“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, it’s just this one...”
Barbatos pointed at one of the children in the Memorandum. It was the boy who was somewhat like a leader among the three children. He had chestnut colored hair and dark brown eyes. On his face were large round glasses that he must have pilfered from somewhere that looked ready to slip off at any time.
Glasses were rather expensive goods that were said to be able to correct defects in vision without the aid of sorcery. A waif would desire food to survive another day much more than trying to correct their vision. The fact that he didn’t sell them for money may have been because they were some sort of memento too.
After pointing the boy out, the next words out of Barbatos’ mouth were truly unexpected.
“I feel like I know this guy?”
“...What?”
Zagan stared back in wonder, to which even Gremory nodded.
“Hmmm... I also find that face familiar.”
Both Barbatos and Gremory were famous sorcerers who were once Archdemon candidates. If both of them recognized someone, it meant they were someone quite well known in that circle.
“Did this guy become a sorcerer?”
“Hmm, I wonder? I feel like I recognize the face, but I could just be mistaking him for someone else.”
As Barbatos scratched his head over the matter, Gremory continued on in a quizzical voice.
“If it was just you, Purgatory, then it may be a case of mistaken identity. But I also feel like I know this face. Not only that, this is my liege’s benefactor. I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”
An unintentional silence hung in the air.
“What’s this guy’s name?” Barbatos asked.
“His name...? What was it...? Marco...? No, that’s not it. Marc. Yes, his name is Marc.”
Zagan didn’t know his family name, and he didn’t know if that was his real name, but that was what he called him. The girl in the picture was called Stella. Both of them would just up and disappear now and then, so Zagan didn’t even know what kind of connection the two of them had if any at all.
Now that I think of it, I feel like he was the one who named me Zagan. Plus, he had even taught Zagan how to do things like steal and fight without getting anything in return.
It was pretty natural that Barbatos and Gremory didn’t recognize the name that Zagan brought up. It was actually quite common for people to throw away their old names upon becoming sorcerers. There was no guarantee that he still went by the name Marc.
Good grief, I came here to get a break...
It felt like Zagan had struck upon a pit of vipers.
◇
“...I’m hungry,” Foll muttered in a serious tone while Zagan and the others were amusing themselves with their wiles. This despite her having had lunch only moments ago. Nephy, who was building a sand hill together with her, stared on in wonder.
“It’s because you haven’t moved around much lately. You must be tired from all this.”
“But I had lunch already...”
“It’s good that you have an appetite. Let’s see. In that case, shall we head off to the forest and look for food? There seem to be berries growing there.”
It was an attractive proposal, but Foll shook her head.
“I don’t feel like that would be enough...”
The conversation wasn’t in the realm of her wanting to eat candy or anything, it was more like she wanted some real prey to feast on. To put a scale on how serious it was, Foll was looking over at Selphy energetically swimming about and seriously wondering if it was alright just to chew on her. She didn’t feel the desire to eat the other humans and such when she looked at them, but the siren Selphy kind of looked like seafood. That must have been the reason.
What do I do? I should be listening to Zagan and behave myself here... As for the root cause of her hunger, it was likely because she had distanced herself from Atlastia, and consequently from the Dragon Form, lowering the ratio of mana she was absorbing from it. Even now, she was steadily resupplying her mana from it, but it was about a third less than what she was getting from the room in the ocean capital.
Also, just as Nephy said, she hadn’t moved around in quite a while, so it had just stimulated her hunger all at once. It wasn’t so severe that she had to dash off and chow down immediately, but it would be somewhat difficult for her to relax and play like this.
Even though she had just caused a big incident by not listening to Zagan, she felt like she was about to do it again. It left a prickling pain in her chest.
The Black Dragon was no longer able to find joy in just moving from battle to battle and turned to committing atrocities... Even though Foll was Wise Dragon Orobas’ daughter, she had become the Black Dragon. She hated being the Black Dragon. Everyone looked to be having fun, but she started to wonder if it was better for her to just go back on her own. And just as she began thinking of such things...
“Nephy. I’ve kept you waiting.”
Zagan’s group was headed toward them after finishing whatever they were doing on the beach. It was like they had just finished some sort of ‘training.’ It seemed like he had conquered his inability to look Nephy straight in the eyes... or rather, his inability to look at her at all.
“Ah, hnnnngh...”
Maybe not. It felt like it was taking his utmost effort to resist the urge to avert his gaze.
Is he shy? Is Zagan’s shyness going on full display?
Keeping his own lesson of ‘observing your opponent’ in mind, Zagan was staring fixedly at Nephy. Having said that, even Nephy’s ears were bright red and her gaze was wandering around, so she wasn’t all that different. That only amplified his shyness though, and Zagan eyes just shot further open as if screaming, ‘It’s no good like this!’
“Y-Your swimsuits seem to have been prepared by Manuela, but how do you like them?”
“Y-Yes! Um, it’s somewhat like underwear, so I can’t really calm down. But...” Nephy trailed off, then mustered her courage and whispered in a faint voice, “I think... your swimsuit... is wonderful... Master Zagan...”
“Ah!” Zagan exclaimed. Then, he pinned down his chest as if he didn’t expect that reaction at all. Nevertheless, the Archdemon didn’t bend a knee and folded his arms as he stood upright.
“Y-Your swimsuit... is also quite... charming. It’s so charming I can’t look directly at it!”
He once more added an unnecessary addendum. Though perhaps, in this case, it was correct. Zagan arched back as if wanting to smash in his own head. Nephy’s face turned bright red as if she were delirious with a fever from his unusually frank words, then nodded with a bob as if she wasn’t all that dissatisfied with his comment.
“Th-Thank you... very much...”
Foll realized that the frantic emotions she had just moments ago vanished cleanly after watching their little exchange. It even led her to believe that Zagan put on this petty play because he noticed she was feeling down. Though immediately after thinking that, she realized that he would be much better at dealing with Nephy if he were that skilled.
Foll naturally broke into a smile, but she was a little worried that perhaps these two had completely forgotten about her. That was why she tried being a little selfish.
“Zagan, how about me?”
“Mm. You’re splendidly cute.”
“...Eheheh.”
Zagan pet her head, leading her to unintentionally laugh like a child.
But, I decided not to overstretch myself, so this might just be fine.
“Master Zagan, Foll was saying that she is hungry, but what shall we do?” Nephy asked as she suddenly recalled the earlier issue..
“Hm? Oh, I guess it really wasn’t enough, huh?”
Just from that single phrase, Zagan was able to accurately grasp Foll’s condition. Next, he called out to the others in a loud voice.
“Lilith, is there an area of the ocean here with large marine life?”
; “Well, I think there is. Why?” Lilith cocked her head to the side as she responded.
“I want to try what people call fishing,” Zagan stated as he stuck out both his hands as if gripping a sword.
Lilith stared back in shock.
“Fishing...? Huh? You’re going to fish those up?”
“Yeah.”
“Huh? But why large marine life?”
“We’ve got so many sorcerers and Angelic Knights gathered here, don’t you think regular fishing would be boring?”
“I don’t!” Lilith screamed out on the verge of tears. Then, she said, “What will come out of trying to fish large marine life!?”
“It’ll be good exercise, and it should satiate Foll’s hunger. Doesn’t it fulfill everything we need?”
“It’s a disaster for me, though!”
Giving a sidelong glance to their new family member raising a fuss, Foll’s vague anxiety that she had been feeling for the past half a month was now becoming clear.
Zagan... factored everything in from the start, even with this break... During the incident half a month ago, Foll got a true sense of just how much she was loved. Foll did something bad and caused Zagan trouble, yet he didn’t get angry, forgave her, accepted her, helped her, and saved her. He never desired anything in return. He was just happy from the bottom of his heart that Foll was safe. However, she felt anxious precisely because she had so much of his favor.
Why am I loved so much when I’m such a bad kid....? How could she ever repay him? Her weak and tiny self had nothing to offer him at all. It was a truly ignorant and meaningless worry. If she was being loved, then wasn’t it plainly clear what she had to do in return?
“Zagan.”
“What is it?”
“Thanks. I love you.”
Those words naturally flowed from Foll’s mouth. Zagan stared back in wonder, but immediately nodded and gently brushed her head.
“Yeah, me too.”
She would build up her strength in a way that was suitable for her age. And then, she would protect the daddy and mommy that she loved so much. That was the answer that Foll found.
◇
“Hmmm. This seems like a good spot.”
Zagan brought his small boat to a stop in the open seas around the uninhabited island. Lilith had prepared six boats for the whole group. It was just right for two people per boat.
The groups were Zagan and Nephy, Foll and Nephteros, Gremory and Lilith, Chastille and Kuroka, Richard and some Angelic Knight Zagan didn’t know, and then for some reason the odd combination of Barbatos and Selphy. They were all seated in the boats facing each other. The third pitiful Angelic Knight fell out of a boat on the way, so he was left on the beach as a judge.
“Master Zagan. This is my first time fishing, so I’m rather nervous.”
Nephy’s figure as she timidly held up the fishing rod was as charming as ever.
Finally! I’m finally able to look at Nephy without averting my gaze!
The time he had spent staring at Nephy’s figure in the projection made using Memorandum—keeping his borderline perverted behavior out of sight—was quite painful. Why did he have to resort to such tomfoolery when the person herself was available right next to him?
In any case, thanks to his tomfoolery, he had somehow become able to maintain his composure next to Nephy, and he took a good long gaze at Nephy as she timidly gripped a fishing rod for the first time.
Her arms and thighs were usually covered by her dress and long sleeves, but were now fully exposed. Her snow white skin was absolutely dazzling everywhere he looked. As for the pure white swimsuit which covered the important bits, even though it was quite bold, it was still in the realm of being neat and clean. Though he was reluctant to admit it, he honestly admired Manuela’s abilities.
Girls have such thin waists huh...? Her collarbone and the nape of her neck are also really pretty. But if I keep staring too much it feels like I’m being lewd. Not that my heart can withstand any more!
...In any case, Zagan ended up just sneaking glances repeatedly. Thinking back on it, this was the first time Zagan had seen so much of Nephy’s skin exposed since Manuela had made her wear something strange back at her shop the first time they went shopping. Zagan was panicking the entire time though and didn’t really take a good look. So could he actually endure being on the same boat with the girl dearest to him while she wore a swimsuit?
No, this isn’t a trial. It’s a moment of bliss.
He was somewhat too stimulated so his happiness and pain were getting all mixed up. Wasn’t this an endlessly luxurious moment where he could monopolize the girl that was dearest to him? Zagan finally calmed down enough to become self aware of this fact. That’s why he let out a nostalgic laugh.
“Hmph, do not worry Nephy. Back in the day, I caught fish with my bare hands. It is not all that difficult.”
Kianoides was a town on a canal. Having said that, it was an enormous trade city. There was nothing but merchant ships coming up and down the canal, so it wasn’t all that clean, but there were fish living there nonetheless.
Back in his days as a waif, Zagan had jumped into the canal when he couldn’t stand his hunger anymore, pretended to be dead, and captured any fish who drew near thinking they could get a meal themselves. After recounting such tales of his childhood, there was an entire group around him on the verge of tears, but he didn’t notice them at all. And perhaps because Zagan and Nephy were talking about such things, the other boats also began whispering amongst themselves.
“Nephteros, catch a big one. I’ll do my best to eat it.”
“Huh? Did we gather here to fish you up a snack?” Nephteros was somewhat perplexed by Foll’s request, but she didn’t show any signs of finding that unpleasant. “It can’t be helped. I’ll fish up a big one, so look forward to it.”
Nephteros gripped her fishing rod with a determined smile on her face... and the hook got caught in Barbatos’ hair who was in another boat altogether. Well, Zagan saw that his sister in law was enjoying herself from that, so it was but a small problem.
“Keeheehee, how fortuitous for me to be accompanied by the beautiful princess of the succubi. It just shows that walking the tightrope between life and death was all worth it.”
“Heehee, I see His Highness’ followers truly understand reason. I’ll show you a splendid nightmare as a reward.”
Seeing Lilith puff out her chest in a haughty manner, Gremory smiled back with the look of an affectionate mother.
“My liege! I request that if I win, I get to love around Lady Lilith until I’m satisfied. Do you mind?”
“Aah... well, sure why not.”
“...Huh?”
Zagan nodded like he didn’t really care. Lilith didn’t seem to understand what exactly Gremory meant by ‘love around,’ but she stiffened up upon sensing a dangerous presence from her. Well, it was possible that she would be in for some mental trauma, but there was no risk to her life. On the contrary, Gremory’s love power obsession may have been a good match for Lilith.
It’s fine as long as she doesn’t pick up any strange tendencies herself...
However, now that she was one among Zagan’s subordinates, she had no choice but to get used to this granny. Even Zagan himself could do nothing about that. There was just no other way. And as he held back a sigh, he suddenly heard someone screaming.
“L-Lady Chastille! Is this boat sinking!?”
“Eeek!? Why!? There was no problem when we got on!”
Apparently one of the boats was a lot more worn out than the others. Both Kuroka and Chastille were desperately scooping out as much water as they could. Apparently the combination of their unfortunate dispositions caused some sort of resonance to just amplify their misfortune further. It looked like it wasn’t just added up on top of each other, it was more like a multiplicative effect, meaning things would just get even more outrageous from here.
“It may have been wrong to allow those two to group togeth
er at all...”
Though the reason it ended up like this was because Kuroka requested to stay by Chastille’s side.
“Master Zagan, is it fine for me to help them...?”
“Please do. Sinking before we even begin is just far too pitiful.”
Zagan returned a grave nod to his bride’s plea that she couldn’t just watch it any longer. Nephy leaned over the side of the boat, and touched the water’s surface as she muttered something.
“Fairies of the forest, please save them.”
With that, Chastille’s boat began clattering about.
“Wh-Wh-What is it now!?”
Taking a closer look, Chastille’s boat was now covered in moss and had leaves and such growing out of it here and there. It seemed that Nephy had restored the vitality of the wood used for the boat and stopped it from letting in water. They now had one green boat among their little group, but that was a trivial matter.
“This is... Nephy? Thanks. You’re a good friend.”
Now that the boat of misfortune had calmed down, this time Richard’s boat drew closer to Zagan.
“Lord Archdemon, I have a request of you as well.”
His expression looked like he was challenging death itself. So Zagan quietly replied.
“Mm. Speak.”
Urged on to continue, Richard took a deep breath, and yelled out as his eyes shot open.
“If I win, please allow me to court Lady Nephteros!”
And even Zagan admired his straightforwardness.
“Hmm... Very well. Demonstrate your power to me. Depending on the results, I’ll allow you to at least speak to her. I don’t know whether she will accept it herself though.”
“Sir! I’ll do my very best!”
I do think he’s a good guy...
If he was just a regular peasant, Zagan would probably have no objections at all. It would be fine for Zagan just to place him under his patronage. However, the man known as Richard was an Angelic Knight. It could be said that he possessed an outstanding disposition and was an excellent Angelic Knight. He would surely lay down his life to protect Nephteros and the general populace. But precisely because of that, he would inevitably die one day.
An Archdemon's Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride: Volume 7 (Premium) Page 5
