Chapter 128 - After the Battle and the Chairman of the Street
When I opened my eyes, I was in a dimly lit room. I seemed to have been lying down. I pushed myself up into a sitting position. The fire in the hearth was on the verge of dying out, its faint light the only illumination.
Fam was asleep beside me. The members of Levante, minus Mizuki, were in a large bed, while Shizuka slept on the sofa. Shizuka was an interesting person, but it seemed Fam and the others had taken a disliking to her.
Still, I needed to have a talk with Fam and the others about their lack of caution, sleeping so soundly next to someone with the mind of Mizuki's old man.
Stroking Fam's ear with one hand, I used the other to feel my own body. The swell of my chest was gone. In its place, my manhood had returned to my groin. My consciousness was back in my own body.
It was a strange feeling, a mix of half relief and half disappointment.
"Mizu… Master."
Fam sat up and scooted closer to me.
"You knew I was back in my own body? How can you tell…"
Her sharp intuition was astonishing.
"I can somehow tell from your gestures and expressions. Only you stroke me like this, Master."
She narrowed her eyes, looking slightly tickled. If I could, I'd spend the rest of my life just stroking her ears.
"Did you hear the commotion?"
"No. Not particularly."
It seemed Marmie's screams hadn't been heard in time. Mizuki was probably injured, so I wanted to wake up Maira or Aira and go to Marmie's room, but they were fast asleep. For now, I gently shook Maira, who was sleeping next to me.
"…Mizuki, what is it?"
Maira rubbed her eyes.
"Sorry, but Mizuki is hurt. I need you to come to Marmie's room with me."
"…You're trying to trick me again, aren't you, Mizuki?"
"No, it's me! It's Mash!"
"I'm sure it is."
Despite her words, Maira got up. It seemed she still thought Mizuki was inside my body.
"You seem to be half-asleep. Allow this hero to wake you up."
I cupped her cheek and gave her a kiss.
"Mmph, mmph!"
She struggled to get away from the kiss and pushed me back.
The previous night's disturbance hadn't reached beyond Marmie's room. Wake and the others, who had been guarding the door, only learned something was wrong when I arrived with Fam and Maira. I wasn't allowed to enter, so I had Maira stay the night in Marmie's room to check on Mizuki's condition. I'd wanted Fam to stay as well for good measure, but she came back with me when she learned I couldn't go in. It was then that Maira seemed to realize Mizuki and I had switched back to our original bodies.
And now, we were having breakfast around a long table. Marmie sat at the head of the table, the same spot as yesterday. The long table was covered with a white linen cloth, upon which sat golden plates piled with bread and fruit. Soup and wine were served to each of us. As was becoming the norm, Patricia, Wake, and several knights were also seated with us.
"Last night, I tried to get some medicinal herbs from my Storage, and a cow's head popped out. It scared me half to death!"
Mizuki, sitting next to me, said as the golden plate seemed to jog her memory.
"It was a drop from an Area Guardian. I didn't mean to startle you."
"That's terrifying, you know? That face…"
She had been scooping soup with her bread, but her hand froze and she shuddered, likely remembering the cow's face.
"Consider it an apology for all the terrible things I've put you through."
"If it were made of solid gold, it would probably be worth a lot of money…"
She picked up her glass. For the record, she and Fam were drinking fruit juice. Both of them were staring intently at my wine.
"Master…"
"I get it, but don't forget it's morning."
I handed her my glass, and Fam received it with reverent hands. She took a single sip with her small lips.
"As expected, the flavor and smoothness are on another level. However, it is a step below the wine you were served in Heilong, Master."
I felt a twinge of concern for Fam's future. Then, as she handed the glass back, Mizuki snatched it.
"What? Are you saying I can't have any?"
"N-no…"
Memories of last night's battle flashed through my mind. Was this all stressing her out? Maybe I was pushing her too hard. As I watched her profile, she returned the wine glass to me without drinking.
"On second thought, I drank as Mash-kun last night, so I'm good."
"Not a single drop actually went into your body, Mizuki-chan."
As we were having this conversation, Marmie's gaze turned toward me.
"…We depart for Migul tomorrow morning."
It seemed she would be traveling with the knights who had arrived ahead of us to escort her. I had only seen about ten of them, but there were probably other attendants as well.
"Did you speak with the lord of Heilong?"
"…I have an audience today. There is a banquet tonight. If you wish to speak with him, Mash, I will introduce you. The King of Heilong wishes to meet you."
I shook my head.
"…In that case, I have a favor to ask of you before I leave, Mash."
"You're always asking for favors!"
"…Yesterday, the one I asked was Mizuki-chan. Today, it's Mash."
It was all me, I thought, but she had just had her birthday. If she had a request, I wanted to hear it.
"…I have two, is that alright?"
"Yeah, if it's something I can do."
"…First, when you arrive in Migul, I want you to promise you'll come and see me. I'll tell you my second request then."
"I have a bad feeling about this. You're not trying to trap me, are you?"
"…I don't do the trapping. The trapping is done by Mash."
Before I noticed, Patricia was standing behind Marmie. She brought her fist down on her head. Then she started walking toward me. I felt it was unfair for me to get hit over that conversation, but it didn't look like I could resist, so I braced myself.
"Fine. I'll come see you with Fam."
I glanced at Fam, and she nodded.
"…Cecily, I want you to come too. I'll recommend you to the magic academy. House Starunion will pay your tuition."
"Really?"
Marmie nodded at Cecily's question.
"I want a recommendation too. I want to go to the magic academy with Cecily."
Aira, who was next to Cecily, spoke up.
"…Very well. Aira, you're a priestess, are you sure? There is a divinity department, but if you wish to wield miraculous magic, you would be better off studying at the temple."
Aira shook her head at Marmie's words.
"The church is too stuffy. I hate it. The academy is fine."
"…I see. If you're alright with that, I'll make the same arrangements as for Cecily."
Aira nodded. I listened to their conversation in a daze. It was true that Cecily had wanted to go to the magic academy from the beginning. After hearing Marmie's story last night, I understood why it was necessary for her. But the idea of her leaving the party just didn't feel real. And now Aira was planning to leave too. I tried to say something, desperately searching for the words.
"You two said you were only staying until Migul, but…"
Mizuki shot me a look, trying to get me to say something. For Mizuki, they had been party members since her days in Wind Blade. I had to say something. But the words wouldn't come.
I headed to the boss of Longhorn Street with Shizuka. I thought it would be best if just the two of us went so as not to seem like we were showing up in force, but Fam insisted on coming along.
Just off the main street was a row of brothels where women sold their bodies for cheap. Among them was a compound surrounded by a high stone wall.
"I don't think I can ever come to like this district, or this building," Fam murmured.
There was a large, iron-barred gate, and a mansion was visible beyond it. Near the gate was a guardhouse, where two thuggish-looking men stood watch. The imposing security made me want to turn back. I had a feeling that if I just spirited one sick girl away from this city, no one would notice or complain. I reached for Shizuka's hand to turn back, but she was out of reach, already approaching the gate.
"Chao! Chao! It's Shizuka! Is the boss in? I wanna see him."
Her greeting was light and casual, as if she were used to this. The guards didn't seem to mind her demeanor as they approached. Their eyes on me, however, were sharp.
"Who's this guy?"
"My new boyfriend. He says he wants to buy me out!"
The guard's expression shifted from sharp suspicion to one of seeing something strange. Even without Fam saying anything, I could tell. I was being treated like some kind of weirdo.
"…Name?"
"I'm an adventurer. Mash."
The guard disappeared inside.
The building's interior was luxurious, but unlike the noble mansions I'd seen, it was gaudy, with an abundance of gold ornamentation. We were led into what looked like an office. A man sat behind a desk of what appeared to be expensive wood, flanked by two large, intimidating men. The man sitting at the desk looked to be about my age. He had a beard and a sharp gaze.
"Chao! Chairman-chan, how've you been?"
Shizuka familiarly approached the seated man. They shared a light hug and kissed each other on the cheek. It was a scene straight out of a foreign movie.
"You skipped out yesterday, didn't you?"
"Yup, sorry 'bout that. It was my first time in a castle. Anyway, I've decided to go to Migul with this guy."
"Huh?"
The man called Chairman glared up at me.
"Everyone calls him Chairman. And this is my fiancé, Mash."
Shizuka gave a crude introduction.
"That's not true! Master is not your fiancé!" Fam interjected. I wished she would stay quiet before she complicated things. I sent a look her way, and though I don't know if she understood, she returned a gaze of clear dissatisfaction.
"Shizuka is one of my girls. I can't have her just up and quitting on me. So, what's the deal?"
The Chairman glared at me again. Did this man really know the names of every single woman working on Longhorn Street and manage them all? But the way Shizuka and the Chairman spoke, they seemed to be on casual terms.
"I'm not in any kind of romantic relationship with Shizuka. I'm looking for a man named Ko-kun, her boyfriend, but he doesn't seem to be in this city. I want her to accompany me to Migul."
"No way! If you won't have sex with me, I'm not going!"
Shizuka puffed out her cheeks.
"…Fine. I have no choice. I'll leave you here."
"Wha—no, no! I was kidding! I'll go even if we don't have sex! I'd be in trouble if you left, Mash…"
Shizuka pouted like a sulking child. It seemed she would keep her mouth shut about the other transfer students.
"Why are you looking for him? Money?"
I was at a loss for words. I had no intention of revealing the situation with the transfer students.
"No… his life and hers are in danger. I need to tell him."
"Their lives are in danger… huh. And you're going to protect them?"
I hadn't thought that far ahead. My only plans were to rendezvous with Hyakka and Karpana's group, get information on Isaac, and investigate the Ark of the Covenant. As I struggled for an answer, he raised his empty wine glass. The bodyguard next to him poured wine from a bottle. The Chairman downed it in one gulp.
"Let me see your character sheet."
I did as he said and displayed my character sheet. The Chairman studied it silently.
"No good. I can't trust an F-rank adventurer. Come back when you're C-rank. I'll give you a job to do. If you complete it, I'll hand over Shizuka."
"…Sorry, but we're leaving this city in ten days."
"Then leave Shizuka here. I'll even trade you for that dog-eared girl."
I considered summoning Racshell to threaten him, but I held back. I glanced at Fam and Shizuka, preparing to leave.
"Shizuka, you're staying here. It's been a while, I'll take you tonight. And get back to work until this guy comes for you. Make up for skipping out yesterday."
"Okay, I'll do that."
Shizuka gave a slight nod to the Chairman's words.
"Wait. Shizuka was just cured of an illness at the church yesterday. They said there won't be a next time, so I can't have her getting sick again."
"Then you buy her."
"Tch…"
It didn't sit right with me, but I placed a single gold coin on the desk.
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