Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume4 Chapter4 (section)

===Part 2===
Past noon. A little after the appointed time, the flying ship docked at Ragna Ys' harbor.

Upon seeing the battered condition of the flying ship, all the ship mechanics held their heads.

They transferred at the port into the Divine Ritual Institute's prepared horse-drawn carriages.

Because horse-drawn carriages were meant for four people, it was a little tight with six. Est went as a sword but that only freed up one space.

During the horse-drawn carriage's bumpy ride, he had felt Rinslet's breasts. Kamito quickly separated himself from her but it was really tight.

"Ka-Kamito-san......you're perverted."

"S-Sorry, it was unavoidable."

"Well, I understand that but......"

Rinslet sulked.

But there was no reproachful look in that face.

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By the way, on the opposite side, Claire–

"......Whatever, anyway, my breasts won't shake......"

For some reason, she was muttering to herself with teary eyes.

The horse-drawn carriage continued to the opening ceremony's castle.

While pointing at various things outside the window, Claire acted as a guide.

"The floating island Ragna Ys is one of the five sacred lands, the sacred land of the Wind Elemental Lord. The <!-- im guessing she referes to the first blade dance her?-->Blade Dance was held here 74 years ago."

By the way, the Blade Dance three years ago had been held in the Fire Elemental Lord's territory at Fire Mountain city. There was no rule as to where the Blade Dance would be held as it was decided by oracles received by the Queens.

"And the castle in the center is a historic ruin from a mystical age."

"So that's where we're lodging, huh?"

"Yes, it is an unequaled opportunity. Normally the Divine Ritual Institute would never allow anyone except princess maidens to enter. Which reminds me, have you been there before, Fianna?"

"Yes, but just once. I normally remained at the Fire Elemental Lord's shrine."

"......The Elemental Lord's true shrine. I'm a little nervous."

Ellis whispered that with a nervous expression.

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There were no signs of people on the paved road.

The ones invited to the opening ceremony were the Five Great Elemental Lords and the Queens that serve them, the elementalist representatives and the uppercrust nobility only. The entrance of others was not permitted and could provoke the beginning of a real war.

"Are the king and queen of the Empire not coming?"

"......It seems. But that doesn't concern me."

Fianna shrugged and Kamito–

"......S-Sorry."

Fianna had been named the “Lost Queen” after she lost her spirit contracting powers despite being a Queen candidate and consequently was shunned by the king and queen.

Speaking about the king and queen to her may have been insensitive of him.

"I don't mind. To begin with, our relationship wasn't that good and not returning to the Divine Ritual Institute almost got me disowned. I have no intention of clinging to my title as the second princess and even if I'm removed from the monarchy line–"

And then Fianna stopped talking.

Claire's parents had been imprisoned and she was chasing her rebel sister who had disappeared.

"I don't mind."

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Claire flicked her red twintails up and turned to Rinslet.

"Is anybody coming from Rinslet or Ellis' households to watch?"

"Yes. My father and younger sister will be coming."

"One of the Blade Dance's objective is to gather superior talent. The Fahrengart family traditionally adopts those excelling in martial ability."

Rinslet and Ellis nodded at the same time. Come to think of it, Ellis' step-sister, Velsaria Eva, was adopted, thought Kamito.

"Th-That's why, that is, if you display your true power before them, they might be wi-willing to accept you as an adopted child......"

"......?"

For some reason, Ellis was muttering unintelligibly with a red face.

"Will Kamito's family be coming?"

"Eh?"

At Claire's words–

Kamito asked without thinking.

"......My family?"

With the way the conversation was going, it was obvious that he would be asked that.

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But Kamito suddenly couldn't manage to reply.

Family – the one word Kamito was most separate from.

"You, you really don't talk about your family. I think I heard your parents were from the empire?"

"Y-Yeah......"

He nodded with ambiguity. In the academy application that Greyworth had prepared, Kamito was the adopted son of a lower-class family of nobles. Claire had believed that.

Of course, that family of nobles didn't really exist. It was just a family created on paper.

Kamito had no known family name. Any vague memories he had of his parents when he was young had been overwritten with the experiences at the Instructional School.

The one who had been by the young Kamito's side was the darkness spirit – only Restia.

Possibly–

(I wonder if I could call them family......)

Kamito recalled the other girls at the facility.

The other two girls in his tactical team at the Instructional School.

They didn't know each others' real names and it wasn't a relationship between comrades.

The expert intelligence elementalist, Lily Flame.

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And that girl that was attached to him and called him nii-sama.

(......The militarized spirit elementalist, Muir Alenstarl.)

Four years ago. Ever since the facility had been destroyed in the flame spirit's attack, Kamito had lost track of where she was. He had heard the greater half of the orphans there were taken in for protection by the Empire, but there were sure to be others like Jio Inzagi who had used the chaos of the institution's destruction to escape.

He wondered if his remembering them was because of that dream he had–

"......? What's wrong, to make you have such a grim face?"

"Nothing, just thinking about the past."

Kamito averted his eyes from the inquiring Claire and looked out the window.

They were approaching the castle on the mountain.