Chapter 240
After Luna had sent what might be best described as a 'murderous ceremony' towards Adonis, a tense silence fell.
"Hmm."
"...?"
Standing before Rezé, Adonis began to glare at her.
Understandably, Rezé busied herself trying to avoid his gaze.
Her eyes darted about, hidden behind the long curtain of her bangs.
Adonis followed the movement of her eyes, tilting his head accordingly.
His gaze was intensely hot.
"Hmmmm."
"Do you have any, any business with me...?"
"Hmmmmmm!"
"Ah, Aaaaah..."
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmm!"
Boom!
Suddenly, a sound like an explosion echoed, and Rezé's eyes started spinning wildly.
She had fainted.
'So frail, so very frail.'
To think I have to transform this pufferfish rabbit into the King-God-Emperor-General-Majesty Rabbit by the midterm exam.
My vision blurred.
"Don't you dare bully my friend!"
Luna, from behind, threw a punch filled with resolve, but Adonis simply tilted his head, dodging her attack effortlessly.
"..."
Luna, looking alternately at her fist that had sliced the air and at me.
Thwack!
Soon, Luna's fist hit my forearm.
"Keke, why are you hitting me?"
"Take it for him. You brought him here."
"It wasn't me who brought him; Adonis followed on his own."
"So, you have a complaint?"
Luna's eyes flared up with fiery anger.
Hmm, so she's really angry, huh?
In such situations, it's best to stay quiet.
"Keke, that can't be true. You know I enjoy being hit the most."
"You pervert! Die!"
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
Luna's punches began to pummel my body.
Luna, I'm going to die at this rate. Go easy!
"Hmm... You two seem close. A strong bond is apparent."
Where does he see that? Is the old man losing his mind?
"Huff... Huff..."
Maybe she relieved some stress.
Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Luna glared at Adonis.
"Anyway! What are you trying to do? I clearly told you not to bother my friends!"
Luna, it's not Adonis who's been tormenting me; it's been you, from the past till now.
"I was merely observing."
"That's harassment! You know how sensitive Rezé is to attention!"
"That seems likely. More precisely, it's the flow of mana she's sensitive to."
"...Mana flow?"
"Mana exists everywhere. It means it's always moving."
Whether walking, eating, or stretching.
Such small actions also alter the surrounding mana flow.
'In this world, it's akin to the air.'
That's what 'mana' is.
And feeling mana, moving it, transforming it, storing it in weapons, enhancing one's body.
That's the dream everyone desires.
The issue is the first step: sensing mana. That itself is extremely challenging.
"But this child is different. Her sensitivity to mana is extraordinary. It's hard to believe... but even the subtle changes in mana flow caused by people's gazes seem perceptible to her."
As mentioned, mana is like air.
Moved by people’s movements and actions, though the changes caused by a mere gaze are incredibly slight. Yet, if she can detect that, it's something even more precise than radar.
"Was she born sensing mana, then? With such talent, she must have felt attacked by people’s gazes, naturally becoming timid. She must have thought everyone was attacking her."
"Is that why she hides in boxes?"
"To avoid gazes, probably. It must be her own survival strategy."
Was there such a profound reason behind it? I thought she was just a box fetishist.
Could that have been a logical assumption all along?
With arms crossed and fingers twitching, Luna looked at Adonis.
"...And the solution?"
"Developing the ability to distinguish between hostile mana directed at her. That would resolve it easily."
"And how does one develop this ability?"
"Just become stronger. When she reaches 9 stars, she will be able to walk the streets confidently."
"9 stars? How long do you think that will take!"
A 9 Star Knight rabbit... something unimaginable had popped up.
Naturally, Luna was shocked enough to jump.
"For now, it would be good to aim at becoming less sensitive. Then she can naturally start to ignore minor mana flows like passing gazes."
"A temporary solution? Well, it's not a bad one."
"Conversely, you need to start feeling more."
"Huh?"
"You're too insensitive. No matter how good your swordsmanship is, without the ability to manipulate mana, you can't reach the top ranks. You know that, right?"
"..."
Luna closed her mouth. He was right, and she had nothing to retort.
"There happens to be a good training method that both of you can do together."
"Really? Oh, wait, why are you teaching us that? We are enemies, aren't we?"
Luna was sharp in her response.
To that, Adonis calmly replied,
"Because that's exactly what I need to do. That's the only reason."
That was all Adonis had to say. As he crossed his arms and closed his mouth, Luna whispered to me at my side.
"What do you think? Can we trust him?"
"Keke, worst case, we break even, right? If it gets weird, we can just stop."
"...You're right? Are you a genius?"
Luna, I'm not a genius; it's just common sense. You're the strange one here!
"Alright, I'll trust you for now. What will the training look like?"
"You'll understand naturally as you go through it."
"Huh?"
Crash!
Zzzzzzap!
"Hot?"
Just as Rezé regained consciousness,
Lightning struck exactly where Luna and Rezé were standing.
It was truly a bolt from the blue.
"Argh!"
"Eeek!"
Luna and Rezé rolled away to dodge the lightning.
"Tsk tsk, it's just static electricity, and yet acting like it hurts..."
"Hey! How is this just static electricity? And it really does hurt!"
"Really? Then you must definitely avoid it."
"What kind of nonsense is... huh?"
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Mana surged in the ceiling of the training arena.
I couldn't feel mana, but I knew it was there. Why? Because so much mana had gathered that it was visible to the eye.
Indeed, clouds made of mana floated leisurely on the ceiling of the training arena, a mysterious dark cloud tinged with a golden hue.
"Aaaargh! Rezé! Run!"
"Eeek!"
Luna and Rezé began to run,
Boom! Boom! Boom!
and golden lightning chased after them.
Is this really training? It seems more like torment.
"Keke, isn't this a bit too harsh to start with?"
"Harsh? Back in my day... I climbed a mountain being struck by lightning bare-handed. And that's not all. I absorbed lightning magic cast by wizards with my own body..."
On and on he went.
I was reminded once again of Adonis's true nature — that of an old man.
More of a hardliner than Rodelin's waterfall training.
And there it was unfolding before my eyes.
"Aaargh!"
"Eeek!"
Luna and Rezé screamed as they were struck by lightning.
...Is this really okay?
'Soon the deployment will start. It would be trouble if they got injured.'
Not only is it problematic if their specs drop, but serious injuries could also lead to their exclusion from the deployment team.
Could the developers be scheming to prevent me from taking a strengthened companion?
It was likely. After all, that's the kind of game this is.
And breaking through and overcoming these schemes,
That's exactly what we, the players, have to do.
"Keke, isn't the intensity a bit too much? They might get hurt."
"It's okay. It's just a strong stimulus to the mana they possess. It might hurt a bit... but they won't die. Probably."
The word 'probably' should not be in that sentence. Or am I mistaken?
"Don't worry too much. That child Luna has a constitution similar to mine."
Similar?
I looked back and forth between Luna and Adonis.
Indeed, there was a similarity between the two.
'Tiny.'
Well, it's not about the size.
I fully understood now!
It was while I was nodding along.
"...That's not what I meant. The Lester family inherently possesses mana with the properties of electricity. So, it won't be as painful for them as it would be for others."
Ah, I see.
Properties of mana. It was a theory I knew well from thousands of interactions and observations within the game...
"...?"
Wait a minute. The Lester family? Why does that come up here?
I couldn't help but be shocked.
It didn't make sense for Adonis to know Luna's secret because according to common knowledge, Adonis was not in the Empire when the Lester family fell. Moreover, it was even more nonsensical for him to know that Luna was the last survivor.
I was so shocked I almost exclaimed out loud, but thankfully no such mishap occurred.
It was due to the power of [Mental Defense].
'Let's stay calm.'
First off, Caron wouldn't have mentioned it. He cares about Luna more than anyone.
Adonis, known as the Emperor's Sword, wouldn't disclose something that could put Luna in danger.
'The next highest probability is...'
That Luna used [One Flash], and as a result, Adonis figured out her secret.
But that didn't feel right. If such an event had happened, Luna would have told me about it.
And she would have mentioned causing a scene.
'Not enough information.'
In times like these, playing dumb is the best strategy.
"The Lester family? Why bring up that traitorous family here...?"
"Ho, no change in your pulse. Well, given you've managed to deceive Caron, perhaps this is to be expected?"
It seemed Adonis was already convinced.
That Luna was a survivor of the Lester family.
'Come on, can't we just let this slide? Aren't we allies?'
Every day is draining. It feels like I'm living day-to-day. No, even a mayfly might have a happier existence than I do.
Truly, this game is merciless, without a trace of cuteness to be found.
Of course.
Even I, a veteran of this game, am not exactly adorable.
"Keke, resorting to extracting information while pretending to be nice. That's rather low for a hero."
"Is it? But that's not what's important right now."
Adonis's eyes sparkled.
"How much you know, why you are with that child, what your ultimate goal is. Isn't that what matters?"
"Well, I haven't really thought about that, so I wouldn't know."
"Such arrogance. You do realize you could die for that, right?"
Crackle!
A golden spark emerged from Adonis's hand.
I could feel that this was different from the lightning he had sent before during the exchange.
Just a graze from that could be lethal.
"Keke, you intend to kill an ally who has been recognized by the Sacred Sword? Would you really do that?"
"I wouldn't say it's impossible."
"That's terrifying indeed. Fine. If you have questions, ask away. I'll answer as best as I can."
"I know you've been dreaming of being the Lester family's rat. What's your relation to Renia?"
"She was someone who gave me hope to live."
"So naturally, you harbor a desire for revenge? For instance, against an Emperor who might have issued a decree of extermination based on the sweet words of the nobility?"
"It might be so, or it might not. Human feelings aren't always constant."
"Sounds like you could commit treason, or perhaps not. Is that what you're saying?"
"Just like Mr. Adonis. You're sharp."
It was a dangerous answer. But no, it wasn't.
This was the 'right' answer.
"I am one who dreamed of being the Lester family's rat. So, my thoughts aren't what matter. What matters is the will of my master."
"The will of the master? Then..."
Adonis's gaze shifted to Luna, who was dodging lightning.
Indeed, the last survivor of the Lester family.
It implied I would act according to 'Luna's will.
Why this attitude from me?
Adonis knew I harbored a fondness for the Lester family...
Adonis is a man who loves 'romance.'
That's why he displayed such an attitude.
Despite being young, a vassal who loyally serves the heir of a family accused of treason and eradicated—a story dripping with romance.
"...Does that child know?"
That I had dreamed of being the Lester family's rat.
That I have been secretly supporting Luna from behind.
That I will act according to her wishes in the future.
He was asking how much Luna knew about me.
Naturally, my response was.
"Keke, it's a secret."
—It was. The story of me dreaming of being the Lester family's rat was fabricated, and the claim that I would act according to Luna's will was a lie.
"...I see. It's all about romance then."
Well, Adonis seemed to have taken it in a completely different way.
"I'll prove that I am an ally in the future. For now, I'm satisfied knowing you're connected to the Lester family, and that child is Renia's daughter."
Adonis burst into laughter.
It was the kind of laugh that seemed to lift a heavy burden he had been carrying.
--TL Notes--
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