“Dan! Congratulations on passing!!”

I tackled the adventurer registration exam as Ban, and managed to overcome numerous tests to pass. I was handed a card made of plastic-like material, called an adventurer’s card. When I showed it to my parents, they said they wanted to celebrate, and that’s how we ended up here.

“Today we have your favorite, fried Bard chicken breast.’ “

“Thanks.”

“As expected, Dan is amazing. There are people who can’t pass easily. Well, it’s natural for a hero.”

As I was munching on the fried chicken with my fork, my mother, looking a little fidgety, took out a piece of paper.

“Dan! Ta-dah! Take a look at this.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a flyer for the Adventurer’s Mixer! I heard it’s been held quite often recently.”

Looking at the flyer my mother handed me, indeed, it seems there’s an upcoming mixer for adventurers. It says that it’s quite common to find a future partner at these gatherings. Basically, it’s like a dating party from my previous life.

“Why don’t you give it a try?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

My mother probably wants me to participate because she wishes for me to get married and lead a peaceful life. There’s no reason to refuse her then. Besides, I share the same sentiment. I’m starting to seriously consider wanting a girlfriend. Not as Hero Dan, but as Adventurer Ban. I’m going to get a girlfriend.

However, there’s a slight concern. I’m actually 30 years old, but I’m living as if I’m 18. Age falsification isn’t good, but… there were people who used dating apps in my previous life, making their photos look better or lying about their height.

Moreover, this is a fantasy world, so I feel like it might not be that big of a problem. Ah, that’s right, the day of the mixer is the same day as Eugene’s training day. I definitely want to go to the mixer, but I can’t skip nurturing my successor either. I teach each of my disciples in a seven-day cycle, so I can’t neglect the time I spend with them.

In that case… I’ll have to finish the training a bit early. That’s the plan. However, I want to leave early and head to the mixer venue, but he might get angry.

He gets really mad if the training time is shortened. What should I do… That’s right, I’ll give him the legendary Shield of Origins. Yeah, that should do it. That should make him happy.

+-+

I, Linlin, returned once to my hometown, the Frontier of Daiki Country, and was lazing about on my bed in my room. I didn’t particularly have anything I wanted to do. So I just stayed in my room all the time, reading books, or just lying around.

The only reason I would leave my room is to meet with Dan. As the second princess of the elves, my mother and siblings tell me to behave a little more properly, but that’s an impossible request. After all, I’m a lazy, selfish princess… However, when I shut myself in my room like this, there’s almost nothing to do. I just think in my head that I want to see Dan. When I think of him, my body gets a little hot.

“I want to be ravished by Dan…”

I swallowed my saliva. In my head, I’m imagining myself being caressed by him, being verbally assaulted. I like being in my room because I can fantasize without caring about anyone else. But it’s a real shame that I can’t fantasize about kissing. After all, he wears an iron mask, so I don’t know his face. But, that doesn’t really matter, I can still get excited enough.

And as I think about such things, naturally, my hand reaches under my underwear.

“Dan, Dan, Dan… more, ravish me…”

Just as I was getting carried away with my fantasies, and trying to satisfy my desires by putting my hand into my underwear…

“Sis, I’m coming in.”

“Don’t just barge in, Tanya!”

That was close! If I had started fantasizing about Dan and doing various things a little sooner, I would have undoubtedly died as a sister.

“Sorry. But I don’t have much time, so I wanted to get this done quickly.”

“Oh really?”

“You’re so cold. And hey, your hair and clothes are a mess. As a princess, you should take more care, right?”

My younger sister, Tanya, who is also the third princess, entered the room. I have one brother, one sister, and one younger sister, making us a family of four siblings. But it often irks me when people remark that my younger sister is more mature than I am.

“So, what’s up?”

“I’m getting married.”

“What!?”

“Yeah. To a handsome man from a ducal family… well, that’s not the point. Isn’t it about time you considered getting married too? You’re already 27 after all.”

“But Elves are long-lived.”

“True, but if you don’t get married soon, you’ll end up like an old maid. You’re the only one among us siblings who isn’t married.”

“I… I do have someone in mind…”

“The Hero, Dan? Isn’t that impossible? He’s way out of your league.”

“…That’s not true.”

My sister, who hit right on what I was worried about… Indeed, what Tanya says is right. But there was a time when things were going really well. It’s a story from many years ago, but I thought we might actually become lovers.

“Mother is probably thinking seriously about getting you married. Plus, she still holds a grudge over you sneaking out of the castle when you were seven.”

“Ugh, when you put it that way…”

Yes, when I was seven, I sneaked out of the castle to slay the Demon King, and that’s where I met the Hero. When I returned to the castle for the first time after that, I was scolded severely in front of the Hero. It’s a dark part of my history that I ended up crying in front of the Hero, tears streaming down my face and my cheeks bright red.

“…So, here you go.”

“What’s this?”

“It’s an Adventurer’s Exchange Event, where adventurers can talk and exchange ideas. I heard there are people who ended up getting married as a result of this event. They’re holding it in a part of the royal capital, Trelburna, so you should go.”

“Is Dan coming?”

“There’s no way he would come to an event like this.”

“Then, I won’t go.”

“No, you should go. Stop thinking about marrying the Hero Dan forever, and lower your expectations a bit.”

“…No.”

“What, really? Well, I figured you’d say that. But there might be a chance encounter with your destiny.”

“I’ve already encountered my destiny.”

“It’s not about that. I’m talking about a destiny other than Hero Dan. Plus, if you at least attend this, you can tell Mother that you’re making moves for marriage, right? Her nagging will decrease.”

“…Hmm, you’re right.”

“Why not give it a try? You can pass the time.”

“Is it okay for a royal to attend such an event?”

“I think it’s fine. I’d be more concerned about you not being able to get married.”

“…”

I would consider going if Dan were attending… but if he’s not, there’s no point. But Mother’s nagging has been gradually increasing. She keeps telling me to get married, but I’m not really interested in a political marriage…

Maybe it’s important to at least show that I’m looking for my destined person? It’s a big hassle, but it might be worth a shot to go, if only to show Mother that I am, at least, seriously thinking about the future. 

I heard they serve food at the exchange event, so I might as well go with the mindset of grabbing lunch.