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Witch – Chapter 54- The Two Witches (34)

“Hoaaah….”

Even at noon with the sun high in the sky, Leo couldn’t stop yawning.

Completing five quests while training under Nicks had taken its toll, but Estelle grabbing him by the collar and waking him up from a deep sleep hadn’t helped either.

She said she’d give him some points.

But she didn’t explain what kind of points, and then she told him to dig into Nicks’ personal life.

Things like his ideal type or who he liked… Wouldn’t it be better to ask Josie about that?

In Leo’s life, he had never really discussed ideal types with a male friend… or anyone, for that matter.

And even if he suddenly brought it up, there was no guarantee Nicks would answer honestly.

“Leo, if we’re late again today, I won’t be able to face Nicks!”

“Yes, I understand. Josie, be careful not to trip while hurrying.”

The day before yesterday, they had a similar schedule, and they ended up being terribly late.

Leo had thought he’d trained rigorously before coming to Venetia… but Nicks’ training focused on stamina and endurance in a way he hadn’t experienced before, so it would take some time to adjust.

If Josie hadn’t woken Leo up from his deep sleep this morning, they would have been late again today. Fortunately, it looked like they’d barely make it on time.

The meeting time had been pushed back by two hours, so it was still cutting it close… If they had met at the usual time, it would have been no different from being late.

 

---

 

“Haa… Haa… Nicks, sorry. We made it on time today.”

“It’s fine. I just got here myself.”

Josie apologized to Nicks while catching her breath.

Nicks was sitting by the fountain, casually tossing a potion into the air and catching it, waiting leisurely.

Since Nicks had mentioned that unless it was a long-term quest, he used all the potions he bought that same day, it seemed he had already visited the potion shop.

“You’ve already been to the potion shop?”

“Ah, yes. Well, I can go to the potion shop alone from now on.”

“But if you’re carrying our share too, it must be inconvenient. It’s better to have a porter or something….”

A porter or something.

Leo pretended not to notice Josie glancing at him while talking to Nicks.

Just keeping up with the insane schedule of completing five quests in a day was exhausting enough.

Even though Leo could recover on his own within the city walls, psychological fatigue wasn’t so easily healed, so he wanted to protect his sleep time.

“It’s really fine. The shop owner is very shy, so I try to go alone as much as possible. That’s why I pushed the meeting time back.”

“There wasn’t anyone else at the shop, right? Like a mage or something… Did they try to sell you any weird potions?”

Josie recalled what had happened last night.

The look in her mom’s eyes had been like she’d found a fun new toy.

She was worried Estelle might do something strange to Nicks.

Estelle often acted without considering others’ feelings or thoughts, doing whatever she believed or decided was right.

When she had saved Leo, after a big fight with Josie, she had started to be more considerate of Josie’s feelings… but that was relatively recent,

and even that consideration was pretty much limited to Josie.

Since staying in Venetia, Josie hadn’t seen Estelle show consideration for anyone else.

Josie wasn’t entirely against helping her mom, but she didn’t want to meddle in someone else’s feelings like that.

After the farmland incident, Josie had finally understood the emotions that had been troubling her. If someone were to manipulate those feelings… Josie didn’t think she could handle it.

On top of that, Estelle had been subtly tormenting Leo, which didn’t help.

No matter how she looked at it, Estelle was in the wrong. Leo could do well if she treated him more kindly.

“Hmm… There wasn’t anyone else, like a mage or anything. No one offered me any weird potions. Is there a problem?”

“No, it’s probably just my imagination… Anyway, be careful. Don’t follow anyone who offers you a good potion.”

Fortunately, it didn’t seem like Estelle had tried to control Nicks’ mind with a potion.

Asking about his preferences or who he liked must have meant someone had asked Estelle to help them get closer to Nicks, or she had decided to help on her own.

Since Estelle had spent the whole day at her friend’s place yesterday,

it was likely that the person who liked Nicks was Estelle’s friend.

Or… maybe Estelle herself?

No, that couldn’t be.

Josie shook her head, dismissing the thought.

Nicks was an impressive person, worthy of being a Stella-ranked adventurer, but as Josie’s father….

If she could choose a father, she’d want someone kind. Someone strong enough to protect his family in any danger…

But most importantly… she wanted someone who truly loved her mom.

“What kind of quest are we doing today?”

“Yesterday, we fought on the plains, so today I’ve picked quests in areas like forests or caves, where terrain obstacles affect how you wield your sword.”

“That makes sense… The way you handle your weapon would change depending on the environment. I’ll learn a lot today.”

“Ah, Leo, you’re a quick learner. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll do great.”

While Josie was lost in worry and delusions, Leo and Nicks were having a constructive conversation.

“By the way, Nicks, do you have an ideal type or someone you like?”

“Hmm, I wonder.”

Constructive conversation, my foot.

It was clear that the request Josie had refused had been passed on to Leo.

Normally, Nicks would have said a word or two, but for some reason, he was being tight-lipped.

Josie glared at Leo, trying to get him to stop, but Leo shamelessly held his ground.

“I was just curious about what kind of woman a Stella-ranked adventurer like Nicks would like.”

“It’s no fun if I just tell you. How about the one who defeats fewer monsters during today’s quest has to reveal their ideal type?”

“Isn’t that too advantageous for you, Nicks?”

There was no way Leo, who had just started wielding a sword, could beat a Stella-ranked adventurer.

A fair competition would be more motivating. If one side was too favored, it would just seem like Nicks didn’t want to talk….

“If you’re not confident, there’s nothing I can do. Guess I won’t be able to tell you, then.”

“Wait. Fine. Let’s do it.”

“No take-backs. You sure?”

Leo had fallen right into Nicks’ trap.

From the start, this was a competition anyone could see Nicks would win.

But there are some battles a man can’t avoid.

Especially when the other person is poking at your pride, saying things like, “You can’t do it after all”.

Whether the conditions are fair or not doesn’t really matter.

“Leo, stop. Nicks is a Stella-ranked adventurer.”

Josie tried to dissuade Leo, but he didn’t seem willing to listen.

“No, Josie. There are some battles a man can’t avoid.”

“That’s right, Josie. A man can’t avoid certain battles. Aren’t you curious? About Leo’s ideal type.”

“…….”

Leo’s ideal type.

Of course, she was curious….

But she wasn’t ready to hear it yet.

“L-Leo! You can’t lose!”

Josie’s mouth betrayed her true feelings.

She couldn’t openly cheer for Nicks.

 

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The result was 53:127, with Nicks winning.

It was an expected outcome, to say the least.

While Leo was lying on the ground, Nicks was sweating but still looked relaxed.

Considering that Nicks had been helping Leo train during the competition… Leo could have chosen to give up midway, but he held on until the end.

He lost, but he fought well.

Josie was satisfied with that.

“Leo, are you okay? Mom said losing to a strong opponent isn’t something to be ashamed of.”

“Huff… I knew I’d lose, but I didn’t think it’d be this bad….”

From a distance, Josie, who had been counting the monster kills, had seen Nicks’ performance and knew Leo stood no chance.

Nicks had charged into the heart of the enemy with a massive sword, taking down two or three monsters in a single swing, not allowing a single attack to land.

The terrain didn’t hinder Nicks’ movements in the face of his overwhelming strength.

For Leo, who could only take down one monster per swing, killing 53 was impressive.

“Leo, that was a good match. It’s a great way to finish the quests quickly.”

“It was a good match for me too. I won’t lose next time.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Nicks offered his hand and helped Leo up.

Is this male friendship…?

They had finished five quests by nightfall yesterday, but today, the evening sun was still shining as Leo and Nicks wrapped up.

“That’s it for training today. Let’s head back and rest. You must be exhausted, right? I’ll tell you Leo’s ideal type another time.”

“Whaaaat!!?”

Josie, who had been eagerly waiting, was shocked, but Nicks was too busy to tease Leo about his ideal type right now.

There was the matter of the potion shopkeeper,

but the purple gems found in monsters recently had been bothering him.

The monsters with those gems were unnaturally strong compared to regular ones.

If they collected them for investigation quests, they turned into ordinary stones, so there was no way to analyze them properly.

And those gems… he couldn’t quite remember where he’d seen them before, but they felt familiar.

It’s probably nothing.

As he headed back to the city, Nicks pondered what kind of conversation he’d have with the shopkeeper today.