"No way!"
After finishing her bath with Iris and Instructor Cattleya, Shion's first words upon hearing the plan for the search for the saintly swords from Holly were exactly those. Coincidentally, it was the same reaction I had when Holly first proposed the search for the saintly swords to me.
In essence, Holly's proposal was that she and I would frequently leave the castle from now on, and during that time, Shion should stay in the castle. Shion rejected this idea.
By the way, when Shion and Holly talk, to Iris and Instructor Cattleya, it appears as though Shion is talking to herself. Uncomfortable with their reactions, they quickly retreated to their rooms.
"Please don't be selfish, Shion. You have an important duty to train," Holly communicated.
"I can train anywhere! I want to go with big brother!"
"If you accompany us now, you'll only hinder Crow. Wait until you've grown a bit more."
"I won't be a burden!"
I rarely see Holly and Shion talk, so I decided to silently observe their exchange. Or rather, I was curious about the conversation between the true hero and the spirit residing in the divine sword. After all, every hero throughout history must have talkd with Holly in this manner to learn how to wield the divine sword, yet no one else could ever hear their exchanges. In the annals of history, I might be the first to witness such a conversation. The tales of heroes are often passed down through stories. Could it be that the story of this hero will be passed down by me?
"You're just lying, Holly! You just want to be alone with my brother!"
"What nonsense are you spouting? Sleep talk should be left for when you're asleep!"
"You're so arrogant for someone who can only speak! The only one who can protect big brother is me!"
"How dare you! Do you have any idea how much I've done for Crow every single day?"
"Big brother is so weak, if I leave him, he'll die right away! I will never leave him!"
"You think just because you're with him, you can protect Crow? He's the type to get assassinated if you look away for just five seconds!"
"Don't call my brother weak! Even if he's useless, he's the one who saved me!"
"So if he hadn't been there, you'd have ended up a slave to some pervert! Know your place and behave!"
Why is it that their arguments always end up being a storm of insults towards me?
"Holly, can we calm down and discuss this? Shion, can you listen too? This is all for your sake."
Seeing that their argument wasn't ending, I tried to intervene.
"...Fine, Shion, let's calm down."
"...Alright."
Generally, Shion somewhat listens to what I have to say. They should just get along normally.
"We're searching for the saintly swords to lessen your burden, Shion. Do you intend to get in the way of Crow, who is trying to act for your sake?"
"...You probably don't care about my struggles, right, Holly? As long as the Demon King is defeated, it's fine even if I die, right?"
"Well, yes, that's about it."
She didn't even try to deny it! I was dumbfounded, covering my mouth. Being a spiritual entity, Holly can't distinguish between her true feelings and what she should say in front of others. To put it nicely, she can't lie. To put it bluntly, she's completely tactless.
"You old hag! After defeating the Demon King, I'll throw you into the sewers!"
"What did you say, you little brat! Who do you think made you the strongest?"
Listening to their conversation, I started to feel dizzy. Yet another storm of insults and bickering arose, so I left the two of them behind and exited the room on my own.
Enough is enough.
I can't even imagine the two of them getting along and uniting to confront the Demon King.
At the very least, I won't be recounting this conversation for future generations. But I can't just let their relationship remain strained. I need to think of a way to improve the relationship between those two.
Then again, if they get along too well, they might end up ignoring me entirely. There's a limit to everything.
The current situation is the absolute worst.
However, I don't understand the intricacies of a woman's heart at all.
During my student days, I hardly ever spoke with female students.
I can't even imagine how to make friends with a girl.
The only exception was Iris, but our relationship isn't really a typical reference.
Because Iris is an exceptionally kind student who treats everyone nicely.
She's kind to me, but she's kind to everyone else too.
Before graduation, it felt like she had made friends with all the students and was admired by all her juniors.
"So...should I consult Iris for advice?"
Having reached that conclusion, I decided to visit Iris.
Her room in the royal castle is conveniently next to Shion's.
I knocked on Iris's door.
"Iris, it's me."
"Crow?"
"Can I come in?"
"Sure, why not?"
"Are you really sure I can come in?"
"I said it's fine, didn't I?"
"You're not going to attack me the moment I open the door, right?"
"Of course not! What do you take me for?"
Recalling our previous encounter, I noticed Iris seemed a bit annoyed. This is why I don't understand women.
Once inside Iris's room, I sipped the tea she graciously offered.
"Hey Crow. I've been hearing Shion talking loudly to herself in the next room for a while now. Is everything okay?"
"It's not her talking to herself. She's talking to the divine sword."
"Ah, the spirit residing in the Sword of Holy Light, Holly, right?"
"Yes, they're currently having a spat."
"So, you can see Holly and hear her voice, right?"
"Yeah. Just to confirm, you really can't see or hear Holly, can you?"
"No, I can't."
"I wonder why I can see her. If it's about the talent to wield the divine sword, you or Instructor Cattleya would probably be better suited than me."
"Still...from an outsider's perspective, she looks like she's talking to herself. All the past heroes must have gone through this, huh?"
"All past heroes were men, so there was no issue. Holly always fell for the hero and supported him devotedly. Now that her partner isn't of the opposite gender, she seems to be unsure of how to interact."
"Hmm..."
Sitting across the table, Iris listened to my story with keen interest as she sipped her tea.
"Hey, Iris, you have a lot of friends, right?"
"I guess I have a normal amount."
"How do girls become friends with each other? Do you have any idea how to get those two to get along?"
"No idea."
"...Huh? Why did you answer immediately? Don't you have any suggestions?"
"It's a given that people should get along. But I don't understand why those two don't. It's their issue, right?"
"If you put it that way, there's nothing left to discuss."
"Look, Crow. Friendship means feeling comfortable with each other or simply having a mutually beneficial relationship. But in the end, it's an issue between the parties involved. Don't you think it's arrogant for a third party to try to make them get along?"
"Uh, yeah..."
Somehow, I felt like she just hit me with a hard truth. "To begin with, it feels presumptuous for you, Crow, who doesn't even have friends, to get involved in making friends with girls."
"Stop it! Leave me alone!"
"During our student days, you always ate alone in the cafeteria, didn't you?"
"I wasn't alone! I ate with Instructor Cattleya!"
"That was just out of pity from the instructor..."
"Enough, enough! Just stop talking already!"
As I covered both my ears, almost on the verge of tears, Iris sighed in exasperation.
"If you don't have any business here, maybe it's time for you to leave. I have various things to prepare for."
"Prepare?"
"I was recently assigned an urgent mission. I've been ordered to be dispatched to a battlefield where the situation is deteriorating."
"Huh. They're sending you, who wields one of the saintly swords of the divine blade, to a different location?"
Iris should be by Shion's side, preparing for the future battle against the Demon King, enhancing their teamwork and training. The same goes for Instructor Cattleya. Do the powers in this country only see the wielders of the saintly swords as mere "outstanding combat strength"?