CH 27

─Rodo’s side─

“Shtinky.”

Kou is showing an uncomfortable face while pinching his nose at the liquor-smelling Renneiga.

He didn’t seem offended by him drinking, but rather by the smell.

After knowing that, I decided to stop drinking.

If he showed me such an annoyed face, I’d get sick in an instant.

I can’t think of doing something that would make him dislike me.

Then Renneiga deliberately exhaled at Kou.

These two are often teasing and playing around with each other.

But in front of me, Kou wouldn’t show such childishness.

I mean…these two looked like they’re on equal footing.

But I’m still just a “guardian”.

“Vuwine.”

He only said one word in a cold voice.

Vuwine…means vine.

When I remembered that──

Several vines grew from the wall behind Renneiga and drew him in, then further entwined around his body.

As soon as his body was attached to the wall, the vines wrapped around his hands, feet, neck, and waist to restrain him.

Kou only said one word.

Moreover, he just said the word vine.

As expected, the magic used by Kou is special.

Even though he’s drunk, it held well against the resisting Renneiga.

I have never seen such a powerful restraining magic.

“Kou, amazing.”

Words of praise overflowed from my mouth──

“Amashing?”

He didn’t seem to know how great he is.

He’s tilting his head.

“Kou! Take it off!”

Renneiga’s loud voice echoed.

As expected, he can’t solve it with his power.

“Shtinky, haa, nwo.”

Kou exhaled then complained about the smell while frowning.

He had no persuasive force at all.

…cute.

Then he immediately released the restraints on Renneiga who reluctantly nodded.

He approached.

“Kou, are you prohibiting the Captain from drinking? Even though he’s a drinker who’s incomparable to me.”

He spoke faster than usual, probably because he’s drunk.

But…

“Don’t say anything extra!”

Don’t say something I don’t want to tell Kou!

I grabbed his arms.

Renneiga screamed…

Well, of course, he would.

Kou seemed unable to understand Renneiga’s words and had a confused look.

“Ryodo, shake, dwink? Shtinky, become?” (Does Rodo drink sake? And become stinky?)

However, he seemed to understand that I drink before meeting Kou.

“Wrong. Drink, no.” (No, I don’t drink.)

I shook my head in a hurry──

“Ryodo, endure? Kou, here, because?” (Is Rodo enduring it because I’m here?)

He made an uneasy face.

“Impossible, I haven’t. Kou, smell, no. Rodo, Kou, don’t want, don’t want to.” (That’s impossible. See, there’s no smell. If Kou doesn’t like it, I won’t do it.)

It’s not that I’m enduring it.

I just want to prioritize the time I spend with Kou over the time I drink.

Therefore, it’s different from patience.

It’s my choice.

“Ryodo, shake, dwink. Kou, no, can.” (Rodo can drink, I won’t mind.)

“No good. Rodo, together.” (No good. I want to be with you more.)

There’s no way I would leave Kou alone and drink.

“Kou, awone, awright. Bwath, alone, no pwobwem. Shleep, awone, no pwobwem.” (Being alone is alright. Even bathing and sleeping by myself is no problem.)

Do you mean you’re fine with bathing or sleeping alone?

That’s fine, but I’m not fine with that.

“Welcome, home. Ryodo, return, back, time, welcome, do?” (I’ll say welcome back. When it’s time for Rodo to return, I’ll be there welcoming you.)

But as soon as I heard those words, I hugged Kou.

How cute is “waiting for me because he wanted to say “welcome back”?”

I don’t want to be separated from Kou, but it’s hard to reject hearing the words “welcome back” from him.

However, I still don’t feel like drinking.

“Sake, don’t need. Rodo, Kou, together, want.” (I don’t want sake. I just want to be together with Kou.)

I’m not going to lose my irreplaceable time.

Even if I’m faced with a confused face and a line of astonished faces, what I want to do most is to be with Kou.

“…”

Kou seemed to be thinking about it.

Is he impressed?

Or did he want time to be alone?

“…Ryodo, shmelly, become, endure, know.” (Just remember that if Rodo stinks, I’ll endure the smell.)

He said that because he knew I drank before.

He didn’t like the smell, but he’d endure for me…

“Endure, don’t need to. Drink no.” (You don’t have to endure. I won’t drink.)

I don’t think I’ll ever drink as long as Kou is enduring it.

Drinking is just a time-consuming activity, so I don’t have to do that.

“Ryodo, shmelly, become, no pwobwem. Togwether, still. Ryen, shmelly, become, imposshible. Togwether, no.” (If Rodo becomes smelly, it’s fine, I’ll still stay with you. But if Ren becomes smelly, no way am I staying with him.)

“…Rodo, only? Special?” (Am I the special exception?)

(You don’t mind if I drink and my breath stinks?)

He said Renneiga is impossible and didn’t want to be with him.

──that filled me with joy.

And my cheeks naturally loosened.

However, I can’t stand having Kou endure it, so I probably won’t drink.

“Ryodo, dwinner.”

When I saw him look up at me with a smile, I wanted to marry him earlier.

I wanted to make him my own.

As expected, I’m not going to do anything to Kou as he is now, but I at least want to get married first.

How long should I wait?

I want him to like me soon.

“I don’t hate the idea of marrying you,” he says, but I know he wouldn’t marry me because he loves me.

And I want to do what Kou wants…

I wonder if I’m clinging too much.

He doesn’t like it if I care for him more than necessary, but he did mind that I treat him like a child.

I didn’t mean to make him feel that way, but Kou looked like a child right now.

He’d be knocked down with just a little bit of force.

“Mweal, eat.”

“Yes. Eat.”

I let Kou sit in his chair while I sat next to him.

Kou eats only the amount that fits his body.

…no, isn’t it smaller?

I don’t know how much a child can eat, but it’s definitely less than what I ate in my childhood.

Akinists seemed to eat a lot from the beginning, so it might be wrong to compare with me.

I just chew well while tasting it before swallowing, which isn’t something special to Kou.

However, he did get stunned at seeing the amount I ate in the beginning.

However, Kou, who eats without spilling anything, seemed more accustomed to eating in this form than those who just humanized.

He said he shrunk, but did Kou look like this when he was young?

He looked elegant because he eats without making too much noise.

Was Kou’s parents strict with him?

Did he have a good life?

I already know that he’s smart, but is it because Kou’s just diligent?

As his guardian, can I give him more?

Will he be happy as my mate?

In this world where he knew nothing about, I’m proud that Kou only relies on me.

If Kou asked, His Majesty and all Master Magicians will help, but I want Kou to rely only on me.

It’s already known that his magical power exceeds the Tower of Trik’s Representative.

It’s even said that he can easily surpass him in any magic he can use.

He even seemed to have used movement magic which he hadn’t learned yet, and that Kou has a hidden power.

But for me, Kou is just my dearest companion.

“Ryodo? Eash, nwo?” (Rodo, aren’t you eating?)

While I was thinking, my hands seem to have stopped.

Kou looked at me with a worried face.

“It’s okay. Eat.”

I smiled and brought the food to my mouth.

…but Kou didn’t stop worrying.

“Worry, don’t need. No problem.” (You don’t need to worry. There’s no problem.)

“…imposhible, to do, you mustn’t.” (Impossible. If I can’t, then you also can’t.)

“Y-yes.”

As expected, Kou, who usually worries me, is still special.

The only ones who’d worry about me, an Akinist, is probably my parents.

Moreover, no one would worry about my physical condition.

“…*****.”

What did Kou, who smiled with a grown-up expression, say?

Even so, I still think he looked very beautiful.

I’d seen the drawing of him grown up, but if he smiled like this with that face──

It will attract not only me, who’s his mate, but also others.

I need to keep an eye out.

Knocking over those various reaching hands should be my priority.

I was thinking about filling the outer moat in various ways from now on, that I didn’t realize the people around me trembling when they saw me.

“Ryodo, shcary, doing.” (Rodo, you’re thinking of something scary.)

I was surprised by Kou’s words, but other than Kou, even Renneiga had a horrified face and can’t even look at me.

…did I have such a scary face?

─Rodo’s side end─

Translator’s Notes:

This language barrier is cute and all but this is killing me. I don’t even know what word Kou is talking about sometimes and have to be a detective to figure it out. Thank God that the author sometimes explains it in the next sentence, but translating it was hell.

Kou and Rodo have a language barrier and the author and I have a language barrier. Taken together, I have two language barriers blocking me from understanding Kou. When will Kou start speaking normally? I haven’t read ahead and I don’t want to spoil myself.

Well, anyway, onto the next chapter.