.｡.:✧ Chapter 11 ✧:.｡.

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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The Chokugen Faction.

In truth, not much was known about them. They performed tasks in exchange for money or equivalent items. However, contacting the Chokugen Faction itself was quite difficult and expensive, so usually, it was nobles who made requests.

They didn’t have a moral code.

They were simply individuals motivated by money.

‘I had some encounters with them in my past life.’

I remembered two occasions.

The first was when they needed a unique poison for an assassination, and I guided them to hunt a Marzu in the Demon’s Forest.

The second was when a noble girl had fled into the Demon’s Forest, and I confronted the Chokugen Faction that was chasing her.

“…”

It wasn’t exactly pleasant memories.

There were hardly any people who knew about the Chokugen Faction, so this girl seemed to be keeping her affiliation hidden. But the Chokugen Faction had some distinct characteristics.

The children they raised were injected with a special substance that bleached their hair white, and they were likely to have psychological issues.

Even though this girl in front of me appeared perfectly fine on the surface, I had no idea what might be lurking beneath.

Just as the bell rang to signal the start of break time, I naturally turned to leave, but she grabbed onto my clothes.

“Would you like to have a sparring match with me?”

“I absolutely don’t want to.”

“Then how about another ambush? Failing like this just hurts my pride.”

I wondered if her pride as a member of the Chokugen Faction had been scratched. However, when I glanced at her, there was something strange about her demeanor. It felt like she had another motive for this.

“What’s your name?”

“Huh? Just like that? I go by Sen.”

As I suspected, a foreign name.

I had heard that all Chokugen Faction members went by foreign names, so I asked just to be sure.

“What do you want?”

Honestly, I didn’t have particularly fond memories related to the Chokugen Faction, but even so, it was wise to establish a connection with at least one of their members. There might be situations in the future where we’d need their assistance.

‘Is she going to ask about how I sensed her presence or perhaps inquire about my combat skills?’

I thought she might ask about something related to combat, but Sen’s question was unexpected.

“What’s Ares’s favorite food?”

“…… Hmm?”

“Ah, I heard that to capture a man’s heart, you need to cater to his taste, so I’m learning to cook, and I was curious about what Ares likes.”

“Hmm.”

Her slightly blushing face and the way she asked were unexpectedly cute.

It felt like I was looking at a kitten, so I chuckled and pondered for a moment before nodding.

“Pie. Apple pie, to be precise. I remember he quite liked that.”

“Oh! Pie!”

Sen vigorously nodded her head, and as if something had crossed her mind, she wore a subtle expression of contemplation and asked me again.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Can’t trust me?”

“No, it’s not that. Actually, last time when we all went to the café, there was pie on the menu, but he didn’t order any.”

“Ah, I see.”

Well, that makes sense.

“Why? Because he likes our village’s special pie. They only make it on special occasions like village festivals.”

I, too, loved that pie.

To the extent that I’d occasionally make it myself when it came to mind, even when I was in the Demon’s Forest.

“But then I won’t be able to make it.”

Sen pouted.

The Chokugen Faction members were usually known for not expressing their emotions, but I couldn’t figure out why this girl had such fluctuating emotions.

Sighing, I looked at her pouting. Ares had always been the type who, despite his overflowing charm, ended up hurting women emotionally.

“I’ll teach you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I know the recipe to some extent.”

“Thank you! So, about the timing…”

With her considerable energy, we quickly set a date and time for our cooking lesson. Sen, still beaming, vaulted over the rooftop railing and landed gracefully on the other side.

“I’ll reserve a kitchen right away.”

“Hey!”

I was taken aback and rushed to the railing, but she moved around like a cat, using different surfaces as footholds to land effortlessly.

“See you later!”

She waved her hand as if nothing unusual had just happened, and I couldn’t help but be bewildered. No matter how you look at it, jumping from such a height is a reckless act.
“She seemed pretty comfortable with those moves.”

Sen moved so naturally, as if she’d done it countless times.

“That will do for now.”

The reason for helping her was quite obvious.

I also had my own agenda and wanted to make a deal while teaching her how to make the pie.

I returned to the classroom, where Eve and Tana were waiting for me as if they’d left their seats just for me. Tana motioned for me to sit.

I was worried that this recent incident might have caused another trauma for Eve, but thankfully, it didn’t seem that way. Instead, the atmosphere was somewhat chilly.

These two seemed more like kids who planned something together and then, when the situation arose, invited their childhood friend to play in their room.

“Did you enjoy playing with your childhood friend?”

“I understand what kind of misunderstanding you guys have, but…”

“Eve and I were battling that dirty guy, and you were holding hands with your childhood friend. Do you have an excuse for that?”

“I’m sorry, but there was a reason for it.”

“What is it?”

“I had a bit of a delay because Rin misunderstood that Eve and I were dating and came to my room. That’s why it took a little extra time.”

There were other conversations that almost amounted to confessions, but I didn’t need to put those into words. However, the observant Tana and the avid romance novel reader Eve seemed to grasp their meaning quickly.

“Is she popular?”

“Uh…”

“Ugh.”

Tana playfully jabbed my side and Eve wore a somewhat disappointed expression but still smiled.

“Congratulations.”

“I know it may seem like there’s a misunderstanding, but we’re not dating.”

Even with just the mere presence of us together, the thought of it made me nauseous. How could I date her?

‘If it were the me from back then, I might have actually been thrilled to the point of death.’

To think that Rin, who I had been harboring a one-sided crush on for a long time, had the same feelings. I would have probably wanted to go back to the village right away and brag about it.
However, things were different now.

My first love had long grown cold within me.

It almost felt like that had never happened.

‘Especially at this age, dating with kids of the same age feels a bit…’

Externally, I may be 18 years old, but internally, I’m 28.

Honestly, even if these kids pretended to be mature, they were ultimately just kids.

“Huh? You’re not dating? She’s really popular. Pretty and kind.”

“But you don’t really like her, right?”

I remembered that the last time they ran into each other, Tana said that she didn’t like her, so when I asked her back, she nodded as if she didn’t have any intention of hiding it..

“Perfect-looking people are not really my type. Besides, the fact that she’s childhood friends with Ares bothers me. The atmosphere is different when he talks to other girls compared to when he talks to her. It feels a bit more relaxed, you know?”

“Is that so?”

It’s something I don’t know because I’ve always been with it.

Well, if Tana says so, then it must be true.

She’d been a little quieter lately, but she’s a true fish who used to get jealous of me, a man, for talking to Ares.

The cold atmosphere from earlier gradually thawed, and our usual conversation resumed. Tana suggested having a party to celebrate catching the harasser and clearing my name, and Eve agreed with a bright smile.

“Oh, I have plans today.”

“Plans?”

“Yeah, I’m helping someone out.”

“Then, let’s do it tomorrow.”

Eve looked disappointed, but Tana smiled and said that doing it tomorrow would give us more time to prepare.

“Hey.”

The students in Class E turned their attention in our direction. A formidable woman, like a fierce lioness, was calling me in front of my desk.

“Arni?”

She was a member of Ares’s fish, one of the Duratan family’s daughters, who had defeated the Red Dragon. She was the top contender in practical combat and had never lost her place before Ares transferred in.
[T/N: Is it just me or does the author have a thing for fish…]
Ignoring the gazes of the surrounding students, she asked me as if it was familiar.

“You’re Ares’s childhood friend, right?”

“Well, yeah.”

I nodded hesitantly, and she continued without waiting for my answer.

“Do you happen to know what type of woman Ares likes?”

“…..”
It seemed like she knew where to find information about me. The white-haired girl I had seen on the rooftop a moment ago was chuckling nearby.

“Do I have to answer that?”

“…..”

I responded calmly to Arni’s probing question. However, the bell rang as I remained silent, and Arni continued to stare at me before finally turning away.

“Hah.”

I sighed, feeling like I had been dragged into an annoying situation. Just as I was contemplating this, Tana asked me quietly.

“But do you know?”

These cursed fish in the net.

What’s important is that this isn’t the end.

Arni persisted to come during every break. She kept following me, not saying a word, and even tried to enter the men’s restroom, so I eventually had to surrender.

“He likes innocent and modest girls. Hmm, there was a time when Rin was his type, a long time ago. I’m not sure about it now.”

“Is it her after all?”

It seemed like Arni was also considering Rin, as she nodded her head in agreement. She expressed her gratitude to me and turned to leave, but before she could go back to her class, she turned slightly, making eye contact with me.

“I’m sorry for thinking of you as a harasser. I didn’t know you were falsely accused.”

“It’s not just you, so it’s okay.”

Arni left for her class, acknowledging my understanding. Honestly, besides her, no one had directly come to me and apologized like this.

Moreover, she hadn’t even called me a harasser to my face.

“She’s probably not a bad kid.”

I thought she might be a decent person, albeit a bit rough around the edges, because she was the only one who had come to me directly to apologize.

And that was the end of it.

That was until a girl approached me during lunchtime.

“Where did you hear that?”

“Arni has already spread the news that she came to you. She’s quite noticeable with that unusual hair color.”

She laughed elegantly and smiled at me as she stood in the same spot where Ares had been until the last break.

“Do you think Ares prefers sexy or cute?”

“Am I Dr. Ares? How would I know?”

“Oh, come on, you’re childhood friends. I’ve heard that even boys share various preferences among themselves.”

“…..”
Back then, considering our circumstances, what she said wasn’t entirely wrong.

With her flowing golden hair and jewel-like blue eyes, she was a beautiful girl. With long eyelashes to add to her charm, she was practically the embodiment of the word “beauty.”

“What’s your name?”

“I didn’t expect anyone not to know my name. Just call me Elise for convenience.”

“……..Alright, Elise. You are Ares’s preferences.”

If I didn’t say this now, she’d come back again for sure. I had a feeling that she was carrying that certainty within her.

“Let’s see, if I had to choose between the two, it would be sexy. But, as Arni said, he tends to like innocence more than anything else. That’s been his preference for a long time.”

“Oh my, how do you know I have any innocence?”

Really?

“Thank you. Also, I heard that you were falsely accused. I’m really sorry for jumping to conclusions like that. It’s quite regrettable.”

“…Alright.”

What the heck.

Isn’t the situation so similar to the previous one that I wonder if these things are actually being made up and done like this?

And then again and again, the next break time.

“Hey, um, does Ares like girls who wear glasses?”

A girl with short, slim black hair, who appeared shy, approached me. I felt a headache coming on as I tried to recall what I had told Eve and Tana earlier.

And finally, after school.

As I headed to the Academy’s home economics classroom, as promised with Sen.

I could see five girls wearing aprons.

These were the girls who had come to me one by one today, asking about Ares’s preferences.

“Haha, they all decided to follow me.”

“…..”

Sen was scratching the back of her head, looking rather embarrassed.

Today was the first day I felt like I wanted to hit a girl.

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