"Oh, do you know Captain Ghai, Fia?" (Oria)
My sister tilted her head quizzically, but I had no time for that, so I stood in front of Ghai Ozburn, shielding her with my back.
"D-demon, Ghai Ozburn! No matter how beautiful, kind and strong you are, even if you fall in love with her, I won't give you up!" (Fia)
Hearing my words, my sister laughed happily.
"Oh, I'm so glad. Fia will protect me, right?" (Oria)
Meanwhile, Ghai Ozburn's face was red with fear and he let out a terrifying voice.
"W-w-w-wh-, I-like Oria?! What-what-what is your basis for saying that...?!" (Ghai)
"The proof must be your agitated attitude." (Curtis)
Captain Curtis muttered in a nasty voice as he sat in his chair.
"Ghai, you're well past your 30s. If you're so upset over Lady Fi's random words, go back to your teenage years and start over." (Curtis)
Hearing Captain Curtis' words, I became even more confident in my own words.
"Well, even Curtis feels that way, I thought so! You maned demon! I'll never give my sister to you!!" (Fia)
"Maned Demon? ...Come to think of it, there was a kid who called me that. The red-haired one...Hey! Are you Fia?!" (Ghai)
Ghai Ozburn called my name with a suspicious look on his face, and I cried out in an anxious voice.
"Ahhhhhh! The demon called my name!" (Fia)
"No, I mean, it's me! Ghai Ozburn!" (Ghai)
"That's why, I know you! The maned demon called Ghai Ozburn!!" (Fia)
"...It seems that you know each other. Both Captain Ghai and Fia, you are adults now, so I think you should settle this between you, but it's been a while since I last saw my sister, so I don't want to waste time, you see." (Oria)
Saying that, my sister stepped between Ghai Ozburn and me, who were glaring at each other, and clapped her hands together.
"Okay, let's take a break!" (Oria)
The sound brought me back to my senses and I looked at my sister in surprise.
"Huh? O-Oria!" (Ghai)
"Big Sister!" (Fia)
Then my older sister looked at Ghai Ozburn with an intimidating smile.
"So, Captain Ghai? Why does my sister think you're a demon, Captain?" (Oria)
"Th-That's...!" (Ghai)
"That is?" (Oria)
"That's because your sister is too opinionated!!" (Ghai)
In response to Ghai Ozburn's answer, Oria narrowed her eyes in disapproval.
...Captain Ghai's explanation was as follows. About five years ago, when he was the vice-captain of the 11th Knights, Vice Captain Ghai (at the time) would make trips here and there to the neighboring areas whenever he had a few days off. And unfortunately, our Ruud knight territory was only about a day's ride by horse from the 11th Knight Order's garrison.
That's why, when Vice Captain Ghai happened to come visit the Ruud territory, he met a red-haired child there.
Vice Captain Ghai was well-built, had spiked hair, had white eyes, and he looked scary. So it seemed that children were always scared of him.
"Ahhhhhhhh!"
As expected, Vice Captain Ghai was screamed at by a red-haired child he met in the Ruud territory.
However, at that moment, for some reason, Vice Captain Ghai called himself a demon, facing the screaming child.
"Hahaha, don't scream, child! I am the legendary demon Ghai Ozburn! If you scream I'll eat you!"
"Hya, ah, ah, ah, ah, y, y, y―――"
——The explanation went on to say that Captain Ghai's hometown had a unique custom, in which once a year, adults dressed up as demons and went around scaring children. It was said that the more a child cried when they saw a demon, the healthier they would be for the year.
Because of this, Captain Ghai, who regularly visited the Ruud territory, was frustrated to see that the red-haired kid's swordsmanship had not improved and that was always losing to other children. In an attempt to cheer the kid up, he would pretend to be a demon and make the kid cry.
"...I see, so that's how Captain Ghai was playing around, threatening my innocent sister. It's cruel to say the least. Seriously, what have you done to my adorable sister?" (Oria)
After hearing the story, my sister looked down at Captain Ghai with a look of genuine amazement.
"Yes, it is truly embarrassing." (Ghai)
On the other hand, Captain Ghai was sitting upright on the floor in front of my older sister, with his hands on his knees and his head bowed with a serious look on his face. As for me, I hid behind my older sister, with only my face peeking out from behind her, glaring at Captain Ghai. Captain Curtis, Green, and Blue were sitting at a table apart, drinking tea.
After my older sister had complained to Captain Ghai as much as she wanted and then took a breath, Captain Curtis opened his mouth as if to confirm something.
"...Oria, are you finished? If so, I would like to speak to Ghai next." (Curtis)
"Curtis!!" (Ghai)
Captain Ghai seemed to think that Captain Curtis had come to his rescue, and looked up at Captain Curtis with a look of relief.
...But what do you think? I think Captain Curtis will probably say what he says, literally. Because... Captain Curtis must know that I died at the hands of a demon in my previous life.
Although I have never confirmed it explicitly, Demon King Castle had previously been said to be the tombstone of my past life, so Captain Curtis must know that I lost my life at the hands of a demon in that castle. So I don't think that Captain Curtis would let a Captain Ghai who threatened me by claiming to be the same species as the being that took my life in my previous life go unpunished...
Thinking this, I looked down at my hands, which had begun to tremble, and frowned. "I have to protect my sister from the legendary demon!" I was so engrossed in the thought that I didn't feel any fear, but now that I knew that Captain Ghai was a fake demon, my fear of demons has returned. It was a sad story, though.
As I clung tightly to my older sister from behind, trying to hide the trembling of my body, Captain Curtis spoke with a pained look on his face.
"They say that the experiences of childhood are the most powerful ones that remain in our memories forever. I can only imagine how frightening it must have been for poor little Lady Fi..." (Curtis)
Captain Curtis stopped speaking for a moment and turned his gaze to Oria.
"Oria, sorry, but please take care of Lady Fi. I have something to talk to this man." (Curtis)
Next, Captain Curtis glared at Captain Ghai.
"I need to explain to you in detail how foolish the thoughtless a knight captain was and how he committed the heinous deeds he committed against the little Lady Fi. The problem is, the brain beneath that mane is too weak to comprehend my explanation... but don't worry, there's plenty of time until tomorrow morning." (Curtis)
Hearing Captain Curtis' words, Captain Ghai's eyes widened in shock.
"What? No, Curtis, until tomorrow morning? It's still morning! Hey, are you kidding? Besides, it would be a waste of your time as the busy Captain of the Thirteenth Knights! What, are you really going to start preaching now? Wait, calm down! There are plenty of other things to do! I haven't heard the reason for your visit, and I haven't been introduced to those big men with an extraordinary presence..." (Ghai)
Captain Ghai put up various resistance, but when he saw that Captain Curtis did not seem to be willing to listen, he changed his tactics midway. He was stubborn and tried to distract him by bringing up various topics, but it was completely ineffective against Captain Curtis. On the contrary, Captain Curtis silently glared at Captain Ghai, grabbed him by the collar, and dragged him towards the door.
However, Captain Curtis was always considerate, and just before closing the door, he looked back at my sister and me and bowed.
"Lady Fi, I'm very sorry, but I cannot overlook Ghai's dishonest behavior, so please give priority to explaining the situation to him. Lady Fi, please relax with your sister until tomorrow morning. ...And Oria, I'm sorry to bother you, but please prepare a room for the two." (Curtis)
With that, Captain Curtis dragged the resisting Captain Ghai out of the room.
…Really, he's a former guardian knight and it's hard to explain.
However, the reason we left the room in a rough manner, uncharacteristic of Captain Curtis, was probably because he wanted to take this person who called himself a "demon" away from me as quickly as possible. Also, he probably didn't think it was his role to comfort me, so he tried to create an environment where I could depend on my sister.
...I guess I'm the only one who can understand Captain Curtis to this extent in a situation with absolutely no explanation like this!
With that thought in mind, I hugged my sister tightly once again, since this was the environment that Captain Curtis had kindly prepared for us.
Author's Note
Thank you for always reading!
Thank you for all the comments even though it had been a while since my last post (*^-^*)
(I was so happy I posted it)