With all these people here, he hesitated for a moment but immediately banished his halting thoughts and dashed towards the sphere, the burden on his shoulders jerked ever so slightly as he ran.
Better end this fast
Closing in on the center of conflict, his mind was beginning to enter a state like tunnel vision with each step he took.
**********************************
"ENOUGH OF THIS!"
A bellowing voice rippled through the air. Kanon was forcefully brought to a halting stop by the pressure it carried. Even though it was a voice he was all too familiar with, he still froze in place like a frightened animal. What happened next made him feel completely powerless.
"Didn't you hear what she just said?"
In the midst of the heated clash, a calm voice that completely contrasted with the one that previously halted everything in the vicinity asked a rather simple question. Though it was simple enough, this voice had carried way more authority than anything to ever come before it. Finally realizing what was now happening, both Levinia and Arthur's eyes widened in shock at the sight of the woman who just appeared.
It was none other than Aurora- She was currently standing in the exact center of the heated discord like it was nothing noteworthy.
Even though gravity seemed to be going haywire where she stood, the effects didn't apply to her at all, and after that single question the sphere formed by the clashing territories abruptly dissipated into fading particles of purple light, glimmering in the wind as they floated off.
"I'm so sorry!"
"My apologies!"
Two completely out of sync apologies could be heard resonating from the hollow creater only just created. Levinia and Arthur were seated in the center of it, with the former sitting in Seiza and the latter cross legged. Even though Aurora was shorter than them both, her presence right now was quite imposing. After a lengthy explanation of what led up to all that tension earlier, they were both in the midst of apologizing again for what felt like the umpteenth time.
There were still some people here watching things play out from a distance and made it seem oddly reminiscent of a middle school classroom gathering around to see what punishment would be handed down to their mischievous classmate. Things like nobility pretty much meant nothing here, but Levinia and Arthur were putting on this sincere display purely out of the sense of admiration and respect they held for the woman standing before them.
After seeing how sincere they were being, Aurora could only heave a small sigh since she wasn't even that mad in the first place.Her expression gradually loosened, and the depths of her sublime features were once again on display. She was only 148 centimeters tall, and her face had easily retained its youthful vigor throughout all the years she'd seen. Her Irises weren't the typical golden sheen but instead reflected a silver hue that sparkled in the sunlight and perfectly complimented her hairstyle, which was done in the form of a bun gathered at the back with a wooden ash pipe-decked in gold and black that was about ten centimeters in length sticking through the tied-up knot of silver hair.
Two slender bangs were hanging down and flopped against both of her cheeks as if to frame her face and accentuate her doll-like figure even more. It was hard to call her any older than twenty, but apparently her actual age had far surpassed that. Her outfit dictated as much as she was now wearing a red haori beneath a kimono jacket with the image of a golden dragon rising up from its hem.
Covering her bare legs was a blue pair of hakama divided trousers that seemed to extend all the way to her ankles. On the back of her kimono jacket, there was a single character boldly written there that read "Grandmaster."
"You kids do tend to go a bit overboard, but I don't think it was that bad this time around. Just try not to get into any more fights in these public places."
"Yes ma'am."
"Understood."
After they both responded with the exact same timing, she flashed them a smile that seemed almost carefree.
"MMhmm that's more like it."
Her smile carried with it the radiance of the sun, just looking at her would never convey the true depth of her character.
"Aurora, what about my café? There's that crater in front of it now. I'm going to lose customers you know."
The other woman who had initially stopped Kanon in his tracks posed the question from across the short distance with a hand gently pressed against her cheek. Her tone sounded lazily exaggerated, like she was deliberately putting on a performance. It could easily be interpreted that way as there was an eyepatch covering her right eye, and her slender figure was easily the tallest one here.
Surprisingly she was wearing a short sleeved white blouse and a blue cardigan that accentuated her pleated skirt.The knee-high socks she wore completed her mismatched outfit and left almost everyone there with an indescribable impression. She almost seemed like she was doing a haphazard cosplay of some theatric character.
"Hm?" Aurora looked over her shoulder with a confused glance.
"Well, that boy there-Arthur, he's learning from you right now, isn't he? So shouldn't his master also bear some responsibility for her student's misdeeds?"
"Geh!"
Aurora's shoulders jerked at the sound of it and Kanon smiled wryly at the sight.
"Manager, I think I can do something about that don't worry."
As bad as the performance was, Elaine completely fell for it even though she wasn't even the intended target.
"That's my Elaine." She gleefully caressed the eager girl's hair. Elaine blushed as if she was receiving some kind of reward.
"Lady Rizette, worry not, I will make sure to cover the expenses for any damage's we might have caused."
"That's nobility for you, a tried-and-true rich girl." Rizette remarked while gesturing her approval.
"Hold it, I was the one responsible for what happened here, lady Aurora has nothing to do with it so I'd like to compensate you as well."
"Oh Ho, very well then You can split the costs if you want. She doesn't have the money anyway." Aurora's shoulders jolted once again at that remark.
Rizette apparently didn't care who the money came from as long as they could pay.
"Kanon, even though she's your guardian make sure you don't end up like Aurora alright?"
"Ehehehe"
Rizette playfully uttered those words, shattering the last semblances of pride Aurora currently held. She suddenly sprang back up however, like some wonderful idea had just sparked inside her mind.
"Oh that's right." With those words a mischievous look appeared on her face, it made it even harder to call her anything other than a meddling child.
"By the way Kanon, how long have you been carrying those?" Rizette asked with a concerned look.
"About seven hour-"
"So you were here, Kanon."
Aurora's voice cut him off mid-sentence, one look was all he needed to know what that grin meant, but still he decided to play along.
"What's with that look! I've been here the whole time you know?"
Having gone through all of that, her relaxed demeanor was clearly putting him off.
"You're working pretty hard so I couldn't pin your face down immediately." There was blatant sarcasm in her voice.
"Heh, Its hard for me to notice you too. Most of the time I just recognize the top of your head."
Looking down at her, he held a condescending smirk with his retort. For a split-second he saw something pulse across her temple.
"So, how was your little walk?"
"Walk? More like death march."
"Oh please, something as trifling as this could never be called serious training."
"Was there even a point to this?"
"Oh you're questioning my methods now are you?"
Her voice came from a completely different direction, Kanon knew exactly where she was but he couldn't see her.
"Wow! How'd you get up there so fast?"
Elaine was fawning over Aurora at the moment as she stood atop the metal pole that rested on Kanon's shoulder blades.
"What methods? Isn't this just tortu-" He lost his balance and tumbled forward slightly before regaining his original position.
Just now, it had felt like the weight of a truck had been abruptly dropped on his back, but Aurora was the only one increasing his burden at the moment. Of course, she didn't actually weigh that much but there were other ways of getting the same effect. A light stomp from her was more than enough to dish out that much force-A trait Kanon was in the midst of learning.
"Tch! You old hag."
"What was that?" Aurora asked, Now sitting crossed leg top his back with perfect posture.
Even though he'd said those words under his breath she still heard every single one.
"N-Nothing....I didn't say anything."
"Teheehehe"
Walking towards them, Levinia was barely able to hold her laughter as she clutched her sides and covered her mouth. Since Kanon was usually the one getting the better of her, seeing Aurora get the upper hand on him like this must've felt refreshing to her. For the third time today, he felt completely defeated.