Two Saints – 108
It was hard being an idol
“Listen. Aeris will go out first as bait. People will gather around him, so you will use that opportunity to quietly leave through the door. Maki, you walk behind me. Chiharu will be behind Edwy. Walk into the castle like you don’t know anything. Once we are inside, we will go to Aeris’s room, since it is the closest. Do you have your bags? Hold them up to your chest if you can.”
Really? Was it such a big deal? Maki and Chiharu gulped.
“We have them.”
They both held the bags up to their chest as if they were shields. Sera had filled the bags with extra clothes. Aaron saw this and nodded.
“Alright, Aeris.”
“Yes.”
Aeris looked at Maki and Chiharu and then nodded as if to reassure them. Then he took in a deep breath and opened the door of the airship.
“It’s the philosopher!”
“The White Philosopher!”
Aeris acted as if he couldn’t hear these voices. He just walked casually towards the castle entrance. However, just as his foot was about to tough the stairs, he was surrounded. It was hard to tell the ages of people who lived so long, but to Chiharu, most of them seemed to range from teenagers to people in their twenties. There were about thirty of them, and they were mainly male. They had rushed towards Aeris, carrying stacks and stacks of documents.
“Lord Aeris. Please forgive us. We just saw the airship. Would you please look at this idea I had?”
“This is the plan for a small airship that uses levitation stones.”
The four who remained in the ship stuck their heads out from the door and watched this scene.
“I see. It’s not like he’s an idol. He’s just a popular philosopher.”
Chiharu said with a relieved expression. But Maki shook her head.
“Not so fast, Chiharu. Look at the top of the stairs.”
There was a short flight of steps leading to the castle entrance, and at the top of these stairs, was a group of about twenty women.
Chiharu saw them and sighed with amazement. They were all so beautiful. They were tall and had golden hair that shone like the sun, and eyes of the deepest green. Their hair was bound up on top of their heads.
And while Aeris generally wore simple gowns that were black or white, it appeared that women dressed quite differently. They generally wore a plain one-piece dress underneath, though the sleeves spread out more than they did on the men. Furthermore, they wore several layers over that of varying colors. It was very pretty.
While Maki and Chiharu’s clothes were held together with a kind of belt, their clothes fitted tighter and they used buttons and strings to hold it together underneath their chest. As for the area above the buttons…
“Uh, you know, elves in the stories are…”
“Don’t say it, Chiharu. I know. I’m more shocked than you are.
Maki said as she slapped Chiharu’s shoulder.
“That’s just ridiculous. Isn’t it enough that they have pretty faces!”
“It’s not fair that the gods favor the elves so much.”
They nodded to each other. However, Aaron ignored their reaction and called them. It wasn’t that he didn’t agree, however, elves were not romantic options, and besides, he was used to seeing them. So it was neither here nor there for him. He was quite uninterested.
“Now, we must go through the entrance behind the guards to the left. From where we are, the left side would be best. Alright, follow me.”
And so they followed Aaron’s signal and left the aircraft while trying to act natural. They headed towards the guards as if they had meant to all along. It seemed like the youth that surrounded Aeris had not noticed them. However, as the women were at the top of the stairs, they saw them.
“Oh? Isn’t that Aaron?”
“I’ve never seen the one next to him before. He has beautiful blue eyes. Maybe he is from Midland.”
They heard the voices. However, the four of them pretended not to hear as they rushed to the entrance. Just a little farther. But then they heard the voice.
“Aaron.”
It was clear and a little high-pitched. Aaron looked like he had been caught. A woman had stepped forward from the group of elves. She was a little shorter than the others. She appeared to be similar in age to Edwy. Not quite twenty. And she had large, cute eyes.
“It is the fifth princess. I didn’t realize.”
But Maki and Chiharu had no idea what he was talking about. However, they were very taken in by her beauty.
“Aaron. If you have returned to the castle, you must meet my father. And who are these guests?”
Her voice was soft but also admonishing.
“But that’s what we were trying to do.”
Maki muttered. Aaron nodded.
“That’s right, Maki.”
“Aaron?”
Aaron turned around and faced the direction of the stairs. Then he bowed.
“We were headed there right now. These are friends from Midland.”
When he said this, the other three bowed as well.
“Oh, in that case…”
“Of course, princess. We must go and meet His Majesty, as you say. Excuse us.”
Aaron interrupted her and then led the others into the castle. Make and Chiharu could feel the eyes on their backs.
The guards seemed to recognize Aaron, and after exchanging a few words, they nodded and let them through. While they did glance at Edwy and looked surprised at the sight of Maki and Chiharu, they were satisfied when they saw the hair and foreheads.
“She’s really insistent, that person. Now, let’s hurry.”
Two Saints wander off into a Different World
