Chapter 1-12: Celia’s Feelings

After riding in the king’s carriage for about two hours, Tenma and the others finally arrived at Kukuri Village.

From what Tenma learned during the ride, this king was quite an outrageous man.

Q: Why are you going to Kukuri Village?

A:
(Official reason) Recently, rumors have even reached the royal capital that something strange is happening in the Great Elder Forest. Since the once-in-a-decade inspection of Margrave Haust’s territory happens to be taking place, the king himself will personally visit the area so the people can see just how deeply their king cares about the nation.

(Real reason) The ministers have been nagging me lately, and my stress has been building up, so I wanted a change of scenery.

Q: Wouldn’t a report through Margrave Haust have been enough?

A:
(Official reason) A royal inspection already places a considerable burden on the margrave. In that case, it would be less troublesome for everyone if I traveled there with only a small group on my way back after the inspection.

(Real reason) I’m going there to relax. Having the margrave’s men tagging along would just be annoying.

Q: Won’t this cause problems later?

A:
(Official reason) In order to ensure a rapid response, it is necessary for the king himself to personally confirm the situation.

(Real reason) The ministers can deal with all the troublesome stuff later.

Q: Is it really okay for a king to act like this?

A:
(Official reason) I am only able to fulfill my duties as king because I am surrounded by exceptionally capable people.

(Real reason) I’m the king, so of course it’s okay!

The above is an excerpt from the question-and-answer session.

It was honestly amazing that no coup had ever happened.

But the biggest surprise came after they arrived.

“Ricardo!”

“Alex!”

The two middle-aged men embraced each other tightly.

Or rather, Dad and the king embraced each other tightly.

Apparently, when they were younger, Ricardo, Alex, Celia, Clive, and another man who was not here this time but currently served as captain of the king’s Royal Guard had formed a five-person adventuring party together.

They had apparently been quite famous during their active years and had even slain a dragon.

Grandpa, incidentally, had once killed one by himself.

In this world, it was apparently not unusual for young members of royalty to become adventurers as a way of gaining experience with society.

Apparently, there had even been a period when the king studied under Grandpa.

“His intelligence was average and his magical power was average, but every now and then he would do something incredibly stupid, so watching him was never boring.”

That was Grandpa’s assessment.

Meanwhile, as for me…

“Tenma, I told you not to do anything dangerous, didn’t I?”

Celia Volcano was erupting once again.

“Celia, Tenma saved us. Let him off this time.”

Glare.

“Never mind.”

The king was useless!

More importantly, Mother, just who exactly are you?!

“Lady Celia has been a friend of Lady Maria—Her Majesty Queen Maria von Blumeil Clastin, the king’s lawful wife—since the elementary division of Magic School. Her Majesty refers to Lady Celia as her one and only best friend.”

Clive quietly explained from behind me.

“I see.”

“Furthermore, His Majesty is quite weak when it comes to Lady Maria.”

“You mean she has him completely under her thumb?”

“Precisely. Lady Celia and Lady Maria still exchange letters quite frequently.”

“So he’s worried that Mother will report what happened here?”

“Personally, I think that would be far more entertaining.”

This butler had one nasty personality.

“Tenma! What are you talking about over there?!”

“N-Nothing! Clive was just… He’s gone!”

When did that butler disappear?!

“Tenma, apparently you still haven’t learned your lesson.”

This is bad!

Celia Volcano is gathering power!

Is there no god in this world…?

Well, technically, I have met one before…

“Celia, that is enough. Forgive him already. If he had interfered in a battle he had no chance of winning, that would have been reckless foolishness. But if he acted because he believed he could win, then that was courage. You should praise him for that.”

“Uncle…”

Mother gradually calmed down after hearing Grandpa’s words.

Oh, Grandpa!

Are you my god?!

“It has been a long time, Lord Merlin.”

The king greeted him respectfully.

“Indeed. It has been quite some time.”

Grandpa nodded magnanimously.

Aren’t your positions reversed here?

“His Majesty respects Lord Merlin as though he were his own father.”

Clive appeared again.

Ignore him. Just ignore him.

“When His Majesty was young, he was quite the little troublemaker. Even when tutors were assigned to him, many resigned because they could not keep up with his pranks. But apparently, he was deeply impressed by Lord Merlin’s lessons and gradually became more obedient.”

Wow.

Grandpa was amazing.

“He taught him things such as efficient methods for tormenting people and efficient ways to skip lessons.”

“That’s terrible!”

“Apparently, His Majesty found it enjoyable because Lord Merlin taught him things nobody else would.”

Whatever.

I’ll just accept that there are an unusual number of strange people around me.

“You are rather unusual yourself, Lord Tenma.”

Stop reading my mind, you strange butler!

And I definitely don’t want to hear that from you!

The king and his group planned to spend the next day inspecting Kukuri Village and the Great Elder Forest, then return to the royal capital the day after that.

The king and Clive would stay at our house, while the remaining four would stay at Grandpa’s house.

It looked like things were going to stay noisy late into the night, so I decided to go to bed early.

Good night.

That night…

“Still, Alex really hasn’t changed.”

Ricardo spoke nostalgically about meeting his old friend again after more than ten years.

“As if I’d change that easily! No matter how old I get, I’m still me!”

“That is merely another way of saying you haven’t matured. In fact, now that you possess political power, you are even more troublesome.”

“Clive’s sharp tongue hasn’t changed either.”

Alex, Clive, and Celia continued their familiar banter.

“Power exists to be used!”

The ruler of the kingdom proudly declared.

“And because of that, Tenma ended up getting dragged into trouble.”

“I’ll make sure Maria hears everything about this.”

Ricardo was laughing, but Celia’s eyes were not.

“Please do, Lady Celia.”

“Anything but that! Clive, whose butler are you?!”

“I also serve Lady Maria.”

“My, my. That sounds troublesome.”

Even this kind of exchange felt nostalgic to them.

“B-By the way, when did you two have a child? You could at least have written to tell me.”

Realizing he was losing the battle, Alex quickly changed the subject.

“I told Maria. I also told her that once Tenma turns fifteen, we’ll come visit.”

“I never heard about that.”

This was completely new information to Alex.

“Perhaps Her Majesty thought that if you found out, you would abandon your government duties and come visit immediately?”

“That sounds possible. Alex definitely would do something like that. In fact, he’s already here.”

“That’s true. It is Alex, after all.”

The other three readily agreed with Clive.

Alex had no allies.

“W-Well, putting that aside… Tenma is quite impressive, isn’t he? In a one-on-one battle, I doubt there are many people in the royal capital capable of defeating him.”

“I agree. Without magic, among the people we brought this time, Jean might barely be able to keep up with him. If Tenma were allowed to use magic, even Din would probably lose.”

Clive stated it without hesitation.

Din was the swordsman who had once been a member of Ricardo and the others’ adventuring party. He was also capable of using advanced magic and currently served as captain of King Alex’s Royal Guard.

He was said to be the strongest warrior in the kingdom’s army.

“Oh? For you to say that so confidently…”

During his adventuring days, Clive had served as the party’s scout and had once been said to possess the best eye in the entire kingdom for judging another person’s strength.

“I’d like to make him a member of my son’s or grandson’s Royal Guard someday.”

“…If that’s what he wants.”

A shadow passed across Celia’s face.

Alex and the others did not miss it.

“Is there something concerning you about Tenma?”

Alex’s expression changed.

He was now wearing the face of a king.

Celia slowly began to speak.

She told them that Tenma had been an abandoned child.

That the family name “Ootori” had been written with him, making them suspect that he might have some connection to nobility.

And that she was afraid that if Tenma ever learned they were not his biological parents, he might leave their family.

As Celia spoke, not only Alex and Clive but even Ricardo looked surprised.

“Celia… you’ve been worrying about this all this time? I’m sorry I never noticed.”

Perhaps it was partly because fathers and mothers saw these things differently, but Ricardo believed that the bond they had formed with Tenma over the past ten years was stronger than blood.

Even if Tenma’s biological parents appeared right now, Ricardo believed Tenma would choose them instead.

Perhaps that could also be called optimism.

But Celia felt differently.

As a woman who knew what it meant to carry a child inside her body, endure the pain, and sometimes even risk her life to give birth, she could not help wondering.

What if Tenma chose the biological mother who suddenly appeared one day instead of her?

What if, when faced with Tenma’s true mother, Celia herself instinctively stepped aside?

Those thoughts had always remained somewhere inside her.

That was why Celia tended to be overly protective of Tenma.

She wanted to protect Tenma, her child, from the unseen woman who had given birth to him.

Of course, Celia had been doing it unconsciously.

But now, she believed that was the reason.

Faced with a mother’s anguish, none of the men knew what to say.

The heavy silence was finally broken when Merlin opened the door and entered.

He gently placed a hand on Celia’s shoulder.

“You fool. You are unquestionably Tenma’s mother. Anyone who watches the boy can see that.”

Merlin spoke in a gentle voice.

“He is always calling you ‘Mother.’ When you scold him, he looks miserable. When you praise him, he smiles with happiness. True, lately he has begun ignoring what you tell him and causing you trouble.”

He paused for a moment, as though carefully making sure she understood.

“But does that not mean he feels no need to hold himself back around you? Perhaps he does not hesitate precisely because he sees you as his mother.”

Then Merlin continued.

“Have more faith in Tenma. Trust him more. Because you are Tenma’s mother.”

Tears flowed down Celia’s cheeks.

“…Yes.”

That was all she whispered.

Ricardo pulled Celia into his arms and gently stroked her hair.

Alex thought for a moment before saying,

“I’ve never heard of a family named Ootori, but I’ll keep it in mind. If I learn anything, I’ll let you know.”

Clive also considered it.

“I certainly haven’t heard of that name either. The closest pronunciation would be the Audrey family, but they are closely related to the royal family, so it is difficult to imagine there being such a connection…”

After that, the atmosphere was no longer suitable for continuing the conversation, and Celia was clearly exhausted.

So everyone decided to call it a night.

The king is gradually turning into more and more of a carefree character.

The reason the king and his guards struggled against the Orcs was because they were caught by surprise. They were also overwhelmed by the Orcs’ numerical advantage and the Orc King’s ability to strengthen its followers, preventing them from taking control of the battle.

In short, they had completely let their guard down.

I finally had Celia voice the anxiety she had been carrying.

I have not yet decided how this will affect her in the future.