Frontline
After the monster attack was dealt with, our squad returned to the barracks, received our room assignments, and unpacked. We then headed to the soldiers' mess hall for lunch.
"You all heard earlier, right? We'll be meeting our squad leader this afternoon. I heard he's a veteran knight, so let's be careful."
A veteran meant at least three years of service. In any other job that might not mean much, but on the battlefield, three years created an enormous gap in experience. Even if Isis and Regina were the student council president and the imperial princess, we still had to show him respect. Besides, if he was our squad leader and also an academy graduate, then technically he was our senior.
Amidst the chatter and advice, the meal passed quickly. We decided to rest separately afterward. To help with digestion, I went out for a walk—and immediately regretted it.
Ah, fuck. Why are there so many couples?
Hand-holding was one thing, but every other sentence was followed by a barrage of kisses. They looked ready to start having sex right there if no one was watching. It made even less sense when I thought about the rules we'd been given. There was nothing about not bringing the opposite sex into the barracks, so why the hell were they doing this out here instead of going back to their rooms?
While I was grumbling to myself, a voice called out from behind.
"Huh? Luan! You're out for a walk too? What a coincidence."
It was Abel. He approached with Yuni, who looked effortlessly stylish beside him.
You two as well, huh.
The events at the festival seemed to have brought them even closer. If Sara hadn't been there, Yuni would probably still be glaring at me with hatred. There wouldn't have been any progress in her relationship with Abel either. The thought left a complicated feeling in my chest.
"You two dating now?"
"H-huh? W-what do you mean?"
"Look around. It's nothing but couples. Everyone who comes here must be thinking the same thing."
"Ah… you're right. But you're here alone, Luan."
Why was a guy with zero romantic experience even here? Abel probably didn't mean it that way, but that's exactly how it sounded to me. Time for the virgin to make his exit.
"Yeah. I don't even know why I came. I'm heading back. See you later."
"Ah, okay! See you!"
"Take care, Luan!"
Abel and Yuni waved me off. Ever since I'd betrayed Abel and fled during the end-of-semester evaluation, Yuni hadn't looked at me favorably. But saving Abel at the festival must have earned me some points. Her warm gaze overlapped with the contempt and fury I'd seen in Sara's eyes.
I left the walking path behind. On my way back to the barracks, I passed through a deserted alley when I heard voices.
"Ang! Aang… Nooo…"
"Stay still. You like it too."
"Hah, but… Haah!? N-not there!"
A painfully familiar situation.
This is bullshit.
The voices triggered my trauma, and I wanted to ignore it, but I still moved toward the source. Both the woman's and the man's voices were far too familiar.
Sure enough, when I stepped into the alley, I found Yas toying with Caelin Madres.
"Haang! Aaaang! Hah, stop it!"
"You like it too, don't you?"
Yas's red tongue flicked over her pink nipple. Greedily sucking on her breast with one hand while the other was shoved inside her panties, caressing her.
Tears glistened at the corners of Caelin's eyes.
One hundred percent.
If that cool noblewoman was crying, this clearly wasn't a consensual arrangement. Getting involved wasn't my style, but I couldn't let the idiot who'd approached me first and become my friend turn into a criminal. If I stopped him now, maybe it wasn't too late…
Or maybe it is?
Either way, I had to intervene.
"Yas. Stop."
The moment my shout echoed through the alley, Yas flinched and turned toward me. Caelin’s eyes widened in shock as well.
"H-huh!? Luan?"
"Ah!"
They'd been so absorbed that they hadn't noticed me approaching. At this rate, someone else would have caught them soon even if I hadn't shown up.
I sighed and gestured.
"Let Professor Caelin go first."
"…Ah, right! Got it!"
Though flustered, Yas seemed to grasp the gravity of the situation and quickly pulled away from Caelin. She hurriedly covered herself and turned her back to us.
"Yas. No matter how you look at it, this isn't okay."
"…Sorry."
"I heard you and Professor Caelin were getting along, so I thought it was mutual. What the hell is this? If I hadn't come, were you planning to rape her?"
He'd bragged about it during lunch, so I'd assumed even someone like him had found a partner. I never expected something like this. When I shook my head in disbelief, Yas tilted his head.
"…What? What do you mean?"
"What do you think I mean? Think about what you were just doing."
When I pointed at Caelin and the surroundings, Yas followed my finger, looked around, and let out an exclamation.
"Huh? Oh, oh! Aha? So that's what you thought. Nah, it's not like that."
"Not like what?"
"It's not rape or anything. I wouldn't do something like that no matter what. Rape is for scum. I'm not that low."
Was this bastard taking a shot at me? The remark was so cutting that my eyes narrowed. But Yas continued casually, oblivious to my mood.
"I'm disappointed you thought that of me."
"Then why were you doing that out in the open?"
"That was just… playing around."
"Playing around?"
"Yeah. Like, outdoor play or whatever. More accurately, we just didn't feel like walking all the way back to the barracks."
"……"
So they were so desperate to have sex that, with no one around, they decided to just do it right there—until I showed up. Somehow, that made me feel even worse.
No, seriously, why the hell were they making so much noise then?
If it was Caelin, casting a soundproofing spell should have been easy. I couldn't understand why she hadn't. When I looked at her, she had already fixed her clothes and spoke with an awkward expression.
"I… forgot to cast the spell. I remembered midway and asked Yas to stop, but he wouldn't listen… It felt so good that I couldn't chant the incantation."
"Is that so? Our professor is adorable no matter what, huh?"
Yas lightly pinched her cheek, grinning. The sight made me want to punch him in the face.
I was an idiot for worrying.
"Fuck, I'm leaving."
"Huh? You're going?"
"Yeah. If I catch you again, I'm throwing a punch first, so watch yourself."
"Hahaha! You hang in there too. You'll get a girlfriend someday."
"Shut up!"
Whenever he went on about women, women, women, I'd wished someone would date him already. But now that it was actually happening, nothing had ever felt more disgusting. Muttering curses under my breath, I left the alley and returned to the barracks.
*
"Greetings. I'm Ser dik, the new squad leader. Please take care of me."
Clap clap clap clap clap clap!
With the sun high overhead, we faced our squad leader on the training grounds. Ser dik was a man in his mid-twenties with blond hair and brown eyes. His level was probably on par with Isis and Regina. Having spent three years on the front lines, he likely graduated from the academy with mid-tier grades. The way he kept glancing at Isis and Regina showed he was honest about his feelings. His intentions were so obvious that it actually lowered my guard. At least he didn't look like a member of the Dark Cult.
Anyway.
"Starting tomorrow, you'll be operating as a squad under my command. Since we'll be moving through dangerous areas, you'll encounter monsters often. There can be no mistakes. First, let me explain the basic signals."
Ser dik looked somewhat awkward but explained everything smoothly. He was clearly qualified to be a squad leader. Once the explanations were over, we moved on to practical training using the simulator. We'd already done it to death for a week, so there were no mistakes. Ser dik matched our pace with his wealth of real combat experience. In the end, everything that needed to be done was finished before two hours had even passed.
"As expected, you're all excellent. Let's end the training here. You should rest and recover your stamina for tomorrow."
"Yes. Thank you for your hard work, Squad Leader."
"Not at all. I was also taught by senior knights back in the day. My juniors are far more capable than I was. See you tomorrow."
After Ser dik left with a greeting, we headed to the bathhouse. This place used a public bath. It made sense for the military. Providing individual shower stalls for every soldier would have been far too inefficient. That made me a little worried about Isis.
She won't do anything weird, right?
It was already public knowledge that Regina was in love with Isis. Using the excuse that they were both women, there was no telling what she might try. While I was lost in thought, Isis met my eyes as if she'd noticed my gaze.
"Luan. What's wrong? Is something bothering you?"
"…No, it's nothing. But I heard that same-sex relationships have become popular in the military lately. Especially in the bathhouse, you have to be careful."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. So even if someone tries to touch you, you should refuse, Sister. And don't trust anyone who says it's okay just because you're both women."
"I see. Understood."
Isis nodded innocently. There wasn't a single trace of suspicion toward me in her expression. Instead, Regina shot me a murderous glare. She had definitely been planning to use the "we're both women" excuse to get handsy with Isis in the bath. I smirked at her.
What, glaring at me? What are you gonna do about it?
That was all Regina could do. If she didn't want her lesbian tendencies exposed, she couldn't afford to resist.
While I was locked in a staring contest with Regina, I spotted Deborah passing by.
"Deborah? What a coincidence. You heading to the bath too?"
"…Yes. We finished early."
I recalled that the mages had been analyzing mana circuits in the afternoon. As expected of a top student, she'd finished quickly. I casually pointed at the group and suggested,
"Really? Perfect timing. Want to go together? We're heading there too."
"…Together?"
"Yeah. Is that a problem?"
When I backed off at her hesitant response, Deborah lowered her head apologetically as if she'd been waiting for the chance.
"I'm sorry. Actually, I have plans to meet someone."
"Plans? We just finished. Who?"
If they were meeting in front of the bathhouse, it had to be someone I knew. Curious, I asked, but the answer was completely different from what I'd expected.
"You probably don't know them. We only became close recently. Anyway, I don't have much time, so I'll be going. Sorry!"
"Huh? Hey! Deborah!"
Deborah disappeared around the corner at full speed before I could even grab her. Did she really have to rush that much? While I stood there dumbfounded, Regina, who had been glaring at me, approached and sneered.
"Oh my? What do we have here? Did you two have a fight?"
"……"
"Since you're not saying anything, I guess that's a yes? Don't tell me you confessed? Women don't like sudden confessions like that. Romance is something you build up gradually."
The sight of someone who'd never dated giving relationship advice was infuriating. I held back the urge to punch her in the stomach when Isis cut in.
"Luan. Is that true? Did you confess?"
"No. That's not it."
"Then? Did you fight?"
"I don't know. I don't remember anything like that."
"Really? How strange."
As she spoke, Isis's eyes sparkled. I was wondering why she looked oddly pleased when Regina's mocking expression suddenly stiffened.
What? Do they know something?
I glanced between the two, wondering if they'd figured out why Deborah was avoiding me, but quickly realized that was unlikely and turned toward the path Deborah had taken.
I need to have a serious talk with her soon.
This couldn't go on.