96. Two Leashes in Both Hands (2)
96. Two Leashes in Both Hands (2)
"Wow, you're really popular."
"Because he’s so accepting."
Don't poke me with your finger. Even as a joke, you could pierce a person’s body with it. I did not want my ass getting wrecked in another world. Reni was probably controlling her strength, but still.
Reni in front of me. Elisa on my left, Millia on my right.
And Karina, sitting on the bed and watching the whole thing. In a room that was eighty percent female, I had no choice but to sit there in an awkward pose.
Being surrounded by women might have sounded wonderful, but it was not, at least for me. The puppies on either side were engaged in a war of nerves with teeth that couldn't even sink in properly.
"...You let go first!"
"...I-I don't want to..."
"Both of you, let go."
There was no helping it. I forcibly pulled my hands free and crossed my arms, then hardened my expression to stop their standoff. Millia and Elisa immediately stopped and began fidgeting as they watched my reaction.
"Y-Yohan... are you mad?"
"..."
"Uh, um, ah, uh..."
What was with this mood? Why had the atmosphere sunk as if I'd thrown a bucket of cold water over everyone? I hadn't made that heavy an expression.
I was about to say something about the baffling situation, but before I could, the Saintess's benevolent lips parted first.
"Yohan. They both just got a little worked up, so please understand."
Why was she trying to placate me? I was not angry. Before I could say so, however, Reni’s two-hit combo struck without mercy.
"You look like you're about to drown somebody alive, so relax your face a little."
Why was she taking swings at my innocent face? Did I really look that scary? I'd always just let it slide until now, but it was about time I asked.
"Reni. Do I really look that scary?"
"I can’t say you don’t look scary."
The answer came without a shred of hesitation, and my spirit nearly broke. I'd rather you sugarcoat it a little. Like Karina would...
"It's okay! They say a person's inner self matters more than their appearance!"
"Please... don't say any more..."
If a guy said it, I'd at least raise hell about it, but when you girls say it like that, it just stings.
"It's okay! I'm not even looking at your face anyway, Yohan!"
"M-Me neither."
Was I supposed to be grateful for that or not? The more they tried to console me, the more complicated my feelings got.
Perhaps it was worth looking into plastic surgery.
In the game, customization items could replace even a face that looked ready to drown someone with a smile. But since that had probably existed only as a game convenience, there was a good chance no such item existed here...
...Still, the Screenshot existed as an actual item, so I couldn't rule it out.
The Blessing might also be useful for other purposes, so it would be worth obtaining if possible. I added the Shadow Goddess’s Blessing to my mental notes.
"I don't really mind it, so it's fine."
Knowing I could swap my face out put my mind at ease. The Shadow Goddess's Blessing wasn't an easy item to come by, but it wasn't something you absolutely couldn't get either. Though with its other uses, it would be a bit of a waste to use it just for changing my face...
"S-So you're coming with me to the market, right?"
"I said I'm going, so stop shaking me."
I wasn't sure how the conversation had drifted in that direction, but I had business at the market myself, so I was going anyway. I wanted to buy anything worth researching, and I wanted to check whether events you could run into at the market actually appeared in reality.
Most were bittersweet romance events, but one event and one subquest would yield useful items, so they were worth attempting.
To survive, I'd have to scrape up every single game element I could remember.
"Millia. You said it was tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah!"
"...If you want to go tomorrow, don’t you have to finish studying today?"
"Ah."
At my words, a visibly flustered expression spread across Millia's face.
"That's right. You've still got a mountain of studying left."
At Karina's subsequent decree, Millia's face crumpled into a pout. So studying wasn't fun for her. Looking at the thick books piled on the corner table, that figured. But it was the path she'd chosen herself, so she'd just have to deal with it. I patted Millia on the back to encourage her.
"It's the academy you wanted to go to. Grit your teeth and hang in there."
"You're so mean!"
"M-Millia is coming to our academy too...?"
"Yeah! To the General Studies Department, though!"
Millia had no exceptional talent for magic, nor any obvious aptitude as a warrior or alchemist, so it was the only department available to her. That did not make the General Studies Department inferior.
After all, the empire’s bureaucrats came from the General Studies Department. Students could also transfer departments, like at a university.
It wasn't all that rare for professors to pick up students who seemed to have talent in other fields, so if she was lucky, she might be able to move to another department.
"If you'd had faith, you could have attended the Theology Department with me... It's such a shame."
Karina's face was genuinely regretful. Well, having someone you could talk to comfortably made a huge difference, so that was only natural. There were really very few people who could talk easily with Karina.
"It's okay! They said you can take one class from another department too! So we can take at least one class together!"
"Theology Department classes are probably hard, though. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
"They're hard?"
"Yes. Very."
"Hmm... I still wanna do it!"
"Then starting today, I’ll add Fundamentals of Theology to your study subjects."
"F-For real?"
Millia was being crushed by a disaster of her own making.
I roughly tousled Millia's hair as she looked at Karina with an expression of sheer horror.
Laughter burst out without any one person starting it.
-----------------
What did I need to prepare before going to the market?
Money? Obviously. I wasn't a beggar, and I wasn't going to panhandle.
Self-defense equipment? It'd be useful, but walking around with my shovel strapped to my back would be a bit much. Since I could use the Craft Skill without tools, I could rely on that instead.
And finally...
"Try this one on, too!"
I picked up the clothes Millia had handed me and turned them over this way and that. It was a suit... but with my build and face, wouldn't people mistake me for a hitman? I wasn't sure if the concept of a hitman even existed here, though...
"Are my clothes really that important?"
"If I just let you be, Yohan, you'll throw on whatever and go out! Black pants and a red jacket—don't you think that's weird too?"
...Was that so?
Weren’t clothes something I could simply throw on? Millia must have read my expression, because she puffed out her cheeks, picked up another outfit from the bed, and held it against me.
"If you don't wanna wear that one, at least wear this!"
"It's a gambeson."
I took the garment, which looked like something I'd seen back in the military, and examined it.
This looked exactly like a padded combat jacket. Actually putting on something I'd only ever seen in movies or dramas was a strange feeling. It was a kind of fantasy, I supposed, but fantasies were fantasies precisely because they stayed unfulfilled. Still, it was wearable enough, so I'd put it on.
I pulled the medieval padded jacket over my shirt. Wearing it in such warm weather felt ridiculous, but it offered a minimum of protection and was therefore practical. Maybe I would buy several and rotate them. Lining the inside with sturdy leather could provide respectable defense.
"How is it?"
"Mm... you look like a thug!"
The assessment didn't change.
At this point, maybe I just looked like that no matter what I wore.
In the end, the face made the outfit.
Unless I replaced my whole face, there was no point in worrying about fashion or anything else, was there?
"Elisa's waiting, so let's get going."
"Mm... okay!"
Millia answered as though she had no choice, then trotted to the door and opened it. I followed her outside. Elisa was leaning against the wall, fidgeting with her hands and looking more dressed up than usual.
"Elisa. Sorry. Took longer than I thought."
"I-It's okay..."
Maybe it was because she was wearing makeup, unlike usual, but a lot of Elisa's usual gloom had faded. If she went around like this every day, she might even make a friend or two.
The way she kept stealing glances at me while fidgeting made it obvious she wanted a compliment. What was I supposed to say? After a moment’s thought, I decided to answer plainly without decorative praise.
"You look pretty."
"...Ehehe... thank you."
Elisa's face flushed red as a rose in bloom.
It might sound strange to say so, but she had the kind of face that could charm several classmates. Her gloomy personality was the problem, but that could be improved with time.
"What about me? What about me, what about me?"
She immediately started pouting because I had not paid attention to her. I roughly tousled Millia’s hair.
"You're pretty too, don't worry."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Really."
"Heehee."
Just like yesterday, one of them grabbed my sleeve and the other grabbed my hand.
They seemed to have claimed their respective positions after only a day.
...Was this what being a father raising kids felt like?
"Didn't forget anything?"
"Y-yes..."
"Nope!"
"Then we're moving out."
I hoped nothing would happen.
With that wish in my heart, I stepped forward.