Relief Pitcher Charles

Translator : Elizabeth

Thanks to everyone injured in the clash between the two interdimensional transferees in Cheonan unanimously submitting petitions not desiring punishment, the disciplinary committee no longer had any justification to punish Lily and Yukino.

If someone had died or significant property damage had occurred due to their battle, the story would ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠have been different, but the location was where the lake park used to be, so it was a bit far from people's homes, and the injured people said they didn't want punishment.

Eventually, the disciplinary committee ended with just a strict warning to Lily and Yukino, adding that the two would receive particularly stricter surveillance instead.

It was a disposition a hundred, a thousand times better than being sent to the Special Management Bureau.

Sweeping my chest with relief, I lightly chided the two.

"Phew, we survived. You two, consider yourselves extremely lucky not to go to the Special Management Bureau. If you get sent there, you'll live a life forever separated from the word freedom. You'll live oppressed like, say, the Uyghur people in Xinjiang. Ah, maybe you won't understand even if I say this."

In the worlds of the two, there was nothing exactly corresponding to the Special Management Bureau.

The one who knows that situation best is my other wife, but she... if she heard this story, her trigger button would probably be pressed, and she would manifest in her true body and try to smash everything here.

Lily, who still hadn't quite grasped exactly what kind of disposition she would have received, tilted her head slightly and asked.

"Still, I could have continued my research, right?"

"Do you think that would be allowed? All your ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠research books would have been confiscated and probably used as kindling."

"What...? Then what would I end up doing there?"

"Forced sleep and wake-up at set times, labor all morning and afternoon, a life where you can only eat meals from a set menu and can't eat even one thing you want as you please. Cold showers in summer and winter. You can't even read books as you please."

"Th-Then... Then what about my ramen...?"

"There is... no such thing!"

Only then did Lily, realizing she had really almost been in big trouble, gasp and fidget.

Seeming to have something to say to me, she opened and closed her mouth repeatedly while twisting her fingers.

"Umm... Th... Th... Tha..."

Hmm, she must want to say thank you.

It seems the shock is great hearing that she almost lived a life where she couldn't even eat her favorite ramen as she pleased.

And Lily, perhaps having made up her mind, squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.

"I, I won't say thank you! If you think about it, this all happened because of you anyway! And do you think I would have obediently entered such a place? If push came to shove, I would have just smashed it and escaped, and that would be it!"

So she wasn't thankful!

Stubborn and prideful Lily screamed like that and ran away via teleportation while avoiding my gaze.

Even if she went, it would just be inside her accommodation room, but I judged it would be better to leave her alone for a moment right now.

When I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shifted my gaze to Yukino, she bowed her head while dyeing her snow-white cheeks red.

Actually, for me too, this situation was very unexpected.

Among the wives I met in each of the 4 worlds, I thought even if the other three caused trouble, Yukino would be the one person not to cause trouble, but she committed it splendidly as soon as she arrived...

Since Yukino was always the one fixing accidents and never the one causing trouble, she didn't know what to do, as if her current situation was quite unfamiliar.

Yukino, rolling her eyes here and there while looking only at the ground, stammered as if searching for words just like Lily earlier.

"Umm... You... That..."

And lifting her head, she looked at me and said.

"I won't say thank you either. Since it happened because of you."

You're not thankful either!

"But... Yes, you must have run around a bit to gather opinions not wanting my punishment. For that point... you worked hard. Then..."

Yukino bowed slightly and tried to return to her room hurriedly.

...... Hmm? Her room?

I felt something strange and stared at Yukino quietly, and a moment later, perhaps thinking the same thing as me, she stopped her departing steps and stood blankly.

"Yukino? You haven't received room assignment or anything, so where are you going?"

"......"

"You don't even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠have a place to go, right? Seeing the shrine earlier, it seems you're the only one transported."

"......"

"You don't know the way here either, right?"

"......"

"Go up to the 5th floor by stairs, and the 2nd room from the right is my personal office. If you go there and sit, I'll go a bit later and tell you what you need."

"Th-You should say such things in advance, don't embarrass me!"

Yukino, her face redder than before, ran up the stairs dadada.

After the two disappeared, Charles hummed while winding her tail around my arm.

"Heheh, I'm glad it resolved well, Senior?"

"Yeah, indeed. Thanks, Charles. Thanks to you, we survived. But why did you suddenly change your mind after getting so angry saying you wouldn't help?"

"Well, seeing Senior running around so hard that your feet sweated to gather petitions, I felt like helping as a junior. Although I'm still a bit angry about the reason you asked."

Umm, honestly I have absolutely no idea why that is a reason to be angry, but since she says she was angry, and it's true she gave me big help, I think it's right to just play along here.

"I see. I'm sorry."

"Do you know what you're sorry for?"

"Um..."

Feeling like I became a boyfriend caught in a bind, I shut my mouth again, and Charles sighed lightly and smirked.

"Never mind. Actually, it's just my whining too. Anyway, Senior, I was a huge help, right?"

"O-Of course! You were tremendously helpful!"

"Then the promise to grant my wish is still valid too, right?"

Come to think of it, I made such a promise when asking Charles initially.

I nodded.

"Of course. Naturally, I must keep it. Is there anything you want?"

Charles answered my question immediately.

"Then Senior, buy me a meal! Something I want! I can pick the restaurant, right?"

"Hmm? Just a meal? Is that okay?"

"Because I'm going to ask you to buy something expensive. You'd better be prepared?"

"O, O, Okay..."

Charles isn't the type to say empty words, so if she says openly she'll ask for something expensive, just how expensive of a thing will she demand?

Of course, since she prevented my wives from being sent to the Special Management Bureau, I will buy whatever it is no matter how expensive.

Even if she demands Omakase...

"Then if there's something you want to eat, decide and let me know. If you tell me the date too, I'll match that day as much as possible. Then I have to go to work again immediately—"

Since I also promised to treat Charles generously, now I had to go care for Yukino, but my arm was held by something and wouldn't move.

Squeeze—

"...?"

Turning my head, Charles's tail was still wrapped around my arm like a snake, showing no thought of letting go.

"Do you have something more to say?"

When I asked Charles who wouldn't let me go, she blinked a few times, pricked her cat ears, and asked.

"Senior, but is what you said before true?"

"What I said before?"

"Why, when we went to Cheonan, you looked at that transferee named Yukino and said she was Senior's wife. Are you two really in that kind of relationship?"

Ah, she was curious about that.

Well, right now in Korea, I'm the only person who has experienced the situation of 'having been involved with people from other worlds while both parties are in Korea.'

After I was transported from the fourth world, the Murim of Central Plains, to Korea, I can't even count how many times I received similar interviews.

Back then, entertainment reporters followed me almost like stalkers and poured out questions, but that was already 3 years ago.

But why is she asking such an out-of-fashion question now?

"Umm... It's a bit embarrassing to say with my own mouth, but... among the worlds I traveled, there was a place called Omitamano. Yukino was a shrine maiden there, and as I helped her work and traveled together... Ahem, well, it happened like that..."

Perhaps it was just my feeling, but Charles's pupils looked vertical for a moment.

Charles squeezed the tail wrapped around my arm tighter and asked again.

"Then is that transferee named Lily the same too?"

"Uh... Ahem! Ah, this is really a bit embarrassing to say in words... I met Lily in a world called Astraia... Yeah, well, similarly, as we adventured this way and that... Hmm hmm, Charles? You can't tell this to anyone?"

"So you mean you kept local wives separately in each different world?"

"L-Local wives! I didn't do something a promiscuous libertine would do; I clearly married only one person, but as I kept getting transported, the situation became like that..."

"But since two of them gathered here, isn't the result the same?"

"Um..."

Before I knew it, Charles's ears were pressed flat to the sides as much as possible.

Glaring at me with a shadowed expression, Charles spat out a word with a thorn in it.

"This promiscuous libertine, enemy of women. Senior, you really are the worst."

"S-Sorry..."

But why am I apologizing?

"If you don't satisfy me when buying the meal, I won't forgive you."

Only then did Charles unwrap the tail wound around my arm and let me go.

"Then Senior, you may go now."

"Uh... Okay, thanks."

Thinking that Charles's behavior has been quite strange lately, I went up to my office where Yukino was waiting.

......

After Jung Hyun-soo went up, Charles tapped her foot on the spot, feeling very displeased.

"So you mean both those two women are wives? Now I understand why they fought while screaming like that."

She didn't know how much the two women knew about each other, but she understood the general situation.

Charles glanced sideways at the direction of the stairs Jung Hyun-soo went up and muttered.

"To think he had a libertine and lecher temperament, Senior is quite unexpected? He didn't show a single hint of that to me, so I wondered if he might be a eunuch. You mean he went around making two local wives? It's a bit detestable and pissing me off but... Heheh, after all, the only woman who understands and embraces even such a Senior is me. I have no choice but to generously cover for him."

Charles brought her tail, which she had wrapped around Jung Hyun-soo's forearm, to her nose and smelled it.

Smelling the tail thoroughly covered in Jung Hyun-soo's body scent, she felt ecstatic.

"Haaaaah...♥"

Feeling her lower abdomen heating up slightly, Charles headed to her accommodation room first for a moment before returning to work.