New Life!
Interlude — Aina and Emmerich’s Snow Country Hunting Life
Second night.
We will arrive at the port tomorrow morning. It’s the last night of the boat trip.
This time, Aina-chan was the one lost deep in thought.
She might be having complicated feelings as she’s getting closer to her homeland.
“Aina-chan, why don’t we go out to the deck?”
“To change the mood.”
It was cloudy yesterday, but it’s clear today. The lady at the dining hall said that it will be clear again tomorrow so I might be able to see the night sky.
When I reached my hand out, she gently interlocked her fingers with mine.
When I told Rossa, whom I could not see, to stay here, a “Nyan” came from under the blankets.
When I came here, I was surprised by the starry night sky.
It was so beautiful that I forgot about what I troubled me, and got absorbed in it.
Like how I felt, I thought that it would be nice if the pretty night sky would console Aina-chan’s heart.
On the deck, there was no one else but the sailors. I soon discovered the reason.
……Deathly cold!!
I wonder why. It’s spring, yet a wind that threatens to shred the body blows while there’s ice floating in the sea.
O-Oh no! Aina-chan came out without any additional clothes!
I took off my coat and put it around her shoulders.
C, c-c-c-cold. However, Aina-chan is more important.
Aina-chan said that the current temperature is the mild warmth of spring, telling me that she was fine.
This extreme cold is nothing for her. I was awed.
I grabbed onto the gunwale and stared up into the sky.
“I-It’s the sky of Aina-chan’s homeland……”
“!”
Today too, the night sky was spilling down. It really think that it’s very beautiful.
Maybe it’s especially beautiful because the air is clear.
While I was staring up for a while, a star streaked across the sky.
I turned around to Aina-chan to see if she saw it too, but then I got surprised.
However, the oil in the lamp soon ran out, and the light disappeared. We were then surrounded in darkness.
What should I do!! While I was thinking that, Aina-chan said, “Thank you,” in a soft voice.
If she’s thanking me, then the tears before should be tears of joy.
I thought that it was really good.
Until we came here, Aina-chan didn’t really have any strong opinions.
She only shook her head.
However, inside, she too wanted to returned.
“Aina-chan, I——“
Wasn’t wrong.
When I was about to say that, Aina-chan suddenly hugged me.
From the sudden action, I froze up.
She was repeating words of thanks from a while ago.
In the end, before I could hug her back, Aina-chan split herself.
Dangerous. My face is hot. I’m probably making a pathetic expression from embarrassment.
“……What a relief that it’s dark now.”
I unconsciously said my feeling out loud.
However, something unexpected happened again.
Aina-chan grabbed my wrists and looked up at me.
Now that my eyes were used to the dark, I could see that her eyes were closed.
Could this mean, that I could kiss her!?
……Eh, really?
Because, this is impossible!
“Eh, ah, really?”
I tried asking, but Aina-chan did not answer.
Which is it!
As I had my hands grabbed, I spent a while in the cold weather.
It’s cold……
Because I couldn’t bear it for many reasons, I kissed Aina-chan.
She silently accepted it.
I was so happy that I had tears.
I ended up hugging Aina-chan and thanking her.
The next morning, we arrived at the port near Ritz-kun’s village.
From seeing the mother and the daughter reunited, I got teary-eyed.
We moved to the village in a carriage.
At the fort entrance, Ritz-kun and Sieglinde greeted us.
I felt relieved that the two of them were healthy.
Seeing the unchanged appearance of the couple, I relieved.
At the fort window, I made something like a villager ID.
I was surprised that the attitude of the soldiers improved.
But then I noticed that I was glared at when no one else was looking.
Why……, I thought, but I snatched Aina-chan away from the village and ended up marrying her.
They might be resentful to me because of that.
……S-Sorry.
I apologised to the soldiers at the fort in my head.
After parting ways with Ritz-kun and others, we headed to Aina-chan’s house.
Here, my heart pounded the most.
I was meeting the grandfather again.
My heart pounded the hardest I ever experienced.
No, it pounded the most when I kissed Aina-chan yesterday.
I felt like I would be able to stand up to his pressure.
I had good alcohol and high-quality ham I bought in my country.
We headed straight for the living room.
The grandfather was there.
He stood up vigorously.
“A, aa……, Aina!”
I clenched my fists to be able to protect her at a moment’s notice.
However, he did something unexpected.
Then, he kept saying sorry.
“Grandpa, stop, it’s alright now.”
Aina-chan forgave him.
I’m not angry, she said as she gently patted his back that looked so small now.
I didn’t know what I should do, so I just stood there absentmindely.
Grandfather coolly acknowledged the marriage.
Then, he said, “Thank you for cherishing my granddaughter.”
After that, I had food Aina-chan’s mother made, but I was so nervous that I could not taste a thing.
I felt very sorry.
From her mother’s words of “The house is in a clean condition,” I came to.
It seems like Aina-chan and I will be living in the house lent to us by Ritz-kun.
I had completely forgot about the existence of our house.
The bated newlywed life.
I was prepared to live with Aina-chan’s family.
I was even prepared to face grandfather’s abuses.
But, but to live alone with Aina-chan!!
This is paradise, I thought.
Aina-chan’s mother, who took special care, told us to go home.
The home I was visiting for the first time.
I did notice that she had a necklace on all the time, but apparently it seems like she had the house key with her all the time.
Key girl, how adorable. I didn’t know.
The house was full of lovely embroidered goods.
They’re all hand-made Aina-chan.
It felt like a fairy’s house.
When I told her that it has a great interior, she looked happy.
As I unpacked the luggage, it soon became time for dinner.
They were all great and delicious.
The shed next to the house is a bathroom. Aina-chan’s grandfather helped build it, or so. I felt thankful.
When I prepared the bath and told Aina-chan that she can go it, but she said that she can’t enter before her husband.
It was the same back in my country, I wonder if this is a custom of the village.
Well, there was no reason for me to press hard, I graciously accepted her goodwill.
After exiting the bath, I headed straight for the bedroom.
Of course, there was only one bed.
For now, I didn’t lie down yet and sat down on a chair next to the bed.
An hour later, Aina-chan came.
“What’s wrong? Aren’t you sleep?”
I’m a little excited right now. I couldn’t say a thing.
Aina-chan in her pyjamas was too cute.
“Come on.”
“!”
Aina-chan sat down on the bed and said that.
Th-This is the true newlywed life.
Just in case, I asked if it was alright for me to sleep together with her.
“What are you talking about? We’re married couples, right?”
“!”
Surprisingly, she agreed.
I had thought that it would take some years.
Indeed, this village might be paradise.
“A-Aina-chan!”
When I was about to embrace her, I was stopped by someone.
“Nyan.”
“……Huh, Rossa?”
Rossa-san started sleeping between Aina-chan and me.
Come to think of it, she slept together every night.
However, that was not the only problem.
Right next to Rossa-san, I heard light breathing from right next to Rossa-san.
“……Huh, Aina-chan, are you asleep?”
She probably was tired from spending time on a boat and getting adjusted to a new life.
Even when I spoke to her, she was fast asleep, not noticing me at all.
Nn. What, it’s like this, eh. First nights are like this.
Everyone definitely experiences this.
I decided to convince myself so.