Master’s Smile

Honestly, does everywhere I go to turn into a battlefield? I'd gotten up this morning fresh and chipper; now all I am is dead tired.

It isn't even that late in the morning; the sun is barely peeking out. Who'd have thought I'd get this tired this early in the day…

The next place I head for is the library this castle's been equipped with. I should get some peace and quiet there, right…? I'd like to think so, but…

"Fuh fuh fuh. Trust me; I can't show all of this to you. It's stuff that's still far out of your reach…"

"What's that supposed to mean? Just show me already!"

"Ah! Ah! S… S-S-S-Stoooop!"

Come on, the library too?! It looks like two people already made themselves at home before I had the chance. I can hear their voices from here.

I really wouldn't mind just turning around and leaving now, but knowing that I hadn't gotten the chance to meet the two of them this morning, I decided to greet them at the very least. I push the door open, its rattling loud and clear, and make my way inside.

Not to brag, but this library really is something else. Every single book I've collected over the years, even before I even thought of starting this guild - all of it's stored here.

Once I'd established this little guild of ours, the girls had been kind enough to steadily add to the collection. The result ended up being a huge library that prides itself on its enormous collection of literature.

I head toward the table stationed at the dead center of the library and see two others sitting there.

"M… M-M-Master! H-H-H-Help me!"

Immediately taking notice of my presence, one of the girls begs me to save her with tearful eyes. She's the one who was being all suggestive earlier.

Well… I suppose that shouldn't matter. She's a young girl I've raised since she was a sapling, after all. Watching over her as kindly as I can is already a necessity.

The name of the girl clinging to me now is Krankheit, by the way.

Her hair is colored grey, and she's chosen to curl it up into these adorable drills. Her face is adorable too, nothing to sniff at. She had some grasp of what it means to be a grown-up, but at some point, she'd gotten it into her head that adult women were supposed to be the mysterious sort. Now, she keeps trying to act the part.

Still, she really hasn't gotten around to getting used to it. Whenever she gets picked on, whatever airs she puts on crumble, and she just comes running to me.

An adorable daughter, through and through.

Two tiny black wings fluttered on her back, making it clear that she wasn't a human.

"Hey, wait up! And what're you clinging to the Master for, huh?! I'll kill you!"

The girl with the dangerous vocabulary and the ogre-like disposition is Kühling. She has a head of plentiful, deep red hair, and her personality is about as volatile as the color would suggest.

She's also a human. But of course, like all the girls in this guild, she was far from normal.

After all, most of the girls here are too strong for anyone's good.

The thing that these two girls do have in common is the way their outfits look; both of them are a dead giveaway that the two of them are magic users. They're not wearing robes, but I've heard that they wear them whenever they're out on the town.

"Bleeeeeeh!"

Krankheit turns to Kühling, sticks her tongue out, and blows a raspberry. If that had been the only thing I'd heard, I would have just had a small chuckle at the situation. But she was genuinely scared, that was clear.

Alright! Protecting his guild members is the guild master's job!

For now, I just keep smiling and hold Kühling back.

"Ugh! B-But… Krankheit's clinging to you, Master! Why wouldn't I get angry?!"

Oh, come on now. It's not like Krankheit went out of her way to do that, is it? It's probably just because you scared her. She'd probably cling to anyone she ran into like that.

'Nuzzle Nuzzle Nuzzle Nuzzle'

See? Krankheit agrees. The way Krankheit's head is shivering against my chest is more than enough proof, as far as I'm concerned.

"That's not it at all! Look! Look at her face; she can't stop grinning at me!"

Huh?

I take another look down at the girl while Kühling points in demonstration. Krankheit looks up at me; her eyes are fresh with tears. She looks like she could hold on to me forever.

Hmmm…

Well, it looks like Kühling's just misunderstanding the situation.

"There's no way I am, no way in Hell! Aaaah! See?! See that just now?!"

I look down at Krankheit yet again, but all I see is how she's shaking. I don't see anything close to a grinning young girl.

Fighting all the time is one thing, Kühling. Lying is another.

"Oh, for crying out loud! How can you not see through her?!"

"Heh…"

Kühling's face is already going red, and she looks like she could break into tears any second now.

Oh boy, did I go too far?

Krankheit. If you want to pick on Kühling, you should really try to keep it up until you're done. Losing your composure and laughing means you really have a lot to learn, you know?

I apologize to Kühling for teasing her, then give Krankheit a flick on her forehead.

"Eeeh…?"

"Owie! Y-Y-Y-You found me out?!"

Kühling looks at me with round eyes while Krankheit braces her forehead.

Really, I went too far. Sorry, okay? I'm the Master here; I know better than anyone else that you're not the kind of girl who'd lie like that, Kühling.

"H… Hmph! I'm a little happy that you'd say that, but I still won't forgive you!"

Kühling turns her face away and her back to me.

I, for one, can't help but grin at how adorable she's being. So, I pet her red hair.

"…?!"

It takes a while for the fact that I just patted her head to sink in for Kühling. When it finally does, her cheeks go red.

Oh, that Kühling. She really does wear her emotions on her sleeve, doesn't she? Well, I certainly won't complain. It's one of her better traits, after all.

"Wha… Just… That's just too sudden…"

Kühling squeaks out in a tiny voice. I ask her if she didn't like being petted.

"There's no way I could hate it, is there? …Pet me more."

I try to take my hand away from her, but she keeps pressing her head into my palm.

Come on, if you keep rubbing your head against me like that, that pretty red hair of yours is going to get ruined. In spite of these thoughts, I can't help but find Kühling adorable as she tries to spoil herself through me.