Chapter 154: A conversation in prison

Translated by LoliQ

“I see, so the other party accepted it…….that’s good. For now, we can say that things went well.” (Eveam)

Eveam was relieved to hear the reply they had received from the beastmen. This way, there would be no more deaths than needed for both parties. Of course, there’s no telling what would happen to the 『Evila』 if they were to lose.

Just in case, they had used a 《Contract Roll》 for the agreement and within it was the promise to not indiscriminately kill the loser’s people or perform other such actions. Even so, the likelihood that they would be able to continue living as they had up until now was low.

“The loser will have to obey the winner”. In other words, the loser would essentially have to become the winner’s subordinate. However, this agreement was not perfect. There was a possibility of the other party committing suicide and betraying the winner.

However, that insecurity was dispelled by Aquinas.

“They won’t go back on their word once they have decided upon it. I believe that is the pride of the 『Gabranth』. That’s why, up until now, there has never been a situation in which they have betrayed someone. At the very least, if the current Beast King accepts our demand, they’ll likely follow him due to sentimental reasons. And in the event that we win, Your Majesty has no intention of oppressing them, right?” (Aquinas)

“Of course.” (Eveam)

“Then, there’s no need to be dissatisfied. All that’s left is to take the time to communicate with them in a way that will allow them to understand our true intentions, correct?” (Aquinas)

“I see…yeah, that’s right.” (Eveam)

“But, in order to do that, we need to win at all costs.”(Aquinas)

“Yeah, you are exactly right. Let’s beat them head on, fair and square!” (Eveam)

Seeing Eveam clenching her fist strongly, Aquinas exhaled as his face relaxed.

“But, to think we chose this kind of method. Marione’s jaw dropped as though it would never close again, you know?” (Aquinas)

“Hahaha. Actually, this method was thought of……..by Hiiro.” (Eveam)

“Hiiro?” (Aquinas)

“Y-Yeah.” (Eveam)

The contents of what Eveam had demanded of the Gabranth this time, were part of a plan devised by Hiiro. When she had a talk with Hiiro, she blurted out how she wanted to resolve this war peacefully.

At that time, Hiiro laughed and teased her, while telling her that she spoke too naively. Naturally, Eveam understood what Hiiro was trying to say. However, she couldn’t agree with his remark and got mad.

After Eveam became sullen for a short period of time, Hiiro spoke these words to her.

“There’s no such thing as a war that doesn’t hurt anybody. If you don’t want anyone to get hurt, then you should make it so that there is no reason for any wars to begin.” (Hiiro)

That was only natural. In response, she told Hiiro that she had also put in much effort in order to do that.

“Once a war starts, there is no guarantee that you can stop it without casualties. However, damage can be reduced depending on the opponent. I have an idea. Well, maybe I should call it a kind of naive fantasy, and it’s a foolish plan that could probably be found in some hot-blooded action manga or something, but…….” (Hiiro)

After saying that, he reluctantly began to teach her about the method used this time.

“Hou, so this ridiculous proposal was Hiiro’s, huh?” (Aquinas)

As he said that, Aquinas gave a seemingly satisfied expression.

“Still, I’m surprised you decided to go with that plan.”(Aquinas)

“It can’t be helped right? At this rate, we would keep fighting until one of us is destroyed. That alone is absolutely no good. That being the case, I thought that if we went to our opponent’s home-ground, they’d be willing to listen to what we have to say. ” (Eveam)

“I see, so this method is only possible because the opponent is the 『Gabranth』, huh?” (Aquinas)

“Yeah, although this method certainly won’t end with absolutely no injuries, at the very least, we should be able to get off with minimal damage. Also, unlike for our opponents, the proposal is clearly disadvantageous for us. If we are able to defeat them despite that, our opponents wouldn’t be able to say anything about it.” (Eveam)

“Fu..you seem to be pretty determined.. Is that also because of Hiiro ?” (Aquinas)

“U-Umu. Well, yeah.” (Eveam)

She looked the other way in embarra.s.sment.

“Well, they certainly have the advantage, but if they lose despite having been in such an advantageous position, even the 『Gabranth』 would have to recognize it. Their own defeat, that is.” (Aquinas)

“Ah, Hiiro also said that!” (Eveam)

Aquinas stared at Eveam, who joyfully expressed a smile. Noticing his gaze, she hastily turned away from him as her face became bright red.

“……Fuu.” (Aquinas)

Eveam saw Aquinas, who wore a smile that seemed to have some hidden meaning contained within it.

“Hey, do you have something to say?!” (Eveam)

“Nope, you should be just like that and continue to change yourself little by little.” (Aquinas)

His expression vaguely resembled that of a parent watching over his child affectionately.

(^_^)/

“Eh..What are y…. ?” (Eveam)

As Eveam spoke, Aquinas turned around and started walking off elsewhere.

“Where are you going, Aquinas?” (Eveam)

“…… I’m just going for a stroll.”(Aquinas)

She stared at Aquinas’ back as he departed.

“…What was that all about..?” (Eveam)

She tilted her still feverish face in confusion.

“Funya ~, My body still hurts nya~” (Crouch)

The individual that said that as he lay on a straw while rolling about was one of the 《Three Warriors》, Crouch.

Having lost to Hiiro, he was taken as a prisoner of war and thrown in jail.

“Uhh~as expected, my body is still white nya~” (Crouch)

Staring at his hand, he sighed, as his fur, which should have been black, was currently white like snow.

“It’s the 《Rebound》 from having summoned those big-shots all at once after all, nya… I might be stuck like this until the next full moon.” (Crouch)

Furthermore, not only had his fur turned white, his height had also clearly changed. When he was black, his body was st.u.r.dy and tall, but now, he was no taller than a child. His chest also swelled a bit. It was obviously the body of a girl.

“Uhh~I’m bored-nya~” (Crouch)

Crouch rolled around and then suddenly stopped. She then started to remember that person.

“…… Hiiro..huh?” (Crouch)

Having battled with him, Crouch recalled the person who had defeated her with his overwhelming power.

“Red robe…Gla.s.ses…And also, that scent.” (Crouch)

When they fought, Hiiro’s scent entered her nose and she experienced a sense of discomfort.

“Why does he smell like Tarou-nya?” (Crouch)

Unfortunately, there was n.o.body to retort “It’s because they’re the same person.” When she first met Hiiro, he was disguised as a beastman and refused to give his real name, instead calling himself Tanaka Tarou. However, his red robe, gla.s.ses, and scent were all the same.

That was why she was unnecessarily confused. If she knew that Hiiro could change his appearance, she would know the reason immediately, but sadly, Crouch wasn’t aware of that fact.

“………… Aah! Forget it !” (Crouch)

She rolled about again.

“Who cares-nya! More importantly, I want to fight him again-nya!　I want to meet with Hiiro-nya!” (Crouch)

Her shrill voice resounded throughout the jail. The other beastmen, who were similarly captured and imprisoned there said, “Ah, she’s irritated again.” and exasperated sighs could be heard from all over the place.

As this had occurred numerous times already, the prison guards also gave off an atmosphere of resignation as they simply shrugged their shoulders. However, it was not like they could leave her with no words of warning at all.

“Hey, quiet down a bit, would you?” (Prison Guard)

The guard’s tone was a bit gentle, probably because Crouch’s appearance was clearly that of a child. While she certainly was an enemy, it still felt awkward to one-sidedly treat a child as a target of their resentment.

“Uu~Call Hiiro here-nya~” (Crouch)

“I already told you that it’s impossible, right? That person is the country’s saviour, and is truly worthy of being called a hero.There’s no way I could bring him to this kind of place.” (Prison Guard)

“Nya? Is Hiiro that popular nya?” (Crouch)

“Well, I guess so. That’s what everyone who saw him fight directly would say. Even more, that person blew up the bridge by himself, you know? To do that much for us 《Evila》, if we didn’t call him a hero, then just what would we call him?”

(Prison Guard)

The Prison Guard’s eyes glittered, staring at the distance with envy.

“The bridge!? By himself?! Amazing nya…… “(Crouch)

Crouch knew that there had been quite a few forces deployed to defend the bridge. To penetrate through that defence alone, Crouch’s eyes glittered at the thought of Hiiro, who had single-handedly destroyed the bridge.

Crouch didn’t doubt the man’s words at all. She was capable of judging that he was serious based on his appearance.

“What’s even more surprising is the fact that that person was actually a『Humas』, you know?” (Prison Guard)

“……..heh? What do you mean by 『Humas』, nya?” (Crouch)

“Well, it seems that he’s capable of using Transformation magic, but his original appearance is that of a 『Humas』. Still, to think there was a person like that amongst the humans. He’s completely different from the ones in 《Victorias》. Ah, but that person also originally came from 《Victorias》…….is it alright to say that?” (Prison Guard)

“…… What do you mean-nya?” (Crouch)

Crouch’s face turned serious as she began to probe for information. The man, caught up in his own world, didn’t notice. He was drunk with his own words.

“Nothing. Just that he seems to have been summoned along with the heroes.” (Prison Guard)

“…………” (Crouch)

“Well, he doesn’t seem to be a hero himself. They say that he just somehow got dragged into the summoning, so he came here…Oi, are you listening?” (Prison Guard)

Seeing that she wasn’t replying, he grew curious and peered at her cell. Unlike earlier, she was quietly lying on top of the straw. Looking at her current appearance, he had a moment of realization and regained his composure.

“d.a.m.n. Was it alright to tell her that?” (Prison Guard)

Realizing that he had unintentionally heated up and leaked information to the enemy, the prison guard grew agitated. However, seeing that she wasn’t moving, he figured that she may have fallen asleep. He clasped his hands in prayer, hoping within his heart that she would forget everything. Then, just like that, he continued his work.

However, Crouch did not plan on forgetting anything about that conversation. The reason being that now, she knew that Hiiro and Tarou were connected.

(Transformation……I see, nya…… so they were the same person after all, nya!) (Crouch)

She felt excitement swell up in her heart. As a result, her earlier desire to see him grew even stronger.

Not to mention, she heard an interesting story.

(Not only that, but to think he was someone from another world……how interesting-nya! Hiiro really is interesting nya!) (Crouch)

Crouch smiled, as her cheeks blushed.

“Nyahaha………… Nyahaha………… Nyahaha…………” (Crouch)

For a while, only her laughter could be heard resounding throughout the prison. Incidentally, as the prison guards found her laughing voice creepy, it seems that they remained silent.