Editing Unlimited Fafnir:Volume 2 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 2===

After that, Tia still refused to leave for even an instant.

During homeroom, Lisa and the others introduced themselves but Tia was uninterested, simply looking up at my face.

"M-Mononobe Yuu... I shan't lose to you!"

This provoked a weird sense of competition in Lisa—

"...Lolicon?"

Firill was inspired with unsavory doubts about me.

"Only Mononobe-kun gets to talk to her, so unfair."

"Mm."

Ariella and Ren were looking at me with displeasure in their eyes. Particularly Ren, whose age was closest to Tia, she had kept glancing secretly at Tia ever since class started, quite curious about her.

"Tia, why don't you talk to everyone a bit."

I encouraged her but Tia shook her head and refused.

"No need, if Tia had to talk, talking with Yuu is better."

It looked I was the only thing that mattered in her red eyes. Anyway, I had no idea how to persuade Tia unless I got to know her as a person. Hence, I decided to let Tia do as she pleased for the first day, the only time for special treatment.

"Hwah..."

Keeping her promise in class, Tia sat quietly on my lap. Although she yawned in apparently boredom many times, even sleeping very soundly during fourth period, she did not seem to be a child who could not be reasoned with.

During the lunch break, we went to the cafeteria together as a class, sitting around a table as before.

"Here, husband, say ah—"

But most troublingly, Tia continued to sit on my lap just as in the classroom. She was extending a spoonful of vegetable curry towards me. The gazes from not only my classmates but also girls in the surroundings were making me uncomfortable.

"...Yuu?"

Due to Tia's uneasy look, I had no choice but to eat the vegetable curry. Then I heard whispers all around. Bothered by the surrounding gazes, I almost could not taste the curry's spiciness.

"Fufu, we are like newlyweds."

Tia smiled happily and ate a mouthful of vegetable curry too.

Going with this situation, I was probably going to be labeled a lolicon tomorrow.

But to me, it simply felt like accompanying her to play house like a children.

Although she insisted she was the wife, I felt that it would be more accurate to call her a very spoiled younger sister.

"Tia, you've got stuff next to your mouth."

After thinking of it that way, I stopped feeling particularly bothered. In a natural manner, I used a tissue to wipe Tia's mouth.

"Aww... Thanks."

Tia thanked me somewhat shyly. From the eyes of an older brother, I found that behavior of hers to be very cute.

If the one sitting on my lap making me dote on her was Iris instead, I probably would not be able to remain calm like this.

Thinking that, I looked forward, only to see Iris glaring at me with a pout.

"Only Tia-chan can do that... Too unfair."

Clutching her fork, stabbed in the pasta with tomato sauce, Iris spoke in a low voice.

"U-Unfair? What's unfair?"

"I'm clearly your friend, Mononobe... Compared to Tia-chan, we should be closer... But I never got to do the say 'ah—' thing, so I have to do it too!"

Saying that, Iris wrapped pasta around her fork and extended it before me.

"A-Ah..."

With cheeks blushing, Iris spoke in a trembling voice.

I felt my heart starting to race.
[[image:UnlimitedFafnir v02 083.jpg|thumb]]

"H-Hey, Iris..."

"...Mononobe, hurry, this is very embarrassing."

Seeing her plead tearfully, I opened my mouth despite the hesitation in my heart, but—

With a metallic clang, Iris' fork was deflected by Tia's spoon.

"Yuu is Tia's husband. You're not allowed to do that."

"I can, because Mononobe is my friend!"

Iris' gaze turned sharp. As though about to have a fencing match, she entered a pose with her fork, still with pasta wrapped around it.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Sensing danger, I yelled at her but Iris made a thrust with her fork.

"Eat this!"

"You wish!"

Tia used her spoon to defend again, but Iris' first strike was a feint. Stopping her fork halfway, she evaded the timing of Tia's parry. Getting past the spoon, she shoved the pasta into my mouth.

"Mmggg!"

The flavor of tomato sauce instantly spread in my mouth. While the fork was drawn out, the pasta was left in my mouth.

"Success!"

Iris cheered and made a victory pose.

"Oh no, husband is having an affair!"

Tia screamed in shock. Her voice echoed throughout the entire cafeteria. All the students present were looking in our direction.

"...Knock it off, you two. Be quiet in public areas."

Mitsuki spoke in a voice filled with rage.

Iris instantly shuddered then scratched her head apologetically.

"Oh, s-sorry, Mitsuki-chan... I was too impulsive."

"Tia was clearly not at fault..."

Despite muttering in her mouth, Tia settled down. Because Mitsuki was my sister, Tia cared about how she was viewed.

"Phew... Mitsuki, thanks—"

I was just about to thank her when I saw Mitsuki's extremely displeased look, forcing me to grind to a halt mid-sentence.

"—Nii-san is an idiot."

After saying that quietly, Mitsuki turned her head away.

Lisa and the others all showed exasperation on the their faces. In the end, the meal ended under an indescribable atmosphere.

And after that, there were problems aplenty.

Using the remainder of the lunch break, we took Tia around to get to know the campus. At the clock tower, I was just about to go to the washroom when Tia wanted to go with me, thus causing a dispute for a while.

Persuaded by Mitsuki, Tia finally agreed to let go of my hand, but she kept yelling "Yuu, are you there?" from outside, giving me no peace while I did my business.

—As a side note, inside Midgard, there were only two washrooms I could use. As Midgard's core area, the clock tower would have occasional visitors from outside, hence male washrooms were available for visitors to use. The other one was the toilet in my own room at the dorm.

Later on during afternoon class time, Tia wanted to go to the washroom this time, intending to drag me to the female washroom.

I patiently convinced her, finally reaching a compromise where I waited outside while repeatedly responding to her calls.

In this manner, today's classes ended while feeling several times longer than usual.

But my mission was just beginning here.

"—Mononobe Yuu, I will let Tia Lightning live in Mononobe Mitsuki's dorm like you. Take good care of her."

During homeroom before dismissal, that was what Shinomiya-sensei said. I was in charge of educating Tia. After school, I had to oversee her studies and Tia refused to leave me, so this could be considered an appropriate arrangement.

Although Mitsuki's expression seemed quite unconvinced, she still agreed reluctantly.

"Nii-san, I still have student council work to do, so please return first. Although you will be alone with Tia-san temporarily... Under no circumstances should you do anything violating public morals."

"...I know. Could you believe in your brother a bit?"

I nodded with a wry smile and exited the classroom with Tia.

Using her tiny right hand, Tia held my left hand tightly.

Accommodating Tia's pace, I slowly made my way to the building entrance, but just as we reached the first floor's entrance, I noticed a student standing still in front of the school map.

It was a very obedient-looking girl, wearing glasses, with long black hair in a braid.

—Eh? I remember that girl... the one who transferred together with Tia—

"Yuu?"

Seeing me stop walking, Tia looked at me in surprise.

"Sorry, Tia, come with me for a bit."

Holding Tia's hand, I approached the girl.

If she was facing any trouble, I should help her, right? This was the spirit behind Midgard's founding. This was what I learned from Lisa and the others during the battle against Leviathan.

"—What's wrong?"

I asked her from behind.

"...Eh? Oh—"

She looked back, widening her eyes greatly after seeing me. Perhaps she was startled because I was a man.

To avoid making her unwary unnecessarily, I smiled and talked to her.

"I remember you just transferred in today, right? Tachikawa... What was it again?"

To be honest, because Tia caused me such a great shock, I had little recollection of her, even her name was fuzzy.

"Uh—Right, I am Tachikawa Honoka, you are... Mononobe Yuu, right?"

She nodded and asked in a confirming tone of voice.

"You know about me?"

"Because you are the only male in the academy, I soon heard rumors about you. And I saw you this morning at the full-school assembly."

Speaking of which, this morning I had rushed up to the podium to stop Tia who was acting emotionally unstable. Since I had done something so conspicuous, no matter where I went, there were always people talking about the topic of me and Tia. With that, whether she wanted to or not, she would surely hear my name.

"...Then we can skip the introductions. Tia, you know her already, right?"

I motioned with my eyes, to introduce her to Tia, but for some reason, Tia hugged my waist tightly and glared at her silently.

"Right, although I saw her for the first time at the full-school assembly, I still have not greeted her... But I did hear the student council president's introduction."

Saying that, she lowered her head and bowed to us.

"Yuu-san, Tia-san, pleased to meet you."

"Yeah, likewise here."

I smiled in response but Tia scowled and refused to answer.

"Sorry, how should I say this...? Apart from me, Tia pretty much treats everyone like this."

I frantically explained for Tia, but she smiled gently and said:

"No problem, I don't mind."

"Thanks, that would be a great help—Tachikawa."

"Just call me Honoka. I'll address you by name too."

She replied in a relaxed tone of voice.

"O-Okay... Got it, Honoka."

Slightly nervously, I changed my way of addressing her. Although she seemed introverted in appearance, her personality might turn out to be more approachable than expected.

"So, what are you doing here, Honoka? If there's anywhere you want to go, I can lead the way."

I looked at the map that Honoka had been staring at.

"No, it's okay. I was just trying to memorize all the locations because I'll be living here from now on."

"I see, so you're not lost. That's great. Sorry for disturbing you."

I should have minded my own business. I scratched my head.

"Nothing of that sort, I'm happy that you talked to me. Even just knowing that you are such a friendly person counts as a kind of encouragement to me here on."

Although Honoka thanked me, what she said made me a bit concerned. Thinking more carefully, taking her around to familiarize with the campus should be what her classmates would do first. Perhaps there was not anyone friendly in the class she was assigned to.

"...If you have any difficulties, you can find me any time. I'll tell you my email address."

"Oh... Thank you."

Honoka smiled radiantly. After exchanging addresses, we bid her goodbye and walked out of the building.

During that time, Tia's expression remained quite unhappy. She gripped my hand tightly.

"You're both transfer students, so why don't you try to get along with her? I think you'll surely become friends."

I said that to her while walking towards the school gates, but Tia shook her head.

"No, Tia doesn't want to be near her."

"Doesn't want to be near..."

Compared to Lisa or the others, Tia was expressing a clearer attitude of rejection, baffling me.

"And Tia is angry with Yuu too. A married person should not hit on girls."

"H-Hit on? No, that wasn't what was happening just now."

Suddenly exchanging email addresses might seem like hitting on a girl, but the only reason why I told Honoka my address was purely because I worried about her.

"...Honestly not hitting on her?"

"Honestly."

"Okay... Then Tia won't be angry."

Tia's displeased look changed to reveal all smiles.

Seeing her mood improve, I breathed a sigh of relief. Although we were not a real couple and I was not obliged to explain to her, it made me feel uncomfortable to be saddled with a trumped up charge for no reason.

Then we passed through the school gates and headed to Mitsuki's personal dorm.

Although we attracted the gaze of female students along the way, after entering the road leading to the dorm, no one was in sight anymore.

We held hands and walked on the road along the beach. That alone was enough to make Tia smile contentedly. Bathed under the setting sun's rays, both her hair and her horns shone with red light.

—Tia Lightning huh...

Having accompanied her the whole day, I came to understand one thing clearly. She extremely hated separating from me.

Almost like a lost child.

She looked like a child who was finally reunited with parents, refusing to separate again no matter what. Most likely, Tia's affection towards me was neither infatuation nor love, but an expression of emotions from the fear of separation.

Although that was possible, the correct answer could only be known by asking directly.

There were many things I wanted to ask but among them, what I needed to confirm most—the question I had held back all this time to avoid giving Mitsuki trouble—I finally inquired of Tia at this time.

"Say, Tia, have we met somewhere before?"

"Eh—Yuu doesn't remember?"

Tia asked as though she was struck by a blow. It looked like we really did meet before.

"Don't tell me... you're the D whom I saved on in a warzone before?"

I voiced my guess.

Before coming to Midgard, I had only met two Ds. One was Mitsuki, the other was the young girl I saved in a warzone without knowing her name. Hence, it was very likely that the girl was Tia.

However, since she was a D, she could also be someone I got involved with unknowingly, hence I was not confident.

"Oh, phew, good... Yuu didn't forget."

Tia seemed relieved. I had guessed correctly, apparently.

—Lucky I did not confirm in front of others.

Letting a discovered D go free was a complete breach of military discipline.

Apart from that, because Basilisk's target was Tia, it had caused NIFL to expend a lot of effort.

I had no intention of fleeing from those responsibilities but I did not want to cause a situation that would cause Mitsuki problems.

"So you really are the girl from that time... You seemed to have changed."

The girl in my hazy memories was even younger and did not have horns like these.

"Really? Did Tia become more cute?"

She looked at me with excited eyes. I nodded in embarrassment.

"Yeah..."

Because the shock was too great, it was easy for the horns to steal the spotlight, but objectively speaking, Tia was a cute girl. In two or three years, she would surely become even more beautiful.

"Tia is—a cute girl, right?"

"Yeah, that's what I think."

I answered her question that seemed to be seeking confirmation, but for some reason, Tia made a sad face.

"Thanks... I knew that if it's Yuu, you'd say that again. Tia is so happy, but... It's wrong."

"It's wrong?"

I did not understand what was going on, so I asked her. But looking at me, Tia's eyes were emotionless, as though her earlier childishness was a lie.

"Tia is a dragon, not a girl."

I instantly felt a chill along my back. In the depths of those red eyes, I saw a dark color akin to that of dried blood.

"..."

I reflexively tried to tell her no but held my tongue before it came out. Even if I unilaterally refuted Tia's assertion, it would only end up the same as what happened at the assembly.

This was most likely Tia's berserk button. If I had to touch it, I would best wait for the next opportunity.

First, I should carefully find out—Why did she believe so strongly that she was a dragon?

"...So to you, am I a dragon too?"

"Yes, all Ds are dragons."

Spreading her arms, Tia said that.

"Why... do you think that?"

"Because we have the same power as dragons, we are the children of dragons, isn't this logical?"

We definitely possessed the same power as the black dragon—"Black Vritra"—the ability to generate dark matter. Because Ds were the same as dragons, they must be rejected—There were many radical organizations pushing such beliefs. Was Tia influenced by that kind of thinking?

"No, but you have human parents, right?"

I had seen her parents when saving her in a warzone. I thought that afterward, they should be living together as a family of three.

"......Tia has no human papa or mama."

But Tia refuted me with an emotionless expression and voice.

"No? But back then—"

I frowned and asked but I felt mild trembling on my hand, forcing me to stop mid-sentence.

I had apparently broached a very sensitive issue again.

"Yuu, don't talk about that—Tia wants to touch the seawater."

Just as I was hesitating how to continue the conversation, Tia smiled innocently and changed the subject.

Tia pointed at the vast beach beyond the breakwater, pulling me, wanting to go there.

"...Okay, let's go down the stairs over there."

I gave up on the spot asking about her father and mother and took Tia down to the white beach.

I'll have to find a chance to ask again later.

"Wow..."

As soon as she reached the water's edge, Tia instantly squatted down and dipped her left hand into the waves rushing onto the shore. I also squatted beside her and watched her scoop up seawater with her tiny hand.

"You've never been to a beach, Tia?"

"No, Tia originally lived in a place without a sea. And after coming to this island, Tia could only look from a distance."

Saying that, Tia licked her fingertip, moistened by seawater.

"Ah... It's really so salty!"

Tia seemed quite moved and yelled excitedly. How should I say it? Looking at her like that, I could not help but smile.

—I can't force this child to make that kind of expression.

When insisting she was a dragon, insisting she had no parents, Tia's face lost all emotion.

Tia's issues seemed so much bigger than imagined but I decided in my heart to help her resolve them bit by bit.

This started as a mission forced upon me by someone else, but after knowing she was the D that I had met in a warzone, I could not stay uninvolved anymore because I had to take serious responsibility for her.

If I had sent Tia to Midgard when we first met, at least she would not have ended up with this dragon girl appearance.

With my unoccupied right hand, I tried to touch Tia's horn.

"Kyah... It tickles."

Tia made a startled sound and huddled herself.

"Your horn has feeling too...?"

It really was like a part of the body. I could not help but gasp.

"Yes, it's very sensitive too, so Tia doesn't like others touching it... But it's okay if it's the husband."

Tia put her hand on my hand that was touching her horn, smiling shyly.

That sincere affection made my cheeks heat up involuntarily.

But just at that moment—I felt all my hairs stand on end.

"!"

Feeling a sharp gaze of murderous intent, I forcefully spun around.

Switching my consciousness to combat mode, I picked up Tia in one arm and extended my right arm forward to create the dark matter required for a shield.

However... I could not see any enemy in the direction I felt the gaze. There was only the breakwater and coconut trees swaying in the wind.

I sharpened my senses even more and searched for human presences, but there seemed to be no one nearby.

Hence, I lowered my vigilance and put my hand down.

—Was it my imagination?

Midgardsormr was already restored. It was impossible for NIFL to infiltrate again like last time.

Inside Midgard here, there should not be anyone who intended to resolve the situation by killing Tia.

Judging from this situation, anyone would say it was my imagination no matter who I asked.

But I had survived battlefields all this time through my senses. My instincts told me that it was too early to dismiss that murderous intent as imagination.

—Things had become not very peaceful.

In another sense, I must not leave Tia now.

"Yuu..."

Just as I scanned the surroundings with my gaze, lost in thought, Tia called my face with her face gone red. Speaking of which, in order to protect from enemy attacks, I was hugging her forcefully. Hence, I hastily relaxed my force.

"Sorry Tia, does it feel very uncomfortable?"

"N-No, Tia is fine, but sorry, Tia doesn't know what to do next."

Tia apologized.

"What do you mean by... what to do next?"

"Eh...? Next up is that thing husbands and wives do together, right? Although it's so sudden, Tia was frightened, Tia is prepared now."

"What—"

Realizing Tia had a huge misunderstanding, I could not find words to speak for a while.

"But Tia... knows nothing about that kind of thing. Tia is a failure of a wife. So... Husband needs to teach Tia. No matter what needs to be done, Tia will work as hard as possible."

Tia looked at me with moistened eyes, gripping my uniform tightly.

"Hey, no, it's wrong! I didn't mean that just now... B-Because there was a big wave, I was worried you'd get swept away, that's why—"

I would scare Tia if I brought up the murderous intent honestly, so I stammered a random excuse.

"...Really? Then Yuu was protecting Tia! Thank you, Yuu!"

The straightforward Tia believed me and thanked me with a pure smile. Although I found my reason quite contrived, she showed no signs of doubting.

Did Tia trust me so much because I saved her in a warzone? Or simply because I was a male D?

Still with no idea where Tia's affection for me came from, I could only turn my gaze away with an unsettled feeling, looking at the horizon where the sun was setting—