A Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation

“Because I’m a lower-year student, I wasn’t allowed to watch the practical combat training, but to think you defeated the top-year students. As expected of the adventurer Father praises so highly!”

Golden eyes, openly filled with respect and shining curiosity, focused on him without a hint of guile.

If one asked why Lina, who was meeting them for the first time, was looking at Lizel and the others like that, the answer would be exactly what he himself had said: the influence of his father, Viscount Rei.

It was obvious at a glance how deeply he respected his father. The fact that he felt no resentment toward the idea that the one his father treated as an equal—or above—was an adventurer, meant either that he was that obedient to his father, or that, like his father, he had a generous nature that could respect excellence regardless of status.

If he simply believed everything his father said without thinking, he’d be a fool, but those golden eyes clearly held intelligence as they looked straight at Lizel. I see, he really is the viscount’s own son, Lizel thought with a nod.

“You understand. Make sure you guide our guests properly.”

“Yes, sir!”

The teacher watched Lina answer with a beaming smile, then turned to Lizel and the others, thinking how typical this all was.

They exchanged a few formal greetings, the teacher thanked them again for completing the request, and then left. One might wonder if it was really okay to leave the guiding of guests to a single student, but Lina had likely been chosen after the school decided there was no problem.

Even though he was heir to the military police, who often clashed with knights, it didn’t seem the school made any distinction on that front. Whether one became a knight in the future or not, once you were a student, you were a student; what mattered was if you were capable or not.

As Lizel was quietly impressed by how cleanly they drew that line, Lina suddenly spun around to face them.

“Well then, let us set off at once. Sir Lizel, where would you like to see first?”

“Huh, did I ever tell you my name?”

“No, I heard it from my father…”

He cut himself off and clamped his mouth shut.

Even if he hadn’t just said he was Rei’s son, Lizel could easily infer that he’d heard the name from his father—especially this time, when information on the adventurers who had accepted the guild’s request had been passed to the school. And of course, that name was what had prompted Lina to volunteer as their guide.

For a noble, this was the standard sort of indirect refusal. A warning: don’t go calling me by name on your own when I haven’t introduced myself or given you leave.

There was no displeasure in Lizel’s gentle smile; it was all so natural that Lina realized the nuance a moment too late. Then he felt the weight of two pairs of eyes from behind Lizel and, without even time to think oh no, he bowed his head sharply.

“I overstepped myself. My apologies!”

“Goodness, that’s not what I meant at all. It’s not about knowing my place before a noble. I should be the one apologizing.”

As Lizel, amused, asked him to raise his head, Lina snapped his back straight.

Come to think of it, he’d just apologized to an adventurer like he would to a superior, without a shred of doubt… but Lizel was, in fact, an adventurer. He just naturally carried himself so much like a high-ranking noble that people reacted that way without thinking.

Lizel watched Lina’s eyes shine even more brightly, as if he were about to burst out with You’re amazing! and couldn’t help a wry smile, wondering what exactly Rei had been telling his son.

“You basically never introduce yourself first, now that I think about it,” Gill said.

“That’s true. It’s not that I want to be rude…”

“Then why?”

“A long time ago, someone told me this once: ‘Don’t give your name unless you need to.’”

The one who’d said it probably didn’t even remember anymore, Lizel added with a small smile.