“Hm?”
Yuridia frowned slightly upon seeing Victoria.
It wasn’t just because their rival, Victoria, was with them.
“What is this awful smell?”
Yuridia pulled out a white handkerchief and covered her nose.
Indeed, there was a terrible smell lingering in the room. The source of the smell was, of course…
“Don’t you know that good medicine is supposed to smell bitter?”
“Oh my, was that medicine? I’m sorry. I thought it was trash.”
“Tr-trash? How could you mistake this magnificent creation for trash?”
But I also agreed with Yuridia.Besides the terrible smell, its appearance was a bit… questionable.
It wasn’t smooth and glossy, but rather had a bumpy surface. There were mysterious things sticking out from various places, and its color was a rather beautiful(?) brown.
To be honest…
“It looks like poop.”
“Pardon?”
“It’s really filthy. Like someone’s inner thoughts.”
“W-what did you say!? Surely you’re not referring to me?”
“Oh dear, I didn’t say that. Do you feel guilty about something?”
“U-ughh!”
Victoria’s body trembled, likely because her meticulously crafted elixir was being compared to poop.
“Hmph! Fine. It’s pointless to talk to someone who can’t appreciate the value of this elixir.”
“Hmph~ Bragging about your elixir? I don’t know who’s more vulgar.”
“Think whatever you want. It doesn’t change the fact that it’s me, not you, who can help Luna. Oh~ Hohoho!”
Victoria was right. No matter how much it looked like poop, an elixir was still an elixir.
It was Victoria, not Yuridia, who could help Luna.
‘I need to think about what to offer for in return.’
Victoria had suggested that I join her side, but I had no intention of doing so. It might drastically alter the story.
So what should I offer for instead?
A date with Luna?
Hunting rights for the Pufferfish Rabbit?
Or perhaps… a thrilling date with the handsome me?
‘The last one would be a huge loss, but if it’s for the elixir, there’s no other choice. I’ll have to sacrifice myself.’
Just as I was resolving to sacrifice myself for Victoria, she raised the hand holding the elixir high.
“If it’s for Luna, shouldn’t we do this much? The chair of the ‘Love Aid Club’ would cry if you didn’t. Maybe it’s better if you hand over that position to me too.”
“…I have no choice. Bragging isn’t my style, but…”
Yuridia pulled out a small box from her bosom and opened it.
Even at a glance, the cloth inside looked luxurious. On top of it lay a crimson orb.
[Rownter Family’s Secret Elixir: C]
An elixir made with the secret techniques of the Rownter family. Since it’s still in the experimental stage, its effects are not fully developed.
If it could be refined further, it would become a powerful elixir.
All stats +2
Mana recovery speed permanently increases by 10%.
‘…Why is there another elixir?’
As I mentioned before, getting three elixirs in one playthrough is considered a lot.
Yet, there were two elixirs right in front of me. Even as a veteran player, this was astonishing.
“I’m the one who will save Luna.”
“Oh~ Hohoho! Challenges are always welcome.”
Screech-!
Screech-!
A grand showdown between a weasel and a marten unfolded before my eyes.
I didn’t understand why identical creatures were fighting each other.
‘Hm? Wait a minute…’
They were kids who liked Luna enough to form a club around her.
But what if Rezé imitated Luna? They might give her a small candy, saying she’s cute.
A candy in the form of an elixir.
While the weasel and marten were locked in their showdown, I approached Rezé, who was looking lost.
“Rezé, this is your chance.”
“Huh? What?”
“You need to take the elixir and save Luna.”
“B-but how…?”
“Just act like Luna. They might give you the elixir as a gift, saying they miss her.”
“R-really?”
I wasn’t sure either. But wouldn’t it be great to get the elixir without giving anything in return?
Besides, those two are crazy, so you can’t think about them logically.
For insanity, the best countermeasure was another form of insanity, like the Pufferfish Rabbit.
“You can do it. Go boldly, just like Luna!”
“I-I’ll try. If it means saving Luna…!”
Determination filled Rezé’s eyes. It was a good look.
With Rezé… no, Luna 2.0, behind me, I gave my orders.
Go, Luna 2.0! Steal the elixir!
Creak, creak-.
“Um, excuse me…”
Luna 2.0 creaked as she entered between the two of them.
“Hohohohohoho!”
“Oh~ Hohohoho!”
“…”
Boom-!
Luna 2.0 collapsed to the floor. It was due to the clash of the two girls’ auras.
They had managed to blow Luna 2.0 away with just their presence.
They were truly terrifying kids.
“Ugh…”
But perhaps Rezé’s desire to save Luna was just as strong as theirs.
Staggering, Rezé got back up. And then.
“S-stop it, both of you…!”
Rezé’s voice filled the room.
It was a firm command. The two monsters halted their fight for a moment.
A brief three-second silence. Then, Rezé spoke again.
“…I-I’d appreciate it, but I-it’s probably too much to ask, right? P-please, just rest…”
Rezé started to shrink back little by little.
Not just her voice, but her body as well, until she eventually became one with the floor.
Well, that plan failed. The mission was too much for a Pufferfish Rabbit.
“Were you trying to imitate Luna?”
“This is an insult. It’s an insult to Luna!”
“Luna’s scolding carries a sense of cuteness. You didn’t convey that at all. It should’ve been at least 60% cute.”
“Exactly. And that timid attitude… It’s far too vulgar compared to the always confident and noble Luna.”
Girls, what are you even talking about?
I didn’t understand any of it. Criticizing someone for mimicking Luna didn’t make sense to me.
As the two continued their verbal assault, Rezé, who was still lying on the floor, began to tremble and said,
“P-please save Luna.”
“Huh?”
“B-because of my shortcomings… L-Luna got really hurt.”
Rezé blamed herself for running away during the fight with Benius.
‘Since Luna was seriously injured after Rezé fled, it’s understandable she’s blaming herself…’
But the truth is, even if Rezé had stayed, nothing would’ve changed. Rezé didn’t have the means to protect her comrades.
The real fault lay with me for not anticipating the area-of-effect attack.
“P-please help. I-I’m just… s-such a worthless person with not even a single elixir…”
Not knowing these facts, Rezé continued to plead tearfully. But this alone wouldn’t be enough to get the elixir.
Those two were more than just students; they were the leaders of their respective factions. There was no way they’d agree to a deal where they took a complete loss.
‘I guess I have no choice but to step in.’
Watch closely, rabbit. Witness the great spirit of this body, sacrificing itself to save Luna!
“Keke, I apologize for bringing out a child who doesn’t even know the basics of negotiation. I’ll remove her right away. Let’s resume our discussion.”
“…I’m touched.”
“Huh?”
“This kind of desperate friendship… It’s so moving that I can’t help but cry.”
Victoria, what are you even saying?
“Sniff… I used to think that friendship was a baser emotion compared to love… but maybe friendship isn’t so bad.”
Yuridia, you too?
“It’s already at a safe stage, but I can’t help it. I’ll give my elixir.”
“Me too. I hope it’s of great help to Luna.”
Two elixirs were now in Rezé’s hands.
Tears welled up in Rezé’s eyes once again.
“Th-thank you both… so much…”
“Rezé!”
Rezé, Yuridia, and Victoria.
The three of them embraced each other tightly.
Fighting, crying, and now laughing.
I couldn’t keep up with their emotional rollercoaster.
‘I’ll just give up on understanding.’
This world is too much for a normal person like me to comprehend.
As I watched Rezé fumble around and hide the elixirs in a box, Yuridia approached me.
“I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“Was it you, Zero, who told Rezé to imitate Luna?”
“Keke, indeed it was.”
Ssh-.
Yuridia backed away, quickly distancing herself from me.
She stopped when she reached Victoria’s side.
“Does he like Luna that much? To the point where, if she’s not around, he needs someone else to imitate her…?”
“I’m not sure whether to see this in a good or bad light. Telling someone else to imitate the one you love… That’s obsession, bordering on madness.”
The way those two were looking at me started to change, becoming more and more… off.
Like they were staring at a pervert.
‘I just wanted to mess with Rezé a little…’
I have no idea how I ended up being seen as a pervert.
“He might be so broken by his lover’s illness that he’s lost his mind.”
“This is serious. Luna will be shocked when she wakes up and finds out there’s another version of her…”
“Luna might faint. She’s so delicate, after all.”
Delicate, Luna?
Those two words can’t even exist in the same sentence. If you ran a spell checker, it would definitely underline it in red.
Whisper, whisper-.
Yuridia and Victoria continued their hushed conversation for a while.
After about a minute, they both approached and started pushing me.
“Go for a walk outside or something. Staying inside all the time is making you lose your mind.”
“Start right now. We’ll take care of things here.”
Bang-.
In an instant, I was thrown out of the room.
Now I was being forced to go on a walk. Just as I was about to knock on the door again.
Click-.
The door opened, and a girl was thrown out.
It was Rezé. Judging by her confused expression, it seemed she was abducted just as quickly as I was.
“Take a walk together. Staying in that box all the time is bad for your health.”
“Enjoy your time together.”
Thud-.
And so, I was forced to start this walk.
“Eh?”
Along with the Pufferfish Rabbit.
After the Carpathia Defense Battle, players are given a week of free time.
Gathering information, raising character affinity, training, etc.
It’s a time when you’re supposed to be busy running around.
But I didn’t need to do any of that.
‘I already know all the information, and raising affinity with my character type is just a waste of time.’
The only thing left was “training.”
But since I had trained in the [Fleur Family Style] last night, it wasn’t efficient to do it again so soon.
In cases like today, it was best to train in the afternoon for maximum efficiency.
So training was out. That left one thing.
‘Sightseeing.’
I’ve experienced Carpathia countless times in Chapter 2. But this is the first time I’ve actually seen it.
Now that Luna is stable, sightseeing doesn’t seem like a bad idea.
‘I originally planned to walk around with Luna after she woke up, but…’
I guess it wouldn’t hurt to enjoy myself a little. After all, there’s no guarantee Luna will wake up within a week.
“Hahahahaha!”
“We buy all sorts of stuff! We buy everything except what we don’t!”
It had only been 12 hours since the defense battle ended.
But residents, merchants, travelers, and many others were already filling the streets of Carpathia.
It was the complete opposite of the deserted streets from yesterday.
“Hi, hiiick! Please spare meee!”
Rezé was swept away by the tide. The tide of people, that is.
I turned around and grabbed her wrist.
It was the third time already.
Maybe it’s because her presence is so faint, but people kept bumping into her as they walked by.
I should’ve put a leash on her.
If I had been leading her around with a red leash, at least she wouldn’t have been swept away by the crowd.
“Hold on tight.”
“S-sorry…”
Rezé tightly gripped the part of my clothing that was sticking out from my waist with both hands.
She was standing closer than before, so she wasn’t swept away by the crowd anymore.
Bustling-!
The Carpathia Defense Battle had resulted in a significant number of casualties.
But the streets of Carpathia were lively. To exaggerate a bit, it felt like a festival.
If I had to summarize the atmosphere in one word… well.
‘They’re excited.’ That seemed like the most accurate description.
The Erosion had been gnawing at the continent for several years.
Victory in the war against the Erosion was a rare occurrence.
In fact, the recent record in the war against the Erosion was 0 wins and 10 losses.
It was generally accepted that stopping the Erosion was impossible.
Given this context, it’s only natural that people would be excited after such a precious victory.
And amid the excitement, I kept overhearing mentions of a certain individual.
“Come on, don’t lie. You’re saying a noble, and not just any noble, but someone from the up-and-coming Duke Aziz faction, got punched? That’s ridiculous.”
“Yeah. Even if it’s the principal of Annwood Academy, that’s impossible.”
“Oh, I swear! I saw it with my own two eyes! The pigs were flying!”
–TL Notes–
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