"P-Payment…?" Ahogeless Alter froze for a moment with a trace of hesitation flashing in her eyes.
'What the hell is this guy planning?'
His gaze is so strange! Don't tell me he's thinking of doing something to me?!
…Though, to be fair, his face really is one-of-a-kind. Having a guy like this as my first might not be so bad?
With that thought, she actually felt a little shy. Unlike her conservative second sister, she was far more bold and, honestly, a bit rebellious.
"Why isn't your dad at home?" Ryoji sat down on the edge of the bed, looking at her seriously, as if he were studying some kind of academic problem.
"?"
A big question mark practically popped up over Ahogeless Alter's head.
'This is what he meant by payment?'
Looking at his ridiculously handsome face and those long legs, she suddenly felt a bit regretful.
"My dad's busy."
"I heard he's not even in the country?"
"Yeah."
"Where is he now?"
"Britain."
Ahogeless Alter hesitated for a moment before answering. Lancer Mom had specifically warned her not to casually share info about her dad, or it would cause huge trouble.
But right now, to protect her own secret, she didn't care anymore. Besides, she had zero feelings for that "father," maybe even outright disliked hm. Selling out his whereabouts didn't make her feel guilty at all.
"On a business trip in Britain?"
"…She's the Queen."
"Cough Cough!"
Ryoji almost choked on his own spit.
'Wait.'
'What?!'
'Your dad is the Queen of Britain?!'
"If I remember correctly, isn't the current Queen of Britain Artoria Lancer Alter?"
"That's my dad."
"FUUUCK!"
For a moment, Ryoji felt like he'd walked straight into a field of grass.
There were grass. Everywhere.
When he first heard that the Queen of Britain was Lalter, he'd already had trouble accepting it. But considering this was a world crawling with Heroic Spirits, it wasn't completely impossible.
But Lalter and Lartoria together… and having five ahoge-haired Heroic Spirit daughters?! That was seriously, ridiculously absurd!
"How the hell did they even have kids?"
Even in a weird world like this, the basic rule of "men and women make babies" should still apply! And this was still pre-21st century, there's no way they had tech for same-sex chromosome-based pregnancies yet!
"No idea. Probably some kind of special technique or technology? They've never told us."
According to Ahogeless Alter, Lalter and Lartoria's relationship was a direct violation of royal protocol. So, after Lalter ascended to the throne, to avoid causing her trouble, Lartoria moved to the Far East to live quietly and brought their five daughters with her.
Technically, Lartoria was the rightful King's Consort of Britain, and all five daughters were royal princesses with absolutely pure bloodlines. The absurdity of this entire backstory made Ryoji feel like he was standing in the middle of a massive prairie while a thousand grass-mud horses trampled over his body.
"So… now you'll help me keep my secret, right?" Ahogeless Alter looked seriously at Ryoji, her nervousness finally starting to ease.
"Ahogeless Alter…"
"?"
'What kind of weird nickname is that?'
"You being a delinquent girl outside… that's gotta be a huge secret for you, right?"
"Of course."
"But your dad's situation? You don't really care about that."
"Pretty much."
"Then I absolutely can't accept this!"
Ryoji stood up firmly with a resolute expression on his face.
"???"
Ahogeless Alter was practically surrounded by a flurry of question marks.
"Think about it," Ryoji said solemnly. "How could I use a secret that means so little to you in exchange for one that's so important to you? Wouldn't that be insulting to you?"
His voice carried a righteous tone, his expression entirely free of guilt.
"...Hhhhhh!!"
Ahogeless Alter sucked in a sharp breath. Her entire body trembled with rage, her hands clenching into fists so tight her knuckles turned white. She was seconds away from punching him right in the face!
"I want you to insult me!" She all but snarled through gritted teeth.
"No. My noble personality would never allow me to commit such a disgraceful act that would harm someone's reputation!" Ryoji rejected her outright.
"This conversation is over. I will not stand by and let you spiral into self-loathing!"
And with that, under Ahogeless Alter's murderous glare, Ryoji walked toward the door and yanked it open.
Outside—
Two girls were standing there, looking utterly bewildered.
"Alter-sis… so you're into that kind of thing?"
The one who spoke in a soft, delicate voice was a girl in a pure white dress. Her eyes were so clear and untainted they seemed untouched by malice, her whole demeanor as innocent as a blooming lily.
At the moment, she looked nervous, watching her third sister with wide, fearful eyes.
"Pffft, hahaha! Alter! You actually said that to a guy? Hahaha! 'I want you to insult me,' seriously?! You're way kinkier than I thought! Hahaha!"
The other girl, in contrast, was loud and unrestrained.
She was clinging to the lily-like girl's arm intimately, laughing so hard she clutched her stomach, openly mocking the black-faced Ahogeless Alter inside the room.
This was the family's fourth daughter, Mordred.
And the fifth daughter, Artoria Lily.
The two of them had just gotten out of bed and were passing by their third sister's room when they overheard such explosive dialogue that it nearly left them stunned.
"I'M NOT INTO THAT!" Ahogeless Alter roared, finally unable to hold back. She swung a fist straight at Ryoji.
"This is all your fault!"
"I won't change my mind! Stop belittling yourself!"
"Shut up!!"
After that…
Ahogeless Alter's words caused a huge misunderstanding within the ahoge family. Even Saber and Lartoria started giving her strange looks.
"Alter, could it be… that you've fallen for him?"
Lartoria and Saber exchanged glances, curiosity gleaming in their eyes as they questioned her.
"IMPOSSIBLE! Even if I die, even if I have to marry a beggar, I would NEVER fall for that… that scum among humans!"
Ahogeless Alter was fuming, her chest heaving violently.
After shouting at her mother and second sister, she stormed out, slamming the door behind her.
"Sorry, Li. Looks like Alter is a little… worked up."
Lartoria gave Ryoji an apologetic smile.
"No big deal," Ryoji said with an air of magnanimity, as though he wasn't the one who caused the whole mess in the first place.
"Ria-senpai, let's start the lesson."
"Right! I'm ready!"
Saber's fighting spirit was blazing. She gripped her wooden sword tightly, determination shining in her eyes.
She'd wanted to defeat Ryoji for a long time. Now was the perfect chance—she'd push herself to the limit, wring out everything Ryoji had to offer, and graduate by surpassing her master!
Since it was the weekend, the training lasted almost the entire day.
And Ryoji had to admit, Saber's natural talent was insane. She could grasp the essence of his teachings after only a couple of repetitions. Her progress could only be described as divine speed, maybe she had some bonus from her Heroic Spirit memories?
At noon, Ryoji even had lunch at the ahoge household.
The meal was personally prepared by Lartoria, and her cooking skills were easily on par with Minamoto no Yorimitsu's.
Ryoji was full of praise, which made Lartoria laugh bashfully more than once.
"Lily, try this!"
"Lily, have some of that!"
At the table, it wasn't just Ryoji flirting with Lady Lartoria; Mordred was also constantly fussing over Lily, piling food onto her plate. Seeing Lily happily accept every offering without refusing, Mordred's grin never once faltered.
Ryoji glanced at them, suspicion flickering in his eyes.
Yeah, those two are definitely up to something.
(End of Chapter)
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