Manowa

Intermission 4 – White Party's Afternoon

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◎ Plaza in Front of Great Dragon Palace, Noon

「Aneki left.」

Naoki was looking at the sky his sister had passed through as he talked.
Naga's group had already returned to the palace, and Louise, Yumika, Tiara, Jinrai, and Emily had returned to Dragonewt City.
The only ones remaining there were Naoki and Lyle.

「What's wrong, Naoki? Are you lonely without your Nee-chan?」

Lyle cracked jokes as Naoki became melancholic.

「Yeah.」

Naoki responded to Lyle's teasing words with a lonely expression.
It was an expression Lyle had sometimes seen in the past, before they joined the White Party.

「What the heck.
Aren’t you taking it a little too seriously?」

Lyle was worried when he saw Naoki's expression and asked.

「Maybe.
But you're making quite the severe expression as well?」

From Naoki's point of view, Lyle seemed to have a different expression than usual.
Naoki had been about to die in the previous battle, but he had heard that the best friend in front of him had also been considerably wounded.

「Well.
It was during the battle with those black monsters.
The Tatsuyoshi-kun I borrowed from Kazane was considerably damaged.
It was from protecting me too much.」

「Well, I think Aneki knew that might happen when she lent it to you.」

Lyle nodded after Naoki spoke.

「Yeah, she said it was no problem with a smile.
She said that as long as I'm alive, it's fine.
But I'm not convinced.」

「I understand.
The magic swords I've collected over the last three years were broken like they were toys.」

「That's unfortunate.
Can they be repaired?」

「I was told it was possible.
But I stopped it.」

「Why?」

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Lyle tilted his head and asked after the unexpected response.
Naoki responded with a serious look.

「I can't become stronger by keeping things the same as before.
Even if I increase the amount, it'll be like that.
If that's the case, I've been thinking I have no choice but to obtain more powerful ones.」

「New magic swords? If I remember right, Kazane is having one made for you using a Crystal Dragon horn?」

Lyle had heard that it was being made in Dolmu City.

「There's also that, but I'm going to get one from Dragonewt City's arms shop after this.
Byaku told me I could get a replacement for the magic swords that were broken during the devil uproar.」

So saying, Naoki stood up.

「Well then, shall I go with you? That's just right.」

「Do you also have an errand?」

Lyle nodded after Naoki's question.

「Yesterday, I received my portion of the Beared Dragon's materials and was told to bring it to the arms shop by Kazane.」

「By Aneki?」

Naoki quizzically asked.
Rather, the desire to spend an hour cross-examining him about when he was alone with his sister to have such a conversation was welling up inside him.
As a matter of fact, Lyle got along quite well with Kazane, and he was about to be placed on Naoki's hit list.

「Kazane looked at my armor and told me I could use the material to make it better.
The plan is to improve it by incorporating the Beared Dragon fur with the Black Rock Dragon scales.
She also said I would receive something else she ordered along with it.」

Lyle answered while looking at the light armor that was already at its limit.

He had been wearing it since he had joined the White Party, but it seemed it had been approaching its limit due to the recent series of battles.

And strengthening Lyle's defense power right now was certainly necessary.
After receiving the dragon fang spear, Lyle often found himself on the frontline.
Since the number of opponents who couldn't be wounded without using that spear had increased, he had been bearing the brunt of attacks more often than before.
Although even the young and inexperienced Lyle rarely took direct hits, he was susceptible to taking damage.
He didn't say it earlier, but he had been referring to receiving the same Black Rock Dragon bone shield as Yumika.
Kazane had told him that what he required right now was defense power.

「I've properly understood the importance of equipment after entering this party.
I think I should do what I can do without reserve.
Even me.
Yeah.」

Before they noticed, the conversation had changed to Lyle's situation, but Naoki didn't want the reason he was feeling melancholic to be touched on by other people too much, so the conversation veering off course was great for Naoki.
However, another bomb was dropped from his best friend's mouth.

「Ah.
That reminds me, did something happen with Louise-san?」

「Wha, what do you mean by something?」

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Naoki's face involuntarily stiffened at the abrupt question from his best friend.

「No, I feel like Louise-san has been looking at you differently since yesterday… rather, why are you averting your eyes?」

「It's in your imagination, seriously.」

After seeing that expression, Lyle understood.
This man『did it』.

Naoki pretended to ignore the shuddering Lyle to the end.
A shadow was hanging over the male friendship.
It was such an afternoon.

◎ Dragonewt City, Cafe Nagraja, Evening

「Umm, it's about Louise-san’s eyes being strangely gentle when she has been looking at Naoki the past few days.」

「Ah, Emily thinks so as well after all.
I've also been thinking it's somehow strange.」

Inside Dragonewt City's Cafe Nagraja.
The girls meeting had started just now in this lounge.
The subject was Louise's change of mind toward Naoki.

「Yeah.
After all, it has openly changed, hasn't it? Before it was like she only saw him as Kazane's younger brother, or rather, even though it felt like she wasn't interested, it feels like she has been looking at him with a strangely womanly gaze, right?」

(Ahー, this is refreshingly delicious)

While the conversation between the two continued to heat up, Yumika was solitarily slurping her fruit juice through a straw.
Apparently the two's conversation was centered on Naoki.
When it came to that, Yumika didn't disclose anything.
Yumika was confident that she knew Naoki better than almost anyone, so there were many things she could interject, but speaking frankly it was inconsequential, or rather, she didn't want to get dragged into the conversation, so Yumika deliberately chose the path of escaping from reality.

(Will this end soon?)

Even though both of them liked Naoki, both of them were talking with roundabout expressions, so it was even more troublesome.
When she was absentmindedly thinking so, she didn't notice that the two of them were bending forward just in front of her.

「So then, what does Yumika think?」

「Louise-san is strange, isn't she?」

「Eh? What?」

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To Yumika who wasn't listening seriously, Tiara puffed out her cheeks and repeated the previous conversation.

「It's about Louise-san recently becoming close with Naoki.
Yumika is curious, aren't you?」

「Ahーthat's right.
Well, a little.」

Yumika said, but Yumika knew that Naoki and Louise had done night practice the night of the devil attack.
She had heard Kazane grumbling about it, and she might have noticed the scent from Louise when she used her Wolf God Transformation…
with that introduction, Yumika knew and frankly didn't care about things between Louise and Naoki.

「Maybe they talked or something like that when she treated him.」

Would the truth be too stimulating for these two?…
while thinking that, Yumika said something suitable, and Tiara and Emily nodded.

「I see, that’s it.」

「Ku, as expected, you properly look at Naoki, don't you.」

The gazes of the two showed their rivalry as they pierced Yumika.

(No, don't look at me with such hostility while he was eaten by someone else)

Yumika didn't know which was the predator for this matter, but that was irrelevant to her anyway.
She wanted to say it, but she couldn't say that as a companion.
She could only sigh.

While wondering if she should directly vent complaints to the former boyfriend she now only viewed as a younger brother, Yumika continued to slurp her fruit juice as the grumbling from the other two went in one ear and out the other.

◎ Dragonewt City, Dragonfire Tavern, Night

「Another one passed away first.」

After lightly clinking her own glass against the glass of liquor placed in front of one of the table's empty seats, Louise drained it in one gulp.

Then holding a glass with his left hand, Jinrai drank in the same way as Louise.
Since Jinrai had corrected his natural right-handedness to be able to handle spears with both hands, it seemed that he could eat normally even with his left hand.

「I didn't expect him to die earlier than me.
Idiot.」

Jinrai lonesomely muttered.

「It was truly perfect mimicry.
I honestly don't know when he changed.」

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「It seems that Raiel’s corpse was found at the northern seal shrine.
He was probably replaced in Deidona City.
Him saying he caught the devil was probably inducement.」

Jinrai replied to Louise’s words.
Hyvern's Adventurers Guild Guildmaster Benzel was missing, and his dragon mount Raiel's death had been confirmed.
But based on the situation, they could only imagine that Benzel had already died and been taken in by the devil.

『It might have been before that.
Since that devil kid can transform, it could be so?』

「Well, either way, we couldn't notice until the end.
I can only think he aimed for the gap where Raiel was separated to replace him.
Honestly, if I were told he could even deceive Raiel's Dragon Knight Contract, I would give it up as hopeless.」

Actually, the guess that the switch happened in Deidona City was correct.
It was also true that he aimed for when Raiel was absent.
Of course, they didn't know the fact that even though it wasn't perfect, he was able to deceive the Dragon Knight Contract.

「The devil kid said he was named Age? Well, if we meet again I'll know.
I'll win against Benzel's enemy.」

Jinrai announced while pouring another glass.

「You're saying you'll know, even with that perfect disguise?」

「Yes.」

Jinrai replied to Louise’s questions with eyes full of confidence.

「Have you changed a little, Jinrai-kun?」

『Those eyes are similar to Archduke Rynox.』

「Hmm.
I want to think I've finally gotten closer to that person's point of view.」

Jinrai so replied to Mefirus' words.
Hyvern's Archduke Rynox was the person Jinrai had as his goal.
The strongest spear user called the Spear Saint.
That was the man named Rynox.
He was also Louise's grandchild.
He was also a mothercon son, and since his beloved mother disapproved of Louise's mistress relationship, he had tearfully driven away Louise.

「Which reminds me, Kazane was very enthusiastically talking about making Jinrai-kun's arm.
What is that?」

「Yeah, she told me she would make me a prosthetic arm using Muscle Clay.
It seems she promised me that before I lost consciousness.」

Apparently, Kazane and Jinrai had exchanged such a promise before he started surgery.
Everything was hazy, so Jinrai didn't remember, though.

「She's able to do that.」

「Yeah, I asked again yesterday, and for some reason Kazane herself was surprised that she could do it.
She said something like it should have disappeared in the update.
I don't know anything about Golem techniques.」

(However, that Kazane is going to make his arm? I have a hunch that it's going to be something outrageous again.)

It would be some time before Louise being correct or not would become known.