Chapter 1 Part 2

Chapter 1

—————————

TL : Xean

ED: Shish99

—————————

Support us by reading this at www.zetrotranslation.com.

Part 2

I can’t stay like this, I need to get back.

“— Ah, Theo! You’ve really woken up!”

I had just begun to roam around the courtyard when a cheerful voice struck my ears.

I turned around, only to see a petite girl hopping up to me.

I wondered if she was returning from a mission as she wore a Musketeer’s Association uniform.

She stopped right in front of me while shaking her shoulder-length blonde hair.

My attention finally turned back to her face, when I realized that her eyes had moistened a bit.

“Thank goodness …… you’re alright.”

“Thanks for worrying about me.”

“I was really scared when I heard that you were taken to the Medics!”

She said those words with a shaky voice, pressing her head up against my chest the moment she finished her sentence.

Everything she said showed how she was worried for me from the bottom of her heart.

Just like me, Sharon was an Abomination. Despite being 3 years younger than me, at an age of only 14, she was a reliable comrade.

“What happened to you Sharon? Are you fine? Were you injured on the battlefield?”

“I’m… okay”

She moved away, wiping her wet eyes while soft sniffles sounded out from her mouth.

“Theo injured Agaliarept, making the rest of the battle much easier. Miya-san getting so serious also played a big part in the fight.”

“I see.”

“Speaking of which, is Miya-san here?”

“She was here just a while ago but she’s gone to town to do some shopping. I mean, …… I heard she’s been staying here since the war was over.”

“I see. …… well I’m sure she is. Miya-san has constantly been worrying about you this entire time.”

Sharon rubbed her eyes.

“Hey, Theo, I have a question for you……”

“What is it?”

“I heard that …… Theo can’t fight anymore, but …… it’s not true, is it?”

“That’s… “

“Tell me it’s a lie.”

I was at a loss myself, the situation seemed so unrealistic, so bizarre, but it was reality. I decided to tell her.

“I’m sorry but it’s the truth, but still… I won’t stop, this can’t stop me. I won’t just give up due to something like this.”

“Nooooooo”

Sharon’s eyes reddened, tears soon leaking out.

”Why are you still doing that? Are you insane?

“Even if you call me insane, I…”

“Stupid, you stupid idiot, why, why’re you still doing that to yourself, your body… ~uhhh ~uhhh”

I was grateful for those words, I knew that she was concerned for me, but still…

I patted her head, slowly dragging my hand over her head in an attempt to soothe her.

“Stop crying, Sharon.”

“It’s… all your fault. You’re the one… who made me cry”

“That’s why it’s my job to stop you from crying. But I’m still proud to say.. that I haven’t given up yet.”

“Does that mean you’re still trying to return ……?”

“That’s right. How could I be hiding, when there are still so many demons? And the instructor too, she still feels responsible for me.”

“Really… You still haven’t given up?”

“It’s true. So don’t cry anymore, Sharon. Your beauty will disappear if you continue to cry.”

When I told her that, she wiped away her tears, while her cheeks blushed due to embarrassment.

“I-I’m not a beauty…”

“That’s exactly what you are, but still, how are the kids at the orphanage.”

“Un, They’re fine. But they’re always asking about you.”

“Well, I’m gonna have to show my face sooner or later, right.”

While I was chatting with her, a small crowd gathered around me. Whether they knew about me or not, lots of children glared at me with sparkles in their eyes.

“Theo’s so popular …… even at the hospital.”

“ But I’m not the strongest anymore ……. We should move to my room, we can talk in peace there.Otherwise it would only be a matter of time before these kids would drag us away.

“Yes, let’s go …… it’s getting hard to breathe. ……”

With that exchange, we broke away from the encirclement, slowly shifting away from the children while heading towards my hospital room.

I gently turned away the children who followed me, especially those trying to shake my hands like a fan meeting their favourite idol.

Eventually we arrived at the hospital room.

I swung the door open and stepped inside, only to be greeted by a strange site.

For some reason, my bed seemed abnormally bulky.

“Hmm, is this really your room?”

“Yeah, it’s my room……”

“So what’s this? I’m pretty sure someone is sleeping under the blanket ……”

That was the truth of the situation, and I already had an idea about who it was.

It was still too early for the instructor to have returned, and considering her personality, she wouldn’t be doing anything like that in the first place.

“Ah, maybe it’s that stalker girl?”

Sharon’s face paled at the thought, and the course of our thoughts were on the same path, as we both thought of the same person.

We glanced at each other, and after a small nod of agreement, Sharon and I approached the bed.

“Oi, Erza, it’s you… right?”

As soon as I called out the name, a head popped out on the pillow.

Long hair with a distinctive silver colour, and blue eyes as clear as the sky.

Her sleepy eyes gazed at mine.

Ahhhhhh… I knew it was you.

“……When did you get in here?”

“I like this blanket because it smelled like Theo.”

Erza Krugista. That was the identity of the one who uttered such an ambiguous statement.

We were friends in our own right, albeit a weird friendship it may be.

But I knew that the day that I would be capable of understanding her thoughts belonged to a distant future, which was probably the best situation for me.

“In the meantime, can you get out of the bed?”

“Wait, I’ll put on my clothes.”

“Why’re they even off in the first place?”

Sharon tried to denounce her, but arguing against her would only drive her crazy.

Erza seemed to be as perverted as ever, but there is a part of me that was relieved by that.

With all that’s happened — getting injured for the instructor, and being told that a proper recovery was impossible, and seeing the pain she felt because of it, this idiocy seemed to alleviate some of the pressure that I’d been facing.

Just as I thought of that, Erza got out of bed.

She was dressed in a Muskeeteer’s uniform with a blue scarf and black tights.

She has beautiful silver hair that reached halfway down her back.

She was very average, and her body was neither as petite, nor as glamorous as Sharon’s.

Also, her facial expressions and emotions were mostly unassuming..

“So, I guess you’re here to visit, right?”

“Yeah. That plus service.”

“I don’t need that option.”

If I tried dealing with her while treating her as a normal person, I’d lose my composure. The only way to beat crazy was to be crazy, so I chose to give her a taste of her own medicine.

Throughout that entire exchange that ensued, Sharon scratched her cheeks, making her look like she was attacked by some ferocious beast.

“Erza, I wish you stopped fooling around! You know what’s going on with Theo right now, don’t you?”

“I know exactly what happened. I heard that he can no longer fight..”

“Well, then…”

“So I came here in a hurry to cheer him up.

It was a serious statement spoken in a playful manner.

“But I don’t know how to cheer Theo up, so I thought I’d use my body.”

“Thanks, but you don’t need to use your body. Just your thoughts are enough.”

“So, what are you going to do now?”

“All I want to do right now is get back to being a Musketeer. I don’t want to retire to a place like that.”

I can’t give up yet, for my sake as well as hers.

“Theo, you know that I’m rooting for you no matter what, right?”

“Me too.”

“Thanks guys.”

It’s only with the support of my comrades that I’m able to stay positive.

Facing reality, they were all I had to rely on.

—After that, Sharon and Erza left, and the hospital room became quiet.

Standing by the window, I looked out of the hospital.

“…….”

A vast city, dotted by brick buildings throughout.

The Estherian Empire, the largest nation in the human domain, and it’s capital Angelus.

The royal castle was also clearly visible from here.

It was the small part of the nation where humans could leave peacefully, but no one knows how long the peace would last.

Demons flew day and night throughout human territory, coming from the domain controlled by Lucifer, the Great Demon King, located in the southwest of the Empire.

It was the job of Musketeers to deal with them. And because many die on the lines of duty, they were constantly recruiting more people.

I’ve been in the middle of it all, fighting against them throughout my life, but I couldn’t even return anymore ……?

“No, I’ll surely return.”

I was stuck within my own thoughts, and when I returned to reality, the sight I saw while staring at the front gate stunned me.

Coming from the hospital’s front gate, I saw Instructor Miya walking towards the courtyard.

She looked like she just returned from shopping.

She walked in a dignified manner, her back straightened and her chest puffed outwards, looking feminine, noble and

even cool.

Instructor Miya was one of the fiercest among the female musketeers, and combined with her good looks, she was very popular among the people.

This instructor of mine, who was renowned for her ferocity when fighting against demons, was also known to be kind and caring, leading her to be well liked by the people.

Even now, her good-natured spirit was on full display.

She responded to any passer-bys who greeted her, and patted children’s heads when they came running up to her. If there was trash on the ground, she would pick it up without complaining, and if someone was in trouble, she would call out to them and try helping.

To put it mildly, she was a saint.

I think the reason she returned so late even if she only went to buy groceries was due to this generosity of hers, behaving perfectly even when no one was present.

It showed how innately good natured she was.

If you lived in this city, you would surely have heard of her generosity. That’s the identity of Instructor Miya.

That’s why she was so popular, and I’m one of her fans, as well as someone who fell in love with her.

That’s the reason why I put myself in harm’s way for her, but it also made her feel so guilty about it.

–It gave her a sense of responsibility to watch over me when I couldn’t fight.

This entire time, I’ve had this feeling.

That maybe, just maybe.

That there’s someone blaming me for being injured.

“Such a thing……”

Just thinking about it made my heart ache deep inside.

The instructor entered the room, and seeing the state I was in, she spoke.

“Let me watch over you for the rest of your life. It’s the least I can do to make up for it.”

“And besides”, the instructor continued.

“I’m not worth protecting. I’m not so valuable that you have to risk your life for me Theo-kun.”

“That kind of thinking is wrong.”

“No, it’s right. You’re just overestimating my value, Theo-kun.”

The instructor put the bag of fruits on the table.

“I’ve made you incapable of fighting ……. What kind of woman is that worth?”

“Actually, it’s the opposite. I saved you because you’re more valuable than you could ever imagine. No, I should say that I find you attractive rather than valuable.

I find you attractive, as a mature woman, instructor. You were so amazing, and I couldn’t let you die.

I’m in love with you. That’s why I saved you.”

“I’m not some amazing person, …… I’m the bad woman who broke Theo-kun.”

“I was injured on my own.”

“So …… I don’t want it to happen again, so please, don’t be reckless.”

The instructor glared at me, as if to convey the thought “Why don’t you understand that?”.

“You don’t have to work so hard anymore, Theo-kun. I’ll protect and provide for you from now on. …… okay? Theo-kun, you can take a break. Can’t I protect you? Let me make up for it.”

“I’m sorry.”

I don’t want that.

“I want to return, for your sake instructor. I’ll do it even if I get reckless.”

“What did I tell you about it?”

“About what?”

“Didn’t I tell you that I would tie you up and keep you in a safe zone?”

“You couldn’t do that instructor. You’re a nice person.”

“……tsu”

I wonder if I was right. The instructor turned away in a bashful manner and slumped down.

“I certainly can’t do that …… but I’ll keep an eye on Theo-kun to make sure he can’t do something like that, okay?”

She wasn’t lying when she said that. In fact, from the very first day in the hospital, I’ve been supervised by Instructor Miya the entire time. Even in the middle of the night, the instructor was on the lookout.

But there were still opportunities. Even she needed sleep. While she stayed up during the night to keep me from sneaking out, I snuck out during the day, whenever there was an opening.

While the instructor lay in the rowing chair, sleeping peacefully, I went to the hospital’s rehabilitation facility.

————————–

Join us at discord for fast updates: https://discord.gg/vca9Sx9xX2

Support us on Patreon here:

Lastly, to help our dear translators / editors, you can download the early chapters at https://zetrotranslation.com/downloads/

PS: There may be annoying ads but your support is deeply appreciated.

————————–