Seirei Gensouki's
Chapter 166: Each After Them

"Previous………… . . Life, right? That's an unclear question, right. Please correct me if I am wrong, the previous life in this case refers to me before I am currently born right? 」

Rio's eyes opened slightly and he asked her to confirm his stance. It was a way for him to get a little time to think about the countermeasures against the surprise attack.

「Yes, as you said. 」

Liselotte agreed. His eyes that were fixed on Rio face looked like he was afraid of something.

(This question……… . Could it be that he was almost certain that I was actually a reincarnated person? Or just his way of speaking frankly without having anything to do with that fact ………. . Anyway, what's the intention?）

Rio instantly appeared with that possibility but, he did not have the time to think calmly about such things. Therefore, without giving a convincing answer to the question Liselotte―― 、

「.................. This is a metaphysical-like subject but, that doesn't mean we can't deny it either right? However, objectively, there is no evidence for it either. 」

He had no choice but to choose a safe answer. Because it is too dangerous to give a direct answer like 「Ya, I believe. 」.

He shouldn't have let his guard down for now since he had no way of knowing the other party's intentions, so this conversation would probably take longer— Or so he thought.

「Proof …………. Of course, there may be no such thing as objective evidence. 」

「Do you believe in his previous life, Liselotte-sama? 」

Rio asked back to Liselotte who had a gloomy face.

"……Yes . I believe in that. 」

Just a little but, Liselotte nodded firmly as she said that. But–,

「For me you really believe in that. 」

When Rio said as if getting into the core of the topic, Liselotte showed a troubled smile. Then–,

「………. . My deepest apologies That's not the kind of discussion we have to do while standing in a corridor like this. It seems like I of all people feel tired. While you may be surprised by this, how about we continue on this topic when we meet again later? 」

Liselotte closed her eyes, shook her head lightly, and then said those words in a slightly troubled tone.

「Ya, I don't mind ………. . 」

Rio hesitantly saw Liselotte withdraw as if he had suddenly changed his mind.

Perhaps because he had managed to calm down a little now, he could not feel the turmoil or wavering of his emotions like before, his current calmness was definitely not Liselotte's usual calm disposition. His actions must have been impulsive.

But, judging from his tone, he considered the possibility of another surprise attack from him after he prepared the right place for the two of them. Maybe he'll tell her everything by then.

Because it—,

（…………. It seems that I should come with good preparation next time so as not to be surprised when I meet him again later. ）

Although Rio had no intention of becoming more intimate until now, his relationship with Liselotte would be even more awkward if only Liselotte acted more assertive in approaching him, so Rio decided to treat her appropriately.

In that case, everything will depend on Liselotte attitude, but, she needs to act after thinking carefully about the benefits and vices of sharing the same secret— Then, she needs to act, Rio started to plan what to do.

In addition to his identity as a traveler, Rio currently had a trusting relationship with Liselotte.

「Then, please treat me well at that time. Mr. Amakawa. We might make your two friends worry too much if we're late. If you need it, I can send one of my maids to accompany you but ……. 」

「No thanks, your feelings are enough. Well, I'll be gone a little while later ………. 」

After showing her friendly smile and nodding at him, Rio turned around and left Liselotte. The nearby treasurer came to approach him and guided him out.

Since he did not encounter any problems afterwards, he guided everyone in the inn to Liselotte house.

◇ ◇ ◇

That night, after enjoying dinner from Liselotte, Rio was summoned to Christina's room.

Moreover, with the introduction from Rio, Liselotte met Rei and Kouta in another room but it was another story.

「My deepest thanks for coming all the way to my room, Mr. Amakawa. 」

After sitting on the sofa in front of her, Christina bowed to Rio. Vanessa was on her side.

"No . That doesn't matter. 」

Rio calmly shook his head in response.

「The reason for me to call Mr. Amakawa at this time is to formally thank him and talk about some things about what to do after this. First, the reason we made it to the Rodan marquis area was thanks to your help. The daughter of the duke of Crete will send us there in a magical ship. 」

During dinner today, Christina spent all her dinner time with Liselotte. So they might talk about various things during that time.

「That's great. If nothing goes wrong, you may arrive at Rodan's marquis' territory tomorrow. 」

"Yes nih . Even though we were planning to leave the day after, we were still able to arrive sooner than our previous arrangements. This is also thanks to the mediation of Mr. Amakawa. Thank you very much . 」

「The main actor behind this is actually Liselotte-sama. 」

Rio's humble.

「No, because it is not easy to meet him without mediation. First, I don't think that I would have chosen the option to meet him without you. 」

"…… I see . In that case, this humble person feels proud of your praise. 」

"Yes nih . But, those are not just words of praise, I want to return my gratitude to you in some form. Although I've said this many times before, without you, I wouldn't be able to reach this place. 」

「I've also said about this issue before, it's for Celia. 」

Rio had already prepared a strong repellent towards Christina who wanted to give him some kind of gift, but—

「It has nothing to do with it. Not only did you help us, who were in a desperate state, to escape from Creia you even defeated Alfred. Although there were various other problems, you saved us from our two greatest difficulties. But then, resolving this matter with just words of praise would tarnish the honor of the nobility for not paying my benefactor with a proper reward. 」

Christina refused to give up.

「Naturally, I understand His Majesty's concern but …………. In that case, should the gift given be something with a physical form? 」

When Rio asked so—,

「We can negotiate about that. Unfortunately I have nothing in my hands at the moment, I have nothing to give you except a peerage title or a low medal but then, I have nothing to give you, things will turn around as long as we reach Rodan's marquis area. That's why, I'll be so happy as long as you tell me what you want. 」

Christina said that while showing a somewhat troubled face.

Even though her strength was limited to only granting titles and giving decorative medals as the first princess, she could probably guess it during their trip that Rio did not care for it.

「………. . In that case, this might be a sudden question but, may I hear where you are going to set up your headquarters later? 」

Suddenly Rio asked that question.

「Although I will visit the royal capital of Galwark regularly, I have decided to establish my headquarters in the marquis region of Rodan. 」

「Then, will Celia come to that place as well? 」

「…………. Yes yes . And that's my intention. 」

Perhaps because she was quite confused by the flow of her own conversation, Christina simply nodded her head to gauge her reaction. ―― 、

「If that's the case, in exchange for an award medal, will you give a big house for him to stay in your base of operations? 」

Rio told her about his wish.

「………. . Then, wouldn't it be a gift for him. Besides, I have the intention to reward him for what he does later. I'll scout him. 」

Saying that, Christina's troubled expression became even more anxious.

"I saw . In short, can I assume that she doesn't have to worry about her daily needs? 」

"Yes nih . I will guarantee his livelihood is suitable for the nobility. 」

Christina stated so to answer Rio's question.

「If that's the case, will you agree to some of my conditions to make sure there's nothing to worry about about his livelihood? If you really press the prize on me no matter what, it should be possible by giving my house to him. 」

「........... Yes, there is also, and theoretically no problem」

Christina seemed to want to ask a lot of questions.

「You're thinking why am I willing to go that far for her right? 」

And Rio personally asked the question he wanted to ask the most.

",,,,,,,,,,,,,, yeah . Are you really okay with that? 」

Christina asked him back with a nod.

「No problem. I was not raised in a blessed environment during my childhood. No, I may feel blessed in proportion to the many kinds of worries when I meet her. That's why I feel blessed for it. That is the reason . I am deeply indebted to him. ………… Besides, whether it is really good or not, it will not be too late to decide even after hearing the condition I suggest you know? 」

Rio told that fact to Christina with a bold smile on his face.

「……………. I understand . Alright, may I hear about your condition? 」

Sighing, Christina then nodded at him and asked his condition.

「Although detailed content will be written later, let me tell you general content, my condition is that you allow me to meet him freely without any restrictions, guaranteeing his daily needs, the, do not pressure him to take any action or restrict himself to freedom, and then respect his own desires. 」

To be more specific, Rio's demands are not to use it as a political tool by forcing a political marriage on him without his consent and to prepare someone to help him in his daily life.

Although it was easier to say, the conditions were extremely difficult for a magician of Celia's caliber in terms of not being used as a political tool in a noble society where all kinds of evil plans ran rampant like a raging wave.

「Very carefu-................ No, being overprotective is not you. 」

「I won't deny that. Because I can't always be by his side. 」

「........... I see, so you will leave Celia-sensei? 」

"Yes nih . I'll come visit him regularly 」

Rio replied so with a rather gloomy tone.

For the time being she gets Christina's promise to protect Celia. Although he would not hesitate to use any other means but, it was meaningless without anyone reporting to him when they separated.

Nonetheless, despite being very worried about her, it did not mean that she could only hide Celia from the world and she could not stay by Celia's side 24/7 to guarantee her safety as well.

No, as long as there's a slip, it's probably not absolute security either.

But realistically, there is no such thing as absolute safety and it is also unhealthy for his soul. In the end he had no choice but to find some sort of solution to this problem.

"I saw . Well then, if you like, will you come with us until we reach the Rodan Marquis' territory? 」

"Yes nih . Please treat me well until then. I will give you all the details of the conditions I summarized tomorrow morning. 」

Rio bowed lightly.

「Of course. Since I will prepare an official written appointment once we arrive at the Rodan marquis area, I will be very happy if you stay with us until then. Since this is not a single contract with me, I will arrange a similar written promise with an organization called Restoration. 」

「Thank you my deepest for that. 」

◇ ◇ ◇

After that, Rio left the room―― 、

「……………. May I ask you a question? Are you really going to let go of someone of that caliber. Although we might be able to pull him to join our side by using Celia-kun? 」

Vanessa who held herself back behind Christina asked such a question.

「He won't budge even if we do that. Even if her reason for cooperating is because of Celia-sensei, she has no reason to give her power to you ……………. . No, for Bertram Kingdom. 」

Christina answered so while holding back her frustration.

「………. . I can't come. Maybe there's something between the two. 」

Vanessa shook her head with a pensive expression on her face. Although it was about cooperating with Bertram kingdom, he probably did it only for Celia.

「Our best choice for now is to at least win her trust. For our actions in the future. 」

Christina's side profile when saying that looked bleak.

◇ ◇ ◇

On the other hand, after Rio left Christina's room, while walking in the corridor――,

「Ah, Haruto-kun's. 」

He meets Rei and Kouta along the way.

「Have you guys just returned too? 」

Rio asked the two of them.

"Is it so . 」

Rio just nodded lightly, trying not to interfere with the contents of their conversation with Liselotte. But, Rei and Kouta exchanged glances and ―― 、

「Actually we talked about many things but ........... We wondered if we could consult you on this matter Haruto-kun. We can't see what's ahead of us anytime soon or should I say that we don't even know what to do from now on. 」

Kouta.

「…………. Me? I don't mind giving you my opinion, but, are we going to change our location for now? 」

「Well, to our room then. 」

"Yes nih . 」

Therefore, Rio decided to go with Rei and Kouta to their room.

◇ ◇ ◇

On the other hand, Liselotte called Aria to the living room for tea.

「It's an amazing selection of tea as I expected. It calms me. 」

After she rolled the brewed tea into her mouth, Liselotte gave an honest impression to her.

「Because I considered how you felt today. I chose this tea. 」

「Truly as expected. 」

「Because it's my job to adjust my master's body and mind to perfect conditions. 」

Aria said it as if it was a fact. ―― 、

「…………………………. . Does my behavior seem out of place today? 」

Liselotte asked timidly.

「I feel that your brilliance is less than usual, but, it is not a problem overall. At least it's within the scope where I can see you. Because there are times when I'm not by your side ………. 」

The time when Aria was not by her side was when Liselotte had a private conversation with Rio and when she called Rei and Kouta for a private conversation with him.

Aria assumed that something might have happened during those times, but, she assumed that the timing of the change in Liselotte's condition might be when she had a private conversation with Rio.

Nevertheless, since asking about the matter would mean that he transcended his boundaries as treasurer, he did not mention the matter specifically even though he was unwilling to do so. ―― 、

「………………. . Do you think something happened to both of them? Well, nothing happened, right? I mean, aren't they called together with heroes from a world we don't know. That's why I try to have a little conversation with them. Well, it looks like they're trying to figure out what they should do in the future but ……. 」

Liselotte became more talkative which was probably due to her own need to say what she felt inside.

（The issue I am worried about is not my conversation with them. Well, I don't think he should have bothered her. ）

Aria's lips formed a thin smile.

"Indeed . 」

「. Aren't you laughing at me? How can you smile like that, is it because of a reunion with your old friend? 」

「I enjoyed my personal time for a while thanks to the kindness of your grace. My deepest thanks for your consideration. 」

Thus, casual banter occurred between the two of them for a while after that.

◇ ◇ ◇

And then, a few moments later. Rio listened to the consultation of Kouta-tachis. The content was exactly about what they should do in the future――

Rio prepared the guards against an unexpected situation like speaking frankly about Liselotte secret but, he felt relieved that his prediction was wrong.

"I saw . In short, both of you are worried about what you will do later. I'm under the impression that you're both with the great princess Christina in this case but ………. 」

After listening to their consultation, Rio said it to gauge their reaction.

「It doesn't matter we go with the princess just for a common purpose, or should I say that because we've lived enough in the castle like a cage ………. 」

「It's enough, I understand. 」

「U-Uhn. Okay, uhm ……. . 」

Kouta awkwardly averted his gaze when Rio suddenly cut off his words.

「Yes, a lot of things happened to Kouta. Since he might not want to remember those things right now, I will refrain from asking any more questions about this until he calms down. 」

Rei shrugged as he said as if worrying about Kouta. After that, even though Kouta said 「I'm not worried about something ……. 」――

「Understood. ………… But then, Kouta-san, why did you sneak out of the castle, Rei-san? 」

Better not to ask who-Thinking so, Rio nodded obediently. Therefore, he quickly changed the topic of conversation to Rei.

「U ~ hn. Instead of being worried about Kouta, it was more like I was just riding the momentum. Life within the castle itself is uncomfortable, or should I say. 」

Rei said it while scratching his head.

「.......... I understand, so you two currently HAVE NO PLANS for the future at all. So you are very reluctant to say that to Liselotte-sama. 」

「Simply put, yes, as you say. Since we snuck out of the castle and traveled all the way to this place, that was the best we could do. 」

When Rio said it with a wry smile on his face, Rei just nodded at him.

（Should I say that Rei-san is actually a "Hapy-Go-Lucky" type of person". Or maybe because of his personality, maybe one of them. ）

That was Rio's evaluation of Rei. Maybe it's better to tell them the truth. It seems very similar to consulting a career in high school. Although he wouldn't be wrong since they were both high school students.

「Even if I do, there are not many options for you two right? ……… Is there any suggestion from her great daughter Christina? 」

「He said that he would give us a job if we followed him. Fortunately our magical powers are many times greater than normal people and we receive a proper education in our native world. Especially in terms of calculations, it seems that our abilities in that field are much better than the nobles of this world, so it will most likely guarantee a better payment for us. 」

When Rio asked that, Kouta replied with a knock.

"I saw . Since they had to lack manpower at the moment, capable personnel who excelled in administrative affairs had to be like priceless treasures. 」

Rio told them about his idea.

「Well, we also know that the princess did not lie to us during our journey. But, I wonder if it really is a good thing even if it comes with payment by such treatment of installments. 」

Rei said it with a pensive expression on his face.

「…………. Do you have a job on your mind? Because without connections, your only option is to be an adventurer, you know? 」

When Rio said so—,

「The Adventurer you said, are you referring to the person who went on an adventure? 」

Kouta asked Rio with a curious expression on his face. Rei did the same.

「I don't know what kind of picture you have in mind but, it's not an amazing job, you know? This is not a stable income job because your body is your biggest capital and your income will stop if your physical condition worsens. The contents of the work also ranged from manual labor in the city center, picking potions outside the city, fighting demons or working as mercenaries. 」

「,,,,,,,,,,, Even so, there's valuable work right? Some people earn more among them. 」

「Indeed there are successful people among them but, they are a dime in dozens. This is the kind of job where your life is always at risk, you know? 」

「U-Uhn. Naturally we know such things but …………. . 」

Kouta seems to have a strong interest in becoming an adventurer that may be related to his age. Rio guessed so—,

「,,,,,,,,,, Do you want to be an adventurer? 」

So he asked.

「No, but, well. For that alternative option ........... Regarding working for this organization is called Restoration after this point and because I do not know what will happen to this organization in the future ………. . Even if for example we are affiliated with them, our actions may be more limited. 」

Kouta timidly nodded at him.

「Yah so, but …………. Don't tell me that you are also involved in this, Rei-san? 」

Rio asked so while looking at Rei.

「Not really, how should I say it …………. . I'm just not too keen on this. Uhm, or rather …………. Being an adventurer should be a romance if you are a man. But then, I also want a stable income. 」

Rei boldly expressed his own thoughts despite being slightly embarrassed by it.

「…………. Although I personally recommend a stable income lifestyle, you should keep a portion of your current income if you want to become an Adventurer. 」

"That is…………… . Yes I understand . 」

After Rio expressed his opinion, Kouta nodded as if trying to convince himself.

「Because of that, in that case, how about you guys try to accept an offer from his noble daughter Christina for now? Naturally you still have to confirm the working conditions. 」

After all Rio could not force himself to give irresponsible advice so had no choice but to give them the safest choice.

「………. I see, you're right. That would be a good reference for us. I will try to discuss this issue with Senpai. Thank you very much, Haruto-kun. 」

Kouta bowed to Rio while he thanked him.

Although this case had already been settled for now, perhaps due to the kind of choices they would make later, Rio felt a slight sense of danger in it.

◇ ◇ ◇

After finishing the discussion with Kouta-tachi, Rio returned to the room that was lent to him. And then, when he arrived in front of his room――,

「Ah, Haruto's. Welcome back! 」

Celia was standing in front of her room. His expression brightened when he found Rio's figure.

「…………. Yes yes . What are you doing standing like that in this place? Have you been waiting for me all this time? 」

Rio asked her with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

「Uhn. I just arrived . Because Aisia told me that Rio will be back soon. 」

After looking around uneasily to make sure that there was no one around, Celia said it with a beaming smile on her face.

"I saw . Well instead of talking while standing like this, let's go into my room for now. I'll brew tea for you. 」

「Yes. But Haruto …………. Aren't you tired after all that? 」

Celia looked at Rio's expression from below. Rio silently admired Celia's insight in looking up to the depths of her mind and—,

「It's okay. Because I feel refreshed after seeing Sensei's face. 」

He said so to show off his liveliness. Although she was actually tired after all the talk with many people, the matter of her feeling relieved and comfortable seeing Celia's face was also real.

「A-What are you talking about. This kid…………"

Celia lowered her head to hide her reddened face.

"Come in . Here it is 」

After opening the door, Rio urged Celia who was standing outside the door to enter.

She entered the room after Celia closed the door. [TL: And lock it: LOL] And when both are inside―― Aisia suddenly materialize.

「Aisia, thank you very much for protecting sensei. Thank you very much . 」

Rio thanked Aisia who materialized.

「As Celia said. Your face is pale, Haruto. 」

Asia said so and rubbed Rio's cheek. He looked at Rio face from a close distance.

「…………. I'm fine . I was just a little tired from the long journey and all the things that happened today. But all of that was washed away after seeing both of your faces. 」

"I saw……"

Despite agreeing to it, Aisia was still staring at Rio face with a slightly sad face. Exactly like that, her hand touched Rio's face.

「WAIT MINUTES! THE TEA, RIGHT, LET'S DRINK THE TEA! I CAN'T FEEL IT UNLESS I DRINK TEA WHEN I FEEL TIRED! 」

Celia said hurriedly and pulled Rio's arm.

「......................... EH?」

How much time was left to brew tea for Celia before everything would end―― Rio followed her while thinking about such things.

Aisia looked at Rio's profile that way.