Kanata heads to his destination with the White Wolf Group as his guide.
“Lord, wake up. We’ve made it through the swamp.”
“…Stop it, Natsume. It’s fun to pick on me, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Very.”
Rick, with an impressed tone, spoke to me as I sipped the coffee Natsume handed me with a sullen expression.
“Big Brother, you were born into quite the distinguished family. People really aren’t what they seem.”
“Don’t you start, son of the Brigadier General.”
“Don’t say that!”
We’re in the same boat!
Besides us three, the large hovercraft prepared by Shizuru-san was carrying five members of the White Wolf Group.
After walking the deck with a cup of coffee and finishing a meal of hardtack on the aft deck, we unloaded the hoverbikes from the deck.
“Lord, we’ll send the hovercraft back from here. From this point on, we two will guide you.”
“Ah, well…”
“I am Gozumaru of the White Wolf Group, and this is Mezumaru.”
Mezumaru, introduced by Gozumaru, bowed to me while swaying her ample bosom.
Gozumaru and Mezumaru? Those names sound like they belong in hell.
“Your names are the opposite of what you look like. Mezumaru, with breasts like a cow, and… Gozumaru, with a… uh…◎∂※∥!!”
Natsume kicked Rick in the groin, silencing him.
“What kind of vulgar man is this?”
Mezumaru’s eyes were cold and stern, having heard lewd remarks first thing in the morning.
“…He’s my subordinate. I apologize.”
For now, I didn’t want to admit we were comrades. I couldn’t let them realize that Rick and I were cut from the same cloth.
“…Na-Natsume. Couldn’t you have gone a little easier on me…”
As expected of someone with super regeneration, he was already getting up.
Rick, still clutching his groin, hesitantly straddled his motorcycle. Oh! He jumped up a little.
Natsume, you didn’t hold back much with that kick, did you?
“Now then, Lord. We will lead the way, so please follow behind us.”
Gozumaru began to lead the way as if nothing had happened.
Still, all the members of the White Wolf Group call him “Lord.”
It seems Shizuru-san’s teachings have thoroughly permeated the White Wolf Group. I know Shizuru-san is a person who doesn’t overlook even unnecessary details.
Thanks to Gozumaru and his group guiding us through a shortcut not on the map, we were able to save a considerable amount of time.
We should be able to arrive much earlier than scheduled.
After riding our motorcycles for about half a day and covering a good distance, we decided to take a break in the shade of the canyon rocks.
At this pace, we should be able to rendezvous with the Brigadier General’s division before sunset.
“…I see. So you were investigating Agito after all.”
As I asked this while poking a can of tuna with a fork, Gozumaru nodded gravely.
“Yes. Shizuru-sama heard rumors that Agito-sama uses Mugen Ittouryu and ordered us to investigate.”
“You don’t need ‘sama.’ Agito isn’t worth such a honorific.”
“But he is your uncle, Lord.”
“I don’t consider him my uncle. If you investigated Agito, you should know that.”
“…However, we, his retainers, cannot address a member of the main family so casually…”
The lord and retainer are both utterly feudal. Can’t they try being more laid-back and less intense?
“Brother, isn’t that for the best? The thought that that man might have been Lord… it’s chilling.”
Mezumaru spat out her words along with the cherry pit from her can.
“Mezumaru, watch your words. Not everything should be said so frankly.”
“But Brother, that man, even if he’s strong, he’s hardly…”
“Silence! Don’t you forget your place as a member of the Hachioki clan!”
Gozumaru and Mezumaru seem like siblings… I wish I had a younger sister. It doesn’t have to be a buxom one.
Would a disreputable older brother like me be a drag on a sister?
“Master Gozumaru, what Mezumaru said is true. As far as I know, Agito is the worst man imaginable. If we were to elevate him, it would lead to bloodshed.”
“Shizuru-sama and Grandmother thought so as well, and the matter was dropped. They said that making that man our Lord and reviving the Hachioki would only add to our disgrace.”
“That is a truly sound judgment. However, I am also unfit to be head of the family. Besides, I’m struggling enough with my own issues.”
“Since Shizuru-sama has acknowledged Kanata-sama as Lord, Kanata-sama is our Lord.”
Shizuru-san didn’t tell the White Wolf Group that the matter of the family head was still under deliberation!
“Listen, the matter of who will be the head of the family will be reconsidered after the Hachioki Family is revived!”
“In that case, is it possible that Shizuru-sama will become the head of the revived Hachioki Family!?”
Mezumaru latched onto that with great interest! I have an ally here!
“It’s possible, it’s possible. If you need a justification, I, as the provisional head of the main family, can officially yield. Shizuru-san also has Hachioki blood flowing in her veins.”
Besides, my status as the head of the main family is questionable as a clone. It’s true that I’m Grandpa Hachioki Reigen’s grandson, though.
“It’s like a dream! Brother, please…”
“It is not for us to decide. It is Shizuru-sama.”
Hmm, as expected, and as is natural, the White Wolf Group’s loyalty lies with Shizuru-san.
Of course, I just met them yesterday; I’m a nobody.
This is all because Shizuru-san started calling me “Lord.” I’m starting to see a glimmer of hope!
“Master Gozumaru, I believe Shizuru-san would be a suitable head for the Hachioki Family.”
“…You mentioned that the matter would be discussed after the Hachioki Family is revived, correct?”
“That’s right. Currently, it’s like counting your chickens before they hatch. Let’s end this conversation here. Also, have you heard from Shizuru-san about this?”
Unlike the head of the family issue, I can’t afford to have this go unsaid.
“…We will let go of our grudges against the Mikado Family. We understand.”
“As for that, I have no intention of letting it slide. If you intend to oppose Princess Mikoto, you’ll have to go through me. I want you all, including the White Wolf Group, to be thorough. Please.”
As I bowed my head, Gozumaru hurriedly grabbed my shoulder and helped me up.
“Please don’t! …However, Lord, Mikoto… Will Princess Mikoto restore the honor of the Hachiokis?”
“She absolutely will. I promise.”
Once the war is over, there won’t be any large-scale battles for a while. I’ll take a vacation and go to Terukyo.
I promised Princess Mikoto I’d go to Terukyo, and I need to talk to Shizuru-san and the others.
I should also get an exorcism while I’m there. I’m just too unlucky… or maybe not.
I was lucky this time. I could have ended up fighting Shizuru-san and her group. But I managed to avoid that.
When we spotted the Hinkley Division’s encampment, we had Gozumaru and his group turn back.
We’re heading into war, but Shizuru-san and her group aren’t living in peace either.
Surviving in a wilderness where thugs roam is no different from being at war.
“Kanata, are you going to Terukyo after the war ends?”
Natsume asked as she rode her motorcycle.
“Yeah, I think so. I have some personal matters to attend to.”
“Can I go with you?”
“Sure. Besides, Lilith will probably insist on going anyway. It’s a journey shared, and kindness abounds, as they say.”
“Before we go to Terukyo… I want you to come with me to Suzushiro. Okay?”
Suzushiro… Natsume’s hometown. The city where Natsume lived with her parents and where the tragedy occurred.
“Of course I will. In fact, I should be the one asking. Is it okay if it’s me?”
“Yes, Kanata is fine. Shion too, of course. I’ll reluctantly bring Lilith along too.”
“I see. It’s been a while since you’ve been back to your hometown, hasn’t it?”
“…I haven’t been back since that day. It’s already a ruin.”
That’s right. Suzushiro, bombed with an oxygen-deprived bomb and then becoming the main battlefield for subsequent large-scale battles, was devastated and quickly turned into a ghost town.
It wasn’t just the city that was ruined; Natsume’s heart was too.
…And yet, Natsume decided to return. Probably to confront her past…
I may not be able to do anything, no, I know I can’t do anything, but I want to be by her side at least.
Although Natsume is known as the Angel of Slaughter, to me, she’s just an angel.
If I can fill the cracks in the heart of this beautiful, flat-chested angel, I’d gladly be reborn as putty.
Yes. If it means Natsume can spend more time smiling, I’ll do anything.
