Chapter 79 The Superiority And Inferiority Of Strength
The gift that Mr. Lygar brought was a fish dish that the sailors promised to prepare for us... it was fish fillet (sashimi / 刺身).
Since this is a dish that's hardly available in the Ortria Kingdom, I'm really happy about it.
For some reason, Mr. Lygar left such a dish just sitting by the roadside.
...Why?
Well, thanks to the magic tool, it seems this won't spoil for the day, so I'll save it for lunch and go for a morning walk with the kids now.
"Ms. Yumie, are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm somehow managing."
Monica, who is leading the kids while holding their hands, calls out to me with a worried voice.
Right now, I'm slowly walking with crutches instead of in a wheelchair.
With Thea assisting me a bit, and after going through a lot of rehabilitation on the ship, I'm somehow managing to move forward.
The kids, without complaining about my slow pace, called out to me with smiles.
"Yumie, it looks tough to walk."
"I'll help you!"
"Me too!"
The kids clustered around me, clinging to my waist and pushing my back.
Honestly, it made it even harder to walk, but I appreciated their intention to help.
"Hehe, thank you, everyone."
Really, all the kids in this hospital are such good ones.
Yesterday, after hearing about Thea, these children came to visit me in the hospital room, and after just a short chat, they quickly became attached to me.
The children all have different conditions, such as asthma, congenital heart disease, and injuries, but the way they all respect and support each other is dazzlingly precious.
I want to make these kids smile more.
"...that's impressive"
"Yes, they are all good kids, aren't they?"
"It's you that I mean."
"Me...?"
Mr. Lygar said this in a rather blunt manner, and I tilted my head.
This guy, he seems wary of me, worried about me, he gives off a strange vibe.
If I had to say, it would be like Thea on the ship?
Of course, there's not the same atmosphere of alienation as there was with Thea.
"This area seems to be just fine."
As we slowly walked like that, we arrived at a large tree on the hospital grounds.
Sitting on the beautifully grained bench prepared in that spot, presumably for patients to relax in the shade, I smiled at the excited children.
"Alright, then I'll show everyone my magic. Ms. Monica, please help me."
"I understand. Let's show them together."
Monica and I concentrated our Magical Power and activated the magic.
Numerous soap bubbles emerged from Monica's palm, floating up into the sky, while from my palm, a rainbow-colored pegasus, shaped by light illusion, sprang into the air.
The pegasus I created collided with the soap bubbles above the children, scattering light and blooming a variety of colorful lights in the sky.
"Wow! So pretty!"
"Amazing, amazing!"
"Hey, hey, do it again! Do it again!"
"Okay, okay, sure. Hehehe."
Prompted by the begging children, Monica and I repeatedly showcased our magic.
Since having just a pegasus felt a bit dull, I let various creatures like dragons, birds, and wolves dash around, scattering a radiant rainbow glow.
In harmony with my magic, Monica also elegantly guided the soap bubbles and created various drawings in the air with light magic.
"I've never seen magic like this before... Is it common in Ortria?"
"No, this is Ms. Yumie's original."
"...is that so? "
Mr. Lygar looked at me in surprise, and I felt a little embarrassed and covered my cheek.
Even in the Kingdom of Ortria, only the Nobles can learn magic properly.
Even commoners can use magic tools, but they are specialized for a single function and have safety features that prevent them from being used for other things, so they cannot be used for this kind of effect.
And for Noble, magic is a weapon used in battle, and no one uses it for show.
In other words, when it comes to Performance magic, which is unrelated to battles, I'm the only pioneer and it's a blue ocean market.
"It's not a big deal. I was born without the talent for magic, so I just thought about what even someone like me could do, and came up with this."
Even with poor magical power, I wanted to be useful to my family... to gain their recognition, so I practiced magic, and that led me to Performance magic.
It hasn't even been a year, but it already feels like a distant memory, and I squinted my eyes slightly.
"Besides, Ms. Monica can do it now too. She's really good, and I can't compete with her anymore."
"Well, I've worked hard in training too. But still, I'm not at Miss Yumie's level when it comes to finer control."
When I praise Monica, she humbly returns the compliment to me.
Monica says that, but her magic capacity directly affects how much time she can train each day... so it won't be long before I'm left behind.
Thinking that way makes me a little frustrated.
"You don't lack talent. Just look at how you're making the kids here happy."
At that, I was unexpectedly thrown off guard by Mr. Lygar's words and blinked.
Without even glancing at me, Mr. Lygar, while staring at the sky filled with magic, said:
"...The power to entertain and heal someone is far more wonderful than the power to hurt someone. I believe the world should be one that thinks this way."
Mr. Lygar is the captain of the beastman warriors, the country's permanent military force, as the children just told me.
The words that Mr. Lygar spoke, somewhat self-deprecatingly, had a unique weight to them.
But....
"That's not true. Even if you have the power to hurt someone, it's probably a power you acquired to protect someone. Whatever power you have, if it's for the benefit of someone, there's no superiority or inferiority. Right?"
The power to hurt someone.
That is something my Elder Brother has been desperately training for, even now, as he works hard for me in the Ortria Kingdom.
So I don't want to call it "the power to hurt."
Because that power was obtained to protect me.
It feels almost like we're meeting for the first time, but I think Mr. Lygar is probably the same as my Elder Brother.
If not, there's no way the kids would look up to him so sincerely like this.
"Mr. Lygar is truly a hero to the children. Please hold your head high."
"......"
After saying everything I thought, I suddenly realized.
Wait, did I even say that the story just now was about Mr. Lygar himself?
It could have been about something entirely different, yet here I am rambling on with my assumptions.
Is he not getting angry?
Feeling a bit uneasy, I looked over at Mr. Lygar, and he was staring at me with a bewildered expression... then he burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! I never thought I'd be encouraged by a kid like this. I must be getting old."
"Uh, um...?"
"No, my bad. It seems I misunderstood you. Please forgive me."
Saying that, Mr. Lygar reached out to pat my head.
Monica and Thea immediately swatted his hand away from either side.
"You can't just touch a lady without permission!"
"Only Monica can pet Yumie"
No, I don't really care.
I like it when someone pets me.
Also, Thea, you're not a guard dog, so don't glare at him so much.
And what did Monica tell him?
"...yes, sorry..."
Mr. Lygar, whose hand was slapped, looked a little disappointed and dropped his shoulders.
...Well, you know, if you like my head, you can stroke it as much as you like.
A grown adult shouldn't be depressed over something like that!?
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