Editing Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut:Volume 4 Episode 2 (section)

===Part 1===

The dark and deep realm of memory.

The continuation of that day, nine years ago when he met Philuffy for the first time.

The scene of the life inside the Imperial Capital of the Old Empire was replayed inside Lux’s dream.

 

The head of the Aingram conglomerate who was an old friend of Lux’s mother──Dalt. Lux thought that their encounter with each other would only be that one time.

But, perhaps because Dalt started his business with the Imperial Capital as his base, he often made his appearance at the residence that could even be called as a palatial residence near the castle.

Each time he visited, his two daughters──Relie and Philuffy also came, but for some reason Lux couldn’t compose himself towards them.

Relie was a girl who was cheerful and mischievous, but perhaps because there was a difference in age between her and Lux, or perhaps it was because she had apprehensions towards Lux who was a royalty, she behaved as a 『nice big sister』 towards him.

But, the girl called Philuffy who was the same age as him was a silent person where she was mostly expressionless. Lux couldn’t understand what she was thinking.

His father who was apathetic towards him.

How he was thought as a worthless existence.

Perhaps it was because of those that he was hesitating to call out from his end.

But, he could see that the big sister Relie was really pleased and affectionate to her little sister.

「Lux-kun too, please get along with her. Even though Phi look like this, but she is a really interesting kid you know?」

「Yes.」

That was how he answered at that time, but even when the two of them were left alone with each other, they didn’t particularly play with each other.

Even Lux was only making idle and inoffensive talk like 「The weather today is nice isn’t it?」 or 「What is your father doing?」, while Philuffy too was only eating the sweets she was carrying or returned a short reply like 「Nn……」.

A silent child without any ups or downs in her emotions.

Lux’s first impression towards Philuffy was something like that.

At the time, Lux’s experience of playing with boys of the same age as him was practically zero.

There was also the fact that the age of his siblings in the imperial family was a bit distanced from him, but the biggest cause lied elsewhere.

The emperor’s wives numbered six people in total, but their children were contesting for the right of succession to the throne against each other, and the youngest brother Lux was the target to be looked down by them.

It was only the first imperial prince Fugil who was different, but for Lux who at the time was a child, Fugil was a far away existence.

Because he was being taught by a private tutor and a lot of the time he was staying at the side of the frail and sickly Airi, Lux almost had no chance to go outside.

Lux was a 『male』 that possessed the qualifications to be the next emperor.

However, he was the seventh imperial prince whose position was the weakest among all the candidates.

Although the maid, butler, and the soldiers of the imperial court would serve him, but that was the extent of his relationship with them.

With all those circumstances overlapping, Lux mostly spent his time at the library of the imperial court.

He was a figurehead prince. By no means could he come into contact with the center of the Empire, his fate was to become a tool of the emperor and someone who someday would succeed the emperor.

He was thinking that he didn’t mind that.

As long as his beloved mother was at his side, and his sickly little sister became healthy.

He was also a bit curious about the girl named Philuffy, but that was all.

She was a daughter of a conglomerate, but she was different from the imperial family.

Philuffy, too, was staying beside Lux right now because of the circumstances of her father’s work, but the more time passed, they would notice that Lux didn’t have considerable utility value and they would surely lose interest in him then.

Lux was thinking so in his childish heart.

But one day, a turning point suddenly arrived.

About a week since he encountered Philuffy, a large sized work of art was sent to the imperial court.

It was a sculpture of a spirit that was worshipped on the holy birthday of the Empire.

A sculpture of the figure of a very young girl wearing mysterious and unique clothing that couldn’t be seen anywhere else.

It was an epic work that was decked out with gold, silver, and gems, and created by employing a first rate artisan.

Several years was needed to make it. For the Arkadia Empire it was considered to be an important treasure. The sculpture was scheduled to be stored in the castle’s warehouse until the holy birthday ten days later.

The sculpture was showed to Lux and Philuffy once when it was delivered, but after that they had never stopped by at the castle warehouse.

But on the afternoon of that day, after Lux borrowed a book in the library, when he was walking inside the castle, he heard a sound nearby the warehouse.

「Oi, what’re we going to do? At this rate, we’re going to receive some kind of punishment──」

「Aa, it’d be bad if we leave it like this. But, it’s also impossible to play dumb about it. Then──the best thing to do is to blame it on someone else.」

It was the voice of boys that Lux was familiar with.

They were boys who were three years older than Lux.

Lux felt a strange atmosphere from their tense voice and he approached.

「What are you doing, elder brother?」

「U, uwah……!? Wha, what, it’s you, don’t startle us.」

It was the sixth imperial prince, Lux’s brother from a different mother, Abel, and also his best friend Ragreed who came from high nobility.

According to their explanation, the supervisor forgot to lock the warehouse. Then when Abel and Ragreed tried to touch the decoration of the sacred statue for the holy birthday, a part of the statue became chipped.

「We have to quickly tell someone and get it repaired. There should still be time until the holy birthday──」

Lux turned around in panic. It was at that time Abel’s hand caught Lux’s shoulder.

「Wait there, you are a brat like always huh. You see, for something like this, the order of things is important. At this rate, this will become our fault right?」

Lux got a bad premonition the moment this brother who was older than him said that.

「Fortunately, there is nobody else other than us who saw what happened.」

「Don’t tell me, are you planning to stay quiet? But, at this rate……」

When Lux quietly objected, Abel snorted as though making a fool of him.

「You are really an idiot. I’m saying that we’re going to lay the blame on someone else. It’s nice timing that at this time there are several children of the guests coming to our place right?」

「──That daughter of the merchant called Aingram or something, isn’t she just right for this?」

「……!?」

Hearing what Ragreed spoke, for a moment Lux’s mind became blank.

His expression cramped reflexively and his voice became high-pitched from agitation.

「Such thing──how can that be allowed?」

「That girl isn’t even royalty, and she is just a girl anyway.」

Abel’s words cut down Lux’s argument in a single stroke. Lux was speechless.

「Her family is richer than mine, she is an eyesore so this is perfect timing. What’s more that girl, she is mute and absentminded, even when she is called there is almost no reaction. She must be an idiot. She is perfect to get deceived.」

「Yeah, that’s right. It’s perfect, she came at the right timing. Oi Rag, take her here using any kind of excuse. She must be in the courtyard.」

Ragreed nodded at Abel’s command and he started running while laughing.

In order to lay the blame on Philuffy who didn’t know anything.

「Such thing, such thing is……」

「What is it, Lux. You, even though you are the youngest, you’re going to go against me?」

Abel glared and yelled threateningly.

「But, such thing……」

「Hah, you don’t get it at all. Listen. In this Empire, something like a woman is just a tool. Their role is to devote their all to us men, give birth to children, and make us feel good. What’s more, that girl isn’t royalty, but just the daughter of someone who has a bit of money. Just something like this won’t be a big deal.」

「…………」

Lux understood how it became like this.

The custom of the empire that was propagating absolute male chauvinism.

Abel who was one of the imperial family was also following that common sense without questioning it.

No, even among the others, Abel was disdaining woman excessively and tended to degrade them.

He was doing every kind of harassment and insult towards his little sisters who were similarly royalty like him and the maids. The surroundings feared what would happen when he became an adult.

A big part of the reason of his attitude was likely because of his position that was far away from the throne succession right, furthermore he wasn’t blessed with any talent at all and he lamented about his situation, and so he vented his resentment to the surroundings.

Especially in a situation like this time, the possibility of Abel retracting his previous remarks was as good as nonexistent.

「You get it? You stay quiet, Lux……. Oh, here they come.」

Abel grabbed Lux’s shoulder and hid in the shadows inside the warehouse.

And then, Philuffy was brought in. It appeared that Ragreed was hinting that the sacred statue looked strange, so she should try touching it, and so on.

「Never mind that, I told you just touch it. Come on, do it.」

「…………」

Philuffy was expressionless, so it was hard to understand what she was thinking, but most likely she was perplexed right now. Because she was hurried, in the end her hand reached out to the statue.

At that moment, Ragreed pushed hard on Philuffy from behind and caused her head to hit the statue.

「……-!?」

Lux saw that sight and he reflexively held his breath, it was at that time,

「Oi. You too match your story with us, you understand?」

When Able said that, at the same time he dropped the fragment of the statue ornament his hand was holding on the floor.

*kachin!* High-pitched metallic sound echoed inside the warehouse, immediately following that──

「Oi, you! How dare you break this sacred statue!」

「Now you’ve done it. How about apologizing honestly huh?」

Abel who jumped out from behind the cover and Ragreed declared that.

「……?」

On the other hand, Philuffy was silently rubbing her forehead that hit the statue while tilting her head in puzzlement seeing the boys.

And then, she was staring fixedly at the hand of Abel and Ragreed.

「It’s useless even if you play dumb and pretend ignorance. After all we are the witness.」

Abel smiled faintly and told Ragreed to go call the head butler of the palace.

The best friend Ragreed nodded in response and started running through the corridor inside the castle.

「Kuh……!」

(……What to do!?)

Lux looked at Philuffy and pondered.

Surely Abel and Ragreed wouldn’t stop anymore now that they had raised this much commotion.

No matter what they were planning to push the blame on Philuffy.

The current Lux didn’t have any way to stop that.

(But, there is no way something like this is okay. Doing this to her who doesn’t know anything is──)

Lux bit his lips and clenched his small fist tightly, at that time,

「Are you speaking the truth? That the sacred statue is broken──」

A man in his prime who was the head butler arrived in panic.

And then, he walked toward Philuffy who was standing still in front of the statue and questioned her.

「I heard that you seem to be the one who did this, is it correct? In that case──」

「That’s right. That girl might lie, but we saw it without doubt! That girl slipped and her head hit the statue, breaking that part──」

「…………. I am──」

Philuffy was about to say something with her usual expressionless face, it was at that time,

「──I, did it.」

Lux’s voice echoed inside the cold metallic warehouse.

「Wha-……!?」

First it was his big brother’s best friend who raised a shocked voice, after that the head butler knitted his eyebrows.

「Is that, the truth?」

「Yes……. The warehouse was not locked, so I entered, and then when I touched the statue accidentally, the statue was……」

「What about the testimony that said it was the daughter of the Aingram house who did it?」

「I was scared to tell someone that I broke it and stayed silent, but then that girl came here so……」

「Hmm……」

The head butler muttered and he ran his gaze at everyone there.

The head butler who was called as relatively a man of character inside the imperial court was pondering for a while. And then he nodded.

「Is that so, I see……」

He showed a face that was somewhat questioning, but there was no proof whatsoever.

Before long the head butler let out a small sigh and he turned his face toward Lux.

「By all rights, it’s only proper to have you receive a scolding from your father his majesty the emperor, but his majesty is a very busy person. I will leave the handling of this case to your mother and private tutor. Is that agreeable with you, Lux-sama?」

「Yes……. Forgive me.」

The head butler said that he would call the artisan for the repair and left.

Perhaps he had noticed the truth from looking at the attitude of everyone there, but instead he respected Lux’s intention and placed the blame on him.

「Hah……! As expected from the bottom rung seventh imperial prince huh, Lux!」

「……Keh. What a killjoy, crushing our plan like that.」

Abel sneered at his younger brother in a good mood, but Ragreed who didn’t manage to push the blame on the Aingram house was clicking his tongue in annoyance.

He understood that Lux’s action completely prevented any bad reputation toward Philuffy by making the head butler as the witness, at the same time he noticed that his own scheme was crushed.

「Well, doesn’t matter……. You too, apologize to this girl for what you did.」

Even so, perhaps he thought that Lux would be hated by Philuffy because Ragreed then grinned daringly.

The two of them showered Lux with insults before they left that place.

Later there was only Lux and Philuffy remaining there.

「……Sorry.」

Lux turned around and then said that while looking down.

He was scared.

It seemed the head butler put the blame on Lux with the understanding of what was actually going on, but Lux didn’t think that the truth would be known by anybody else around them.

Lux was anxious that his bad reputation would spread among the people of the imperial court, but more than that there was also the risk that even his mother and Airi would also meet difficulty because of that.

And then, he would also get hated by none other than the girl in front of him.

(But, this was the only way……)

If he tattled about the bad deed of the two, the two of them would resent him unjustly and they would surely bare their fangs not just at Lux, but also to all the people around him.

The result that would come from that ill will would be incomparable with the case this time.

「I’m really, sorry. But──uwah!?」

Suddenly the silent Philuffy grabbed his hand and Lux raised his voice reflexively.

The palm of a girl that he touched for the first time was really soft──

「Slippery」

「Eh…… what’s this, it’s sticky──!?」

And then, his hand became slippery with something like oil.

「You covered, for me……didn’t you?」

「Eh……!?」

Lux was taken by surprise by the question from the serious faced girl.

Lux also felt shocked that the silent Philuffy was starting a conversation from her end, but more than that,

(How, did she──?)

「The surface of that statue, is slippery. When I was pushed and touched it, I noticed. The hands of those two, was also slippery.」

「…………」

It was the oil of painting material. The completed sacred statue was most likely varnished with that.

The luster and stickiness of the oil wouldn’t disappear right away even after washing it with water.

Surely Philuffy saw through the truth by confirming the hand of the two and Lux’s hand.

「Thank you. You helped me.」

The expressionless girl showed a faint smile.

Lux who saw that for the first time felt a mysterious feeling filling his chest.

However──

「I’m, not……」

When Lux recalled that his fellow imperial family member was trying to harm her, his mouth said those words.

「Sorry, I’m really──wah!?」

Seeing the despondent Lux, Philuffy hit his head with one hand.

Rather than calling it hitting, the strength she was using was more like caressing. Her cheeks were puffing up a bit.

「Bad-, you know.」

「Eh……?」

「Apologizing even though you aren’t at fault, is no good.」

The girl said such thing dispassionately with a serious expression still fixed on her face.

「Doing that, is as no good as, not apologizing when you are at fault.」

「……No but──」

「I’m, angry you know?」

When Lux tried to apologize again, Philuffy pushed back with a tone that didn’t allow any objection.

Her expression didn’t change, she didn’t look like she was angry at all, even so her firm will could be felt.

When Lux was troubled of how to respond, Philuffy suddenly took out a small white bag from her breast pocket.

She took out a cookie as big as her pinkie from there and pushed it toward Lux’s mouth.

「For you.」

「Eh……!? Wait.」

「It’s fine. My other hand, isn’t dirty.」

Philuffy raised her other hand to show at the flustered Lux and she muttered so.

Lux was completely bewildered facing the sudden occurrence.

Because he had never received food from the hands of another person except his mother, not even once.

「The proof of, getting closer.」

However, the words and eyes of Philuffy who said that to him were very much straightforward. Lux couldn’t refuse and put the cookie into his mouth.

The confection that had walnut fragments inside it was slightly sweet and fragrant.

「Is it delicious, Lu-chan?」

「Ye, yes. It’s delicious, thank you……」

He felt somewhat embarrassed. His cheeks reddened and he averted his gaze.

「I’m glad.」

Philuffy showed  a small smile once more toward such Lux.

「……Err, by the way, what do you mean by Lu-chan?」

「It’s you. Because, you’re Lux-kun.」

「Is, is that so!? But it sounds a bit embarrassing……. Getting called like that──」

「Phi.」

「Eh……?」

Lux reflexively asked back toward the girl’s sudden muttering.

「Call me, like that. Because, Okaa-san and Onee-chan, call me like that.」

「Eh……. Yes, I got it, Phil……err」

「Phi, you know?」

When Lux got embarrassed and he faltered, Philuffy brought her face closer and demanded so.

This girl was silent and her emotion didn’t really come out to the surface, but she had an aspect where she was far sharper and deeply prudent than she looked like.

And then, Lux also realized that she was more forceful and strong-willed than he thought.

「Then, take care of me. Phi-……chan.」

That day, Lux made a friend of the same age for the first time.