Chapter 125: CH 125

“Okay, time to go,” I said.

It was the weekend after I received an invitation to Cindy’s birthday party.

I wake up in the morning, as usual, walk around the town for a while in the afternoon to pass the time, and leave the house when it’s almost time to meet up with Thyssel.

By the way, classes at the Magician’s Academy are closed for today, so Miu should have been at home, but she left a step ahead of me. Apparently, walking with me is still embarrassing, or something like that.

As expected, she shouldn’t hate me, but I still don’t understand the distance between us. Well, there is about 30 years difference between me and Miu. I can understand why a girl of her age wouldn’t want to walk beside a boring old man like myself.

I’m not really interested in fashion or anything like that, but I want to avoid ruining my reputation with Miu. So, even though it’s very late for it, I’m still worried about that.

That said, I don’t buy new clothes all the time, I just care about cleanliness daily. I don’t know about trendy clothes.

“Did I forget something… yeah, I did not,” I said.

I usually carry around the bare minimum of gold and a sword, but this time I also have a present for Cindy. There’s no talking to her if I forget about this. Since I was invited, I guess I should show a bit of an elder-like sign of respect.

By the way, choosing a present took me several days.

After my daily training at the Knight’s HQ, I wandered around the West District, but I couldn’t find anything that really stuck with me.

I asked Miu what I should give her, but she just said “I don’t know”. It’s a pity. Ah, well, if you say that an older adult should not ask such things to his young female ward, then you’d be right.

In the end, I ended up with a rather nice pair of leather gloves. It’s obviously better than the ones she usually uses, and I think they can be used when swinging a sword or doing some work.

Cindy is an aspiring magician, but as far as I can see from the lecture, swinging the sword itself seemed fun to her. So, I thought that it would be nice if the fun continued for a little while, so it was a bit of a late gift.

It might be difficult if you asked me if it would be a fitting gift for a girl of her age. However, I don’t know the latest trends, and I don’t really know what girls want in the first place.

I guess I should do some research, but even Miu, who should be the closest to Cindy, had that reaction. It seems that Alexia and Kuruni will say anything is fine.

Speaking of people I’m somewhat close with, there’s Henblitz, but he’s purely got a warrior’s heart. With his appearance and personality, he should be very popular with women, but I never hear such rumors about him.

No, maybe he’s doing something that I don’t know about. Well, as the Vice-Captain of the Knights of Revelio, he probably wouldn’t be able to play with fire like that, so in other words, he’s a clean, upright man.

By the way, since it’s her friend’s birthday, I told Miu to get a present and gave her some money to buy one.

It would be embarrassing to go shopping like that with me, so I’m leaving the task to her sensibilities, but what will happen?

In a sense, Miu is more ignorant of the world than I am. In this case, the host is Cindy, so basically whatever she gives her will make her happy.

After all, it seems that she was also sneaking out when she found time, so she seems to be worried about the present. She didn’t tell me what she bought. I wish she wasn’t so shy.

“Thyssel,” I said. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Mm,” Thyssel said. “Master, good evening.”

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“Yeah, good evening,” I said.

And while I was worrying about presents, I walked along the streets as the sun was arcing west, and found myself just around the corner to the Magician’s Academy. Thyssel was waiting for me at the front gate, so I called out to her.

Thyssel doesn’t wear her usual robe, she wears a top with exposed shoulders and loose trousers. Come to think of it, it feels like it’s been a while since I’ve seen Thyssel in anything other than her formal attire. When she was in the dojo, I only saw her in her practice clothes, so it’s been a long time since I’ve seen her in such feminine clothes.

Even so, the fact that she was carrying a sword was probably her pride as a swordsman.

A slightly unbalanced combination of a long sword with a fashionable outfit makes her stand out. However, as a single swordsman, I understand that feeling very well. It doesn’t matter what time it is or what you’re wearing, it’s uncomfortable to be unarmed and without the familiar weight on my hip.

“Did you buy anything, Thyssel?” I asked.

“Mm,” Thyssel said. “You as well, Master?”

“Yeah, but it might be a little boring,” I said.

“That’s can’t be true,” Thyssel said. “I’m sure she’ll be happy.”

With a side view of the school building dyed in the twilight, we proceeded towards the student dormitory, a location I usually don’t enter.

It’s because of this reaction that it’s hard to talk to my disciples about things like gifts. For some reason, they seem to be unconditionally happy if it’s a gift from me, so I can’t use their opinions as a reference.

I’m not going to give Cindy something weird, but I’m a little scared that my common sense will be out of order when I’m surrounded by such unconditional acceptance.

Well, if I’m in trouble, let’s rely on Miu. Because she is quite far away from that kind of conjecture or favoritism. In that respect, it’s the same with Lucy, but it’s hard to ask her for advice, in a different sense.

The student dormitory was a smaller building than the school building. Even so, it’s huge compared to a normal building.

Somehow, when I came here, I can help but smile a little because I can’t understand how it compares to normal spaces and sizes. This place is much bigger than my first inn, so you know.

“Ah, Prof. Thyssel, Mr. Beryl,” the Sword Magic Department students said.

“Hey, good evening,” I said. “Pardon me, I’m coming in.”

Immediately after entering the dormitory, the 5 students from the Sword Magic Department had already gathered in this visibly gigantic space. They were all sitting at a table in the corner.

There were no lectures today, so it was a holiday, and everyone seemed to be wearing their casual clothes instead of their school uniforms. This is kind of fresh. I usually only meet them in lectures at the academy, so except Miu, I don’t see them in anything other than uniforms.

“Everyone! Thank you for being here today for me!!” Cindy cried.

“Ou, happy birthday,” I said.

“Congratulations,” Thyssel said. “Let’s continue to work hard together this year.”

We say our greetings to Cindy, the star of today’s occasion.

Apparently, me and Thyssel were the last ones to arrive. Except for Miu, the other 4 students are probably living in the dormitory, and they’ll be gathering here quickly.

The table was lined with dishes that each of them had probably bought with them. It’s a repertoire of meat, beans, and bread that’s relatively cheap and easy to fill up with.

It’s a time of remarkable growth both physically and mentally, so I guess they’ll naturally gravitate to a menu that feels like they can eat their fill at prices they could afford. Even in our house, Miu is a pretty good eater considering her age and gender.

“Then, let’s have a toast, shall we?” Lumitte said.

“Right?” Feledora said. “My, my, the host should sit down.

“Yes! Let’s do that!” Cindy said.

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They poured drinks into the wooden mugs set out already.

This Old Man is relieved to see that it is not alcohol. She should learn the taste eventually, but it’s still too early for Miu.

“Then, I wish Cindy a happy birthday and good health and success in the coming year—” Lumitte started.

“CHEERS!” everyone cries as they bang mugs together.

“… Mm,” Lumitte finished.

As expected of the son of a viscountcy, I feel he’s familiar with procedures and formal events.

Miu also held up her mug with a hesitant voice, making a subtle noise.

“Yeah, after all, you should have friends together!” Cindy said as she rips into her food, smiling and talking loudly.

Well, I can’t just play along and be a decorative monk statue, so maybe I’ll join the conversation while picking up the food.

“You seem to have a lot of friends, don’t you, Cindy?” I said.

“I wouldn’t know about that,” Nazia said. “From the outside, this girl might just seem annoying.”

Even though I grew up in a rural area, I have some pride in having lived with swordsmanship all my life. From that experience, I can tell you that people who are always energetic like this look better than people who are quiet.

Of course, it goes without saying that diligence and seriousness are important, but I think that people who are full of vitality are more suited to wielding swords.

“Is there a lot of quiet people in the Academy?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Nazia said. “As you might have guessed, not many folks like Cindy here.”

“Hah-hah-hah! Not even that many!” Cindy cried, laughing.

“Yeah, I don’t think that was a compliment just now,” I said.

Cindy is just positive regardless. As long as any words are not directly slanderous, they will be taken in a positive direction. At the same time, this is a talent, and people like Miu tend to see everything negatively so I want her to learn this.

“Oops, that’s right. I’ll give this to you before I forget,” Nazia said as if he suddenly remembered while everyone was enjoying the food.

“Hmm? Oh, thank you very much!” Cindy cried.

He half-threw a small package at Cindy, and she smiled even more so as she thanked him.

I see, now is the time to give presents. Thanks to Nazia, I was saved. Let’s go with this flow and give my present, too.

“I prepared one as well,” I said. “Happy birthday.”

“Even you, Mr. Beryl!? Thank you very much!!” Cindy cried.

Judging from her reaction, it seems that the gift from me was a bit unexpected. Leaving aside the jokes that it might have seemed so rude, it might be rare to receive a gift from a teacher, even though I was only temporary.

“I’ll give my present, too,” Thyssel said, handing over something with angular edges. “I hope this will help you study harder.”

“Yes! Thank you very much!” Cindy said.

It’s almost certainly some kind of book. From her encouraging Cindy to study, I wonder if it’s something like a magical tome for magicians.

I’ve read some books about swordsmanship, but I wonder what books about magic are like. It’s a useless thing for me, but I’m somewhat interested.

“Then, I’ll give it to my gift, as well,” Lumitte said. “Happy birthday.”

“Congratulations,” Feledora said, doing the same.

“Everyone! Thank you!” Cindy said as she received them.

She’s smiling as she held more gifts than she could hold in both arms. She hadn’t checked the insides yet, but the fact that she still got her birthday present seemed to be a huge deal to her, and she was smiling even more than usual.

“…… Congratulations,” Miu said as she handed over her present with a slightly embarrassed look.

“Miu…!” Cindy cried. “Thank you so much!”

Hmm, looking at it like this, I feel that Miu is also growing steadily, albeit little by little. She would never have attended an event like this before, and she would never have bought a gift.

That alone was enough to make me glad I enrolled her in the Magician’s Academy. In the future, I want her to grow up healthy both physically and mentally so that I can make up for everything that’s happened to her so far.

“Now if only more people chose to study in the Sword Magic Department, this day would be perfect!” Cindy cried.

“… Muh,” Thyssel gasped, puffing up her cheeks.

I’m sure Cindy didn’t mean to offend. However, Thyssel isn’t satisfied with how things stand, and she has a face that shows she doesn’t quite know how to change it.

“…Could it be the Department isn’t that popular?” I asked.

“Yes, that’s it,” Lumitte said, answering for her. “There were a few more people in the beginning, but…”

Well, I just guessed that there were 5 people in the course, but it seems that the popularity as a whole is not good enough. I don’t know if the cause was due to the Sword Magic itself, or if it was the way Thyssel taught it.

“There were more people in Master’s dojo, so there should be more people in the Sword Magic Department,” Thyssel said.

“Hmm, you say that, but…” I started.

It’s not like I was particularly flaunting the dojo to prospective students, and Bidden Village itself is quite a remote place, to begin with. For some reason, there were many disciples who came from elsewhere, but it would be a bit difficult if I was asked to explain why our dojo has become so popular.

“Thyssel, you want more people to learn about the Sword Magic Department, right?” I asked.

“Yeah. If that happens… I’ll be happy,” Thyssel said, clearly but in a small voice.

“Then, if that’s so… why did you learn swordsmanship to begin with?” I asked.

At that, Thyssel’s expression changes to something mysterious. At the same time, even the students who had been making a fuss and enjoying themselves till now suddenly seemed to quiet down and listen to me.

Huh, doesn’t this feel pretty serious?

I’m in trouble. I don’t think she can say that much.

T/N: One of my family members has tested positive for COVID and is symptomatic. It’s highly likely I’ve already been infected, but hopefully, the entire household being triple-vaccinated (2 doses plus booster) will make this as painless as it possibly can.

Still, be warned that updates may slow or stop until we’ve all tested negative for it, eventually.

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