"Annabelle, if you want to become a good Knight, you have to train on weekends, too, right?"
She smiled softly and replied,
"Yes, I practice while you're at school."
"Oh... Even on your days off?" The boy asked in surprise.
"Yes." His sister replied just as gently.
"But aren't you tired? Besides, it must be boring to train alone." He said, sounding a little worried.
"Don't worry. When I practice alone, I imagine moments when I could protect you... Then my heart fills with warmth, and I don't feel bored at all." She said warmly.
"Phew, that's good to hear... Wait, what?! Is it normal to talk about this so calmly?" the boy replied indignantly. Annabelle smiled warmly in response.
Deciding not to pursue the subject, Elion turned away silently. But then, remembering something else, he looked at his sister again and said,
"Come to think of it, you'll be sixteen in a couple of months, and you'll graduate from the Defense department in a month. Will they send you on missions with the official Mysteries Seekers squad, or will you create your own? I'm even jealous..."
"Yes... But I don't think I'll stay longer than a couple of mandatory outings." Annabelle said calmly.
"Why?" The boy asked in surprise.
"Well, I only want to protect you and our parents, not anyone else. I'll only be there for the experience." She said calmly.
"Oh, how selfish you are, dear sister!" Elion said reproachfully.
But his smile made it clear that he was pleased with her answer. Annabelle smiled sweetly back at him.
After all, the two of them were more important to each other than to the rest of the world.
They didn't notice that they had walked around the entire square and ended up at the other end, where they could see the school.
Then, Elion noticed a bright sign depicting people in strange poses wearing masks or makeup. They were also dressed in bizarre, multicolored costumes. The sign was placed at the edge of the road leading to the school, yet it still attracted a lot of attention. It read:
"Only tomorrow! We repeat, only tomorrow!
A traveling circus 'The Kingdom of Jokes' will be visiting your city!
Hurry to the show because seats are limited!"
Elion's eyes lit up. He let out an excited sound and rushed to his sister.
"Woo-hoo! Belle! Belle! Look! Look at this!" The boy excitedly hugged his sister's arm and pointed to the sign.
"Are we going? We're going, right? It's my birthday tomorrow, so we have to go, right?" Right?!" Elion went crazy, circling around his sister and holding her hands while performing his signature excited dance.
His reaction was somewhat inappropriate, but understandable. There was little entertainment for children in their town, and no circus to speak of. He had to spend his entire childhood reading books that interested him and coming up with his own entertainment.
For this reason, Elion loved school because there were many children with whom he could have fun, and of course, children he could tease playfully. Elion also liked to make fun of adults, but they were too dull and predictable, so he spent most of his time conducting experiments on smaller test subjects. One poor girl in particular got the worst of it.
Seeing how joyfully her brother circled around her, fawning over her passionately and losing his head completely, Annabelle could hardly hold back her tears of joy. Quickly calming down, she took Elion under her arms, lifted him up to her face, and exclaimed joyfully with a happy smile.
"Of course we're going!"
Upon hearing this, the boy's face, which was already beaming, lit up even more.
Looking at his sister's happy smile, he could no longer contain himself. He began to laugh and twirl around with her.
"Hehehehe."
"Heeheehee!"
Spinning around with smiles that never faded, the two continued their ridiculous, strange, and undoubtedly happy dance.
"Heeheehee!
"Hehehehe."
They were once again lost in their own world. At first, those around them looked at them strangely, but after a couple of minutes, they stopped paying attention.
The two continued twirling, enjoying each other's company, and forgetting everything else.
Already out of breath from laughing so much, Elion leaned against his sister's chest. She hugged him lovingly and began to gently stroke his back.
"Haa... Haa..." Elion relaxed and rested in his sister's arms, breathing heavily but finally calming down. The smile never left his face, nor Annabelle's.
Finally paying attention to the world around them, they realized many voices were growing louder and people were coming out of buildings as if a festival had begun.
"What's going on?" Elion asked, still in his sister's arms, puzzled.
"I'm not sure..." Annabelle muttered, tilting her head.
He looked up at his sister and said,
"Let's take a look."
"But school..." She said, not putting up much resistance.
"We won't be long. Besides, on the last day, it's okay to be a little late." The boy said, not letting Annabelle finish.
"Is this a new law issued by the self-proclaimed king of the school?" The girl grinned.
"No, it's a protest on behalf of all students, expressed by the chairman of the DSFIC." The boy grinned back.
Deftly twisting out of his sister's grasp, she clicked her tongue regretfully.
They followed the crowd and were surprised to find that the carriages in the square had stopped and the people had gotten out. After walking a little further, the crowd began to part as if to let someone or something pass.
Surprised voices were immediately heard, and Elion involuntarily listened to them.
"What's going on over there?"
"Move! I can't see!"
"Can you see what's there?"
"Yes, there's a cart being pulled by a strange beast."
"Hey! Let me see!"
"Do you see that?!" It's..."
But Elion, whom his sister had placed on her shoulders, had already seen and understood everything.
How could he not understand? What he saw had been described and beautifully illustrated in many of the books he had read.
Looking at the strange beast—not a horse, not a bull, not a cow, but something else—he remembered the nickname given to the beast by the hero of these books: 'Maximus.'
What it was pulling behind it was a luxurious, open-top carriage, as if inviting them to look inside.
Inside sat a fairly well-known group of pioneers and explorers—the squad of Gardemarine Gelion
Seeing hair of an unnatural aquamarine hue in the carriage, Elion involuntarily muttered:
"The Plunderer of Mysteries..."