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I left town.
While I had to pay the toll every time I entered and exited town, there was no way I could practice swordplay and train my magecraft up in the middle of an established settlement full of people. Not just the buildings, but the very streets and foundations would get ruined.
“I don’t even have a job yet, so I can’t be picking up repair bills.” After running for a while in the woods, I finally stopped when I came to a spot where I figured no one was around to see me, and I pulled my sword from my bottomless bag.
“That’s just how it is, Huey. You can’t talk to us if people are watching either,” sighed Fouré.
“And you can’t have a proper training session if you’re unable to respond when we talk to you. Communication is important.”
“Hee hee. We train at night, when you’ll be in your room, so this doesn’t affect me either way.”
“Oh, now that you mention it, same here! The only craft that ends up damaging things around you is Aruna’s magecraft, huh?” Fouré grinned triumphantly while she verbally trashed Aruna, as if she were trying to provoke the other. A vein began to bulge on Aruna’s forehead.
“Well, you two don’t even try to be considerate about what’s going on around Hisui. You just talk on and on! And you know Hisui can’t have his powers discovered by other mortals! If you’re just going to keep jabbering without a care in the world, I’ll knock the stuffing out of you!”
“Yiiikes, Aruna’s scaring me. Huey, won’t you save me?”
“Look at how I’m trembling as well. Please save me, little one.”
“You guys...” I groaned.
Fouré and Cult both latched on to me, throwing their arms around me in an embrace. They obviously weren’t even trying to look like they were really in distress, given how stiffly they’d delivered their lines.
“Could you guys give me a little space? I can’t even swing my sword. Besides, if you mess around too much, Aruna’ll get mad for real.”
“Okaaay,” Fouré whined, then let go of me.
“Very well, then.” Cult likewise let go. They’d both done it without much of a fuss—probably because they must’ve already known I wasn’t going to put up with them from the start.
Finally, I began my training.
I single-mindedly focused on swinging my sword in the silent forest. I was using my actual sword to practice this time rather than my wooden training sword, and the weight difference was noticeable. This way I could get used to the feeling of swinging a real sword—I didn’t want to falter in actual combat when push came to shove just because I was unfamiliar with how the sword felt in my hands. I needed to get used to it as soon as possible.
“Come to think of it... Hisui’s going to have a hard time doing his training from now on.”
“Why’s that?”
The words Aruna mumbled weren’t meant for anyone but herself, but Fouré, who had been standing beside her, replied anyway. I was curious as well, and my attention drifted from my training to their conversation.
“Why wouldn’t he? Before, he only needed to run a short way into the forest to find a good place for practice, but now he has to come all the way out here from town every time he wants to train. It’s a waste of time.”
“Ohhh, right. The marquis’s manor is right in the center of town too... Even if Huey hurries, it still takes time to get out here.”
“Hee hee... And if he releases his magecraft energies at full strength in a settlement, he’ll most certainly destroy things.”
“Exactly. It would be easier if he just lived outside the town.”
“Outside...” The word inadvertently slipped from my mouth as I continued my swings. I hadn’t thought too deeply about it before, but the amount of time wasted getting out here was actually a real problem. Not only did I have to consider the goddesses, but I also had to keep my powers under wraps. I could do my swings on the marquis’s estate, but I’d only be able to practice the basics. Worst of all, I wouldn’t be able to talk to the goddesses. Aruna was right—it’d be much more convenient for me to base myself outside of the town.
But if I wanted to move out, I’d have to ask Claus about it. Though he said it was fine to build outside of town now that I’d be receiving permanent residency in Lycoris from him, I had yet to actually obtain the papers. I figured I should at least try asking him if I could live out here even without the proper documentation.
“That’s a great idea, Aruna.”
“Hisui? What is?”
“Living away from town. I agree that it’d be a pain to have to come all the way out here every day. Even if I get my residency papers, I still need to pay the toll every time I go in and out of town as long as I’m not registered with the adventurer’s guild. I feel kind of bad for bugging Claus so much, but given the situation, I think I’ll ask him about it. I’m still waiting on my papers too, so I doubt he’d give me any grief.”
“Are you sure? You’ve only just brought your sisters there.”
“Well, about them...” If I moved out of town, then I’d end up being separated from Armeria and Cosmos—but I didn’t want to bring them out here with me, even if they wanted to come. It wasn’t likely to be that far away, though, so I was sure I could convince them to stay at Claus’s estate.
“I’ll just have to persuade them to stay in town. It’s not a big deal anyway; we can meet up any time we want, so I’m sure they’ll understand.”
“Do you think it’ll really go that well?” Each of the three goddesses looked perplexed. Apparently I was the only one who thought this was going to be easy.
They’d had the opportunity to observe my sisters and their behavior for a little while now, and from what they knew they didn’t seem to think my sisters would just nod and accept my proposal. But I trusted my sisters, and I was sure they trusted me too.