BXBX NOVEL Chapter 72: Relaxation Journey, Second Day
Chapter 72: Relaxation Journey, Second Day
“You’re the last of the morning. Go outside and have lunch while taking a break.”
I told the last team to take a break after the fifth lap.
Only group sixteen of Irie-san, and group four of Sherry-chan are currently in the middle of their sixth lap, so after waiting for those two teams, I too will take a break.
Then, as I continued to wait for the moment the Magical Fungus spawned to insta-kill it, 30 minutes passed when team sixteen finally came.
“Good job. Go have a lunch break.”
They cheerfully responded with a “YEES!”, while noisily moving along. You could tell they had an easy time. I was asked “Would you like to eat together with us?”, but I refused them saying I still had some work left to do.
Then, about three minutes later, team four came.
……They were the complete opposite from team sixteen, each and every member looked extremely tired.
No, actually there was one member that was different, the group’s leader Sherry-chan. Alongside her fatigue, I was able to see some negative emotions such as impatience and anger.
“Go have a lunch break. And get some proper rest.”
When I told them so, the faces of the members of team four lit up in relief.
At this point, I sort of had a rough idea of what happened. Most likely, Sherry-chan was rushing ahead by herself, therefore neglecting to manage the condition of the team as a whole.
Certainly, there might be a large gap between Sherry-chan and the other nine members. However, that’s exactly why Sherry-chan needed to “conduct herself in a way that considered the other’s abilities”. This is exactly the case when a high-level player wants to clear a dungeon with lower level players. In Mobius, this was called “carry”, however, common sense dictated that this wouldn’t work unless the person doing the carry took into consideration the ones being carried.
Still, it’s not like she will obediently pay attention and listen to what I say.
What should I do? While I worried about that, Sherry-chan was the one to open her mouth.
“We’ll take a rest after another lap.”
Ahh, this dumb girl……!
I was flabbergasted by this much stupidity.
“Sherry-san, we should take a break now.”
“Right now, our team isn’t in first place, right? I don’t want to take a break until we are.”
“Still, we really need a break.”
“I don’t particularly need one. And, on the battlefield, there’s never time for a break. Well, if you really feel the need to eat something, can’t you do it as we walk? “
Her team members complained about it, but Sherry-chan undauntedly stood up against them. And, because she was a high-ranking mage in the First Royal Court Magician Division, those members gradually caved in.
“But, we are, quite……”
“Quite what? First of all, the reason why I’m losing right now is because you all――”
“Second-dono! “
And then, the moment Sherry-chan was about to utter a forbidden phrase――Silvia’s carrying voice wiped out her words.
Hurriedly rushing up to this place from their patrolling were Silvia and Eko.
While patting the head of Eko as she clung to my waist like she always did, I spoke to Silvia.
“Good job. It should be fine since I was about to call it for now, what happened? “
“No, nothing really happened. However.”
“We rememberedー”
“Remembered? “
About what?
“That’s right, we met that person! That’s when I clearly remembered! “
That person? Met?
As I tilted my head in wonder, the girls from team four behind me became noisy.
Thinking it had something to do with what Silvia told me, I followed their gazes, and there……
“――Long time no see! Second! “
“It’s been a while～, Second-san,”
Two people were there, a slanted-eyed young lady with brown hair and ringlet curls, and a dark-skinned female spirit with white, fluffy long hair.
With the sudden appearance of this unexpected duo, Sherry-chan’s resting problem became unsettled.
On the other hand, with a celebrity like Chérie Lumberjack, a genius summoner, an Earl’s daughter, and an A-ranked adventurer, there’s no way she would act selfishly.
“First, let’s go have lunch! We can talk afterwards! “
Chérie said those words as a matter of course. Then, suddenly, she led us to the plaza the First Court Mages were using as a place for their lunch breaks.
The square quickly became noisy. I guess this is similar to a national idol suddenly appearing in some family restaurant. Even the captain Zephyr was surprised by the unexpected appearance of this celebrity.
“Guys, don’t make such a fuss. Take a proper rest as you eat.”
Since it was too noisy, I gave them some instructions and then sat down in an empty space. After showing a bit of hesitation, Chérie sat down in front of me. “Not fair”, “That’s abuse of authority”, “Damn teacher”, and other similar complaints erupted from all over the place. This Chérie, to think she was this popular……
“I-It’s been a while since we last met, right? “
After setting up her lunch box, she turned towards me and those were her first words.
“You said that earlier.”
“I g-guess you’re right, huh! ? “
“Are you alright? Your head, that is.”
“How rude! I’m alright! “
She seemed to be nervous for some reason. Her retorts aren’t as sharp as before.
“Is that so? Well, let’s start eating for the time being.”
“Sounds good.”
“Itadakimasu.”
“Itterasshai.”
“Hey, are you sure you’re alright! ? “
When I retorted at her, Chérie blushed while saying “Ahh, my bad”. I wonder when she changed to being the ‘boke’? In both senses. (TLN: Boke is the silly man in a comedic duo, but it’s also an inflexion of Baka/idiot.)
Then, for about fifteen minutes until we finished lunch, I had to endure a weird time with Chérie, not knowing if she was doing this “boke” act knowingly or if she was just like that.
Silvia was happy everyone around her was making a fuss, so she was just taking care of her bow while proudly sticking out her chest; Eko being Eko was crazily happy about eating like usual; and the great earth spirit, Terra, was just smiling happily next to Chérie and saying nothing. Seriously, nobody helped me. Well, not like I expected their help in the first place.
“Hey, you. That thing you said earlier, I want to hear it too.”
While I was enjoying some after-meal tea, Chérie beckoned Silvia before saying that. As Silvia was tilting her head in wonder, she continued with “You said you remembered something when you saw me”, to which Silvia struck her open hand with a fist as she remembered.
“Umu. I saw a girl who resembled you, Chérie-dono.”
“Hee, resembled me? Was it a noble? Or a beautiful girl? “
“She’s there by that rock. See?”
“Hmph. My, isn’t that just an ordinary person? She doesn’t look like me at all.”
“No, the one next to her.”
“That kokeshi girl!? Moreover, a girl with that terrible expression! ? “
Ohh, it was Sherry-chan?
I see. Was it that desperate feeling like she can’t afford to lose? Or that envy-ish impression she gives off? If I had to say she looked like someone, I would have to say she looks like the old Chérie. I feel somewhat refreshed now that this has been cleared.
……Ahh, that’s right. This is perfect, why don’t I consult with Chérie, who used to be like that?
“Hey, Chérie.”
“Even I can’t make such a terrible expressi――W-What is it? “
Huh? I suddenly noticed that it’s not just my imagination that she’s looking strange today, right? Why? Is it because we met after a long time? When I glanced at Terra, she just smiled. I don’t know what that means, but it feels kind of annoying.
“You want me to bring Angolmois out? “
“Please spare me from that～”
For now, I decided to mentally attack Terra, then I turned to Chérie.
“That Sherry girl is, how to say it, you can’t tell if she’s got a sharp tongue or if she’s just making fun of people; she’s an honor student, however, she is rebellious and she doesn’t listen to what you say. Earlier too, she was trying to ignore the instructions of taking a break and wanted to go for another round.”
“Ohh! I know the answer～”
It wasn’t Chérie, but Terra, who responded. Even though she became so docile moments ago when the name of the Great Spirit King came out, it seems she had completely recovered and was even grinning now. Chérie, on the other hand, had her cheeks dyed in red and was hitting Terra in protest.
“Her team is currently in second place, so I’m sure she’s working hard to get the first place, but I think that might be impossible. Because the team leader rushed ahead without a care in the world, the other members are exhausted. If I were to try to advise her, I think she’ll just ignore me…… I’d like to make her understand, but, is there a good way to accomplish that? “
“Ehh. Ehhー……”
When she heard this, Chérie had a look as if she had come up with something for a moment, but then immediately her expression changed to one as if she had bitten on a bitter bug.
It was Terra, who was feeling troubled for a while, who broke the silence.
“She is similar indeed, right, Master?”
“…………”
Chérie had a sour face hearing the words Terra said. Most likely, she has a bit of sympathy with Sherry-chan.
“The answer is simple～, Second-san. In order for her to understand～, she has to make a terrible mistake once～”
“Having her fail? “
“Yes～. Just like what happened, on a certain night, to Mast――”
“Don’t say a word more! ! “
Chérie immediately used 《Unsummon》 to send Terra back.
Ahh, I remembered. Come to think of it, this girl tried to capture the Proline before me, and as a result of going in alone, she was beaten by the Mithril Golem, and she was unconscious, her nose bleeding, and she peed……
“……Ptfff.”
“Seriously! Don’t laugh! “
With a bright red face, Chérie was beating on my chest. Could it be that this girl has been acting strange because I saw her peeing herself? I get the feeling it’s not just that, but that certainly is part of the cause.
“Second-dono. It’s about time.”
At this moment, the original schedule for the break time was over. Chérie reluctantly left while puffing her cheeks. Looking around by chance, I noticed the jealousy of the men was incredible. Serves you right. For now, I just showed them my middle finger.
“Alright, after five minutes for preparations, the afternoon session will start. Don’t forget to eat one banana per hour.”
When I gave my orders each group gathered, started with their preparations and planning their strategies without me having to say anything else. As one would expect from soldiers who practice their formations without getting tired of it every single day.
Now then, should I return to meet the boss? ――it happened just as I was turning my foot towards the Ngultrum Dungeon. Suddenly, Chérie pulled the hem of my clothes and said something.
“……Hey. I, came up with a good plan.”