I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods – Chapter 23

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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The recent atmosphere in the Silver Dawn Knights was nothing short of tumultuous.

Even during the three daily mealtimes, only the bare minimum of conversation took place, and it was hard to find the usual liveliness or bustling energy.

The reason, of course, was because of the newcomer who had recently joined.

The newcomer had left on his own to subjugate the monster that had even made Claudia return with severe injuries after failing the subjugation. As a result, the atmosphere had plummeted as everyone worried about his well-being.

Lizé, who always brought about a lively atmosphere, was the first to fall silent, and Erica, influenced by her sister, became even quieter than her already calm personality.

Iris sometimes even held her head in her hands, blaming herself. With three out of the four total members in the castle in this state, naturally, the overall atmosphere had to be a mess.

Except for one person, Claudia.

Claudia went about her days not much differently from usual. She had no close relationship with the newcomer and didn’t know him well.

Of course, she had concerns that he might not be able to return, but that was simply the worry of a knight commander for a newcomer.

The other three, especially Lizé, didn’t seem to view that man as a mere newcomer.

Above all, it wasn’t like others had pushed him to go when he said he wouldn’t, and it wasn’t like he had forcibly obtained permission and left despite everyone’s opposition.

If he were to die after rushing out alone with misplaced bravado, failing the subjugation, then that’s all there was to him. They had seen the consequences of such reckless bravado countless times.

If, by a one-in-a-million chance, he succeeded and returned, that would be a different story.

Thanks to these thoughts, only Claudia remained her usual self, but since she had been bedridden all day without moving an inch, she couldn’t do much to lift the mood.

“Claudia, do you think the newcomer can come back alive?”

“That question again? Do you know how many times you’ve asked that?”

Claudia grimaced at Iris’s question, spoken in a gloomy voice.

“…Right now, I can’t assess the situation objectively. The other two are the same. Aren’t you the only one who can remain level-headed here, Claudia?”

Claudia shook her head inwardly.

She couldn’t understand what kind of stunt he had pulled in the short time he had been here that his presence had become so deep that the people around him became restless without him.

“I’m not certain either, but maybe if that newcomer can unleash a destructive power far greater than my greatsword, he might be able to subjugate it and come back alive.”

“That’s no different from saying he’s definitely going to die.”

“I said that, but who knows? Maybe, as you said, Iris, he’ll find a way out using his incredible skills that I couldn’t think of. I was just flustered and almost died when my greatsword didn’t work at all.”

It was a remarkably carefree tone for someone who had nearly died.

Of course, people don’t die easily. Scratches disappear in a few minutes, and even if you suffer severe injuries where all the bones in your body are broken, your arms and legs are twisted, and your skin is torn, as long as you’re alive, you can eventually recover.

Even if an arm or a leg is cut off, if timely treatment using potions and magic is applied, it can be reattached. Human life was quite tenacious.

Claudia was even more exceptional among them.

In fact, she could be discharged right now without having to stay in the hospital room any longer, but since Erica had told her not to think about leaving the hospital room until her treatment was finished, she obediently stayed put.

In the first place, how could a body that had endured for two days while riding a horse at full speed, with only rough bandage treatment for injuries that wouldn’t have been surprising to die from on the spot, not recover here?

“He left with such a confident face, so let’s have faith in him. He must have had something in mind. And rather, it would be more rude to the newcomer to do otherwise. You know that too, right? What you’re doing is no different from treating the newcomer as someone who absolutely can’t be trusted.”

“…”

“Iris, you can roughly read people’s expressions, so you must have noticed it long ago, but was there any hesitation or fear on his face?”

Iris shook her head from side to side. No, there wasn’t. Far from fear or hesitation, he even seemed slightly excited. She couldn’t even begin to guess why he was excited.

He was an incomprehensible man. What was he so confident about, how confident was he to feel excitement while going alone to hunt a monster that had easily defeated even Claudia?

“I still don’t have confidence that we should have let the newcomer go there alone. Couldn’t we have followed him from a distance?”

“Didn’t he tell us not to even think about following him? What would you do about the aftermath if we were discovered?”

“Do you think the newcomer would be able to detect our presence, Claudia?”

“Ah, you have a point. He was cursed, and his level was 1, right?”

“The reason I’m anxious is not because of anything else. Haven’t you heard about that newcomer too?”

Claudia sighed in exasperation.

“Yeah, I’ve heard it ad nauseam. That the newcomer was cursed by a witch, that he defeated a monster alone with a crude steel sword in the prison, that he saw through Lizé’s parrying, that he passed the entrance exam. It’s getting tiresome.”

“If he had even the abilities of an ordinary knight of the knighthood, I wouldn’t have worried at all. You know what it means to be cursed by a witch, don’t you, Claudia?”

“I know. I know, but Iris…”

Leaning against the bed’s headboard, pink eyes turned towards Iris.

“It’s the path he chose. If he defeats that monster and returns, he’s a talent we must nurture, and if he doesn’t return, he’s an idiot who acted recklessly without knowing his place. That’s not something we should interfere with, and we shouldn’t. Suppose that newcomer almost died after acting out of line without knowing his place, and we helped him survive. Do you think his personality would change? Not at all.”

“…”

“And I don’t understand you, Iris. Why are you overprotecting that newcomer so much? Didn’t he defeat the Human Butcher with just a sword, didn’t he see through Lizé’s parrying, didn’t he pass the entrance exam? There’s nothing to worry about. I’m not particularly hopeful, but I’m not worried either. He left with such confidence, so we should have faith in him.”

“…Is that so?”

“Not ‘is that so,’ it is so. What you’re doing is unnecessary worry. Seriously, what on earth did that newcomer do to make Lizé and you so restless with worry? Does he have some kind of pheromone that enchants women?”

His face and body were quite decent. Claudia thought to herself as she stretched. Staying in bed made her joints ache unbearably.

“Nonsense! It’s not like that! I’m just worried about the newcomerㅡ”

“Newbie!!!!!!”

Suddenly, interrupting Iris’s words, Lizé’s resounding voice was heard from outside the window.

Iris and Claudia froze for a moment, staring at each other, then got up simultaneously.

“…What’s with this atmosphere, Lizé? Did I do something wrong?”

“Wrong? You did something terribly wrong. Do you know how worried we were while you were gone?”

When I returned with the severed horse head and the giant spear the creature had been using as proof of subjugation, a very awkward atmosphere greeted me. For a moment, I wondered if I had done something wrong as soon as I came back.

“But I promised I would return.”

“Do you think a promise like that is kept just because you try to keep it?!”

Lizé looked at me with an absurd expression. Well, in creative works, a promise to definitely return is often used as a death flag in most cases.

“But I kept it, didn’t I?”

Of course, that’s that, and this is this. When I spoke confidently, Lizé stared at me with an expression full of absurdity. It seemed she had no means to refute since it was the truth.

“Really…”

Lizé made a complex expression, then smiled brightly and hugged me tightly from the front. Her soft breasts pressed against my abdomen. For a moment, I barely managed to control my lower body, which was trying to rise on its own.

As I struggled not to react to the sensation of my chest touching hers through the thin sleeveless top, Erica approached from the side with a smile.

“Mr. Newbie.”

“Ah, Erica.”

“You really have a talent for surprising people, Mr. Newbie.”

Her voice sounded somewhat exasperated. But relief was mixed in with her expression. There was no trace of negative emotion in the smile that appeared on her face.

“Congratulations on the successful subjugation. Soloing a large monster within a week of joining, that’s a new record. It will probably remain an unbroken record in the future.”

“Thanks. Indeed, it would take more than ordinary talent to break the record I set.”

“Ordinary? Isn’t that too modest a word choice?”

While Erica and I were conversing, Iris and Claudia, who had been examining the huge severed horse head on the ground, stood up.

“…It’s true.”

“My goodness, he really killed it.”

Iris couldn’t hide her shock upon seeing the horse head, and Claudia let out a wry laugh.

“I told you, didn’t I? That I would kill it and come back. Do you believe me now?”

“Really, you…”

Claudia approached with long strides and casually draped her arm over my shoulder, taking the place of the dumbfounded Iris who had become speechless while staring at me. Since we were almost the same height, it was a very natural posture.

“Congratulations, newbie. This is really incredible. I have to say this too. Iris, where did you find a kid like him?”

“Thank you, Knight Commander Claudia.”

“Are you a good drinker?”

“Pardon?”

As soon as I thanked her for her congratulations, she abruptly asked if I was a good drinker. I asked back, puzzled.

Claudia laughed heartily and put strength into the arm draped over my shoulder. Perhaps annoyed that Claudia had put her arm around me when she hadn’t even released her hug yet, Lizé tightened her arms around me.

“I asked if you’re a good drinker. In a situation like this, you’re supposed to have a drink and celebrate. You don’t have the right to refuse, so follow me obediently later. I’ll pour for you specially today.”

“Uh… I can’t today.”

“You can’t today? Why?”

The androgynous face changed to a puzzled expression. I glanced down at the pouch firmly attached to my waist, which contained the book inhabited by the demon.

“I still have something to do.”

At my words that I still had something to do, the four knight commanders simultaneously expressed their doubts.

“What do you mean you still have something to do?”

I smiled and answered.

“You’ll find out soon.”

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