Chapter 10 TSH Vol. 1 Chapter 2 Part 2

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It was past evening by the time Sieg finished registering for the tournament and returned to his inn near the gate. Sieg entered his room, took off his travel gear, and asked a servant to bring him a washbasin. As he wiped himself down with a damp cloth, briefly cleaning off the grime, he thought about his plans for the future.

Sieg had come to this city for one of the tournament’s secondary prizes. Among them was a magic item he desperately wanted. With it, his journey ahead would be that much more secure. Winning the tournament wouldn’t be difficult. It would draw some attention, but that couldn’t be helped. All he had to do was get the magic item, retrieve his sacred silver sword, and leave the city immediately.

He went downstairs, emptied the water from the basin onto the garden plants, set the basin down, and headed to the dining hall.

The dining hall was crowded, likely due to the tournament. He was just thinking he should have eaten at a food stall instead when an unexpected voice called out to him.

“Hey! It’s Siggy! Over here, over here! This way!”

…Huh?

At a table in the corner of the dining hall, the royal guard Emma was waving her arm enthusiastically. Beside her sat the princess. When the princess noticed him, she looked startled and quickly bowed her head.

Sieg was flustered.

…Why is the princess here…? Didn’t she go to the lord’s castle?

He couldn’t just ignore them after being called over. Hiding his inner turmoil, Sieg put on a puzzled expression and approached their table, making a conscious effort to use a gruff tone.

“Why are you here? There are plenty of better inns.”

Emma answered.

“I’m the one who asked! The castle… I mean, fancy inns make me all nervous, y’know? I can’t relax!”

He wondered if a guard should really be speaking without her master’s permission, but he knew it was pointless to expect common sense from Emma. The princess gently chided Emma, “A little quieter, please,” before speaking up herself.

“Good evening. I was surprised to find we’re at the same inn. Emma said she preferred it here… and I find places like this more calming as well. It’s… nice to see you again.”

Seeing her speak so shyly, Sieg groaned internally.

Staying at a cheap inn like this… Even if her face is hardly known, does she have no self-awareness as a princess?

As Sieg sighed, Emma chimed in.

“Siggy, sit down already. You’re in the way of other people, y’know?”

And Emma is as loud as ever!

Sieg sat down, ordered something at random, and they ended up deciding to toast with light mead.

Emma raised her glass.

“Alright, a toast to runnin’ into Siggy again—”

“Hold on. What’s ‘Siggy’?”

Interrupted mid-toast, Emma pouted.

“‘Sieg’ is just a mouthful! So ‘Siggy’ is fine, right? Right!?”

Seeing her trying to steamroll him, Sieg found it too much trouble to argue and just nodded.

The princess murmured with a resigned look, “I’m so sorry about Emma…”

“Okay, now that that’s settled, cheeeers!”

The three of them toasted, and when their food arrived, they shared it and ate. Emma jumped from topic to topic, the princess answered reservedly, and Sieg just listened. By the time Emma, who had stuffed herself, started to look sleepy, their small, three-person banquet came to an end, and they each returned to their own rooms.

To his surprise, the princess’s room was right next to his. As the princess pushed Emma into her room, she bowed her head to Sieg.

“Thank you for all your help today. …Um… well, good night.”

She seemed to want to say something else, but Sieg feigned ignorance and just nodded. He went back to his room and let out a huge sigh.

Hah… it seems I’m truly fated to run into her…

With a bitter expression, Sieg lay down on his bed. He didn’t expect any trouble, but he planned to stay awake tonight. Now that he knew she was here, the least he could do was play the part of a guard.

Around midnight, a noise from the next room startled Sieg awake. It was faint, but he heard the princess scream. He hadn’t sensed any intruders, but he immediately jumped out into the hallway. The door to the next room flew open, and a frantic princess rushed out.

“What’s wrong!?”

She flinched for a second when he spoke, then ran to him with teary eyes and huddled close. She said in a trembling voice.

“A-A-A mouse!”

Sieg drew in a breath, then let it out in relief.

Just a mouse… Thank goodness…

Sieg went back to his room and took a small pouch from his bag. The princess, still frightened, clung to his clothes and followed him.

Back in the hall, he peered into her room and asked.

“Is it okay if I go in?”

Seeing her nod while still trembling, Sieg entered the room. Emma was fast asleep in the adjacent bed, her sleeping posture a complete mess.

The princess mumbled, somewhat embarrassed.

“Once Emma’s asleep, she doesn’t wake up…”

The fundamental question of what is a guard? crossed his mind, but dealing with the mouse was the priority.

Sieg opened the pouch and sprinkled a little powder in the four corners of the room.

“This is beast-repellent powder. It’s harmless to people and doesn’t have much of a smell, so it should be fine to use.”

The princess, still on the verge of tears, nodded vigorously. “Here, you can have this. Use it as you see fit,” Sieg said, handing her the pouch. She took it but remained standing rooted to the spot, trembling.

After a moment, she said apologetically.

“Um… could you… stay a little longer? In your room, perhaps…”

She must have been truly terrified of the mouse. Sieg let out a deep sigh and agreed.

Sieg used a simple household magic tool he’d bought in the city to boil water and brew some tea. There was a rule against using open flames in the rooms, but a magic tool was probably fine.

After a few sips of tea, the princess finally began to relax. Some of the color had returned to her face as well.

“This has a unique taste… but it’s delicious. It’s very calming.”

“It’s herbal tea. It has a soothing effect.”

“I see… I’m sorry, Sieg-san. I feel like I’m always causing you trouble…”

“No, it’s fine. This must be… fate, or something.”

The princess smiled faintly.

“It helps to hear you say that.”

A loud thump came from the next room, like someone kicking the wall. It was probably Emma and her terrible sleeping habits.

Seeing Sieg sigh, the princess glanced toward the wall.

“Please don’t think badly of Emma. She was the only one who became my guard without asking for anything in return. That’s why… I’m so very grateful to her.”

I’m sure, Sieg thought. No knight would want to be the guard for the failure of a fifth princess. If they did, they would surely demand something in return. Emma must not have engaged in that kind of scheming. Not that he thought Emma was capable of any advanced political maneuvering anyway…

The princess began to tell him her life story, little by little. She concealed her rank, but spoke of her talented older siblings, of how she was considered useless, how she had tried to work hard regardless, and how she had a grand dream—

He already knew her dream was to join the Hero’s party. She had told him about it countless times in the past. As he listened, Sieg secretly gritted his teeth. He felt bad for her, but that dream would never come true. Because he had no need for companions.

She asked him timidly.

“Um… your fighting during the day was incredible. What was that technique?”

“…The palm strike? You hit with the heel of your palm… the carpus. It’s less likely to cause injury to yourself than punching, and you can deliver a powerful blow with little force.”

The princess’s eyes lit up. This was apparently what she had been wanting to ask since dinner.

“A palm strike! I see… your upper body doesn’t move as much as with a punch. Then what about that? The footwork you used to get inside the bouncer’s guard, how do you do that!?”

Carried away by her enthusiasm, Sieg gave her a brief lesson on a movement similar to [Flash Step]. The princess nodded excitedly and leaned in closer to Sieg.

“You’re amazing, Sieg-san! You just swooshed in and then—bam, bam, bam—it was over!”

Sieg gave a wry smile.

The princess was the amazing one. Noticing the [Flash Step] was one thing, but very few people could have seen that the palm strike was a three-hit combo. He averted his eyes from her eager, approaching face and spoke.

“Alright, calm down. …And you’re a little too close.”

“Ah…!”

The princess finally realized how close she was and pulled back, blushing.

“I’m sorry… I don’t have anyone else I can talk to about this stuff, so… I just got carried away…”

That made sense. There probably weren’t many noble ladies who got excited about the topic of palm strikes.

After a moment, the princess changed the subject.

“Um… you’re probably from the west, aren’t you, Sieg-san? Your words have a very faint western accent. I thought maybe you were born there and moved to the capital. You’re deliberately affecting your speech and manners, aren’t you? I can somehow tell you’ve had a formal education for many years. I don’t think you’re a commoner, but you’re not quite a noble either… You’re a very mysterious person.”

Sieg drew in a sharp breath and let it out slowly.

“You’re about half right.”

“Only half? That gives me more to figure out,” the princess said with a playful smile.

She had sharp eyes and ears, and excellent powers of observation.

Sieg sighed internally.

The royal family is really blind to her abilities… Are they all incompetent, or is she just that good at hiding it?

Princess Cordelia was talented. On top of that, she was a tireless worker. With a good teacher, she could blossom into an extraordinary individual. But—that was precisely what made her so dangerous. She could never find out he was the Hero.

As Sieg listened quietly, the princess began to look sleepy. The herbal tea was also a mild sedative.

“I… I’m chasing after someone,” she murmured. “He is strong, and wise, and will one day save the world. I know I can never catch up to him… I know that… but ever since I was small, I’ve admired him, and I’ve lived my whole life just trying to reach him… If I hadn’t, I don’t think I could have survived…”

Sieg had heard stories about her childhood from her before. As a young girl, Princess Cordelia had been sickly and weak, and her development was slow. The royal family had quickly written her off as having no aptitude for her royal duties. Her own mother, disappointed, had grown distant. Shunned even by the one person who should have been her ally, she became isolated in the palace.

She had apparently been called useless, a failure, and a good-for-nothing behind her back by the gossips at court. What had supported her through all that was the biography of the Hero. She became engrossed in his exploits, devouring not just the official records but also anecdotal accounts, rumors from the time, and local legends. Eventually, she began to dream of meeting the Hero, and if possible, journeying with him. The singular desire to meet the Hero was what had carried her through a painful and lonely childhood.

The princess began to drift off. Sieg gently took the cup from her hand and lifted her into his arms. She mumbled in his embrace.

“…Hero… one day… by your side…”

Sieg pretended not to hear.

He carried her to the next room and laid her on the bed. He pulled the blanket over her and smoothed her messy hair. And then—he felt the sharp point of a knife at his throat, accompanied by a wave of killing intent. A low voice spoke from behind him.

“…Try anything funny with the princess and I’ll kill ya, got it?”

Sieg sighed and answered.

“I knew you were awake. You were listening the whole time, weren’t you? Lower the knife. Or do you want to see which of us is faster, Emma?”

The royal guard, Emma, glanced down at the knife Sieg was now pressing against her stomach and clicked her tongue. He had drawn his own knife behind his back, ready for an attack.

Emma instantly sheathed her knife up her sleeve and snorted.

“You’re pretty good. Killin’ you would be a real pain.”

Sieg smirked at her unfunny joke.

For all her goofiness, Emma was strong. Her skill with a sword was solid, but she was a master with a knife. She was better suited for assassination than honorable duels. She was a true expert who had secretly saved the princess from danger countless times.

Sieg asked.

“Why did you choose this inn?”

Emma glanced at the sleeping princess and shrugged.

“Looked like the princess took a likin’ to ya. She’s got a thing for strong people… she’s desperate to get stronger herself. …Besides, she never smiles that happily when she’s just with me.”

It was true; the princess had smiled a lot during dinner. She was probably just happy to have made an acquaintance who wasn’t tied to her station.

As he was leaving the room, Sieg said to Emma.

“You’re a good guard, loyal to your master.”

“…Hmph… shut up.”

For once, Emma looked away. Seeing her reaction, Sieg allowed himself a small smile.

Back in his room, he collapsed onto the bed. He thought about the tournament starting tomorrow and let out a huge sigh.

Well… this is going to be a problem…

Shaking his head as if to clear his worries, Sieg closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.