“Uh… Leya!?”
“…………”
‘Why are you looking so surprised, dammit!’
‘And how many times have I told you, stop calling me that name!’
“Oh? Is she… that Leya?”
In stark contrast to Edwin’s reaction, Harvey’s eyes lit up as if he had discovered something extraordinary. He gazed at Leya with undisguised aggression.
However, after thoroughly scrutinizing Leya from head to toe, he let out a wistful sigh. “Though she holds great promise, she is ultimately just a little girl right now…”
“Uh…”
‘Little… little… little girl!?’
‘Is… is he talking about me!?’
‘About me, a perfectly normal, cheerful young man with a mental age over twenty!?’
‘Argh—this is infuriating!’
“Heh heh… interesting. This sword…”
Harvey retracted his gaze, initially intending to pick up the sword. But then, he reconsidered.
‘Ugh, lifting a sword that weighs almost as much as I do… Tsk, tsk… I’d rather not!’
So, he simply pointed at the greatsword resting on the table. Just as he was about to speak, a voice cut him off.
“I had someone send it up!”
Her tone carried an inexplicable indignation.
Leya glanced left and right, finally spotting an unused chair in a corner of the room. She dragged it over and placed it beside the table.
“Tsk… So that means… she didn’t come?”
His words clearly conveyed a deep sense of disappointment, though it was born from a place of resentment.
“But I did come.”
“Oh? You?”
“Indeed…”
“An uncouth country bumpkin with no manners?”
“…………”
‘Good!’
‘Good!’
‘Very good!’
A fierce glint flashed in Leya’s eyes. Just as she was about to slam the table and leave, she heard Edwin’s rather helpless voice from nearby.
“This… Young Master Harvey, at the round table, there’s no need to be so particular…”
“Hmph—”
With a cold snort, Harvey seemed to accept this reasoning. He turned his head away, no longer dwelling on Leya’s posture, which completely disregarded all noble etiquette.
Indeed, a round table implied no hierarchy, no distinction between high and low status. People generally adopted a more relaxed demeanor when using one, unlike the myriad rules governing a rectangular table.
However, despite this, while Harvey might have ceased his objections, a certain someone was still gritting their teeth, only barely holding back due to Edwin’s timely intervention.
Yet, Leya was still Leya. Would she truly remain silent after being verbally slighted like this? Not a chance.
Leya first let out a disdainful sneer, then declared, “Rules are for normal people. And here… forgive me, but besides my master, I see no one else worthy of such observance from me.”
“Leya…”
Watching the two exchange increasingly heated barbs, Edwin felt an ominous dread. First, he feared Leya might suffer for not knowing Harvey’s background. Second, he feared she *did* know, and was still antagonizing him!
If the power behind Leya truly had no fear of Harvey…
Then this minor verbal conflict could very well escalate into a diplomatic incident between the Kingdom of Alvia and some unknown nation!
At this thought, a chill of unease ran down Edwin’s spine. He hastily tried to persuade Leya.
‘After all, trying to persuade Harvey… even a toe could tell you that’s a lost cause, right!?’
What truly astonished him, however, was Harvey’s next action: he interrupted Edwin and spoke.
“Heh heh… Indeed, fascinating. You are truly fascinating, just like that Blonde Sword Princess… Hmm, if I recall correctly, her name was Artoria, wasn’t it?”
‘He wasn’t angry!’
‘He wasn’t angry!?’
Edwin could barely believe his eyes, staring incredulously at Harvey, who was now beaming and chatting away happily!
“I must say… you are the second person to dare speak to this young master like that within the kingdom’s borders. She was the first… and you… are the second…”
“Oh… really? Don’t worry, that number will soon increase by a few.”
“…………”
The atmosphere became incredibly awkward.
Edwin didn’t doubt for a moment that the diplomatic relations with some nation might very well crumble right there on the office desk before him.
“You are from Asgard, with the Blonde Sword Princess… Is that right?”
After a long silence, Harvey finally spoke again.
“Who knows? Perhaps I’m from the heavens, for all you know~”
“Heh heh… from the heavens, you say? Well then, I apologize, but this young master has Vulture Knights, anti-air magical units, and a pile of magic-powered weapons transported from the East. Hmm… you know, like… a spatial cannon?”
As he spoke, especially when uttering the last two words, Harvey’s gaze was fixed intently on Leya.
He yearned for even a flicker of panic, a hint of unease, a trace of hesitation! That would have filled Harvey with immense pride… and reassurance…
But sadly…
There was none! Absolutely… completely… not a single trace!
On the contrary, Leya looked completely at ease, asking with genuine interest, “Oh? Interesting. You have those here too?”
‘You… you here!?’
Unbeknownst to her, Leya’s casual remark struck Harvey like a bolt of lightning, leaving him utterly flabbergasted!
What did that imply!?. Although it was only a few short words, the amount of information contained within them was simply immense!
First, Leya admitted she wasn’t from here, right? Second, she asked in a very commonplace tone, “You have those here too?”
Therefore… it could be concluded that she came from the East, and moreover, from a country with many ‘magic-powered weapons’ like ‘spatial cannons’…
‘Ugh… but good heavens!’
To be fair, while spatial cannons weren’t the strongest magic-powered weapons, they certainly weren’t the cheapest!
Even a powerful ‘Western power’ like the Kingdom of Alvia could only afford a mere three cannons… although these three were purchased solely by the North, with no involvement from other regions. Even adding those, perhaps around ten, Harvey thought, wouldn’t be far off.
So, one could imagine, if Leya truly found such cannons ‘unremarkable’ and ‘unaffecting’…
Then what a powerful nation Leya must hail from…
And by an unfortunate coincidence… Harvey happened to know of such a nation… and among the possible great empires, only one was closest to Alvia.
It must be said… sometimes, overthinking is truly terrifying.
Those who think too much always live too weary, just like Harvey now.
He felt that petty nobles from weak countries couldn’t possibly possess Leya’s courage, daring to speak to him like that. His mere mention of the ‘spatial cannon’ should have sent them scrambling in fear.
But unfortunately, Leya showed no such reaction.
As for whether she was faking it?
Regardless of whether she could achieve such flawless acting, just her sheer audacity made Harvey think, “You’re incredible!” If she could genuinely maintain this facade for life, never allowing him to discover her true identity, then so be it. Otherwise…
‘You probably don’t know why flowers are so red.’
“Heh… heh heh…” Managing a smile uglier than a cry, Harvey said, “You… are you friends with that woman?”
“Friends?” This question stumped Leya for a moment.
Well… but only for a moment.
“She entrusted her sword to me. What do you think… our relationship is?”
“Master and servant?”
“…………”
Leya was speechless.
‘Just how powerful must one’s imagination be to mistake either Saber or me for a servant!?’
“Your idea is interesting, but all I have to say is… no comment!”
Indeed, rather than wasting brain cells trying to untangle such a relationship, it was better to simply cut the Gordian knot and not think about it.
“Hahahaha—In that case, one last question…”
“Tell me, have you ever seen… a world more silent than death?”
“…………”
Blankness! And blankness, still blankness!
Finally, this time, Harvey received the answer he sought from Leya’s face.
He sighed inwardly, ‘At least their goal isn’t that… That’s good…’
Patting himself down, Harvey stood up, a wide smile on his face. He swung his body back and forth, loosening his joints stiff from prolonged sitting, appearing to be in an excellent mood.
“Alright! It’s getting late. This young master is finally leaving this dreadful environment to enjoy lunch!”
He spoke as he walked towards the door.
However, just as he was about to exit, Harvey seemed to recall something.
But this time, he didn’t even turn his head, instead speaking as if it were a casual afterthought:
“Oh, and Sage. On His Highness’s behalf, I bestow upon you the title of Duke of Volantis. If you want it, come to the Ducal Castle tomorrow morning. His Highness and I will be waiting for you. If you don’t come… heh heh… then it makes no difference, does it?”
****