Chapter 252 – Three Days
Three days.
Three days, and we’re going to war.
And it’s about time. Everyone dispersed after we figured that out, while I stayed behind on the couch. We gotta prepare… I gotta find something to do.
“I gotta pick a fight…” With something, not someone. I might have gotten rusty while my skills were unavailable. I better fight something before picking on the people at the House. Just to make sure.
Alright. I stood up. I got it!
“Reia, wanna come with me?”
She was once against sitting behind a laptop, only this time with Narumi by her side. We have a hacker duo now. Not really, but it could happen if Narumi gave it a try. Since she’s secretly smart, she’d pick it up in no time.
“No. I’m busy.”
“Come on… You don’t even know what this is about…”
“I’ll go with you!” Her hand shot up, and Narumi cheerfully stood up.
“Yeah… You don’t know either…” Sigh… “Reia, at least ask me where I’m going…”
“Where?” She didn’t even glance at me.
“I was thinking of going to the other world to pick a fight with something. You could probably learn something new with some field research, right?”
“I’ll die. I can’t fight.” Obviously, you’re not supposed to-
“It’s okay! I’ll protect you!” Narumi grabbed her hands and forced her to look.
“You were serious about coming along?” I asked. “Even though I hadn’t explained?”
“Of course! No matter where you wanna go, I’m in!”
“It’s not about the journey, it’s about the company, huh…?” A great attitude for one of my girlfriends… Wait, Narumi isn’t one yet. Even though we already slept together…
“Fufufu… I heard everything…” A new voice emerged from the bedrooms. “I’m coming too!”
“Good afternoon, sleepyhead.” It’s fitting for a vampire to wake up late. “Three days, by the way.”
“Huh?” Hecate was stunned. “What are you talking about?”
“Three days till we’re off to war!”
“Wa- war? What?”
“Don’t sweat it.” I said. “Let’s set off!”
“Yeah!” Narumi pumped her fist.
“Wait… I haven’t agreed to anything yet…” Reia said.
“Field research is not enough to entice you, is it? You drive a hard bargain… How about this? Act now and I’ll throw in a second specimen for research!” I grabbed one of Hecate’s shoulders.
“Spe- specimen? You mean me?” She was very confused.
Narumi tapped her other shoulder to comfort her. “That’s what you get for wanting to make a cool entrance. You said you’d join before knowing what’s going on. Now you have to deal with the consequences… Good luck, Hecate.”
She talked like a sage giving the most enlightened advice, but…
Look who’s talking.
…
Off we went. We went to the other world, to Ebrilyon, dropped by Bea’s office. We kinda just barged in after talking to Flanne who let us wreak our chaos without getting in our way. Lest she get caught up too. Very nice girl.
“Hey, Bea. Got anything that needs killing?”
“Plenty, my dear Iroha. Why? Are you offering to take care of my enemies? Oh… And to think that some of the most brilliant minds of our kingdom were against our marriage. How foolish they are. They don’t know how valuable you are.”
“Wasn’t I kinda in that group? Does that make me a fool too?”
She ignored that. Meaning yes. “I’m so happy fate brought us together. What are you looking for?”
“Well… Nothing big enough for that dramatic speech. I was just wondering if there were any monster causing trouble nearby or maybe even some demons.”
“I’m not sure there’s anything that convenient…” She picked through a few papers on the completed pile and… “Oh! An ogre attacked some farmers to the west, but… That’s really minor… Three or four soldiers can easily deal with that. It’s far beneath your skills.”
“That’s it! Can I go?” I asked. “I just wanna shake off some rust now that my skills are back.”
“If you insist, go ahead. I’ll tell the soldiers to go pick up the corpse tomorrow.” She smiled.
“Thanks, Bea!” I turned around for the door. “By the way, three days. In three days, we’re going to war.”
“No, we’re not.”
She barely even flinched.
“As far as I’m aware, I’m the one who makes those calls.” She said. “The Endless Silver is still calm, and I’m not sending my people in there if I can avoid it.”
“Ehh…” What’s this girl on about? “If you don’t wanna join, it’s your loss, but we’re still doing it.”
“Oh, really?” She held up her chin. “And what if instead of this game where you say something outrageous without context, you just told me what you actually want to tell me instead.”
Tch… “I wouldn’t be able to tease you if I did that! I wanna see you getting flustered and acting cute! Is it a crime to want to tease my girlfriend?” Back at her desk, I poked her cheek in retaliation.
“Ahahaha! It could easily become one. If your girlfriend is the head of state and you try to declare a war without her permission, you could get in serious trouble.” Her composure remained even as her cheek got squished.
“Alright, alright… I’ll just tell you. We’re going to pick another fight with the PSF. I’m not really sure if you can help, but I wouldn’t mind having you nearby for moral support. At the very least, I’m going to fight an army on my own, so I could use a kiss before going off to the battlefield.”
“A kiss from your princess before going off to the battlefield. Yes… That can be arranged, but Iroha…”
She grabbed my hand with a pouty look.
“I can do far more than just moral support. You may not know, but I played a crucial role during your rescue. I have a brilliant mind, you know?”
“So do we.” I pointed at Reia.
“…” Bea paused. “Well… Two minds are better than one. I’ll be there.”
I smiled. “Sounds good. We’ll fill you in later. Let me know when you want me to come pick you up.” Oh shit… Was that a great girlfriend line or what? More of a boyfriend line but shut up.
…
Setting off on foot down a paved path through some plains, we left Ebrilyon to hunt down an ogre.
What kind of monster was that again? Big green guy with a club? No… Those are orcs… Big one-eye with a club? Nope. Cyclops. Huh… Not really sure what to expect. It does feel like he’ll have a club, so we should know when we see it.
And know we did when we found a club house blaring out music at the side of the road. What a crazy twist!
Sorry… That was just a lie… That would be a little too crazy even for Balterra. We just killed time with a normal conversation while walking.
“So… the sun doesn’t bother you?” Hecate carried a parasol, which kept her in the shade while out with us. I asked that because she said the sun wouldn’t turn her to ash in the conversation just before.
“I’m not entirely sure…” She said. “It doesn’t turn me to ash, but it does feel like my energy gets sapped if I stay under the sun for too long.”
“Ahahahaha! That has nothing to do with being a vampire. It happens to everyone.” Narumi said. “You always had it worse because of those heavy dresses you wear.”
“*Sigh…* I guess you saw through me.” Hecate said. “Enough about me, though. Since we’re here with Reia, we should focus on something that she’d find more interesting.”
“But the topic is interesting.” She was listening close the whole time.
“Really?”
“Mhmm. Meeting a real vampire clashes centuries of folk knowledge with real empirical evidence. It’s interesting.”
“Is it even a clash?” Narumi asked. “The type of vampire Hecate is just the game’s interpretation of vampires, right? If that’s the case, you can’t really compare them, can you? No matter what you learn from her, it won’t lead to any actual insights about folklore from our world.”
“Hmm… Y- you’re right…” The point Narumi raised forced Reia to pause. “I suppose the folklore remains folklore and whatever facts Hecate establishes apply only to her and vampires from this world. Show more vampire stuff.” She asked Hecate.
“I’m afraid you’re putting me on the spot… I could should you my supernatural physical ability, but Narumi and Katja can easily do the same with their Matching Weapons empowerments.”
“We need vampire exclusive questions. Uhmm…” Narumi stepped in front of Hecate, walking backwards like an interviewer. “Question. What does blood taste like? Does it taste good?”
“The only one I’ve tasted since becoming a vampire was Iroha, so…” She touched her cheek and let out a dreamy sigh. “It tasted like joy…”
“He- Hecate!?” That’s kinda embarrassing…
“Also, I passed out the next second, so I don’t remember it that well.”
Gahh… I thought it was a special moment, and she doesn’t remember…. Okay…
“Hmm hmm… Very good… Your turn, Iroha! Question. What does it feel like to get sucked off?”
“…” Narumi… “*Sigh…* It’s like, weird for a second, but then it feels really good…” Great… Now I’m contributing to the problem. “B- but I’m pretty sure it’s because it was Hecate, and we’re… uhh… you know…”
“Fufufu… If you’re curious, Narumi, I can let you experience it yourself… I won’t hurt you…” As a grin spread across her face, Hecate’s fingers wiggled forward. But Narumi was already gone. 20 steps back in a single second.
“You made it seem kinda lewd last time. I’ll pass.”
Complete rejection. Hecate fell to her knees. I can’t really talk, but even I know you gotta be a little more subtle than that… This one’s on you.
*Thud*
“Hmm?” Narumi, still ahead of us, backed into something.
Reia calmly pointed forward. “Is that…”
The ogre. Big guy with a club. Blue skin? Hmm… Still, there’s no doubt about it. That’s him.
“Narumi!” Hecate shouted. “Come back! He’s swinging!”
Slowly enough that there’s no way that Narumi would get hit. Still…
“False Flower.”