episode_0081

Ray was in a state of indescribable embarrassment right now. He felt as if someone he knew had caught him cross-dressing. Of course, he had never been a cross-dresser before, and it was true that these were clothes that men wore here, but that was the feeling he had.

If I had to compare, it was just as embarrassing as when I was enjoying some alone time in my previous life when my younger sister opened the door to my room with her friends, and in this life when I locked eyes with my twin sister who came out to get a drink of water in the middle of the night while I was having a good time with Mila.

Ray wrapped his thick coat around his entire body like a cocoon and crouched down in front of the front door, holding his startled heart. Was it because Latia had already left, or was it because she was just standing there, not saying anything, but keeping her mouth shut? If it was the latter, did that mean she was being considerate in some way?

He couldn’t raise his head because he felt even more embarrassed thinking that he was being taken care of, so he opened his mouth carefully.

“… Why did you come?”

But even after waiting, there was no answer, and Ray began to think that perhaps Latia had gone back to that place, or perhaps Latia had been standing there from the beginning, an illusion.

Just as I was about to carefully place my hand on the doorknob to open the door again and check the situation outside,

“Is that what you wanted to say?”

And, a voice that I could not forget came through the thin wooden planks.

“I finally came back alive, why did you come here?”

That would be the case, since it was a voice he had heard every day for over ten years. Ray opened the door in a fit of rage and went out, facing Latia.

“That’s not it, what I mean is… … .”

“Why did I come here and not that woman, right?”

I made a mistake. No matter how ridiculous it may be, is that something you say to someone who has been to a battlefield where life and death are at stake? Ray was chastising himself for the recklessness of his words.

“How could that be? I was just mistaken. It would be natural for anyone to be embarrassed if they saw something like that! T, uh… . That’s definitely not what you think I meant… … .”

Ray starts to explain himself in a hurry, but Latia suddenly smiles and shows her trademark mischievous grin, causing him to trail off.

“Hee… . I’m surprised. Aaaah! Phew, kekekeke. And his eyes got this big, ahahaha. ”

Latia laughs, holding her stomach, imitating Ray’s screams.

“What, what… … . Anyway, I definitely didn’t mean what you thought. Got it? I was so surprised that I lost my words for a moment. ”

“I know, I know. I thought you’d become strange since you’ve been away from town for so long, but you didn’t forget? That’s a relief.”

As she said that, Latia patted Ray on the head. Startled, Ray tightened his grip on the coat wrapped around his body.

“What? What’s wrong with my speech?”

“You’re here~? I thought I’d get goosebumps. You’re here, haha.”

Latia once again teased Ray by imitating what he had said. If the village elders had heard it, they would have clicked their tongues and said it was something only Fraua swindlers would say.

“Ahhh! This is real!”

Ray, with a red face, held his coat tightly with one hand and began to slap Latia. What was so funny was that Latia could only laugh until she was out of breath, taking the full brunt of his shameful attacks.

“I’m going to get in trouble! I’m going to get in trouble!”

Clap clap clap

“Ahahahaha, haha. Ouch, there… It hurts. Sigh… … .”

Latia suddenly frowns and holds her lower abdomen where Ray hit her.

“Are you hurt? What happened!”

Ray stops hitting her hand in surprise at the sight.

“Arrow… .”

“Ah, an arrow? Where! Did you treat it properly? Look where you are, quickly! ”

Ray is startled by Latia’s words and scolds her.

“Here… … … .”

Then she carefully lifted the hem of her shirt, but Latia’s smooth stomach was still visible.

“… That’s a lie. Do you think I’d go somewhere and get shot by arrows or something? I came back without a single hair on my head, because that’s me.”

Latia looks down at Ray with a playful expression, sticking her tongue out. Then she takes a stance to block Ray’s subsequent attacks.

“Block it? This is… . Hands off!”

“Sorry, I said I’m sorry! Phew, it was fun after such a long time. Phew, ah, okay, okay. I’ll stop laughing. I just wanted to see your worried face.”

As Ray, exhausted, glared at her, who was snickering as she blocked every blow, Latia continued speaking to him in a tone that seemed to be soothing him.

“… I guess I wasn’t worried about you?”

“Yeah.”

Ray stared at Latia’s face for a moment as she answered indifferently. Although she said it was a joke, judging from her eyes now, she was probably embarrassed by her own slip of the tongue a little while ago, so she forced a smile and tried to cover it up with a joke.

“It’s childish. Come in first, it’s cold.”

“Really? I was just going to take a quick look at your face and leave. Is that okay?”

Ray, who tells realistic lies when joking, lets her in, thinking that he is clumsy at lying at times like this. As Latia looks around the house silently for a while, Ray thinks that it was a good thing he cleaned the room so diligently from early in the morning.

“Wow, what is all this? Did you make all this?”

Latia, who was looking around the house, was excited at the food laid out on the table.

“There’s also pie. Oh, do you remember that? Back when we were both as tall as this table. ”

“Ah, I remember. You were a jokester back then too.”

Ray was about to head to the bedroom, thinking that it would be better to go into the room and come out properly dressed, but Latia naturally placed a hand on his shoulder, so he ended up standing there.

“The village elders would bake pies and leave them on the windowsill to cool down, right? After they cooled down enough, we would sneak them out and run away before they could take them back. Do you remember?”

“Us? Why did you put me in there? You did it.”

Ray naturally shrugged his shoulders as he left Latia’s side to go change his clothes.

“Then you ate it with me, right? Then we did it together.”

“La, Latia. It hurts… .”

Ray opens his mouth and taps her fingers, wondering if the hand holding his shoulder is a little too strong.

“Haha… Thinking back now, it was a really bad thing. It must have taken the old man a whole day to make just one of those. How heartbreaking it must have been for some kids who didn’t care to show up and steal it all away.”

“Are you listening to me? I said it hurts… .”

Ray could sense that there was something off about the atmosphere. For a moment, the air inside the house, which should have been the most comfortable place, felt awkward.

“… … Didn’t you promise to wait? ”

Latia poked a hole in the top of the pie with her finger, then looked down at Ray and sucked the tip of her finger.

“Let’s talk about this first. Why are you suddenly like this?”

Ray tries to pull the hand holding his shoulder away, but it doesn’t budge. And the next moment, Latia hugs Ray tightly.

“Uh, uh uh… ?”

“Will he run away like this again?”

In an instant, his body’s center of gravity was broken and he was completely leaning on her arm, his eyes moving around in confusion.

“What are you talking about? Put it down! I told you, that’s not what I meant!”

Latia slowly walked towards the bedroom, embracing Ray, despite his struggling.

“Prepare your own food, and prepare ridiculous clothes that you don’t know where they came from.”

She kicks open the door and strides inside.

“… Even the bed is neatly made.”

“Latia… Are you mad? Are you mad right now?”

You can tell just by looking at her expression. Ever since she was little, whenever Latia got angry, her face would look exactly like this, so she would say that she never got angry.

However, Latia walked closer to the bed without saying anything, leaned forward, and collapsed onto the bed. Ray was underneath, and Latia was on top.

“Who did you prepare this for?”

“… … … .”

As Ray hesitated to answer, a tense silence filled the room. Except when he was very young, had he ever been this close to this child? Ratia occasionally took a deep breath as if to inhale his scent, and their chests pressed against each other could hear each other’s heartbeats.

“… I fought with all my might. I said I would prove it, right? I, I left it behind, but I received a medal. I was the bravest. The captain gave it to me himself. That woman acknowledged it too. So… . I am qualified. ”

“Latia… … .”

The overwhelming difference in strength. A mouse in front of a cat, a wolf and a rabbit. That was the situation. Ray, who knew that resistance was meaningless and that it could actually provoke this child who was lacking in reason, slowly relaxed all the strength in his body.

As if she took that as some kind of permission, Latia began to kiss the inside of Ray’s neck and carefully opened the thick coat he was wearing to the side.