Technically I pa.s.sed me limit of ‘within the day’ but I’m sure everyone else’s times is different so I’m still safe! Thanks for reading~

Children that play with mud and get all muddy are very much child-like.
However, seeing our oil covered, slippery trio, sensei let out a deep sigh.

"Good grief, well it"s fine. Hurry up and go in the bath, you three." (Melma)
"""Sorry.""" (Velt, Forna, Ura)

All three of us were despondent as we apologized, but well, I went too far this time.
For the time being, I"ll explain everything to sensei.
The rumor of us fighting in public because of jealousy circulated throughout the royal capital.
Well, no one would actually accept that story without questioning it, but by the time I realized it, us three, including Ura, were made fun of on our way back home.

"Oi, Ura-chan. These are your change of clothes for after you get out of the bath." (Melma)
"Eh?" (Ura)

As Ura headed to the bath, sensei threw something at her.
That something were clothes for little girls. A sleeveless shirt and a white skirt.
It"s for commoners, and is cheap-looking, but they are cute clothes that have rustic simplicity.

"Um, this is?" (Ura)
"People from the neighbourhood saw your fight before, and they pa.s.sed them to me for you. They thought you wouldn"t have much clothes after all." (Melma)
"Eh, for, for me? A hu, human did?" (Ura)
"Since they"re hand-me-downs from when they were young, they aren"t that good, but they said you can have them if you want." (Melma)

With an expression that looked like she couldn"t believe it, Ura became firm while holding the clothes.
It"s understandable. Until just earlier, she should have been a demon that"s considered a nuisance to them.
Then, sensei smiles sweetly and strokes Ura"s head.

"The neighbours and the people in the shop were saying how you should immediately consult them if you get bullied by Velt." (Melma)
"Eh…………" (Ura)

Unbelievable. Well, I guess it"s understandable.
After seeing Ura crying so much, the poisonous air in the royal capital might have thinned out.
Even if she"s a demon, she"s a child after all.
There certainly might be a lot of factors to worry about, but this place is the Elfarshia Kingdom.
It"s a peaceful country where the princess freely visits the homes of farmers, goes shopping and is even officially allowed to marry the son of a farmer.
Ura hasn"t performed any crimes. As long as they can understand that, I also thought that Ura"s problem wouldn"t be difficult.

"Kuhahahaha, good for you, crybaby." (Velt)
"Uu, I, I did not cry! Velt, I keep saying this, but stop treating me like a child!" (Ura)
"Yes yes, good for you, princess crybaby. Come on, hurry up and go in the bath." (Velt)
"Ah, wait, you, uuu~. I definitely did not cry, okay!" (Ura)

Well, I wouldn"t say they have forgiven and forgotten the problem between demons and humans, but I"m not interested in such a big problem.
Just, I"m fine as long as I can protect Ura by doing the things I can do.

"Wai-, it is unfair for just you two to enter! I am also going in!" (Forna)
"Ooh~, come in come in, the other princess crybaby." (Velt)

Has the problem between these two been resolved slightly?

"Uuuuuu, Velt is being a lot more of a bully today! Ura is also having trouble." (Forna)
"Indeed. I don"t like it when this guy gets a big head. We"ll have a rematch next time." (Ura)

I wouldn"t say they"re close friends, but maybe rivals? Something like that.
Well, at least there"s no dangerous atmosphere, and it feels like they might have actually forgotten the tension from before.
I feel relieved.

"Now, let"s hurry up and wash it away." (Velt)

Like this, taking the two who were oil covered and slippery, we should hurry up and go to the bath to wash it away, but……

"O~i, we can"t just mix your clothes with the other clothes, so separate it by putting it in this basket." (Melma)
"Uuuu, this was one of my favourites though." (Forna)
"It"s Velt"s fault." (Ura)

The two are displeased, and still have sulky faces.
Well, I made them cry in public, so I"m at fault too though.

"I said I"m sorry, and I apologize." (Velt)
"T, that has no remorse inside it! Of all places, to think you would choose to expose my underwear in front of everyone!" (Forna)
"That was my first time someone did something like that to me. I can"t become a bride anymore…… so you"ll have to take responsibility, okay?" Ura)

Well I mean~, of course they would get mad.
In a situation where they couldn"t move, were completely helpless, and kept toppling over, their panties were shown to everyone by me, of all people, someone of a lower rank than them.

"In the first place, Velt should learn more about the words fair and square, a knightly spirit, and politeness." (Forna)
"That reminds me, when you fought with that Gyanza as well, you had to lay out a plan to trap the opponent in the end." (Ura)
"If you stay like this, in the future, we will not be able to take you to parties in foreign countries, nor can we take you to conferences." (Forna)
"Tch, it can"t be helped. Although it"s the demon country style, I also have the status of royalty. I"ll beat manners and mental att.i.tude into you next time." (Ura)

Ah~, yes yes, that is true. I was completely at fault for today, so stop nagging me.

"Good grief, yeah yeah, I"ll learn it if there"s ever a chance to." (Velt)
"Ah, Velt, don"t scatter your clothes everywhere! It will trouble Lallana-san!" (Forna)
"You really are a child. Properly separate your underwear, trousers, socks and shirt." (Ura)

Are these guys my mum?
However, at that time, Forna and Ura – who were sorting my clothes – completely stopped moving, and suddenly raised their heads.

"Eh, are we entering the bath together?" (Forna)
"Do, do I have to go in with you?" (Ura)
"Ahh? What, are you embarra.s.sed? Then, do you want to wait? Or else, do you want to go in first?" (Velt)

I don"t really mind either way. I do think it"s a waste of hot water, so going in together is more efficient…… wait, why are these guys blushing while fidgeting…… oh, right, they"re embarra.s.sed.

"Good grief, then you guys can go in first. I"ll go in afterwards." (Velt)
"Eh? Ah, but, um, the hot water, and be, besides, ummm." (Forna)
"Well~, uh, um, what is it? If yo, you want to no matter what, then I can go in together!" (Ura)

……. Good grief, these precocious brats. Why the h.e.l.l are they becoming s.e.xually aware.

"I don’t care anymore. I"ll just tell you when I get out." (Velt)
"Wai, wa, wait a moment! I did not say I would not enter! It, it is a waste of hot water!" (Forna)
"Don"t go, wait! It"s nothing really, so I"ll enter too. Yeah, I"m going in!" (Ura)

While worrying, Forna and Ura and making an expression that kinda looks like they just made a crucial decision.
They nod to each other, and put their hands on their clothes while continuously glancing at me.

Good grief, even though they"re just 10 year olds, they"re overstretching themselves.
I mean, I"m sure it would have been mentally tough for them to have their skirts turned over in front of the public, but what"s so weird with entering the bath with fellow brats that are practically relatives……

"Tto…… fuu……" (Forna)
"There we go……" (Ura)

They take off their skirts and unb.u.t.ton their shirts.
Then, in the next moment, I received a shock.

"Ah, Forna, your one is…… kind of pretty." (Ura)
"Eh? Ah, but your one is cute too, Ura. Are these used in the demon country too?" (Forna)

They"re showing each other their underwear, and sharing opinions on them, but I didn"t care about that.

"Ah, ge, geez, Velt you pervert." (Forna)
"Le, lech, don"t look so carefully." (Ura)

A flash of lightning ran through my body, and by the time I realized it, I had jumped out of the changing room, brekaing into a run while stark naked.

"Wai, waiiiiiiiit, no waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!" (Velt)

Impossible! You"re joking! They"re 10 years old, right? A 10 year old isn"t that different to a kindergartener, right?
Why? Eh, more like, both of them too?
What"s going on!

"Velt, where, where are you going!" (Forna)
"Wa, wait! What, was my body weird?" (Ura)

It"s not that it was weird. It"s that I didn"t know!

"More like, I"m a fool! With those, of course they would hesitate getting into a bath with a guy!" (Velt)

It seems I made a mess again.
At any rate, I ran all over the house while shouting, and by the time I realized it, I had ran all the way to the kitchen.

"Tsu-, you"re so loud, what"s wrong Velt! Rather, what"s up with that appearance? I thought you were going to go in the bath." (Melma)
"Velt-kun, you might catch a cold. Oops, you can"t come into the shop! The customers might see you after all." (Lallana)

I stood stock still in the entrance of the kitchen.
Pillars and pots are more or less obstructing the view, so the customers can"t see me from the counter.
But it"s fine. Compared to my current mental state, it doesn"t really matter to me even if someone sees me naked.
The problem is……

"Se, sensei…… ma"am, it"s, it"s a disaster……" (Velt)
"Ah?" (Melma)
"What happened?" (Lallana)

Swallowing my saliva in one go, I told them the exact shock I saw right now.

"Fo, Forna and Ura were wearing br…… bras!" (Velt)
"…… Hah?" (Melma)

What! Like, those guys are children, aren"t they! Why are children wearing things that adult women are supposed to wear!

""""""Buguhoooooo!"""""

The customers that could only hear my voice all spat out their ramen, but I know how they feel too.
For brats that are only 10 year old to wear bra.s.siere, what are they think…… wait, why is sensei making a "aw man~" face!

"Ah~, Velt. Sorry. I was wrong. It was wrong of me to put 10 year olds in a bath together." (Melma)

Sensei put his arm around my stooping shoulder, and talked in a small enough voice that only I could hear.

"Haa? No, but they were planning on going in together too…… wait, I mean, what"s up with this world! Are all 10 year olds like that?" (Velt)
"No, that"s not it. To be honest, it probably wasn"t even that rare in our previous world." (Melma)
"Why? They"re brats, brats!" (Velt)
"No, that"s not it, just think about it normally. If you say 10 year old, then they would be in between their fourth and fifth year of primary school. Which means that in a few years, they would be in middle school. It"s not that weird, is it?" (Melma)

………… Aaaah!!!!
That, that"s true! 10 years old means they would be in middle school after a few years!
Since this world doesn"t count school years like primary school, I completely forgot about it.

"So that"s how it is. Like, I keep calling them brats, but just like they said, am I treating them too much like children? Time has pa.s.sed after all." (Velt)

Since I"ve been acquainted with Forna since I was 5 years old, I always had the feeling of being with a kindergartener, and since Forna is the same age as me, I gave Ura similar treatment.
They got angry and told me not to treat them like children, but that might not necessarily be wrong.

"You know, Velt-kun, princess and Ura-chan are properly growing. To become your bride someday, both of them are in the middle of steadily becoming much lovelier adult women. So, it isn"t that weird you know?" (Lallana)

Ma"am. Please don"t say that with such beautiful, sparkling eyes.

"Oi, Velt. So, what"s wrong? You, don"t tell me your heart suddenly started throbbing to the two you had been treating as children until now………… even though they are in their growth period, they"re still 10 years old." (Melma)

Sensei. That"s wrong. I"m begging you, so please don"t look at me with such drawn away eyes as if you"re looking at garbage.
No, not that,

"Sensei, that"s not it. It"s just, for some reason…… like, how do I put it, for them to be growing, it means that that much time has pa.s.sed, right? But that realization didn"t properly hit me." (Velt)
"Hmm~, well, that would make sense. From my perspective, the teenage years are packed with events, and I can really feel that it went by in the blink of an eye." (Melma)
"It"s like, I"m kinda realizing that enough time for those precocious brats to grow has pa.s.sed." (Velt)
"You"re talking like such an old man." (Melma)

I wonder if it"s because this is my second life. To be honest, I think "I"m still 10 years old" about my age.
However, it seems I should be thinking "I"m already 10 years old."
Even that Gyanza had become a general that leads an army at 15 years of age.

"When I think about it like that, I am working hard in my own way, but I feel like I should actually make a plan and stop slacking in trying to find Kamino." (Velt)

Someday……
For the day that might come……
I"ll learn everything I need to learn to not regret anything in the future, and I"ll go to meet Kamino someday.
That"s what I was thinking.
So then, when exactly is that "someday"? I can"t just go "it should be around now" by just looking at the present condition, but it might be good for me to properly start thinking about a method.

"Veltーーーー! Stop getting embarra.s.sed at this late hour and come in already!" (Forna)
"Even we"re embarra.s.sed! But since you said no matter what!" (Ura)

With their bodies wrapped in a towel, Forna and Ura came to bring me back.
Just like always, I thought of the words "shut up you brats", in my mind, but for some reason, it didn"t come out.

And then, we were going to learn of it before long.

The fact that we can"t always stay being children in this currently raging world.