episode_0165

I was also greatly surprised by how tremendous the things you, Zeke-nim, and Aria-nim, went through were… But Aria-nim isn’t showing any dissatisfaction about me being here with you, Zeke-nim?

After Arvina thoroughly explained what had been happening outside for five years, we told her our story. Arvina expressed her surprise to me, then was greatly astonished that Aria, who had temporarily gone to the kitchen to wash dishes, wasn’t showing any dissatisfaction about me being alone with another woman. It was certainly unlike Aria. Normally, she would have gotten very angry if another woman besides her was alone with me… Perhaps it was for a similar reason to how Aria’s attitude towards Arvina earlier was different from what I expected? At the moment I strongly agreed with her question and felt great curiosity, Arvina leaned forward and carefully asked me.

But are you two really not dating? It’s rare to see someone so devoted to the person they admire like that…

….. Uh… Ugh… Well… No, we’re not… Not yet…

….? Huh?

Suddenly, Arvina asked if Aria and I were dating, and I blushed slightly and answered no. Arvina looked bewildered by my reaction, and I, too, was greatly flustered internally, not knowing why I was reacting this way. Why am I like this? Normally, I would have flat out said no… Something’s strange… As I was greatly flustered internally, Arvina tilted her head and asked me.

I understand you’re not. But are you really sensitive to alcohol?

Ugh… Every time that word ‘alcohol’ is mentioned, I remember what I said to Aria, and it makes me feel embarrassed… Ha… Who would have known that potion would be similar to alcohol?

Hmm… Zeke-nim, you’re really cute. Still, you must have said those things from the heart to save Aria-nim…

Ugh…

As I felt ashamed of the words I had said to encourage Aria when I was drunk, Arvina chuckled and said I was cute. The moment I felt even greater embarrassment and blushed, suddenly a loud noise was heard from the kitchen, and the entire house shook. Arvina and I were startled, realizing Aria was listening to this conversation, and we hiccupped. And that vibration just now… was a menacing warning that if I made another flirtatious move, she would kill me next time… As if Arvina had the same thought as me, she trembled in bewilderment and quietly said to me.

N-next time, I’ll refrain from saying ‘cute’…

Yes… Yes… Let’s do that… By the way, Village Chief-nim. Do you still like Aria?

Hmm… I certainly showed a lot of embarrassing sides when I lost my mind. But even now that I’ve come to my senses, I still like Aria-nim. Still, since Aria-nim has Zeke-nim… isn’t it right to just like her to the point of respect?

…. Hmm… So that’s why you were clinging to Aria yesterday…

…!! Aaaah!! Just because I did that, are you doing this too, Zeke-nim!?

When Arvina said that since Aria had me, she should only like her to the point of respect from now on, I remembered how Arvina had just made me feel embarrassed, so this time I brought up yesterday’s incident that had embarrassed Arvina. Arvina’s face turned red, and she shouted at me in fluster, and I felt satisfied with Arvina’s embarrassment, bursting into laughter. While Arvina and I were talking, waiting for her, Aria, who was washing dishes, frowned and muttered, seemingly out of jealousy.

Hmph…!! That wretched wolf beastman… She made Zeke-nim uncomfortable just now, and now she’s laughing and chattering shamelessly like that… It’s truly unpleasant…!!

Even though I was chatting happily with Arvina, it still bothered her greatly, so Aria was rinsing dishes in the water with indignation. Then she suddenly sighed deeply, placed the washed dishes aside, and turned her head towards the wall, speaking.

I was asking you. You’ve already been found out by me, so don’t hide, Tess.

…!! Ugh… How did she know I was here? What a terrifying ability, Aria…

When Aria told Tess not to hide because she had already found him out, Tess was bewildered, wondering how Aria had noticed him. Aria let out a hollow laugh, then continued washing dishes, speaking to Tess on the other side of the wall.

I haven’t just been playing around all this time, you know? As I journeyed with Zeke-nim, I also experienced growth. So even if there’s a wall blocking the way, I can sense presences with my ability.

That’s a very convenient yet terrifying ability. To be able to sense presences even through a wall… Zeke must have been able to embark on his journey with great peace of mind thanks to you.

That’s right. My love for Zeke-nim made me strong. Of course… there were times, like during the Ogposlia Incident, when I ended up hurting Zeke-nim.

Ah…

Aria said that her love for me and her desire to protect me had made her strong, but she also spoke bitterly about times when she had hurt me. Tess, seemingly able to fully understand how great a shock that was for Aria, empathized with Aria’s feelings and also spoke with bitterness. Of course, it was partly due to empathizing with Aria’s feelings, but also because the bitterness over the death of Rascal, whom he had befriended in prison, still remained. Then Tess sighed deeply and said to Aria.

Things in the world aren’t always made up of happiness, you know. Kartun is showing that well right now. So, does that still weigh on your mind?

Of course, it does. It’s one of the rare times I’ve hurt Zeke-nim. Still, seeing how much Zeke-nim worried about me and comforted me, I came to understand his warm heart even better, so I can bear it. Because even now, Zeke-nim treats me warmly.

That’s a real relief…

By the way, why have you been hiding your presence even though you’ve been following us from the start? No… Did you even know that your village chief was in that state to begin with?

…. Not at all… I had no idea.

When Aria asked why he had been following them and if he knew Arvina was in such a state, Tess bowed his head deeply in response to the question, then slumped against the wall where he stood, replying that he had no idea. Then he sighed with a bitter voice and said.

The Village Chief-nim always showed an unwavering demeanor, so we naturally thought she would be fine. We all knew that the reason the beastmen were kidnapped by humans was because we had gone outside on our own accord… but we never imagined that the Village Chief-nim felt such responsibility for those events.

Then you must also know how Arvina has endured until now, having just heard it?

To think she was relying on poisonous herbs… To think she was harming herself to calm us down so we wouldn’t be afraid… I was following you out of anxiety, wondering if the Village Chief-nim might do something strange to you again… But it seems the Village Chief-nim needed someone to confide in, someone to pour out all the complaints she had been suppressing until now…

Tess, having overheard everything, even Arvina’s screaming, felt immense guilt that Arvina had been screaming internally all this time and sighed. Aria then let out a deep sigh, glanced at Arvina who was laughing while talking to me, and said to Tess.

Haaah… Don’t blame yourself, Tess. Arvina’s actions were her own choice. It’s simply Arvina’s fault for not asking for help anywhere because of her responsibility as Village Chief, so you don’t need to feel bad. Well… if your guilt doesn’t disappear, how about showing yourself to the Village Chief-nim now and talking to her?

…. What nerve do I have to show myself to the Village Chief-nim? She’s forcibly endured countless bowls of our pain and sorrow until now…

If you don’t, that village chief will probably rely on poisonous herbs again, won’t she? She herself knows that her mental state is broken right now, so if you do nothing, isn’t it obvious she’ll rely on poisonous herbs again to regain her senses?

When Aria asked if it wasn’t obvious that Arvina would start relying on poisonous herbs again if he—or rather, the other beastmen—left her alone for the sake of shame, Tess could not offer any rebuttal and remained silent, his mouth shut. Aria then sighed, wiped a rinsed dish with a cloth, and said.

Arvina’s poisonous herb addiction hasn’t healed yet. I merely suppressed her mind with divine power for a moment just now; Arvina will seek out poisonous herbs again at any time. Moreover, what Arvina truly wants is for the beastmen to express their gratitude to her in a state of sound mind, isn’t it? But now that you know everything, will you just leave Arvina alone for the sake of shame?

….. Haaah… To think I’d receive such a lecture from someone younger than me… Honestly… I’ve become an adult, yet I’m not acting like one…

With Aria’s repeated advice, Tess finally seemed to come to his senses, feeling ashamed and crestfallen about his earlier statement that he couldn’t meet Arvina because he lacked the nerve. He then stood up, leaned against the wall again, and let out a chuckle towards Aria on the opposite side, saying.

Thank you, Aria. Kartun has truly incurred a debt to you. Especially to you, a much greater debt.

I merely helped Zeke-nim with what he wanted. By the way, you people are quite peculiar. Do you give thanks secretly like this when you’re alone?

What?

When Aria turned her head towards Arvina and me, who were chatting happily, and asked why beastmen expressed gratitude secretly when alone, Tess was bewildered, not understanding the meaning. Meanwhile, I continued to explain to Arvina all the things that had happened to us so far, and Arvina, having heard our entire story, chuckled and said to me.

I see… I can somewhat understand why Aria-nim reacted that way.

Right, well… But are you really okay now, Village Chief-nim?

Yes. Just now, before Aria-nim did the dishes, she stabilized my mind with divine power. Because of that, I don’t feel like eating poisonous herbs at all right now. Well… I’ll still have to overcome it on my own later.

Arvina answered me that she was fine now, saying that for now, her dependency was simply alleviated thanks to Aria’s ability, and she would gradually have to overcome it on her own. Haaah… It’s truly a pity. If only we had the ability, we could solve that dependency for her… No, wait… Perhaps it’s better for her to solve it herself? Yes… If we provide a shortcut, she might just collapse on the spot if an even bigger problem arises later. This way might actually be better. The moment I thought that our inability to perfectly solve her dependency might actually be better, Arvina looked at me intently and smiled faintly, saying.

Truly… I keep indebting myself to all of you. After coming to my senses, you could have easily avoided me, who was so out of my mind, yet you took care of me like this… How… how can I repay this again…

Ah… Just explaining what happened outside until now is enough repayment, so please don’t worry about it, Village Chief-nim.

Huuu… The repayment I received is too great, so I keep getting greedy… Especially from Aria-nim, I received a lot of help. If Aria-nim hadn’t given such strong advice, I would have kept spinning my wheels. It feels like even thanking Aria-nim a hundred times wouldn’t be enough.

Then why don’t you go directly and do it now? Isn’t it better to thank your benefactor when you’re alone with them?

When Arvina said she still wanted to thank Aria, I suggested she go thank Aria, who was doing the dishes alone. Arvina smiled faintly, then shook her head, declining, and looked at the spot where Aria had placed a plate in front of her, saying to me.

It seems Aria-nim prefers to hear Zeke-nim’s gratitude more than mine. Well… and I also lack the nerve because of yesterday’s incident…

My gratitude? Hmm… Now that you mention it, Aria always emphasized that everything was for me… Well… since the Village Chief-nim has already said thank you countless times, Aria might also want to stop hearing it.

Right?

When Arvina anticipated that Aria wouldn’t want to hear her apologies anymore, I agreed, realizing that it was indeed something Aria would do. And Aria, who had been listening to all of this, put the dishes wrapped tightly in a cloth into her backpack, then sighed deeply and said to Tess.

Sigh… Still, as a village chief who looks after you all, she does have the ability to see through others’ hearts. Anyway… at least Arvina expresses gratitude even when not alone, unlike you.

….. Is that so? Anyway, thank you once again, Aria. Thanks to you, I learned that the Village Chief-nim had been suffering all this time. So this time, I want to listen to your complaints.

Huh? My complaints?

When Tess said he was grateful for her informing him of Arvina’s suffering and that he would listen to her grievances, Aria tilted her head and asked Tess. Tess then chuckled from behind the wall, looked up at the sky, and said to Aria.

You don’t have to play innocent, Aria. I’ve seen countless times that you had a discontented expression ever since you arrived in Kartun. Well… Zeke seems to have been too engrossed in experiencing Kartun’s culture to notice, though.

Ugh… You saw all that too? You can see through others’ hearts just as well as Arvina.

Even so, I am Kartun’s vanguard member, you know? So… why exactly did you have such a discontented expression? Could it be that Karina grew up beautifully, and you felt jealous?

Huuuuh… It’s just, well…

Hmm?

Deciding not to hide her dissatisfaction from Tess, who had noticed it, Aria sighed deeply and began to pour out her complaints to Tess on the other side of the wall. Meanwhile, I received a somewhat flustering question from Arvina.

So, Zeke-nim? I’d like you to answer the question you couldn’t answer earlier…

Huh? Me?

Yes. So, Zeke-nim… do you like Aria-nim?

….!

When Arvina asked if I liked Aria, I was startled. Then, after confirming that Aria hadn’t come out of the kitchen yet, I took a deep breath and slowly leaned forward. And so, the two of us each confided our secrets to Arvina and Tess, respectively, and both Arvina and Tess, upon hearing our secrets, simply chuckled.