“I have just found a suitable place for training, so co to the northern exit in a few days.”
“Are we going outside the empire for training?”
“Don’t worry about danger right now. Since it’s near a major excavation site in the empire, we can get help from the garrison if necessary.”
A week had passed since the chaos with Pheloi settled down.
I saw the proposal that had been directed at imdiately afterward as a crucial opportunity that I must seize.
More than pondering why I ended up in this world, I often wondered why I hadn’t obtained the strength befitting a hero…
No matter how much I wrestled with these thoughts, reality stubbornly refused to conform to my desires, making feel even more powerless.
“But, are you two also going to accompany on my training journey?”
“Haha, I was originally a wanderer without much to do… So, I thought it might be good to help Hyo-sung with his training this ti.”
But when the day of the promise ca, the two who had explained the situation ca belatedly, following to the northern checkpoint.
Among them, rilyn, with her characteristic bright smile, was actively expressing her desire to join on the journey.
“Thank you for your concern, but you don’t need to worry too much. This is my personal matter, so rilyn, you could just rest at ho until I return…”
“It’s okay. Helping Hyo-sung is also for my sake.”
Yes, her return to the empire was indeed because of .
She had abandoned even the mission she had clung to with her life, but ignoring her kindness under the pretense of consideration would be a disservice, wouldn’t it?
“No, still…”
But even after encountering her, it was already clear what my heart felt.
Since there was soone else who should naturally co first, I had to be careful about my relationship with rilyn.
“…Uh, are you okay with this, Airi?”
“Yes, the Haven Clan I belong to were originally wanderers. I have so expertise in traveling, so you don’t have to worry about holding you back.”
“No, I an…”
She might be behaving courteously now, but wasn’t she the one who had frequent friction with rilyn until just recently?
Although they had less friction while living together, focusing on their personal matters, I still couldn’t help feeling uneasy, rembering their hostility back then.
Worried that they might fight again because of , and that such a fight might annoy the person overseeing my training.
“Chuckle. Young man, you’re holding flowers in both hands early in the morning.”
Just as I was worrying, a familiar voice gradually approached.
Turning my gaze there, I saw an old man with a familiar face, tapping the ground with his staff, approaching.
Jang, who acted as the alley boss on the workshop street.
He was the person who had agreed to guide on this training journey.
“Ah, well, I can understand personal reasons, but I can’t exactly approve of you mingling with won right from the first day of your training, can I?”
“Well, about that, you see…”
“Jang Cleo from Britannia, is that correct?”
As I was wondering how to explain, Airi left my side and approached Jang.
What she uttered was a full na, unknown even to , who had ford a connection with Jang before her.
“…I haven’t made a na for myself that would be known to others, though.”
“Rest assured. As a fortune teller, I rely have the talent to discern the past of those I encounter. I haven’t specifically investigated your identity or anything.”
“A fortune teller, eh? That’s a profession that, contrary to appearances, is quite good at arousing suspicion.”
Jang showed deep suspicion in response to the explanation ant to be convincing.
No matter how close to absolute Airi’s prophecies might be, the profession of a fortune teller itself was not easily trusted, so his current wariness was understandable.
“…For now, please read this note.”
But Airi, as if expecting such a reaction, nonchalantly brushed it off and handed over a note.
Jang, skeptical yet ultimately examining the note, soon stiffened his breath and turned back to look at Airi.
“Is what’s written in this note true?”
“I can’t say it’s absolute… but if no variables occur, it’s highly likely that the future will unfold as written.”
“It feels unsatisfactory to write such things and then create a loophole to escape.”
“On the contrary, it would be less believable if she boasted of being able to predict the future of soone of her stature. That’s sothing you, who have watched over her for more than half a lifeti, would know better, right?”
Airi maintained a serious deanor despite the suspicion directed at her.
Jang, facing her sharp eyes under the hood, soon relaxed his expression and tucked the note she gave him into his pocket.
“…I see, so she has made up her mind as well.”
It was as if he had accepted sothing I was unaware of, convincing him of the circumstances.
“Good. I’ll accept help from these girls. I’ll drive the carriage to the training site, so you two get in the luggage compartnt.”
With Jang’s decision to accept the joining of the two, he soon pointed to the carriage he had prepared nearby and began to move forward.
His acceptance was so cheerful that it made his initial wariness seem irrelevant.
As soone who couldn’t be considered an outsider, I couldn’t help but be concerned about his sudden change in attitude.
“Boss, are you sure this is okay?”
“Of course, it’s fine. If what’s written in the note is true, bringing the two ladies along might even accelerate your growth.”
Jang answered nonchalantly to my worried question.
Afterwards, looking back at , his face showed a sense of relief that made his previous wariness seem irrelevant.
“You really are a blessed friend.”
His following words echoed the sa sentint.
“Huh?”
“I said a blessed friend. Isn’t it rare to see two beauties like them accompanying you on your training journey?”
Chortling heartily, Jang prepared to seat his aged body in the driver’s seat.
Although I sensed him covering up his reaction to the note, I decided not to pry further, considering he had his reasons.
Instead, just as he said, having both of them together might be helpful for my training.
“…Excuse , Boss.”
But even that was sothing to consider after starting the training.
Before heading to the training site, I had to face the issue with the transportation he had arranged, looking at him with unease.
“What is it this ti, young man?”
“Isn’t the carriage too cramped?”
“Ah well, I had to quickly find a mode of transport, and it’s already loaded with quite a lot of cargo from a request I accepted from a trading company. But there’s still enough space for one person…”
Ah, yes. It would be spacious enough if it were just .
But haven’t two people just joined to help with the training?
Regardless, the carriage set off under Jang’s driving.
As it clattered into the unpaved road, my arms, squeezed into the cramped luggage space, began to be tugged back and forth by two people.
“Hyo-sung, co closer to .”
“No, co closer to ~”
“Hey, you two. Just calm down first…”
It was a situation reminiscent of the conflicts we had faced while living together.
But perhaps because it was taking place in an even more cramped space than at ho?
As they jockeyed for position over , there was a fiery intensity in both their eyes, as if sparks were flying.
“rilyn, you don’t have to push yourself too hard.”
“Haha, I appreciate your consideration, but you don’t have to worry too much. At least, there should be more room than where Airi is.”
“More room? What do you an? It looks like there’s more luggage on your side at first glance…”
“Hahaha~ This is spacious for . Of course, in Airi’s case, she might find it a bit cramped since she’s broader than .”
Crack.
The sound of flesh being pinched echoed.
It ca from Airi’s side.
“…Broader? What do you an by that?”
“No, wait, I misspoke. I an… not broader, but maybe… is it more flesh? Or fat?”
“Haha, you’re worried about my weight? I never thought rilyn would worry about such things, especially since you eat three tis as much as Hyo-sung or during als!”
“Well, that’s because the food Hyo-sung makes is so delicious~ Maybe Airi eats less because she doesn’t find it as tasty?”
“Eating a lot isn’t necessarily a good thing. Do you even realize how much of a burden you’re putting on Hyo-sung by having him make extra food for you?”
“Hey, both of you, please calm down…”
“Never mind that. Hyo-sung, co over here!”
“No, co to my side!!”
Soon, the two of them were raising their voices and repeatedly tugging at .
I wanted to side with one of them, but understanding both their feelings made it hard to easily accept either side.
Airi, due to our positions, could not actively advance our relationship, but she already felt that our hearts were in agreent.
And I knew that rilyn, having given up everything for , did not feel lightly about .
“Please tell us clearly, Hyo-sung.”
“Is it or Airi?”
And such disputes continued beyond the carriage ride, even to the first campsite before reaching our destination.
Unfortunately, as the training was planned for two, there were only two tents available, leading to a situation where four of us had to share them.
We faced difficulties with the carriage and couldn’t reach the safe zone as planned, necessitating one person to stand guard during the night.
I wanted to take the night watch myself, but even that option was completely blocked by Jang, who had brought us this far.
“Don’t worry too much about the night watch. At my age, I don’t sleep much, so I won’t be resting long in the tent anyway.”
“What? No, if it’s the night watch, I should…”
“Haha, you’ll have a hard ti once the training starts, so there’s no need to exert yourself now. And we can’t make young ladies endure hardship, so rest easy tonight.”
No, Boss. That’s not the issue here!
But regardless of my internal outcry, he had already left the campsite to look around.
I wanted to go after him, but my clothes were already grasped by Airi and rilyn.
“Hyo-sung, you don’t have to think too much about it.”
In such a situation, Airi closed the distance between us and said,
“We’ve already spent several nights together, haven’t we? So, sleeping in the sa tent now isn’t strange, right?”
Even though we sotis spent a day together after forming our relationship, it was always done with serious consideration.
So, sharing an unplanned bed like this required a lot of courage in many ways.
Indeed, Airi, insisting on sleeping in the sa tent, realized what she was saying, and her face turned red, didn’t it?
“Hyo-sung.”
In contrast, rilyn was smiling brightly, in stark contrast to Airi.
Her subsequent words showed no sha at all about the prospect of sharing a bed with the opposite sex.
“We’ll just hold hands and sleep, okay?”
“…No, but.”
“Ah, co on~ Why make it so complicated? If sothing happens, we just go with what our hearts desire~”
…Right, rilyn had always been this kind of person.
Being so free-spirited in such matters, it was possible that boundaries could be crossed.
Like the things I did with Airi, or perhaps other things.
“Hyo-sung, what are you thinking about right now?”
Airi sharply shot back, as if seeing through my inner thoughts.
Feeling hit right on the mark, I stiffened, and Airi looked at with uncertain eyes, her lips quivering.
“Could it be… you’re choosing rilyn here?”
“No, well…”
“Were all the words we shared together all lies?”
Her eyes were growing moist, and her hands were trembling.
Amidst the tension that felt like it could burst with the slightest provocation, I felt a soft touch enveloping from behind.
“Yes, that’s right, Hyo-sung and Airi have that kind of relationship.”
rilyn Sutherland.
The woman whose feelings I once rejected, yet she couldn’t shake off her feelings for .
“Still, Hyo-sung. You do know that I gave up a lot for you, right?”
“Yes, I know, but…”
“Then, just for one night, just for tonight, we can lie down in the sa place.”
The more I heard her soft yet bitter voice, the drier my throat beca.
Struggling with frustration, I forcibly swallowed and blurted out the best option that ca to mind in front of the two of them.
“So, how about the two of you sleeping together….?”
Well, in this situation, this must be the best option.
I thought it would be fine since they were of the sa gender. There was no need to worry about chastity.
“…Hyo-sung, are you serious about that?”
“No matter what, Hyo-sung, I can’t look kindly upon that.”
Damn, the atmosphere beca even more tense than before.
Just how much did these two dislike each other?
“Um, that..”
But with this option sealed, my only remaining choice was to sleep with one of them.
Doing so would leave one person out, and that could lead to trouble in our relationship later.
I hated that idea. Both were people who cared for , and yet I must betray one of them.
“Hyo-sung, please tell clearly.”
“Is it ? Or is it rilyn?”
The two of them kept pushing without considering my situation.
Feeling so frustrated that I lost my rationality, I reached out to the two of them as my mind went blank.
“Kyah?!”
“Hyo-Hyosung? What the…?”
Damn, let whatever happens, happen.
I pushed the two of them into the tent and answered.
“The three of us will sleep together.”
Well, it was just sleeping. What could be the problem?
Just sleep, wake up refreshed in the morning, and pretend nothing happened.
Wasn’t it a really simple solution?
Yes, that’s right.
I used to think the sa way.
“Mm-hmm. Hmm…”
“Haaah… Mm.”
Late at night.
In the silence, even the chirping of birds and the cries of insects had ceased, I lay awake, forgetting my fatigue, eyes wide open, focusing all my attention on my ears.
The soft breathing sounds from both sides felt unusually clear to today.
“Haa… Hyo-sung…”
At that sound, I unconsciously turned my gaze and began to see the figure of Airi in a precarious outfit.
Dressed in just a thin nightgown, prepared for comfortable sleep, unlike her usual tightly wrapped attire, she appeared defenseless.
“Don’t touch there. Uh, mmm…♥”
Were those whispers from her mouth expressing the dream she was having?
What kind of dream was she having that included my na and made her breathe and smile so suggestively?
“…Just send to hell.”
Yes, this is hell.
Having to choose between two such lovely people.
If this isn’t hell, then what is?
Reviews
All reviews (0)