Chapter 308

R​ead on​ K​atRe​adin​gCa​fe

Alice (Frey)’s meditation didn’t last long.

At most, a few minutes.

A time far too short to fully grasp the enlightenment gained.

But for them, it was more than enough, even leisurely.

Acceleration of thought.

As cognitive abilities developed to the extreme, everything slowed down.

Detaching from the flow of time, advancing in a different time.

It was a phenomenon that occasionally manifested in battles where concentration reached its peak, but upon reaching the captain level, it was incomparable to before. Alice realized anew. The reason captains were so strong was because they lived in a different time than others. One second for others was not the same one second for them.

As the subjective time expanded, the world slowed down. Only the mind accelerated. The body was still buried in the flow of time, but the slowed time granted many advantages. It allowed the person to see what couldn’t be seen, and allowed them to clearly see the opponent’s movements and predict the next action.

Alice did naturally, as if breathing, what Eugene had imitated through 【Acceleration】. She overlooked herself in the slowed time. As the senses were maximized, everything looked different. What had been taken for granted until now became not so, and things considered impossible were brought into the realm of possibility.

It felt like removing a filter that had been constantly obscuring the vision.

A clarity as if being reborn anew cleared the head.

‘…No choice but to lose, huh.’

[That damn bitch, just wait until I meet her again. I’ll repay all the humiliation tenfold.]

The swordswoman who had pushed them into the abyss of death twice.

A superior species of monster that even transcended the standards of named monsters.

The demonic beast, Ereshkigal.

Her power was certainly at the captain level.

If she had wanted to, she could have instantly killed Alice (Frey).

The reason they were still alive was simply because she had no intention of killing them.

Only after reaching the captain level did they realize how much that woman had held back. That fact was extremely humiliating. To have survived by relying on the goodwill offered by the opponent as if it were charity. She wouldn’t feel right unless she repaid it in kind. Next time they met, she would burn down her unnecessarily swaying chest.

“…”

Alice, having finished meditating, slowly opened her eyes.

A long time had passed for her, but in reality, it was only a short amount of time.

Alice looked around, searching for Lucia.

She wasn’t visible, as if she had left to avoid disturbing.

Could she be with Seri again? Alice made a discontented expression, puffing out her cheeks. She understood to some extent because she had heard about her situation, but she still didn’t like it. It was enough for only us to be affectionate with Lucia.

Was this the feeling of the first child when a second child is born?

I heard her mind became strange due to the side effects of brainwashing…

If so, even if it’s frustrating, I have no choice but to tolerate it to some extent.

But it’s frustrating!

“…What are they doing over there?”

[Well, let’s go closer.]

Alice, looking around the training ground that had become a ruin, discovered Seri and Regina peeking out from a corner. Only their backs were visible, but somehow an unusual atmosphere was sensed. Alice approached them at a trot.

“Regina… what should I do…?”

“About what?”

“Mommy is cheating… when Papa is here…”

“Strictly speaking, Lucia isn’t your mom, and the Commander isn’t your dad.”

“Mommy is remarrying…? Then Eugene is my Papa too…?”

“You must be really happy to have two dads.”

…What on earth are they talking about? 

Alice tilted her head in bewilderment and followed them, peeking her head out from beyond the corner. The troublemakers of Class D were startled by Alice’s sudden appearance without a sound, but Alice didn’t care.

“…”

She realized immediately.

The reason the two were whispering.

Alice’s heterochromatic eyes narrowed slightly.

Lucia, who she had been looking for, was there.

Leaning on Eugene’s shoulder.

“Ha.”

Alice, who had been silent for a moment, let out a bitter laugh.

Really, you can’t let your guard down for even a moment.

If you take your eyes off him, that playboy is loitering near Lucia.

Now that I’ve overcome the wall of the commander level, shall I test how much my heat ray has been strengthened?

[What to do? Alice? Shall we kill him?]

Alice shook her head at Frey’s growl.

She desperately wanted to, but Lucia would be sad if she did.

Since she would be sad if he died, let’s only kill him halfway.

Eugene, you’re half-dead.

“Uhee~ Fuck~”

Frey, who took over the body’s control instead of Alice, burst into a bright smile. Of course, it was quite far from a joyful smile. The narrowly curved corners of her eyes trembled. Already, an ominous heat was overflowing from her crimson eyes.

“What’s the atmosphere? Huh? I smell something sweet and sour? Huh? Huh? Huh?”

“Frey?!”

Lucia looked at her in panic.

Her cherry-like eyes widened as she hurriedly took her body off Eugene’s shoulder.

She looked like a child caught by an adult while playing a bad prank.

“…”

She ran out full of vigor, but when she stood in front of them, her mouth closed.

Her insides were boiling, but she couldn’t bring herself to vent.

It was because she hadn’t done anything particularly wrong. There was nothing the two of them had done wrong to get angry at. Rather, her actions might seem strange. 

Frey glared at Eugene with fierce eyes. He was a guy she didn’t like anyway. That damn sucker who charmed Lucia with his innocent face every time… 

A guy who has nothing but looks, personality, power, talent, connections, and a solid future…

“Tch.”

Frey ran and hugged Lucia.

The familiar warmth enveloping her body slightly alleviated her uncomfortable feelings.

She stuck out her tongue at Eugene while looking at him. 

‘You can’t do this, right? I can. Beoe~’

“Now that I think about it, you only praised Alice earlier, right? Praise me too.”

“E-Ehehe, I understand.”

A soft touch reached her head. It was a caring and gentle warmth. Frey looked up at Lucia, who was stroking her hair, and slowly calmed down the heat. She glared at Eugene every now and then. Her gaze contained complex emotions.

…Actually, she knew. She knew.

How much of a sucker Eugene was, how much of a pushover he was, and how pure he was.

She denied it because she didn’t want to admit it and got angry.

Perhaps it wasn’t Eugene who seduced Lucia, but Lucia who approached Eugene first.

Alice (Frey) had been constantly contemplating.

That Lucia might like Eugene.

While speculating that she might, she hesitated because of his ambiguous attitude.

Then, the intimate appearance with the God of War further increased the confusion.

Who does Lucia like, Eugene? The God of War?

Or does she do that to everyone who is close to her beyond a certain level? Regardless of gender? In fact, strictly speaking, Lucia’s attitude towards Eugene was not much different from her attitude towards them. It’s just that there was room for it to be interpreted differently due to the issue of gender.

‘One thing is certain, Eugene likes Lucia, and Lucia has a liking for Eugene.’

This is really annoying.

If Eugene was a bad guy, I would have crushed him without hesitation.

It’s hard to do that because he’s a stupid idiot pushover.

Anyway, the feelings this guy has for Lucia are genuine.

‘But what is this guy thinking about?’

Frey frowned.

Eugene was deep in thought.

His eyes were clear, so he wasn’t spacing out.

He was so focused that he had become insensitive to external changes.

Judging by his expression, he didn’t even seem to know that Frey had come.

“I see… the answer was much simpler than I thought… Why didn’t I know this until now…? Am I stupid? A pushover?”

“Why are you suddenly introducing yourself? Everyone knows you’re a moron.”

“Ali… Frey? When did you come?”

There was no reason to answer.

Frey turned her head away.

She rubbed her face against Lucia’s chest.

It felt good because it was even fluffier since it had grown recently.

“You came at the right time. There’s something I want to ask you.”

Eugene didn’t care about Frey’s blatant disregard. In the first place, he didn’t even seem to realize that he was being ignored.

A brilliant light flashed in Eugene’s blue eyes. A deep furrow was etched on Frey’s brow. The activation of a supernatural ability. And it was using her own, not someone else’s. Hardening. A supernatural ability that makes the body hard. 

What? Are you trying to fight? Well, if you attack me, I’m happy to. I’ll only kill you halfway, as Alice said.

“Do you like me?”

“…Are you crazy?”

Frey genuinely asked back.

Did his head finally break after being beaten by the God of War so much?

There seems to be no hope of recovery, so how about destroying it and making a new one?

“I like you.”

“…Are you really crazy?”

For reference, this was not Frey’s statement.

It was what Alice said.

A shock that made her forget even her usual tone of voice pierced her mind.

“It’s okay. I know even if you deny it. Frey and Alice, you both like me, right.”

“I’m going to kill you.”

This was what the two of them said together.

“I finally realized it. The activation condition of my ability.”

Eugene smiled confidently despite Alice (Frey)’s violent reaction. 

“It’s affection. It’s trust, friendship, and love.”

“Huh?”

“The other person has to have their heart open. If the door is closed, I can’t borrow their ability, even if I want to. Because I can’t enter their heart.”

“What?”

“Conversely, it’s the same for me. Even if the other person opens their heart, I can’t copy their ability if I have my door closed. Because I can’t go out if the door is closed, right?”

Fate (因緣).

That was the activation condition of the ability.

The ability would not activate unless each other allowed their hearts to each other.

That was the fundamental reason why Eugene couldn’t copy the abilities of other classmates.

They had not allowed their hearts to Eugene to the extent that they would allow him to copy their abilities.

“The reason I was able to borrow Frey’s ability was because Frey opened her heart to me. Similarly, it’s because I also opened my heart to Frey. Yeah, I still like Frey. I’m really happy to be friends with you.”

…Retract everything, I stand corrected.

A pure sucker? What a load of bull.

This guy, he’s a wolf.

‘Alice. What should we do if there’s a wolf aiming for a lamb?’

[Kill it.]

‘Shall we only kill it halfway?’

[Just kill it.]

‘Okay.’

The two people’s opinions matched.

A hot yet cold heat began to dye the collapsed training ground.

“Eh? Fre-Alice? Umm, why are you-”

Eugene, who still didn’t understand the situation, wore a bewildered expression.

Soon after, violence that seemed to embody a supernova struck.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!”

It was self-inflicted.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Naturally, Eugene’s ‘like’ to Frey meant ‘like’ as a friend.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Burn his balls