Chapter 330: From Departure to Confession (2)
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“So, what happened this time? Something with your resident lady man?”
Loren asked Leila.
In the tent that Yuri had sent them to, there was a large table, a couple of chairs, and some light snacks and tea. As expected, wine was not available as they were on the cusp of a battle. Loren was a little disappointed, but he sipped the tea that Lapis had brewed and picked up some dried meat and fish as he raised his question.
Leila had been dragging Klaus with her until they arrived at the tent, but once they were inside, she tossed him to the side. She sat down on a seat across the table from Loren, accepted the tea offered by Lapis, and took a sip.
“We joined up with the Empire’s army here not long ago, and were immediately sent out to do some skirmishing on the front lines. We agreed, of course, because it was our job and it would make a good impression on the army.”
“That reminds me, you are under the patronage of the Wargenburg Kingdom, aren’t you? How did you get sent over here?”
Klaus, despite being an adventurer, received backing from the Kingdom of Wagenburg and was being trained by them, as they highly valued his abilities. In times of emergency, he was expected to be set up as a hero and sent to the front lines. It was very strange for the Kingdom to lend such a person out of the country so easily.
“Simple: It’s all about the cost.”
According to Leila, there was little advantage in doing a favour for an empire so far away. At best, there was a chance it might become useful in some way.
If it had been a matter of sending an army as a nation, Wargenburg would have refused or ignored it from the beginning. However, this time it was only a matter of dispatching adventurers, which would not cost much and would allow them to do the Empire a favour simply by lending them the service of one of their prized adventurers. If said adventurer had achieved some success in the war, the favour would have been even greater.
“So, we were sent here to save the Kingdom of Wargenburg the expenses.”
“Well, I’m sorry to hear that. But, if you were so highly regarded by the Empire’s soldiers, that must mean you had done something of merit, right?”
“So, we’re back to where we started.”
Assigned to a unit with other adventurers, Klaus and his team encountered a unit from the Kingdom during one of their mobilizations, and their unit accidentally engaged in combat with the enemy’s unit.
At first, the highly-skilled Empire’s troops, led by Klaus, who had considerable combat capabilities, and supported by the adventurers, had the upper hand against the Kingdom’s troops. However, the situation took a turn for the worse when a single intruder entered the scene.
It was the Evil God of Wrath, recognized as a magician who could manipulate flames.
The tide of the battle was turned around by this single intruder, and the Empire’s army, burned and felled one after another, was on the verge of defeat.
“Then, this sex-obsessed guy realized something: the magician in question was a woman.”
“It’s hard to imagine, but could it be…”
“She was quite a pretty girl. So naturally Klaus reflexively flirted with her.”
Leila glared at Klaus, with her tone turning bitter.
At the moment, Klaus was drinking and eating and chatting with the gloomy-looking Ange and Laure as if what was being discussed had nothing to do with him. But he noticed Leila’s strong presence and gaze, and looked in their direction with an amiable smile on his face.
“Things just go downhill from there. Despite his life being in danger, that idiot went up to the magician and began to try to feed her with a series of cringy pick-up lines.”
“If I’m not mistaken, that kind of conduct should be scorned by the soldiers? Having the guts to flirt with girls right in the middle of a battle is something… not highly valued.”
“The sound of the blazing flames and the fact that most of the soldiers had kept their distance to escape the magician’s threat was a blessing in disguise for that idiot.”
Letting out a deep sigh, Leila ruffled her blonde hair. The look of fatigue on her face told Loren that she must be having a hard time, but he couldn’t do anything about it, except for pouring more tea into the empty cup in her hand.
After moistening her throat with the newly poured tea, Leila continued.
“From the outside, it must have looked as if this sex maniac was trying to persuade the rampaging enemy magician or something. The truth is, the attacks stopped after he began to flirt with her.”
“Ah… That child is still young, and is still quite innocent. She was never hit on by a man at all, so she must have been confused and froze up.”
“So innocent. Ain’t she cute?”
Gula and Luxuria, who were half-heartedly listening to Leila’s story from a little distance away, expressed their impressions. Meanwhile, Dauna was nodding off as if he had no interest in the conversation at all.
Loren asked.
“If that was all, I don’t see why this magician was so angry. Regardless of the situation or whether it was right to do or not, it’s not exactly a bad thing for a man to hit on a woman, is it?”
Loren thought that the act of flirting was not a bad thing in itself. Of course, the circumstances where the flirting happened could not be ignored, but Wrath could just turn him down if she didn’t like it. It was not something to get mad over.
“Wait, don’t tell me that he still continued after she rejected him? If so, I can understand.”
“I wish she had rejected him. Of all things, this perpetually horny fool actually almost succeeded in seducing the magician with just a few words.”
[‘the way she calls him just gets worse and worse, doesn’t it?’]
Shayna said with a wry smile. Loren replied in his mind that it was understandable, and urged Leila to continue.
If Klaus had almost succeeded in seducing her, Loren thought that he might have been able to draw the Evil God of Wrath to their side, but reality was not so sweet.
“The magician was almost swayed. She certainly would join us if he succeeded. But we were right there by Klaus’ side, you know?”
Loren suddenly realized what had happened.
As Gula and Luxuria say, the Evil God of Wrath had never had the experience of being seduced by a man, and had almost fallen for Klaus’ tricks. But what would happen if she were to be confronted by the fact that Klaus was already surrounded by other women?
When the thought crossed his mind, Loren understood what had happened from there.
“Aahh… That would have snapped her out of it.”
“As for me, I feel a little sorry for Rage.”
“I’m a woman too… I can’t help but understand how that magician felt.”
Leila nodded her head in agreement with Lapis’ words.
The way Lapis looked at Klaus was so cold that even Loren, who was not directly exposed to her gaze, felt a chill. But for some reason, Klaus, who was supposed to be the one involved, simply looked embarrassed and scratched his cheek.
“That poor magician turned red when she realized that she had been nearly deceived.”
“I’m surprised he wasn’t killed right there.”
If it had been a girl from a bar, Klaus might have received a slap. But the other party was the Evil God of Wrath. The guy should have been burned to death on the spot in anger. Klaus must have been a very lucky man for that to not happen.
“She said she would not let him go the next time they met and ran off at full speed. Well, it seems that the soldiers in the distance did not hear that either.”
Leila’s shoulders slumped, and she feebly continued, speaking as if spitting out her words.
“The situation seemed to suggest that even if Klaus wasn’t able to fully sway the magician, he did successfully persuade the magician to temporarily withdraw. When we returned to our camp, he was credited with having saved the day and prevented the destruction of his troops.”
‘The Wargenburg Kingdom might not be able to stop laughing’, Leila concluded, her shoulders slumped.
“I don’t know what to do with someone who thinks with his lower body like him… How could he even think of hitting on someone in that situation? And why did he succeed? The mental exhaustion alone ages me.”
“I can only say that I’m sorry to hear that. But if you hate this so much, why don’t you just quit?”
But that would not happen, Loren thought.
Unlike the other two, Leila was a knight in her own right, and although that may not be the only reason, she was working with Klaus at the behest of the Kingdom of Wargenburg.
No matter how much she disliked it, she had no choice but to follow the orders of her country as long as she was serving it, and she would have to leave the country before she could say she was quitting because she didn’t like it. Loren thought that was a horrible situation to be in.
But Leila, with exhaustion etched on her face, said something that was totally different from what Loren was expecting.
“There are reasons why I can’t quit. Partly because I’m a knight, of course, but also because…”
“Aren’t you being a slave of love? There’s a limit to how far you can go with that, you know?”
“That’s true… But I don’t think I’ll ever meet a man better than Klaus in my life.”
“Well, you’re really in too deep…. But what is it you like about him so much?”
Despite her lamentations about Klaus’s behaviour, Leila’s opinion of him was nothing short of superlative. Loren thought that he might actually be a pretty good guy without their knowledge, but Leila said decisively.
“His face!”
“…Huh?”
“I’m the type that is attracted to physical looks. I don’t want to be anywhere near a guy whose face I don’t like for even a second. That said, Loren, your face is quite good, but Klaus’ face is on another level.”
“O-Okay? Thank you?”
Loren’s response was unintentionally clipped, but the other members’ reactions were similar to his, with Lapis frozen in place and Gula and Luxuria staring at Leila as if they had heard something unbelievable. Only Dauna remained motionless in his chair – he seemed to have already fallen into a deep sleep, but Leila’s words had that much impact.
“Klaus’s face is exactly my ideal. No matter how many men I meet in the future, I will never find anyone better. If only… he was just ten percent less of a philander.”
Loren turned his gaze away from Leila, who was stressing her argument, and looked at Ange and Laure. They did not seem particularly surprised by Leila’s confession, as if they were already familiar with it. However, they seem to understand the shock that Loren’s group are feeling; they turned away and avoided his eyes.
The atmosphere in the tent turned strange, and Loren wondered what to do about it. As if to help him, the entrance to the tent was slightly opened just then, and for some reason, Yuri peeked in.
“Rest well today. All-out attacks will start early tomorrow morning.”
“Commander, where did you watch us from this time?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about. Anyway, I told you what I needed to.”
With that, Yuri left with the same suddenness as he arrived.
With that, it was as though everything had been left in limbo. Not being able to do much about it, Loren let go of all thoughts as he decided to concentrate on tomorrow’s battle with the Kingdom’s army.
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