"This place hasn't changed at all," Elna remarked as she stood in front of a tiny alleyway off the main street.
For me, this place didn't evoke very good memories, but Elna happily entered it.
"Do you remember? This is where you got bullied once."
"How could I forget?"
I must have been seven or eight years old. I'd rescued a cat from some kids that were torturing it, then was unable to defend myself when four or five of the bullies surrounded and started kicking me. I was huddled on the ground, trying to protect myself like a turtle, when Elna had appeared out of nowhere. And then...
"I had the hardest time stopping you from completely beating up those kids."
"They deserved it for ganging up on one poor little kid. And a prince, at that."
"Yeah. I never did tell them that I was a prince."
Everyone might make fun of me for being the Insipid Prince, but even so, no common citizens ever dared to hit me. At worst they might gang up and jeer at me. If I'd revealed that I was a prince to those kids back then, they probably would've stopped attacking me. Although, they might also have just thought I was lying, and Elna had shown up before I had time to consider that option anyway.
"Still, I just couldn't let them get away with doing that. You were crying."
Elna's fists clenched as she recalled her anger at the time, but I quickly interrupted her.
"Hey, hold on a second. Don't go changing the story. I wasn't crying."
"What? You definitely were."
"I wasn't crying then. I cried afterward, when you started bullying me under the guise of teaching me swordsmanship."
"I bullied you?! You've got to be kidding. And why would you cry while I was training you, anyway?!"
"Your 'training' was worse than any other bullying I suffered. I can still remember it. Without me even asking, you shoved a sword in my hand and proceeded to beat me senseless. When I fell down, you'd tell me to get back up, and then you'd beat me down again. Yeah, that was definitely bullying."
"It was not! I only wanted you to become a strong and capable prince! It was your fault anyway, always sticking your nose into trouble despite being so helpless and weak! I was worried and thought I could at least teach you to defend yourself!"
"So that was teaching me to defend myself, huh? Aha, I see now. You were training me to protect myself from you— Ouch!"
"That's not true!"
My quip earned me a hard punch in the side. In her exuberance, she avoided my ribs and struck me in the gut, leaving me out of breath and in agony for several seconds.
"Jeez, why'd you have to ruin the moment? I was enjoying a nice memory."
"A nice memory for you, maybe."
Once I could finally breathe again, I responded to Elna's ridiculous assertions with my own frustration. Coming to my rescue wasn't enough for her; no, she had to go and try to "train" me to beat them next time. My childhood was filled with episodes just like that.
Whenever I went outside, Sebas most likely followed me for protection, but I'd never actually caught sight of him. That was probably because he knew Elna could show up at any moment.
Back when I was still a kid, I couldn't use ancient magic, and I was genuinely stupid and weak.
"What? Are you saying you don't have any good memories with me?" Elna asked with a pout.
It was unusual for her to sulk, but that didn't mean there was any point in lying to placate her.
"Yeah, not really."
"Excuse me? I think I must've misheard you?"
"Your threats aren't going to work on me. Even you can't have that many good memories, do you?"
"I have plenty! It was a fun break for me to go outside and play with you in between my training sessions. I'm really sad now. You were so sweet and easy-going back then..."
"Stop idealizing the past. I've always been like this."
Elna's insistence on remembering me as easy-going was exasperating. I may have been slightly quieter and more obedient back then, but my general nature hadn't changed. I knew I'd argued with her when I needed to. If she remembered me as being sweet and easy-going, it was likely because she hadn't ever bothered to listen to me.
I was reminded anew just how absurd she could be. However, there was one thing that didn't make sense.
"Hey, Elna. How was it that you always, always showed up every single time I ever went outside?"
"Because Sebas told me."
"Sebas? You're kidding me... Oh my god. He was just tired of always having to protect me?"
After all these years, I'd solved the puzzle. I'd wondered how Elna was always there every time I left the castle on a sudden whim. I had no idea there was someone purposefully facilitating it.
Ever since she was young, Elna had always been ridiculously tough. I wouldn't have needed a bodyguard as long as she was around.
Maybe Sebas had thought I'd feel more at ease with someone my own age to protect me? But then, with his incredible ability to remain out of sight, I wouldn't have felt his presence as a burden anyway. So the theory that he'd done it just to get out of bodyguard duty was much more plausible.
"My father also let me leave even in the middle of training if I told him I was going to go play with you."
"Well, yeah, out of respect for the imperial family."
"True. But that's not the only reason."
Such an ambiguous and suggestive response was unusual for Elna, given her usual candor. I was pondering its significance when she held out her hand to me.
"I'll tell you someday. Now, let's move on to our next stop!"
"Next stop? Are we going to go around the whole capital like this?"
"Of course!"
Elna gleefully tugged me by the hand.
After becoming a knight of the Imperial Guard at the age of eleven, Elna had traveled all around the empire on missions. At the time, my father had been actively traveling around too, and when he couldn't, it was the imperial knights' duty to act as the emperor's eyes and watch over the empire. In Elna's case, she was also the Amsberg prodigy, who could summon the holy sword from the age of twelve. Just having her close to the empire's border was advantageous to foreign diplomacy. Taken altogether, it meant that Elna only returned to the capital once every year or two.
After the emperor's brush with danger during the Knight's Festival of the Hunt, the majority of the Imperial Guard were currently stationed within the capital, but before long they'd be divided up and sent out on various missions again. So for Elna, this was a rare chance to spend time seeing the capital.
Deep down, I just wanted to have lunch and then be done... But, oh well. I was supposed to be doing this to thank her. I decided to go along with her plans.
"Where to next?"
"Hmmm. Let's decide while we walk!"
"...Fine."
With another sigh on my end, we continued our tour of memorable places.