Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 39 - Chapter 1

Nalfa’s Ordeal

Wednesday, August 31st

With hobbies like fishing, maintaining one’s tools was essential. Sea angling gear was constantly exposed to saltwater, so there was a perpetual risk of it rusting. To prevent this, Koutarou made time to clean his kit after using it. He took good care of his baseball equipment too, so the sight of him doing such maintenance wasn’t all that unusual in room 106.

Nevertheless, the people of Forthorthe were curious about the pastimes of Earth—and their interest was especially keen in anything involving Koutarou, the Blue Knight. Thus Nalfa was almost always recording, no matter how mundane the scene... Today, however, was an exception. Rather than her camera, she had a handwritten note in her grasp, and she wore a serious expression as she passed it to Koutarou.

“Koutarou-sama, is this how you spell the princesses’ names?!”

“Let’s see, Theiamillis Gre and Clariossa Daora... Yeah, that’s right. But you know, this is a speech. Nobody’s even going to know if you misspell them.”

Koutarou glanced at Nalfa’s note and smiled before turning back to his tools. He was in the middle of reassembling a reel he’d taken apart to clean. Experience guided his hands in smooth, steady motions. The work was familiar to him.

“You make it sound like it’s no big deal, but this is my first time ever giving a speech.”

“But you’re always talking on camera, right?”

“That’s different. The spotlight’s not on me then.”

Nalfa’s head was spinning. In a few days, the second semester at Harukaze High would begin with a second wave of Forthorthian transfer students, and she’d been chosen as a representative to give a speech at their welcoming ceremony. The decision was like a bolt out of the blue to her. She’d never imagined that she would be asked to take center stage like this.

“I think there are already lots of people watching you, though.”

“Only because I’m close to you.”

“You need more confidence in yourself, Nalfa-san. You’re a good, wonderful girl, and I’m sure everyone appreciates that.”

“Please don’t tease me. I need your help.”

“Y’know, you’re kinda acting like Yurika today...”

Koutarou paused his handiwork and looked back at Nalfa. She was gripping the note in her hands as tears welled in her eyes. Indeed, she looked just like Yurika when she was cornered.

“You could at least stand by my side!”

“What good would that do...?”

“It would help me!”

Nalfa was uncomfortable taking a leading role like this. She preferred to be behind the scenes filming. Even when she made a cameo, Koutarou and Japanese culture were always the focus of the show. She was nothing more than a supporting character. Never once had she been the main character, until now. For her speech, she’d be sharing her own thoughts and experiences. It was a first for her—and a major hurdle.

“Don’t think too hard about it,” Koutarou encouraged her. “Just say what’s on your mind.”

“Ugh... How do you do it, Koutarou-sama?”

“Well, my speeches are normally political, so Clan and Kiriha-san write them for me. Can’t really afford to get that stuff wrong, y’know?”

“But they still express your feelings, right?”

“Yeah. Clan and Kiriha-san just write down what I want to say so it’s clear. Should we ask them to help you out too?”

“I don’t think so. They’re busy enough as it is... I wouldn’t want to waste their precious time with this.”

“That’s exactly what I’m talking about.”

“Huh? What is?”

“You’re a good girl. You want to give this your all.”

“Well... if I don’t, it’d cause trouble for a lot of people.”

“If that’s your mindset, I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

In perfectly frank terms, Koutarou wasn’t worried at all. Nalfa may have looked rattled, but she was keeping her chin up. Yurika would still be clinging to Koutarou and begging for his help, but Nalfa wanted to give it her best shot. Even if she failed, Koutarou didn’t think she’d do a bad job.

“That’s big talk,” said Nalfa. “You’ll make it up to me if things go awry, won’t you?”

“Sure, sure.”

“You’re not seriously listening to me, are you?”

“You can tell?”

“Jeez!”

Nalfa put her hands on her hips and frowned. She was pouting almost like Shizuka or Harumi.

It feels like just yesterday she seemed so scatterbrained, but she’s doing well for herself now...

In the first few months after meeting Koutarou, Nalfa had made a rather hopeless and hapless impression. She’d apparently had a sheltered upbringing, and she was so reserved that she could barely do anything for herself. Moreover, she was a walking disaster, prone to tripping over nothing and falling in ditches. Every time Koutarou took his eyes off her, she managed to find trouble. But things had changed since then. In the last couple of months, she’d grown dramatically. She was more dependable now and tried to take care of herself.

Seeing her like this... Wouldn’t things have turned out the same in Forthorthe too?

Koutarou pondered Nalfa’s development as he stared into her face. Since she’d been able to pull herself together on Earth, after all, wouldn’t she have been able to do the same back home? It was interesting to think about, but he didn’t think it mattered all that much one way or the other.

It was probably just disorienting to be thrust into a whole new world. I mean, she literally came from another planet...

Perhaps Nalfa had always been a little flighty and shy, and perhaps being in an unfamiliar situation had exacerbated those qualities. It wasn’t like they’d completely disappeared, even now. Koutarou thus had to wonder if it was less that Nalfa had grown over the past few months and more that she’d simply returned to her normal self.

“What’s the matter, Koutarou-sama?” she asked, her head cocked to the side. She wasn’t sure why he was looking at her so intently.

“Ah, it’s just that you...”

He couldn’t tell her he’d been thinking about how unreliable and passive she was just a few short months ago, so he stopped to think of a better reply. Saying that was enough to set a girl off—Koutarou had learned better over the past few years.

“I what?” Nalfa pressed.

“E-Er, I was wondering about your hair.”

Koutarou glanced at Nalfa’s locks, which had happened to catch his eye. Her hair was almost translucent, but looking at it closely, it shone with the colors of the rainbow. He’d always wondered about it before, and this seemed like the perfect time to bring it up and change the subject.

“You mean the color? It’s natural,” Nalfa said with a smile as she touched her long hair. As a girl, she made a point of taking care of it. She was pleased Koutarou had noticed.

“I guess it’s okay, then,” he said.

“What is?” she asked.

“During ceremonies and stuff, the teachers can be real sticklers about dyed hair that goes against the dress code.”

“Ah, they can be like that in Forthorthe too. They really don’t like it when you style it up during formal events.”

“But your hair color is natural and you wear it down, so I don’t think we have anything to worry about.”

“You have a good point, though... That had completely slipped my mind.”

Nalfa smiled again as she played with her hair. She’d been so preoccupied with her speech that she hadn’t given a thought to her outfit or hairstyle for the ceremony. Seeing her twirl her tresses, Koutarou’s eyes naturally wandered to them again.

“It really is an unusual color,” he remarked.

“Do you think so?” she replied. “It seems perfectly normal to me.”

“I was sure there had to be some kind of technology behind it.”

“Oh, we have that too. People love to change their hair color as they please. Kind of like this...”

Nalfa picked up her phone. It was an Earth-made smartphone, but she’d moved pictures of her friends and family onto it. She brought up a few to show Koutarou, yet just before she could turn the phone around for him...

“Let me see... Oh.”

Nalfa went wide-eyed. Rather than waiting for Nalfa to show him, Koutarou had leaned in to see for himself. He put his face right next to hers, just like he would with any of the other nine girls.

Y-You’re close! Too close! That’s way too close!

Nalfa was beside herself. She’d led a sheltered life and hardly knew how to act around men aside from her brother. Moreover, Koutarou was the Blue Knight. As a Forthorthian girl, how could she not be shaken being so close to him?

“E-Eeek!”

She reflexively backed away, losing her balance in the process. Since she was sitting down, she could have just stuck a hand out to catch herself—if she hadn’t been holding her phone, that is. She floundered, then began to fall.

“Nalfa-san!”

Seeing her topple over, Koutarou instinctively grabbed her shoulder and pulled her close. He was worried that she might hit her head. Even if they were on tatami mats, that wasn’t something he wanted to see. With a soft thump, she collided with him instead. It looked like he’d embraced her.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I-I’m so sorry...” she muttered.

Nalfa had tried to get away from Koutarou, but now they were even closer than before. He was just relieved that she was safe, but Nalfa hardly knew what to do. Her expression and tone turned stiff. It wasn’t that she disliked Koutarou. If anything, the problem was the opposite.

I take it all back. Nalfa-san is still a klutz...

Recently, Koutarou had intentionally gotten bolder around the girls. Living with them for so long had changed him, and it was starting to have an effect on them in turn. Koutarou was none the wiser, however. Even now, he was completely oblivious as to what was going on inside Nalfa’s head.

Nalfa’s ordeal continued after that. She’d previously seen Koutarou as both a legendary hero and a normal boy (a combination of her feelings as a Forthorthian and Kotori’s friend). But now there was something else in the mix. She saw Koutarou as a man, and the very thought shook her to her core.

Wh-What should I do? He’s a legendary hero... Moreover, the princesses and the other girls love him.

Nalfa had been conscious of vague feelings for Koutarou taking root in her heart, but given his relationship with the other nine girls, she believed it was best not to nurture them. Yet against her will, those feelings were now growing with a fervor. If she allowed it, they would burst into full bloom. That possibility, that prospect, was the source of her current anguish. She had no idea what to do.

“All right, done! On to the next one.”

Koutarou, meanwhile, remained blissfully unaware of all this and continued cleaning his fishing kit. (Granted, it would have meant a different set of problems if he had noticed.) Once his reel was back together, he moved on to repairing his lures. He filled any cracks with putty, fixed up their coatings, and changed out dull hooks. It was detailed work, but he was enjoying himself.

Ah, gosh! I can’t stand the sight of that beaming smile right now!

Just minutes ago, Nalfa hadn’t minded being alone with Koutarou. But now she struggled to stay composed, even though nothing had really happened. In fact, Koutarou was acting like everything was perfectly normal. Nalfa felt it was unfair that she was the only one who felt awkward. Her fixation on Koutarou, however, pushed all thoughts of her speech out of her mind, and she likely wouldn’t go back to worrying about it for some time. The awkwardness continued until Theia and Ruth returned to the apartment.

“We’re back,” Theia called from the front door.

“Hello, everyone,” Ruth greeted the room.

“Hey, welcome home,” Koutarou called back to them.

“Hello, Princess Theiamillis, Ruth-sama...” Nalfa followed suit.

Although Nalfa wasn’t sure if it was for better or worse, having more people in room 106 was an immediate relief. Koutarou naturally turned his attention to the new arrivals. Nalfa felt like she’d been saved.

“Koutarou.”

“What?”

“Hup!”

With light steps, Theia walked over to Koutarou, sat down next to him, and rested her head in his lap. Koutarou wouldn’t normally complain, but now wasn’t a good time.

“Hey, that’s dangerous. I’m using putty and adhesives here. What if I drop some on your face or in your hair?”

He was in the middle of fixing up his tackle, which involved working with solvents that could damage Theia’s skin, stain her clothes, or ruin her hair if he accidentally splashed any on her. It truly was risky to be in his lap right now.

“I don’t mind. Carry on as you were.”

Theia, however, didn’t seem to care. Her smile was softer than usual. There was a gentleness in her partially closed eyes. Feeling like he’d be sucked in if he kept staring, Koutarou hurriedly looked away.

“With the ceremony so close, shouldn’t you be careful?” he asked.

“I’m sure the citizens would love to hear the story of a princess getting glue in her hair as she watched the Blue Knight keep up his fishing lures.”

“You’re a girl, you know, so—“

“Living together means tolerating that kind of thing. Besides, you’ll love me no matter how dirty I get.”

Theia had been in a great mood ever since Koutarou’s exchange with Elfaria the other day. He’d said something extraordinary that pleased her immensely.

“Ohohohoho! So you have a request of your beautiful mother-in-law, do you, Layous-sama?”

“I still haven’t married Theia yet!”

His words could be taken to mean that he would, in fact, marry Theia one day. Koutarou, of course, wanted to deny it. Not that he actually could, however. Theia had broached the subject of marriage long ago, so for Koutarou to insist—to say he had no intention of getting married whatsoever—would be as good as a lie. This left the earnest boy in a position where he could say nothing at all.

As she set snacks down on the tea table, Ruth giggled a little. She’d realized that Koutarou’s “yet” didn’t apply to Theia alone. If it did, his decision would’ve been made for him already. But there were eight other girls he wanted to make happy too, which was the reason for his silence.

“C-Come on, I want to keep your face pretty just the way it is...” he muttered, averting his eyes. That was as much as he could admit. He’d matured in the last two years, but he still didn’t have the courage to say something like that to a girl’s face.

“Well, in that case, I suppose I have to comply,” Theia acquiesced.

She understood his reluctance. She knew that they were asking a lot from him. She was also more interested in having fun, so she didn’t want to corner him. She thus got up from his lap and settled in next to him instead.

“So, what haven’t you repaired yet?” she asked.

“Why?” he asked in turn.

“I’ll help. You won’t complain about that, will you?”

“All right, then take that gold and red one.”

“Hmm, so I just need to fill the crack and paint it red?”

“You got it.”

“Leave it to me. I’m pretty dexterous, you know.”

“As long as we finish up before you get frustrated.”

“You know me so well... Heh, I suppose the Mastir family has a stable future ahead of it.”

“...”

As Ruth contently continued to watch over Koutarou and Theia, yet another laugh escaped her lovely lips. Theia and Koutarou were so deeply connected that they were now inseparable—that was why Theia saw stability in the Mastir family’s future. Ruth felt a similar bond with Koutarou, so she believed the Pardomshiha family would share that fortune.

With new transfer students from Forthorthe on the way, Theia and Ruth were busy. So much so that they’d barely had any time to spend in room 106 lately. Even today, they were only here in the middle of the day on business—they had important paperwork regarding upcoming events. And so, when Koutarou was done with his fishing gear and Nalfa was done with her speech, they switched gears.

“I answered everything in Japanese. Is that okay?” Koutarou asked.

“Yes, that’s fine,” Theia replied. “Now at the bottom, there’s a question about sharing this information with the Forthorthian government. Do you see that?”

“Oh, you mean this?”

“If you consent, your answers will automatically be translated and sent over to the immigration department.”

“Ah, so you’ve got this all figured out.”

Once the ceremony was over, Koutarou and the girls would be returning to Forthorthe to pursue Ralgwin. Theia had brought documents to facilitate that. The last time they went, there had been no diplomatic relations between Earth and Forthorthe. The former hadn’t even known the latter existed. But now there were procedures in place that needed to be followed. This wasn’t just international travel, after all; it was intergalactic. All sorts of red tape had cropped up to keep things as safe as possible. Eventually the system would be consolidated and streamlined, but for now, in its infancy, there was a ton of paperwork to fill out and sign.

“Did you do stuff like this when you first arrived, Nalfa-san?” Koutarou asked.

“...”

“Nalfa-san?”

“O-O-Oh, me?!”

“Yeah, I was asking if you had to do paperwork like this when you came to Earth.”

“Yes, although it was all on the computer.”

Nalfa still looked flustered. Kiriha observed her with great interest, half because she’d sensed what Nalfa was feeling and half for a different reason altogether.

I suspected as much, but Nalfa has some sort of connection to us, doesn’t she?

Kiriha was still in possession of a certain sealed letter from her past self. Then there was the mysterious power Nalfa had displayed when attacked. Seeing the Forthorthian transfer student grow closer to Koutarou, Kiriha had begun to think something was afoot.

But I don’t sense any deception on her part... Perhaps this is the work of an outside influence. No... it’s still too early to say. I’ll need to observe more.

After deciding on a course of action, Kiriha put the matter away in the back of her mind. After all, something just as interesting was unfolding in front of her now.

“Go, Harumi! Now’s your chance!” Sanae-chan shouted.

“B-But I’m not ready!” Harumi cried.

“You don’t need to be! Just go get ’im!” Sanae-nee cheered.

“Sakuraba-senpai, you don’t have to listen to Sanae-chan when she’s being unreasonable,” Sanae-san cut in.

“But if I give up now, I feel like I’ll always be stuck like this.”

Behind Koutarou sat Harumi and the three Sanaes. Sanae-chan and Sanae-nee were spurring Harumi on, while Sanae-san was trying to pump the brakes. The emotional push and pull was taking a toll on Harumi. Her fingers were twitching, her eyes were wide open, and her breathing was ragged—a clear case of the nerves. It was unusual to see her so on edge.

“Uh, Kiriha-san, what’s going on behind me?” Koutarou asked. He could tell the girls were up to something and that Harumi was caught in the middle of it, so he looked to the insightful Kiriha to figure out what was going on.

“Simply put, Harumi is trying a new way of expressing herself,” she explained. “Please be patient.”

“A new way of expressing herself? I don’t follow, but if you say so...”

Based on Kiriha’s answer, it sounded like—whatever was happening—it was important to Harumi, but it wasn’t anything too serious. Koutarou thus quietly returned to his paperwork.

“My Harumi is a pretty late bloomer, but you’ve got it bad too,” remarked Sanae-nee.

“Of course!” threw in Sanae-san. “They’re still the same person.”

“All right, the target’s stopped moving! Now’s the time to attack, Harumi!” rallied Sanae-chan.

“This is my chance, so... here goes!”

Having finally steeled herself, Harumi thrust her hands out toward Koutarou. She kneaded her fingers and began massaging his shoulders.

“Well done, Private Harumi!” cheered Sanae-nee.

“Say, Onee-chan, can I get a promotion already?” asked an excited Sanae-chan.

“Give it up, Private.”

“Aye, aye.”

“Since when did we have ranks again...?” Sanae-san muttered.

The three Sanaes were now casually chatting, but Harumi was in a different world. She was anxiously waiting to see how Koutarou would react. She fretted over whether she was being too hard or too gentle, too fast or too slow, and so on. She even worried about whether he’d want a shoulder massage from her in the first place. Harumi was so considerate of others that she had a great deal to be anxious about, which was why she’d hesitated to do this in the first place.

“Hey, Sakuraba-senpai.”

“Y-Yes!” Harumi let out a shrill cry when Koutarou said her name.

Ahh, what is Satomi-kun going to say? That it hurts? That it’s too weak? That he doesn’t need this? Maybe he’ll even say that he doesn’t want me to...

It wasn’t that Harumi lacked confidence in herself; rather, it was simply hard for her to be forward with the man she loved. Even though she was now healthy and starting to get more proactive, that part of her hadn’t changed.

“Let me rub your shoulders later too,” he said. “I give a pretty mean massage.”

Harumi was such a late bloomer that even an ignoramus like Koutarou knew how much courage it must have taken for her to reach out to him. He also understood what it meant to her. And while he couldn’t respond to those feelings directly right now, he could at least repay the favor just like he would for Sanae or Theia.

“Oh, u-um, okay...”

Koutarou’s offer surprised Harumi, but she didn’t refuse. He was offering a token of his gratitude, after all. Since she’d braced herself for the worst, it was a pleasant surprise.

“Ooh, now your fingers are really moving, Sakuraba-senpai.”

“Satomi-kun, you know exactly what you’re doing and you’re just being mean, aren’t you?”

“Yup.”

“Everyone’s been complaining about that lately.”

“Really?”

“Yes. We all think you shouldn’t be so shy.”

“W-Well, you know, I’m a guy and everything...”

“I won’t forget this.”

“Have mercy, Sakuraba-senpai.”

Slowly but surely, Harumi was calming down. The three Sanaes looked at each other without saying a word. They knew these things needed to happen naturally, but they were all working hard to help her get closer to Koutarou. Seeing him play with Theia and Nalfa had made Harumi decide to try her best too. And for the time being, it was mission success.

Everyone eagerly dove into their paperwork at first, but as time wore on, their enthusiasm waned considerably. Filling out forms was a monotonous task, after all. The first to throw in the towel was Yurika.

“I can’t do it... I’m not going to Forthorthe...” she whined, tossing her pen and papers aside as she collapsed on the tea table. She’d completely run out of steam.

“Keep at it,” Koutarou encouraged her. “Can you really call yourself a magical girl if you’re the only one who drops out to stay home?”

“But I have so much more paperwork than everyone else!”

That much was true. Yurika wasn’t just being whiny. She had twice the forms to fill out—one set for Folsaria and one for Japan.

“Aika-san has just as much,” Koutarou reminded her.

“I’m not as fast as Maki-chan, though.”

“Well, if you don’t get to it, you really are gonna get left behind.”

“I don’t want that either...”

Maki also had two sets of forms, but she was a quick study. She’d already finished her paperwork and moved on to helping out the other girls who were having trouble. Even at a time like this, she was an exemplary role model.

“If you became a Forthorthian citizen, you wouldn’t have to go through all this,” Theia suggested. She had plenty of time on her hands since she was on Earth as a Forthorthian diplomat, meaning she had no red tape to deal with. She could travel between the two planets as she pleased.

“That’s not the kind of thing to decide on a whim,” Koutarou objected with a shake of his head.

Theia had a point, but changing one’s nationality was a serious decision. It shouldn’t be made merely to avoid bothersome paperwork. Theia understood that herself, so she nodded in return.

“He’s right,” she admitted. “So you’ll just have to bear with it and fill out the paperwork.”

“No, I want to change nationalities!” Yurika insisted.

“Idiot,” Koutarou scolded, smacking her on the head.

“Auuugh...”

That discouraged Yurika from any further resistance. With tears in her eyes, she reluctantly took up her pen again. Shizuka watched this all unfold with a smile, but something suddenly occurred to her.

“Say, that reminds me, Satomi-kun. Couldn’t you just ignore all of Forthorthe’s laws because of what Princess Alaia did?”

Indeed, Alaia had written it into the Forthorthian constitution that the Blue Knight would forever be immune to the letter of the law. Essentially, he was above it. There was no real need for him to fill out any Forthorthian paperwork.

“I could,” Koutarou replied. “But that would cause a lot of trouble for a lot of people, so I save using my exemption for emergencies.”

“Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

“Besides, I’d still have to fill out the Japanese paperwork.”

“My, you’re so mature, Satomi-san.”

“I’m no match for you, Landlord-san.”

“And smooth too. Hahaha.”

Following that, everyone finished up their paperwork without issue. It was a necessary step in pursuing the remnants of Vandarion’s faction. Fortunately, with a little bit of time on their side, they were able to follow all the proper procedures. In an out-and-out emergency, they would’ve had to act first and gain the necessary approvals after the fact.

Ralgwin and his forces escaping was a problem, but it would take time for him to establish himself in Forthorthe. He’d been isolated on Earth for long enough that he had no idea what kind of situation would await him back home. Reconnecting with his former allies wouldn’t be easy. He also needed to find and prepare another base, not to mention facilities for producing magical and spiritual technology.

Nevertheless, Koutarou and the girls still needed to be on their guard for the possibility of a terrorist attack. It was difficult to imagine Ralgwin making a move before he’d settled in, but they would only have themselves to blame if they allowed themselves to fall prey to a small ambush. Knowing Ralgwin, however, he was planning a large-scale attack instead.

In the time it would take Ralgwin to prepare that, Koutarou and company would make their way to Forthorthe in a way that didn’t draw too much attention. If they rushed straight there from Earth, they would essentially be announcing that there was an emergency. Given the current situation, they believed it would be best to suppress the urge to hurry and instead follow all the proper protocols. That said, there was also another reason they were taking things slowly.

It was believed that Ralgwin’s forces had departed with him on his battleship, but Kiriha had her doubts. Had all of them really left for Forthorthe? His main force may have gone with him, but a detachment may have remained on Earth to strike when the time was right. In light of that possibility, Koutarou and the girls were waiting for the Forthorthian reinforcements coming with the new wave of transfer students, as well as additional help from Folsaria and the People of the Earth. If the Corona House crew left before they arrived, they’d be leaving the planet largely undefended.

Koutarou and the girls thus wouldn’t depart for Forthorthe until everything was ready and all preparations were complete. Their very last job would be overseeing the welcome ceremony for the second round of Forthorthian transfer students.