28.Weak Spot?

Editing/Standardisation: Medicine Melancholy
Original Translation: Medicine Melancholy

Reiji

Saul disappeared from my sight, Iris in tow.

I let out a breath of relief and sank into the hot water, resting my back against the rock.

That was so close, yikes.

I tried to remove my eyes as much as possible, but my gaze was inevitably drawn toward Iris. The charm of her white, young body felt like magic.

The image was burned into my eyes even if I tried to forget it.

Her hair was pulled back, her thin neck and nape exposed. Drops of water slid down the firm, fine-textured skin of her neck, shoulder and the slight bulge in her chest. Even if the person herself didn’t notice, I could occasionally see the cherry blossom color hidden beneath the thick and murky water.

Earlier, when she walked, her buttocks, which could be glimpsed from time to time through the shade of her long hair despite her trying to hide them, were modest but cute and plump… Okay, I should probably stop.

The point is, although she was implanted with knowledge by Ayame-chan, and her consciousness now belonged to the girl called “Iris”… she was as just defenseless around us as the Yanagi of before.

Because she trusted me.

Without those words of her, my reason might have been blown away into next week. Betraying her trust was not an option. With that one thought in mind, I managed to hang on to whatever’s left of my sanity.

I’m sure that’s why Saul didn’t say anything about the mixed bathing, and why he took Iris to do something deliberate to humiliate me now. He wanted Iris to be properly alert to us, the opposite sex… probably.

Well, knowing what he’d done so far, I’m not so sure about that.

As a matter of fact, Iris had unknowingly become extremely popular in this town. The people knew of her as a healer girl who was captured by bandits and suffered terrible emotional trauma, yet ran around for other victims and didn’t demand much gratuity. She normally wore a hood in the presence of men to conceal her face, but after a certain incident the other day, rumor of her beautiful appearance had already spread.

Although she was unaware of it, her mere presence in the background of today’s reconstruction site was enough to make the men at the site extremely enthusiastic. Their disappointment afterward when she was taken by a group of women, was well deserved. Men are like that.

We were lucky enough to enjoy such a warm camaraderie from the townspeople, probably due to the fact that this town was located at the frontier, or the mayor and his wife were good people, or both. But things might not stay the same once we continue on our journey. It’s better for Iris to develop her self-awareness as a girl from now on, without Saul’s involvement, for once.

“Nii-sama, stop, this is really embarrassing! M-my front is…!”

“As much as I would love to, unfortunately this one time I absolutely cannot. Don’t worry, just show me. ‘Chain Bind’”

“Kyah! M-my arms…!”

… Hold up, what’s happening? Did he seriously forget what his goal is? Was that the sound of metal chains clattering I just heard?!

“Nyahoo~ Looks like a lot has happened, Senpai.”

“Yeah, totally… Hey, why the hell are you here?!”

Before I knew it, another person was leisurely soaking in the bathtub. The one who should have been holing up in her room, Milly, no…

“Miriam the Tailor.”

I didn’t think Iris was aware of this, but this girl was actually the guildmaster of a famous top-class production guild back in the game days. A wanderer at heart, she rarely showed up at the guild and was still well-liked for some reason. My junior at college, who was also a cosplayer in real life, took up the hobby of making clothes in video games as well. She travelled around by herself, collected rare material, pushed her self-made equipment to players caught in her eyes (namely, the cute ones) and left without elaborating. In a sense, she was a walking myth.

“Everyone’s so mean, nya, leaving me behind while bonding in the bath together. You could have called out to me, nya.”

“S-sorry about that! But why are you even here, you’re the only one who’s 100% a girl!”

Yes, unlike Saul, who’s a man with a girl’s heart, and Iris, who’s a girl with Yanagi’s memories, she’s a girl in both the original world and this one!

“Nyahaha, how could I miss out on a mixed bathing trip in the countryside? Besides…”

Arms outstretched, she flaunted her figure… which was covered by a thin, one-piece, water-soaked bathrobe, unlike the naked Iris.

“… I came here prepared, see.”

“You could have said that from the beginning.”

And why didn’t she give Iris a piece of clothing like that too while she was at it? That could have saved me from so much agony.

“Anyway, want a drink?”

Damn, she even brought booze. She was enjoying this to the fullest, wasn’t she?

Come to think of it, I hadn’t had the opportunity to drink alcohol since I arrived here, so it was a tempting invitation.

“Y-your face is so close, it tickles… Eek!”

Considering what was going on over there, I suppose drinking was a fine distraction.

Japanese… no, Eastern Islands sake was poured into the cup, which was then gulped in one go. The burning sensation in my throat wasn’t half bad to be honest. Soaking in a hot spring under a clear, snowy sky and good sake. I felt like my fatigue was finally slipping away.

“… By the way, the request I made, it was crazy, wasn’t it?”

“Of course, nya. ‘Make the best armor possible which she can wear right now’ and whatnot. Somehow I think we’ve come to a satisfactory arrangement, nya.”

“I see… that’s perfect. How much do I have to pay you?”

“Nyahaha, no strings attached, nya. If this is for Iris-chan’s safety, I can do it for free, nya.”

So generous of her. In this world, when equipment with powerful effects was worn by those who were not strong enough, they become severely “intoxicated” by the power they were charged with. It was so bad that they couldn’t even stand up. In order to mitigate this problem and still maintain performance, appropriate materials and procedures were required, and it’s not something we could easily afford.

But she just laughed it off while gulping down her own sake cup. Her face, as she looked up at the sky, was not her usual aloof self, but rather a serious face with a hint of melancholy.

“…I’d hate to see a girl I care about die before I do, you see.”

“…Sorry to hear that.”

I remembered. Ayame once told me this girl had lost her sister in the past. It was a suicide, caused by mental illness. Her cosplay hobby… she started it for the sake of her late sister, based on the favorite anime she watched when she was stuck at home.

“… I’m really glad that you came over to this world with us.”

“Hehe, you flatter me, nya.”

Perhaps embarrassed by my sudden display of gratitude, the slightly red-faced, goofy tone of her joking expression quickly became serious.

“Not just that, call it intuition or whatever, but I have a feeling that we must keep her safe at all costs. Her life alone is more important than all of ours combined…”

“She’s got an important role to play, I see.”

Somehow, I had a faint sense of it. There was something unusual about Iris’ support capabilities. However, the overwhelming presence that I felt at that time had now faded away in this relaxed atmosphere.

But even without that, if, as expected, only the tertiary reincarnated classes were coming this way, she would be the only pure support and recovery player among us. It’s not like the non-player people in this world couldn’t become healers and supports, but compared to them, Iris’ capabilities were immeasurable.

“So that’s why I’m willing to help. And I’ve taken a liking to her.”

“I’ll be counting on you from now on, Overlord Miriam.”

“Nyahaha, it’s embarrassing being called by that name, nya… Well, my pleasure, Sword Saint-san.”

Calling each other by our unfamiliar class name, we bumped the sake cups lightly, and gulped the contents once again.

“Eep! W-why do you… have to confirm that far? Stop it… no, not that spot, stop!”

“I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS TOMFOOLERY, DUMBASS SAUL!!”

Clearly, whatever was happening behind those rocks seemed to be about to break past an unforgivable line, so I had to put a stop to it.

“(sniffs) I can’t become a bride anymore…”

“Then why are you sitting next to me, huh?!”

Yes, when she came back and got into the hot water, she went straight to sit between me and Miriam, who were drinking side by side. The space wasn’t that big to begin with, and I could feel her soft and smooth arm pressed against my right arm, chipping away at my sanity. However, I was reluctant to push away the crying girl, so I had to let her do what she wanted while feeling uncomfortable.

“My, my, is this girl secretly possessive, nya?”

Miriam nodded in agreement all by herself. What was she going on about?

“I’m really sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

Saul bowed deeply, and Iris, unusually, turned bright red and glared at him with tear-filled eyes. If that isn’t pissed off, I don’t know what that is. Miriam and I quickly evacuated the liquor.

“…So, did you find what you were looking for?”

“Not really, as I haven’t found the answer, but at least I was able to confirm that it isn’t tied to our initial registration in the original world.”

“If you say so.”

“Because… when I started the game, I had already ‘grown’ compared to this.”

“?!”

Iris and I choked. Why did this dumbass have to drop such a bombshell?!

Next to me, Iris’ shoulders were shaking. Although I couldn’t see her downcast expression, I could somehow guess how she feels.

“…Nii-sama, if that’s the case, a glance would have sufficed… Could you please explain it to me why you literally stared at every inch on my body in a way that makes sense?”

Uh oh, I felt a tremendous aura of negative emotion wavering up from next to me. It might even surpass the strange enemy we fought the other day.

“Ahaha… You were so cute when you were embarrassed, so I couldn’t help myself- I’m really sorry!”

Oh well.

I could hear the sound of a blood vessel breaking.

“NII-SAMA, YOU DUMMYYYYYYYY!!”

The next moment, a large amount of water splashed up toward Saul in the hands of an enraged, teary-eyed Iris.

“Reiji-san, is that sake? I want some.”

“No.”

Come to think of it, she had always liked drinking, but her alcohol tolerance was pitiful.

By the way, Iris had not looked at Saul at all since a while ago. Saul, who was consciously ignored, looked depressed. Suck it up.

“I’m not a minor anymore.”

“Your body says otherwise.”

“Ugh…”

As Iris turned away, my eyes caught a glimpse of an unnatural white object on her back. It was really just a coincidence that I happened to spot it.

“Hey, Iris… there’s something on your back… a white worm?”

“Eh?”

Actually, it’s too beautiful to be called a worm. The thought of staring at a young girl’s skin scared me, but I still did it.

“Did you draw in these feather-like patterns when you created the textures?”

“I… don’t know what you’re talking about?”

Feather-shaped patterns spreading out to the left and right, surrounded by something like a magic circle. Moreover, they were the same color as Iris’ original white skin… That made sense. I could only see it now because Iris’ skin was reddish from soaking in the bath.

“What you said was scary, Reiji-san… Can you check on it?”

“Yeah, we’ll be in trouble if it’s something bad. Turn your back to me.”

Iris

“Hyaaah?!”

As soon as his finger slid down my back, my brain went blank from the sudden and unexpected stimulation, and a strange voice leaked out of my mouth as a scream, which I could not suppress… What’s happening?!

“Sorry, did it tickle? But please bear with me. I can’t check it out if you move… Hmm, what’s this?”

I couldn’t know what it was because I couldn’t touch it myself, but what I did know was that it’s getting really weird!

“Hey, Saul, are those magic letters? It’s so complicated I can’t read it at all.”

“Let me see… No, these aren’t even letters, do they come from the previous magical civilization or something?”

“Seriously?!”

“H-hold on, you two… let me catch a break…!”

Whenever their fingers slid together, I felt the magic in my body being disturbed like a ripple, and the stimulation slowly spread throughout my body…It’s too much!

“…! …?!”

Every time my back was touched, it felt like I was being stroked by countless hands across my body. Ever since I became like this, I’d been more sensitive than before… I could barely keep my voice from leaking out by sucking my fingers with my lips and clenching hard, but if this kept up… I didn’t want to think about it!

“Scratch that, could this be the markings of the goddess Ailene herself?”

“If so, we’d have to get an expert to decipher it, wouldn’t we?”

“Yes… It’s not a language with a fixed grammar, it’s something that shows meaning in the letters themselves… how do I interpret this?”

Those two, still concentrating on their discussion, didn’t notice my pleas, and the relentless stimulation on my back chipped away at my thoughts. At first, it was only skin-deep, but it gradually eroded deeper and deeper into my body, lighting me up in heat.

That feeling I had earlier in the changing room was now passing through my mind, and my blood quickly started to boil.

“Stop! If you continue, I… I…”

I couldn’t hold back my fingers, which were sticky with drool from sucking on them, and they left my mouth. I tried to get them to stop, but I had the feeling that as soon as I tried to speak, I would be unable to stop my embarrassing voice from coming out of the back of my throat, and I could only make a mosquito-like sound, which would not reach the ears of the two of them, still absorbed in the discussion.

“I… can’t… ! Stop it, please…!”

The rippling waves that disturbed the flow of magical power throughout my body reached its core, deep inside my stomach. An intense heat came down upon me like an avalanche. How’s this even possible?! I was just being touched on the back! My whole body was bubbling with the sensation that I had already crossed the breaking point, from which I could not return… no, no, no, why is this happening to me?!

“Is this… stick-looking thing in the middle the staff you saw the other day?”

Reiji-san’s finger was right on my spine. I couldn’t take any more of this!

“Guys, if you don’t stop whatever you’re doing, Iris-chan will be in great trouble… Ah, it’s too late for that now, isn’t it?”

“Huh?”

“What?”

The two of them finally came back to their senses. But Reiji-san’s finger, caught off guard, slid vigorously in the hollow above my spine…

“FWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!?”

The biggest and most sudden stimulation struck me like an electric shock, and I let out a scream that I had been accumulating until now…

“Woah?! Sorry, you alright-”

Reiji-san’s voice felt so far away.

My body, drained of strength, fell into the hot water like a puppet whose strings had been cut… and I let go of my consciousness.

A while later, when I came to on Milly-san’s lap, apparently having fallen over the edge, they were both down on their knees bowing their heads together.

“I told you to stop… so many times already…!”

“My bad, I really didn’t notice, I didn’t mean any harm!”

“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry!”

… Hmph, those two really put me through the wringer, I don’t think I can forgive them for a good while! Argh!