We left Headquarters and began our patrol of the Royal Capital.
Patrolling, in essence, just meant keeping an eye on our surroundings and checking the main streets, and sometimes the back alleys.
The Royal Capital was generally a peaceful place.
I’d heard the public order had worsened recently, and I did run into a robber on my first day working for the Slayer, but such incidents weren’t happening everywhere.
There was nothing unusual in the city.
It was the same peaceful and vibrant city as always.
“Good afternoon, Grandma Ramida. How is your cold?”
Claire sometimes spoke to people we passed like this.
She felt less like a Knight and more like a friendly policewoman protecting the town.
“Oh, Claire, dear. I’m feeling much better thanks to the medicine you brought.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Please take care of yourself.”
Claire smiled brightly.
Her smile was like that of a loving granddaughter looking after her own grandmother.
“Thank you for your hard work, Knights. Oh, and that lovely girl next to you is also a Knight, isn’t she?”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Racine.”
Racine gave a slight bow to the old woman.
“My, my, thank you for the courtesy. And is that young man there your attendant?”
Hey, I’m your colleague too!?
Besides, I’m wearing the same Knight uniform as you.
“…I’m Abel.”
“Babel, nice to meet you.”
“No, I’m Abel…”
“Abil, was it? My apologies.”
“I said, it’s Abel.”
“Ahe… face?”
You’re deliberately getting it wrong, aren’t you, Grandma?!
“Well, never mind. Just do your best not to hold back Claire.”
“Uh, yeah.”
“And Claire, no matter how beautiful you are, don’t do anything bad. As long as I’m alive, I won’t let anyone lay a finger on my dear Claire.”
“Uh, yeah…”
I could only manage to say “yeah.”
“Grandma, he’s one of my colleagues too.”
Claire offered a helpful, smiling interjection.
“Oh? So this one is a Knight as well?”
Grandma Ramida raised her eyebrows slightly.
“Claire is such a fine Knight, but this one doesn’t seem like one at all. There’s no sense of intimidation or presence as a swordsman.”
That’s because I’m a mage.
Although my status is Knight, I’m not a physical combatant who wears armor and wields a sword.
“Abel is a very reliable mage. He even saved my life once.”
“That’s right! He single-handedly defeated monsters attacking Rashka City, and just recently, he captured a monster from the Empire that appeared in the Royal Capital. He’s been incredibly active!”
Claire and Racine quickly chimed in to support me.
Thank you, both of you.
It’s good to have comrades.
“…Hmm, if you two say so, I suppose it must be true.”
The old woman muttered, then turned back to me.
“My, you truly are a fine Knight. With you around, Claire can relax.”
Her evaluation completely changed 180 degrees?!
Well, if I’m being praised, I guess it’s fine…
We continued further, leaving the main street and entering the shopping district.
“Claire, thank you for everything as usual. Here, take an apple.”
“Thank you, Grandma Mare.”
Claire accepted an apple from the owner of the fruit store.
“Claire, you’re so beautiful today~”
A little girl playing with her mother by the roadside waved at Claire.
“Hehe, thank you, Lina.”
“Claire, out on patrol today? Thank you for your hard work.”
A woman, seemingly a merchant, smiled at Claire.
“I’ll do my best.”
“…You’re incredibly popular, aren’t you, Claire?”
I murmured, half in surprise, half in disbelief.
“She’s so dignified and beautiful. Even as a woman, I admire her~”
Racine looked at Claire, her expression one of admiration.
But it wasn’t just her outward appearance; it felt like people liked her for her inner qualities too.
Somehow, when people interacted with Claire, they seemed warm and happy.
It was as if they were interacting with a member of their own family──.
“Oh, stop it, you two.”
Claire’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
“When I was attending Knight Academy, I lodged nearby. So, everyone knows me.”
“So that’s why you know so many people.”
“They’re mostly old-fashioned, good-hearted people. I love the people of this city just as much as the people of Eiha Village.”
Claire nodded with a smile.
“That’s why… when the Empire attacked, I was determined to protect them with my own hands.”
Her expression turned serious as she declared forcefully.
“That’s why I train with my sword every day. To become stronger… I’ll drive away all the Empire’s mages. If they dare to harm these people, I will fight. I will protect this city──”
She’s so admirable, Claire is.
I joined the Knight Order with vague aspirations for advancement or a desire to be special.
But Claire had set her sights on a goal from a much younger age and worked hard towards it.
And now, she’s in the Knight Order, having achieved that dream.
I genuinely thought she was amazing.
Claire, who perseveres to achieve her desires and walks steadily on the path she has chosen──.
We patrolled the assigned area for several hours, as instructed by Ashe, and found no particular abnormalities.
A few thugs tried to pick up Claire and Racine, so I drove them away with my Invisible Tentacles magic. Then some slick guys tried to hit on Claire and Racine, so I chased them off. A drunk man (continued…).
…Wait, there are a lot of pick-up attempts in the Royal Capital!
Though, with my magic, I didn’t let anyone lay a finger on them.
Well, Claire and Racine are both exceptionally beautiful, so it’s probably natural that they’d be approached.
Regardless, the sun was starting to set, and our patrol mission for the day was temporarily concluded.
Apparently, a different team would be on patrol tonight.
“It looks lively over there.”
Claire, walking beside me, pointed towards a side street.
Beyond it, there was a white domed building.
“That’s the temple dedicated to Goddess Almelis~”
Racine said.
Almelis──one of the three most worshipped gods in the world, the goddess of fertility and the earth.
Racine herself was a priestess serving Almelis.
“It should be the largest temple in Aisha. Ah, they’re holding the Harvest Festival~”
She pointed towards the front of the temple.
A makeshift altar had been set up, decorated with colorful vegetables and fruits.
The surrounding area was bustling with dozens of stalls.
This kind of scene wasn’t too different between Modern Japan and this fantasy world.
“A festival, how nice~”
“It really is~”
The two agreed in unison.
“Shall we stop by for a bit, Claire, Racine?”
Since we had the chance, I invited them.
“But we have to report to the Captain that our patrol is finished…”
“Then, if we have time afterward, how about we all go together~?”
Racine smiled at Claire, who spoke with a serious expression.
“No, Ashe told us we could go straight home after finishing. We can go to the festival like this.”
As I said that, I suddenly realized.
Did Ashe perhaps tell us to “go straight home” knowing this would happen?
I thought she mentioned something about resolving relationships…
“That’s right. Well then, since we have the chance, let’s enjoy the festival. It’s been a while since we went to a festival together, hasn’t it, Abel?”
“Y-Yeah, it has.”
I nodded, searching through the memories of the original Abel.
It seemed like it had been nearly ten years ago.
“Usually, when the Harvest Festival comes around, I’m busy with chores at the temple. So, I’m happy to be able to enjoy it as a guest~”
Racine also said with a beaming smile.
“I see, for you, Racine, the Harvest Festival is ‘work’.”
“Now that I’m part of the Knight Order, I’m exempt from those kinds of chores.”
Is that how it is?
“Well then, shall we go, Claire, Racine?”
We started walking towards the temple, smiling.
──Alright, from here on out, it’s a reward for our patrol.
If this were a dating sim or an eroge, I’d call this a “date event.”
As expected of the Royal Capital, the number of stalls was incomparable to the festival in Eiha Village.
We walked through the bustling crowds of dozens of shops.
As befitting a Harvest Festival, food stalls were visible everywhere.
“Ooh, that looks delicious!”
Claire’s eyes sparkled as she pointed at one of the stalls.
It seemed to be a shop selling anpan.
…In this world too, they have anpan?
“It’s the rumored anpan that’s been gaining popularity in the Royal Capital lately! I’ve wanted to try it for a while.”
Claire’s voice was filled with excitement.
“It certainly smells good~”
Racine’s face broke into a wide smile, her nose twitching.
“Let’s eat together, Racine.”
“Yes~!”
The two lightly high-fived.
Girls really come alive when talking about food.
“I’ll have the coarse bean paste and the smooth bean paste, and then one regular anpan and another coarse bean paste, please!”
So fast! Claire had already lined up?
“…Aren’t you buying too much?”
“But it looks so delicious!”
Claire turned around, still with a beaming smile.
“And there’s some for Racine too.”
“Even so, I think it’s a lot. If you eat too much, you’ll get fat—”
“…!”
“Ah, no, never mind.”
For a moment, Claire’s gaze shot me a fearsome look of anger, and I quickly shut my mouth.
“Getting fat” is a forbidden topic for girls, huh.
…I’ll be more careful from now on.
“Sweets have separate stomachs! Besides, I’ll be moving my body a lot with sword training anyway, so I should be fine eating this much. Probably, hopefully!”
Claire blurted out in a rush, as if making excuses.
“Sorry, sorry. Ah, I’ll pay for it.”
Even though I hadn’t received my Knight Order salary yet since I just started, I had enough money to buy anpan.
I paid the stall owner and accepted the anpan.
They all smelled freshly baked and fragrant.
I could understand wanting to buy a lot.
“Thank you, Abel. Ehehe.”
“Thank you, Lord Abel.”
Claire and Racine said with smiles.
Come to think of it──.
This is the first time I’ve ever treated girls.
