Ryuu Kusari no Ori -Kokoro no Uchi no 'Kokoro'-

Chapter 5.10

Translator : PolterGlast

Proofreader : John4891

Nozomu’s POV

In front of the main gate after school, I met Somia for a date.

This morning, the words she spoke shocked everyone who was there, and her sister, Iris, was clearly upset and drew closer to her.

However, Somia didn’t care about her sister at all, and instead, she asked me, "Nozomu-san, is it okay?"

Her tone was polite, but I was swallowed up by the atmosphere, and I nodded subconsciously.

Somia-chan, who was the cause, simply said "Nozomu-san, please treat me well" and then ran to the Ecross school building.

Those of us who were left there were just dumbfounded, but Iris’ condition was even more terrible. She was completely petrified to the point that she was unaware when Tima called and shook her body.

After she snapped back to reality, she slowly turned around and put her hands on my shoulders, then brought her face closer and said, "Don’t make even the slightest mistake," in a terrifying voice.

It seemed comparable to the angry Shishō at that time, and I instinctively nodded over and over again.

"... Well, I know how Iris feels. It would be very upsetting to hear that her only sister is going on a date with a man, especially since her only sister is the most important thing she’s known since she was a child."

By the way, it had been a while since I dated. When I was dating Lisa, I wanted to catch up to the talented Lisa and Ken, so I spent all my days training.

Of course, I went on a date, but I didn’t have many opportunities because I spent my time training every day.

“................”

When I thought back to those days, my chest ached. This always happened when I tried to remember the past. I knew I couldn’t go back to those days anymore, and I wanted to scream "Why!!" to Ken and Lisa.

But in the end, after the violent emotions had passed, I was always hit with overwhelming loneliness and emptiness. Naturally, my hands stretched out to my chest, and I squeezed my chest tightly as if scratching it.

"Nozomu-sa~n! Thank you for waiting!"

As I was engrossed in my thoughts on the past, Somia ran from the Ecross school building and spoke in a loud voice.

She was full of energy as usual. I didn’t think I had any particular feelings for her, and maybe it was more like dating a friend than a lover or anything like that.

"Haa ... haa ..., I’m sorry. Did I make you wait?"

"No, not really. I just arrived as well."

She must be in a hurry. A lot of sweat appeared on Somia’s forehead. She might’ve even been running with all her might.

I took a handkerchief and wiped her sweat.

"I don’t think you need to be in such a hurry ..."

"T-Thank you, but the time we can play together will be shorter."

Somia-chan protested with a slightly dissatisfied face, probably because my answer was unsatisfying.

"We~ll, that’s true. Well then, let’s go."

"Yes!"

She changed her dissatisfied expression into a smile and jumped into my arms with a cheerful reply.

I wondered if it was because I couldn’t help looking forward to the date, or if I was influenced by Somia-chan who cheerfully grabbed my hand, but my gloomy feelings until now disappeared, and my cheeks loosened.

The only thing I was worried about were the multiple presences looking in our direction from behind the school building, and they had been monitoring me since I came in front of this main gate.

Besides, the presence that I felt came from people I was familiar with.

(... What are Iris and the others doing? In addition, there is also Feo’s presence behind them ...)

In addition, Iris had been staring at me with bloodlust in her eyes since a while ago.

Somia-chan, who was next to me, was completely unaware that Iris and the others were peeking. Perhaps the reason was that their gazes were only pinpointed at me.

"Is there something wrong?"

"N-No, it’s nothing."

Somia, who grabbed my arm, looked back with a face full of suspicion, but I tried to speed up while pretending not to notice the presence behind me.

(... I hope nothing bad is going to happen)

However, the presence that I felt from behind wouldn’t disappear, and by confirming that they started to move after us, my anxiety increased.

==============================

One of the presences Nozomu felt.

At that place, Somia’s older sister, Irisdina, was watching the two who started walking towards the city.

“............”

"Hey Ai, let’s stop this ..."

“............”

"... Not yet. I can’t hear them."

"Uu ......"

Tima dropped her shoulders. Maybe Tima was troubled because Irisdina didn’t have the ears to listen to her best friend’s words.

"If you’re so worried, why don’t you just go with them?"

"Mars-kun, I don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s a girl’s date..."

"Somia told me, ‘Don’t! Ane-sama!!’. So, I was refused ..."

"... Then, I will follow your decision, Ai ... "

Tima complained about Mars’ insensitive remarks, but Irisdina also seemed to decide to follow after Somia.

(Ai, I know you’re worried about Somia-chan, but that’s too much... But, for what reason is Mars-kun also following after those two dating alone ...)

Tima had no choice but to hold her head, feeling the headache of two people who were misaligned.

Certainly, for Irisdina, Somia was her beloved sister who she loved so dearly. Previously, when the contract between the Francilt and Waziart Family led to Somia’s soul being snatched, she had prioritized her cute little sister over her own household.

However, given that the man was Nozomu, it was unclear if she was worried about her sister dating a man, or the man himself.

Given her personality, she probably didn’t want to hurt Somia ...

"... Yup. Rather, are you worried about the man Somia-chan is dating?"

"......? What do you mean?"

"U-Un! N-Noth..."

"Ah~ !! "

"... Eh?"

When Tima, who was pondering her thoughts, tried to answer Mars’ question in a hurry, Irisdina’s surprised voice was heard.

Tima stopped what she was thinking, and when she looked beyond Irisdina’s line of sight, there was Somia pulling Nozomu’s arm towards the city.

"I’m going after them!"

"Eh? Wait a minute, Ai! Wait!"

"O-Oi, you guys!!"

Irisdina started chasing Nozomu and Somia, and Tima and Mars hastily followed her, so as not to fall behind.

However, they didn’t notice the shadows behind them.

"... It turned out to be interesting. I’ve never seen such a desperate expression on the black-haired princess’s face."

"Right! She’s so desperate. She’s so cute!"

They were Feo, Mimuru, and also Tom

Feo and Mimuru were like curious spectators, and for a while now, they were smiling happily while looking at Nozomu and Irisdina.

They looked very suspicious, so it wouldn’t have been strange for them to be immediately reported to the military police, and Tom, who was forced to come along with them, sighed while looking at the two of them.

"... Both of them look so interesting."

"That’s natural! Watching Nozomu seems interesting, but the black-haired princess is no less interesting!"

"In that case, it’s a good idea to watch over them from a position where we can see both of them!"

"Watch over them? What a nice word to use, but your true intentions are leaking ..."

What Feo and Mimuru said was only 10% of their true intentions. Hearing that, Tom tried to talk about 90% of their true intentions, but Tom was completely ignored by the two, who were focused on Nozomu and Irisdina.

"... Does Shīna agree with you doing something like this?"

Tom had no choice but to use his trump card.

Both Feo and Mimuru were well aware that a serious person like Shīna couldn’t accept such an act of peeking, and it was easy to imagine that she would be furious if she found out about this.

Their shoulders shook at Tom’s words. Apparently, they were afraid of being caught by Shīna.

"What are you talking about? Do you think the straight-laced Shīna will forgive this?"

"Y-Yes, If this is found out by her, we will immediately apologize."

"... So you two know very well what will happen if Shīna finds out, please stop what you are doing now."

However, in the end, Feo and Mimuru couldn’t be stopped, and the two continued to peek.

They knew that it would be a terrible thing if they were caught peeping, but they didn’t want to miss this opportunity. It could be said that they had to choose, but with their beastman impulses being more dominant, they chose the latter.

"Oh~, Somichi jumped into Nozomu’s arm!"

"Oh, she’s so aggressive! The black-haired princess also let out such a terrific bloodlust!"

"... Do you two remember? It’s almost time for special training, right?"

The two couldn’t help but get excited. Their ears no longer listened to Tom’s words.

"Hmm? Well, that’s true, but now the whole truth is in front of me!"

"Yes! We are alive for this moment! It means that we are alive to run through the thorny road in front of us with all our might!"

"... Isn’t that just your way of escaping reality?"

(Perhaps Feo, did he know that this would happen, so he withdrew his training appointment with Nozomu?)

The suspicion that rose in Tom’s chest made Feo look suspicious.

With Tom’s thoughts going elsewhere, the two beastmen fulfilled their desires as much as their instincts desired.

"Mmm~! Nozomu and the black-haired princess have begun to move! Let’s follow them!!"

"Yeah, let’s go!"

"Ha~a, I don’t know what to do anymore."

They also started following Irisdina who started chasing after Nozomu.

====================================

"So where should we go?"

"Ah, actually, I have a store I want to visit!"

When Nozomu asked Somia where to go, she seemed to already have a plan.

"Hee, what kind of shop is it?"

"Looks like it’s a fortune teller. Recently I heard from everyone in class that it worked out well."

"A fortune teller ... Do you know where it is?"

"Yeah, it looks like it’s in a commercial area. I’ve asked the location before!"

Somia said so and took out a folded piece of paper from her pocket. It looked like it was a map of the store.

"Then, let’s go to that store first."

"Yes!"

Nozomu was enticed by Somia’s cheerful voice and smile, and his face naturally smiled. It was his first heartfelt smile in a long time.

Then he felt intimidation rising from the shadows behind.

(The problem is everyone hiding behind ...)

Nozomu sighed inwardly, and when he glanced behind himself, black hair similar to the girl beside him was sticking out behind the signboard of a store.

Nozomu could also see the handle of the staff and the large sword beside it. It seemed that Mars and Tima were also there. In addition, a golden tail and a brown tail could be seen in the shadow of the building behind it.

(... Was it because of this that he canceled his training appointment?)

Just like Tom, Nozomu wondered why Feo canceled their training.

His suspicions about Feo were almost spot on. He knew that Feo did whatever he found fun and because of that, he could get a little out of hand.

(... What should I do? Should I reveal their whereabouts? But then this date will be ruined ...)

Nozomu didn’t want to ruin this date because Somia invited him at great lengths. For the time being, he sent his gaze to everyone who was following him. He tried to prevent them from following him again by showing them that he was aware that they were peeking at him.

Perhaps his hand succeeded, everyone peeking at him disappeared; however, as long as their presence hadn’t disappeared, it seemed that they hadn’t stopped tailing him yet. For the time being though, Nozomu was able to gain some distance. Since there were a lot of people passing by, it wouldn’t be easy to peek at him again.

Nozomu stroked his chest and started walking with Somia again.

"What’s wrong, Nozomu-san?"

"No, it’s nothing. Anyway, if we don’t hurry ahead, it will be too late and the store will be closed."

"Ah, that’s right. Let’s go!"

Somia pulled Nozomu’s arm again. Being pulled by her little hand, Nozomu started walking a little faster.

It had been a while since they started walking. Nozomu and Somia arrived at their destination, but the atmosphere of the store was strange.

"... Somia-chan, is this really the store?"

"Yes! There is no doubt that the appearance of the store matches my friend’s story."

"But this store is ..."

Nozomu had to confirm if it was really the store, but he turned towards the store in front of him again after hearing Somia’s words of affirmation.

The size of the store itself wasn’t that big. It was better to call it a stall rather than a store. Cards and crystals lined up on the desk. Damaged talismans and accessories were stuck to the wall without any gaps. In addition, a goat skull sat at the center of the store.

The inside of the store was jam-packed with many items, which the owner didn’t know the purpose of. This story surely embodied chaos.

Nozomu was familiar with the store, which he would never forget once he saw it. In addition, the owner of that store.

"Ohh, is that a customer?"

"...... As I thought"

Appearing from behind the store was Zonne, an old man who had previously tried to sexually harass Irisdina.

"Why are you here again, boy. As you can see, I’m busy, so just go home quickly. Go away."

“What a surprising greeting, right ero geezer?! No matter how I look at you, I can only see you having a lot of free time.”

Nozomu also returned the usual unscrupulous words to Zonne who took a sloppy attitude when he saw Nozomu. He had a very similar atmosphere as his master, Shino, and because of that, Nozomu felt no need to hold back.

"Hmm! Youngsters these days don’t know how to be polite to their elders. You have no attitude towards your predecessors."

"It’s a different story if you deserve it; however, as far as your previous disgraceful behavior goes, it’s very unlikely."

Previously, this old man appeared out of nowhere when Nozomu and his friends went to school. The old man left himself to his excessive sexual desires and tried to reach out to Tima, who went to school with Nozomu.

When Nozomu met the old man before that, the old man tried to touch Irisdina through fortune-telling. He naturally noticed Tima, who had the same beauty as Irisdina.

"What are you talking about? A man will always be looking for a flower called a woman and the supreme nectar behind it. In addition, it’s a man’s romance to keep fighting to protect and obtain that flower."

"But Old Man. At that time, when Mars threatened you, you ran away immediately."

“................”

Zonne fell silent due to Nozomu’s retort.

Tima, who was originally weak and bad with men, was frightened by the approaching Zonne. She couldn’t fight back against the old man who came with his animal instinct.

However, at that time, it was Nozomu and Mars who stopped Zonne’s actions, and Mars even then tried to draw his greatsword because he was quite enraged.

As expected, Tima and Somia, who thought the use of weapons would be bad, stopped him, and in that short gap of time, the old man fled in an instant. Mars couldn’t point a sword at Zonne yet, but at least the old man failed to make a pass at the woman he just met. In the end, Nozomu couldn’t really feel the romance the old man talk about when he ran away despite his pretense.

"... Well, withdrawing from a fight is also important ..."

“................”

Zonne turned his gaze the other way, muttering in a small and inaudible voice. Nozomu glared at him with his gaze.

"Well, what is your purpose in coming to my store?"

Zonne tried to divert the story in a hurry, and Nozomu’s mouth let out a sigh, but Somia, who was next to him, energetically stepped forward.

"U-umm. I want you to tell me about my fortune."

"Ohh, fortune-telling. You have good taste, young lady. At the request of such a promising future beauty, of course, I’ll tell your fortune."

"T-Thank you!"

"Then, first which one of your palms ..."

"None of them."

"Kid, don’t disturb us."

"Don’t even try to do it. You understand right ..."

"Come, young lady! Touch this crystal!!"

Nozomu stopped Zonne who was trying to touch Somia through fortune-telling like he did to Irisdina. Of course, Nozomued used gestures by pulling out the katana slightly to intimidate him.

Sure enough, as Somia sat across from Zonne at the table with a crystal, Nozomu felt a strengthened gaze from a girl hiding behind them.

If Nozomu didn’t stop the old man in front of him, her sister might have rushed into this place.

When Somia touched the crystal, it began to emit a faint light. It went from light blue to red, purple, and gray, and then the light disappeared.

"Hmm, the young lady seems to be worried right now. The vague color of gray is the proof."

"......Yes, that’s right"

"Light blue means the young lady herself, red means the young lady’s goal, and purple means anxiety. It seems that the young lady is troubled by something."

Nozomu was a little surprised by Zonne who started to take fortune-telling seriously. He removed his hand from the handle of his katana and listened to Zonne’s words. After hearing Zonne’s words, Somia nodded silently to affirm his words.

Nozomu was surprised to see Somia. As far as he could see, Somia never seemed to worry about anything. She always seemed full of energy.

At the same time, Nozomu’s chest hurt as he wondered if she was really overdoing it and hiding her problems.

“..................”

Somia quietly waited for Zonne’s next words.

“Your problem is related to red. Red means energy and vitality, but in the case of the young lady, perhaps it is about your own goals. By looking at the color of anxiety and hesitation, you seem to be quite troubled when it comes to that ....”

Somia nodded once again in response to Zonne’s words.

"But even if it’s painful, both anxiety and hesitation are important to the young lady because you’re still young. It’s good to keep running toward your goal, but sometimes it’s necessary to look back. If you have any doubts, don’t lose sight of what you think is important. If you are worried, you shouldn’t hold it alone for too long. Humans are creatures that are too weak to live alone ......"

"...... Yes"

"There is someone you cherish, right, young lady? Then it’ll be alright. The young lady’s own color is light blue. You, who have a bright and gentle color, are a kind-hearted girl who can take good care of the one you care about ...”

Zonne spoke to Somia with a gentle smile, it was like a grandfather talking to his granddaughter. Nozomu was surprised by Zonne, who didn’t seem like the ero geezer he had known so far, and at the same time, he was impressed by him who saw Somia’s troubles in a short time and offered a clue to the solution.

Even if Nozomu heard Somia’s worries, could he get himself involved and explain all those things to Somia? Would he be able to lighten the burden on her heart even a little?

"T-Thank you very much! Um, about the price ..."

Somia thanked Zonne and tried to open her purse, but Zonne stopped her.

"Don’t worry. It’s the first time for the young lady, so this time it’s a service. Ah, if you’d like to, why don’t you date me about 10 years later!? The future of the young lady is very promising, so if you date me, this old man will do anything for you!!"

"Uh, U-Ummm ..."

"I thought your last words would be great, but is that it?!"

"Ah~!"

Nozomu tried to get a better opinion of Zonne, who listened to Somia’s problems and sought a solution for her; however, immediately after such a good conversation, Zonne started trying to pick up the young Somia, and Nozomu’s evaluation of Zonne decreased after it was just raised.

Nozomu used his strength to stop the old man’s evil deeds. Of course, there was no power adjustment to the hand sword he launched.

"Gefu~u!! What are you doing! You hit my head every time we meet!"

"That should be my line!! Do you even feel sorry picking up every woman you just met?!! "

"What did you say?! I’m a sensible person! I choose the woman I want to talk to!"

"What kind of sensible thing is that!"

Zonne protested with teary eyes while holding his head with both hands, which was hit by Nozomu. Nozomu was also raising a loud voice that wasn’t like the usual him since he didn’t hold back on the old man in front of him, and the passersbys turned their gazes towards them.

"Certainly, the black-haired beautiful woman the other day was seriously fond of me! I don’t know why she was with a kid like you. Indeed, a wonderful woman like her should be with a better man like me ... "

"T-This ero geezer ..."

"C-Calm down, Nozomu-san"

Somia tried to calm Nozomu down who was reaching for his katana handle once again.

Nozomu himself knew that he was not worthy of Irisdina.

Irisdina was a very attractive woman. She had an undeniable appearance. She had noble thoughts, and the will to support it. She was clearly something out of his reach.

Nozomu understood that it was ridiculous to compare her to him, who fled to a past dream and didn’t try to accept the reality in front of him; however, even so, when he was told by the old man in front of him as a man, he was strangely angry.

"Next is such a promising girl like this young lady. Ah, young lady, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not someone who likes to crush young flowers! Young flowers are not something to break. They are something to love. What kind of color will the flowers that haven’t bloomed show in the future ... It’s natural for a man to wait patiently for it!"

"... As I thought, I’d better slash this old man. He’s the same as Shishō, so he won’t die so easily."

"Nozomu-san! Hold on! Control yourself!!"

Nozomu slightly pulled his katana from the mouth of the sheath. Somia desperately tried to stop him from cutting Zonne into pieces.

“And in the end, even the fallen flowers still preserve their beauty. Of course, they no longer had the beauty of their past. Over the years, age has robbed them of their fair skin and beautiful hair. What is the despair of those who have lost their petals ..."

Zonne, with his hands raised high, gave the greatest speech of the century. The gazes of the passers-by around him were piercing him; however, the old man was completely absorbed in his own world and didn’t care about the surrounding gazes at all.

“But nevertheless, they are still charming and attractive to the eye. It was proof that they had lost their former beauty but still shine, and they could not be easily taken away even with the passage of time! So, only respect is given to them. Who can make those flowers bloom!"

The contents of the speech itself might’ve be wonderful, but that couldn’t overturn the reputation that had hit rock bottom with his previous words and actions.

"... The contents of this speech were supposed to be about good things, but everything was ruined because I had listened to your previous words ..."

"A-awa wa wa..."

"What the- Even though I talked about good things ... It’s rare to find such a blooming beauty. If I were you, I would immediately propose to her."

"In the end, what you said was the same as usual! Why don’t you take care of yourself first!!"

"What did you say!? I said good things. It is better to share your feelings with others. Hiding something sometimes hurts you and the other person, so it is better to say it out loud. That’s because there is still hope, and if you want to hide it, hide it thoroughly so that the other person doesn’t notice it. Doing it half-assed is the cruelest. It’s for both the other person and yourself. In the past, my grandmother found an obscene painting I had hidden from her. I should have obediently said that I had it. That painting was my favorite ...”

“..................”

No one knew what had happened in his past, but for some reason, Zonne had a distant look in his eyes. Somehow, his eyes looked moist. Zonne, who revealed his past feelings, came into Nozomu’s field of vision.

Nozomu felt as if his chest had been pierced by the words uttered from the old man’s mouth. It was because he was the only one who kept secrets but couldn’t tell them.

Zonne’s words were certainly unprecedented and unreasonable, but there was a reason. Nozomu wasn’t so stupid that he couldn’t understand it, and he could look at himself now.

That was why he couldn’t say anything. He realized he was still running away and hit a dead end more than anyone else. Above all, he was the one who suffered for it.

"Hmm, young lady, it’s about time for me to close the store. Please come again. Cute girls are always welcome."

"Ah, yes. Thank you very much!"

Even when Somia replied to Zonne with a smile, Nozomu just stared at them silently.

It was as if he was trying to seal his helpless emotions within himself.

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