Chapter 220: Years and Month

***Arc 9 One Who Sent Off, Chapter 220 Years and Month***

Her long black hair was tied back and she had a gentle face reminiscent of his late wife.

'Look, Krische, it's my dad. From your perspective, he's your Ojii-sama.''

His daughter――Grace said that happily, taking the little girl with her.

She was a girl that Gorka had apparently picked up about a month ago.

She had long silver hair and a body no bigger than Gallen's waist.

Her very well-groomed features were something you wouldn't often see on the streets.

What made her unique were her purple eyes that stared up at him.

'...This child is'

'Ah, when father left for town...'

He had gone to see her former subordinate, Bogan, while Gallen was staying there for about a month.

On the way back to the village with a merchant wagon, he heard the outline.

He had heard that she was a beautiful child who seemed to be an abandoned child of a noble, and when he saw her appearance for the first time, he nodded at that.

She seemed to be observing him as she grabbed Grace's sleeve and hid behind her body.

She must be three or four years old, similar to Selene who was over there.

However, her atmosphere was serene and ephemeral, as if it were something artificial, and her skin was as white as snow, perhaps because it hadn't been exposed to the sun.

She was a girl who didn't fit with the village.

"...So you even gave her a name?"

"Yes. ...Otou-san, I'm telling you but no matter what you say, I won't give in. "

Grace held Krische protectively and glared at Gallen.

Krische's gaze darted back and forth between Grace and Gallen.

"I won't say anything. You and Gorka must have discussed it as a couple and decided. In that case, I have no right to interfere. ...and you, you're stubborn person, it's not like you will listen to me.''

Grace grew up to be a good daughter, but she was not blessed with children.

When she finally conceived, the baby passed away, but now she looked like a mother and she seemed to have regained some of her cheerfulness.

It was obvious that the reason he allowed her to raise an unusual child was not out of pity for the child, but simply for that reason.

He bent down in front of the girl and smiled.

"I'm Gallen. Nice to meet you."

"......"

The girl named Krische stared at him without saying anything.

But, she didn't seem scared either.

It was as if she was observing the person named Gallen, and it had a somewhat inorganic color to it.

Did she not know the language?

'Krische, say hello. I told you, right? When you first meet someone, say nice to meet you.'

However that didn't seem to be the case, as the girl looked up at Grace and nodded, before she returned her gaze to Gallen and bowed her head.

"......nice to meet you."

A voice like ringing bells.

When Grace stroked her head and said, "That's right, good girl," the girl's mouth suddenly loosened and a quiet smile appeared.

She was as beautiful as the fairies in fairy tales, and her small emotions colored her expression.

"...She's a good kid.''

Gallen too reached out his hand.

Krische stared at the behavior of his hand.

When she stroked her on the head, she quietly narrowed her purple eyes.

"――Ehehe, Selene saw the spider on her shoulder and freaked out and kept on freaking out until Krische caught it."

"I see. Well, there are many people who hate spiders. I was bitten by spiders when I was a child, so I still don't like them."

"...Ojii-sama, is there anything you're not good at?"

"Of course there is. I'm just pretending like I'm fine."

Gallen smiled bitterly and patted Krische on the head.

The two of them were walking outside the royal capital――a military training ground.

Tents were pitched here and there, training for setting up and dismantling camps was being conducted, and soldiers were busy running around.

"Ojii-sama...hmm, Bery, Anne, and the others don't seem to like crawly things."

"I'm the same, I don't like spiders and centipedes."

"Is that how it is?"

Krische put a finger to her lips and tilted her head.

"Well, I'm exaggerating, but for example...you wouldn't want to eat in a room with lots of spiders and centipedes roaming around, right?"

She heard his eyes a little at those words, and her eyebrows furrowed as if she had imagined it.

"...Krische, might not like that."

"It's a matter of the amount and situation. Selene would be fine if she saw a spider in the forest, but she can't stand having a spider on her shoulder in her room. You're probably fine with one or two spiders. But if it comes in many numbers then you would hate it...It's a matter of standards that can be tolerated."

'Hmm, hmm' Krische nodded in admiration and smiled with some kind of happiness.

"Then, Krische might also be a bit afraid of spiders."

"Are you happy?"

"Ehehe, Krische is the same with Selene and Ojii-sama."

Krische hugged Gallen's arm and relaxed her cheeks.

Garen gave a wry smile as if he was troubled.

――This morning's dream reminded him of Krische from when they met the first time.

Compared to those days, even when she was in the village, Krische was much brighter now.

No, it wasn't like it was originally dark.

Gorka, Grace, Gala and Gallen.

Krische had a lot of expressions when interacting with some people, and at times she was playful befitting her age.

The number of people she allowed so had, and her world has expanded.

It's been a few years since they came to Christand, and since then Krische have grown and become brighter.

They were involved in a lot of things, including the civil war and the last war, so it wasn't all smooth sailing.

Still, it was probably a good change for her.

He could only be grateful to Selene, Bery, and the many people who watched over her.

At the very least, it was thanks to these people that this granddaughter, who could not be called normal, was able to smile so happily.

"Hmm, it's Aleha and General Remin."

"ah......"

On the way to the Black Flag Special Forces training ground in a small forest, they heard the sound of a sword clash.

A beautiful young man with brown-gold hair and a beautiful woman with golden hair, who was quite tall for a woman, were sparring with practice swords.

Tekrea didn't notice them, but Aleha, who seemed to be teaching her how to use the sword, noticed first, lowered his sword, and saluted.

"Krische-sama, Gallen-sama."

"Hello. General Remin too."

"H-ha! My apologies, showing you two something this unsightly..."

Tekrea also noticed immediately and saluted by placing her hand on her left chest.

She must have been training for a long time, and she was sweating a little.

Krische looked around and tilted her head in response.

"...Why are you two training in a place like this?"

"If we do it outside, the number of spectators will increase, so since it's a private training session, we prefer a place with fewer people."

"Ha, I asked for it, Krische-sama. The sight of someone who could be considered a general being taught how to use a sword will affect morale."

"I see......"

Krische nodded as if she understood, and Gallen looked at the two of them and smiled bitterly.

It's a combination he had seen a lot lately.

"Ehehe, practice is a good thing. General Remin Aleha loves sparring so he often traps Krische, so please hang out with him a lot."

"Y-yes..."

Krische was in a good mood――she thought the number of times she was asked to spar had decreased considerably recently, but I see, this was probably the reason, Krische thought.

When she thought about it.

"Aleha about the I was talking about before――"

"Ah, what is it?"

and,

"It's not good for a warrior of your caliber to wear only a few strokes on his chest armor forever. I-I'm planning to invite a skilled armor craftsman to my mansion to adjust my armor, how about it?"

"...Armor, is it? It's about time for me to buy a new one so――"

She felt like she had been seeing the two of them together a lot lately.

He also often practiced the sword together with Tekrea.

To Krische it was truly a good thing.

There was no way Krische would be able to understand the subtleties of Tekrea's facial expression as she blushed slightly.

Krische only thought that her cheeks were flushed simply because she had practiced hard.

"Also, Krische feels like General Remin is stepping in a little too hard. You're also tall, so it might be better to put the center of gravity a little in front of the body."

Tekrea widened her eyes as if she was a little surprised, and Aleha smiled bitterly.

"I was just to tell her that...what do you think? A bit of demonstration here."

"...Krische and Ojii-sama something to do with Kurofuyo (Blacky)."

Krische glared at Aleha, and Tekrea chuckled at the two of them.

Seeing her like that, Cliché tilted her head and stared at Tekrea's face.

"What's wrong?"

"No, it's just..."

For some reason, the atmosphere was different, it seemed mellower before, or rather kinder.

However, Krische couldn't express it well in words, so she shook her head and said, 'Well, guess it's fine.'

"It's great that you're getting along with Aleha. It seemed like both Selene and Skeleton were worried about whether Aleha would be able to get along properly with the people of the kingdom... so now that there are more people he talk to other than Meow Meow and the others, Krische feel like some of Krische's burden have been lifted off the shoulders.''

As for Aleha, he was only appointed as the corps commander and left alone, and the small details were mostly done by Selene, Eluga, Gallen, and Kolkis.

Even so, she felt like she was his guardian――Krische nodded her head over and over again.

Aleha laughed at the girl's demeanor, as if she had been taking care of him for a long time, and Gallen also smiled bitterly.

Tekrea also opened her mouth as her face became even redder.

"As, as a warrior, someone you can respect has nothing to do with their status or background...I have a lot to learn from him, and I'm probably the one who is being taken care of here."

"This is too great of a compliment. In fact, I have been indebted to General Remin in many ways."

"Ehehe, both of you have a very good relationship where you both recognize each other. General Remin, please take good care of Aleha."

"Y-yes."

If Aleha could get along with Tech Rare, Krische's burden would be lessened.

Krische had said it innocently, but Tekrea saluted with a red face while thinking about various meanings.

Aleha also smiled bitterly when he saw Tekrea, and bowed his head to thank her for the help.

"Krische, it's bad to get in their way. Let's go."

"Yes, Ojii-sama."

Krische hugged Gallen's arm and headed towards the Black Flag Special Force while being sent off by Aleha and Tekrea.

――However, on the way, Krische noticed a presence and tilted her head, pulling Gallen towards het.

It was a little far away from the two of them――a place that could be seen through the gaps in the trees.

There was Waltza, an old soldier with one arm and a prosthetic hand, and Milcarz, Tekrea's adjutant, who was also an old soldier.

Gallen looked at the two, a little taken aback.

"W-we just wanted to check on those two..."

Waltza immediately saluted, and Milcarz followed suit.

"...I understand that you're concerned, but I don't think it would be good for us old men to be involved in something like this. To think that two fine warriors are being snooped on..."

"...T-to show something this unsightly"

"My apologies..."

Krische tilted her head to one side, and Gallen smiled bitterly.

"That said, I guess it's the nature of old people to be concerned about the future of young people huh"

"...?"

Gallen lovingly stroked Krische's small head.

Krische by no means what one would call normal.

She was a kind girl――but there were many parts that were different from normal people.

What he should be grateful for was the people around her.

She had many people who understood her, not just Selene and Bery.

Some respected her, others loved her.

"Usa-chan, Mia said she's not happy that she was the only one getting scolded."

"I didn't say that!"

The Black-Haired who laughed――Kalua teased her friend, hugging Krische from her back.

"...Mia, a commander must sometimes take responsibility. It isn't a good thing to run away from responsibility like tha――"

"No matter how you look at it, it was Kalua who did it just now...!"

"Adjutant Mia, I don't think it's a good idea to interrupt your superior's words."

"Kalua! You..."

As he watched this, Dagra approached her side with a troubled look on his face.

Gallen says with a wry smile.

"...It's always lively here no matter what time I come huh."

"I'm sorry, showing something so embarrassing..."

"No, I think it's easier for Krische if they have such a close relationship. I'm grateful to the company commander."

That was his honest impression.

In day-to -day life, Krische was kind and hardworking.

However, she was too hard-working on the battlefield.

Like when she killed the bandit――Krische had no qualms about killing people.

No matter how cruel it was, she would easily do it if necessary.

Krische had too strong and ruthless of a side.

It's thanks to Selene and the others that she wasn't isolated, and it was also probably thanks to them.

They were also the reason why Krische was able to spend time in a circle of people.

"...There won't be any battles for a while. The battle the other day was the last battle for me."

"Gallen-sama..."

"However, I can feel assured because this unit is here. ...I will continue to rely on you for that child."

Dagra looked at Garen and silently saluted him.

Gallen returned his salute and laughed.

For Krische, he returned to the battlefield.

To brush off the sparks that fell on her.

However, he didn't know if he was able to help.

There were far more people who were protecting the cliché than Gallen had imagined.

Even without him, her future looked bright.

He never thought that his own powerlessness would make him this happy.

"I swear on my sword and my name. Please rest assured, we all will――"

His body suddenly lost its strength,

"HA, Gallen-sama"

His body was instantly held in her arms.

Her blank, flickering gaze just,

"...Ojii-sama?"

Looked over here, and his gaze intersected with her purple eyes.