TIRS 31

CHAPTER 31.

 Blind Love?!

Of course, it didn’t hurt at all when Piya pecked me with her tiny beak.

When I burst out laughing because it tickled, Piya puffed up in a huff and turned her head away every time I tried to talk to her.

Pyuut!

—Hmph!

As I quietly observed her, she kept sneaking glances at me while pretending not to, as if begging me to comfort her.

“She doesn’t seem truly angry…”

It looked like her pride wouldn’t let her forgive me so easily for being a ‘bug’.

“Nothing cheers someone up like something sweet!”

I rang a bell to have the maids bring dessert.

“Piya, want to eat together?”

Pyuut!

—Hmph-hmph!

Still sulking, Piya pecked the cake I offered her with her beak.

Pyuut?

Her sky-blue eyes widened into perfect circles.

With cream smeared all over her beak, Piya flitted around the table in excitement. She pecked at cookie crumbs, knocked over a syrup jar, and then left sticky syrup footprints across the tablecloth with her tiny feet.

After causing all sorts of cute chaos, she perched on my shoulder and started chirping a cheerful tune.

I glanced at her now slightly bulging belly and chuckled.

“Feeling better now?”

Piiik!

—I wasn’t sulking.

“Really? You wouldn’t even look me in the eye. I thought maybe you hated me.”

Piiik! Pik!

—No way! Messengers are designed to love their player blindly! Hmph!

“Blindly… love?”

As I blinked slowly, Piya puffed up her chest and began to explain:

Pyuweet!

—Another name for Messengers is “Guiding Birds.” Our role is to safely guide players to the end of the scenario without losing their way.

Pyut! Pyat!

—How could anyone endure such a harsh journey without love? Though… Piya would still love Lulu even without all that!

She then coyly nudged her beak against my fingertip in a show of affection.

Come to think of it, even Hezen’s system windows always helped him out unconditionally.

“Blind love, huh…” I had never received such affection before.

“It feels… strange.”

I gently stroked Piya’s soft feathers and asked:

“Were you hurt yesterday?”

Pyuut?

“You said messengers take damage just from bugs revealing themselves.”

Pyurut!

Piya lifted her right wing to show me the joint beneath.

—It’s just a little wing joint injury! I’m okay!

But despite her cheerful tone, there was a small visible wound on her wing.

“That must’ve hurt.”

—Well, compared to when the other messengers bullied me, this is—Oops!

Piya clammed up and covered her beak with her wings mid-sentence.

Then she peeked up at me nervously.

“The other messengers bullied you?”

—N-No! Piya’s definitely not the kind of pathetic messenger who gets bullied!

Her sky-blue eyes, as transparent as crystal, wavered with unease, clearly afraid I’d be disappointed in her.

“…You’re the bravest and coolest spirit in the world.”

Piya lowered her wings, her eyes darting about.

“You protected me from the Administrator.”

I gave her a warm smile.

Pyuut.

—W-Well, it was nothing…

“It wasn’t nothing. I wouldn’t be safe like this if it weren’t for you.”

Pyuut…

Piya made a shy chirping sound and flitted onto my open palm when I held it out.

“Thank you, Piya.”

I stroked her head gently, and she chirped cutely: Pyuut?

“And getting bullied doesn’t mean you’re pathetic.”

I took out a first-aid kit and applied ointment to her wound.

Her tiny body flinched every time the cream touched her skin.

“The real pathetic ones are the bullies.”

I said calmly, thinking of Duke Orent and Duke Hamilton, who once tormented me.

I was able to endure their cruelty because I knew that didn’t make me a pathetic person.

“Piya, stay still just a bit, okay?”

I pulled out a bandage.

Of course, a human-sized bandage was too big for Piya, so I had to cut it down to size.

I carefully wrapped it around her wing joint.

“There. All done.”

Pyuut!

Piya flapped her wing awkwardly, adjusting to the bandage. She wobbled at first but soon balanced and fluttered around me.

Pyurururu!

—Thank you, Lulu! No one’s ever treated me before!

She chirped with emotion, and I gave her a wide smile.

“Come to me anytime you get hurt.”

Pyuut!

“And if someone bullies you, tell me that too.”

Pyuut! Pyat!

“But Piya… why are you a temporary messenger?”

—Messengers as small as me can’t usually serve players. But the previous one was badly injured, so I got assigned temporarily.

“I see.”

I nodded, remembering the moment Hezen logged out.

—The System said if I complete the scenario with you, I can become permanent!

“What’s so great about being permanent?”

—Then I can stay with Lulu forever! Even after the scenario ends!

Piya lifted her beak proudly and added:

—And I’ll get revenge on the bad messengers who made fun of me for being small!

“Yeah, let’s get revenge.”

I giggled and patted her little head again.

“Then, can you give me a new scenario?”

At that, Piya’s eyes widened.

—R-Really? You really want to play a scenario?

“Yeah, really. I told you—I have to defeat the Flame Dragon.”

Tears welled up in her crystal-clear sky-blue eyes.

Pyuweet!

Pyororong!

Piya’s cry rang out like a cheerful chime.

[SYSTEM] Main Scenario <Chapter 1. Proof of a Hero> has begun! (▶Preview Scenario)

At the same time, the system message I had previously ignored reappeared.

When I clicked [▶Preview Scenario]—which Piya had desperately begged me to do—flashing text and an intense video played.

[A prophecy descends upon the Empire! A worried Emperor! And watching over it all—the dazzling Swordmaster, the Empire’s new hero… YOU!

The Flame Dragon Helheim is too powerful to face alone. To prove yourself a hero, you’ll need an ally.

Someone as noble and skilled as you… one blessed by the light!**

The video ended with a scene of me walking shoulder to shoulder with a man who, no matter how you looked at it, was clearly Klaus.

[SYSTEM] Quest Triggered!

[Main Quest: Proof of a Hero (1/2)]

To begin your journey, you’ll need a dependable ally. Recruit the Shield of Light as your companion!

▷ Clear Conditions:

1. Reach 500 Affection with
2. Receive a Knight’s Oath from
3. Defeat in a duel and make them yield

▶ Reward on Success: EXP +3000, Skill Points +10, Skill

“Three options for completion?”

—Yep! You only need to do one! Choose whichever you’re most confident in. Makes it way easier, right?

“…They all look hard.”

—Come on, it’s the first scenario. It should be the easiest! Once you find it’ll be a breeze!

“…”

—But… I’m not allowed to tell you who is. Sorry, Lulu. But there was a hint in the video, so if you look carefully…

“It’s okay, Piya.”

I reassured the apologetic Piya.

After all, I’d already read the entire original story. I knew who was.

That wasn’t the issue.

“Klaus Winstor…”

The real problem was him.

I was supposed to recruit Klaus as an ally, but his affection level toward me was currently below zero—buried deep in the Earth’s core.

Clear Option 1: Reach 500 Affection with

Impossible. The man’s affection dropped just by hearing me breathe.

Clear Option 2: Receive a Knight’s Oath from

“A Knight’s Oath, huh…”

I couldn’t picture Klaus pledging his loyalty to me.

Unlike other royals, I had no personal knight even after coming of age. I always borrowed the palace guard.

Gloria and Elizabeth had knights, but they were from their paternal families.

No way someone like Klaus—the heir of the prestigious Winstor family—would swear loyalty to a powerless princess like me.

“Then the only real shot is…”

Clear Option 3: Defeat in a duel and make them yield

I glanced at the third condition and asked Piya:

“What does it mean to ‘make them yield’?”

—Beat them until their HP drops below 10!

Piya chirped excitedly.

“What? Beat him up?!”

I pictured myself smacking that huge knight with the hilt of a sword.

“Wouldn’t that just drop his affection even lower?”

Klaus was a noble heir. Even if I was a princess, attacking someone like him could be political suicide.

“Should I jump him on a dark road at night…?”

—There’s a duel system for that! Just use it properly!

“I mean, still… I’ll keep that as a last resort.”

I didn’t like solving things with violence—even if I had once hit Hezen in a delicate spot.

It felt wrong to reduce someone’s health to almost nothing—even in a “fair” duel.

If that were the only option, maybe.

“Let’s try the first one first.”

Clear Option 1: Reach 500 Affection with

I nodded to myself.

“Even that blockhead Hezen managed to woo me. Maybe I can woo Klaus. I’m the player now, after all…”

Thankfully, Hezen had left all kinds of romance-related items in his inventory, ready to use.

I wrote a letter to Sylvia.

Asking if she could invite me to the Winstor estate.