I Saved Too Many Girls and Caused the Apocalypse: Volume 11

by Namekojirushi

  “Ah!”

  One of the boys suddenly noticed our arrival and the other kids all looked up in turn. But they quickly lost interest in us and got back to chasing fish.

  “Oooh, Rekka! Over here, over here!” I heard Iris call.

  “Hey, Iris. Guess you got here first after all,” I said as I turned to see her waving.

  If she and the others were already here, that was probably why the kids were so unfazed to see more people show up. Anyhoo, we started to make our way over to where Iris and the other girls were camped out. The river shore was mostly sand and pebbles, making it a little tricky to walk on.

  “Ooh... Aah... Eep!”

  Harissa seemed to be in danger of tripping any minute, so I loaned her a hand as we made it the rest of the way to the barbeque site.

  “All right, Satsuki darling, your dad and I will finish setting up things here, so go play with your friends for a little while.”

  “Huh? But I can help, too.”

  “It’s fine, dear. Now run along, and make sure you take L with you.”

  Auntie Sanae opened a pack of meat for grilling as she smiled and nodded her head towards L, who seemed somewhat bored.

  “O-Okay... All right, then. Come on, L.”

  “R-Right...”

  Persuaded by her mother’s words, Satsuki dragged a fidgeting L towards the river. Harissa and I followed close behind.

  “It’s wet over here, so you have to be careful.”

  “Okay...”

  Huh... If you ignored how dissimilar they looked, Satsuki and L seemed a lot like siblings. Satsuki’s always been good at looking after people and just sort of naturally gives off that older sister vibe. And L, standing next to Satsuki in her hand-me-downs rather than the red kimono she usually wore, only contributed to that impression... even though she was supposed to be a big sister, too.

  “...”

  Meanwhile, the real little sister here was floating next to me, cheeks puffed out in a pout. This might be the first time I’d ever seen R so demonstrably unhappy.

  “Rekka! If you’re going to play, let me join you!”

  “Playing in the water...? Well, as long as there are no waves, I suppose it’ll be tolerable.”

  After leaving the barbeque prep to Suzuran and the other maids, Iris and Rosalind joined up with us, and the six of us (seven including R) went off to play until things were ready. The sun was already pretty high overhead, and it was gradually getting hotter, so I took my shoes off to wade in the shallows barefoot.

  “Eek, it’s cold!”

  “It feels so nice! Take that!”

  “Wah! How dare you splash water at me, Iris?!”

  Iris kicked up a splash, and a complaining Rosalind defended herself with her parasol. Harissa was contentedly listening to the babbling of the river as she waded through it with her skirt hem carefully lifted so it wouldn’t get wet. I was enjoying it too as watched Satsuki and L.

  “Here, leave your shoes and socks here so they don’t get wet. Just watch where you’re going and take your time so you don’t trip.”

  “I can handle this much. Don’t treat me like a child.”

  With that utterly childish reply, L defiantly stood up... and immediately stepped on a round pebble in the riverbed. She nearly fell face-first into the water first thing.

  “...!”

  R reflexively reacted nearly instantaneously, but Satsuki was much closer and caught L first.

  “See? That’s why I told you not to rush.”

  “O-Okay...”

  “All right, try holding on to my shirt.”

  L must have been as light as she looked, because not even the feeble Satsuki had any trouble supporting her as she got back on her feet. The genuine and tender display between the two of them was honestly kind of touching, but...

  “Grrrrr...”

  There was a two-year-old next to me who was grinding her teeth over the very sight of it.

  “Urk!”

  L, when she noticed the look R was giving her, flinched and froze up.

  “Hm? What’s wrong?” asked Satsuki.

  “Um, er... A bug! There was a bug!”

  “A bug?!”

  Of course, Satsuki couldn’t see R, so she had no idea what had freaked L out. Luckily for L, she’d given just the right answer to throw Satsuki off.

  It was an interesting position to be in, really. Satsuki meant well, but if she continued to spend time with L, it would be harder for R to ever talk to her. She’d probably just continue to get more and more frustrated... I scratched my head, somewhat lost as to how to handle this.

  “What’s up, Rekka? Why the long face?”

  “Er, it’s nothing... Actually, Iris, what did you bring for the barbeque? We have chicken wings and beef.”

  “Some purple morrowmorrow horn meat and swillsalmon fillets and stuff.”

  “...Space animals, huh?”

  To be fair, I didn’t know the name of every animal on Earth, but those did not sound like anything from this planet. I mean... they were animals, right?

  “Wait, can you even eat horn meat?”

  “There’s a tiny bit in the horns of the purple morrowmorrow. It’s considered a delicacy.”

  “Then I guess this swillsalmon something or other is really out of this world, too, huh?”

  “Heehee, just wait until you try it,” Iris said with a teasing smile.

  I couldn’t help wondering what kind of meat it actually was... But while I was curious about what it tasted like, I was hoping it didn’t look too strange so it wouldn’t freak out Uncle Itsuki and Auntie Sanae too much.

  “So, Rosalind... Did you, like, just shove all the work onto Suzuran and the others?”

  “That’s an ugly way of putting it. They’re maids, meaning it is their duty to serve me. I didn’t ‘shove’ anything onto anyone. Suzuran and Corona are helping of their own accord, though I’m sure Ulaula is trying to slack off as we speak...”

  “Is that how it works?”

  I mean, I guess it technically was their job, so that kind of made sense. As I was pondering that, Rosalind’s parasol caught my eye.

  “This is a rare sight, too. I don’t recall seeing you with a parasol before. Aren’t you fine in the sun, Rosalind?”

  “It’s not like I’m worried about turning into dust or some such. Even you humans use these on days the sun is strong. They’re also quite fashionable.”

  I couldn’t deny that sun was shining like it was summer out today. I could understand why she might want a parasol. As for the fashionable part, hers had a delicate floral pattern embroidered on it. It looked like she’d chosen an outfit to match, too. She was in a frilly jacket and a pair of culottes that hung down like flower petals.

  “What’s this? Why are you scrutinizing me so closely, Rekka? Could it be that my charms have captivated you?”

  “Oh, sorry for staring...”

  “Never mind that. In fact, you should pay more attention to me on a regular basis. If it’s you, I don’t mind the staring, Rekka.”

  “R-Really?”

  “That said, I wouldn’t mind hearing what you’re thinking when you do. So go ahead. What have you got to say?” Rosalind urged me on, her eyes full of expectation.

  “Er, um, I was... I was just thinking you kind of look like a flower. It’s really c—”

  “Cute” is what I was going to say, but someone’s hand reached around from behind Rosalind. I hadn’t seen whoever it was walk up behind her because her parasol was blocking my view, but it was one of the little boys that I’d seen playing in the river earlier. He grabbed the hem of her culottes and threw it upward, but...

  “Ha!”

  “Eek!”

  “Ahaha—wait, huh? Isn’t this a skirt? I can’t see anything!”

  While her culottes looked like a skirt at first glance, they were more like a pair of shorts underneath. And thank god for that... If that kid had actually flipped her skirt while she was standing right
in front of me, I would’ve had a front-row seat.

  “Why, you... What do you think you’re doing, you petulant bug of a brat?!”

  “Oh, crap! Run away!”

  “Ahaha!”

  “Hurry! Hide in the woods!”

  Rosalind hurled her parasol at them in anger, but the kid and his friends took of into the forest giggling and screaming.

  “Whoa there! Calm down, Rosalind!”

  “Unhand me! I need to teach those whelps a lesson!”

  “It’s all right! I didn’t see anything!”

  “Silence, mortal! That’s not the problem! He yanked on it so hard it hurt! As recompense, I shall show those miserable little maggots why vampires have been feared for centuries!”

  I could understand how she felt, but going all out on children was taking things a little too far.

  “Iris! Help me hold Rosalind back for a moment!”

  “Ahaha! Sucks for you, Rosalind!”

  Iris was holding her stomach and wheezing with laughter, but managed to contain herself enough to help me keep Rosalind from going into full-on rampaging vampire mode. This would ordinarily be where the peanut gallery had some snide comment for me, but today R wasn’t paying any attention to me.

  “...”

  She was just floating there silently... L must be really, really bothering her.

  Hmm, I’d like to give them the chance to talk alone. Well, since R couldn’t leave my side, it would inevitably end up being the three of us. But still, how was I going to manage that today? I’d have to calm Rosalind down before I even had the chance to think seriously about it.

  “There, there... Everything’s okay, right? Those boys were probably just picking on you because they thought you were so cute.”

  “Um... D-Do you also find me cute, Rekka?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, I do. So don’t stay too mad at them, okay? It’s a shame for that cute face of yours to be scowling.”

  “H-Hmph... I suppose I’ll try,” Rosalind said in a strangely girly voice for her, her cheeks blooming the slightest bit of rosy red.

  She was probably getting hot without her parasol, so I went to fetch it and returned it to her.

  “Grrr... Hey, Rekka! What about me? What do you think about me? Am I cute, too?”

  “Y-Yes, and me! What about me, Sir Rekka?!”

  “Wh-What?”

  Iris and Harissa, who had been watching our exchange, started to shout at the same time like they were trying to out-compete each other with their questions. What was happening? I just finished consoling one person, and now I had to deal with two more?

  “Um, yeah... The both of you are cute.”

  “How? What do you think is cute about me?”

  “I did something different today. Have you noticed what it is?”

  I desperately tried to think of a way to answer their excited questions, but Uncle Itsuki saved me.

  “Hey, Rekka,” he called as he came walking over. “Do you have a moment?”

  “Oh, sure. What’s up?”

  “Well, it seems like the mai—er, your friends over there didn’t bring enough coal for their fire.”

  I heard him stop himself in the middle of that sentence. Was he embarrassed to say “maid” or something?

  “Well, it’s the first time they’re having a barbeque, so mistakes like that are easy to make. It’s just that we didn’t bring any spare coal, so we’re a little short on fuel now. I’m sorry to ask, but would you mind going and gathering some sticks to use as firewood?”

  “Oh, sure. No problem.”

  “We can use what coal we do have, so you don’t need to gather a ton, but any bit will help.”

  After explaining the situation, Uncle Itsuki went back to the barbeque preparations.

  “Okay, guys, I guess I’m off to gather some wood.”

  “Oh, I’ll go, too!” piped up Satsuki.

  “If Rekka’s going, then I’m going!” shouted Iris.

  “I-I can help, too!” volunteered Harissa.

  “Well, I suppose I shall go along as well,” added Rosalind.

  As soon as I said I was going, everyone offered to go with me. The help was much appreciated, honestly. L was the only one that held back.

  “I’ll just wait here...”

  She let go of Satsuki’s sleeve, which she’d been clinging to all this time, and got out of the river first. I was hoping I could facilitate an opportunity for R and L to talk while we were in the woods, but there goes that idea... Oh, well.

  “All right, let’s get going.”

  I got out of the river too, dried off my feet, and put my shoes and socks back on before heading into the forest.

  ▽

  “Okay, let’s split up to look for wood.”

  “Whaaat? But I wanted to be with you, Rekka!”

  “But splitting up would be more efficient, right? Everyone’s waiting for us to eat, so we should get back as quickly as possible.”

  “Hmph...”

  After I convinced a somewhat pouting Iris, we all agreed to head off in different directions and gather an armful of firewood each. I set off by myself, except that I was never really alone. R was floating by my side as always as I picked up snapped twigs and branches.

  “Hey, R.”

  Once we’d gotten some distance from everyone else, I was brave enough to try talking to her.

  “What is it, Rekka?”

  “What are you gonna do about L?”

  “That’s a good question.” R seemed to have predicted exactly what I was going to ask, as she closed her eyes in thought and replied perfectly calmly. “I had predicted we would make contact again someday, but I wasn’t quite expecting it to be like this. Although it was only for a few days, she was living in the house right next door.”

  “Yeah, that was a surprise, wasn’t it? So... what do we do? I could give you two a chance to talk alone if I pull her aside. If I said I wanted to talk to her alone, I’m sure...”

  “The issue is whether or not L would actually agree to that. There’s also the matter of how Satsuki will react when you say that...”

  “Ugh...”

  True, Satsuki wasn’t aware of the relationship between me, R, and L. She’d probably think it was strange if I suddenly asked to talk to L privately... In the worst-case scenario, I’d be accused of being a lolicon. I kept gathering suitable-looking firewood at my feet as I pondered what I should do, when all of a sudden I felt something fly past my head.

  “Wha?!”

  When I looked up in a fluster to see what it was, I found a kunai stabbed into the trunk of a tree I was standing next to... A kunai of very familiar design, in fact. L had called it an electromagnetic voltspear, which meant...

  “Tch! The devil’s luck...”

  Clicking her tongue hatefully, L emerged from the shadows looking perturbed. She’d apparently lied about wanting to hang back so she could wait for her chance to come after me while I was separated from Satsuki and the others.

  “Heya, R... Wouldn’t you say that was a little too close for comfort just now?”

  “Rest assured you were properly defended from its direct trajectory,” R answered nonchalantly before turning to L.

  Now that an opportunity for the two of them to talk had popped up unexpectedly, I wasn’t actually sure how R was planning on handling this.

  “I’m glad you seem well, L. Not that I really needed to worry about a fellow Kiklim.”

  “Hmph! I never asked for your concern in the first place!” L stamped a foot in irritation.

  R’s brow furrowed ever so slightly at those words. Honestly, it looked like she was sad.

  “Judging by this little incident, it seems like you still haven’t given up on assassinating Rekka.”

  “Obviously! I don’t give up so easily.”

  “So I guess that means you won’t reconsider...” R adjusted her hat with a small sigh. “If you’re worried about the consequences of betraying the agency, then don’t be. Th
e doctor isn’t angry, so as long as you give us information on the people who manipulated you, you’ll simply be given a slap on the wrist, and you can go back to your normal life.”

  “Shut up! I don’t want my ‘normal’ life! I only want one thing, and that’s to prove I’m not useless!” L shouted, continuing to stamp her feet as she glared at me and R.

  Hmm... R was trying to hold a calm and collected conversation, but L clearly wasn’t willing to even listen. At this rate, we were just going to end up with a repeat of last time...

  “Hey, can I say something?”

  I spoke up to try and diffuse the increasingly tense atmosphere, but...

  “Silence, you! You’re the root of the problem!”

  Those vicious words cut me down to size and put me in my place tout de suite. Now I was really feeling the tension, too... Talk about unapproachable.

  “Arrrgh!”

  L was blowing steam out of her ears and looked like she was ready to pounce any second now, but R stood in her way. Without any plan to get around her defenses, L just stood there nearly growling in frustration.

  “Rrrgh...”

  I’d been through situations in the past where I had to fight a heroine in order to resolve her story, but I was never really sure what to do in situations like this where my life was clearly in danger. Thanks to the Namidare bloodline, I knew that if I got caught up in a story, I had a fair chance of resolving things peacefully... But it sure didn’t feel like it right now.

  And so our little stalemate continued for some time... right up until Satsuki showed up, carrying an armful of firewood.

  “?!”

  L and I both flinched in surprise at her unexpected entrance. L tried to hide her kunai and accidentally dropped it in the bushes in a panicked fluster.

  “Huh? Rekka... and L? What are you two doing?” Satsuki asked in a concerned voice.

  It seemed she’d picked up on the static in the air between us.

  “Oh, nothing. We were, um... Th-That’s right! L secretly followed me to play a little prank on me!”