He didn’t want to pick a fight with a pack of capable warriors, so he parroted Kanon’s words.
“Alfonz, you say?”
Toshisaka stroked his chin while staring at Al.
“Is there a problem, Toshisaka? Ah, wait, I get it! Handsome as you may be, you’re much more interested in men than women! But let me warn you, he’s a sly bastard! Go for someone else!”
Kanon once again flexed his masterful deduction skills.
“Wh-Wh-What are you saying, Inquisitor?! I’m not really...”
Toshisaka desperately tried to deny those claims, but...
“Ahaha, then I should watch my back too, huh?”
“P-Please! Stop fooling around, Inquisitor!”
Toshisaka was turning as red as a beet. Al was left wondering if that kind of relationship was part of Eshantel’s culture, as the other soldiers were simply grinning as if they were used to this kind of jest.
“Inquisitor, order Toshisaka to fondle that wo—”
Swing!
The warrior who was fooling around was met with Toshisaka’s blade before he could even blink.
“Kanemitsu, I didn’t think you’d sink that low...”
“I was just kiddin’...”
With a drop of cold sweat running down his cheek, Kanemitsu raised his hands.
“I see I was wrong. Sorry, my reasoning is usually on point.” Kanon said, a bit disappointed.
His trust in his deductive abilities was clearly misplaced, judging by his performance; Al decided to keep his mouth shut about that, though.
“But Toshisaka, I want to be the first to know if you ever fall in love!”
Toshisaka calmed down when he saw Kanon’s bright smile, and the surrounding soldiers all let out tired sighs. Looking at them, Al felt like, for once, Kanon’s deduction had some truth to it. He knew some people would rather go for the same sex, and he didn’t have any problems with that... as long as he wasn’t involved.
While Kanon was lost in thought, the warriors finished bonding over their little chatter. Kanon hopped onto the spare horse his people brought him.
“Feena. I don’t know what’s going on, but since you’re a trusted friend of mine, I’ll wait two days. I expect you to visit me and explain yourself in the meantime,” he said with a lonely smile.
“It’s not much, but I hope it’ll ease your journey.”
Toshisaka handed Al a fist-sized pouch. It was rather heavy, so Al figured it must’ve been for travel expenses.
But why did he give this to me?
Something was off. If it was for travel expenses, it would’ve made more sense to give it to a Diva than some unknown peasant.
Do they think I’m Feena’s butler or something?
Al looked at Toshisaka as he pondered the situation.
“Well then, until next time.”
He stared at them for a few seconds before turning around.
“I’m praying for your safety, Feena. You, peon! Remember that if you dare touch the adorable girl, no matter where you run, I’ll find you and cut you up!”
Al could almost see Kanon’s eyes twinkle under his helmet. After waving goodbye to Feena one last time, Kanon gracefully turned around and left. He seemed like a well-mannered royal.
Yes. He seemed like one.
“Geez, what the hell is up with that fake Diva?!” Al whispered to himself, venting his rage as he watched Kanon leave.
A few hours after Kanon departed, Al and Feena entered Mistwood. Brusch had informed them that the fog would clear right before lunchtime, but that time had unfortunately been taken up by Kanon’s unexpected appearance, so they had lost their chance.
Entering the forest regardless was a huge mistake. They knew the fog would be bad, but not to the extent it was. Unable to see more than a couple inches ahead, they were completely lost. Al couldn’t even see Feena’s face despite the fact that she was walking right next to him. They’d figured it would be dangerous to advance on horseback, so they slowly pulled their horses behind them while inching toward their destination. At least, that was their plan.
“Damn, I didn’t think it’d be this bad.”
“Me neither...”
Feena’s answer was exceptionally reserved. She may have been shaken up after their chance encounter with Kanon.
“Umm... You sure it was a good idea to stay with me? Maybe you could’ve convinced Kanon if you’d gone with him,” Al asked Feena, without a hint of the jealousy that was eating away at his mind the day before. He was genuinely worried about her.
“No, not yet.”
But she shot down his proposal.
“What do you mean, ‘not yet’?”
Feena was extremely confident in her answer, so Al had to know her basis for it.
“I think Kanon is under the control of a spell.”
“A spell? I didn’t feel any traces of ma— Ah! That creepy feeling!”
He looked to his side to check Feena’s expression, but he couldn’t see a thing.
“Yes. I could feel a slight distortion of magical energy when he snapped at you.”
“A distortion, huh...? Can you do anything about it?”
It seemed like she was shaking her head. “Not with my current power. But everyone in Eshantel adores him; they’re incredibly close. Maybe their voices can get through to him.”
Al could see that working somehow, judging from how playful they all were.
“And...”
Feena was getting more excited.
“And I won’t let anyone interrupt our pre-marriage honeymoon, be it friend or foe!”
“We’re not really on a honeymoon, are we?!”
It seemed like their previous talk had really helped Al come to terms with his feelings. Even as he said that, he didn’t feel bad at all.
“I wish I could see your face...”
Oh, is that why she’s feeling down? It’d be a nice change of pace if she could be serious for once! he thought to himself, but there was a big smile on his face.
Just as things were starting to look up...
“Who’s there?! Answer me!”
They heard a rustle coming from the thickets nearby. Al immediately reached for his scythe, and it seemed like Feena had readied her wand as well.
“Feena, let’s stick together. We don’t want to hit each other on accident!”
“Got it!”