Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 122
In the darkness. I could not tell whether this was reality or not.
Perhaps it was because of the place I had chosen to sleep. Light barely reached here.
But… with his appearance, I finally understood that this “place” was inside a dream—no, inside the spirit world.
“Ah… Master. You were able to summon me here after all.”
“…You haven’t slept a wink until today, have you? Were you afraid of being summoned by me?”
My master spoke, his voice laced with anger, closing in on me. He accused me.
“Well… I couldn’t stop midway, could I?”
“…Indeed, I followed your plan. But you unnecessarily hurt Melt, didn’t you? You’re prepared for that, aren’t you?”
“Unnecessary… no, it was necessary. At least… my true objective was to hurt her—”
At that moment, my consciousness flickered. Even in this spiritual world, my master’s fist struck precisely at my temple.
…I would accept this punishment without complaint.
“…Did you think I couldn’t read your mind?”
“Hahaha… did you see right through me?”
“…I’ll rephrase my question. ‘Were you able to properly acknowledge that you are a madman?’”
In an instant, it was as if ice nails had been driven into my head—pain and cold surged through me.
…I felt awe that this young master could read my thoughts in an instant.
“It’s frustrating, isn’t it… a master who’s too clever…”
“I hate it too. The one I didn’t want closest to me turned out to be ‘the one who cared most about me and those around me.’”
“…Well, Sheele said it in the beginning, didn’t she? That ‘it’s good to have at least one person who can freely do as they like, in an unofficial position.’”
“So you sacrificed yourself. You gathered all the hatred onto yourself, lowering the overall threat of the Brigade and Silent. All the schemers operating in this world focused their attention on you, ensuring that neither I, nor Melt, nor others would be reached by their malice. That was your plan.”
That’s right. My master hadn’t realized: real zealots would kill without hesitation, involve unrelated people, take young children hostage, crush the hearts of lovers—do anything.
The Brigade, an unknown organization with immense power.
To crush it, the first targets are “those with tangible, close connections,” starting with the girl.
My master didn’t understand. How dangerous it is when one faction contributes too greatly to a nation. How risky it is to hold too much power.
If the Brigade truly existed and many acted simultaneously, that would have been fine.
But my master is alone. A single person cannot protect everyone. He didn’t understand that.
“Even so, I opposed ‘sacrificing only you.’ Even if you never go public again, I didn’t want you to continue being hated, feared, and carrying all the malice alone.”
“Yet, given the circumstances, there was no other method.”
“And in the process, you tried to ‘confirm’ something.”
…He intruded into my mind without permission. I had no way to resist him.
As if checking answers, he began uncovering my inner thoughts.
“…You enjoyed it halfway through, didn’t you? Not entirely unnecessary, but you hurt others so much. Or maybe that was part of your calculation? You didn’t trust any faction. You provoked as many sides as possible, drawing hatred toward yourself.”
“Well, there was some personal amusement too.”
“…Then, in the final act, you hurt Melt. To ‘see if you would be satisfied.’”
“….”
And I realized I was not satisfied. No—I should have felt it earlier.
‘You mustn’t go further.’ ‘If you hurt this girl more, I won’t be able to bear it.’
That’s why I ran. I didn’t want to admit it.
I didn’t want to know that my nature was merely a temporary one, created by the creator.
Yet, I came to fully understand my own nature.
“Sheele said it too. Your understanding of the character settings and story deepened because of my growth. That’s when you realized, right?”
“…Yes. I was not a madman. I was merely made to follow the story. Everyone understands that they exist only in a game, forced to carry a convenient story. But still, I wanted to think of myself as a madman.”
“But in reality, I wasn’t that crazy. Even acting it out, I couldn’t fully become it. Well, I did a decent job. I still can’t forgive hurting Melt, though.”
“…I thought giving her candy might somehow make it okay.”
“That’s not how it works… In the end, you ‘fell asleep in this place.’ That’s all it was.”
“…Exactly. Surely, I was just lightly dozing. Please… take action, my master.”
“Understood. I won’t fully condone or approve all your actions. But even so, I’m glad I accepted your proposal. Now, as a mysterious third party, all the attention of those operating in the shadows will focus on you. Attention will be on the madman Still, who should no longer exist. Thank you, Still.”
Ah… with just those words, I feel rewarded.
I expected more reprimand, yet even a single blow is enough for you to forgive me.
“…Will you ever apologize directly to Melt?”
“No. I will remain the non-existent madman. I’ve gathered all the hatred, after all. You understand the importance of managing hatred best, don’t you?”
“I suppose. I’ve never used a tank, though.”
“You did use ‘that.’ No, aren’t you yourself currently the ‘evasion tank’?”
My master has already become incredibly strong. At least… I cannot defeat him.
After all, he is ‘my special one.’ My skill effects are greatly reduced.
“Ah… ‘that’ was just a one-time trick…”
“If someday someone needs to be ‘the head of the Brigade,’ use ‘that.’ It’s visually perfect.”
“Mm, right… This place is starting to shake a little. Time to wake up?”
“Yes. Then… I return this body.”
“Alright. Switch me back to Same.”
“Understood. Yes, that’s best.”
My “mad performance” ends here.
I feel a little nostalgic, but I’m exhausted.
Ah… I should have had one last cup of tea at that café.
The café near the North Gate… it wasn’t very good, after all…
Half-asleep, I manipulate the menu screen.
Now… welcome back, my master—
Someday, I hope we can have tea together again—
“…This is… inside that rock, isn’t it?”
Darkness. No light at all. Inside a hidden door in the mountain leading to the basement of my house.
Passing through here allows me to return home in the fastest possible way.
That is, essentially… Still saying, “Hurry home and greet Melt.”
“…According to the kingdom’s research materials… and all this gold and treasure… there’s nothing better to take as a souvenir.”
I check the menu screen. The number of “Shining Holy Amber Candy +15” has decreased considerably.
…These candies, despite being candy, restore much more than potions.
Shining Holy Amber Candy +15
- Made from the sap of specially consecrated white birch.
- Provides continuous HP recovery and completely prevents mental status effects like sleep confusion or seduction.
- Hard to melt, one piece lasts a long time. A good deal—but quite expensive.
No, it’s not just the candy… other items with low remaining quantities have decreased too.
Still… when did you use them…? You didn’t show any sign of it.
“…I’d better run at full speed home.”
There are still many things I’m curious about. But I can’t waste Stil’s thoughtfulness.
I run full speed through the underground passage and return to my long-awaited home—
Inside, not much has changed since I went off to war.
Yet, the faint smell of fried shrimp lingers.
Ah… she’s been cooking every day, hasn’t she? Fried food is delicious but fattening.
I need to make sure to warn her when I return.
“Uh… this should be it.”
I check outside from the sunroom.
I detect a response that seems to be Melt, and another person moving with her, slowly approaching the house.
Near the house, one of them turns back. Probably, they escorted Melt home.
…In the throne room, Melt must have been in considerable shock.
It was only briefly in Still’s view, so I don’t know the details.
But still, she is likely completely exhausted now.
I do not greet her outside; I simply sit on a chair inside and wait for the front door to open.
But the door doesn’t open no matter how long I wait. Curious, I peek outside from the terrace.
Melt is sitting in a corner of the garden, staring at the shrimp pond she built.
…Alright, I’ll call her.
“Hey—come inside already!”
I call from inside, but Melt remains sitting, now with her head down.
…Could she think it’s an auditory hallucination? No matter.
I go to the pond to greet her and sit beside her.
“The shrimp… have decreased a lot, huh?”
“…I ate too many…”
“And now you realize it’s not a hallucination, right?”
“….”
“See, you can touch me.”
Tail fluff. Head pats.
“Huh? Ah… that…”
“Welcome home, Melt. Thank you for attending the palace in my place.”
“W-why!? B-but…!”
It’s probably best not to say anything about Still.
Melt’s eyes, red and swollen, finally accept my presence in reality, tears forming once more.
And then, the next moment—
“SAME!!!!!!”
“GUEH!!!!!!”
Pushed to the ground, held tightly as if being strangled.
It’s suffocating! It hurts! But this is a pain I must accept.
“SAME IS HERE!!!! HE’S HERE!!!!!! HE WAS LYING ALL ALONG!!!!”
“Guh… guhh…”
“SAME SAME SAME!!!! HE’S BACK! HE CAME BACK!!!”
“Guh… ah… help…”
“He’s real…! He’s really here…!”
I really feel like I’m going to die. My lungs are being crushed, I can’t breathe.
Alright, that’s it! Tap out! I give up!
But maybe mistaking the pats on my back for encouragement, the hug only tightens further.
“Help… let go… it hurts… I’m dying…”
“Ah! Yes! Breathe!”
“Hah!”
“Again! One more time! It’s Same! Same is here!”
“Gueh!”
After a hug that feels like torture—neither letting me live nor die—I finally calm Melt down and enter the house with her.
…Her emotional reaction is intense…
“Same, listen. A weird guy came by. And he lied that Silent was killed!”
“Ah… yeah, I pretended to lose once as Silent and investigated Golda’s castle. That weird guy… Still is dangerous. If you ever see him… don’t get close.”
“Got it… so he was pretending Silent died to do some investigation…”
“Exactly. And I wanted to avoid that weird guy Still too, so I quietly left Golda. But now we know the situation. We should head to the palace… maybe not immediately, but tomorrow.”
“Yeah… so how should we report it?”
“Well… for now, something like: ‘Silent, though gravely injured, returned safely to the main force. Please don’t assign work to him for a while, including me.’”
“Got it. I’ll keep my mouth shut too.”
“Haha… right. And… I’ll take responsibility to represent Silent to King Golda. Then we’ll go to the ruins of the artificial dungeon. Melt, ask whatever you need while we’re there.”
It might be cruel to say this to her after the mental strain she’s already endured today.
But… I want to finish this quickly. These pointless wars and all the troublesome things that come with them.
“…Yeah, I understand. I already know what I need to ask. After that… I’ll let the Queen decide what to do with King Golda.”
“…Alright. That’s okay?”
“Yeah. It’s a war between nations. The outcome should be decided between the kings themselves.”
“…Understood.”
I had intended to kill him. Even if Melt hadn’t, I would have.
But because it’s a war between nations, I respect Melt’s rational judgment.
“…But I’m really glad you came back. I thought Same, Shizuma, Silent, and everyone else were all gone forever, dead. I didn’t care about anything anymore. I even thought maybe I’d just go back to the forest.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you, Melt.”
“No, it’s that weird guy Still’s fault. He’s the bad one. Next time I see him, I’m just going to ignore him. Hmph.”
“Haha… yeah, that’s good.”
Watching Melt puff out her cheeks and turn her face away in mock annoyance, I finally let out a deep sigh. She’s back, and for now, the seeds of anxiety will no longer sprout.