Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 81: Arc Lab ③
Leod.
I have a bit of a connection with him through a man named Pies, who works for Coon Hunt.
He’s a skilled explorer who pretends to be a drunkard under Coon Hunt’s command.
A worn-out old man.
But I’ve actually seen a glimpse of his strength.
I haven’t forgotten that time… or the knife I forgot to pick up.
Leod took a swig from his flask and said:
“I heard. You became an explorer, huh?”
“Yeah, well…”
“Congratulations. Talent like yours was bound to make it.”
“You think so?”
“Wof-kun, you know both of them?”
“No, I only know him.”
As for the maid — no clue.
I’ve never seen such a frighteningly beautiful maid before.
“……”
The maid stared at me intensely. It sent a chill down my spine.
“Hmm… Quite the nuisance…”
“Could it be that these two were working for someone behind the scenes?”
“Ah—wait, wait. That’s not it. Coon Hunt has nothing to do with this.”
“You… you’re from Coon Hunt?”
Bid-san immediately grew cautious. Leod gave a wry smile in response to her cold gaze.
“Well, I’m certainly not a favorite.”
“You brought it on yourself.”
The maid spoke coldly with a voice like tinkling bells.
“Yeah, I guess I did. Oh, right. Wof, thanks for helping those idiots in the Tomb of Death.”
“Yeah, seriously.”
Those idiots.
The Coon Hunt explorers who brought a bunch of hirelings to the Tomb of Death just to earn some merit.
Later, Coon Hunt announced publicly that the operation was unauthorized and done independently.
But everyone called it nothing more than scapegoating.
“Want to know what happened to them?”
“No. Not interested.”
They’re probably dead anyway.
Even if they survived, they wouldn’t be worth caring about.
More importantly, I honestly just don’t care.
They were the worst.
I helped them, and they tried to take my companions hostage and demand the witch and Juicy-san in exchange.
Completely insane. Actually, I’m pretty sure they were insane.
“I see. Oh, by the way, was this your doing?”
“Hmm… Maybe… Probably.”
“Yeah, I’d say so.”
Leod sighed.
“Just out of curiosity, what was your reason?”
“Well, actually—”
I began explaining. I feel like I’ve been doing nothing but explaining things lately.
Leod nodded thoughtfully.
“I see now.”
“Wouldn’t you say we were justified?”
“…Well, I suppose so.”
Leod reluctantly agreed with the maid’s words.
He tilted his head as if wondering if there were any bribes involved, but we ignored that.
“Hmm… So… what does Coon Hunt want…?”
Liv-san was on guard.
Leod scratched his head.
“Well, I’ve been put in charge of this area. Oh, I’m Leod, by the way.”
“…Liv.”
“I’m Bid.”
“I am Haiyaan.”
“Whoa, a talking rabbit. What the heck, is this a monster?”
“Isn’t it?”
Leod and the maid stared curiously at Haiyaan.
I quickly blurted out:
“Ah, he’s kinda like Alexander-san!”
Then I realized they probably wouldn’t know who that is. But—
“I see.”
“Makes sense.”
They both accepted it.
Wait… Alexander-san’s more well-known than I thought?
Well, he is a talking land-catfish. Kinda hard to miss.
Now, the only one left was the maid.
She gracefully lifted her skirt, pinched the hem, and bowed elegantly.
“My name is Munieka, and I am a maid.”
“Hmm… I thought so…”
“Why are you a maid?”
“Because I serve.”
“Well yeah, but… him?! That old man?!”
“Hey now, what’s with that look? It’s not like that… well, maybe not entirely wrong.”
Leod looked conflicted.
Munieka glanced at him indifferently.
“By the way, you say you’re in charge of this area. Doesn’t that make you the mastermind behind all this?”
For some reason, it was Munieka who pointed that out.
“I’m not!!”
Wait, isn’t she supposed to be on your side, old man?
“But you let those thugs roam free. Our team was attacked in a dungeon once, too.”
“For real…?”
“Of course, we made sure every last one of them disappeared from this world.”
Well, that’s fair.
Then I realized something I really shouldn’t have.
“…Could it be that there are women who were attacked or kidnapped inside this building?”
With that one comment of mine, all the women turned against Leod.
And Haiyaan. Stop staring at Munieka like that.
Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for her. You’ve got to be kidding me, rabbit.
If we ever end up on opposite sides, I won’t hesitate to hand you over.
Anyway, Leod started panicking.
“W-wait, that’s not true!”
“And what makes you so sure?”
Munieka glared at Leod.
He had no allies now.
“B-because… fine. I’ll talk. These people were under surveillance. That’s why I’ve been keeping an eye on them.”
“Surveillance?”
“Yeah. To find out who was sponsoring them… That’s why I helped from the shadows when women were attacked.”
“And us?”
“You were too strong to need help.”
“Well, maybe, but I don’t like that logic.”
Bid-san stated clearly. The other women nodded.
Then Bid glanced at me for some reason before speaking to Leod.
“It’s not about strength. We were attacked by a bunch of men. It was terrifying, even if we fought them off… It’s a trauma we carry now.”
Even Leod seemed shaken by her heartfelt words.
But why did she look at me first?
“My bad. I thought about stepping in sooner, but I couldn’t find any solid leads on their backer. And then things escalated…”
“Hmm… sooner or later, it would have happened anyway…”
“Exactly. So I’ve got no complaints about how this turned out, and I’m not going to say anything about them getting wiped out.”
“But shouldn’t you have shut them down earlier?”
“…Whose side are you even on?”
Leod groaned and complained to Munieka.
She didn’t even flinch as she responded:
“I’m a woman. Of course I’m on the side of women.”
Can’t argue with that. Leod hung his head.
“Shouldn’t have brought her…”
“Arguing hindsight won’t change anything now.”
“Tch… yeah, you’re right.”
What is their relationship?
Munieka turned her gaze to me.
“Well then, I don’t like wasting time. Apprentice of the witch.”
“Y-yes?”
“Let’s go. The documents we need should be further inside.”
“…Documents? Ah—”
Munieka began walking. We followed, confused.
But seriously, why did she single me out?
We’d been searching the place for about an hour.
There were some documents and letters, but nothing of real importance.
The building had two floors above ground and one basement level. With so many rooms, we had reason to expect something valuable.
And yet, there was no treasure—nothing at all. Just some loose change.
At least there were no remaining enemies. Everyone had been gathered at the entrance.
I could really feel it now—we had completely wiped them out.
“Hm… nothing here… what a letdown.”
“What’s going on here?!”
“……”
It was strange. Far too strange that there wasn’t a single important item.
Leod seemed to realize something.
“This means… it’s hidden somewhere.”
“Or maybe all the important things were never here to begin with.”
“If that’s the case, then we’re out of luck.”
“Hm… wasted effort… what a loss…”
The mood began to shift toward giving up.
“Hey, Wof. Stay alert.”
Haiyaan spoke from atop my shoulder.
“You should be more worried about your indecent behavior.”
This rabbit… During the past hour of searching, he’d clung to Liv and groped her chest, touched her butt, and even jumped on Bid-san’s backside. Repeated sexual harassment.
Maybe they were just too kind, but they forgave him the first couple of times.
But it didn’t take long before this perverted rabbit pushed his luck and awakened a murderous intent in both of them.
Somehow, I ended up having to apologize on his behalf and calm them down.
They made him promise not to leave my shoulder as a condition.
But… did I do something wrong?
If it weren’t for the matter with Mineha-san… if you mess up again, be ready for consequences.
“Munieka-san. She’s hiding her true identity.”
“…What do you mean?”
“I don’t have proof.”
“…Then maybe wait until you do have proof before saying stuff like that.”
“Which is why, in order to get that proof, could you ask Munieka-san to carry me in her arms?”
“…………”
Without a word, I picked up Haiyaan and placed him on the highest bookshelf I could find.
He was saying something, but I ignored it and went to the next room. Let him dry up there.
Oh? Bid-san looked like she wanted to say something to me.
Her rabbit ears twitched. Ah—she was coming closer.
“What’re you doing? Where’s that perverted rabbit?”
She held her “Swift Blade” at the ready, scanning the surroundings—especially her feet and behind her.
“I left him somewhere. He won’t be causing trouble for a while.”
“That so.”
Bid-san put away her sword, glanced right and left, then leaned in and whispered to me:
“Hey, how about using that thing? If you’re worried about getting caught, I can help.”
“…That thing?”
She was so close I could feel her warm breath on my ear—it made my heart skip a beat.
She was warm and smelled faintly of flowers.
No, no. I shook my head mentally.
I’m not like Haiyaan.
“Come on, the relic! The one that helps you find treasure!”
“Oh—right! I totally forgot. Of course, we can use that!”
“You’re so forgetful, Wof.”
Bid-san grinned playfully, very close to my face.
“There’s just too much going on around me lately.”
“Can’t argue with that.”
She accepted that easily and stepped back.
“What’s up?”
“Ahaha, um, I’ll use it now.”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
Pulling myself together, I activated the relic Wheel of Fortune.
This room—nothing. That room—nothing. Still no reaction. Hmm, nothing yet…
“Ah, Bid-san. There’s something inside that vase.”
“This one? What is it… A bundle of keys.”
It glowed green. Wh-what? A green beam of light extended from the green glow.
That’s never happened before.
“Wof-kun?”
The beam extended down into the basement. The basement… that was the prison, right?
It was dark, so I lit the area with an orb of light. The prison was empty.
If someone had been there, I don’t want to imagine what would’ve happened to Leod.
The beam pointed to the back wall of the cell.
Something was there… Right in the middle, it was small and hard to notice, but it gave off an unnatural feeling.
Ah—this, this is… a keyhole.
A key? Could it be?
I borrowed the key bundle from Bid-san and tried them one by one. The fourth one fit.
When I turned it, a square section of the nearby floor vanished.
Beneath it was a staircase leading downward.
And the green beam of light continued down into the depths.