Chapter 8 Part 31
Translator : PolterGlast
Lisa's sudden but
firmly expressed confession.
Nozomu's heart skipped
a beat, and the intense heat made his whole body boil.
Meanwhile, Lisa looked
dissatisfied with Nozomu's shocked and speechless state.
"... Why are you
so surprised? It's a little hurtful."
"No, umm..."
"In the first
place, if I didn't like you, I wouldn't ask you to go on another adventure with
me, would I? I mean, why would I ask you out?"
She was absolutely
right.
Nozomu, too, had been
aware of Lisa's unchanging affection for him, but he had not had much
experience of being confronted with a confession of love from the front like
this.
In fact, when he and
Lisa first started dating, it was Nozomu who confessed his feelings to her.
While they were
dating, they had expressed their feelings for each other, but perhaps because
they had spent so much time apart and so much time avoiding each other, her
direct words of confession had a greater impact on him than he could have
imagined.
"That's,
umm..."
"Haa, the past
Nozomu was so passionate, but now you have become such a spineless person. I
thought things were going back to normal when you pulled my hand after that
monster captured me..."
Nozomu turned his head
away from Lisa, who put her hand on her cheek and let out a sigh, as if he felt
embarrassed.
"I think it's
Lisa who's changed so much."
"It was Nozomu
who changed me, wasn't it? No, I didn't change, I reverted back, I guess. When
I was still hesitating, you came on to me forcefully, as if to say, look at me!
Forcing me to turn toward you..."
"N-, no,
that's..."
Nozomu started to get
flustered again after Lisa began to talk about what Nozomu had done to her.
In fact, his behavior
to Lisa following his decision to confront her could be seen by others as
stalking her.
Regardless of the
rumors around him and regardless of Lisa's outright rejection of him, he was
still pushing his way toward her.
"On top of that,
when I thought we were getting back together again, you just shunned me at the
very end. You're terrible..."
Moreover, despite
going to such lengths, Nozomu turned down Lisa's confession in the end.
No wonder Lisa, who
was in fact being dumped, was dissatisfied.
However, the tone of
voice and the place to voice that dissatisfaction were not right.
The people in the city
who were also relaxing in the central park were pointing at Nozomu and starting
to whisper to each other.
On top of that, Lisa
started pretending to cry, which made the stares directed at Nozomu even more
unsettling.
"Hey, wait...
watch the way you say it! The way you say it~!"
"Sorry, sorry.
I'm joking!"
The gazes from people
around her softened as Lisa laughed off Nozomu's screaming.
Apparently, they
understood that Nozomu was just being made fun of.
Instead, the stares
from those around them turned to a warm one, as if they were looking at a
couple in their first year.
The people around them
uttered such comments as, "Arara~, it's so nice to be young~!".
Nozomu's shoulders
slumped as he glared at the people around him as they dispersed, expressing an
inexpressible sense of exhaustion.
"P-, please don't
do that. It's bad for my heart."
"But I was happy,
you know. You looked at me properly and held me..."
Suddenly, Lisa stood
up and came around to Nozomu's front and peered down at his face.
"Hey, Nozomu, can
I try it one more time?"
"W-, what are you
trying to do?"
"You
know..."
Lisa's hand gently
touched Nozomu's cheek.
Her face filled
Nozomu's field of vision.
"Because I
thought it was my chance. I saw the two of you this morning. So, I thought, I
can't keep quiet about it."
With her moistened
eyes reflecting Nozomu's face, Lisa again began to express her feelings in a
torrent of words.
"I love you,
Nozomu. More than anyone else in the world..."
A gentle statement
that penetrated deep into his ears.
Unlike the previous,
casual confession, the feelings that resonated to the core of his heart seeped
into Nozomu's heart as if water had been sprinkled on a desert.
"Please, be with
me. Stay by my side, forever..."
"Lisa...
I..."
Nozomu felt his
consciousness fading away as if he were being sucked into a dream.
Her smiling face
filled his field of vision.
She looked so
charming, so fragile, and so alluring that he wanted to hold her with both
hands.
Her swaying eyes
reflected Nozomu's face in a pleading manner. The sound of her heart, thumping
quietly resounded in his ears.
Was she this
attractive?
Nozomu was not the
only one who had broken down once, had his heart broken, and still stood on his
feet.
Lisa, too, stood up
even though she was completely broken. She faced her dream once again.
Her fragile spirit has
grown rapidly, and she has begun to acquire the charm of an adult woman a step
sooner.
The girl whom he was
attracted to from his childhood, and who became his lover at one period in his
life.
Even now, Nozomu's
feelings for her remain deep in his heart. He also wished for her to make her
dream come true. That was why Nozomu kept trying to face her, even though she
kept rejecting him.
"I'm sorry ...
Right now, I can't go with you after all."
Nevertheless, the
words that came out of Nozomu's mouth were the same as before.
If he had been the man
he was when he first came to this city, he would have taken her hand without
hesitation, and he would have lived with her.
He would have left
Arcazam, had adventures together, and one day returned to their hometown to
raise their children. Such was the life they would have led.
However, something was
still stuck in Nozomu's mind.
A gentle warmth that
was different from the passion he had felt in the past.
It was appealing to
him in a different way.
Seeing Nozomu like
this, Lisa was not discouraged, but instead smiled gently.
"Well, I figured
so. Nozomu is a stubborn person after all."
"Am I really that
stubborn?"
"Yes, stubborn,
so stubborn. You're just like your father."
Upon hearing those
words, Nozomu looked somewhat apologetic.
Perhaps sensing his
negative feelings, Lisa chuckled and waved her hand in a platonic, light tone,
as if to brush off his guilt.
"Didn't I already
tell you before? Nozomu, you already fulfilled your promise to me."
With a carefree smile,
Lisa took her gaze away from Nozomu for a moment and muttered.
"I still want to
be a genuine adventurer after all. Nozomu, what do you want to be in the
future?"
What he wants to do,
not what he ought to do. It is not an obligation or a duty, but a desire. What
do he wants to be?
Even after being told
something like that, Nozomu still could not come up with anything.
All that came to mind
was Tiamat and his own unique abilities. And he was frustrated by the fact that
he was not moving forward.
"... I don't
know. There are so many things I have to do."
"Hmm, I guess I
just don't get it, even though you won't accept my confession..."
Lisa began to tease
Nozomu's heart again. Cold sweat broke out again on his forehead.
Nozomu's mixed
feelings about Lisa cause him to avert his gaze slightly. At that moment, she
plopped down on his lap.
"Lisa, what in
the world are you ... Uwa!"
Nozomu's voice was
raised as he felt the sudden close contact with Lisa.
On the other hand,
Lisa sat on Nozomu's lap as if she was a child and looked into Nozomu's eyes
again.
"I knew it. You
said you were troubled about something. But, I see..."
Despite Nozomu's
dismay, Lisa looked up to the sky, as if she had just understood what was going
on.
"Hey, Nozomu, why
don't you just go ahead and do what you want? You already know what you really
want to do, don't you? It's just that, right now, you can't see it."
He already knew his
way. Hearing Lisa's words, Nozomu gasped.
"... I was told
the same thing by Anri-sensei."
"Hee~, I'm sure
she's been watching Nozomu very closely. And if you still don't get it, should
I enlighten you?"
The frustration
swirling in the depths of his chest stirred up a desire as if he were starving.
I want to ask, I want
to know, I want to do something about this suffocating situation. Such desires
overflowed unceasingly.
"No, it's okay.
Maybe I need to figure out the answer properly. Or, in this case, should I say
"rethink" it?"
However, Nozomu did
not want to hear the answer to his own question from Lisa.
It was something he
had to figure out on his own. If he were to hear it from another person, at
that point, that person's will would be more or less mixed with his own.
I don't want to suffer
or think about it myself. Such temptation was being whispered from the depths
of his mind. Besides, Nozomu was aware of it.
"Un~, As expected
of Nozomu."
In response to
Nozomu's words, Lisa returned a genuine smile.
She, too, was moved by
Nozomu's down-to-earth approach, even if she did not express it in words.
That was why her heart
was even more touched by his decision to reject her offer.
"Nozomu, if you
ever get lost in thought, I suggest you try emptying your mind once more."
"Emptying?"
"Yeah, forget all
the superfluous and irrelevant things, like about Irisdina-san and that dragon,
just forget about them for once."
"It's not
superfluous and it's not irrelevant..."
"It's irrelevant.
In fact, Nozomu is not Irisdina-san, nor is he related to the Francilt family.
In the first place, the matter with the Waziart family is a problem of the
Francilt family, right? Even the countries are different, and the problems are
too big for one student to handle."
Nozomu was about to
say that he was not unrelated to the matter, but Lisa put a stop to that.
In fact, Nozomu is not
qualified to get involved in the matter that originated from the secret
agreement between the two families, nor in the establishment of diplomatic
relations between Forsina and the Dizzard Empire, as he is only a single
student.
In essence, Nozomu has
nothing to do with the matter.
If one were to think
about it, the matter is simple. Whether or not the Waziart family will establish
diplomatic relations for the first time with the Francilt family and, by
extension, the Forsina nation.
Instead, if Nozomu
intervened poorly, the situation might become more complicated. That was why
Jihad had warned Nozomu not to get involved.
"Perhaps they
could end up just signing a normal agreement with nothing going on?"
"But it might
not..."
"Then there's no
point in thinking about the outcome now. Because the final negotiations haven't
even started yet."
The future is not
apparent and has not yet been determined. It would be pointless to continue to
be anxious about the undetermined future.
Nozomu was silenced by
Lisa's words, which implicitly said so.
"That's why, if
you are really concerned about it, you should empty your mind instead of continuing
to think about it. That way, you can see your dream and what you need to do to
achieve it. That's what I think."
Therefore, one should
do the best one can do right now. Lisa assured him so.
Nozomu exhaled loudly
in front of her as she spread her hands on his lap.
"Emptying my
mind, huh? ... Just like what you just did?"
"Yes, yes, just
like me, ... -eh, What the heck is that supposed to mean!?"
"Well,
considering what happened at the blacksmith workshop ... right?"
"That was a bit
of a, you know, umm ...... experiment, so it can't be helped right? I'll be
better prepared next time."
"So you admit it
that you weren't careful enough..."
With his childhood
friend turning away from him with an embarrassed blush on her face, Nozomu also
let out a chuckle.
The irritation
smoldering deep in his chest seemed to have somewhat eased.
Just a little bit of
relief.
However, this small
opportunity had helped to loosen his mind, albeit a little, which had been
stiffened by his impatience.
"So, how long are
you going to stay like this?"
"Hmm? About
what?"
"No, I mean, you
know..."
Although his
frustration subsided, albeit slightly. However, instead, another type of
agitation came up.
Lisa is still sitting
on Nozomu's lap.
The soft feeling of a
girl on his thighs caused Nozomu's cheeks to heat up.
And even though he had
rejected her, she was still his first love. For that reason, the embarrassment
that welled up in his chest was tremendous.
Her beautiful face and
her faintly sweet fragrance. His heart pounded wildly, and his whole body felt
like hot steel.
"I want to stay
like this forever, though? If you want, we could stop by the inn nearby for a
bit."
While tilting her head
cutely, Lisa uttered a line that he could not help but find hard to believe.
It wasn't as if Nozomu
didn't know what she was going to do when they stopped by the inn. The fact
that he knew it was the reason why his head was in a state of turmoil.
"O-, oi oi. You
shouldn't joke-..."
"Do you think I'm
joking?"
Nozomu was flapping
his arms and legs as if he were an insect that had fallen into the water, and
he should have been able to resist her by doing so, but despite his flailing
head that was moving right and left, his body was completely rigid.
In the meantime, Lisa
gently cupped Nozomu's cheeks with both hands and quickly brought her face
close to his.
"E-, eh?"
"Nnn…"
Although smiling
jokingly, Lisa's lips slowly moved to invade the distance between her and
Nozomu, with a bewitching and serious glint in her eyes.
The seductive color of
her lips makes his brain melt. Lisa's cheeks were also tinted with a hint of
vermilion as she moved closer.
"Wha,
wait...!"
Their lips were nearly
overlapping. Their lips were so close to each other that they could already
feel each other's breath on their lips.
However, when they
were within a fingernail's distance of each other, Lisa's lips abruptly stopped
advancing.
One second, two
seconds, three seconds.
Then, at the fifth
second, Lisa's lips abruptly parted.
"... A~ A~. I've
been interrupted at a crucial moment~. Well, it can't be helped, I guess. As
expected, I can't hold it back."
"Eh?"
While withdrawing the
charming smile that had appeared on her face a moment ago, Lisa moved away from
Nozomu's lap.
Lisa quickly landed on
the ground, leaving Nozomu in confusion.
She took one look at
him as he sat stunned on the bench, then leaned forward so that she could stick
her face out, and gave him a broad smile that was different from the one she
had just given him, which was full of charm and sex appeal.
"Well then, see
you later, Nozomu. Oh, and I'll take this as well, as a referral fee for the
store."
As Lisa said so, she
held up her right hand as if to show it to Nozomu.
In her hand were a
couple of mithril bells that Nozomu had made at the blacksmith workshop.
"Ah, when did you
take that!?"
"I'll take them
as a reward for introducing you to a good store. You made a lot, so it's fine,
right? Well then, see you later!"
Before Nozomu has time
to reach out, Lisa put the bell she took away, spun around on her heel, and
walked away.
Nozomu, who was left
alone and stunned, looked at her back and let out a big sigh and leaned against
the back of the bench.
"She did all
sorts of foul things..."
For a moment, he was
almost captivated by his former love. While sighing over this fact, Nozomu
continued to sit on the bench and look up at the dim winter sky until his
violently racing heart calmed down.
===============================
While Nozomu was
sitting on the bench looking up at the sky, Lisa, who was far away from the
central park, abruptly stopped a few meters into an alley from the main street.
"I'm not sure if
it's bad timing or what. Peeping isn't a good thing to do. Don't you think so,
Shina-san?"
After she turned
around, she saw two girls standing at the entrance of the alley.
Shina and Mimuru. They
were schoolmates of Lisa's at the academy, and were the people whom she was
indebted to in the Abyss Grief incident.
With a provocative
smile on her face, she rang the bell she had snatched from Nozomu.
Shina's eyes, which
had been filled with reproach, began to take on a menacing color at the sight
of this.
