oh I see, I see! I’m just glad you’re doing good! By the way… you brought along a cool guy. Is he perhaps… your boyfriend?」

「E-Err… That is, umm…?」

Ria suddenly became evasive, and looked up at me.

Apparently, she doesn’t want to answer this kind of question voluntarily.

(Speaking of which, I think Paula-san taught me something…)

『Listen well, Allen. Girls are delicate creatures. So if a girl is in trouble, you, as a man, must take care of her and help her!』

Ria is a teenage girl.

And she is currently at a loss as to how to answer the question.

As a man, I should take care of and answer on her behalf.

「Ahaha. We are just friends.」

As I answered the question.

「…I see …so you’re still『friends』」

For some reason, Ria suddenly dropped her shoulders and heaved a large sigh.

「Fufu, I see I see! How bittersweet… I feel a little young too!」

On the other hand, Ram-san, who was feeling lively for some reason, laughed happily.

「Well, are you going to order the usual?」

「Ah yes, please give us two extra large portion Ramzac.」

「Sure, then, please take your favorite seat!」

After that, Ria and I ate the authentic Ramzac with relish.

■

After we ate Ramzac till our stomachs were full, we paid the bill and left the store.

「Nnー! It was so delicious, Allen!」

「Aa, the authentic was different after all. It was much better than the one in Orest.」

「But, you didn’t eat much… are you alright?」

「A-Aa…! I’ve been dieting recently!」

Yes. This time, I didn’t overdo it.

Right when I ate five – I felt content, so I gave the remaining fifteen to Ria.

(All things considered… Ria’s gluttonous manner is quite terrifying.)

The figure of Ria eating a sum of thirty-five ramzacs, was even kind of godly.

(Well… The real thing comes after this.)

Ramzac is, after all, an incidental prelude.

From now on, the『Main Battle』of talking to Ria’s father – King Vesteria begins.

「Ria, you remember, right? If you are asked『Did you become a slave?』, you must definitely answer『No』, okay?」

「It’s alright, I will answer properly this time!」

「Yoshi, can you lead the way?」

「Yeah, this way. Follow me.」

Then, following Ria’s lead – I arrived at a large castle which stood towering over its surroundings.

The five people who accompanied us on the plane were also there.

「-We’ve been waiting for you, Ria-sama, filthy…………… Allen-sama.」

She attempted to address me as filthy worm, and after a long, long gap, she called my name with a bitter expression.

「His Majesty the King is waiting for you. -Please come this way.」

Then we passed through the guards who glared at me sharply and entered the royal castle.

(…As expected, I’m nervous)

Meeting with the king of a country – no matter how you think about it, it’s too heavy for a student.

(Until just a few months ago, I was a dropout of the swordsmanship academy in the countryside…)

What, why, and how did things come to this point…

(I’m not good at talking, but I’ll try as much as I can….)

Then, I walked through the royal castle while heaving a sigh, which had become a habit as of late.

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