Chapter 61
It's Such a Tragic
End
Translator : PolterGlast
Shara-ri, the gold
ornament around Veda's neck dangled.
"W-wait!!!!!!"
The sword Lotus thrust
out was stopped right at Veda's throat. Veda had no intention of harming us.
But how could I convey that? I thought, struggled, and clenched my fists
tightly. There was no time to think slowly.
"Lotus, wait,
that person is okay. I... I know...!!"
I shouted at Lotus's
broad back.
Because I knew from
the game's knowledge. Veda was, by all accounts, going easy on us. I knew it
from the otome game. But I couldn't shout that out here.
So, I thought Lotus
would understand with just these words. I swallowed, realizing my throat was
strangely dry. I had seen Veda countless times beyond the game screen, but I
had never spoken to him directly. In a way, he was just a stranger. But I
didn't want to see that stranger get hurt, and besides, Lotus himself didn't
really want to.
Making him do
something he didn't want to do. That was the worst thing. It was a sentimental
thought. I thought it was foolish. People were terrifying. Just a slight change
in appearance or status, and they would instantly change their attitude. I knew
that. But still, I didn't want to hurt him.
"............"
Slowly, Lotus withdrew
his sword. He wasn't letting his guard down. But the tense atmosphere from just
moments ago was dissipating. I finally exhaled slowly. As for Veda, the slight
loss of composure he had shown when the sword was pointed at him had vanished
as if it never happened, and a soft smile remained on his lips.
"It seems you
have calmed down, which is most fortunate."
He was completely at
ease.
Veda created a certain
distance between himself and Lotus, then lightly tapped the ground with the tip
of his shakujo. Instantly, the glass that had been protecting Veda shattered.
So, he wasn't defenseless after all. His entire body was protected by magic
tools. The light metallic scraping sound I had been hearing, which I had
assumed was the shakujo he held, must have been something else.
"You over there
slumped on the ground, are you Socius?"
"Eeek!"
Despite being my
childhood friend, his reaction in a pinch was remarkably similar to mine.
Perhaps people who grow up in similar environments become alike.
--Looks like it's okay
now?
--How's it going,
'sura?
--Let's just calm down
for now, 'suraran.
While committing the
outrage of suddenly adding a character-specific suffix to their speech here,
Ichi and the others bounced around Socius. Since the illusion skill was still
active, Socius was confused by the sudden mysterious phenomenon of his
surroundings becoming squishy, saying, "Hieee, awawa, what is this,
hieeee." "Why does Vice-Tower-sama even know about meee?" And
then he cried.
Vice-Tower was Veda's
title. At Socius's words, he shrugged slightly.
"I remember every
student I've met. I especially like students who take their classes
seriously."
Perhaps not knowing
how to react to Veda's words, Socius literally cried out "Uwaaaah!"
once, then collapsed into an apologizing (sorry for sleeping) pose. Ichi and
the others jumped on top of him, going "Weeeey!" Stop it.
"Allow me to
reintroduce myself. My name is Veda Kraut. I am the Vice-Tower Master of this
Magic Tower. I hope we can become better acquainted."
***
How much of what Veda
said in his slow, deliberate tone—that he had no particular intention of doing
anything just because we were demons—was true? I couldn't tell. I had shouted
to Lotus that I understood, but that was purely based on my imagination.
Even knowing his
personality from the game's main story, I certainly couldn't say I understood
him 100%.
In the game, Veda was
calm, and polite, but his actions were extremely rational, and if necessary, he
would do ruthless things without hesitation. He was probably the most ruthless
man in the Tale of the Land of Five Leaves. That's why when I was first hit by
the wind, I thought it was an unusually mild attack for Veda. The same went for
the movement of the branches that had obstructed the leaping Lotus. If it were
Veda, he would have not only cut off our escape route but also directly
restrained us, doing whatever it took.
Veda was simply
observing us. How would we react to his actions? He was confirming our
movements and trying to grasp our intentions. That's why it didn't seem like he
was trying to eliminate us without question.
"The Branch of
the World Tree that you used, you see, has a mechanism that alerts me
personally when it's activated."
The Branch of the
World Tree was the shortcut function.
In other words, the
moment we entered the Magic Tower, everything was in the palm of Veda's hand.
He was a man who would narrow his eyes and look like a nice person when he
smiled, but Veda was a mass of pure rationality. Even though I knew it, the
thought of why he had let us be gave me a headache.
"We have a slime
here, it seems."
Even though they
should have been hidden, Veda looked directly at Ichi and the others without
hesitation.
Before I could even
register my surprise, Veda snapped his fingers once. To my astonishment, San's
body lifted into the air. "Heeeelp meee~~" Ichi jumped onto their
comrade who was calling for help, Nii jumped on too, and I grabbed on as well.
Seeing Lotus put his hand on his sword and turn towards Veda, Veda said,
"My apologies, just a little joke. But indeed, you were there."
This time, we all fell
down with a thud. The impact caused the three slimes' illusion skills to wear
off, and they were twitching.
"There are very
few slimes in this country. So, when the detection magic tool alerted me to its
presence, I was surprised. Unfortunately, it escaped, but I did place a proper
mark on it. I can tell where it is at any time."
"Eh?" I
lifted San's body with both hands and turned it around. Then, near the bottom,
there was a small red dot. It was about the size of the tip of my little
finger, like a tiny speck of paint, something you wouldn't notice unless you
looked closely. Hurriedly trying to confirm, I jabbed my finger into it. At
that moment, tragedy struck. San trembled with a speed I had never seen before,
and like a maiden, let out a scream that sounded like tearing silk.
"Hyaaaaaaa!" Before I could even be surprised by what was happening,
he continued speaking.
--T-that's my butt,
you knowーーーーー!!!
"H-he says it's
on his butt!!!?"
"Eh!?"
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