A Misunderstood Mentor 39 – The Princess’ Overnight Stay

August 5, 2022Zathael

“Nice weather we have today, Takumi.
Perfect conditions for doing the laundry”

Sasha smiles as she washes my clothes.
The snow that was falling yesterday has completely stopped, revealing a pure blue sky.
Using a pail of water, she washes a great load of clothes.
She used to wash clothes like this for the whole party too, back in our adventuring days.

After changing from her dress into more casual clothes and tying her hair up behind her head, she looks like a completely different person than the princess who came yesterday.
This feeling of returning to the past is somewhat calming.

“…..It’s cloudy in my heart though”

Standing behind Sasha, Reia stares at the laundry enviously.
When she first came here Reia also attempted to do the laundry but being unable to control her strength, the clothes ended up in tatters.
After that, the housework was all mostly done by me but…..

“Come here Reia.
I’ll teach you how it’s done”
“A-Are you sure”
“Of course.
You’re a girl so you should be able to do laundry at least”

Reia’s face brightens in an instant.
It’s a bit embarrassing watching the two of them wash my clothes.
Looking at me, Sasha whispers quietly.

“Reia kinda resembles Alice”

That reminds me, Nuruhachi said the same thing.

“Definitely, it feels somewhat nostalgic”

Thinking back to the time of adventuring with Sasha and Alice brings a smile to my face.

“Sasha-dono, how’s this.
It seems to be gradually becoming smaller though”
“Aah! Stop! You’re destroying it!”

This might give the illusion that my peaceful daily life has returned.
However, the turmoil caused by Takumi Points hasn’t been resolved at all.

“Become mine, Takumi”

The moment Sasha said that, I turned rigid in my seat.
If I recall correctly, it costs 5.67 billion Takumi Points to get married.
It’s a simple price to pay for Sasha with her 10 billion Takumi Points.
Amidst the long silence, Sasha stares at me the whole time.

“…..Are you serious? Sasha”

She doesn’t answer my question.
Instead she stands up from her seat at walks towards me.

I swallow my spit.
Looking down at me from where I’m sitting, she brings her face closer.

Thinking back to the time the Demon Lord kissed me, I prepared to dodge but she grabbed the back of my head.
Sasha brings her mouth close to my ear and whispers in a soft voice.

“Hug me, kiss me.
Just pretending is fine.
Spies from the enemy nations are mingled with my subordinates”
(Eh!?)

It’s probably best to follow Sasha’s instructions.
Holding back the urge to scream, I stand from my seat and hug her timidly.

“Gyaaaaaa! Not good not good!! I’m going to turn into my final dragon form!!”
“…..I no longer feel the urge to call upon divine possession…..”

Crestfallen, Reia collapses.

“Wha- Reia! What do you plan to do with that dagger!?”

Stop.
Seriously, stop immediately turning to seppuku.1
Chloe and Reia, who usually are the first to jump to action, cannot do anything due to Takumi Points and are panicking.
It seems that Chloe managed to stop her but I’ll explain properly afterwards.
If I tried to stop her it would’ve turned into a double suicide.

From an angle that no one can see, I hold Sasha and pretend to kiss her.
Even though it’s an act, my heart pounds noisily as I tighten my arms around her.
At that moment.

Click.

Slightly further from the round table, something shined from the dense grass.

“Sentence Spring Bazooka(Perfect Photograph Artillery)! Saria-sama!”2

Nanashin throws the short sword at his waist towards the grass.
At the same time, a shadow flies out of the grass at an incredible speed and runs away as if walking on air.

“!? A secret agent! A ninja from the east is it!”
“Wait, Nanashin.
No need to chase”
“Are you sure?”
“Indeed, knowing their identity is enough.
There’s a limited number of people who employ secret agents”

Sasha frees herself from my arms.

“Was that a spy just now?”
“Well one of them.
Likely just an underling intelligence operative.
There’s probably still more around”

Are there that many spies amongst her subordinates!
Reia and Chloe, not knowing the situation, look at us with vacant faces.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to force you into marrying me.
It’s a disguise.
For the time being, if the rumour that Takumi belongs to the Rushia Kingdom spreads, the other nations will stay away”

After saying that, Sasha looks towards the two and smiles.

In the end, Sasha didn’t use the Takumi Points on marriage.

She just exchanged for a large number of ‘overnight stay at Takumi’s cave tickets’ which cost 100 million points each.
Nanashin and the other soldiers returned, leaving only her behind.
Perhaps being vigilant, Chloe and Reia watched over the two of us from afar.

“I’ll be in your care for a while.
Until the mastermind behind this incident can be found”
“Mastermind? Was it not Alice who came up with the idea of Takumi Points?”

Sasha shakes her head slowly.

“In order to ensure that there is no cheating, the Takumi Points are monitored closely via magic.
Do you think Alice would be able to create such a system?”

That’s true.
I can’t imagine Alice, who can’t do complex equations, to be able to create such a thing.

“Why did you think Alice participated in the Great Martial Tournament after avoiding you for so long? Did you not feel anything going on beneath the surface?”

Ah, sorry, I didn’t feel a thing.

“They planned for the Great Martial Tournament, no, even further before that.
It’s a meticulous plan on a grand scale.
I’m sure they’re planning to use you and Alice for something”

Eh? Just what have I been caught up in this time?
I’d rather commit seppuku.

Ignoring me as I hold my head in my hands, Sasha prepares for her stay.

“As expected I shouldn’t use the bed.
Ah, I forgot my toothbrush.
I’ll have Nanashin send one over later”

She seems to be in high spirits but that must be my imagination.

“Doesn’t it seem like that woman is humming?”
“Yup, I heard it clearly”
“Where will you be sleeping today”
“In my days, the boundaries were clearly drawn.
As your senior I won’t allow you to be closer than me”

A restless atmosphere flows from the two watching Sasha.

“By the way, Sasha, is the kingdom alright without it’s princess?”
“It’s okay.
I have a substitute in place”
“Substitute?”

It’s been ten years since I heard that name.

“Nu Rushia Hashtall Chilt.
The founding queen of the Rushia Kingdom”

Translator’s Notes:
1: Seppuku is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour.
2: Sentence spring is the literal translation of the two characters that make up the word bunshun in Shunkan Bunshun, a weekly news magazine that focuses on scandals.
‘Bunshun Hou’, literally ‘Bunshun cannon’, is a term used to refer to damaging articles published by the magazine.

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