Ch.93Heart Begins to Beat (3)

# A Different Day

It was a day unlike any other.

There was no morning greeting from the Saint asking if I slept well, no chattering voices of the fox sisters asking what I would make today, and no Valkyrie with her subtly relaxed expression.

Silence. It wasn’t even this quiet before the monster attack.

The only sound breaking the awkward silence was the blowing of bubble gum.

Whoosh.

Pop.

The General flicked her tongue and pulled the burst gum back into her mouth. With her arms crossed, she alternated her gaze between me and the Holy Spirit Kingdom female soldiers. The sound of her chewing echoed for quite some time.

How much time had passed? Finally, the General broke the silence.

“Major Lohnstein.”

“Yes, General.”

“Report everything that happened on the island. Leave nothing out.”

I recounted all the events as I remembered them. Everything from how we encountered the enemy female soldiers to the existence of the stones. The General simply nodded calmly at my report.

“Well, nothing particularly surprising there.”

The General rested her chin on her hand and remained silent for a moment. Her eyes scanned me and the Holy Spirit Kingdom female soldiers. The three women pressed close to me with tense expressions.

“That woman is dangerous,” the Saint whispered.

“Keep your distance. Nothing good will come from getting too close to her.”

“Um, Ms. Kasten.”

“Yes, Erich.”

“We need her cooperation. To get information about this deserted island, we need to become friendly with her.”

“I can handle the friendly part.”

“That might be difficult.”

“Why?”

“The Giford family is a long-standing atheist household in the Magic Kingdom. It will be difficult for you to build rapport.”

“Are they a famous family?”

“Yes, they’re a prestigious family that has produced generals for four generations.”

It was then that the General, who had been sitting at attention, moved. She began pressing her solar plexus repeatedly. She cleared her throat with a few “ahem” sounds and even cursed the Chancellor lightly.

“…It doesn’t hurt.”

The General raised her head. She wiped her face with her sleeve and looked at me. Her eyes sparkled like stars in the night sky, filled with emotion.

“So you’re the one who broke my forbidden spell, Major Lohnstein?”

“Yes, but it wasn’t just me.”

Without the help of the Saint and Riyo, the General would have died. The Valkyrie also indirectly contributed. She kept the monsters at bay so we could continue the ritual.

“And what happened last night wasn’t a dream either.”

“That’s correct.”

“That I ki—that I was inappropriate with you, all of it…”

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I’m asking if I made any unnecessary physical contact with you outside of official duties. If my memory serves me right, I definitely kissed you last night.”

The General mumbled her lips. There was a crackling sound. It was the sound of her chewing gum. Her face had a slight flush.

“I must have been out of my mind.”

“Um, General. I apologize.”

“What?”

The General, who had been staring into space, asked with surprise.

“What are you apologizing for?”

“I was so tired that I don’t remember anything from late last night.”

“What did you say?”

“I was disoriented from mana depletion at the time. I only remember breaking the forbidden spell that was on you. You mentioned that you did something to me, but I can’t recall if that actually happened.”

The General’s expression turned blank.

Even I thought my words sounded calm and natural.

“You really don’t remember?”

“That’s correct.”

In truth, I do remember. The General probably just realized I’m pretending not to. Of course, as a general, she must have that much perception.

This was entirely an act of consideration for the General. I could see she was embarrassed.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

So I indirectly suggested we pretend it never happened and move on.

That’s how I handled seeing the Saint naked too. This method should work for the General as well. If she gives her tacit consent, we can move past this easily. Though the Holy Spirit Kingdom soldiers’ gazes would still be unfriendly.

However, there was one thing I failed to consider.

“Major Lohnstein.”

“Yes, General.”

“I hate lies more than anything in the world.”

The fact that the General was more principled than I had imagined.

“Thanks to you, I was freed from the forbidden spell. I feel uncomfortable having committed such an impropriety when I should be repaying your kindness. So tell me the truth. Do you really not remember anything from last night?”

“No, I don’t.”

“This is an order.”

“I truly don’t remember anything.”

“Can you say that with a clear conscience and by the Pledge of Jeriem?”

“…”

Only then did I realize. The General had no intention of letting this go. With a sigh, I spoke heavily.

“I apologize. What you remember is correct.”

The question “Why did you lie?” never came. Only resigned words like “So it was true after all” seemed to linger around the General’s lips.

“I’ve heard about you from my father before. That you’re generous enough to give your own leave to your soldiers? I also heard you’re honest and broad-minded as a mage…”

After a pause, the General continued. She glanced at my face and scratched the side of her head.

“Well, I guess it’s strange to hear stories about yourself from someone you don’t know. I was surprised too. When I first heard about you from my father, I thought you were a fictional character created for propaganda.”

“But now I see you’re not.”

“You flatter me.”

“I’m just stating the facts.”

Half-dazed, I was startled when the General suddenly thrust her face forward. Her face was close.

“General, your face…”

“Oh, sorry. Was I too close?”

The General, who had been rummaging through her pocket, pulled out a piece of gum and held it out to me.

“Do you like gum?”

“Yes, I often chew it when I’m tired.”

“Me too. It’s a much better habit than smoking. By the way, this costs 5,000 matarks each. I’m giving it to you as a token of my appreciation and gratitude, so don’t share it with other women—chew it yourself.”

Damn, how can gum be this expensive?

I carefully unwrapped the gum. Under the label that read “Oing Oing Bubble,” there was a small mana circuit assembled. Now I understood why it was expensive.

“If you infuse it with magic, letters appear on the gum wrapper. It has a feature that tells your fortune for the day based on your mana condition.”

The General showed me the fortunes she had received so far.

[It will be a smooth day if you just follow your superior’s orders.]

[To accomplish great things, you must endure a little discomfort today.]

[A day no different from usual. Shall we work hard today too?]

They were all like that. At first glance, they seemed like ordinary fortunes, but they had a way of hitting the mark.

“See? Don’t they match perfectly with the situations I’ve been in?”

“You’ve been using this to request rescue all this time?”

“Though no one noticed.”

The General’s laugh had a sense of enlightenment to it.

“You’re the first and last one. To notice right away. How did you immediately see through the curse placed on me?”

“…I just saw it.”

Saying that doesn’t make sense, the General chuckled. I was serious. This much wasn’t a lie. I really just said I saw it because I saw it.

“Major. I hear you have a Level 1 Mage qualification…”

“Yes, I do.”

“And a doctorate.”

“I earned it before enlisting.”

“An unusual career path. Oh, aren’t you going to chew the gum?”

“No, I will.”

I took out the gum and put it in my mouth.

Strawberry flavor. I could fully taste the scent that had entered my nose and mouth last night.

“How does it taste?”

“Good. I never knew artificial flavoring could be this sweet.”

“Me too. I’ve been chewing it every day, but thanks to someone, it feels very new today. Have you checked your fortune?”

Following the General’s words, I infused mana into it. The inside of the wrapper lit up with fluorescence and formed a sentence.

[Today is a day for new connections. It’s a good relationship, but don’t rush. You’re still at the stage of getting to know each other.]

The General twisted her lips when she saw my wrapper.

***

The group decided to take a rest for the time being. Adora’s gunshot wound hadn’t fully healed, and her strength had significantly decreased from coughing up blood.

The Holy Spirit Kingdom female soldiers demanded to know the secrets of the deserted island from Adora. In response, Adora revealed a few facts first.

“Your guess is correct. This island is inside a hidden barrier created by the Magic Kingdom.”

“I knew it…”

“I received orders and came here. I was told to capture the Holy Spirit Kingdom people wandering on the island and offer them to a place called the Great Altar.”

“Great Altar? Where is that?”

“There should be a map among the items you took from me.”

Tiria frowned as she checked the map.

“What is this Great Altar? Why are they trying to take Holy Spirit Kingdom people as prisoners? Is there some conspiracy?”

“Probably.”

“Don’t you know?”

“The leaders of the Seven Swords are all generals. A two-star only knows as much as a two-star should. All I can say for certain is that our country is doing something stupid.”

“There are suspicions that the Magic Kingdom is working with the Demon King’s army. What about that?”

“Well, that could be the case.”

One by one, the questions were being answered. However, even more questions were arising. Secrets upon secrets. Tiria groaned softly.

Meanwhile, Adora was repeating the names and characteristics of the three female soldiers.

“Tiria Kasten, she’s the Saint of Purification. Next to her is the Valkyrie, Rachel Brokenheart, known as ‘Black Cat,’ and the fox beastkin from the Divine Engineer Corps…”

All three women were giving Adora cold stares.

Adora thought it couldn’t be helped. She was a general, a member of the Seven Swords, and although forced, also a member of the Eight Shadows.

If the Magic Kingdom lost this war, she would surely be on the list of war criminals.

Though her thoughts were bitter, it wasn’t all bad. Above all, being freed from the curse was the biggest relief. What to do now was something Adora had to decide for herself.

Chewing gum, Adora infused magic into the wrapper she had just removed. After checking her fortune, she smiled as clear as morning dew.

[Today is a day for new connections. It’s a good relationship, but don’t rush. You’re still at the stage of getting to know each other.]

“…Hmm.”

Adora neatly folded the wrapper and carefully placed it in the front pocket of her uniform.

The heart of the girl, which had been stopped until now, began to beat.