Volume 3 Chapter 1.2
The Fierce Emotion of Betrayal Part 2
Translator : PolterGlast
Having finished their
early morning training and parted ways with Mena, Nozomu and his friends were
on their way to the school.
Summer is around the
corner, the sun is gradually getting stronger, and the air is gradually getting
warmer.
Many people were
heading to their respective workplaces on Arcazam's main street, which leads to
the central park.
"Whoa, what a
beauty ......"
"Beautiful black
hair, is she from the academy?"
The people who passed
by glanced at Irisdina and the others.
The beautiful girl
with lustrous black hair and a dignified appearance still attracts people's
eyes as ever.
The same is also true
for Tima and Somia, who walked next to her. In fact, they are as good-looking
as Irisdina. It is not surprising that they would naturally attract the
attention of others as they walk the streets.
While watching them
from the side, Nozomu's attention turned to the letter in his pocket.
(I wrote this letter
to give it to them today. I had been running away from it all this time, but I
needed it in order to face the past once again. Now I just need to figure out
how to give it to them .......)
While thinking about
this, Irisdina called out to him from beside him.
"Nozomu, is something
wrong?"
"Eh? What do you
mean?"
"You seem to be a
little tense. Is it that you are not feeling well? Or did you perhaps push
yourself a little too hard in the training we just had?"
She tilted her head
cutely and asked, and Nozomu couldn't help but gasp in response to this. His
hand reflexively reached into his pocket where the letter had been.
"No, everything's
fine. I was just a little nervous thinking about today's class."
"Today's
class...... Ah, that reminds me, we had a joint class before the special
comprehensive exercise. Is it that time of year already? ......"
"Yes. That's what
I mean......"
Nozomu quickly stifled
his agitation and looked away.
Special Comprehensive
Exercise.
It is a comprehensive
training program for the third grade and represents the fact that the classes
for the third grade are different from those of the previous grades.
To put it simply, the
students are required to form teams and complete assigned tasks in the Spasim
Forest.
Since Spasim Forest is
a forest infested with demonic beasts, the students are naturally expected to
be of a certain level of ability.
The results of the
Special Comprehensive Exercise are directly reflected in the results of the
team's performance. Nozomu could not afford to miss out.
"So, what are you
going to do, Nozomu?"
"What do you
mean?"
"The team for the
special exercise. The special exercise will last for two days. On the first
day, we will be paired with the same class, but on the second day, there will be
no class restrictions ......"
"For the time
being, I think of teaming up with Mars, but ......"
"I see, for the
time being, huh? ......"
What makes the Special
Comprehensive Exercise different from other classes is that it also takes into
consideration the possibility of teaming up with other classes.
Specifically, on the
first day, students will be paired with their classmates, and on the second
day, they will be paired with other classes.
When Nozomu glanced at
Mars, he gave a small nod.
"I'll try to find
a potential teammate at today's all-class joint class. That is, if there is
someone who is willing to team up with me ......"
Today's joint class is
to find a suitable teammate for the special exercise, and all classes will
participate in this class.
Most of the students
will find a partner here, but unfortunately, both Nozomu and Mars have a lot of
bad rumors in the school.
Nozomu is a
bottom-feeder and Mars is a violent ruffian. It is obvious that they will have
a hard time finding a teammate from another class.
"I see,
then-......."
Irisdina, who had
looked a little hesitant while staring at Nozomu in distress, opened her mouth.
However, before she
could utter a word, a cool chirping cry resounded between the two of them.
[ Chichichichi,
chunchun! ]
"Wow, what a
pretty-looking little bird!"
A beautiful lapis
lazuli-colored little bird appeared and Somia let out an exclamation of
admiration.
The long tail
feathers, which are two or three times as long as the bird's body height, as
well as the eye-catching colored body feathers, give the bird a certain air of
mystique.
Then, the little bird
perched on Nozomu's shoulder and began to chirp.
Irisdina and Tima's
eyes widen as Somia admired the sudden appearance of the lapis lazuli-colored
bird. Their surprise is understandable. This little bird has become very famous
lately.
"Spirit
......"
"Umm, Razward?
Why are you here?"
[ Chichichi...... (Yo,
Nozomu. You're still making that funny face ...... -right, you can't hear my
thoughts, huh?) ]
Razward.
He is a contracted
lesser spirit to an elf with whom Nozomu became involved a short while ago.
[A~ a~. It's been a
while since I used my voice, but it's still kind of weird.]
Instead of a cool
chirp, what coming out of the little bird's mouth was a voice that sounded
somewhat human, yet still echoed like the sound of the wind in a cave.
Communicating by
sending thoughts directly to the soul is not a necessity for ordinary spirits,
but Razward had recently gone out of his way to actually make his voice sound
like this.
[You are asking why am
I here. That is obvious. It's because you were on Shi-jou's school route.]
As Razward said so,
Nozomu and the others looked beyond the gaze that Razward directed to, and saw
three students coming toward them.
"Ah, Nozomu-kun,
yahhoo――? How have you been?"
The first one to call
out to them was a girl from a tribe of beastmen called the Catman.
Her name is Mimuru
Midir. She belongs to the second class of the third grade and is quite
talented.
"Good morning
Mimuru, and good morning to you too, Tom."
"Good morning. I
see you're with Irisdina-san and the others today."
"Yeah, I had them
accompany me for an early morning workout."
After replying to
Mimuru, Nozomu then exchanged greetings with a boy of the human race.
Tom Dale. An alchemist
who is in the same class as Mimuru and at the same time her lover.
He is full of
curiosity and eager to research. He is also an apprentice researcher at the
Gloaurum Institute, one of the continent's leading research institutes in Arcazam,
and has a promising future as a brilliant young man.
And then the last
person arrives in front of Nozomu.
A girl with long, fine
blue hair reminiscent of the azure sky and long ears peeking out from it.
It was the
characteristic of a race called elves, the most loved race by spirits on this
continent.
"Good morning,
Nozomu-kun."
"G-, good morning
...... Shina-san."
Shina Juliel. The only
elf in Arcazam, where the best and most talented people from all over the
continent gathered. She and Nozomu had fought together when they were attacked
by a dangerous demonic beast called the Abyss Grief.
She walked over to
Nozomu with a nonchalant expression and smiled gently at him.
Irisdina and the
others were all surprised by her beautiful smile, which was filled with a sense
of intimacy.
Elves are by nature
impassive and do not open their hearts to other races. This is because they
have spent their childhood with spirits and are accustomed to communicating
with others through their hearts.
It is quite unusual
for such an elf to return a smile, and that is how much trust she has in
Nozomu.
Meanwhile, while
Irisdina and the others were surprised, Shina saw the spirit perched on
Nozomu's shoulder and let out a sigh.
"I'm sorry, it
looks like Raz has caused you some trouble."
"No, that's not
true ......"
[Yeah, right! I
haven't done anything yet!]
"Does "not
yet" mean you're going to do something?"
[Why not!? At best,
I'm going to tell him about Shi-jou's underwear today in detail so that he might
go into heat-...... gue~~!]
In an instant, Shina
grabbed Razword by the neck and began to tighten it with a tight grip.
A foul, muffled
screech was mixed with a sound like a rag being wrung out.
This spirit, Razward,
must have lived for more than a hundred years, but his personality was
strangely mundane.
"By the way, the
color of Shina's underwear today is blu- ...... miyaa~~~!"
Mimuru, who loves all
kinds of amusing things, tried to take advantage of the situation, but of
course, Shina would never allow it.
Before the most
important confidential information could be revealed, the elf girl's powerful
iron claw struck Mimuru as well.
Shina was originally
good at archery and has a strong grip that is hard to believe for a slender
elf. Shina even strengthened her body with magic power and dug her fingertips
into Mimuru's temples.
"Cracking, it's
cracking! Shina, my head is going to crack~~!"
[So do I! My insides,
everything's coming out!]
"I think that'll
be great. Raz, you seem to be a bit tainted with a bad substance and need to be
recycled, don't you think?"
While one person and
one bird were screaming about dying, Nozomu was almost unintentionally getting
a dirty imagination when he heard Mimuru's words.
"Nozomu-kun,
you're not thinking anything strange, are you?"
"Y-, yes! Of
course not!"
Shina's face contorted
into a smile, and Nozomu reflexively responded in a formal tone of voice.
Naturally, the slightly erotic image that popped into his mind was immediately
discarded.
As Nozomu broke out in
a cold sweat under Shina's intimidating gaze, she eventually let out a sigh and
released Mimuru and Razward. One person and one bird, freed from their
restraints, fell and slumped on the ground.
"Goof grief,
these two ......"
"Ahahaha ......
but you guys seem to be getting along as usual."
"I have to admit,
though, reluctantly."
Nozomu and Shina
smiled at each other as they looked downward at the prostrate Mimuru and
Razward.
A gentle chuckle and a
few seconds of silence followed.
In the midst of this
peaceful moment, the atmosphere was slightly turned sweet, and Shina's cheeks
gradually turned red.
"H-, hmmm!
Nozomu, you seem to be quite close to Shina and her friends."
"Eh? Is that
so?"
As if to break the
warm silence, Irisdina called out to Nozomu with a slightly disgruntled look on
her face.
Upon hearing her
words, Nozomu and Shina quickly looked away from each other.
The reason why Shina,
a mysterious but at the same time a rather reclusive elf, has come to trust
Nozomu is because of her past and an incident that took place not long ago.
Twenty years ago,
during the Great Invasion, she lost her home and family to an attack by an
unidentified demonic beast called the Abyss Grief.
Not only that, but due
to the trauma, she also lost her ability to contract with spirits, the most
important thing for an elf.
Despite her immense
grief at the loss of everything, she still came to Arcazam in order to regain
her homeland, but in the forest of Spasim, she encountered a being of the
identical nature to the demonic beast that robbed her of her homeland. Once
again, she experienced the trauma of her past.
However, she managed
to overcome her own emotional trauma through her involvement with Nozomu and
regained her ability to make contracts with spirits.
And her friend
Razword, who had almost perished, was also revived. Together, they were able to
defeat the Abyss Grief, a symbol of trauma and an extremely dangerous demonic
beast.
Because of this, Shina
gained a great deal of trust in Nozomu and began to show a softer side of her
personality to him like this.
"Nozomu, I've
been wondering, what exactly is going on between you and her?"
Irisdina demanded an
explanation, to which Nozomu was at a loss for a response. This is because the
school told them to keep quiet about the Abyss Greif case.
"We're sorry,
Irisdina-san. Neither he nor I can talk about it."
As if to protect
Nozomu, who was hesitant to say anything, Shina intervened. The two girls'
gazes crossed.
Irisdina's mood
plummeted when she saw Shina's presence beside Nozomu. Her eyebrows furrowed,
and a cold tension began to emerge.
"...... Is that
so? Sorry, I was asking something weird."
It was Irisdina who
was the first to break the ice. She quietly breathed out and lowered her eyes
as if to calm herself down.
"No, I'm sorry as
well. Sorry for interrupting your conversation with him. "Well then,
Nozomu-kun, I'll see you at the school."
"Y-, yeah. See
you ......."
After swallowing
Irisdina's words, Shina nodded slightly and headed for the school, while
dragging along Mimuru and Razward, whom she had KO'd.
"I-, Iris? Why
are you looking at me like that?"
*Stare～～～～.*
Before he knew it,
Irisdina was staring at him in a more sullen way than ever before.
Cold sweat broke out
on Nozomu's face when he saw the intense stares he was getting from her.
"...... Don't
mind me. Well, then, I'll go first."
"Ah, wait up,
Ai!?"
"O-, oioi!"
Irisdina put on a
pouty face and quickly went on ahead of them.
Tima and Mars hurried
after her, while Nozomu was stunned by her sudden change in attitude.
On the other hand,
Somia, who was left behind, tilted her head in thought and opened her mouth.
"Nozomu-san, will
you go out on a date with me this weekend?"
"Ah, yes ......
Eeh?"
"Great! Then,
just before noon, in the central park!"
Somia's sudden words
made him nod without thinking. Before he had time to confirm it, the girl
flashed a smile like the sun and ran off to Ecross.
Nozomu, panicked by
the rapidly changing situation, which was shifting as quickly as the spring
weather, remained completely rigid until the bell for the morning assembly
rang.
◆
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