"Rei... then we part ways again for a while. If possible, I'll come visit Gilm again around summer, so take care of yourself until then."
A short distance from Gilm's main gate, several people had gathered.
The group wasn't particularly large, but nearly everyone present was a well-known figure in Gilm.
Rei, the rising star bearing the alias Crimson, accompanied by Gryphon Seto.
Vihera, who had partied with Rei and was clad in sheer garments that directly stimulated men's baser desires with her beauty.
Marina, the Guild Master, who looked as though the very concept of feminine allure had been given physical form.
Byune, who had partied with Rei and Vihera as a bandit and appeared to be no more than ten years old or so.
Daskar, the lord of Gilm, whose stern countenance could easily unnerve anyone meeting him for the first time, with a physique that could only be described as imposing.
These five were seeing off Ara, who sat on the driver's bench with a Power Axe strapped to her back, and... Elena, who gazed at Rei with moist eyes.
Golden hair as if sunlight itself had been spun into silk, and a noble beauty that seemed to embody an irresistible strength of will.
(Being the most ordinary one in this group... honestly, I wonder what that says about me.)
Watching Elena — both her close friend and her master — grieve over parting with Rei, Ara murmured internally.
Ara herself wielded a Power Axe, a weapon far larger than anything standard, and possessed the strength to drag an Orc corpse one-handed.
By any ordinary measure, Ara would unquestionably be regarded as an abnormal — or rather, exceptional — person.
Her appearance, while not on the level of Elena, Vihera, or Marina, was attractive enough to be called a beauty.
But among this group, she was clearly the one who could only be described as ordinary.
Still, Ara's top priority was remaining at Elena's side. Drawing more attention than Elena unnecessarily would inevitably entangle her in all sorts of troublesome situations, so she had no complaints about the current state of affairs.
...Ara's father, Count Scarlet, worried that she had no particular romantic partner, but Ara herself didn't care about that in the slightest.
In the direction Ara was looking, Daskar was speaking with Elena.
"Lady Elena, I hope you'll come visit again anytime. As the lord of Gilm... and as a noble of the Neutral Faction, I am truly delighted that you, the Princess General, would grace this city with your presence. I look forward to our continued cooperation with the Noble's Faction as well."
"Yes. I'll make sure to properly deliver Lord Daskar's letter to my father."
"...Using one who bears the title of Princess General as a letter courier — I do feel apologetic about that..."
True to his words, Daskar wore an apologetic expression.
Indeed, using the Princess General as a messenger could only be called extravagantly wasteful.
If anyone else learned of it, it was the sort of thing that would rightfully invite the question of what on earth they were thinking.
However, Elena shook her head at Daskar.
"Please don't concern yourself. I've been well taken care of in Gilm. We only just returned from Marina's hometown settlement and things have been hectic, but it's about time I headed back."
As she said, they had returned to Gilm from Marina's settlement two days ago.
Normally, preparing for a journey for someone of a duke's daughter's standing could easily take more than a week.
But she was visiting not as a duke's daughter but as a private individual, and Elena's experience as a military officer meant she could travel without needing to assemble such a vast quantity of luggage.
...Though the fact that she had a carriage that was also a Magic Item probably had a lot to do with it.
The interior of the carriage was quite spacious, and the furnishings were luxurious.
Enough so that one could live quite comfortably without needing anything else.
"Are you sure it's all right to go home? You haven't forgotten that Marina and I will be staying with Rei, have you?"
"Hmm, true enough. That is certainly a concern... but even so, I believe Rei will choose me for the position of first wife."
"...You're certainly confident."
"Hehe, well, that's very like Elena, isn't it? I don't intend to lose to her in that regard, though."
The next to address Elena after Daskar were Vihera and Marina.
Whether some sort of discussion had taken place among the three beforehand, the fierce exchanges of rivalry from before were absent.
It seemed that the idea of one of them becoming Rei's first wife was a shared understanding among all three.
An image of Kenny, whom Elena had once seen through the Paired Orbs, briefly flashed through her mind, but she dismissed it immediately.
The reasoning being that if someone truly intended to give their all to win Rei's heart, it was their own fault for not being here.
"Elena, what's wrong? Have you changed your mind about leaving?"
At Vihera's words, Elena shook her head.
Seeing Elena's reaction, Vihera let out a slightly regretful sigh.
To Vihera, Elena was someone she felt competitive with in many ways.
They were nearly equal in combat strength, and as a rival for Rei's love, Vihera harbored strong competitive feelings toward her.
And yet, there was no hatred toward Elena in Vihera's heart. If anything, she even felt a sense of kinship.
A rival in love, and at the same time, a comrade who loved the same man. An enemy and an ally — a somewhat complex relationship.
"No. As reluctant as I am, I can't stay here forever. I would like to stay if I could, but..."
Elena's gaze turned in a certain direction.
"Grruuuuuruuu"
"Kyu! Kyukyu!"
"Guruuu"
"Kyu!"
Despite using completely different languages, the two somehow managed to communicate with each other.
Set and Ielo. The two were as close as ever.
One might even call them best friends.
Separating them was painful for Elena as well, but since Ielo was her familiar, she had no choice but to bring it along.
(No, Ielo can return to me on its own, so couldn't I leave it in Gilm a little longer?)
Such a thought briefly crossed Elena's mind.
"Ielo."
"Kyu?"
For some reason, Ielo — which should have been talking with Set — had been perched on top of its head... but upon being called by Elena, it flapped its wings and flew toward her.
"Ielo, you can return to me on your own, can't you? If so, you could stay in Gilm a little longer and be with Set."
"Kyuuu... Kyu!"
At Elena's words, Ielo turned its gaze toward Set.
But immediately, it shook its head and landed on Elena.
"Kyu!"
I want to stay with Elena! — Ielo's cry conveyed that to everyone present.
It was painful for Ielo to part with Set as well. But still, being with Elena was more important.
Just as Set's number one person was Rei even if it got along with others, Ielo's number one was Elena.
"Hehe, it really adores you."
Marina said with a smile, and Vihera beside her nodded... then spoke with a slightly mischievous grin.
"Leave Rei to me. Elena, you should head home with Ielo."
Then Marina jumped on the topic as well.
"Oh my, rather than leaving him to Vihera, you could just leave him to me, you know? I may not look it, but I've lived a long time, and compared to Vihera and Elena, I can be useful in all sorts of ways."
"That is an entirely separate matter."
Without a moment's hesitation, Elena denied the two standing before her.
All three were exchanging words with smiles on their faces, but Rei, watching the scene from a slight distance, felt a chill run down his spine.
Well, it should be said that Rei had it relatively easy. The one who truly suffered in this case was Daskar.
Since he had been talking with Elena until a moment ago, he had taken the full brunt of the cold aura emanating from all three of them at close range.
From Elena, a magical power that could be called dragon aura inherited from an Ancient Dragon. From Vihera, a magical power that could be called fighting spirit. From Marina, pure magical power. Each was being emitted, lowering the surrounding temperature.
It was no joke — Daskar felt as though the temperature around him had dropped by two or three degrees.
(Seriously. Should I say Rei has terrible luck with women? All three are extraordinarily beautiful, yet not a single one of them is what you'd call normal.)
Daskar directed his gaze in turn toward the three women talking with smiles.
The Princess General, the former Second Princess of the Bestia Empire and a battle maniac, and the Dark Elf Guild Master. ...From Daskar's perspective, it was remarkable how not a single one of the three could be called a normal woman.
"Oh my, what is it, Daskar? Do you need something from me?"
Marina, who had been smiling and exchanging words with Elena and Vihera, suddenly called out to Daskar.
Wondering if his thoughts had been read, Daskar hastily shook his head.
"No, no, it's nothing. It's nothing at all, so please carry on without minding me."
"Oh my, is that so? Here I was, about to mention how Daskar, when he was a child, presented me with a gift..."
"Waaaaaaaahhh! Y-you! What exactly are you about to say?!"
That was a memory Daskar had no desire to recall... one that, if brought to mind, would make him want to throw himself to the ground and roll around on the spot.
It was something he could only have done because he was a child, and if told to do it now, it would be all but impossible.
"...Lord Daskar?"
Perhaps finding Daskar's reaction puzzling, Elena directed a questioning gaze at him.
No, it wasn't just Elena. Vihera, Ara, Rei, and even Byune were all looking in Daskar's direction.
Brought back to himself by the stares directed his way, Daskar cleared his throat softly and spoke.
"Now then, I'm afraid I must return to work soon. My apologies to Lady Elena, but I shall take my leave here. Do come to Gilm again anytime."
With those words, Daskar turned on his heel and walked away.
"...She fled, didn't she."
Daskar's ears caught Marina's murmur, delivered as if pressing the pursuit, but any careless action here would render his hard-won escape meaningless.
Making that judgment, he quickly hurried away from the scene.
He could predict exactly how Marina would toy with him if he stayed.
As the lord of Gilm, he wanted to avoid that... setting aside the memories he had no desire to recall, he wondered why his childhood self had ever proposed marriage to such a woman.
(If my childhood self were here right now, I would absolutely warn him: stay away from that wicked woman.)
Daskar's retreating back, as he muttered internally, appeared strangely small to Ara's eyes from the driver's bench.
Feeling a slight twinge of sympathy for that somehow diminished silhouette, she turned her gaze toward the horses pulling the carriage.
The horses, which should have undergone rigorous training since they were young — animals that would normally not be particularly bothered even with Set nearby — were trembling ever so slightly, and Ara understood why.
Even with the strong friendship and loyalty she held toward Elena, entering the conversation among those three would be difficult.
...The fact that she did not flatly declare it impossible spoke to Ara's own exceptional nature, but she herself had not yet come to terms with that.
While Ara lingered on these thoughts, the conversation among the three rare beauties continued.
This was just outside Gilm, and naturally many people passed by, but merchants and adventurers who would normally have their eyes captivated by three such beautiful women seemed to understand that getting involved now would unquestionably bring about something unfavorable for themselves, and averted their gazes with unnatural precision as they passed by.
But the three, conversing with smiles, showed not the slightest interest in the passersby.
That said, their lack of interest was purely a matter of curiosity. If any passerby were to harbor wicked intentions toward the three and attempt to attack them, they would face merciless retaliation.
"Rest assured. Even though Rei and I are apart, we meet face to face every night... well, saying 'every night' is somewhat of an exaggeration, but we use the Paired Orbs to see each other. There's no need for you to worry."
"Oh my, is that so? The Paired Orbs are ultimately just Paired Orbs, aren't they? Being able to meet face to face directly like I do is undeniably more advantageous."
"You should say 'we' there, if you please."
Left to their own devices, the three of them would likely have continued endlessly, but gauging that things had calmed down considerably compared to before, Ara spoke up.
"Lady Elena, I believe it would be best to depart soon..."
"Hmm, I see. I would have liked to talk a bit more, but... Rei, reluctant as I am..."
As was only natural, the one Elena chose as her final conversation partner was Rei.
"Yeah. Come back anytime you have the time. You're always welcome."
"...Yes. I don't know when we'll be able to meet face to face like this again... but even so, I look forward to it."
With those words, she gently pressed her lips to his.
Rei silently accepted it and pulled Elena into his embrace.
Had Vihera and Marina not casually shifted their positions to shield the two from the surrounding gazes, it would have been an act that could easily have caused a major scandal for the Princess General.
That the two women who loved Rei did not stop it was undoubtedly because they regarded Elena as a rival in love, a competitor, and at the same time, a comrade.
About a minute passed, and eventually Rei and Elena separated. As Elena boarded the carriage, she showed her face from the window.
With her pale cheeks dyed bright red, Elena wore a smile that was both happy and yet lonely, and spoke.
"Farewell, Rei. Until we meet again!"
With those words, the carriage driven by Ara departed... and Rei continued to watch until it disappeared from view.