Chapter 62

The day after contacting the teachers, I first headed to the guild.

I had asked Manon to help the girls find jobs at the beginning of the week and then left it at that.

I thought it would be fine after the boys caused such a commotion, but I was worried about leaving it unattended, so I decided to check on the progress.

This morning, the bulletin board was as crowded as ever, and it seemed no girls were willing to push their way through.

Yeah, as usual, Rindel and the others are being jostled around, but they never learn...

At the wall away from the bulletin board, I saw the figures of my female classmates.

Today, the凸凹シスターズ (uneven sisters) were also there, and Manon seemed to be at the center, answering various questions.

Her light blue short hair stood out among the group of black-haired girls.

I couldn’t tell what questions she was being asked, but Manon, blushing and flustered, looked so cute and incredibly soothing.

When Manon noticed me, she waved her hand slightly, and all the girls turned their gazes towards me.

Whoa... Being looked at by over ten girls at once is a bit overwhelming.

The girls, who turned around with a sound like "guri," smiled slyly when they saw me and took a step back on both sides, leaving Manon at the center.

Some even gestured for me to come closer, but that just made it harder to approach.

"Good morning, Kent."

"Good morning... Manon."

As I awkwardly approached amidst the warm gazes, I could hear the girls whispering.

"A kiss, she’s going to give him a morning kiss."

"Stupid, start with a hug, a tight hug... tight..."

No way, I’m not that thick-skinned to be able to do it under such expectant gazes.

Hey, Manon? Why are you blushing and closing your eyes?

No... This is a bit much... The pressure to go ahead is intense.

I gently hugged Manon and kissed her cheek.

"Phew, what a hot morning..."

"Really, why is the morning in Volzard so hot... huh!"

Embarrassing, it’s really embarrassing from the start.

I hurriedly tried to let go of the hug, but Manon grabbed my shirt and wouldn’t let me go.

Come on, such a gesture is unfair; it makes me want to hug her again.

"Kent... I don’t smell Beatrice today..."

"Yeah, I haven’t met her today."

"That’s good..."

"Um, so, how are everyone’s jobs going?"

I tried to change the topic, but I got a scolding from the凸凹シスターズ (uneven sisters).

"Really, Kunito, why do you always bring up topics that ruin the mood..."

"Yeah, what Tomo said, you should hug more."

"No, no, everyone, we need to find jobs, right..."

I tried to change the topic again, but this time I was interrupted by Sagara and Honmi from the opposite side.

"It’s still too crowded to find jobs, and Manon is taking care of everyone, so it’s fine."

"Really, we owe Manon a lot. She’s working so hard, you should just decide on Manon."

Thanks to Manon’s detailed explanations, guidance to the workplace, and introductions to the people there, everyone was able to smoothly start their jobs.

"You should just stay here, Kunito, and live happily with Manon."

"Yeah, what Tomo said."

Everyone nodded at the凸凹シスターズ (uneven sisters)’ words.

Manon, blushing, looked down, but her lips seemed to be slightly curved in a smile.

"No, I haven’t decided to stay. We haven’t even decided if we can return, and we haven’t rescued everyone yet..."

"By the way, Kunito, I heard you’re also being intimate with Yui?"

"Manon is here, Kunito, you’re the worst!"

"No, no, because the class president is working so hard..."

Sagara said something unnecessary, and I got grabbed in the side by Manon’s glare.

Hey, Manon, when did you get everyone on your side?

But I was relieved that the girls here were working fine, though there weren’t enough of them.

"By the way, what about the rest of the people?"

As soon as I asked, everyone’s expressions darkened.

"Ah... I’m sorry, Kunito, but it seems that Sumika and the others might not be able to make it..."

"Yeah, the horseback riding experience only lasted one day, and after that..."

According to Kozawa Sumika’s group, they were reluctant to do tasks like cleaning the stables and brushing the horses, and by the end of the training, they declared they wouldn’t participate anymore.

"So, what are they doing now?"

"When we came out, they weren’t awake, and they were probably just chatting in a group."

"They were chatting until late last night, so I think they couldn’t wake up."

"Have they caused any problems...?"

"No, I think it’s fine. Unlike Takayama and the others, they know how to handle tricky situations."

According to Kobayashi, they complain and avoid doing unpleasant tasks, but they have enough sense to keep their distance from troublesome people.

"But our impression might get worse..."

According to Sakurai, even if they don’t cause a big commotion like the boys, their snide remarks and attitudes can make people dislike them.

Now that I think about it, I’ve seen them a few times during explanations, and they never gave a good impression.

"Understood, I’ll go to the defense team and check on the situation. Everyone, do what you can."

"What are you going to ask them?"

"Maybe you’re going to help the rest of the people?"

Not just Sagara and Honmi, but everyone seemed very interested, so I briefly explained my plan.

"My familiars are going to clear the roads and prepare for the rescue, and I’ve been in contact with the teachers. If everything goes well, I think we can bring everyone back by noon on the day of light."

When the girls learned that the rescue operation was progressing, they held hands and rejoiced.

"That’s great... I was worried about the rest of the people."

"Right, if the teachers come, Kozawa and the others can be left to them, right?"

"But if they get scolded by the teachers in this situation, they might rebel even more, right?"

"Yeah... that’s possible..."

Indeed, in Japan, we had the authority of the school behind us, but here, the teachers are also part of the situation. If they scold them, it might cause a backlash.

While we were talking, the bulletin board area started to clear up, and the girls went to look for jobs for the day.

"Manon, thank you for taking care of everyone."

"No, I can only do this much..."

"Actually, I should be the one doing it... I really appreciate your help, thank you."

"If I can be of any help to you... I’m happy..."

Manon’s shy smile was so endearing that I couldn’t help but hug her again.

"Manon..."

"Kent... everyone is watching..."

"Huh...?"

I realized that everyone who was supposed to be looking for jobs had come back and was surrounding us with sly gazes.

So, that pressure to go ahead...

"Kent..."

"Kyaa! Decided? Already decided on Manon?"

"Uh-oh, what about the red-haired girl?"

"By the way, what about Yui? What’s going on with Yui?"

Unable to resist the pressure or my personal desires, I hugged Manon again.

As expected, the girls started to fuss, and because of the mention of Beatrice and the class president, Manon hugged me tightly too.

"I won’t lose..."

I’m in trouble. I want to throw everything away and run away with Manon.

"Kent... You’re busy today, right?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"Try to get some rest soon..."

"Y-Yeah..."

Ah, I really want to throw away all the troublesome things and just leave.

"Hey, Kunito... Can you let Manon go now?"

"Tomo, that’s so unromantic."

"But Achan, we can’t do anything without Manon..."

"That’s true..."

I reluctantly let go of Manon, who stepped back and looked at me intently.

"Okay, Kent, I’ll go now."

"Okay, thank you."

Manon walked over to the girls, who surrounded her and started chattering excitedly, sending me warm gazes.

Yeah, it feels like I’m being surrounded and cornered.

Since the group looking for jobs at the guild seems to be doing fine, I’ll go to the defense team to ask for help and check on the Kozawa group.

The class president said that if I talk to them directly, it might cause more trouble, but in some cases, I might have to.

So, I visited the dormitory, but no one answered when I called out.

I peeked in from the shadow world, but no one was there.

I thought they might be in the cafeteria, and sure enough, I heard a noisy voice.

"We’re making food for the team, not for you. What are you doing here so late?"

"What? We paid for food and accommodation, and the service is terrible..."

"We’re not a hotel. We’re only accepting you because you have nowhere else to go. If you don’t like it, leave."

"What? You’re taking our money and then this? Make the food now!"

It seems that Kozawa Sumika’s group overslept and missed breakfast.

The defense team’s cafeteria has set times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

If it’s just a little late, they might accommodate, but it had been quite a while since breakfast time, and the kitchen was already cleaned up.

I thought I needed to mediate, so I was about to step into the cafeteria when a voice came from behind.

"That’s noisy. What’s going on?"

I turned around to see red-haired rabbit ears.

It was the defense team’s commander, Marianna, in her uniform.

"Good morning, Marianna."

"Good morning, Kent. What’s the commotion about?"

"Well, I just got here, so I’m not sure..."

Kozawa Sumika and the others looked visibly unhappy.

"Hey, Kunito, we can’t even get food. What’s going on?"

"The treatment is terrible..."

"Make sure they prepare it, seriously, they’re useless..."

Wow... If this is the standard in our world, it’s really unacceptable.

They were making ugly faces, not even considering how unattractive they looked.

"Marianna, what’s going on?"

The cafeteria lady explained that breakfast time was long over and the kitchen was already cleaned up.

"We didn’t know there was a time limit..."

"Right, we paid for it, so..."

No, they’ve been saying they paid for it, but I’m the one who paid.

"I understand. If you didn’t know about the time limit, it’s understandable. Marianna, can you prepare something for them until lunch?"

"Okay..."

"I’m sorry for the trouble."

Marianna reluctantly started preparing food for the Kozawa group.

I accidentally apologized, but they looked like it was a given.

"You’re not bad, lady..."

"Hey, Marianna is the commander of the defense team and the wife of the lord, Klaus. Don’t be rude."

"Hmm... Is that so..."

Ah, I understand what Sak