Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Promotion?
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[I am human.]
I wrote that one sentence on the test paper and held it out to Lucy.
Lucy's pupils dilated sharply.
Bigger than I'd ever seen before.
She stared at me intently for a while, as if trying to gauge whether I was serious.
After staring at me for a long time, she slowly spoke.
"I don't know exactly what you mean by saying you're human. You're a goblin right now."
[Originally, I was human. One day, I suddenly turned into a goblin.]
I continued the conversation by writing in the empty space on the test paper.
"Really."
She asked in a low tone.
-Nod.
I clenched my fists tight and nodded firmly.
From now on, I really had to sell this well.
If I did, I'd gain a solid ally, but if I screwed up, I'd lose this once-in-a-lifetime chance.
"Hard to believe. I don't sense any traces of magic in your body."
[I don't remember being hit by any magic either. I died, and when I opened my eyes, I had turned into a goblin.]
"Died? How."
[Stabbed to death by my wife.]
I was sleeping in my room when my wife burst in with a kitchen knife and butchered me.
I really hadn't done anything wrong.
I'd just shoved the paternity test results in her face and demanded a divorce since the kid wasn't mine.
I'd told everyone around us she was a cheating slut and that I wouldn't give her a dime in the settlement...
Honestly, doesn't that still make me innocent? I'd raised some other guy's kid as my own for years.
"I see."
Lucy took it in stride, nonchalant.
Normally, you'd ask for more details on a story like that, but she's really something else.
It's convenient she doesn't pry, but it stings a bit too—does she really have zero interest in me?
"Did you ever meet the Demon King back when you were human? Question."
[No. Never once.]
"Then they must have taken your corpse after you died. Or maybe just your soul."
Lucy seemed convinced the Demon King was behind me becoming a goblin.
Is the Demon King really powerful enough to manipulate souls from another world?
If he's that much of a monster, how the hell did they seal him away?
"All this reasoning holds only if what you're saying is true."
"... ."
Still can't believe me, huh?
"You lack any common sense a normal person would have. No clue why the Demon King would do such an experiment. Still suspicious."
"... ."
I hung my head low.
So it comes to this after all. No proof to back up that I was human.
Back on Earth, I could've proven it with something only I knew. But this is another world—no familiar faces anywhere.
Guess I can't escape lab rat status...
"But if you're telling the truth, we shouldn't treat you like an experiment subject."
I lifted my bowed head just a bit.
If it's wrong to treat me like an experiment, then what?
"Work as my assistant from now on."
My mind blanked out for a second. So unexpected.
Assistant? Me?
"I'll keep you close and watch you. Prove you're human."
Only then did it sink in. She calls it "assistant," but she just means surveillance.
"Doesn't matter if you're called human or monster. Words are just words."
Behind Lucy's blank face, I saw her steely resolve.
"Even if you were human, if you don't act human, I'll toss you out."
Gulp. I swallowed hard on reflex.
"On the flip side, even if you're the Demon King's lackey, if you prove your humanity, I'll take you in."
My heart raced. Her blunt honesty was almost captivating.
If I didn't like Sera so much, I might've actually fallen for her.
If Sera shoots me down clean, maybe confess to Lucy?
"If you don't want to be my assistant, I can keep treating you like an experiment subject."
-Shake shake shake!
I shook my head furiously.
"Then we're partners."
-Nod nod!
I nodded vigorously.
"Alright, then."
Lucy suddenly thrust out her palm.
Way bigger than mine, but her fingers were pale white and slender—beautiful.
Perfectly smooth skin without a single blemish. For a moment, I thought it was a sculpture.
"Take care of me, Gob."
I stared blankly at that hand for a few seconds.
Second time. This made twice someone had reached out to me.
"You don't know what it is, do you? It's a 'high five.' Just slap palms together."
"Kihic."
A chuckle slipped out.
As if I'm some idiot who wouldn't know that.
I stuck out my right hand and smacked it against hers—chap!
Looking up at her, I grinned as wide and bright as I could.
"No need to bare your fangs. High fives aren't for fighting—they're a greeting."
That was a smile...
I wonder if we'll ever get close enough that she reads my expressions like Sera does.
Still a long road ahead.
『Sera's Perspective』
Sera clutched her pounding head and groped for water.
She snatched the pitcher from the bedside table and chugged it down in one go.
"Haa..."
She let out a long sigh. Another nightmare today.
Nightmares weren't anything new. Last night, two nights ago, a week ago—they kept coming.
Just hit too hard to get used to.
I need to go see Lucy.
She couldn't keep going like this. If she didn't fix this insomnia somehow, she'd waste away to nothing.
I'd rather just die...
If death was an option, it'd be a relief—but she couldn't even die, and the torment was killing her anyway.
...
Sera set off to find Lucy.
[Lab 1] sign.
Lucy's main haunt was Lab 1, so she started there.
-Knock knock.
Sera rapped on the door.
"Come in."
Lucy's voice.
Sera shoved the door open and stepped into the lab.
She scanned the room.
Desk crammed with all sorts of materials.
Bones, vials, herbs, feathers, mushrooms, fruits—you name it.
A grotesque stench wafted from the cauldron, assaulting her nose. Inside, ingredients boiled in a chaotic stew.
One goblin stirring the pot with a ladle, swishing away.
Sweat pouring off it—looked grueling.
It kept sneaking glances at Sera, like she bothered it.
"Lucy."
Sera called out, forcing her nerves to settle.
"What's up."
Lucy set down the bone shard in her hand and turned to Sera.
"Why is that here?"
She jabbed a finger at the goblin.
"My assistant. It agreed to help out."
Casual as if she'd hired day labor.
Her usual laid-back vibe made Sera's eyebrow twitch.
"That's it? Don't you think it needs more explaining?"
"What more explanation?"
Lucy's oblivious attitude scraped at Sera's frayed nerves.
Insomnia had her mind already in tatters.
"Are you insane? That's a monster."
Sera's voice dropped cold.
"So what."
"...Hah."
An incredulous laugh escaped her.
"Well, that's you alright."
Something she felt watching Lucy: their sense of normal was worlds apart from the start.
Longtime comrades or not, it could be infuriatingly frustrating sometimes.
"To you, humans and monsters might as well be the same?"
"Humans and monsters are totally different species."
"Not what I mean—which do you like more, humans or monsters?"
Decades of battle comrades vs. decades of blood-soaked foes.
Any normal person would side with their ally, obviously.
"No preference for any race."
Lucy was anything but normal.
"...Figured you'd say that."
Sera sagged, like she'd collapse any second.
Lucy had no heart. No joy, no sorrow—just curiosity.
Even joining the hero party was probably boredom relief.
Emotionless freak. That's how Sera sized her up.
"If that goblin and I fell in water together, who do you save first?"
Sera knew it was childish.
But childish meant primal. Nothing cut straighter to priorities.
Who's more important. Who weighs heavier in her heart.
"Telekinesis. Save you both at once."
Lucy answered flatly.
To Sera, it rang like: you're as important as that goblin.
"...Decades together, and I'm still goblin-tier to you."
She could've said she'd let every goblin in the world die without a care—as long as she saved Lucy first.
Was she less than a single goblin to Lucy?
"Sera, I—"
As Lucy started to reply,
Thud! A heavy thump echoed.
The goblin had keeled over right there.
Looked like exhaustion from stirring the pot got it.
Lucy rushed over without a second's hesitation.
"You hurt?"
The goblin shook its head, propping up its torso.
"Don't push it. Just lie there a bit."
Lucy cradled its head and eased it down.
"... ."
Sera watched, jaw clenched tight.
Lucy fussing over the goblin so tenderly—it churned something venomous inside her.
"What the hell do you even need trash like that for."
Sera spat venom and stormed out, slamming the door.
Heading down the hall to her room, a migraine slammed into her.
Agh... head's splitting...
She clutched her skull and curled up on the spot.
After huddling there a while...
Thud, thud—footsteps drawing near.
Who...?
Sera looked up toward the sound.
Someone rounding the corner spotted her and perked up puppy ears.