Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀ Volume 12 E-Book

Hayaken

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Serie: Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 208

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

While the group might find a fun mellow day at the academy, Inglis has her eyes set on a gold dragon!

The reincarnated hero-king Inglis is back to her teenage self after some training in the Greyfrier sarcophagus. She even has a new friend in Imperial Princess Meltina. With Field Day having arrived, the two will even get to kick back, relax, and enjoy a fun time together. That is, until Instructor Rochefort’s health takes a sudden turn for the worse! The group will need dragon meat to help him, and well, that meat has to come from somewhere...

“Ancient dragon Aulglora, what left you in such a state?”

Inglis just can’t stay out of a fight, even if the foe’s an ancient dragon!

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Chapter I: Inglis, Age 16—Knights’ Academy Field Day

Chapter II: Inglis, Age 16—Rochefort’s Illness

Chapter III: Inglis, Age 16—The Search for the Ancient Dragon

Chapter IV: Inglis, Age 16—Corpse Dragon Aulglora

Chapter V: Inglis, Age 16—The Bichromatic Dragon

Extra: A Gift from Inglis

Afterword

Color Illustrations

About J-Novel Club

Copyright

Landmarks

Table of Contents

Color Images

Chapter I: Inglis, Age 16—Knights’ Academy Field Day

Bang, bang, ba-ba-bang!

As the smoke of fireworks filled the clear skies over Lake Bolt’s dock, Silva stood on the deck of a hovering Flygear Port which served as an impromptu stage. Surrounding him were not just other academy students, but also many citizens of Chiral. Today was Field Day at the knights’ academy, where students showed off what they’d learned through their regular training. As representative of the students, Silva was there to deliver an opening greeting.

“I’d like to thank you for being here today. I’m pleased to have the opportunity—on such a beautiful day, to boot—to demonstrate what we’ve learned from our daily training.”

It was an orthodox way to begin a speech, just as one would expect from him. Though he did seem a little nervous, perhaps from speaking to a crowd of more than just his fellow students.

A throaty, bellowing cheer rang out from Silva’s brother Reddas Ayren, captain of the Royal Guard. “Silvaaaa! Relax! Your big brother’s here!”

Reddas was overprotective of his brother—while he may have been a guest of honor today, he would have shown up just as surely even if uninvited.

“S-Stop it, Reddas! Quiet down!”

The audience chuckled as they watched Silva squirm.

“Ha ha ha. That must be super embarrassing,” Rafinha said from her close-up view of him.

Inglis couldn’t forget her own embarrassment when his cheers had followed her through her performance with the Weismar Troupe at the Royal Theatre—especially as he’d had his men join in. “Especially with how loud Reddas gets.”

She and her friends were perched in their Flygears, waiting for the aerobatic demonstration slated for after Silva spoke. She, Rafinha, and Liselotte were each flying solo, while Leone and Meltina were in tandem, with Leone at the controls.

“I suppose it’s probably your turn for that next, Meltina,” Liselotte joked.

Meltina had no response. She was staring at the ground, deep in thought.

“Meltina? What’s wrong?”

“Ah! Oh, nothing! Did you say something?” Meltina stammered, as she looked up in surprise.

“You really need to relax, Meltina. Leone, maybe you could give her a shoulder rub?” Rafinha suggested. “It might help her be a bit less tense.”

Leone nodded. “That sounds right. Turn around, Meltina. It’s okay. Calm down.”

“Thank you. I’m not used to this, so I’m pretty nervous...” Meltina sighed deeply.

“I have to assume a princess would have spoken to crowds regularly... But you’re still nervous?”

“This is different! I never had to sing for them!”

That was why Meltina wasn’t piloting. Field Day was originally supposed to be a simple demonstration of the students’ skills, but as Principal Miriela had come up with more and more ideas for student performances, and even invited street vendors, it had gained something of a festival atmosphere. This hadn’t been done in previous years, but now, the spectacle and the entertainment were being used to justify an admission fee.

“Seems like you’re the latest victim of the principal’s bright ideas,” Rafinha teased. The idea of having a first-year sing for the crowd had come up, and a series of competitive auditions had ended with Meltina the victor.

“Well, some would say she’s your victim...” Meltina protested.

“Indeed,” Liselotte added. “The price of the tickets is to fill a certain gap in the academy’s budget.”

“Anyway, you won’t get many chances like this. May as well have fun with it! Broaden your horizons!”

“When you put it that way, Inglis, it makes sense...” Leone said.

“Yes,” Liselotte said. “You’ve been quite tense lately. This is a good chance to relax.” The two nodded in agreement.

“Well, I think Chris’s just looking forward to the live-fire exercise later,” Rafinha said.

Inglis chuckled. “Well, I mean, they did have to pay to get in, so it’s important we give them a show worth the price of admission.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s only happening because you twisted the principal’s arm.”

“No, of course not! It was just a suggestion for further improving the exercise!”

“I knew you’d say that.”

Watching Inglis and Rafinha squabble, Meltina laughed. “You two get along so well. Just watching you cheers me up.”

“Oh? I heard that laugh! Feeling better now?” Rafinha asked.

“Yes, a little. I feel like I’d be missing out if I didn’t relax and enjoy myself.”

“Yeah! That’s it! Okay, now that you’re feeling better, let’s get pumped up for this!” Rafinha began.

But Silva’s speech from the Flygear Port wasn’t over yet. “The duty of a knight bearing an Artifact is to protect the people from the Prism Flow—and from the magicite beasts it brings forth! We train night and day to rise to that challenge. Today, we will show you the results of the training so that you may come to know us! We will renew the oaths we have made on our Runes to become the shield which protects you!” Maybe Reddas’s encouragement had worked; Silva was really getting into it.

“Silva! You’re taking too long! Hurry it up!” Rafinha called out impatiently.

She wasn’t wrong, but it came off as heckling.

“Wh—?! Quiet down, Rafinha! I’m giving a very important speech!”

Their bickering set the crowd to laughing again.

“Rani, Rani. You shouldn’t interrupt him.” Inglis tugged at Rafinha’s sleeve.

“Huh? But we’re fired up, and now Meltina’s feeling better. We need to seize the moment... Oh, right, Ripple! Ripple, tell him to hurry up, please!” Rafinha called to the hieral menace, who was in the seating for guests of honor.

It wasn’t just Reddas and the Royal Guard there that day; Rafael and Ripple were also there, representing the Paladins. Their duties had brought them back to the capital, conveniently in time for the event. And they were more than just guests; they’d also be participating. Prince Wayne, Ambassador Theodore, and Myce and the other Highlander refugees from Illuminas were present as well.

“Huh? Me?!” Ripple exclaimed, confused.

“C’mon, Rani, it’ll only be a little while,” Rafael said, trying to placate his sister. The Paladins pair had other duties to attend to, but Principal Miriela had requested their presence. She had wanted to capitalize on the popularity of the holy knight and hieral menace duo; apparently she was quite serious about attracting a crowd.

“Hmmm, Silva. Rafinha seems pretty insistent, and I want to see what’s next too, so...”

“Of course, Lady Ripple! Then, that concludes my remarks! Let Field Day begin!”

“Wow, that was fast! It sure didn’t work that well for me!”

Rafinha’s nearby friends laughed.

It had indeed been an abrupt about-face, but Rafinha had asked Ripple to intercede for exactly that reason, so she wasn’t exactly complaining.

Principal Miriela then stepped in to take over for Silva. “Now then, first up is a demonstration of formation aerobatics by some of our youngest students, who have just entered the knights’ academy this year!”

“All right, Chris! Let’s go, everybody!”

“We’re off!” Inglis announced.

Many Flygears—not just their own—rose into the sky in an arrowhead formation. The crowd let out a gasp, even though the show hadn’t properly begun yet; they were just lining up.

“Go for it, Leone!” Principal Miriela called from the Flygear Port.

At the lead of the formation was Leone’s Flygear, with Meltina aboard. “Okay! Here goes!” Leone brandished her dark greatsword Artifact and activated its Gift. As she did, the world around her transformed into a dark, empty space—the alternate dimension her Artifact could create. It pulled even the audience into the new space.

“Whoa!”

“What’s going on?!”

“It’s nighttime all of a sudden?! Incredible!”

As the commotion rose to a fever pitch, Inglis and the others scattered and formed a cloud around Leone and Meltina’s Flygear. With the duo between them, Inglis signaled to Rafinha with her eyes. It was on them to make the first move. From behind Leone on both sides, they swooped in, crossing over each other in front of her and continuing in a double helix around her. This was nothing they’d ever use when fighting magicite beasts—they’d practiced it specifically for today.

From behind them, color spotlights filled the space with beams of light following their trajectories, highlighting Inglis’s and Rafinha’s Flygears in blue. This was exactly as Principal Miriela had planned it.

“Chris!”

“Rani!”

Crossing paths once again just ahead of Leone, Inglis and Rafinha exchanged a high five. The crowd gasped, and Meltina, seeing her signal, began to sing beautifully.

At the same time, Liselotte and the other first-years swept back into formation and joined the show. Liselotte, following just behind Inglis, was highlighted in red, while others were in green and yellow. The darkness of the dimension from Leone’s Artifact only made the Flygears stand out more brightly. Leone, of course, was piloting the singer Meltina because the aerobatics everyone else was doing would be too difficult to pull off while maintaining the Gift’s effects.

As Meltina’s beautiful voice echoed through the space, brilliant colors shone every which way. The audience was so captivated that they forgot to blink. Eventually, Meltina’s song ended, and Leone released her Gift.

Clap-clap-clap-clap-clap-clap!

Inglis heard thunderous applause from all around them.

“Wow, that was incredible! It was so beautiful!”

“I’ve never seen anything like it!”

“Worth the price of admission alone!”

Watching the crowd, Principal Miriela nodded in satisfaction. “Great work, everyone! With shows like this, Field Day will be a success—and a profitable one at that!” She laughed, waving to them with a slightly suspicious smile.

“Well, the principal’s happy. She looks like she’s up to no good, though,” Rafinha said.

“Right. Her eyes are on the cash,” Inglis replied.

“Well, I guess she does have legitimate worries on that front.” Leone chuckled wryly.

“Yeah,” Inglis answered. “If we want to keep eating for free, we’ve got to try our hardest.”

“That’s right, Chris! There’s still plenty to do, so let’s get to it!”

“And a certain someone else’s eyes are on dinner, aren’t they,” Liselotte joked.

In any case, the show had only just begun.

◆◇◆

“Hi! Are you hungry? We’ve got freshly grilled kebabs, or fish caught right here in Lake Bolt! Then there’s a veggie and cheese soup, or pancakes with plenty of homemade jam if you’ve got a sweet tooth! All of it handmade!” Rafinha smiled as she called out to the people passing before her.

Field Day’s main stage was a Flygear Port near the dock, but attendees were free to enter the dock itself as well, and a street market was set up for the convenience of those there to observe its workings. Students rotated in and out of staffing the stalls when they didn’t have other responsibilities, and right now, Rafinha was standing in front drumming up business. Her gumption, cheer, and kindness made her perfect for the job. In no time at all, the stall Inglis and friends were running had attracted quite a crowd.

“Wow. It’s certainly gotten rather crowded here. We’ve got to speed it up!” Liselotte quickly ladled out soup from the pot.

“It’s nice to have plenty of customers, but Rani’s going a bit far,” Leone muttered as she cooked pancakes. She was a very skilled cook—the best out of them.

“Well, Rani thinks she has to help by selling a lot, so, y’know,” Inglis explained.

It was true, as Leone observed, that the cafeteria workers had made the soup and that all they had to do was serve it. Additionally, the homemade jam wasn’t from their homes. But Leone was still there at the griddle, and Inglis at the grill. And they were there in hair nets and aprons to keep the oil off, exactly like commoner girls getting a little work experience as waitresses or cooks. So at least it wasn’t all a lie.

“Okay! Three orders of pancakes and kebabs! Thanks! ♪ Meltina, did you catch that? Can you bring them over?”

“O-Okay! Coming right up!”

Rafinha and Meltina were in the front taking orders. Meltina was not so used to dealing with the public directly. She didn’t have the personality that Rafinha had, but she was trying her best.

“Here’s the kebabs, Meltina,” Inglis said.

“And three orders of pancakes too. They’re pretty hot, be careful.”

“Thank you.” Meltina, her hands a little unsteady, brought the orders forth. “Here you go!”

“Hey! You’re the girl who sang from the Flygear earlier, aren’t you?”

“Huh? Oh, yes... I’m sorry I couldn’t do better.”

“No, no, it was great!”

Other customers, hearing the conversation, also turned their heads to her.

“Oh wow! That’s the girl who sang before!”

“Oh my, she’s even prettier up close!”

“It was really good! I was so impressed!”

“That it was! That it was!”

In no time at all, a crowd had gathered around her.

“Er, um... Thank you, everyone!” Meltina said, happy but a bit awkward at the same time.

“And hey! You ever thought of singing anywhere else? I run a bar, and we’ve got a stage for singers and dancers! Maybe I can talk you into a gig?”

“I’m sure it would be an honor, but...” Meltina began, only for Rafinha to interject herself into the conversation.

“Heyyy there! ♪ You should know, we are a boarding school, and we need the principal’s approval to leave campus. Meltina might be interested, but you need to ask the principal first.”

“Oh, really? Got it. I’ll have to do that later.”

“Of course. Thank you.” Rafinha skillfully covered for Meltina.

“Thanks, Rafinha.” Meltina sighed.

“It’s okay. Well, going to a bar, probably not okay, but you know.”

“Yes, that’s right. It’d probably have food I don’t normally get to try, and that would make me extra hungry.”

“No, that wasn’t quite what I meant, just—” Rafinha broke off laughing.

Meltina was an honest-to-goodness imperial princess of Venefic. Inglis and Rafinha were nobles too, but Meltina’s sheltered upbringing must have been on an entirely different level. Inglis and Rafinha were familiar with how commoners lived, but Meltina might have rather different conceptions of what particular jobs involved.

“I understand completely, Meltina,” Inglis agreed. “Cooking sure works up an appetite too.” Inglis looked down at the delicious-looking kebabs and grilled fish just in front of her. They smelled amazing, and she was practically drooling over them.

“Yeah. Chomping into them rather than giving them away is awfully tempting,” Rafinha chimed in.

Inglis, Rafinha, and Meltina fell silent as they slid their eyes over the tantalizing, sizzling skewers and pancakes as one.

“H-Hey, wait! I see that look you three have!” Leone protested.

“They’re for sale! We mustn’t eat them ourselves!” Liselotte said.

The three nodded, submitting to the scolding. They would have to pay for anything they ate without permission—and they didn’t have the money for that.

“Yeah, you’re right, I guess. We’ve got to endure... Be patient, Chris!”

“Okay...but can you take over grilling for me? Doing this is making me even hungrier.”

“No way! You know I don’t want to! That’s why I’m out front! We drew straws and everything!”

“Meltina, how about—”

“I’m sorry. I hate being hungry too... And we did draw straws.”

Well, that much was true. They had drawn straws to determine jobs, and Rafinha and Meltina had won the front-of-house job.

“Ugh... I hate having delicious food in front of me that I can’t eat.” Inglis sighed.

Then Rafael appeared at the stall, a gentle smile on his face and Ripple next to him. “Hey, Rani, Chris. You were great earlier. I’m glad I got to see.”

Rafinha perked up at her brother’s presence. “Rafael!”

“And Ripple!”

“That was beautiful, guys! I never would have thought of using a Gift in that way. I just wish Eris could’ve seen it too.” Ripple was smiling, but she seemed a little disappointed.

Eris was still inside the Greyfrier sarcophagus, the device for creating hieral menaces. After examining the one that Eris was within, Ambassador Theodore had determined that her treatment could continue safely. She would emerge, as originally estimated, in around a year.

“It’d be nice if she made it out sooner,” Inglis said, and Ripple nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, it’s a lot of extra work for me when she’s not around. Though I guess she could say the same thing.”

Previously, when Ripple had fallen ill and been involuntarily summoning magicite beasts, Eris had covered her responsibilities for her. They had a long history together as Karelia’s hieral menaces. Now, it was Ripple’s turn to do her best until Eris returned.

“By the way, those snacks you’re selling look great,” Rafael said. “Can I get five of each?”

“Ha ha ha. So, just enough for yourself?” Ripple teased.

“Yeah. I don’t usually get the chance to eat Rani and Chris’s cooking.”

“And you especially want to try hers, don’t you?” Rafinha gave him a knowing smile.

“H-Hey, no, it’s not like that!”

As he protested, Inglis brought him freshly cooked skewers on a wooden tray. “Here you go. Thanks for waiting.”

“Thanks, Chris. It looks delicious.”

Rafinha whispered in Inglis’s ear. “Hey, c’mon, Chris. Why don’t you feed one to him?”

“Huh? But why?”

“Don’t worry about that! Just go ahead! Rafael, Chris is gonna feed you one!”

“Wh-What?! No, c’mon, you don’t need to make her—!”

“No, I’m fine with it. Dig in, Rafael.” Inglis smiled and lifted a kebab to his mouth. Her past life was still very much a part of her memories, so the idea of feeding another guy meat was not an exciting one, but if Rafinha wanted her to do it, then she’d do it. Plus, she’d known Rafael since he was very young, so she didn’t mind that much if it was with him.

“O-Oh! Th-Then okay!” As soon as Rafael’s teeth sunk into the skewer, his face lit up. “Wow! This is really good! I’m impressed!”

“Isn’t it! You know, we reeeally wanna try some too, but they’re for sale, so we can’t just go and eat them. We don’t have money...but we’re so hungry...” Rafinha spoke like she was trying to coax a cat out from under a chair.

Inglis realized Rafinha’s plan all along had been to use Inglis to put him in a good mood before asking him for something.

“Oh, I see. Then can I get another ten orders of each?”

“Aww, c’mon, Rafael! How about fifteen!”

“Huh? Okay, I guess. Are you really that hungry?”

“No, we’ve just got another mouth to feed!” Rafinha grinned and turned to Meltina.

Before long, there were the familiar noises of hastily chewed and slurped food. The stall’s stocks of skewers, pancakes, and soup disappeared in a flash.

“Mmm, tasty!” Rafinha beamed.

“Eating really is better than cooking,” Inglis agreed, smiling as well.

“Pardon our imposition,” Meltina said to Rafael, “but it all really is delicious.”

“I had a feeling something like this would happen...” Leone sighed.

“Don’t worry,” Liselotte said. “It was paid for, so all’s well that ends well.”

“Another healthy appetite came along, huh... I can see why Miriela suddenly had the idea of raising money...” Ripple laughed dryly.

“I’m surprised there’s someone else who eats as much as we do. And especially that—” Rafael cut off before he finished with something like, It’s a princess from Venefic. He had obviously heard of the situation and knew who she was.

Noticing his attention, Meltina lowered her eyes. “Y-Yes...”

Karelia and Venefic were enemies. Not just that, but Venefic’s raid on Chiral was still fresh in people’s memories. Some also believed that Venefic had orchestrated the rimebound Prismer’s destructive attack on the city. So the populace’s opinion of Venefic was by no means a good one. With that on her mind, Meltina was by no means at ease.

“But you can get along with her, right, Rafael?” Rafinha asked, smiling.

“Yeah. Yeah, I think so.”

“Even though I’m a princess of...you know?” Meltina asked.

“You’re a student at the knights’ academy too, though, right? That’s my own alma mater. And of course I’d feel like I have something in common with someone who eats like I do,” Rafael reassured her with a grin. “Try to teach Rani and Chris, and the others, as much as you can about where you’re from. Everything might not be sunshine and roses, but your time together will teach you to understand one another. That’s something of immense value.” Then he turned to the rest of them. “And all of you, treat Meltina well too.”

“Of course!” the Karelians answered as one.

“Thank you, everyone!” Meltina replied, smiling and bowing her head.

“Now, go ahead and eat as much as you want,” Rafael said. “Rani, Chris, that goes for both of you too.”

“Whoo! Three more of everything for me!” Rafinha cheered.

“Same here,” Inglis said. “It’s fun cooking when you know you’re gonna get to eat it right away.”

“Then, I’ll partake as well...” Meltina began.

“Okay. Nine of everything, then,” Leone said.

“Well, at least sales have been good,” Liselotte said. “However, may Rafael’s wallet rest in peace.”

A voice suddenly cut in. “No! This is not good at all!”

Ripple identified the speaker. “Oh, Miriela. What’s up?”

“Huh?! Principal, if it’s about the money, Rafael’s paying! We just want to eat a little more...” Rafinha began.

“Save it for later! It’s time to switch! Inglis, everyone, you have another stall to get to! I had to come get you because you weren’t there on time!”

“Oh, is it already that late? The next one’s where we get our share, right?” Inglis asked.

“Yes, of course. Now if you could get going...” Principal Miriela laughed ominously, and the lenses of her glasses almost seemed to gleam.

“Whoa, what’s with that evil grin?” Ripple asked.

“Er, Miriela. What exactly do you have planned?” Rafael grimaced.

“I had no choice in the matter! Managing the knights’ academy is not a game! Now let’s get going, Inglis!”

“Of course.” Inglis nodded before following Principal Miriela away.

◆◇◆

Principal Miriela stood upon the stage, which was now on ground level, having been moved from the Flygear Port. She called out to the assembled crowd.

“Now, if I may have your attention! These two beautiful young ladies are both in our squire program!”

Beside her, Inglis and Yua were seated next to each other at a long table.

“Beautiful, huh. Yay.” Yua was expressionless, yet she sounded pleased.

“Now, of course, none of our squires have Runes, but that doesn’t stop them from training night and day to protect everyone from magicite beasts! Inglis, Yua, show them your hands!”

As prompted, they showed the featureless backs of their hands to the crowd, who exclaimed in astonishment.

“She’s right, they don’t have Runes!”

“And yet they still fight magicite beasts... That’s impressive.”

“Yeah. Good for them.”

“If you didn’t know them, it might seem like this pair is selfless...” Rafinha laughed.

“Yeah,” Leone agreed. “But we know better...”

Liselotte gave a wry chuckle. “I feel like we’re playing a rather dirty trick here.”

“Quiet down over there!” Principal Miriela barked. “Ahem! These two may not have Runes, but they do have the training we offer at the academy! And today we’d like to show you all the results!”

The crowd buzzed.

“The results?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“They don’t have Runes, so they can’t use Artifacts, right?”

“It all begins with a well-trained body! Physical strength! Who’s willing to challenge one of these girls to an arm-wrestling match? Of course, there is an entry fee, but anyone who wins will claim a purse ten times as large!”

“T-Ten times?! Seriously?!”

“Without Artifacts, they’re just normal girls, right? I mean, sure they might work out, but still.”

“They don’t look all that jacked... Maybe I can take them?”

As the crowd contemplated the offer, Miriela set the hook. “All right, first come, first served! Who wants to give it a shot?”

“If no one else, then I shall!” a familiar voice rang out. Unmistakably, it was Reddas, captain of the Royal Guard.

“Reddas?” Inglis gasped. He himself should know that he hadn’t the faintest chance against her. Or was he a plant that Miriela had schemed to work up the crowd?

“Ooh! That’s Royal Guard Captain Reddas Eyren!”

“Sir Reddas is going to take that girl on?!”

“Um, is that even fair?”

“Okay! Then Reddas, captain of the Royal Guard, will be our first challenger! Hold on to your seats, folks!” Miriela worked the crowd.

“Yeah! Then, if I may!” Reddas strode toward Inglis, expectations of triumph on his face.

“Reddas, are you sure about this?” This might be something that Miriela had set up, but Inglis still felt like she needed to ask.

“Of course! No need to hold back, Lady Inglis!”