Second chapter. Now I am caught up in being enough chapters for one per week. Though, I’m pretty sure you guys would rather have the chapters out for that week instead of the number of chapters released for the number of weeks that pa.s.sed since the last release. Now, enough of my rambling. Enjoy.

Bernadette"s Feelings

h.e.l.lo there everyone, I am the Holy Ulquiorra Religious Organization"s nun and agent, Bernadette.

We have continued through about half of the Lake Bottom Historic Ruins layer but, goodness, right now, we"ve encountered a scene of carnage!

「To begin with, every little thing you made a fuss about would be "the princess this, the princess that". A lesbian? Are you a lesbian? It"s great for me every time I look, but I really don"t recommend such an unproductive action.」
「Could you not soil my and the Princesses" relationship with such coa.r.s.e and vulgar words? Though, well, I guess a man, moreover a pervert like you, Yuu, whose lower half and brain are connected wouldn"t be able to understand.」
「You just treated me like a pervert who can only feel s.e.xual desire for people, didn"t you!? I still haven"t forgiven you for completely getting in my way of having a bittersweet love design, you know!? You struck me with a high-rank magic just for holding hands with her, you tiny breasted lesbian Elf!!」
「That is actually what you are, isn"t it! I"m the one that hasn"t forgiven you, you know? Despite knowing that Olivia was disinterested in such things, at every opportunity, you would try to touch her b.u.t.t, or look for our underwear, how can you have the nerve to deny that such a person is the incarnation of s.e.xual desire?」
「Haa? You were also someone that looked for underwear. Wasn"t the one that you particularly favored the totally meaningless bra of Sylvia"s when it was wet with sweat after training?」
「Wha, wh-wh-wh-wh, Yuu, why do you know th……!?」
「It was by chance when I tried to peek on you guys bathing. Ukeke, whose mouth said something about the incarnation of s.e.xual desire again? I would weally like to be tawt that~ again~.」[1]
「……Yuu, who was the one that always made it so that the Princesses didn"t know about your bed-wetting, could you remind me~?」
「Wha, tha, bu, you, that"s not fair! That"s totally not something you should say as a human being, isn"t it!? Also, don"t make it sound like I did it every evening and every night!」
「Unfortunately for you, I am a High Elf.」
「I"m not talking about race, you donkey ears! Are you telling me that you don"t have a heart of mercy, oi……っ」
「There is no way I would have something like mercy for you……っ」

……Though I say a scene of carnage, in terms of its level, it"s a kid"s fight.

The beginning of all this was a serious event.
It was a difference of views between Fiona-san who revered Olivia-san, who was Saint-sama, as the Princess of a country against Yashiro-san"s Olivia-san who he had loved as a woman.
Both of them were correct, and both were thinking of Olivia-san, but Fiona was angry that Yashiro-san ran away from his Hero obligations and had lost his feelings towards Olivia-san. And Yashiro-san became angry from that Fiona-san"s words, and then as if giving t.i.t for tat with inflammatory words, it gradually became a belligerent conversation and……,

「You tiny breasted, ero Elf!」
「Shut up, enemy of women! Pervert!」

That is how it became this exchange of reckless remarks that was like a fight between children.

「I can"t tell if they get along well or not.」

I remember that Angelica-san the pirate muttered that sounding amazed.

「～～っ, I"m going to sleep!」
「Hmph. I"ll wake you up once it"s your turn for being lookout.」
「I know that!」

Looking like he had lost his temper, Yashiro-san entered the set up tent and left.

「This doesn"t look like the time to be inviting Yashiro-aniki to some training. ……Bernadette-nee-chan, what"ll you do? Want to take the rest first?」

Kuon-san looked at the tent and asked that.

「No, I"ll be the first lookout.」
「That so. Then I"ll see you later. ……Fuah～」

Making a cute yawn, Kuon-san went not into the tent that Yashiro-san went into, but another one.

「This is a surprise. I thought that you would have taken the rest first.」

At those words that she said while glaring at me, I reflexively made a wry smile.

「Ah, ahaha……It would seem that I am quite hated.」
「Sorry about that. If you"re going to blame anyone, blame Yuu.」

Words of rejection that had absolutely no signs of shyness about them. From those words, I was convinced.
Ahh, this woman, to this extent, she……

「It"s fine. ……But, could you please not get mad at Yashiro-san? ……The things about Yuu, from three years ago, I unreasonably asked him about it.」

About Yashiro-san, about Olivia-san……And then, about if he loved his comrades that he had once traveled with.

Fiona-san getting into a bad mood was also because Yashiro-san had seen my appearance in a swimsuit and had become lewd. Fiona-san couldn"t forgive that I, someone that wasn"t a former comrade, was being intimate with Yashiro-san.

「……」

Fiona-san"s eyes became about thirty percent sharper. It would seem that she went from caution to hostility.

「I had accompanied Yashiro-san who had been hiding his background as the Hero, selfishly felt like I had been betrayed, and then asked him. I asked 「Did you really let Saint-sama die without trying to help her?」」
「……You know, there"s no way he would have……」

Muttering as if she were straining herself, tears were rising up in Fiona"s eyes.

「Right. Looking back at it now, it"s embarra.s.sing. It"s just, at that time, I was confused about various things, and I couldn"t not ask about it. I mean, the man that I was gradually falling in love with was, the Hero that let the Saint-sama that I had admired for so long die without helping her……Having that kind of misunderstanding, I had no choice but to ask, don"t you think?」

When I said that, it looked to me like Fiona-san had a facial expression that said "as I thought".

「I, love Yashiro-san. Although he"s a bit lewd and slovenly, I love the Yashiro-san who possesses a kind heart. Although he"s immodest, I want to have a kiss from him. I want him to affectionately embrace me and whisper 「I love you」 close to my ear. This is a secret but, as long as it"s Yashiro-san, when he looks at me with lewd eyes, or when he rubs my chest, happiness just overflows with in me and I feel like I"m about to go crazy. It"s so fun, I"m so happy, it feels like I understand that this is what it means to fall in love with someone.」
「……You, and Yuu」

I swung my head sideways to the words that Fiona-san started to say and responded.

「I really love Yashiro-san. ……But, Yashiro-san loves Olivia-san. Yashiro-san loves Olivia-san more that I, more that "we" like Yashiro-san. ……That"s why, I, don"t have that kind of relationship with Yashiro-san.」

A genuine, pure, love.[2]

「It"s vexing. Despite having disappeared, Olivia-san has captured Yashiro-san"s heart and won"t part from it. It"s unfair, cruel. I had harbored such feelings against the Saint-sama that I had admired. I didn"t know that falling in love with someone was something that would hurt my chest this much.」

If Olivia-san is alive, there was the possibility that she could still make Yashiro-san turn around to her (though that is probably very unlikely). But, how am I supposed to fight against an opponent that has disappeared. That"s just, her quitting while she was ahead.

A love that would never come true. A th.o.r.n.y path, where I can"t whisper my love……Nevertheless, I,

「I, am Yashiro-san"s ally. If it"s for Yashiro-san"s sake, I have the resolve to make an enemy of even the religious organization. It"s fine even if I don"t become Yashiro-san"s support. I don"t mind if it"s just self-satisfaction. ……But, if there is ever a time where Yashiro-san cries again, I want to be beside him. I won"t say anything self-important like I"ll lend him my chest. However, I want to hear his suppressed weeping nearby the wall that hides Yashiro-san"s tears.」

I love him, and I want him to love me. But more than that, I want to be Yashiro-san"s ally.
This feeling is the only one that I can brag that I won"t lose to anyone in.
Against Fiona-san and Yashiro-san"s former comrades. And then, even against Olivia-san, I don"t want to lose in this feeling.

「That"s why, Yashiro-san and I don"t have a relationship of something like lovers. I, who call myself Yashiro-san"s ally, am just selfishly accompanying Yashiro-san on his journey.」
Translator’s Notes:
[1] Speaks childishly in that last sentence.
[2] The love mentioned here and the love that Yashiro-san had for Olivia in the previous line used the word "ai" instead of "suki". "Ai" is a much stronger word for love than "suki".