Mobile Fortress Lady Cozette - Chapter 33
I’ll talk to them (2)
“About killing?”
I asked father in his usual office, asking him to talk to me as well.
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
He seems to be thinking about it, and his brow wrinkles.
“I don’t understand.”
“Huh.”
“To be honest, I’ve never even thought about such a thing.”
“I see.”
Well, I’ve thought that might be the case with my father.
“Oh.”
“…”
“…”
What should I do? I’ve finished my talk.
“What kind of education did you receive from a young age, Master Edgar?”
Anton, my father’s servant, who was listening to the conversation beside me, helped me out.
Thank goodness.
“Hm? Yes, I was –Thinking about it, I feel like I’ve been training for combat for a long time. Perhaps it’s because I’m a man, but…”
“How was your first battle?” – Anton
Anton asks his next question just as the conversation is about to end.
“Hmm. I think I killed many demons. They weren’t big ones, and there were many guards, but I remember getting excited about it a lot.”
“Did you kill any demon babies at that time?”
“Yes, I did.” “What did you think?
“What did you think?”
“… Nothing in particular. That place was a proper battlefield. I was taught that on the battlefield, you die if you think of anything other than your objective. So, I didn’t think about anything.”
Father closed his eyes and seemed to be remembering that moment.
He even had a smile on his face.
It must be a pleasant memory.
“Then, is it wrong for me to have this kind of hesitation?”
I realize to myself that I am going to lose my footing if I keep this kind of hesitation in my mind.
“Hmm. I don’t know. Is Cosette willing to put herself in the middle of a battle?”
I think about it for a moment.
“I don’t know. I don’t really have that in mind.”
It’s not that I don’t like to fight.
I’m just training because I’ve been told that I should be able to fight.
“So, you do?”
“Yes.”
” Whether they are babies or not, harmful demons must be destroyed. Do you understand that?”
“Yes.”
“And when you slay them, can make the decision to slay them again?”
“Yes, I think so.”
No, I believe I can.
Because I understand that I have to do so.
But I still feel resistance, and that’s why I’m having trouble.
“Then, that would be for the best.”
“… Is that okay?”
I look at my father.
He was looking at me intently.
“Cosette. I don’t understand what is troubling you. If it is an enemy that is in front of me, I will kill it. There is no other way. That’s all I have to do.”
Your father raises his big fist.
“If I don’t do it, someone else will get hurt. So, I will not worry about it. If my territory, my people, and my family will be hurt if I don’t defeat him, then I will swing my arm, no matter who the enemy is. That is my duty as a lord.”
Pressure.
It was exactly the kind of pressure that those who stand above the people are prepared to show.
I see, I don’t have to worry.
That is also the answer, isn’t it?
“Yes, but when you are young, you will be troubled. All I can say is that if you will be distressed, you should be sincerely worrying about it while you are young.”
“To be distressed…”
“Hmm.”
Is that what I want?
My inability to decide between the two is acceptable?
No, since Father is like that, maybe it’s okay.
“I’ll do that.”
Are we done here?
“Alright.”
I stood up and started to leave the room with the slime.
As I put my hand on the door, a thought occurs to me.
“Um, can I ask you one thing?”
You turn and ask, and your father nods slowly.
“What was it that troubled Father?”
“Hmm… It took him a month to decide whether to learn archery or swinging a sword first.”
” Hah…”
Then, for a while, Father talked about the respective advantages of sword and bow. He said that the sword was good, but the bow was just as good. He seemed to be enjoying himself, so I felt that it was not right to interrupt him, so I nodded my head accordingly.
So, it would have been better for me to learn it at the same time? But that’s in the past, so I guess it’s none of my business.
“What did you do with them?”
“Both of them broke down quickly, and your father cried out to me, so we decided to go with martial arts.”
“That’s… That’s unfortunate.”
Swords are still a bit of a problem, but breaking bows so often is going to affect your expenses….
“Ah. Isn’t there a weapon somewhere that can withstand my power?”
Father muttered in a truly regretful tone.
Many kinds of problems are….
Although the issues are different, Father was also troubled for a month.
Maybe I should be troubled a little more, too.
?
“Was that the right thing to do?”
Edgar looks worriedly at the door where Cosette had left.
“I hope that was all right.”
“Yes, that should be fine.”
Edgar, who was in a better mood after being told by Anton, worked twice as fast as usual.
?
While moving around the mansion, I will ask about the condition of the children I saved yesterday.
The girl survived for the time being. She’s not without problems, but she’s safe for now.
The young boy is in good health, but he seems to be very worn out and is sleeping.
It will take a while for him to wake up, I guess.
While walking, I rubbed the slime in my hand.
Speaking of which, you’ve changed a lot since yesterday, haven’t you?
“Pooey.”
Check in the white room, you forgot.
“Puipopepepepe.”
Please don’t get violent. I did not forget about your existence.
Please don’t freak out. You’re about to fall off.
“Piepo?”
Yes, yes. You’re very reliable, you know.
In the first place, I’ve been letting the slime take care of itself lately, and I haven’t even looked at Status…
Let’s check it first when we go to bed today.
?
Now that I had heard from Father, it was Mother’s turn.
I went to the room where the tea ceremony was being prepared, and sat down to drink some tea.
Somehow I felt comfortable, so I stayed silent for a while.
Mother didn’t say anything in particular, and time just passed by.
….
I thought it was improper, but I still asked my mother about it.
“Is it about killing demons?”
“Yes.”
I guess it was an unexpected question, and rarely did I see her expression change.
Mother seemed to be pondering for a while.
“I don’t really think anything of it.”
“I see.”
Well, that’s true.
Mother is a very lady-like noblewoman. There’s no need to think about demons at this point.
“Demons are clearly enemies, and even if they have children, we are incompatible with them. Therefore, we can’t let them get away with it.”
“Yes, I see.”
“… Are we done here?”
“…Yes. Yes.”
That’s where the conversation stops completely.
There was no one like Anton, as there was with Father.
There’s no way I could have been able to connect the conversation.
In the first place, Mother is usually a quiet person.
In the end, the tea party ended without any conversation, and I left her room.
I think there were a few more things I could have said, but the tea I drank with her was so delicious that I couldn’t find the words to express myself.
I hope we can talk more next time.
?
“Ugh… Did I make a mistake?”
Claudia, the mother, muttered quietly as she looked at the door where Cosette had left.
She was so happy that Cosette had unusually visited her that she had even prepared a tea party for her.
But her natural quietness was on full display.
She had many questions she wanted to ask. How are you doing these days, how is your work going, how does slime feel, can you come to see me more often? So many things.
I answered Cosette’s questions, but was that enough? No, it should have been good.
Demons are the enemy and must be destroyed.
No, but Cosette should have known that. So, why did she ask that question?
After answering, Cosette didn’t show any reaction either.
Was it the right answer, or was it a mistake?
I don’t know, I don’t know.
“Did she say anything to you?”
As I sank into a whirlwind of thoughts, the maid who had been waiting for me asked.
“No.”
Claudia replied with a sullen look and sipped her tea.
Then she thought about it again in a roundabout way.
Just as children worry about their parents and think a lot about them, parents also seem to think a lot about their children.