༺ To Children, Parties Are Like War! (3) ༻
Sling—
The Gluttonous Priestess, Hina, drew a crescent-shaped dagger.
Though small compared to an adult’s size, it looked quite large in a child’s hand.
And it appeared exceedingly dangerous and ominous.
The sheath was luxurious, adorned with gems on a golden metal base and engraved with a falcon, but the crescent-shaped blade gleamed sharply.
“S-She drew a knife!”
Elizabeth exclaimed in surprise.
Looking around, Elizabeth quickly hid behind Cecily, who seemed relatively unperturbed.
“Cecily! What do we do!? Shouldn’t we tell the adults!?”
“Hmm.”
Cecily, as if unconcerned that Elizabeth was hiding behind her, stared at the dagger and sheath in Hina’s hand.
“That’s a beautiful knife. It looks like it should be kept in a noble’s treasury. Both the sheath and the knife are more like ornaments than practical items.”
It could be said they were for ceremonial use.
Hina, holding the gleaming dagger, slowly took her stance.
“Naru Barjudas, it’s a challenge.”
“Challenge! Naru never refuses a challenge. Especially when someone draws a knife in front of me, I should be on my guard!”
Swoosh—
Naru opened her palm and suddenly, a strangely shaped knife was glittering there.
“Butterfly knife!”
Spin—
Naru twirled the butterfly knife with considerable skill.
Though it was an old and creaky item from the silver handle to the blade, it seemed sufficient to inflict wounds.
Elizabeth’s hair stood on end at this sight.
“Cecily, isn’t this situation dangerous!?”
Elizabeth thought they should stop this fight.
Children facing off with knives was unthinkable.
At the Graham Academy, it was common to see children arguing and fighting, but this clearly crossed the boundary of what ‘children’ should do.
However, Cecily shook her head seriously.
“This is a noble one-on-one duel. The parties involved must settle it themselves. The winner will have glory, and the loser will live with regret.”
Hearing Cecily’s words, Elizabeth looked back at the children.
Cecily described it as a noble duel, but to Elizabeth, looking at the two with knives, it reminded her of a back alley teeming with thieves and highwaymen.
Elizabeth was growing increasingly tense when-
Hina frowned at the sight of the Balisong in Naru’s hand, her face previously expressionless.
“That’s… …Naru… you always get the good things…”
“Really?”
“…Naru… Hina… hates you..! You only ruin things…!”
Pop—
Hina jumped.
Not forward, but running along the dilapidated wall of the cabin as if it was the ground.
Elizabeth was startled by this action.
“Is that even possible!?”
Cecily nodded as if it was obvious and said,
“Cecily’s Dad once said. If you practice walking elegantly, someday you could walk on walls and eventually stand upside down on the ceiling.”
“…R-Really!?”
Elizabeth trembled at the unbelievable scene before her.
At that moment, Hina’s blade mercilessly darted towards Naru.
“Naru Style, Raccoon Somersault!”
Whoosh—
Naru dodged the incoming dagger from Hina with a tumbling move.
She looked like a raccoon skillfully flipping through the air.
“…Tsk.”
Hina frowned at the agile display.
Just as she thought to continue her assault, something gleamed from within Naru’s embrace.
Whoosh—
It flew like an arrow and clashed with the dagger in Hina’s hand.
Clang—! Thud— Thud—
The sharp blades collided, and two daggers plunged into the floor.
One was Hina’s, and the other was a shuriken.
“…Thunder Shuriken…?”
Hina was slightly taken aback.
But seizing the moment her posture broke, Naru had already closed in.
As Hina extended her arm to block Naru, Naru grabbed it and slammed Hina to the ground.
Thump—
The cabin floor shook slightly under the weight of the fallen child.
Hina struggled to steady her dazed mind and rise.
Thud—
Something thin touched Hina’s neck.
It was Naru’s hand blade.
“Alright, it’s over! Oh, holy shh…! Naru wins again…! Huh? Again…? What? Have I fought with Hina before? We haven’t even met for long…!”
Naru withdrew her hand from Hina’s nape, tilting her head in wonder.
Hina just scowled and spat out curses, “━━─!”
The curse was so vile that Elizabeth couldn’t even comprehend it.
Cecily, too, seemed shocked as she said.
“Hina! To say such things! You shouldn’t use such language so carelessly!”
“…Tsk.”
Hina bit her lower lip, unable to hide her frustration,
And then she pulled the dagger stuck in the wooden floor and sheathed it neatly.
“Naru, Hina. Now that the duel is over, shake hands as a gesture of reconciliation. You know that after a duel, you should reconcile with dignity.”
Cecily said.
Then Naru eagerly extended her hand first, and Hina, biting her lip, hesitated until Cecily urged, “Hina.” With reluctance, they finally clasped hands.
“Hina, that wall running was amazing!”
“……”
Though it was a chaotic moment, things seemed to have settled down in an orderly fashion.
Elizabeth was certain of one thing from today’s events.
‘…I must never fight with Naru.’
Anyway.
The confrontation between Naru and Hina ended with Naru’s victory.
The glory belonged to the victor.
Cecily mediated the situation and said,
“Hina, since Naru won, you have to answer our questions. What does it mean that Caesar has to be kidnapped today? And Hina, like you said, we went to the Kowloon Mountains, but Cecily’s mother wasn’t there.”
“…I …Hina… can’t say much… But today, Caesar must… disappear…. Laying out the events that are to occur is Hina’s… role….”
Hina calmly closed her eyes.
She organized the various scenes that came to her mind and spoke with her small lips.
“Caesar’s 7th birthday. During his party on 3rd Street, as he was giving his impressions on the podium, he was… kidnapped… That was fate…”
Her voice was cold.
It gave the impression of a machine moving along its gears without any emotion.
But Elizabeth couldn’t help feeling puzzled.
“…But wasn’t Caesar supposed to come to Naru’s party today? He forfeited Naru’s bet. He said he didn’t want to win by unfair means.”
“……?”
At Elizabeth’s words, Hina tilted her head in confusion.
* * *
“Wow, why are there so many kids?”
I was surprised to see the garden starting to swarm with children.
The party held in the 「Junk Mansion」 attracted an unusual amount of people.
I thought about twenty guests would come, but the number had soared beyond a hundred.
“Oh, holy shh… There are too many kids…?”
“It seems little Naru has many friends. Having many friends is a good thing.”
Enkidus laughed heartily upon seeing the children swarming the garden.
The children approached Enkidus and asked, “Are you that hero?” to which Enkidus shook his head and politely answered, “I am not great enough to be called by such a name.”
Regardless of Enkidus’s response, the children crowded around him, begging for autographs or asking him to show them martial arts with shining eyes.
“His fists are incredibly fast!”
“I couldn’t even see them!”
Oddly, Enkidus was quite popular among children and people alike.
Maybe because he’s bald.
Is being bald a superior trait in this world compared to having abundant black hair…?
I was seriously pondering this when someone approached me.
It was a blond boy.
He looked like a rich family’s young master.
His prince power was about A-.
“Are you Naru’s father? My name is Caesar Von Freesia, grandson of the Golden Duke who rules the Freesia Duchy.”
He bears the Freesia surname…
Is he the grandson of that golden dwarf?
However, the boy didn’t seem to be a dwarf, even though he was a little small.
It seems the grandmother and mother’s genes were tall and slender.
“…Where is Naru?”
The boy who introduced himself as Caesar asked.
Looking for Naru, he must indeed be a friend invited by her.
But I didn’t know where Naru was.
Naru’s friends were continuously arriving, but the important Naru was nowhere to be seen.
I wanted to understand what was happening.
It felt like my daughter had asked, “Dad, can I bring a friend over to play at home?” and I just nodded saying “Sure,” but then she brought the whole school home, and the house was packed.
That was actually the situation.
“Sifnoi. Where is Naru?”
“…Th-This Sifnoi doesn’t know…!”
“…No, you can’t be unaware, girl. You’re the caretaker after all. This is why you’ll be unpaid for life.”
“Hiiiik…!”
Did Naru get involved in another incident?
No, that doesn’t feel right.
My intuition was unusually calm, and that was the proof.
So, while I was looking around wondering what was going on, someone approached me.
It was Elle Cladeco.
“There are lots of children here. But why is Caesar here? Caesar should have been at his 7th birthday party at 3rd Street today, shouldn’t he?”
“Is that so?”
Why did he come here instead of attending his own 7th birthday party?
Despite being the grandson of the Golden Duke, his princely power couldn’t exceed A+; it seemed like he might be a bit of a problem child.
“…Wouldn’t it be better to send him back?”
Elle Cladeco said to me.
But then Caesar shook his head.
“A bet is a bet. I lost, so I will attend today’s party at this 「Junk Mansion」. I have already informed my grandfather.”
“…Tsk-.”
Elle Cladeco clicked her tongue slightly.
Is there some problem?
I did have one problem.
The crowd was so big that the drinks, meat, fruits, and vegetables I had prepared were running out in no time.
There were just too many people.
“Hey, look at that. The person carrying a bow there. Isn’t that Ranger Pacman? A gold-ranked demon hunter!”
“And the woman with glasses, isn’t she the Cleric Arthe from his party? Also gold-ranked.”
“Amazing. There are so many celebrities! Over there are the Oldman brothers from the Brotherhood of Knights…”
“Such powerful figures have gathered. Are they planning to overthrow a nation?”
There were so many celebrities I hadn’t invited.
Guys I somewhat knew by face from operations during the war.
I have no idea how they found out about my party.
“Enkidus, did you invite them?”
“Isn’t it better to have more people? They all came from afar to celebrate you putting your mansion in order, Judas.”
“No, there are too many people, it’s a problem. We’re going to run out of food.”
“If that’s the problem, it’s fine. I can handle it. But I don’t see the Warrior Lady. I invited her as well.”
Is he talking about the warrior from the Demon King’s party?
He invited that person too.
While I was marveling at that, someone put their hand on my shoulder.
“Judas, you’ve got the house all set up. Not a sight I thought I’d ever see in my life.”
“I owe my life to you back then.”
“Bought a few chairs. Got some for the kids too. You said you had kids, right?”
“Why didn’t you invite me to the wedding? I’m so hurt!”
There were so many bustling faces.
Falcon, Thorveo, Lora, Ilysis, Bon… it would take too long to list all the names.
“Judas, what’s all this? Why are there so many guests!”
Amidst the murmuring of the star-like crowd, a voice stuck in my mind.
Turning my head, I saw Brigitte making her way through the people toward me.
Didn’t you say you had to create midterm exam questions and wouldn’t leave work until late at night?
“…Why are there so many kids? And why so many people? Judas, what’s all this about?”
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know.”
Brigitte laughed in disbelief.
That was the vibe as the party went on.
Eating, drinking, loudly talking, people bumping into each other, and starting fights.
It was incredibly chaotic.
“Oh, holy shh! So many people! It’s loud and fun, but the strawberries Naru is supposed to eat keep disappearing…!”
When it was evening, Naru too came back on her own.
She was with Cecily, Elizabeth, and a strange pink-haired little girl.
“Naru, where’s your room? I want to see!”
Elizabeth said.
Then Naru raised her hand high and shouted.
“I’ll introduce you to Naru’s room! Everyone follow Naru! There’s also the Molumolu training room…! And Sifnoi’s training room…!”
“Why is there a training room for this Sifnoi…? I’m curious what kind of training you’re planning for this Sifnoi…! Speak up…!”
Naru took the kids to the mansion.
Watching her, Brigitte murmured softly.
“Is she that happy to have her own room?”
“It’s worth the joy. I was quite happy when I first got my own room. Shall I give you a tour of the mansion too? I organized it with great care. You’ll be surprised.”
I entered the mansion’s interior with Brigitte.
The inside was already swarming with guests.
Weaving through the people, we stopped in front of a sunny second-floor room.
Click—
The room was locked.
“What’s this?”
Swoosh—
I passed the key to Brigitte, who asked with curiosity.
“If you accept, it’ll be your room.”
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