Episode 3. Misunderstanding that gets worse (5)
“Prause, are you going to accept that offer? It sucks.”
Dex, sitting across from me, diligently cuts the meat and asks. The hissing sound was very unpleasant.
“I don’t want to receive it. And don’t talk while eating.”
“Master! It’s delicious too! Eat. Hurry.”
He holds out a piece of steak cut into squares to me with a fork. The gooey juice leaked out.
“Come on.”
I looked at it in awe and reluctantly put it in my mouth.
The meat was so tender that it seemed to melt in your mouth. It seemed that he had finally come to this world and tried proper gastronomy.
“Master! How is it?”
“Not a teacher.”
After giving Tina her eyesight and asking for her opinion, I saw Duke Tori eating at the head of the long table.
“How can you not touch your hands? If it doesn’t suit your taste, shall we prepare another dish?”
“I’m a bit reluctant to think that everything I’m eating right now is ‘debt’.”
“Are you empty? Oh, is it better to sleep?”
Iris asked, mumbling with a piece of steak already in her mouth.
…… What are you saying?
“Eat as much as you want.”
I said, roughly waving my hand at Iris. Then I glanced at Maria, who was sitting across from me.
Maria was eating her food in silence, her eyes shining.
Looking at things like this, they look so pure, but they have a lot of grudges against humans, so it’s a real problem.
“This is the first time in my life. Such delicious food. How much more so the day will come when I step into the ducal family.”
Thelma sitting in the corner was even shedding her tears.
She looked the happiest of her life.
I feel the most unfortunate at this moment.
Gulp!
Dex swallows the meat he put in his mouth.
“Then Prause, are you planning to deal with the S-class adventurer?”
“I’m sorry, but the request to Prause is not ‘dealing’, but ‘suppression’.”
Duke Tori corrected Dex’s words.
I guess so. Because you are a precious person to yourself.
The reason why the Duke was more considerate of other races than other people was because of him.
The problem was that the person was Maria.
It was a race of beasts with a lot of resentment towards humans.
“You know how hard it is to beat an S-class adventurer, aren’t you?”
“That’s why I’m asking a sword master like you. You can use an aura sword that even S-class adventurers couldn’t achieve.”
So that’s why it’s fake. It’s a technology that’s as filthy useless as living.
I want to talk. I really want to get out of this misunderstanding.
Will they know my troubled heart?
Chop!
Huruloop!
Laughter leaked out at the sound of food being eaten from all directions.
I couldn’t believe it when I saw the people throwing food into their stomachs without any worries.
Yes, eat a lot. f*ck.
“Think more and tell me. Think of this meal as an investment, not as a debt.”
Please do it for a man worth investing in. It’s all about throwing money into the air.
If this nobleman lived in modern times, he would be a man who would be brilliant as an investment and then collapse.
Thank you for being born into a noble family.
* * *
“Wow~ There are so many rooms!”
Tina idly runs through the hallways. Iris and Maria were also looking around, blinking her eyes.
“This annex is a place no one uses, so you don’t have to worry about it. I called the servants, so there won’t be any inconvenience to spend a few days.”
“Do you have any reason to do this?”
“That child… Only ‘Urca’ will win. That is all I want.”
“…… I will think about it.”
What do you think?
How to defeat an S-class adventurer with my own hands.
This request was a problem that only the person concerned could solve. He could not borrow the power of the Spirit King or the Hero.
From noble mtl dot com
It was a quest that I finally completed with Iris, who had grown so much in the game. To give such a request to a weak human being like me.
Damn it, mangem!
“I hope you think positively. I’m going back to work now. The servants will be arriving soon, so take care of yourself for a few days.”
He held out his hand to me. I just nodded. Reluctantly taking his hand, he turns around and leaves.
“Prause! Ah… I decided to call you Master! Teacher!”
“Don’t call me Master.”
“Is this all ours for a few days?”
“It’s not ours. I don’t know if I’ll be there for a few days.”
Ah, I want to go into hiding like this.
Everything the Duke did out of consideration for us was a burden. I sighed involuntarily at the pressure of having to repay the expectations.
“Tina, you are too immature—”
“If you are a child, you can act like a child. Iris, you too.”
I said to Iris who was about to reprimand Tina. But she shook her head coldly and retorted.
“Ha, but the reason I’m attached to Mr. Prause is… ….”
“The value has already been proven. Don’t get hung up on me unnecessarily. I will never abandon you.”
That’s what I said, but it sounds like a beggar. It was too inappropriate to give a child the right mental education.
Isn’t that how you become a villain?
Looking at Iris, lamenting her life inwardly, she was smiling rather relieved.
“…… Yes. Hi-Hi.”
Iris also moved her steps and glanced inside the open door. She seemed to be contemplating which room to sleep in.
“Hey! Not like a child.”
Maria looked at the two and scolded them.
I slammed the blade down on her head as she crossed her arms and made an uncomfortable expression.
Took.
She raised her head at the sudden touch. She blinks her eyes open.
“You are a child too.”
“Oh, don’t treat me like a child. I am a person close to an archmage who can handle all attributes.”
“A truly great wizard at your age could embody all magic in all attributes.”
“!”
Of course, it was the main character I saw in another novel.
Since you guys are also the main characters of the game, aren’t you guys?
“Now that you have awakened and can use some magic, do you think you have the whole world? Don’t be conceited.”
“…… Yes.”
She bit her lower lip in resentment.
“And at your age, go around more energetically. I know you had a sad past, and I know how you were treated.”
“If you know, you shouldn’t say that.”
“But not anymore.”
She moved her hand that had struck her head and ran a gentle stroke through her hair. Maria flinches at my touch on her, and she snaps her hand away.
“Su, even though I call you Master! I didn’t really give you my heart.”
“I don’t want it. You can use me But while we’re together, it wouldn’t hurt to get along well.”
“I hate all humans. Enough to want to kill. Still wanting to get along?”
‘Well, that’s kind of scary. To be destined to die to the main character I saved.’
“You? Me?”
What kind of provocation is this?
There are some good words for this kind of situation.
Something like ‘I still want to be close to you’! Like ‘I understand your feelings’! There are any number of them.
Actually, was this muzzle born to be hated?
f*ck. I want to stop crying
As I was staring at her, she said, “Kuh.” And she takes a step back.
“Well, maybe not now! Maybe one day I’ll destroy the empire for the prosperity of the Elves. At that time, if Master stood in my way, we might end up fighting—”
“That will never happen.”
She cut off her words and said firmly.
“Yes?”
“You will destroy the empire, and we will fight.”
If Maria destroys the empire, it will always be a bad ending.
The game scenario writer deliberately twisted it to cause conflict between characters, but this part was inevitably something that had to be resolved.
The best thing is to resolve the conflict without violence as much as possible, and to do so, the Duke of Tori’s help was essential.
In order to eradicate slavery in the empire and obtain a territory where elves and beastmen could live, a person with an eye for ‘politics’ was inevitably needed.
And the most suitable for that was the Duke of Tori. He was the only aristocrat who was friendly and trusted with other races.
“What do you mean?”
“It is literally.”
“Why are you so sure?”
‘Because that’s the scenario.’
“Because that is the fate.”
Maria’s eyes widened at my words. Neither did I.
Such a cheesy sound coming out of my mouth!
“What… I have no idea what that means.”
If I only ride her routes well, she won’t slaughter humans. The antipathy towards humans will remain, but there will be no oppression of humans.
“The person who will become the archmage doesn’t even know that. I’m sorry.”
“What does this have to do with grand magic love right now!”
“Someday you will find out. So be careful lest you go astray.”
“Wrong way…… ?”
Maria’s voice is low. Gee, did I make a mistake?
“I’m a human being who has already taken the wrong path, so why shouldn’t I?”
She asks with a straight face. She was revealing a darker life than ever.
“Is it okay for humans to slaughter and enslave us elves, but not us? Are all humans wrong? I, why did we do something wrong. Ah, we are different from noble humans, so is it wrong to be alive?”
“Maria.”
“I really appreciate that you saved me from being sold as a slave. But even Prausu had a ‘purpose’, right? We’re just trying to take advantage of each other. Just go there and do it.”
Because I am receiving the hero’s hostility, my body is about to tremble. Scary, this.
“If you don’t want to be a teacher, don’t do it. Anyway, even without you, I can become stronger.”
“Maria, speak beautifully.”
Iris, who got in between me and Maria before I knew it, said. Tina, who was looking around the room excitedly, was also standing next to me.
The two of them were the exact opposite of the pure appearances they had shown just a moment ago.
Tina in particular had her hand on the handle of her sword with her serious face.
I could feel the subtle killing power, and if I told her to cut Maria, she would swing her sword without hesitation.
“What are you doing Mr. Prause?”
“Iris… …. Did you not come to your senses even after suffering like that? You said you were a slave too? Why are you clinging to the human Prause?”
Maria questioned Iris in an incomprehensible tone.
“Because you are the only person in the world who respects me.”
“What?”
“Because he is the one who gave me ‘freedom’.”
Maria was silent for a moment at Iris’ attitude of answering as if it were natural.
She also understood her own position.
She knew that she was a slave herself, and that she had saved herself at great cost.
“…… That’s right, but……. But the emperor… You want us to just laugh and pass over what humans have done to other races?”
“What are you talking about? What I wanted to say was, why are you angry with Prause?”
“What?”
“Your tone is obviously harsh and it gives off the feeling that you don’t consider others, but I don’t think Prause has ever acted wrongly towards you. Rather, you should be grateful. Forever.”
“What are you saying, you… ….”
“For whatever reason, you saved me from falling to the bottom. If it hadn’t been for Prause-sama, you wouldn’t have resented humans by now, would you have just been afraid of tomorrow coming? Or did he think he wanted to die?”
Because if you are branded as a slave, you are not even allowed to commit suicide.
As she added, she stared at Maria coldly.
“Iris, have you finished?”
“No, less. Maria, why don’t you know that Prime Minister Prause is taking care of you?”
“Caring? You use it.”
“Use? Fuha!”
Iris burst into laughter. She felt as though her mood had cooled even more like ice at the sudden burst of laughter.
As her laughter stopped, Iris took a step closer to Maria.
“So what did you do for Prause?”
“What?”
“No, shall we change our words? What did Prause ‘request’ of you?”
“That… ….”
“Last time you asked us to prove our worth? Prause knew it. That we can be strong.”
“Well, then you used it.”
“What does Prause like about you when you get stronger?”
Iris’ logic kept Maria from opening her mouth. I clenched her fists and looked at her floor.
Was Iris originally such a good talker? I think it was pretty reticent in the game.
“If you become stronger, Prause-sama will become stronger too—”
“Stop it.”
I stopped Iris from continuing her questioning.
There was nothing good about fighting even though he hadn’t grown into a usable warrior yet.
If you fight over trivial things and the emotional goal deepens, it could become a problem when fighting demons in the future.
“…… All right.”
Iris sighed and replied. Tina finally removed her hand from her sword.
Tina didn’t say anything, but there was an unusual look in her eyes.
“Maria, it was a mistake on my part. Never mind.”
After all, the problem was that I didn’t think deeply about her past and hit the seizure button.
But my mouth can’t say I’m sorry until the end.
“No… no. Sorry.”
Still, he seems to be thankful for saving him.
For now, that’s enough. At least it doesn’t seem like this argument is going to make you hate me.