How Did it Come to This?
"Missy, we caught a Kraken."
Jim, the captain of Phantasmo’s private army, said with a very, very big smile.
… Too late.
How did it come to this?
Last night, during a conversation with Grandfather and the others, Rottenmeier said, “Soon, this private army might become the same.” When I heard that, I was going to go complain to Dai and Kira, but... wait, did she foresee the future? Is she psychic?
I looked quickly at Rottenmeier—she had her head down and her shoulders were shaking. Beside her, Gene, Zack, and Sarah were smiling wryly.
Rottenmeier... do you have a vibration mode or something?
“Umm—why, exactly?”
I asked Jim.
“Well, I asked Dai and Kira, and they said that if we hunted a monster, you’d cook it up real nice.”
What the heck!? You’ve gotta be kidding me——!
Who’s the one spreading false information!?
I looked for Dai and Kira and found them trying to shrink their big bodies behind the other members of the private army.
There they are!! And they’re hiding. I’m so mad, I’m going to scare them.
(Behind Kira… behind Kira… Teleport.)
Poof…
"""Ah."""
[EHHH!?]Brother Gene, Zack, and Sarah all thought, “She actually did it”, while the members of the private army, seeing teleportation for the first time, were stunned that I just vanished in front of them.
I teleported behind Dai and Kira, crouched down, and immediately did a sweeping kick.
“"Uwaaaah~~~"”
By the time they sensed my presence behind them, they were already on the ground, looking up at the blue sky, completely clueless about what just happened. A shadow fell over them. The one looming over them, who had taken them down, smiled darkly and ordered them to sit in seiza.
"Hey, Dai, Kira. I don’t need to call you with honorifics anymore, right? What were you thinking, saying stuff like that without asking? Who said I’d cook? … In the Lampail territory, sometimes you guys bring meat from monsters, right? I didn’t know, but it seems like you’ve been going out of your way to hunt just for the meat? What’s wrong with you? If it’s for a necessary subjugation, I get it, but going out to hunt just because you want to eat meat? Are you stupid? You could get hurt or even die… If something happened to anyone because of that, I’d hate it."
“I’m sorry, Young lady Joan.”
“Me too. I wasn’t really thinking about the risk of injury.”
Dai and Kira apologized.
"You’re adults. Think a little more!! Idiot Dai, idiot Kira!!"
Poof…
“… Joan was crying.”
Kira murmured, and Dai nodded.
Gene and the others approached the still-seated duo.
“You really are idiots. Didn’t you get that Jo doesn’t want anyone in the private army risking themselves just for food? She cares more than anyone about the servants and soldiers' wellbeing. She’s been teaching the private army to cook and serving food—why do you think that is? She said bad meals lead to easier injuries and slower recovery, remember?”
“”… Ah.””
Dai and Kira remembered why Joan started cooking for the private army and their expressions turned pale.
“And don’t forget, even though Joan’s so easygoing, she’s not your little sister or a servant. She’s a noble lady—the daughter of the lord. And you just brought back ingredients and expected her to cook? That’s way out of line, don’t you think?”
Zack spoke calmly.
“On top of that, you made Young lady Joan cry, right? You’re ready to face the consequences, aren’t you?”
Sarah followed up coldly.
“”We’re… very sorry.””
Clap, clap, clap.
Everyone turned toward the sound of clapping. There stood Lindsay, who hadn’t been there a moment ago, flanked by Rottenmeier and Nancy. Behind them were Terry and Dolly, looking increasingly suspicious.
“Jean, Zack, Sarah—let’s leave it at that. Terry, Dolly, take the Kraken to the kitchen…… And now, private army members, it’s time for training with us. We’ll go get ready, so head to the training grounds first.
And don’t you dare… think of running away!!”
[!!]“Welp. You reap what you sow.”
Gene muttered, watching the three women walk away.
“I… I really don’t wanna face those three.”
Zack added.
“Same here. They’re the last people I’d want as enemies…”
Sarah’s words had both Jean and Zack nodding in agreement.
Lindsay: Fire attribute, former royal guard to the Queen, wields a rapier wreathed in flame.
Nancy: Water attribute, former leader of a monster subjugation unit, S-rank adventurer in the Lampail Guild, master of dual swords.
Rottenmeier: Lightning attribute, also a former royal guard to the Queen, subordinate to Lindsay, dual-wields sword and whip, but mainly fights at range with lightning spears.
There’s no way anyone’s winning against those three. Watching the private army with pity, the trio turned and headed back into the mansion to look for Joan.
＊＊＊＊＊
Meanwhile, completely unaware of all that, Noel and Nathan were in the mansion’s living room, working on school assignments.
Poof…
“”Whoa!””
Suddenly, I appeared, startling both Brother Noel and Nathan.
"Uuuh... Brother Noeeel..."
I hugged Brother Noel.
Because I have memories from my previous life, I don’t normally act clingy. But now I was holding onto him, and if you looked closely, you could see I was crying.
“W-what’s wrong, Jo? Are you hurt?”
Brother Noel asked gently, but I just shook my head. Not knowing what else to do, he gently stroked my head. Nathan, who had been sitting across from us, came over to rub my back in soothing rhythms.
Eventually, I cried myself to sleep, still in Brother Noel’s arms.
“… She fell asleep. I wonder what happened to Jo?”
“I’ll go check on it. I’ll bring something to cover her with, too.”
Saying that, Nathan left the room.
Noel gently moved to the three-seater sofa, trying to lay me down, but I wouldn’t let go of his clothes. At a loss, he lay back with me still clinging to him.
In that position, he softly stroked my head.
“… Haah~ Seriously, how did it come to this?”
What do you think about this chapter?
