The White Cat That Swore Vengeance Was Just Lazing on the Dragon King’s Lap - Volume 6 - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Reunion

With Beryl and Riccia now gone, the castle felt a little less lively than before. Ruri would be lying if she said that she didn’t miss them, but it wasn’t as if they were worlds apart. That thought helped console her a bit. Still, whenever she felt the loneliness of being away from family hit her, she turned into a cat and cuddled and nuzzled against Jade to her heart’s content.

The reason she transformed into a cat was because she was too embarrassed to act that way as a human. Although she was anxious about showing signs of affection in human form, she had no qualms about it while in cat form. It made for an odd dynamic. Not that it mattered to Jade, though. He was thrilled that a fluffy cat was snuggling up to him, hungry for his affection. All in all, it was a win-win for both of them.

One day, as Ruri and Jade’s trip to the Nation of the Spirit King drew nearer, Claus came to Ruri with a letter in hand.

“A letter for me?” she asked. She was in cat form and lounging atop Jade’s lap.

“Indeed. Actually... I was hesitant to give it to you since it’s from someone whom you share quite a history with. However, His Majesty said it would be wiser to let you make that decision.”

Ruri looked up and met eyes with Jade, who nodded in confirmation.

“Whom is it from?” Ruri asked.

Claus hesitated for a moment before answering, “One of the people summoned to this world alongside you, Ruri.”

“Huh?!”

Nadasha had brought Ruri, Asahi, and three of their middle school classmates to this world. Asahi and the others had been sent to a distant land called Idocrase, where they all lived as workers. The lord and lady of the land, Finn’s parents, governed Idocrase. It was home to rich farmland said to be the Nation of the Dragon King’s food storage. They had been sent there because Idocrase constantly lacked manpower due to the year-round harvesting. There were also many migrant workers there. Overall, it was a good environment for the four of them considering they no longer had anyone to turn to.

Quite some time had passed since they’d sent Ruri’s former classmates away. Ruri rarely thought about them nowadays, instead choosing to leave them in the past and in her distant memory. Yet here they were now, attempting to contact her.

A tinge of dread rose in Ruri’s heart. “Don’t tell me that it’s from Asahi...”

“No, it is from the other woman in the group,” Claus replied.

Ruri was relieved to hear that. If it had been from Asahi, she probably would’ve burned it right then and there. No, she might just have read it out of fear. Either way, things were fine as long as it wasn’t from Asahi.

“I’ll read it. Give me the letter, please.”

“Here you go,” Claus said, placing the letter on the desk.

At the same time, Jade took off her bracelet, and she reverted to human form. “If you’re going to read it, it’d be better to do it in human form, right?”

“Thank you for that, Jade-sama,” Ruri replied. She tried to get off of his lap, but his arm latched around her stomach from behind. She silently appealed to him, but he showed no signs of letting go. Conceding to his whim, Ruri remained where she was and opened the letter.

The letter itself was simple and short. Ruri’s former classmate said that she wanted to see Ruri, that she was currently in the royal capital, and that...

“Huh?!” Ruri exclaimed.

Jade had been peeking over Ruri’s shoulder at the letter, but he couldn’t read it since it was written in Japanese. “What’s the matter?” he asked.

“She’s saying that she’s getting married,” explained Ruri.

“I see. That’s joyous news.”

“And it seems that she wants to meet me to give me a report.”

“Well, Ruri, what do you want to do?”

Ruri thought it over for a bit. To be honest, she’d never really spoken to the girl. Nevertheless, the girl had left a lasting impression on Ruri because of all the hostility she’d shown due to Asahi’s Bewitchment powers. Then again, once she awakened from the spell after Asahi’s mana was sealed off, the girl had apologized to Ruri, and Ruri had accepted it.

That was the extent of their relationship. They weren’t necessarily on friendly terms, but they were among the rare few who hailed from the same world. Ruri thought it might be best to meet and talk with her. A part of her was also curious about Asahi’s current status.

“I’ll go meet her,” Ruri decided.

“Then we’ll arrange a meeting. Where is this person?” Jade asked.

“Looks like she’s at an inn in the capital. The place she’s staying is written on the back of the letter.”

Since the note on the back was written in this world’s language, Ruri showed it to Claus. Claus then immediately contacted the girl and set up a face-to-face meeting at the castle.

When the time came for the meeting, an unnecessary number of people stood inside the room to act as Ruri’s security detail. Ruri wondered if Jade’s overprotectiveness was to blame, but she came to the conclusion that it was an essential safety precaution for when a Beloved met with an uncertain party.

When the girl entered the room, Finn greeted her with a glare, causing her to flinch in fear.

“Um, don’t worry. He won’t bite, so take a seat over there,” Ruri assured her.

“R-Right...” the girl replied as she sat down across from Ruri, albeit still afraid.

Ruri’s former classmate now had a healthy tan, and her features were slightly more mature, making her look stronger and more confident overall.

“It’s been a while,” Ruri said, offering an inoffensive greeting. She’d actually fretted about what she should say all the way up to this meeting.

The girl smiled nostalgically and replied, “Yes, it has.”

Neither of them knew the other well enough to engage in small talk, so they quickly got down to brass tacks.

“So, you see, I’m getting married,” the girl said.

“Yes, you wrote about it in your letter. I was shocked.”

“I-I bet. I still can’t believe it myself. My fiancé works for the lord of Idocrase, like me. Well, I say ‘like me,’ but he directly assists the lord and manages those working the fields, so he’s totally different from a mere farmhand like myself. He’s actually too good for me,” the girl stated, her cheeks flushing as she spoke fondly of her fiancé. “He’s a kind yet serious man. When he told me that he wanted to date me with marriage in mind, I never thought it was possible. After all, he was someone I had my eye on as well...”

“Ah, I see,” Ruri said, smiling.

“But...I told him to wait because I felt I needed your permission first, Morikawa-san.”

“My permission? Why?” Ruri asked, puzzled. She thought her classmate should have gotten married if that was what she wanted. She didn’t need Ruri’s permission to do so. Still, it was apparent that the girl thought differently.

“What I did... It might have been because of Asahi-san’s Bewitchment, but I indeed did something horrible, so I need to take responsibility,” she explained, clenching her hands in her lap. She was smiling, but her brows were furrowed. “I know this may be an inconvenience for you, Morikawa-san, but I need to do this, or I can’t take that man’s hand in marriage with pride. So I’m sorry,” she apologized, bowing her head deeply. “Please forgive me for wishing to be happy even though I tried to kill you.”

Honestly speaking, Ruri had totally forgotten about that—so much so that she only remembered it because the girl had brought it up. At the time, Ruri would have never forgiven her. She had been able to accept the group’s apology once they were free of the Bewitchment, but she was not in a forgiving mood back then.

However, while under Jade’s protection, Ruri had met so many important people and had been living a life so fulfilling that those unenjoyable moments slipped right out of her mind. That was why Ruri was so surprised to learn that her former classmate’s actions weighed so heavily on her. Ruri had guessed that she and her group were living happy new lives elsewhere. But it seemed the girl’s actions had left her with more feelings of penance and regret than Ruri would have imagined—perhaps with the other two classmates as well.

Ruri could only say one thing to the girl. “I...got married.”

“Y-Yeah, I know. To the Dragon King, right?”

“Right. Jade-sama is incredibly kind, and he takes care of me. And not just him. So many people around me treat me kindly. They’re all incredibly important to me, and I’m blessed to have them near.”

The girl stared at Ruri’s face, curious as to what Ruri was getting at.

“That’s why I hadn’t remembered any of you at all.”

“O-Oh, I see...” the girl stammered, her expression growing sullen. She was probably thinking that her visit had just been a nuisance.

Ruri continued, “What I mean is, you don’t have to worry about it. Sure, a lot of stuff happened in the past, but I’m so happy now that I’ve forgotten all about it. So you should be happy too.”

The girl lifted her head and gasped.

“Congratulations on your marriage,” Ruri said with a smile.

Both Ruri and her former classmate realized that Ruri was able to say that because so much time had passed.

The girl smiled as tears rolled down her face. “Thank you...”

Handing the sobbing girl a handkerchief, Ruri asked, “How are the other two doing?” She was naturally referring to the two male classmates aside from Asahi.

“One of them said he wanted to save up and travel around this fantasy world someday. The other one appears to be in love with a rabbit-eared beast person who works with him. She doesn’t seem to find the idea all that displeasing, so our coworkers are taking bets on when they’ll be an item.”

Laughter broke out between the two women.

“I’m glad to hear those two are enjoying this world as well,” Ruri said.

“Yeah. By the way, are you going to ask about...Asahi-san?” the girl hesitantly inquired.

Ruri’s expression turned sour. “Urk. A part of me wants to...and a part of me doesn’t.” She wavered, her curiosity coming and going. She hummed and pondered before asking, “Would you mind telling me?”

“Um, well, Asahi-san is... How do I put it? Um, Asahi-san...”

“Uh-huh, just as I expected. But I’m sure that she took a few licks from society and changed her ways. Well, even if she didn’t make it that far, I’m sure she must have learned at least a little common sense, right?”

“She was pretty bad at first,” the girl confirmed. “She wouldn’t work, she would always complain, and she would always try to push her work onto someone else.”

Ruri could picture all of that happening and more.

“But once the lady of the land blew a gasket and put her into a special curriculum, I’d say she’s gotten a lot better.”

“Special curriculum...?” Ruri looked up at Finn, who was standing next to her. “Erm, I’m sorry about that, Finn-san. It seems she’s been causing problems...”

The girl looked confused by Ruri’s apology.

“Finn-san is the son of the lord of Idocrase,” Ruri explained.

This seemed to click with the girl. “The lord and lady of the land have treated me very well. I must extend my thanks,” she said, bowing her head to Finn.

“Thank my parents. I didn’t do anything,” Finn replied, turning her down in his characteristically serious manner.

“Yes, that goes without saying. I am constantly grateful. It was the lady who suggested I go to the capital in the first place. She said that I should apologize in person if I felt that guilty. She even wrote a letter of introduction for me.”

“So I see,” Finn said, his intimidating aura somewhat softening.

“Anyway,” the girl continued, “Asahi-san’s learned a bit more common sense thanks to the lady’s curriculum, but she is still, well, Asahi-san. She still has the same personality, so I don’t think you should see her, Morikawa-san.”

The image of Asahi merrily frolicking as they met again played in Ruri’s mind. She put her fingers to her temple and said, “I appreciate the warning. I’ll make sure not to see her even if I have the chance to go to Idocrase.”

“I think that’s a wise decision.”

Ruri and the girl looked at each other and sighed. Right now, Asahi was tormenting Ruri’s former classmates since they all worked in the same place. Ruri couldn’t help but feel sympathy for them. Although it was probably too little, too late, she considered sending some token of appreciation to the lord and lady of Idocrase—especially the lady. Perhaps stomach medicine would do nicely.

“W-Well, anyway, I’m glad you’re getting by all right. How long are you in the capital for?” Ruri asked.

“Since I’ve talked to you, I plan to go back to Idocrase after I do a little sightseeing around the capital. Actually, my fiancé is here with me.”

“Huh?! He is?”

“He is. He actually told me that he would come with me here today, but I wanted to take responsibility myself, so he’s waiting for me back at the inn.”

“In that case, you better give him a proper reply,” Ruri said in a playful tone.

Her former classmate smiled bashfully, her cheeks reddening, and nodded.

The two women had shared a much more engaging conversation than Ruri had expected, and the time had flown by in the blink of an eye until it was time to say farewell.

“Thank you for seeing me, Morikawa-san. I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”

“You’re very welcome. Drop by if you’re ever in the capital again.”

Both girls knew that would be a very difficult thing to do. It wasn’t easy for a mere commoner to meet Ruri, a Beloved, even if they were from the same place of origin. Jade and Claus probably only decided to show Ruri the letter because Finn’s mother was acting as a go-between this time around. Nevertheless, Ruri wanted to see her again.

“Yes, most definitely,” the girl said, nodding. “Either that, or let me know if you ever come to Idocrase, Morikawa-san. I’d like for you to meet the other two as well.”

“All right, I’ll send you a letter whenever that is.”

In the end, both girls were able to part ways with smiles on their faces.