A Combat Maid’s Afternoon

Soon three months would have passed since I changed from Alicia to 『Aria』.

I was hired as the princess’s bodyguard as well as watcher. I learned combat technique from Sera and then I got seriously injured from rescuing my protection target Elena from a thief who was a kidnapping specialist. Because of that I was taken off from the guard duty in the remaining time for rest.

However, my body was already recovering. My body that had Cure thoroughly applied on me from the princess’s personal light sorcerer didn’t even have a single wound anymore. My internal organs still hadn’t fully healed, but there should be no problem if it was only this much even after getting poisoned so severely like that.

「Aria-chan, what are you saying!?」

I was going to be able to move soon, so I changed clothes in order to do my servant work. It was as I was doing that my caretaker Meena found me.

When I told her what I was thinking, I was scolded and returned back on the bed.

There was no problem with me stamina wise. But, from the perspective of a commoner like Meena, my wound seemed to be shocking. It seemed she had also been ordered by Sera so she wouldn’t listen to my request.

.

Several days passed after that before I was finally given the permission to get out of bed.

Even so I still wasn’t allowed to get back to work completely. Right now I was exempted from manual labor. I didn’t think that there was no work here that was easy, but not only I wasn’t allowed to do works like carrying heavy things or drawing water, I was also forbidden from work that had no rest for the whole day like being the princess’s attendant.

I was allowed to at least do something like cleaning or bed making, even those works would finish during the morning and Sera told me to rest for the afternoon.

I could participate in the early morning training, but my training partner Seo was treating me too carefully that he couldn’t serve as an opponent. Since my fight against that female thief, my martial art skill had leveled up and I also learned string control skill, so I wanted to adjust my senses in one on one mock battle, and yet……nothing went as I wanted it.

In some part that was why I used that free time to give maintenance to my equipments.

The equipment that I had to repair the most was the pendulum. Perhaps because it hit the sorcery armor many times in the battle against that female thief, the sharpened blade was crushed and now it was simply a blunt lump of metal.

Originally it was just bronze coins that were melted and combined together. Bronze was heavier than iron, but it was far softer so I guessed that it could be sharpened to some degree if I hit it with rock, but I felt that it would be faster to remake it to use it as a proper weapon.

However, the castle’s smithy that created this pendulum seemed to be busy with repairing and sharpening all the bladed tools of this castle as the preparation of cleaning up this castle because there were only two weeks remaining for Elena’s stay here, so it really wasn’t the atmosphere where I could make a personal request to there.

That was why even if I wanted to maintain my equipments, I could only whet the blades or dismantled and cleaning them, but the knife made from magic steel had the property of repelling blood clot, so it didn’t take much effort to take care of it.

「……Can’t be helped.」

At this rate my body would only grow dull. Due to the magic particles’ influence, skills were accumulated in the soul so my ability wouldn’t diminish just from sleeping in for several days, but it felt like a waste for someone who was still weak like me to do nothing with my time.

Seeing no other option, I decided to review the movements that I learned from Viro and Sera from the beginning.

In my case, I learned the basic of fighting from that good-natured large man who used great sword as his main weapon, so if I didn’t focus, I had the habit of swinging with brute force.

It had been greatly fixed thanks to the correction of my two teachers, even so there was time when I put too much strength in the heat of battle. The Battle Skill that I used when that female thief showed an opening too, if I prioritized whittling away her combat strength rather than killing her, I should have some leeway still even when she dodged it.

In short I was still lacking in training. To aim for a certain kill against a stronger opponent after enthusiastically claiming to be a combat maid like that, I was really lacking in everything.

That was why in a sense this could also be said for a good chance to get back to the beginning and restart from the basic.

I grasped the black knife and repeated the basic over and over.

I familiarized my body with the footwork that I learned from Sera mixed with my leveled up martial arts. I made my body remembered it as though to carve it into my soul.

I slashed at a tree’s trunk with a rotation of my body and kicked it while also using the backlash to take a distance.

「──Thrust──」

My Battle Skill ripped apart the leaf that fell from the impact of my kick.

But, the leaf wasn’t cut but it looked like it was half smashed as it was ripped apart. That was because I was still executing my Battle Skill with brute force.

「──Fuu」

I felt something heavy in my internal organs after I trained for around half a hour. I took off my maid uniform’s white apron and collapsed under a tree’s shadow.

I was lying face up and reflexively narrowed my eyes from the sunlight that was visible from the gaps between branches.

I had regained around eighty percent of my stamina, but it looked like the poison’s damage was still remaining inside my body.

「…………」

I rolled while thinking about Elena just for a bit.

Since then, I was unable to meet with Elena. I was just a maid who came from commoner background and she was a princess, that was why originally we wouldn’t get to know each other if not for this work.

Since then Elena had become completely obedient.

She had seen someone died in front of her although that person was a thief, and she saw me almost died, so in a sense her behavior was normal.

Even though there was no need for her to bother about someone like me……it was difficult to tell her that. Although she had grown to have the physique of a ten years old due to her magic power just like me, she was still seven years old like me. No matter how much knowledge had been crammed into her mind and gave her a thinking pattern that didn’t befit a child, the death and life of human were still something that one needed to get used to.

But……I thought that she was fine like that.

It wasn’t something that I could say but, I didn’t want Elena to get dirtied with blood.

This was my selfishness. It was enough that I was the only one who dirtied my hands.

Although our birth and upbringing were different, strangely there was this “sympathy” between us. With her inherent excellence and composure, Elena would surely fight the giant beast called a 『nation』 from here on.

A seven years old child. By herself alone.

If possible, I wanted to protect Elena’s heart from her side from here on too. I had such feeling.

However, a part of me thought that I couldn’t do that.

I was……weak. I still couldn’t protect Elena. Most likely I would face even stronger enemy than before if I stayed at her side. I might die if I stayed as I was and left behind a scar in her heart.

I wanted to be strong.

So strong that I could overturn fate.

Under the sunlight filtering through trees, I stretched my hand toward something unseen inside the light.

I would become strong. That was why, just a little bit more……until I obtained the “strength” to cut open my own fate……I couldn’t be at her side.

I wanted to be strong.

So that Elena would be able to smile inside the “light” that I discarded──.

.

「──Nyaa……」

「…………」

I suddenly heard a cry. I turned my gaze to the side while still lying down. There a cat was staring at me with eyes that were filled with a mix of wariness and interest.

Why was there a cat at this kind of place? I unconsciously stared still at the cat. The cat also stared still at me.

It was still young. Perhaps around three years old? It was a striped cat with light brown fur and stripes of darker brown color. Its vivid orange eyes were wavering with curiosity.

Aa……come to think of it, there was a stray cat that Meena sometimes fed.

I never raised a cat during my time in the orphanage, and even when Otou-san and Okaa-san were still alive. Otou-san said that cat was cute because they hunted rats and bugs.

Come to think of it, when I was crying from hunger at the orphanage because my meal was stolen, a stray cat that sometimes I caught sight of once put a dead bug in front of me. At that time I didn’t understand why it did that but, that cat shared its food with me.

Perhaps I was feeling slightly faint-hearted. I got strangely curious with this cat that suddenly appeared.

「…………」

「Nyaa」

For some reason, I tried splitting a cracker snack in my skirt’s pocket and threw it at the cat.

「Nyaa!」

*Pyon*, the cat leaped backward and dashed away. ……It ran. Ah, it stopped midway.

It slowly got closer. It was extremely wary despite approaching me from its own initiative.

I cut a thin grass with pointy head attached that grew nearby and lightly swayed it.

「Nyaa!」

The cat raised its face in surprise. It alternately looked at the swaying plant head and the fallen cracker.

It looked like it had a very strong curiosity. But human was scary. It also wanted the cracker. It was also curious with the swaying plant. The cat looked at me, at the cracker, and then it gradually closed the distance again slowly. It glances a lot at the swaying grass while leaping at the fallen cracker before running away immediately with the cracker held between its mouth.

……Nn? It didn’t run until far away. Several meters away from here, it ate the crunchy cracker while its eyes were shaking following the swaying grass.

「…………」

「Nyaa……」

Once more the gazes of the cat and me crossed once more with distance between us.

……I see. If the cat lover Meena was in my place right now, she would surely be able to guess what the cat wanted and gave it something to fulfill its hope.

But, it was hopeless for me. I couldn’t understand the cat’s word even with the “knowledge” that I got from that woman.

When I lifted up my body that was lying down on grasses, the cat warily leaped a step back.

「Fuu……」

The cat growled slightly to threaten. But my heart was unshaken by a threatening of that level.

I quietly swayed the grass. The cat’s eyes shook in unison with it. However the cat was still wary and wouldn’t approach. It seemed that although this interested the cat, it wasn’t what it wanted.

I took out my last cracker that was wrapped in a handkerchief from inside my pocket.

「Nyaa!」

So this was its aim. But, don’t think that you can get food that easily from me.

I stood up without making any sound and slowly crouched down while shaking the handkerchief to show the cat that this was the last cracker.

You must understand too. This was the last. I pinched the cracker with my fingers and didn’t throw it. I only shook it before the cat’s gaze.

「Fuu!」

The cat’s wariness shot up. Its eyes seemed to be criticizing me. But, what you were looking for was here. Would you endure the hunger with the pride of the wild, or would you throw away pride to survive, that all depended on you alone.

I kept crouching without moving at the slightest. I only waved around the cracker between my fingers. The cat’s eyes were slightly wavering and it took a step forward with one foot. Then it looked at me and drew back its foot again.

The cat’s heart was wavering. I needed something to give a push on the cat’s courage so it took one more step.

What could that be──

I suddenly put the last cracker between my lips.

「Nyaa!」

The cat’s agitation was clearly conveyed from its cry. But I only held the cracker between my lips and didn’t chew it. To show that I used my lips to wave the cracker. It agitated the cat even more.

To deal even more blow, I put my hands on the grasses and brought my face closer to the ground to match my gaze’s height with the cat.

「Fuu……」

The cat also made the same stance and glared back. It seemed the cat also finally made its resolve. It started to gradually approach me who was waving the cracker between my lips.

「…………」

The cat spent dozens of seconds to gradually close the distance. Then it finally came until right before me and snapped at the cracker between my lips.

*Pakin──*

The cracker snapped and the cat snatched around seventy percent of it. Then it ran away as fast as its legs could carry it.

I enjoyed the saltiness of the remaining cracker in my mouth while swallowing it. Then I laid face up under the tree’s shadow and closed my eyes with a sense of accomplishment. I was feeling the wind caressing my cheeks like that for a while before I felt something wet that wasn’t wind touching my fingertip.

「Nyaa」

「…………」

When I realized the cat was licking my fingertip. What? I had no more cracker you know? Or perhaps it came here to lick the remaining salt on my fingertip?

When I sent a gaze filled with that question toward it, the cat picked something between the grasses with its mouth and got up on my chest.

「Nyaa」

「…………」

It dropped a small grasshopper.

I stared at that on my chest and gently caressed the cat’s back, the cat rolled around while purring and rubbing its body on me.

I see……. It looked like it had recognized me not as “human” but as its “same kind”.

「Aria-chan, what’s the matter?」

That day Meena, a maid who came from a merchant family opened the door of the room of the girl who he was told to look after by Sera, the head handmaid who attended the princess. She tried peeking inside and found Aria changing into her spare maid uniform even though the day had just passed noon.

It seemed she got involved with a carriage incident and got injured. She was told not allow Aria to do too much work, but was there something that she needed to change uniform for?

「Nothing.」

「Is that so?」

Aria replied with a tone that was unlike a kid like usual.

While thinking that she was really like a cat with strong vigilance, when she looked closer, she noticed that on the table there was a maid uniform that was just taken off. It was covered all over with fur.

「Eh? Did you get that kitty jumping on you? Sorryyy, that cat, it’s a coward so, did it get surprised and struggled on your clothes?」

There was a stray cat that Meena had been secretly feeding, but even though that cat would eat the food, it wouldn’t get attached on Meena. Even so she had been thinking many times of wanting to hug it and tried luring it with food, but every time she tried the cat would struggle and run away.

Meena naturally thought that Aria too accidentally got close to the cat during work and the cat got surprised and jumped on her.

「Aria-chan is diligent after all, so unlike me there is no way you will do something like playing around with a cat. Are you injured anywhere?」

「……No problem.」

「Right. Then, don’t force yourself okay?」

If there was no problem then all were well. With that Meena exited the room. Midway she inadvertently turned around and looked at Aria. For some reason she looked like she was turning red until her ears.