Demon King of the Royal Class-Chapter 393 [Illustration]

The high-level combat training grounds we used was a massive facility. However, it wasn’t open to just anyone, and only the two of us were in the area allocated to us due to confidentiality and security. Despite that, the place was well-equipped with facilities, including showers.

After one session at the training grounds, we would end up looking a mess as if we had gone through a rigorous training camp, so we usually showered before leaving and always brought spare clothes—several sets, not just one.

We had arrived early after breakfast, and it was still around noon. It was time for lunch, but since we planned to train even after eating, we intended to spend the entire day there for combat training.

However...

“I want to stop for today,” Ellen said as she returned to the waiting room after I had finished showering.

She didn’t seem upset, and she wasn’t pouting, but somehow, it felt like she wouldn’t want to continue the next day either, and would say that she just didn’t feel like it.

It seemed my offhand comment had made Ellen think about something she hadn’t considered thus far. Just as she had been smelling my sweat all this time, she seemed to realize for the first time in a year that the same was probably true for me.

She probably thought it was okay because I hadn’t said anything, but she now seemed to think that I had been enduring the smell all this time without saying anything.

Ellen quietly stared at her white toes in her slippers, lost in thought, saying nothing.

“... Hey, you know...” I said.

“...”

“I was just saying, you know, about the smell of sweat...”

“Don’t...” Ellen’s voice trembled. “D-don’t say... Don’t say anything...”

Ellen’s cheeks were flushed red as she hung her head low. With one careless slip of the tongue, I had cracked Ellen’s mental state.

I had forgotten, but Ellen was still eighteen. At an age where she’s sensitive to such things, Ellen’s mental state shattered at the mention of the smell of sweat. And since she was the one who had brought it up first, she couldn’t even blame me.

‘Are we really going to end up in a situation where we can’t practice swordsmanship together anymore, not because of some big reason, but because of a single phrase—“smell of sweat”—that we hadn’t cared about until now?

‘I mean, seriously, there wasn’t any smell! And besides, it’s not like we were in a situation where that even mattered!’

However, after running a simulation in my head, I realized that anything I said would only make things worse.

—Me: I’m sorry for saying that.

—Ellen: So there was a smell after all, huh?

Apologizing would only confirm it.

—Me: No, you did not smell like sweat.

—Ellen: Then why did you say that earlier? So there was a smell, right? You’re just saying this because you feel bad. So there was a smell, huh?

The likelihood of this outcome was very high.

—Me: There was a smell. But isn’t it natural for there to be a smell when you sweat?

That was the worst thing I could say, and I didn’t even need to imagine what her response would be.

In the end, anything I said would only further damage Ellen’s mental state. So I sat there, unable to do anything, while Ellen was on the verge of dying from embarrassment, her head hung low.

In the past, if something like this happened, we would have just shrugged it off, saying that it was natural for sweat to smell. However, she had begun to truly see herself as a young woman.

However, this young woman, even with her cracked mental state, was just fidgeting with her toes, not knowing what to do. It was cute.

Though it was cute, I couldn’t just leave her like that and watch her mental state crumble to dust. And with that thought came a surge of guilt.

I needed to say something. I needed to speak right that instant. But I couldn’t bring myself to open my mouth.

“Reinhart,” Ellen said, still fidgeting with her toes.

“Uh... yeah?”

“You’ve been a bit strange these days.”

It seemed like Ellen wanted to stop because she sensed something was off. Ellen cautiously turned her head towards me.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

Ellen must have noticed the tremor in my swordsmanship. She had been holding back this question, and now, she was finally asking. I needed to tell her.

“...”

In the end, though, I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t know how to start the conversation.

Ellen watched me quietly, then approached me and gently wrapped her arms around my neck. The scent coming from her hair and her neck tickled my nose.

“It’s okay to feel anxious.”

Perhaps she thought I was tense because the confrontation with the Demon King seemed imminent, and the intensity of our training had increased.

Ellen, still cradling my neck, whispered in my ear, “But it’ll be alright.”

‘Everything will be fine. Whatever it is, everything will turn out okay.

Ellen kept whispering this in my ear. And the more she did, the more the guilt in my heart swelled exponentially. If I continued to listen to her soft whispers, I felt like I would lose my mind.

So, I gently took Ellen’s arms that were wrapped around me and released them.

“Hey.”

“... Yeah?”

“Let’s just hang out.”

“...?”

We were both too exhausted.

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“We’ve been training like crazy lately. If we’re going to take a break, let’s not just dawdle about; let’s go out and have fun.”

We’ve been training so hard without even a moment’s rest, pushing away the time that we needed to organize our thoughts and say what needed to be said.

‘Let’s cool our heads a bit. Then we’ll talk.’

At my words, Ellen glanced down and then nodded slightly.

“... Okay.”

Somehow, her tone seemed a bit more cheerful.

***

We could have gone out to the Temple’s main street, but it was Saturday. That meant the next day was Sunday, giving us plenty of time to relax and have fun.

“Let’s invite the others too,” Ellen suggested.

If we were going to have fun, she thought it would be nice to include the others. That was unexpected, since I thought she would want it to be just the two of us.

I planned to have an important conversation, but it didn’t necessarily have to be just the two of us. After all, it was something everyone would eventually know.

Adelia was at the Magic Research Club, and Riana and Cliffman seemed busy with physical training.

Ellen and I couldn’t help but find it admirable that Riana, who usually dropped everything to hang out on weekends, was refusing to go out to play this time.

“You’re going out?”

“Yeah.”

“Where to?”

“We don’t know yet.”

Fortunately, Harriet, who was about to head to the Imperial Magic Department, hadn’t left yet. After a bit of hesitation, she decided to join us.

So it was Harriet, Ellen, and me, heading out of the Temple together.

In the original story, Ellen was a diligent student who mostly stayed in the training grounds, swinging her sword, and not much had changed. Harriet, though originally rather arrogant, was also a diligent student, and now she was just a cute but still diligent student.

Just then, I realized another fact that left me stunned.

“... What are you thinking about?” Ellen tilted her head, noticing my strange expression.

“Hey. I just realized something shocking.”

“What is it?”

“What if I’m actually a model student?”

“...?”

“Wow.”

Surprisingly and shockingly... if you thought about it, I was a nerd. I would wake up at dawn every day for early morning training, and on weekends, unless there was something special, I spent my time in the training grounds with Ellen, focusing on honing my swordsmanship, which was my major.

Despite how I often behaved like a delinquent, in reality, I was quite an exceptional nerd among nerds. Even if I was not academically inclined, in terms of achievements when it came to my major, I was rightfully considered the second-ranked student in Temple’s second year, after Ellen.

When they heard my sudden revelation, Ellen and Harriet looked at me with slightly open mouths.

“... You’re not exactly wrong.”

“Yeah. I don’t want to admit it, but it’s true...”

Upon reflection, they seemed even more shocked because it wasn’t wrong. Reinhart was a model student. A delinquent model student. Anyway, Ellen was a nerd, Harriet was a nerd, and I was a nerd.

Therefore, having never really gone out to have fun, none of us knew what to do when we decided to go out to play. We had left the Temple without a plan. We didn’t know where to go next. We had decided to have fun, but what exactly were we supposed to do for fun?

In the end, when I thought about what to do with them, the only thing that came to mind was eating. Of course, that was mostly for Ellen’s sake.

Then Ellen said something neither Harriet nor I expected.

“I want to go to the beach.”

“The beach? Isn’t it really far away?”

There were no beaches near the capital, Gradium.

“Why can’t we go?”

“How? If we’re going via the warp gate, there’s going to be a queue...”

“I’m kind of a big deal, so I’ll handle this.”

Harriet widened her eyes when I showed her the imperial emblem.

“How do you have that...? Oh... I see...”

She seemed confused about why I had such a thing, but then she realized I was Alsbringer’s master and understood how I might have come to possess it.

Naturally my gaze turned towards someone else.

“So, does that mean Ellen has one too?” Harriet asked.

“Yeah,” Ellen replied.

Ellen also took out the imperial emblem from her belongings and showed it to Harriet. Harriet looked at the two imperial emblems in front of her and stared at us blankly.

“Wow... so now you’re....”

“Yeah, technically, I’m more noble than you now. How does it feel, Grand Duchess? How does it feel to welcome someone with a status equivalent to royalty?” I teased.

“U-Ugh! Y-you! You’re not supposed to say things like that, you jerk!”

Pow! Pow!

“Hey! How dare you lay hands on someone who is equivalent to royalty? Do you want to be arrested for treason?”

“W-wow, wow... what a... what a piece of trash...”

Harriet trembled with rage, her face turning red as I shamelessly flaunted my status now that I was in a position of power.

In any case, we could travel anywhere with a warp gate. The weather was still too cold to swim in the sea, though. After Harriet’s shock and astonishment wore off, I looked at Ellen.

“Do you just want to see the ocean, or do you want to go to a place where you can swim?”

“It would be nice if we could swim too.”

‘Then we should head to a tropical region.’

There was no reason we couldn’t. It was the weekend, and since it was Saturday, it wouldn’t be a problem if we stayed overnight in whichever place we went to.

In this regard, the warp gate system was much better than the transportation system from my own world.

‘Hmm... A beach where we can swim...’

As I thought about it, a place came to mind.

“Hey, should we go somewhere near the deserted island that we were sent to?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Wow! I forgot about that place!”

Judging by Ellen and Harriet’s excited expressions, they both agreed enthusiastically.

“I think it was called the Kamsencha Archipelago,” Ellen said.

“Yeah, I think that’s right.”

Ellen remembered the name precisely, even though Harriet and I had completely forgotten.

***

The Kamsencha Archipelago, an Imperial Territory...

It was the location of the deserted island group mission, but since we’d been teleported to the island by a mage right after using the warp gate, we didn’t know much about the Kamsencha Archipelago itself.

Ellen and I presented the imperial emblems as we passed through the warp gates. Harriet seemed impressed by how the imperial emblem granted us a free priority pass at every warp gate.

“No security checks or procedures at all, huh.”

“Of course.”

When using a warp gate, one was usually required to verify one’s destination, identity, and purpose of travel, but there were no such checks for us. This applied to Harriet, our companion, as well.

As we passed through the massive warp gates, only the warp gate to Kamsencha Island remained. The guards froze when they saw the imperial emblems.

“Kamsencha Island, you say? Yes! We’ll connect you immediately!”

Since we were in a provincial city, it seemed like it was the first time the guards were seeing someone with an imperial emblem, someone literally from the heavens, and they were visibly flustered.

Thanks to this, we were able to travel almost instantly to Kamsencha Island in the Kamsencha Archipelago. However, as soon as we arrived, the hot air and humid weather brought back vivid memories of the previous year’s deserted island mission.

The place where we had just passed through had been warm as well, but this place was the real deal.

“... Am I the only one slightly regretting coming here as soon as we arrived?”

“... I feel the same.”

“...”

Naturally, when in a humid area, sweat was inevitable. Harriet immediately started fanning herself. Ellen touched her neck with a startled expression and then looked at me.

“Let’s go back.”

‘Oh, come on. Better to face it than avoid it.’

“Let me be clear. I never thought you smelled of sweat. Even if you did, I would have liked it, not disliked it.”

“...?”

“... Sweat? Smell? What are you talking about?” Harriet asked, puzzled.

I had blurted out my thoughts without holding back, leaving Ellen with a slightly puzzled expression. Harriet seemed completely lost, not understanding what was going on.

It did not matter that I’d said it out of concern for Ellen’s mental state. It still sounded like a perverted statement.

Ellen seemed to ponder for a moment, then tilted her head.

“... You like the smell of my sweat? Why?”

‘How could anyone like such a smell?’ she seemed to be thinking. ‘Why would you like it? Do you like me so much that even my sweat smell is pleasant?’

That might not have been her intention, but looking at me with such an expression intensified the feeling I was having.

It felt similar to the previous time when she’d said, “You want to be with me all day and even attend classes together?”

“Please, let’s stop saying things that drive each other crazy,” I said.

“... Why would it drive you crazy?”

“Uh, this kind of thing... This is what makes me feel like I’m going to lose it. Stop it.”

“Okay.”

“The smell of sweat...? You like that kind of thing?” Harriet said, sounding a bit overwhelmed.

“No! It’s not like that!”

“Then what is it?”

Just as I was about to explain it to Harriet, Ellen grabbed my sleeve and shook her head vigorously, as if to say she’d kill me if I said anything.

“Let’s just go. Wherever it is.”

But we didn’t know much about Kamsencha Island.

The island on which we had been sent during our mission was one of the many uninhabited islands scattered around Kamsencha Island, and we didn’t know which one it was.

In contrast, Kamsencha Island was inhabited, and since it was an imperial territory, there were still people and shops scattered around, even though it wasn’t a large city.

It was still early spring in the capital, where the weather was chilly, and we hadn’t expected to be in the Kamsencha Archipelago, thousands of kilometers away, just ten minutes after leaving the Temple. We were dressed in casual clothes and wearing coats, completely unsuited for this tropical region.

“Should I use magic?”

Harriet could probably cast something similar to the chilling touch spell Eleris had cast on Ellen and I in the Dark Land.

“Oh, you must have come from a cold place. You’ll roast to death dressed like that. Why don’t you buy some clothes?” said some street vendors as they looked us up and down.

“Magic would work, but let’s just buy some clothes,” I suggested.

“Yeah,” Ellen agreed.

We were practically steaming in our outfits thanks to the sea and the humid weather, so we headed towards a clothing store that was calling out to us.

***

Ellen chose a white, flowy dress with a round straw hat and light sandals. Harriet wore a very loose T-shirt with short shorts and slippers, giving off a sort of “short shorts” fashion vibe. I wore slippers, shorts, and something resembling a Hawaiian shirt.

We also bought swimsuits just in case we decided to swim.

“This is better,” I said.

“Yeah,” Ellen agreed.

“I can cast a spell if needed,” Harriet offered.

What started as a simple outing began to feel like a trip. With the warp gate system, every place was practically like my backyard.

Ellen’s limbs, in her white dress and straw hat, were so white and slender that they seemed to reflect the light, making her look dazzling. Harriet had let her pigtails down, giving her a fresh look.

We soon reached the beach, and Ellen bought a coconut from a street vendor. Perhaps it reminded her of old times.

“... It smells,” Ellen said.

“Really? I remember it being good...” Harriet took a sip from the coconut Ellen offered with a straw and made a similar grimace.

“Yeah... It does smell.”

Watching the two of them chatter over a single coconut was quite a sight. Ellen didn’t throw it away and continued to carry it around. She wasn’t one to waste food.

As I watched them quietly from behind, they both turned around

“What are you doing?”

“Hurry up. The sun’s scorching hot.”

“Oh, right. Okay.”

Having changed into clothes suitable for the climate, it was time to start moving in earnest.

“I’m hungry.”

“Me too.”

We had left after morning training without eating lunch, so it was natural to be hungry. Harriet also seemed to have skipped lunch.

Judging by their thoughtful expressions, they seemed to have something specific in mind that they wanted to eat.

We had wanted to go to the beach, and that had reminded us of the deserted island we’d been to for our group mission. So, we came to the Kamsencha Archipelago, and there was only one thing these two would want to eat right now.

“Do you guys want to eat lobster?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah, that’s it!”

Both of them fully agreed with my suggestion.