Chapter 26 - Chapter 25: Amalia's Anxiety and Radi's Anger
We decided to hold the meeting in a room at the back of the church.
The five people present were Mika, Amalia, Loretta, Kifrod, and Radi.
Sitting at the table, Kifrod and Radi were on the left, while Amalia and Loretta were on the right.
Mika was in the so-called "birthday seat."
"I heard from Kifrod-sama. You are going to the Magic Academy. You are worried about that, aren't you?"
Radi asked Amalia.
Amalia looked down with a dark expression and did not answer.
"Amalia, it's better to spit out whatever you're thinking. It might be hard to say in front of Mika, but you should tell him what you're thinking properly. Unless you do that, this kid won't understand a parent's feelings at all."
That was quite a scolding.
I understood in my own way, and I was trying to think about it, but.
Well, if they say it's "insufficient," then that's that.
At Kifrod's words, Amalia hesitated and began to speak in a stuttering voice.
"............I don't know anymore, what is what....... They said I suddenly used [God's Miracle]......, and then it turned into a story about 'escaping the Academy'......."
Amalia spoke with pain.
Tears flowed from her eyes, unable to bear it any longer.
"I've been so anxious that you would be taken away from me....... And yet...... now the Magic Academy? And next year....... What is that!? What is that!? ............Why, like this......."
"Mother......."
Amalia covered her face with both hands and burst into tears, unable to hold them back.
Loretta gently stroked Amalia's back with concern.
But Mika also understood that Loretta felt the same way.
Tears were overflowing from Loretta's eyes as well.
(I really am....... Not just an idiot. How much more must I make you sad before you are satisfied.......)
It seems this matter has completely exceeded Amalia's capacity.
For Amalia, this village is the entire world.
Living according to the village rules was enough; there was no need to think beyond that.
Until just a few months ago, she could live peacefully like that.
If Kuhashi Ritsu hadn't existed, that would have been enough.
Mika tried to say something to Amalia, who was collapsing in tears, but in the end, he couldn't say anything.
What could Mika, the cause of this, say to this person who was crushed?
Unable to encourage her or reach out a hand, Mika could only look down.
"......Then, perhaps it is best to let go."
In the room where only Amalia's sobbing echoed, Kifrod's whisper sounded strangely loud.
"Kifrod-sama!"
Radi's anger was revealed by Kifrod's words, which were too cruel.
"Even if you let go, the fact that the two of you are parent and child does not change. Then, just take care of them at the church for another half year and send them to the Magic Academy, and that would be the end of it."
"Do not say foolish things! To try to tear apart a parent and child, what terrible thing is that! Are you still a priest!?"
This was the first time Mika had seen Radi so enraged.
She always smiled brightly, and sometimes showed a troubled expression, but he had never seen her angry.
Moreover, the person she was angry at was Kifrod.
"If you cannot endure it, there is no help for it. If things continue like this, Amalia will be crushed. There is no need to be polite, okay? Just tell the villagers that you entrusted him for training——."
"Kifrod-sama!!!"
Slamming the table and standing up, Radi glared at Kifrod with a face full of fury.
It was as if she intended to shoot the devil before her to death with just her gaze.
To Mika, it seemed he could see Radi's luxurious hair fluttering and the aura rising around her.
(Scary! Seriously scary! Ooh, calm down! Calm down!?)
The pressure from Radi was so intense that I felt I had to stop it, but I simply could not mediate.
Kifrod, receiving all that gaze, remained cool as ever.
"Radi says this, but well, don't worry about it. You don't need to worry about the villagers either. You just do what you want, okay? How about it? What do you want to do?"
Amalia and Loretta were stunned by the sudden battle between Kifrod and Radi.
Kifrod gently spoke to Amalia, who was in that state.
Asking what Amalia wanted to do.
"............I, I......."
Amalia looked down and muttered as if groaning.
Everyone held their breath and watched Amalia.
"I......."
Looking at Mika with sad eyes, her eyes swollen red.
Amalia knelt beside Mika.
"............This child is my child......!"
Saying that, she hugged Mika tightly.
"......Letting go, such a terrible thing. I don't even want to think about it......."
She rubbed her cheek against Mika in her arms and stroked his hair affectionately.
Seeing Amalia like that, Radi let out a sigh of relief.
"I see. Then, you must also make up your mind."
"Kifrod-sama!"
It seemed Radi's anger, which had temporarily subsided, flared up again.
It was nerve-wracking to watch, as if she might pounce on him at any moment.
"Make up my mind......?"
"That's right. ......Probably this child cannot live a normal life. No one knows if that is a happy path, but at least, a normal life like you wish, this child cannot do that."
"Such......."
Amalia tightened her embrace and directed a blaming gaze at Kifrod for saying such terrible things.
"It's painful, isn't it? Any parent would want their child to be happy. They would want them to live peacefully. That is what I think. But it is impossible. Probably, this child cannot live such a life."
"............."
That was something Amalia had vaguely felt all along.
She was afraid that she would one day step out of the "shape of happiness" that Amalia desired.
Mika's recent changes had strongly foretold this.
"Everyone worries endlessly, suffers, and no one knows what kind of thing they will gain from that. They might gain nothing. But? There are those who can only live that way. It might be hard for you to understand, but."
"............."
Kifrod thrust the reality that Amalia had deliberately turned her eyes away from.
But his voice was gentle,
Preaching a gentle yet harsh reality.
"Moreover. The bad thing is, those who live such a life think, 'It wasn't bad at all,' you know? You can't believe that, can you? I can't believe it myself."
Kifrod looked at Mika with a bewildered expression.
Mika felt somewhat awkward and involuntarily averted his gaze.
"It is painful for a parent. Especially since Mika is still a child. But, there is no choice but to give up. And you must make up your mind. ......It might not be possible right away."
"Father......."
Admonished by Kifrod, for the first time Amalia knew the true nature of the anxiety she had only vaguely felt.
And she was told to accept it.
Loretta stood up from her seat and leaned close to Amalia.
Her eyes held the light of strong will.
"Mother."
Loretta stroked Mika's head.
"......It can't be helped. He's a boy."
"Loretta......."
Amalia looked troubled.
It was unavoidable. It would not be accepted immediately.
"......He looks like a girl."
"Hey, Big Sister!"
Pouting her lips and speaking mischievously, Loretta raised a voice of protest, and Loretta broke into a smile.
Seeing the two of them like that, Amalia finally showed a smile, though stiffly.
"......Really, it can't be helped."
Saying that, she hugged Mika tightly once more and kissed his forehead.
"It might be difficult right away....... But I will try my best."
Amalia looked straight at Kifrod and said that.
That was a great shift that overturned Amalia's values up to now.
But Amalia decided to accept it.
For the sake of her beloved child.
"If anything happens, please tell me anytime. I will definitely help you."
On the way back from the church, Radi called out to Amalia.
"When it is painful, when it is hard, promise me you will never carry it alone. Amalia-san is not alone. Please do not forget that."
"Thank you. Sister Radi."
Thus, the discussion ended safely somehow.
Mika would be left at the church during the day as before, but it seems the surveillance system will be relaxed for now.
There was an atmosphere that he shouldn't leave the church alone, so he hadn't tried to go out until now, but from now on, it won't be that strict.
However, as for Mika, he intends to stay at the church as before.
He might go outside the building, but he has no intention of leaving.
Mika is aware that he has caused great worry and trouble to those around him due to the series of commotions, so he thinks he should behave quietly.
And, from that day on, a dramatic change occurred in the Noisheim household.
Believe it or not, he was allowed to do a cleansing wipe with hot water by himself.
Hearing this, Mika couldn't help but raise his arms in victory.
(......It took a long time. Finally, I can escape the female body hell.)
He will go to the Magic Academy in six months.
The argument that Mika would be in trouble if he couldn't do it after entering the dormitory was accepted.
Since there is also a record of voluntary cleansing every day, it was judged that it would be fine to not do it together anymore.
Furthermore, one more thing.
Sleeping alone was also permitted.
However, due to the circumstance that there were not enough beds, it could not be every day.
It was decided to create days for sleeping alone, about two days a week for a while.
Due to this, although I had no intention of leaving the church during the day, the situation changed a little.
I want to prepare something like a simple bed as soon as possible and install it in the empty space of the bedroom or the dining room.
If I don't do that, on the days Mika sleeps alone, Amalia and Loretta will have to use the same bed.
It is a bit narrow for these two to be in one bed, after all.
If Mika prepares a bed, that can also be resolved.
(......I don't have money to buy one. I have to make it myself somehow.)
The beds in the Noisheim household have legs, but they are very simple in construction.
Straw is laid on top, and a sheet is put over it.
The simple bed Mika uses does not need legs at all.
However, it seems impossible to fold it or lean it against the wall like in the previous world.
(Well, as long as I can lie down, I can sleep anywhere. A board slightly larger than my height would be enough.)
It won't be used for a long time. At most, it will be for six months.
Besides, I am used to sleeping in narrow and hard places.
In my previous job, there were times when I slept on the floor wrapped in a blanket during overnight stays.
That state lasted for a week. You get used to it whether you like it or not.
■■■■■■
The next day, while thinking about how to procure a bed at the church, Ninetiana came.
Ninetiana sometimes comes to the church with Dur to play.
However, since Kifrod does not look kindly on stories about adventurers, the conversations were mostly harmless.
"I heard it, Mika-kun. You are going to the Magic Academy? Isn't that amazing!"
Ninetiana was overly excited, but why was she so happy?
(It's like a military academy, isn't it? What is so happy about that?)
Mika had also wanted to go enthusiastically before, but now that he has heard the details, that enthusiasm has completely cooled down.
Probably there will be some loopholes, so I don't think the future of becoming a soldier is fixed, but.
"Huh? You aren't that happy? Going to the Magic Academy is a great honor."
Ninetiana looked at Mika's appearance with a puzzled face.
"I am not planning to become a career soldier. Well, I think I will learn various things."
"Oh......, is it a bit troublesome to aim to be an adventurer? I don't really understand."
Ninetiana remembered Mika's desire to be an adventurer and nodded in understanding.
"Indeed, if you graduate from the Academy safely, you will be greatly respected, but if you quit in the middle, you will be greatly despised instead. ......Thinking about it, it might be tough."
Ninetiana's gaze of sympathy was a little sad.
"But, there were adventurers who came out of the Magic Academy, you know? I don't know how they did it."
"Oh, so there are people like that."
Immediately, valuable information was obtained.
Even if I don't know the method, it seems there is a loophole as expected.
"I didn't like them, though. Adventurers from the Magic Academy. I respect them, of course......."
"Why?"
The situation seemed suspicious.
Just a moment ago, it was said that graduating from the Academy makes one an object of respect.
Ninetiana made a complicated face and stroked Dur's head.
"I talked about this before, right? There are many troublesome people."
"Oh......, were they B-rank people? Are there many people from the Magic Academy at B-rank?"
"It's not exactly like that, but there are many who have high pride and look down on other adventurers. It doesn't matter if it's C or B."
Is it called an elite consciousness?
There were people in the previous world who bragged about their alma mater.
I remember the figure of a friend complaining at a drinking party that they couldn't do any real work despite that.
"Mika-kun, you must not become like those people."
"Ahahaha, how about that."
I don't really feel like I was chosen.
Rather, I am thinking that I have gotten into trouble.
Will I change while attending the Academy?
I want to be very careful so that such a thing doesn't happen.
"At this year's harvest festival, everyone will celebrate Mika-kun too, so please look forward to it."
"Is that so?"
The harvest festival is a festival celebrated every year on the sunny day of the first week of the 1st Month of Wind.
Well, in short, it is a day to celebrate this year's harvest at the beginning of autumn.
The day of the harvest festival is just a few days away, and it seems that the whole village will celebrate Mika's enrollment in the Magic Academy on that day.
(Just yesterday, I was treated like a sore spot. ......What a fickle thing. Is this called a palm drill?)
Rather, it might be a celebration precisely because of that.
There were various things, but this means let's wash it away with water, right?
(I'm not good at this kind of thing....... I can't help but think, can you really wash it away that easily?)
But, thinking of Amalia and the others who remain in the village, I should wash it away here.
If I reject it because Mika is not in a good mood, Amalia and the others will be in trouble later.
In that case, should I implicitly hint at consideration for the family by saying, "I'm washing it away, so you understand, right?"
Mika was worried about what to do.
"You want a bed? Why?"
During the casual chat with Ninetiana, the conversation led to Mika talking about considering how to procure a bed.
"A small one for myself would be fine. Right now, I am borrowing one every day."
"Oh......, I see."
"Procuring wood, and then the method of making the bed. I don't need legs, and if anything, a board is fine. It's weird to just take wood on my own, so I don't know what to do."
"I see......."
Ninetiana thought about it with me, but suddenly she made a bad grin.
"......You want something simple, right?"
"Yes, well. Since I am making it myself, I can't make something that solid anyway."
I said a board would be fine.
It would be a blessing just to have a shape that can be recognized as a bed.
"Can you wait a few days? I think I can prepare it."
"Really!?"
Since I wanted a size reference, we decided to go home for now.
I called out to Kifrod, returned home, and showed him the bedroom.
"Between this bed and the wall, the width should be enough, and the length just needs a little more than my height."
"That would be quite narrow, right? Is that okay?"
"It's perfectly fine."
In the bedroom bed, Amalia was in the front, and Loretta was in the back.
I was planning to place my bed at the foot of Loretta's bed, between the wall and the bed.
Ninetiana stared intently at the space where the bed was to be installed, said "Hmm. I understand," and left the bedroom.
I don't know if there is a tape measure, but she isn't measuring the length?
Ninetiana said "See ya" with a casual farewell and went home with a light step.
Mika, holding a trace of anxiety, helplessly returned to the church alone.