Well, seems like the new Nowa has grown on enough people, not bad at all!
And for our next poll, we couldn't avoid asking about what has probably been the most anticipated QB news in a long time, sending enough ripples to even reach the most dormant QB fans... Cattleya's new look, of course :3
Speaking of wives, at the end of the previous story bit, did we hear someone with a peculiar intonation that could very well be my waifu? Maybe~!
Enjoy!
Chapter 2 : A match before her Majesty the Queen (Part 1)
The story thus far...
After being deemed worthy of the title of Beautiful Fighter within the Queen's Blade, Elina defeated Airi, who'd been chasing after the boy named Michel all this time. Meanwhile, the Warrior Priestess, Tomoe, a beautiful warrior from the country of Hinomoto, tasked with an important mission, keeps her steady advance through the rankings of the tournament, defeating the mighty Risty.
Within the Arena Filled City
“...They're certainly taking their time.”
The boy stared up at the sky, having already taken the time to move every bag off to the side of the road.
White clouds lazily flowing through the bright blue skies, the warm embrace of the sun's rays bathing down on him... it really was a nice day.
It was just a shame they didn't really have much of the time to enjoy it.
“Are you waiting for someooo~ne?”
Michel's body straightened up with a jolt, hearing a voice close-by calling out to him.
[Who was that?
How could they get so close without my hearing them?!]
He swiftly turned to the source of the voice and there, floating above the highway, he saw a carpet with a large canopy sitting atop it, along with a beautiful woman with dark skin resting inside.
“Hellooo? Can you understand meeee?”
The pretty young woman slightly cocked her head, sweetly smiling at the dumbfounded boy.
“Ah, yes! I can.”
“Thank goodness, for a moment there, I was worried you might not speak my languaaaage~”
The lovely tanned girl’s tone was a peculiar one, though nowhere near as peculiar as the outfit she was wearing.
Despite barely managing to cover the important bits, leaving most of her smooth tanned skin completely bare, the outfit never gave off a particularly vulgar feel; quite the opposite in fact, with its breastplate adorned with various precious metals and the numerous rings hanging from her arms and legs, it felt oddly... dignified.
“You appear troubled from what I can tell~”
“Y-Yes. I suppose I am.”
Michel inadvertently made a face.
[What should I do...?]
“Oh, I almost forgot to introduce myseeeeelf~. My name is Menace, I’m Princess of the Amara Kingdom~. Kindly bow down before my might~”
[The Amara Kingdom? Never heard of it. She seems a tad eccentric... No wait, this Continent is a crucible of various tribes and races so...]
A conclusion was reached in Michel’s mind; this level of eccentricity was fine for now.
“You certainly do have a lot of luggage, don’t you~. You can hop aboard if you’d like~”
“Huh?”
“Walking to town would be a lot more difficult, wouldn’t it?”
“You don’t mind?”
“Oh no, not at all~. I was getting a little bored myself actually~, so I was just thinking that talking to someone might liven up the trip more.”
“You’re too kind. But...”
[Should I accept? The offer is honestly quite tempting. But, is it really alright for me to accept on their behalf? Lady Elina seems to dislike when others decide things for her behind her back.]
But just as Michel began to agonize over how he’d answer Menace’s proposal, there was some rustling from the nearby bushes.
“Oh my, so I take it you won’t be coming along then?”
From within the small trees and shadows to the side of the road, Elina and Airi suddenly stepped out in view of Menace.
“Lady Elina, this nice miss is offering us a ride to the city.”
Elina shot a look of wonder at the magic carpet floating over the highway the moment she heard.
“Awesome! Does it really float?”
“Yes~, it dooooes~”
“Great! Then take us with you!”
The Vance girl instantly answered the invitation by hopping onto the Amaran Princess’ carpet without waiting for any sort of permission.
[She certainly is bold when it comes to this kind of thing, does the innate belief that no one is out to get you in these times of peace just come naturally with nobles of higher standing?]
“Airi! Bring the luggage! Michel, come here.”
“Ah, understood.”
As beckoned, the boy joined the Vance girl atop the carpet.
“Say, err, will it really be alright with this many people?”
“Hmm? I’ve never really tried it before, but I think it should be fine with you and all your luggage too, probablyyy~”
In the end, the carpet did not bend, as Menace ‘assured’.
“Okay, now you too, Miss Attendant~.”
“I humbly appreciate your kindness, Lady Menace.”
Airi bowed to the new girl, before finishing up with loading the baggage on board.
(Huh?)
To Michel, something seemed off about what the maid had just said.
[Menace never introduced herself a second time for the two. So how does Airi already know her name?]
It took a few moments, but before long they were on their way, Menace’s magic carpet carrying everything and everyone along as it floated over the highway.
Unlike carriages, the carpet lacked wheels so it neither shook nor made a sound.
“This is incredibly handy. I’d love to have one of my own.”
Being such a quiet and comfortable ride that the group could even hear birds chirping, Elina wasted no time in voicing her interest.
“Why don’t you sell this one to me?”
“I really caaaan’t~”
The way Menace put it, the magical carpet was an Amara Kingdom treasure, something that only members of the royal family could operate. The moment Elina discovered she wouldn’t be able to make the carpet float and that she’d at best be purchasing an overly expensive carpet for herself, her attention quickly waned.
“Well, I’ll thank you for the ride anyways.”
“It is a ruler's duty to help those in need~.”
(...That’s my line.)
***
“Wow...”
Michel stared at the enormous fortress surrounding the city with absolute awe.
The group reached the city of Wittol, one of the myriad fortified cities built alongside the central highway leading to the very heart of the Continent, the imperial capital.
It also happened to be one of the cities backing the Queen’s Blade, making it an incredibly busy place right about now; and with inns, restaurants, markets and arenas of all sizes for travellers and spectators to enjoy, just about every corner of the city was fired up and ready for the added business. If Leina really was a Beautiful Fighter, then chances were she’d have passed by the area at least once.
“Hm, can’t say it really holds a candle to our capital though.”
Elina bluffed, awash from the overwhelming difference in size between her homeland’s capital and the behemoth of a city in front of her. This was the first time she’d ever even stepped foot here, and reaching the city’s center, she hoped it didn’t show.
“Really?”
“But of course. My homeland, the Vance Earldom is a brilliant and elegant city with beauty all around after all.”
Michel tried his best to picture it.
What he didn’t know was that it was less brilliant and elegant city and more generic rural landscape interspersed with peaceful countryside really.
“I’d love to visit it sometime.”
“That may happen sooner than you think, considering the moment we find Leina, you’re coming back home with us.”
“Huh?”
“Come now, let’s make this quick. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
As Elina and the boy talked, Airi was busy fetching their luggage from the carpet, seemingly chatting with Princess Menace as she did so.
“Airi, let’s go.”
Beckoned by the blonde, Airi quickly bowed to the Amaran princess before proceeding to heft the entirety of their luggage on her back again.
“Well everyone, have a nice day. I had a grand time~”
The brunette bid them with a smile, waved and then went on her way.
“Now then, allow me to find us a place to rest first, Lady Elina. You two, kindly wait here in the plaza.”
“I leave it to you. Get me the best accomodations in the city.”
After a small bow, the wraith faded into the crowd. The spitting image of a well-trained servant, arranging your next move without even having to be told first.
“Nh~~~, I’m tired.”
Elina stretched without a care, thrusting her chest out. Something the boy did not miss.
“By the way, Michel.”
“Yes, what is it, Lady Elina?”
“You saw, didn’t you?”
“T-To what might you be referring?”
He certainly had watched long enough to see some jiggle, but it wasn’t as if he’d openly stared either. It was a perfectly natural reaction, one nobody could realistically hold against him.
“Menace was her name, right? I wonder if she was more of your type.”
[So she was talking about something else.]
“I suppose when it comes down to exposure I am a tad lacking comparatively. While part of me does believe the look was a bit much, I... do suppose it is a ruler’s duty to look her best.”
“I-I think you’re plenty beautiful the way you are already, Lady Elina.”
“T-That much should go without saying. I do hear it all the time after all.”
[Was it just my imagination, or did her cheeks get a bit redder there?]
“In any case, waiting certainly does get tiresome, doesn’t it?”
She grumbled impatiently.
It hadn’t even been five minutes since the maid had left them. If there was one thing Elina was really, really bad at, it was waiting.
Left by the main street leading to the central highway to the imperial capital, Airi had essentially left them in the plaza nearest the heart of the city, meaning the area was mostly street stalls and rumbling crowds. It was amazingly chaotic to say the least but fun too, in its own way.
“Ah, Lady Elina, they have match results over there.”
“Oh? Let me see.”
She looked over at the direction the boy pointed to, to a billboard with a pinned roster list covered in Xs and Os. On it was a detailed listing of every beautiful fighter who’d recently fought within the city, each O and X represented wins and losses for every match, along with that particular match’s betting rate of course.
“Is Big Sis’ name here...”
She scoured through the names, but sadly, it wasn’t there.
“Looks like it only goes back up three days.”
“Hey shopkeep. You wouldn’t happen to have any older roster listings lying around, would you?”
Laughing with a snort, he informed her he’d gotten rid of the rest 4 days ago.
“Who you looking for?”
“Leina... I need information regarding the whereabouts of the Exiled Warrior, Leina.”
“Hm~, can’t remember all of ‘em y’know, but if she’s a beautiful fighter and she fought here, then I reckon there’ll be some records left of it back at the stadium.”
Elina gently smiled. Finally, another lead.
“Lady Elina, my apologies for keeping you waiting.”
With impeccable timing, the maid re-appeared.
“Airi, as soon as you bring our luggage to the inn, be ready to head back out.”
“H-Huh? Where to?”
“To the stadium, they still might have records of every beautiful fighter who’s been in the city.”
“Understood. But first, about the inn, there’s a slight issue...”
“What kind of issue?”
“I did my best, but every single room I looked to reserve was already taken, so... all I could find was a shared room.”
“The hell...!? Me? In a shared room!?”
Thinking it through, it certainly did make a lot of sense given how busy the city presently was.
Elina had quickly come to learn over the course of the journey how reliable an attendant Airi was, in part due to the wraith's adaptability. Travelling, meals, accommodations... all had been prepared by her to the point of satisfaction before. All things considered, that the red head was only able to secure a shared room likely stood as a testament to just how overcrowded the city must really be.
“The other person is a woman too, so I doubt she'll cause us any issue, but... what do you think?”
After such a long trip already, only just barely managing to arrive ahead of time thanks to Menace, if they started looking for other places so stay at this point... Elina knew things would no doubt only get worse. Securing a place to rest well was a top priority and she wasn't about to risk the chance of having to sleep on a bed that bred insects if they failed to find anything else.
“I suppose there's no choice then. It is also a ruler's duty to be tolerant when need be. Lead the way.”
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