Chapter 294 - 294: The Day of the Third Round

"Hey hey, what's wrong?"

His voice was light, as if teasing.

But at the same time kindness dwelled in its core.

"…Because… I was scared…"

What seeped from the edges of the words was a weakness she had been holding down.

Unease she could not suppress leaked into that voice.

Rigel's hand gently stroked Char's head.

Every time his fingertips combed her hair, her trembling quieted little by little.

"What's scary? Try saying it."

"That you might have gone somewhere, Rigel-san…"

"Me?"

"…Yes. Because… when I woke up, you weren't there… I thought maybe everything from yesterday was a dream…"

Char's voice was small, yet earnest.

As if confirming, as if wishing.

Receiving her unease, Rigel said quietly.

"Sorry for making you uneasy. But don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. And of course I have no intention of letting you go."

"…Is that true?"

"Yeah."

"That's a promise, okay?"

"Of course."

It was a short exchange, but the weight of those words sank deep into Char's chest.

For a while Char kept her face buried in Rigel's chest.

As if waiting for those words to truly soak into her.

Eventually her body drew away little by little.

In Char's eyes a faint tear shone.

"I'm sorry… I lost my composure…"

"Don't worry about it."

Following Rigel's words, his lips gently touched her forehead.

Warmth and relief spread slowly from her brow.

"Auuu…"

While leaking a pathetic sound, she tried to turn her face away as if embarrassed.

She could not hide the heat spreading in her cheeks and pressed her lips tight.

But she could not flee from that place.

Because his warmth was still there.

Because she had learned that he was still there for her.

Rigel laughed calmly, set the tray on the table, pulled out a chair, and sat.

Each of those gestures looked like an ordinary morning scene, yet they were endlessly kind.

"…Come on, go wash your face. When you leave the room it's on the right. Then let's eat already."

In the edges of the words there was a warmth like reclaiming an ordinary day.

That ordinariness felt more precious than anything.

"Y-yes. I'll go…"

While answering small, Char headed for the washroom as if running a little.

On that back drifted a strange warmth mixed with relief and embarrassment.

And so the day of the third round of the Academy Martial Arts Tournament first met a peaceful morning.

Academy Martial Arts Tournament, third round—

"That was close, Char. Good persistence."

"Yes…"

When Char returned to the waiting room after finishing her match, Rigel, who had been waiting first, called out to her.

There was kindness packed into the words, yet Char's expression did not clear.

She answered small and stayed looking down.

As if losing denied all her worth, her shoulders drooped.

"I really think you did well. The opponent was Class B third-year, right? That's a solid fight."

Rigel continued as if breaking that silence.

The tone stated facts plainly, but his own kind of care was packed into it.

The opponent Char fought was above her in both age and ability.

Just standing on the same stage was enough.

"But… to be of use to you, Rigel-san, I have to earn more fame too…"

The voice that blamed herself trembled faintly.

At Char biting her lip and holding back welling tears, Rigel let out a small breath.

Without saying anything he reached out and quietly hugged that shoulder.

"Hey hey, don't cry. It's not like you die just because you lost."

Contrary to the joking manner, that hand firmly supported her existence.

Whether those words saved her somewhere, the strength in her shoulders eased a little.

Rigel brought his mouth to her ear and whispered low, yet clearly.

"I explained it properly, didn't I? I'm a hero of the Valstine campaign. Sorry to say it, but whether a mere student wins or loses in the academy's martial arts tournament is a tiny thing that doesn't matter."

The Valstine campaign.

A military operation that overran a small country in the west of the Wistaria Kingdom in the blink of an eye and changed the war situation.

The true state of it was unknown to most of the people due to strict information control, and it had vanished into the shadow of history.

Still less would the truth of that nameless battle reach Char, who was of commoner birth.

If she had been born into a noble house, she might have obtained fragmentary information through family connections.

But the noble houses with an information network enough to reach the truth that "the key figure of the campaign = Rigel" were limited, and those who tried to resist information control were even fewer.

Then conversely, if one investigated Rigel, could one reach his identity?

No.

That too was difficult.

At this academy, prying into status was forbidden.

The limit was guessing noble or commoner from daily manners and speech, and searching out house names or titles was taboo.

There was no one inside the academy who could arrive at the conclusion "Rigel = key figure of the campaign."

That was why the content Rigel had spoken from his own mouth this morning had been a true shock to Char.

"From my view, losing in the third round or the fourth doesn't change a thing. So you don't need to worry about it."

Saying that, Rigel roughly stroked Char's head.

Depending on how one took them the words could be taken as abuse, and the way he used his hand was blunt.

But Char felt that in the depths of it his own kind of kindness certainly dwelled.

"Rigel-san…"

In Char's eyes looking up at him there were no more tears.

Only a quiet, deep light of gratitude dwelled there.

It was a clear gaze that only someone who had overcome past unease and fear could have.

"Thank you. I feel better now."

"Yeah."

Rigel grinned brightly.

That smile that even looked innocent made Char's cheeks flush further.

He continued just like that.

"After this is spectating. If you want, cheer from the audience seats. With Char's support, I'm invincible."

"…! Yes!!"

After opening her eyes wide, Char nodded firmly.

The voice trembled, yet it held definite courage.

A small resolve was condensed into that single line.

Her smile was so dear that Rigel grinned involuntarily.

Now that he had finished the reveal rape on Char, he had no wicked scheme toward her.

But even so, that smile still looked somewhat villainous.

"That's far enough."

A hard voice cut the air.

Suddenly the waiting room door opened, and one student appeared.

Together with a cold gaze.