Merry Christmas And Happy New Year
And here is a bonus chapter for you!!
=========================
Chapter 6 Part 8
Translator : PolterGlast
Irisdina
and the others, who had finished treating the injured girls, were taking a
short rest while waiting for Nozomu and Feo who had gone to set up a warning
line.
The
girl's broken ribs had been treated, and she was now able to sit up somehow.
"Is
she all right? I don't want any scars to be left on these lovely ladies. If the
wound still hurts, I'll ......".
Zonne,
who still set his eyes for the ladies, was talking to a first-year female
student.
He
was acting like a gentleman, with one hand on his chest and bending down
deeply, but the corners of his eyes were drooping and the bridge of his nose
was stretched. Frankly, he had his usual pervy geezer expression on his face.
"U-umm
... that..."
"Who
is this person?"
The
girl who was approached was also completely frightened by Zonne's strange
atmosphere. She clung to Irisdina's arm, who was standing beside her, to keep
Zonne away from her.
"Old
man, although the wounds have healed, she is still injured. If you don't keep
your harassment in moderation, you will be punished someday."
"Don't
worry! Nothing bad will happen to her. In fact, it will feel really good, it's
almost habit-forming..."
Hmph!
Hmph!
The
old man, who had been snorting, was moving his hands in the air as if rubbing
something. In addition, the old man's eyes drifted in the air and his face
turned red as he grinned.
The
girls screamed as they felt a chill run down their spines.
"Old
man, give me a break..."
Irisdina
rubbed the girl's back and smiled at the old man in front of her to reassure
the junior students. However, she struck Zonne with an intimidating aura that
sent chills down his spine.
"Y-yes,
I'll behave now..."
Sonne,
who was met with Irisdina's dangerous gaze, became dejected and slunk back.
Eldor,
who was watching the things happening from the side, called out to Irisdina in
confusion.
"U-umm,
Irisdina-senpai. Who is this person?"
"He's
an old man who does fortune telling in the commercial district. He came into
this forest because he was looking for something. We are acquainted...
maybe?"
When
she thought about it, Irisdina hadn't met the old man that often.
He
had sexually harassed her on her first date with Nozomu, approached when they
met on the street and held her precious sister's hand without permission
.......
"Muu
..."
Irisdina
frowned.
When
she looked back on what had happened so far, it really wasn't a good thing. To
be honest, most of them were things that should be reported to the military
police.
However,
Irisdina had been exposed to much more malice and carnal desires in the social
circles of aristocrats.
She
had seen people approaching her with jealousy of her position and good looks,
and lust like animals, masked with fake smiles and flattering words.
Compared
to the people in that place who didn't even think of people as humans, this old
man still looked better.
This
was probably because he was not hiding his true feelings. Some people might
like the honesty of this old man.
For
Irisdina, she definitely didn't want Nozomu to become like Zonne, but at least
she felt that the old man wasn't a bad person. But .......
"Hmph,
no need to hide it. I am this young lady's future mate ......."
"I'm
sorry, I was mistaken. I have no idea who this rude person is."
Irisdina
immediately retracted her assessment that Zonne was "probably not a bad
person," and took down Zonne's rude remark in a hurry.
Irisdina
glared at the old man, who didn't seem to listen to her advice at all.
Irisdina's gaze of absolute zero penetrates Zonne, passing through
"freezing point".
"I'm
an old man who works as a fortune teller. I am very grateful to this lady for
helping me when I was lost in the forest."
Zonne,
who had been snorting and puffing out his chest, was immediately intimidated by
Irisdina and began rubbing his forehead on the ground, begging for forgiveness.
It's a very shameful look.
"Ha,
ha, ....... You're a very strange old man. ......"
Eldor
and the others were stunned to see such a comedic scene unfolding in the forest
with such a life-threatening situation.
Eldor
and the others' expressions were still not good because they felt the danger of
death so close to them, but as they watched the exchange between Zonne and
Irisdina, their mouths began to smile again.
"U-um,
....... Thank you very much. Irisdina-senpai."
"Thanks
for helping us."
Once
again, the juniors bow to Irisdina. She replied with a shake of her head as if
to say don't worry about it.
"You
don't have to thank me. I just want you to thank Nozomu and Feo when they get
back. He was the first one to notice something was wrong and ran off so we can
help in time."
"Y-yes
..."
As
soon as the girls heard Nozomu's name, Irisdina let out a wry smile as they
looked at her as if they were afraid.
But
at that moment, Eldor, who was sitting in front of Irisdina, called out to her
while looking straight at her face.
"U-um...
Irisdina-senpai"
"Hmm?
What is it?"
"What
about Nozomu-senpai and Feo-senpai...?"
"Oh,
they're both keeping an eye on the surroundings. Feo is probably setting up
magic barriers, and Nozomu is probably setting up non-magical warning lines and
checking to see if any other demon beasts are nearby. His ability to detect
presences are as sharp as a beastmen's."
"I-I
see..."
A
bead of sweat ran down Eldor's forehead when he heard that Nozomu had the
ability to detect presences like a beastman. The voice that came out of his
mouth also sounded like he was in some kind of daze.
He
was probably still in shock that the Nozomu Bountis image he had listened to at
school was destroyed.
"Um,
....... Who the hell is this Nozomu-senpai? He was completely different from
the rumors..."
The
male student next to Eldor asked Irisdina about Nozomu.
Indeed,
the image of the man himself that Irisdina felt when she actually came into
contact with him was very different from the image of Nozomu in the rumors that
were spreading around the school.
"Who
is ...... he?
A
person who is a benefactor of Somia more than she could ever repay, no matter
what she did?
The
boy she dated for the first time?
"Well,
..."
When
she asked herself once again what kind of person he was, Irisdina was
momentarily at a loss for a response. What should she say? There were many
things about him that were not easy to say.
But
before she could reply, Zonne, who was not aware of the rumors, tilted his head
and asked.
"Rumors?
What rumors?"
"Umm,
...... something about the worst guy who can't do anything with sword and magic
at all, and who cheated and betrayed his childhood friend who supported
him..."
“…………”
In
response to Zonne's question, a junior student couldn't help but mention the
rumors, and the corner of Irisdina's eyes naturally lifted as she listened to
the conversation.
"S-sorry."
"...
No, I'm sorry. It wasn't my place to be angry with you guys right now."
Irisdina
also regretted her lack of maturity and apologized for her rudeness to the
junior who slumped her shoulders apologetically.
"But
the whole story is a lie. I think you could tell that from the way he saved you
earlier."
Eldor
and the others nodded slowly at Irisdina's words.
If
he was the kind of person who would betray his lover who had supported him, as
the rumors said, he would not have tried to help his juniors in a situation
like the one that had just occurred.
"Hmm.
It's true that brat is sloppy and a bastard without manners, but he certainly
doesn't look like the kind of person who would do something like in that
rumors..."
Zonne,
who had been listening to Irisdina's words, stroked his white beard
thoughtfully. The tone of his voice was the same as usual, but his slightly
furrowed brow gave him a different atmosphere than the free-spirited,
instinct-first old man he usually was.
"Old
man?"
As
Irisdina looked suspiciously at Zonne, who had changed his behavior, she saw
Eldor with a puzzled expression on his face. He was still glancing at Irisdina
as if he wanted to ask her something.
"Is
there something you want to ask me about him?"
Eldor's
eyes widened at Irisdina's question.
He
hesitated for a moment and let his gaze drift in the air, but then, as if he
had made up his mind, he turned to Irisdina and opened his mouth.
"W-well,
umm... I wondered why Nozomu-senpai helped me. I've said a lot of horrible
things to him. ......"
He
must be feeling guilty about the way he had treated Nozomu.
Eldor
lowered his eyes and asked in a low voice as if muttering.
"It
is true that your attitude at that time was not admirable. I was offended with
it myself, and while I may not have shown it, I don't think he would have any
good feelings about you either."
"That's
to be expected……"
Due to Irisdina's
stern remarks, Eldor looked down with a dark expression on his face. His mind
flashed back to his actions in the city.
He had been rude to
Nozomu based on rumors about a person he had never met.
At that time, the
rumor was the only thing Eldor had to judge Nozomu by.
It is true that people
sometimes feel as if they understand others based on the information they have,
but there is no way they can understand others only based on that.
As Eldor realized
this, he bit his lip regretfully as he recalled his actions in the city.
"But then again,
Nozomu himself didn't seem to care much about what was said to him. He can't
overlook the situation of the junior students, and I don't think he had any
ulterior motive to help you. The rest is up to you, isn't it?"
"Up to me?"
"What did you
think of Nozomu after you saw him fight?
"... Honestly, I
couldn't find the words. I was wondering how he was able to move like that with
the handicap of Ability Suppression. And..."
Eldor recalled the
battle that had just taken place between Nozomu and the Orcs.
Nozomu had dared to
run into the crowd of Orcs to save them.
His movement itself
was not fast, but when the katana in his hand flashed before he knew it, the
Orcs had been cut down.
Nozomu's swordplay was
so elegant that it can be clearly imagined in every detail even when his
eyelids were closed.
The image of Nozomu
was vividly etched in Eldor's mind. More than anything else, Nozomu's words
were stuck in Eldor's ears.
(Irisdina and Feo will
be finished dealing with the orcs soon. Until then, hang in there. Got it?)
Nozomu was caring for
him even though he had said many terrible things to him.
(How could I have said
such a thing to him?)
A feeling of guilt
welled up inside Eldor.
In the face of such
Eldor, Irisdina smiled as if it couldn't be helped.
"I'm sorry for
telling you all of that, but at least you regret your actions now, right? Now
it's up to you to decide how you want to deal with those feelings."
Irisdina is right, what
matters is the future.
He can't change the
past. If he wanted to do something about what he said to Nozomu, the important
thing was to do something about it.
"But what should
I do ..."
However, even after
all this time, anxiety arose from the depth of his mind.
It's no wonder he's
troubled. When we realize our mistakes, which we have no choice but to admit,
we are exposed to guilt, incoherent anger, and other negative emotions that we
can't control.
And because people
realize that they can't or won't take the form of blaming others, they suffer
even more.
"......, boy.
There are many things that are filling your mind right now. There must be a
mixture of self-pity, shame, and guilt towards that boy. It must be a mixture
of all of them."
When Irisdina saw
Eldor in distress and was about to speak to him, it was Zonne who opened his
mouth first.
"The first step
is the key to everything, and in this kind of human relationship, if you delay
it too long, you'll often become unable to do anything about it."
As Zonne said, many
people miss the opportunity to apologize and leave the relationship in an
uncomfortable state. The future could be completely different if people had
just a little bit of courage to step forward, but it's not easy to find the
courage to take that step.
"Of course, you
need to prepare your mind for what you are feeling now, and reflect on who you
have been and what you want to be in the future. If you don't, you will end up
regretting whatever actions you take."
“…………”
However, as well as
having the courage to take the first step, Zonne said, one also needs to clear
one's mind. Eldor and the others listened to his words.
Although her
expression was the same as usual, Irisdina was also surprised to see that Zonne
appearance was different from his usual lustful one.
At the same time, the
image of Nozomu, who had just gone to take a look around, flashed through her
mind.
"It's time to
sort my own feelings, isn't it?...."
The words leaked out
like a monologue and disappeared into the dimly lit forest.
The same could be said
of the current Nozomu.
Irisdina's mind
flashed back to Nozomu after he had told her everything about the truth of the
rumors.
He was angry at his
best friend for setting him up and regretted that he had lost himself in anger,
and he felt sad that he could not truly walk with his childhood friends with
whom he had made a promise. Nozomu had a complicated smile on his face as if
all of these things were mixed up together.
But what would he do
once he had sorted out his feelings?
Will he cut ties with
his childhood friends once and for all? Or .......
"but, I
am……"
It's not like she can
give Nozomu the answer. If she were to do anything, it will not be an answer
for him.
But she also promised
to help him if he needed it.
Feeling an
indescribable tingle in her chest, Irisdina gazed at where Nozomu had
disappeared to with a promise in her heart.
===============================
After the injured
juniors had been treated and Nozomu and Feo had joined them for a short rest, Irisdina,
Nozomu, and Feo were walking through the forest with Eldor and the other
first-year students and Zonne.
The destination was a
place that was said to have been an orc nest.
After treating the
younger students and taking a short break, they discussed what to do with
Eldor, Zonne, and the others, and decided to head back to the city, but Zonne
objected.
According to him, what
he was looking for was very important, and he couldn't go back knowing where it
was.
Irisdina and the
others tried to persuade him for a while, but he refused to leave. Seeing the
old man in such a state, Nozomu and the others ended up giving in.
Irisdina didn't look
too happy, but according to Nozomu, "No matter what we say to this kind of
old man, it's useless. He will force us to follow him even if we tried to send
him home." Probably, he made this decision because he knows that Zonne is
like Shino, a person who doesn't listen to others at all.
Irisdina and Feo along
with Eldor and the others, after hearing Nozomu's words and the old man's
tendency to go ahead even alone, gave up and agreed to go as a result.
Although the wounds
they had sustained in the battle with the Orcs had been healed, they still felt
uneasy about taking the unreliable junior students with them.
But at the same time,
they were also worried about letting them go home alone. There was always the
possibility that they would run into other demon beasts on their way back.
As a result, they told
Zonne and Eldor to stay close to them, and Irisdina and Feo gradually proceeded
while protecting them, with Nozomu leading the way to check out the nest.
The reason why Nozomu
took the lead was that he was used to working alone in this forest, and
Irisdina and Feo could use magic to protect Eldor and Zonne with barriers.
They were proceeding
while paying attention to their surroundings. However, after listening to
Nozomu, who was ahead of them, their worries turned out to be unfounded.
When Nozomu arrived at
the orc nest, it was already empty.
"No sign of the
orcs, huh?"
"There's no sign
that they fled in a hurry or that they were attacked by other demon beasts. It
seems that the ones we just killed were all that was left."
It seemed that they
had finished their request before they knew it. The area was littered with the
bones of animals that the orcs had devoured, but there were still small
goblins' tents in various places that were about to collapse. In the shadows,
they could see the corpses of goblins that had decayed to almost nothing but
bones.
"The corpses of
the goblins are still here, and the remains of the tent are still intact. The
orcs must have settled here very recently."
"What the, did
Nozomu know about the goblins that lived here?
Feo asked Nozomu, who
sounded somewhat familiar, about the place.
"Well, yeah. I've
almost been made into their dinner before..."
Nozomu didn't mention
the black demon beast because of Eldor and the others. Instead, he told them
about the time he had visited this place before. At the same time, he dug up
some unwanted memories.
He had been ordered by
his master to get some food for dinner, but the scene when he had almost been
used as a side dish came back to his mind.
Countless dwarfs-like
figures were chasing him.
The dwarf-like figures
came at him with cute groans "Ga-ga", while swinging their clubs
instead of sweets.
There were so many of
them that the traps he had set were not enough, and after nearly an hour of
running away, he managed to shake them off.
When he returned to
the hut, he found an old lady with a beautiful Hannya face waiting for him...
Eldor and the others
felt an undescribable creepiness as Nozomu laughed in a dry voice with his
vacant eyes drifting in the air, and they tried to pull him back as hard as
they could.
"Nozomu, Nozomu!
Hold yourself together!"
Irisdina grabbed
Nozomu by the shoulders and shook him frantically, but there was no sign of him
coming back to reality.
Leaving Nozomu to
Irisdina for now, Feo took another look around.
Tools that seemed to
belong to the Orcs were scattered around. Some of them might have been robbed
from the goblins.
"Maybe there's
something in here you're looking for. Old man! What the hell are you looking
for ..."
"I know, I can
feel it! Over here!"
When Feo was about to
ask Zonne about the things he was looking for, the old man suddenly started
running in a hurry.
"Wait~...!"
Feo chasing after him
in a hurry. Irisdina and the others, as well as Nozomu, began to chase after
Zonne, who suddenly began to run.
"It's here!"
Zonne suddenly started
running and arrived at a pile of rubble that was taller than a man. Among the
rubble, which at first glance looked like trash, there were paintings painted
with delicate brush strokes and expensive cosmetics for aristocrats.
However, these works
of art were probably of no value to the goblins and orcs.
Artifacts that had
been painstakingly crafted by numerous artisans and acquired by aristocrats and
merchants who lavished precious precious metals and gold coins on them, were
being thrown away like garbage in a place like this.
Paintings were torn to
pieces, and white porcelain vases were shattered. The value of the other
expensive items was probably not much different from the trash that was lumped
together on the side.
Nozomu and the others,
who had been feeling a bit strange at the sight, heard the cry of an old man
jumping on the pile of rubble.
"Where? Where is
it?"
Zonne jumped onto the
pile of rubble, his eyes bleeding as he dug in single-mindedly. It's not easy
to dig through a pile of rubble that's half-buried in moist soil, and the old
man's hands and clothes are soon dirtied by the rotting leaves.
Still, Zonne continued
to try desperately to get rid of the rubble.
Formerly expensive
works of art and jewelry were being dug up one after another by Zonne's hands,
flying through the air.
Zonne's current
appearance was far from his usual perverted self. And although they may no
longer be valuable, Nozomu, Irisdina, and the others watched in dismay as the
once priceless works of art were thrown away.
"Fu~u,
doryaaaa!"
Zonne lifted up a
particularly large wooden box and threw it away with an energy that one
wouldn't expect from an old man. It must have been quite heavy inside. The
crate fell to the ground and gouged the ground deeply, spreading dirt all
around.
What Nozomu and the
others saw as they hurriedly avoided the dirt that was falling on them was
Zonne, his eyes wide open and frozen.
"O, oo,
oo..."
A strange groaning
voice escaped from the old man's mouth. Perhaps he had found what he was
looking for.
Wondering what it was
that the old man was looking for, Nozomu approached Zonne and followed his line
of sight.
"This is...
eh~?"
What leaked out of
Nozomu's mouth was a dumbfounded voice. In front of his eyes, there were nearly
a hundred pieces of paper crumpled up in the dirt and mud.
However, what
surprised him was what was drawn on the paper. It was .......
"So the thing the
old man was looking for was obscene pictures!"
On all of the nearly
one hundred sheets of paper, there were drawings of women in their most
unbecoming attire.
From ordinary humans
to beastmen to demons such as succubus with bat-like wings on their backs,
there were sensual drawings of women of various ages.
The women in the
paintings send lustful glances to the viewer......, but unfortunately, all of
the paintings have been stained and faded by mud and dirt.
"Oh ...
Ligurīnaria! Sagini! Yaoyan! Why do you look like this ..."
Irisdina and Eldor who
were watching the situation behind Nozomu also looked into something.
Zonne sank to the
ground with his hands on the ground, shouting what seemed to be the name of the
woman on the drawing.
In front of such an
old man, Nozomu put his hand on his forehead and looked up at the sky. Did we
go through all this trouble for something like that? When Zonne suddenly
appeared in front of the fleeing orcs, the old man might almost die if they
weren't good at handling the situation.......
Irisdina, Eldor, and
the others who had been watching what was going on behind Nozomu's back peeked
over to see what the hell was going on.
"...!"
"Eh~, Uwa~! In such a place..."
The faces of Eldor and
the others turned bright red when they saw the nude female body on the paper in
their hands. As old as they were, they were new to this kind of thing. Eldor,
for example, at first glance looked like a man who would play with women.
In the meantime,
Nozomu's face was slightly flushed from embarrassment, but his exhaustion has
won over it. Even when he saw pictures of beautiful limbs generously exposed,
his vital energy had diminished.
"You should have
been together with me forever from now on...... but, why did this happen!"
What were you planning
to do together with those, this old man...
Nozomu thought to
himself as he looked at Zonne with tired eyes. After that, he yelled, a yell
that seemed to echo deep into the forest.
"Iris. Let's go
home for now, shall we?"
"Y-yeah, I guess
so. I don't see any orcs, so I guess the request is accomplished now."
Irisdina replied to
Nozomu's tired voice, sounding a little choked up.
When Nozomu looked at
Irisdina, she turned away and put her hand over her mouth, as if she was also
disgusted by Zonne. Nozomu couldn't see her, but her cheeks seemed to be
flushed.
"In the end, the
old man got the better of us..."
"Well, yeah. But
it's okay, isn't it? We've cleared out the orc nest we were aiming for."
Certainly, they had
been pushed around a lot and it was a bit of a headache. But as she said, the
hunters would feel relieved now.
"Certainly,
that's true. By the way, Iris, why have you been turning your back on me?"
"N-no, it's
nothing. Don't worry about it..."
Nozomu was tilting his
head in response to Irisdina's unclear response.
"U-um.
Nozomu-senpai, Irisdina-senpai ...... who is that person?"
Hearing Eldor's voice,
Nozomu turned his gaze toward Zonne again, and he frowned again.
"Uuu..."
*grumbling*
As Nozomu gazed at
him, the old man was digging a hole with his cheeks swollen red. Zonne finished
digging a knee-deep hole and covered it with soil, placing his collection of
muddy items in it. He even carefully erected a board that looked like a
gravestone, on which the names of Ligurīnaria, Sagini, and the woman he had
just called out were written in profusion.
"When the hell
did you make that? That grave marker..."
While Nozomu stared at
him with 30% surprise and 70% dismay, Zonne picked some flowers that were
blooming around the area and placed them on the grave of his collection.
He must be very sad
that his collection was ruined. He looked up at the sky like a tragic heroine
who had just witnessed the end of the world, his face covered with tears, snot,
and various other juices.
The scene, combined
with the sunlight streaming in through the trees, was like a painting. The
model, however, was a pervy geezer and his collection. It was both divine and
ridiculous.
"What should we
do? ......"
While Eldor and the
others looked at them with a mixture of confusion and anxiety, Nozomu and
Irisdina already had an answer.
""Leave him
alone for now.""
He was thoroughly
ignored.
By the way, the
request that Eldor and his companions received at the guild turned out to be
the one that this pervy geezer requested, and it caused a lot of damage to their
spirits.