Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 118: Not here right now
“Tsk, we’re fortunate it hasn’t turned into a forest fire.”
Ahead in Ishud’s gaze was Cerberus, the three-headed watchdog.
It hadn’t yet sensed Ishud and the others, still in the midst of searching for suitable prey.
“H-hey, Ishud…”
“Denied.”
Before Gulf could finish his sentence, Ishud cut him off, a very rare sight.
“W-well, I haven’t finished saying…”
“You want to fight that thing, right?”
“Y-yeah. Of course, not alone… with all of us, Philip and the others.”
As part of the combat force, Philip was inclined to interject and say hold on a minute, but if Gulf really wanted to challenge the monster a little ways off… then he couldn’t just sit back and let him go alone.
“All of us except me, is that it?”
“Yeah.”
He glanced briefly at his younger brother and sister… they showed no fear, their eyes gleaming with excitement deep within.
Regarding Michela and the others, while they were a bit different, not a single one of them was disheartened; their fighting spirit burned brightly.
“…………Denied.”
“Eh?! W-why?”
They understood that their opponent wasn’t someone they could take lightly.
Cerberus was ranked B, and while Gulf still had limited knowledge about monster names and characteristics, he knew Cerberus was a famous monster with a high rank.
“Ishud-niisan… Is it really impossible?”
“Yeah, it’s impossible.”
Gulf, Philip, Michela, Ibuki, Christille, Dustin, Waltz, Lyune.
Though all of them were young, they were steps ahead of others their age.
None of them had reached their third job class yet.
However, they undeniably possessed a power and radiance that suggested otherwise.
But… driven by a primal instinct nonetheless, Ishud tried to restrain their courage.
“Intense.”
“Intense, you say?”
“Yeah… it might just be my personal feeling, but I understand… If all of you were to challenge it, maybe you could win. But someone might die.”
““““!!!!””””
“Whether that’s one person, two people, or more… I can’t tell.”
Distant.
In addition, unlike the Beastmen who had an acute sense of smell, Ishud was just a regular human.
Nevertheless… from years of continued fighting on the battlefield, he could sense the thickness of blood ingrained in his targets… how much slaughter they had endured, how many battlegrounds they had traversed.
“When you’re fighting, there’ll come a day when you have to bet your own life. Not just once or twice… if you’re on the battlefield, you’ll experience it whether you like it or not.”
Everyone present had experienced battles where their lives were at stake.
Ishud understood that too, but still he tried to stop them.
“Sure, it’s obvious. You might think you can overcome it any number of times, and that’s not necessarily bad… in fact, I welcome it. But… right now, it’s not about throwing away your life to protect something or accomplish something, is it?”
Truth be told, Ishud also had a sincere desire not to let anyone die here.
Honestly, Waltz and Lyune were likely to be the biggest liabilities among the eight, though not entirely.
Considering Cerberus’s combat prowess… if they were watching from behind, there was a good chance they wouldn’t be able to reach in time.
“…Yeah, I get it.”
“I’m glad you understand. Well, I’ll say sorry, but I’ll be the one to fight him. Watch how Cerberus moves and learn.”
With those words, he headed towards Cerberus, who was searching for prey with a gait akin to walking inside a house.
“Haa… Did I just make Ishud worry with my selfishness?”
Watching his friend head towards the monster, Gulf squatted down on the ground and let out a heavy sigh.
“Well… maybe he wasn’t really worried? In fact, he might welcome that side of you.”
As Philip said, Ishud had welcomed Gulf’s bold fighting spirit and courage, despite everything.
“But this time, it’s a different story. That’s just how it is.”
“Just between us, though… I actually thought it was pretty serious, just like Ishud explained.”
“Even if we all took it on without Ishud, someone would definitely end up dead.”
“Yeah, these monsters around here are all pretty strong. Thinking about it, that Cerberus might be stronger than those in other regions isn’t out of the question.”
Philip added, with everyone nodding in agreement.
Gulf nodded as well, without any strange stubbornness this time.
“And judging from Ishud-kun’s expression… he might have sensed something.”
“Maybe it’s someone he has a grudge against?”
“Could be… But if that were the case, Cerberus would probably show a face of rage the moment it encountered him. I can’t imagine Ishud staying calm in a situation like that. Personally, I think Cerberus would unleash such pressure that it would scare the crap out of him.”
“I agree with Philip’s thoughts… However, what do you think Ishud-niisan sensed then?”
“I’m not sure Ishud would appreciate us speculating about him like this. But personally, it feels like… it reminds me of a mercenary I saw once.”
That man isn’t particularly bad in character, nor is he consistently low in spirits.
However… the moment Philip saw the mercenary, he inexplicably saw him covered in splattered blood.
Of course, it was an illusion. The man, while not overly concerned with cleanliness, had indeed taken a bath.
“He might be someone with considerable combat experience, that’s what I think.”
“Just my gut feeling, you know. Well… whether my gut feeling is right or wrong, we’ll find out from the battles to come.”
Ahead of their gaze… Ishud was already raising his iron fist against Cerberus, who was roaring, with a bellicose grin on its face, ready to strike down with his claw.