The clothes I took out from the wardrobe were gym wear, the kind you wear when exercising. Even if I’m a noble young lady, there’s no rule against going outside in gym clothes. Perhaps it’s okay to wear them for a short time, even if it doesn’t look good? It certainly felt much more comfortable than a skirt fluttering around. There wouldn’t be anyone trying to catch the hem of my skirt like yesterday, since I didn’t have a skirt to flip in the first place.
Well, I decided to stop thinking about unnecessary things. I shouldn’t be late for the promised time, so I hurried to change the rest of my clothes.
I chose to wear gym shorts for the bottom and pondered what to wear for the top. No matter how I thought about it, I felt that wearing gym shorts on the bottom and a school uniform on top was a mismatch. While rummaging through the wardrobe, I happened to lock eyes with someone.
It was a puppy, sticking out its tongue and looking at me.
It’s one of my favorite t-shirts. Whenever Anne sees me wearing this t-shirt, she says I look like a kid, but does she realize that she herself looks the most like a child?
Anyway, my fashion was complete. Honestly, I think it’s a perfect choice with nothing to criticize. The boss would surely be amazed if she saw this puppy.
Time had passed quite a bit while I was praising myself, and it seemed like I might be late if I dawdled any longer, so I hurried to the research building.
*
On my way to the place where I finished work yesterday, the boss and I were walking hand in hand. I know that Presia is only two years younger than me, but perhaps because she’s smaller than Anne, she feels like a child to me.
Though it shouldn’t be the case, I naturally held her hand, feeling like I could easily lose her. Thankfully, Presia didn’t pull away her hand to avoid making me feel awkward.
As we strolled through the night, feeling like I was walking with my younger sibling, a shop caught my eye.
It was a stall selling knick-knacks, seemingly busy preparing to close soon. Glancing over, it looked like not everything had been sold yet.
I slightly changed direction and led Presia towards the stall. Although she tilted her head in confusion, she didn’t particularly resist and followed me.
“Hello. Are you still open for business?”
“Oh my, I was just about to close up. You’ve timed it perfectly. Come on, pick something out…”
With the kind words of the lady, I picked two lollipops and paid for them.
After receiving the two candies, I handed over the larger one to Presia.
“Hmm?”
“You’ll hurt your arm. Hurry up.”
Not realizing I was giving it to her, Presia only accepted the candy after I spoke. Even though I love delicious things, I’m not so greedy as to eat two lollipops at once.
Probably?
“I could have bought it…”
“I want to treat you. Don’t you like it, boss?”
With the candy in her mouth, Presia shook her head.
“Things taste better when shared together. How is it? Tasty, right?”
Still chewing her candy, Presia nodded at me. It made me think that if I had a younger sister, it would feel something like this.
With a warm heart, I also popped a candy into my mouth, and the sweetness spread throughout.
Walking the streets with one candy each and the night air felt less like work and more like a moonlit stroll.
I don’t know how long we walked. Just as I finished my candy, we arrived at the place where I completed my work yesterday. The timing was perfect.
“Well, let’s get started on the work… Oh no. Start after you finish your candy.”
It seemed that Presia was eating a bit slower than me, so I decided to enjoy this moment a little longer.
We sat side by side on a nearby bench, still holding Presia’s hand.
Neither of us spoke, simply sitting there. However, the silence was by no means uncomfortable. Rather, this kind of silence seemed fitting as we enjoyed the night air together.
“Alright, shall we go again today?”
Having finished her candy, Presia jumped off the bench and walked towards the city wall. I grabbed my backpack, which I had set down for a moment, and followed her.
“Boss? How can I help you?”
Presia had stopped to check the state of the magical barrier and stood still. However, unlike before when it required several magical stones, she now kept her hand on the wall for quite a while with her eyes closed.
It seemed she was so focused that she didn’t hear me when I tried to speak to her.
Since I couldn’t just leave Presia behind, and I didn’t want to disturb her, I stood quietly behind her, waiting.
“Wow, this area is quite damaged. It’s surprising that no monsters have broken through the barrier yet.”
After saying that, Presia took my entire backpack and started pulling out magical stones one by one.
“It looks like it will take quite a while to restore this. Just wait a moment.”
“Sure. No worries.”
From Presia’s perspective, this task likely wasn’t too difficult, but still, it would be best to minimize disturbances while she was using her magic.
Thus, I stood behind Presia, crossing my arms and glaring at the surrounding people to make sure no one dared to approach.
Perhaps it was the sight of two girls at night with a pile of magical stones, doing something mysterious, that made some people glance over at us. Of course, I didn’t have any obligation to explain, so I casually ignored them.
“Hey! What are you two doing over there?”
About ten minutes later, two patrolling guards noticed us and approached.
“Hello.”
From the guards’ perspective, we might look suspicious. I’m not someone who would act recklessly to the point of alarming those who work hard for the city’s peace.
“What are you doing out here in the middle of the night? Depending on your answer, I might arrest you, so don’t think about lying.”
“Oh, there’s no need to be so on guard. We’re from the Academy, here to restore the city’s barrier.”
“Hmm?”
Unlike when dealing with drunken offenders, my soft reply seemed to ease the guards’ tension somewhat.
“Then what proof do you have that you’re from the Academy?”
“Just a moment. Oh…”
As I moved to pull my student ID from my pocket, I realized that I wasn’t wearing my school uniform. Since I only carried my ID when I have my uniform, I had forgotten to bring it.
“What’s taking so long? Present your identification.”
As I panicked, the guard noticed something was off and urged us on. But no matter how much he rushed me, my student ID wasn’t going to appear out of thin air.
“Uh, I left my student ID in the dorm. I’m really an Academy student…”
“In the middle of the night, tampering with the city’s barrier, and you can’t even prove your identity? Sounds suspicious.”
Of course, they wouldn’t believe me.
“Oh! My boss might have her ID, so…”
“Then go get it quickly.”
“Well, as you can see, she’s currently working on the barrier…”
I opened my mouth to look at Presia, only to realize she was still focused on restoring the barrier. It didn’t seem like a good time to speak up.
“How do we know whether she’s restoring the barrier or destroying it? That’s it. We’ll arrest both of you.”
With that, the guard readied his spear towards me. The other guard appeared to be pulling out a communication device from his pocket to request backup.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a serious problem if I was taken away quietly. In the end, they would verify my identity, and we could prove we were truly restoring the city’s barrier.
However, that would delay our task, and it might also disrupt Presia’s focus on restoring the barrier. I had heard that losing focus while using magic is far more dangerous than a knight stopping his sword mid-swing.
Regardless, it seemed I needed to buy time at least until Presia finished her task.
“Wait a moment!”
I quickly interrupted the guard who was about to call for backup.
“What? So you were up to something suspicious after all.”
“No, we’re not suspicious at all!”
“On what basis? That magician could be destroying the barrier right now, who knows if she’s planning to harm us?”
I had no other choice.
“Instead, you can tie me up. Please just wait until my boss finishes her work on the barrier. If needed, you can use me as a hostage.”
Even if I was restrained, no one would dare to do anything to Presia in front of the guards. So, it was a suggestion I could offer.
“Hm… Well, if you’re that insistent, it’s not entirely unbelievable…”
It seemed like the guard was considering my suggestion, so I quickly brought my hands together and extended them forward.
“Here you go.”
“I don’t think that girl is the problem… What do you want to do?”
“Even so, I think it’s better to tie her up just in case.”
Without hesitation, I kept my hands extended, and eventually, after some brief discussion, the guards used restraints to bind my hands.
Once they secured me, one guard moved toward me while the other kept an eye on Presia.
In the end, as it turned out, I was still standing there bound, so I figured I might as well make some conversation to kill time.
“You must be having a hard time patrolling. Are we making you waste time here?”
“Ah, it’s our job anyway. We’ve had a lot of bothersome incidents lately, so maybe I’m a bit sharper than usual. Anyway, as long as you’re not suspicious, it’s fine.”
“Just give us a moment. Once the barrier restoration is done, everything will be sorted out quickly.”
As I chatted with the guards, it wasn’t long before Presia and the other guard started walking toward us.
“Hey, free her.”
Seeing them approach, the guard held up a key to release my bindings.
Clink.
As they unbound my wrists, which had grown sore from being tied up, Presia spoke up.
“… Just call for me. Why are you tied up?”
“But if her concentration breaks while casting magic, it could be dangerous.”
“That’s true, but…”
Presia shot a glare at the guards, although she seemed to acknowledge that they were just doing their job and didn’t say anything more.
“Anyway, I didn’t mean for anything serious to happen, so don’t blame the guards.”
“I’m talking to you.”
Presia seemed to be pouting out of dissatisfaction, lightly kicking the ground with her toe.
“Well then, we’ll be going now.”
“Ah, I’ve informed the other guards via the crystal ball, so you two won’t be bothered again.”
After a mutual bow, we resumed walking to continue the barrier restoration. I walked beside Presia, who was still pouting and showing her irritation on my behalf.
Maybe it was the night atmosphere that made me sentimental, but I felt grateful for each of these small gestures from my boss. However, I wouldn’t voice my gratitude.
Instead, I held onto Presia’s small hand and walked alongside her.
