Ch.25The Mercenary Captain Who Dislikes Women (6)

“Of course, Captain.”

I answered without a moment’s hesitation.

If I hesitated even for a second, she would think I was lying—and above all, I wasn’t actually lying.

Though Adelheid’s appearance has been roughened by her harsh mercenary life and her face bears all sorts of scars, she fundamentally has pretty features.

That’s why she received several advances when she was young, but her enraged father killed the men who approached her.

Due to continuous brainwashing and oppression, she’ll never realize it herself, but Adelheid is pretty.

Knowing this background, I’ve been gently scratching at that suppressed femininity since I was captured.

It was a kind of gamble—mercenary captain Adelheid might be cruel and cold, but the woman Adelheid might be better than that.

Until yesterday, I thought my judgment was completely wrong.

But seeing how she invited me to dinner and asked such questions, it seems to be working to some extent.

As expected, no one dislikes being pampered.

“Hmm, well… If anyone’s outside, come in!”

At Adelheid’s call, one of her subordinates entered.

“Go and tell the 2nd Division Captain to come here.”

Shortly after, a short woman with fierce eyes similar to Adelheid’s entered.

She really has a nasty look.

“You called for me, Captain?”

“You, from today on, become my maid.”

“Excuse me?”

The 2nd Division Captain looked back and forth between Adelheid and me with eyes that seemed to say, “What crazy nonsense is this?”

“By maid, do you mean someone who combs your hair every morning, helps you wash your face, and serves your meals?”

“As well as dressing me and managing my nails and other beauty care.”

The 2nd Division Captain, who had been quietly observing Adelheid, suddenly lunged across the table and grabbed me by the collar.

“Gack! What are you doing?!”

“You potion-peddling con artist! You’ve fed the Captain some poison disguised as a potion!”

“What nonsense are you talking about?!”

“The Captain is not someone who would speak such weak, frivolous words about maids and beauty care! You! What kind of vicious drug have you administered to the Captain?!”

The 2nd Division Captain shook me violently with incredible strength that seemed impossible from her small frame.

“Bring back our Captain right now! Our Captain is absolutely not like this! Give us back our Captain!”

* * * * *

When the potion shop owner suggested that having a maid would make her prettier, Adelheid almost exclaimed with delight, nearly asking if he really thought so.

However, with extreme self-restraint, she suppressed herself and called the 2nd Division Captain to subtly inquire about her opinion.

The 2nd Division Captain was the only woman in the mercenary group, a subordinate with unconditional loyalty who would give her life for Adelheid.

If the 2nd Division Captain agreed to become her maid, Adelheid would have really gone through with it; if she showed a different reaction, Adelheid planned to pass it off as a joke.

But even Adelheid hadn’t expected such an extreme outburst.

Watching the 2nd Division Captain violently shaking the potion shop owner, Adelheid had to hide the lipstick in her pocket even deeper.

* * * * *

“Enough.”

When Adelheid spoke, the 2nd Division Captain immediately let go and stepped back.

“That’s enough, 2nd Division Captain.”

“But Captain…”

“I was just joking. When that fellow suggested I might be better off with a maid, I deliberately did this to show him that our mercenary group has no need for such things.”

“Ah, so that’s what it was. I thought the Captain had taken some terrible drug and lost her mind. I apologize.”

“You may go now.”

“Yes, Captain.”

As the 2nd Division Captain passed by me, she leaned in with terrifyingly fierce eyes.

“Know that if you try any funny business with the Captain, I’ll be the first to gut you.”

“I’m not trying anything.”

“We’ve all heard that you’ve been making passes at the Captain since yesterday. The Captain has no interest in men. So if you try to get between us…”

The 2nd Division Captain bared her teeth and made a throat-slitting gesture.

What is wrong with this woman?

“Go back to your duties.”

When Adelheid spoke again, the 2nd Division Captain left the dining room, glaring at me until the end.

What a crazy woman. Is everyone here insane?

After the 2nd Division Captain left, Adelheid turned to me.

“You see? I have no need for a maid.”

“Ah, yes…”

Strange. It’s not working.

I don’t know if my knowledge of the original work is wrong, or if things have changed slightly since I possessed this body.

“Like me, my subordinates will never tolerate you saying strange things to me. Watch your mouth when my subordinates are around, though at other times it might not matter.”

“I understand…”

What does that mean?

So she’s saying it’s okay when we’re alone like this?

I really can’t figure her out.

“By the way, when will the potion be completed?”

At Adelheid’s question, I pretended to think for a moment before answering.

“There are some equipment deficiencies. It will probably take a full month. As I mentioned before, that previous potion was hastily made and incomplete.”

“I see. That’s fine. A month isn’t a long time. But…”

Adelheid paused mid-sentence and stared at me with malicious eyes, as if plotting something.

Why is she looking at me like that again? It’s unsettling.

“What will you do now? There’s no one to be my maid, and your plan has fallen apart.”

I silently met Adelheid’s gaze.

Not to stall for time, but because her statement was so absurd that I couldn’t think of how to respond.

It sounds like she thinks I deliberately made that suggestion to make her prettier?

But I can’t just keep quiet.

Since it’s come to this, let’s go all the way.

“Well, you’re beautiful as you are, Captain. After all, being a woman doesn’t necessarily mean wearing dresses and styling your hair elaborately.”

“Is that so? I suppose that could be true. Are there women like that around you?”

“Around me?”

I don’t know why the conversation is flowing this way, but the atmosphere seems good, so I’ll continue.

“Yes, there is. A brave and strong-willed girl like you, Captain. She has absolutely no interest in dressing up, but she’s still very attractive.”

“A girl?”

“Ah, I mean someone I treat like a sister. Please don’t misunderstand. And even without a maid, you can beautify yourself.”

When Adelheid gave me a questioning look, I explained further.

“For example, you can wear makeup, use perfume, or buy and wear pretty clothes without necessarily having a maid.”

“I see. But I’ve lived like this my whole life. I don’t know how to beautify myself. I’ll probably continue to look like this in the future.”

What is she talking about? Hmm, let me see…

* * * * *

After the 2nd Division Captain left, Adelheid was slightly worried.

She had a feeling that after being treated so harshly, the potion shop owner would no longer say flattering things to her.

And she wanted to hear more of those comments about her being pretty.

So Adelheid subtly hinted that he should watch his mouth when her subordinates were around.

In other words, it was a signal that she would tolerate it to some extent when they were alone.

Whether the potion shop owner had picked up on that signal was unclear.

That’s why Adelheid gently guided the topic of conversation.

Fortunately, the potion shop owner seemed to be getting caught up without noticing anything, like an idiot.

He seems to have low intelligence. That makes him easy to handle.

* * * * *

I realized it.

Adelheid wanted to continue discussing this topic with me.

I see. I thought I had failed, but it’s slowly working.

“Ah, I understand. What should we do then? You’re already quite pretty, but you’d be even prettier if you dressed up.”

Come on, Jack, you pathetic NPC. Think.

No special abilities, no cheats, no powers.

All I have is knowledge of the original work and potion recipes, but I’ve managed to overcome several crises so far.

Judging by Adelheid’s behavior, the pampering approach is working, and she seems to have some degree of interest in me.

Women never initiate conversations unless they’re interested.

This is an opportunity.

After thinking for a moment, I made a suggestion with the feeling of taking a reckless gamble.

“What if I serve as your attendant during my stay here?”

* * * * *

After leaving the dining room, the 2nd Division Captain didn’t immediately depart but lingered by the door.

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you leaving?”

“Shut up! Be quiet!”

The 2nd Division Captain snapped at the guard who questioned her, then pressed her ear against the door as if trying to burrow through it.

She wanted to hear what that potion peddler might say to the Captain.

Judging by the talk of maids and such, it was clear that he had been sweet-talking the Captain.

The 2nd Division Captain had just returned to the base around noon today after completing an external mission.

Upon her return, she heard that they had captured a potion shop owner from some nameless small village.

And that the man had the audacity to flatter the Captain to her face, saying she was pretty and such vulgar things.

Upon hearing this, the 2nd Division Captain’s eyes nearly popped out of her head, and she wanted to capture and kill the potion peddler immediately.

However, since the Captain had personally ordered his capture and apparently had plans for him, interfering would surely incur the Captain’s wrath.

It took all the division members to restrain her, saving the potion shop owner from having his head cut off by the enraged 2nd Division Captain.

But the 2nd Division Captain couldn’t completely suppress her anger.

How dare some nobody merchant behave that way toward the godlike mercenary captain?

Our Captain has absolutely no interest in men.

That’s why there have been no scandals among the numerous subordinates.

She was born to be a mercenary captain.

She’s such an admirable person, someone I respect endlessly.

If asked to die in the Captain’s place, I could do so right here and now.

“Hueeeng… Captain…”

The 2nd Division Captain rubbed her face against the door and muttered as if she were Adelheid herself.

The door guards looked at her with utterly contemptuous eyes.

“Please go back, Division Captain. You have patrol duties.”

“Don’t interfere! I’ll handle my own business!”

“If we don’t interfere, you’ll be here all night, won’t you?”

Since this wasn’t wrong, the 2nd Division Captain glared at her subordinate fiercely before striding down the corridor.

Because of this, she missed hearing the potion shop owner’s crazy proposal to become her beloved Captain’s attendant.