kscans

Chapter 183 - Mizuki and Yuki-senpai

We were back at the inn. Dinner was already over, and we were in our room. Claire had returned to the Mateo Trading Company for the day, so it was just me, Famu, and Myra.

"It's jealousy. I go crazy every time you bring home a new woman, Master,"

Famu said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I couldn't remember when she had gotten off my back. Nor could I recall the taste of the food we'd eaten at the inn.

"You're constantly bringing new women into the fold, Mash, yet you can't stand it when Mizuki is with another man?"

Myra asked.

"I hate it. And not just with Mizuki. It's the same for Famu and you, Myra. I hated it even when Famu was just sitting next to that guy in the bar in Heilon. And that's not all. I go crazy just imagining Cecily and Aira with their past lovers."

"My, my..."

Myra sat down next to me on the edge of the bed and took my hand.

"That's what happens when you keep adding more. I only have you, Mash. If you had just kept it to me..."

"I was holding it back because it's frustrating, but I even get jealous just watching you get along with the children."

I thought I saw Myra's eyes widen for a second. It looked like surprise, but her expression quickly softened into a gentle smile. Her cheeks were tinged with a faint red, and the corners of her eyes crinkled.

"Mash... you can touch my breasts as much as you want today."

"Tch, that's why I didn't want to say anything."

I felt like she was making fun of me, but I decided I would damn well take her up on the offer. Lost in the feeling of her ample chest, I sought her lips. Myra closed her eyes and responded. As I pulled her closer to feel more of her, the door to the room clicked open. It was Mizuki.

"You're back?"

"Huh? Of course I'm back. But I couldn't find the room..."

Claire came in behind her.

"Excuse me for intruding,"

Claire said.

"Are you staying the night?"

She nodded with a shy smile. Mizuki cut in, stepping closer with a bubbly smile of her own.

"So, about tomorrow, Yuki said he'd show me around town!"

Her unusually cheerful mood sent a sharp pang of pain through my chest.

"No, I'm taking Famu to the church tomorrow. Why don't you go by yourself?"

The smile vanished from Mizuki's face. My chest ached again. When she was happy, it hurt. When I stopped her from being happy, it hurt again. I couldn't control my surging emotions. It was a situation I couldn't handle on my own.

"...Mash?"

Mizuki stared at me. "Are you... angry?"

"I'm not angry."

I looked away from her. Mizuki seemed to glance at Famu and Myra, then she sighed.

"Are you... jealous?"

"So what if I am? I know. That guy is the 'person you think you might like' you mentioned, isn't he? And you went on a date and were dating in your original world, right? You look so damn happy!"

The color drained from Mizuki's face.

"N-no... Mash, listen to me—"

"Just go on your date tomorrow, the two of you."

Mizuki hadn't come back to be told things like this. She was just happy to have met someone she knew from her old world. In this world where no one knew her, she had found someone who could potentially be an ally. And I was the only one she could share that joy with. I knew that. But I couldn't stop the words from coming out. Mizuki turned and walked out of the room.

"Mash, you really should go and bring her back..."

Myra said, gazing at the closed door.

"Why should I...? What good would it do?"

She stared at me, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"You don't understand? Are you serious? That was too cruel to Mizuki. Besides, what if her ex-boyfriend is the Yuki who's been killing otherworlders? We should stay with her."

"Ex-boyfriend..."

The word echoed in my mind. I tried to calm down, but my thoughts were a tangled mess of jealousy and regret for the awful things I'd said. The more I tried to think, the more chaotic my thoughts became. For now, I should probably go after Mizuki. I tried to stand, but my legs wouldn't move.

"I can't think straight. If I talk to her now, I feel like I'll just say something even worse."

I sank back down onto the bed.

"So it's my fault after all..."

Famu, Myra, and Claire all nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. I wanted to clutch my head in despair.

"But where could she have gone at this hour? To her ex-boyfriend's place...?"

"That would mean a real breakup. I doubt she would go that far. Perhaps she just got another room."

Claire opened the door as if to check, looked down the hall, and returned. I noticed her expression was stiff.

"Did something happen?"

"N-no."

As she said this, she shot a look at Myra and Famu, as if asking for help. She was undoubtedly fed up with me. Since she hadn't adventured with me, she didn't know about my pathetic side. She might be disappointed.

"W-well, now that I think about it, Famu, you and Mash argue from time to time, don't you? How do you two make up?"

Myra asked, trying to draw the silent Famu into the conversation.

"Hmph, my Master and I are always on good terms. We have never had a fight!"

"R-really? Weren't you two dueling this afternoon...?"

Claire replied, her expression strained.

"Master, you should take some time to cool your head. However, I am also a little worried about Yuki. You should tell Mizuki to be careful."

I couldn't ignore Famu's intuition. The thought that something might happen to Mizuki made me anxious.

"...Did you sense something off about Yuki? If I tell Mizuki, won't she just think I'm being jealous and start a fight?"

"No matter how she takes it, you must be the one to tell her, Master. Otherwise, things will get much worse. If you want her to listen to you properly, you must act accordingly. As for Yuki... I understand that you have a mess of feelings about him. I don't know anything beyond that."

Were her warnings just a ploy to get me to make up with Mizuki? I waited for Famu to say more, but she remained silent.

"If possible, I'd like some advice on how to make up with Mizuki..."

"You mustn't waver, Master. You have to tell her honestly what you're thinking. Don't try to smooth things over, act cool, or say what's comfortable. If it's your words, Mizuki will listen."

She saw right through me. Her words didn't sound like they came from a girl not even half my age.


The room was dark, with only a faint moonlight filtering through the window. We decided to just try and sleep for the night. Though it was my fault, weren't they worried about Mizuki? Famu, Myra, and Claire were all breathing softly in their sleep. I, on the other hand, couldn't fall asleep and just stared at the ceiling. Was the innkeeper still awake? Would he tell me Mizuki's room number if I asked? What if she wasn't at the inn, but had gone to Yuki's place? Despite my earlier remorse, those ugly feelings toward her began to well up again. I shook my head and sat up. It might be too late, but I had to go after Mizuki. I stood up and, without much thought, opened the door to the room. I sensed a presence on the other side. As I looked up, a creepy black silhouette was standing in the unlit hallway, facing me.

"Gah!"

I slammed the door shut in shock. What was that? My blood ran cold. I remembered I didn't have a lantern, scrambled back to get it, and lit it with my fire magic. A ghost? A怨霊 (vengeful spirit)? Was it the ghost of someone who had met an untimely end in this very inn? Or was it some kind of monster? I'd have to lodge a complaint with the innkeeper for giving us a cursed room. Myra was the one to call in times like these. I tried to wake her, shaking her large breasts.

"Myra, we have a problem. Help me."

"Mashh... I thought we weren't... having sex tonight... but if you want to... mnya..."

She rolled over with a blissful look on her face and turned her back to me. I was hesitant to drag Famu and Claire out in front of a ghost. They had no resistance to such things, and I was confident their screams would scare me into fainting. But leaving it be was terrifying. I couldn't stand the thought of it sneaking into our room and cursing us.

"Purify and cleanse, protect and bless,"

I chanted twice in my mind to calm my heart. Steeling my resolve, I opened the door once more. The black shadow was still there. Suppressing the urge to scream, I illuminated the figure with my lantern.

"Mizuki..."

Her cheeks were wet; she must have been crying.

"Have you been standing here this whole time?"

She nodded. I remembered Claire going to check the hallway and then signaling to Famu and Myra. They knew she was here.

"Why..."

she said, her shoulders trembling.

"Why didn't you come after me right away?!"

A few tears traced paths down her cheeks and fell to the floor.

"Mizuki, I'll be blunt. Just as you think, I'm jealous. My head's a mess. I know you did nothing wrong, but I couldn't control my anger. Please forgive me."

She gave a small nod. I put my arm around her shoulder and led her back into the room. When we entered, Famu, Myra, and Claire were all sitting up.

"He thought you were a ghost,"

Famu and Claire whispered to each other. So at least those two had been awake and pretending to be asleep.

"I'm so devoted to you. Isn't it unfair that only Mizuki gets a pass? Is she allowed to have other men?"

Myra pouted.

"I don't!"

Mizuki retorted. Then she looked at me.

"It's a misunderstanding!"

She was crying, but she seemed like her old self again. I could feel her hear me out. I was relieved.

"...I don't want any lingering resentment, so I'll just say it. You were dating Yuki before we came to this world, weren't you? You tried to hide it, but I saw your SMS messages the other day when we swapped bodies."

I expected her to get angry, but Mizuki just let out a small sigh. I kept my arm around her as we sat down together on the edge of the bed.

"I'm in love with my father."

The words came out of nowhere, just as I was trying to figure out how to make up with her.

"...Huh? What are you talking about?"

"That's why I've always been worried. I thought it was weird, but I couldn't help it."

"I thought your problem was that you masturbate too much..."

"...That's part of it, but it's not relevant right now, so don't bring it up!"

Her tone was firm.

"Yes, ma'am."

Even after I answered, I couldn't figure out why she was making this confession.

"Liking your father... it might be a little strange at your age, but I'm sure there are others like that. It's not a big deal, is it? Or do you mean you like him romantically?"

I said the last part half-jokingly, but Mizuki nodded.

"I really loved him. But I thought it was weird. So when I got to high school and started talking to my senpai, I thought maybe I could have a normal romance. He invited me on a date, and I went, but... I didn't develop those kinds of feelings."

"But you sounded so happy in your text replies! I nearly went insane when I saw that."

"I couldn't exactly reply saying I didn't have fun, could I?"

"But you were going to go if he asked you out again, right?"

"W-well, yeah. But please believe me, I really didn't feel anything romantic. It's not like my senpai even said he liked me. It's just that our swim club was separated by gender, but we used the same pool, and we walked home in the same direction, so he just talked to me a lot."

So, she and Yuki got close because they spent a lot of time together in the swim club. And maybe they went on a test-run date before any real confession happened.

"But you looked so incredibly happy when you saw him today!"

"Of course! I met someone from my original world!"

"So you're saying it's natural to be happy, and you have a father complex... Didn't you say you wanted to date someone your own age?"

"I wanted to hide it! I wanted to deny it! I wanted to pretend I was normal!"

"Mizuki, you're cute. Not just cute. The cutest in the world. Be honest, you know you are, don't you?"

"Well... I want you to think so, Mash. But that's not relevant right now, is it?"

She was evasive, but I'll take that as a yes.

"It is relevant! Listen up, Mizuki. A cute girl like you can't be a masturbation fiend with a father complex! Don't shatter my ideal image of a woman!"

"But I'm your girlfriend now, aren't I?! Believe me!"

"...Okay. But what am I supposed to believe? Let me get this straight. Your number one is your father, and everyone else is off the table romantically. Come to think of it, you said you wanted to marry the person you gave your virginity to. Is that why you're with me? Does that mean there are no romantic feelings there either? I don't get it... Am I actually about to get dumped right now...?"

I was completely lost as to how we'd gotten to this point in the conversation. Just then, Mizuki threw her arms around me.

"Why would you think that? We've been together this whole time. I love you now, Mash. Please understand. We'll be together forever, right? Don't let me go."

She pressed her lips to mine. I wrapped my arms around her back, hugging her tight, and kissed her back. Her lips tasted a little salty from her tears.

"My head hurts from crying so much..."

she said.