ch41-ch60 · 046-ch45
Chapter 45: Two Knights at Midnight
It was Wednesday, the middle of the week. My class was peaceful as usual.
On Monday morning, Rei-chan had been unusually absent, apparently worn out from her trip, but she showed up energized by lunchtime.
Sumi seemed her usual self too, nothing different about her. That thing Melkid mentioned about "Sumi having feelings for Papa~" was definitely fishy after all.
Oh, and Papa was being kinda annoying, bragging about how customers loved his new glasses—thin black frames, you know. I was the one who picked them out, so he should be thanking me!
Anyway, it was break time.
I headed over to Kiri's window seat, basking in the warm spring sunlight.
"Hey, hey, Ai. Tonight's the night, right? When you can go through the mirror?"
Kiri lowered her voice since we were in the classroom. She seemed strangely excited, which made me curious.
"Well, yeah. But that doesn't mean they'll come tonight, you know? Could be next week, or the week after, or even way later."
"Even if they don't come tonight, it won't be that long. I can't imagine those guys would finally find the 'Black Knight' after all these years only to leave him alone for a while."
Mmph. When she put it that way, she had a point.
Kiri was always analyzing anime and light novels, so maybe she was pretty sharp.
I had been thinking they might never show up at all.
"So how's Ai-Papa doing~?"
"Hmm, same as always. He was doing his prep work cheerfully this morning too."
"Hmm. As expected of a big shot, huh?"
Or maybe he was just carefree.
"Changing the subject, but can my little brother come to Rock Kitchen this Saturday? He's got a practice match with Wakakusa Middle in the morning, and apparently club activities are off in the afternoon."
"Ah, Wakakusa Middle's near the shopping district, right? Sure~ I'm looking forward to seeing Kanana-kun again."
Kanana-kun was always so cute, clinging to me calling "Ai-san, Ai-san."
"Ah, but this time Rei-chan's the main attraction, so I'll ask her via text just to be safe."
"Right, thanks for checking with her, Ai."
Rei-chan was such a doting big sister to her younger brother too, so I figured it'd be fine.
― ◆ ―
Late that night, around the time the date was about to change.
It was in an apparel store at a deserted, closed shopping mall.
Snap... Crack crack crack!!
Purple sparks erupted from one of the full-length mirrors in the store, and dry ice-like smoke billowed out.
Along with that smoke, a black-haired woman emerged from the mirror first. She had short hair and thick, sharply-defined eyebrows. She wasn't particularly tall, but her physique was clearly that of someone who had trained extensively.
Next, a tall, slender woman stepped out. Her long blonde hair was braided up, and she had beautiful emerald eyes that would take your breath away. She too possessed a strong, resilient body despite her slender frame.
"――Where is this?"
"A section of a large commercial facility, Lord Lime. It's nighttime, so there appears to be no one here."
The blonde woman was Chartreuse=Lime. She was dressed in plain civilian clothes rather than her usual knight's uniform.
The one who came with her was Fuchsia=Piani, one of the Underz and a female knight belonging to the Purple Orchid Knight Order.
"......Let's head outside first. It's dark and creepy here."
Chartreuse expressed her honest impression.
She had never experienced a place of such scale with so little lighting. For example, even at the royal castle, corridors would have dim lights burning through the night.
"Understood. Then please change into these."
Fuchsia handed one of the two cloth bags she was carrying to Chartreuse.
"What is this?"
"Clothes from Limilaru. Even civilian attire from our country would stand out."
"I see... Very well."
Despite Fuchsia standing right in front of her, Chartreuse undressed without hesitation, immediately stripping down to her underwear and then pulling out clothes from the bag to put on.
A white blouse with slim-fitting pants suited her well.
"......"
"What are you doing? You should change quickly too."
"Y-yes, excuse me."
Chartreuse was beloved by the kingdom's people for her beautiful appearance and gentle demeanor. Fuchsia was somewhat taken aback to discover her unexpectedly masculine side.
Once they finished changing, they smoothly navigated the facility following the map Fuchsia had prepared.
Chartreuse had been informed about the advance team that had discovered the Black Knight, so she assumed they had brought back clothing and maps.
However, Melkid and his team had not been permitted to return. Therefore, someone else must have prepared these clothes and maps, though Chartreuse had no way of knowing that.
".........It's much brighter outside."
Stepping outside, Chartreuse found the modern cityscape and its lighting somewhat dazzling as she began to walk.
『Somewhere in this city, that person is...』
Whether aware of Chartreuse's thoughts or not, Fuchsia brought up the Black Knight's whereabouts.
"We don't know the Black Knight's exact residence. However, we do know the general area where he appears."
"I see. Then let's investigate that area starting tomorrow."
Chartreuse stopped and turned to face Fuchsia.
"If we find him... please do not interfere. I will defeat the Black Knight."
"――Ha. Understood."
Given her position, Fuchsia could not go against Chartreuse. And this was also an order from Grandine.
《Keep it a secret from Lord Lime that the Black Knight has a daughter. I'll leave the Black Knight to her, and you take care of the daughter. Understood?》
She understood the intention behind hiding the daughter's existence from the deeply emotional Chartreuse—it was to ensure nothing clouded her determination to defeat the Black Knight.
But... would she actually be able to cut down the daughter? The Black Knight may be a great sinner, but the daughter was innocent.
『No... this too is for becoming one of the Seven Knights, and for the prosperity of the kingdom......!』
Fuchsia shook her head, trying to dispel her doubts.