CH 326

Clouds seem to fly higher in the autumn sky. The sun also seems to rise even higher, pouring gentle light from directly above.

「It’s amazing. They’re all looking this way.」

The slender, Herbivore Mechanic beside me whispered to me.

We are outside the main auditorium. This is one of the tables set on the lawn.

Casually glancing around, I noticed that the men and women seated at the other tables were paying attention to us while discussing something.

「Well, it’s no wonder because the main players are all here.」

I turn my head and look at the people around the table.

Starting with Light Cruiser-sensei sitting next to me on my left, there were also Cool-san, Plain-chan, and Black Tights-chan.

The semi-finals will begin in the afternoon. And the four of them are the contestants.

「I guess you’re right, now that you said it.」

To my right, Herbivore Mechanic nodded his head. And on the opposite side is a freckled girl with red hair in braids, who lost to Black Tights-chan and stayed in the best eight.

(We are really a conspicuous group, so someone might come and talk to us.)

I thought so and looked at the surroundings for a while, but all I could see were people’s gazes at our table.

I returned my face to the table and looked at Light Cruiser-sensei beside me and was convinced.

(This must be because of the radiance of the best brothel. It must be so dazzling that people can’t help but be distracted.)

Cool-san, in particular, doesn’t have the softness of Light Cruiser-sensei.

She has a face that is so well-defined that it gives the impression of coldness and a dynamite body that is comparable to, though not as good as, that of Explosive onee-san.

With her few words, her presence is like a flower blooming on an alpine cliff.

(It’s a sight to see, but it’s scary to go any further than that.)

Cool-san places what looks like a Western-style version of a Shokado bento in front of her and sticks a fork through the compartment, and brings it to her mouth. I let out a small breath as I watch the figure her jawline moving.

The difficulty of starting a conversation with her is probably second only to Plain-chan in her Queen mode.

「Is it delicious?」

「Un, it’s the best.」

Meanwhile, here was the Herbivore Mechanic and Red-braid girl. While I was lost in thought, they were feeding each other.

Her lunch had been bought from a food stall and was nothing special. However, the herbivore mechanic was holding both cheeks and saying things like, 『I’ve never tasted such delicious food in my life.』

(As I thought, love is the best factor in cooking, huh.)

It was a pleasure to see them happy.

Next to them, a petite, narrow-shouldered Black Tights-chan was chatting with Plain-chan.

I was worried about whether the two of them would fit in, but it seems my fears were unfounded.

(I wonder what they’re talking about.)

I was a little curious, so I listened.

「…Do you make this by yourself?」

These are the words of the dark-haired, Black Tights-chan.

With a serious expression on her face, she peeks into the contents of Plain-chan’s basket and compares them to her own sandwich set.

「Yes, I did. But I just made it after I made one for my brothers.」

Plain-chan answers her question, but for some reason, she answered with a low voice and an embarrassed look on her face. I had my doubt for a moment, but all of it melted away when I saw what was taken out of the basket.

(That’s amazing.)

Plain-chan’s sandwich was very elaborate, not only colorful but also processed into the shape of an animal.

And the reason she was embarrassed was probably that she felt it was too childish for someone her age.

「What’s this? It’s soo cuutteee!」

The voice of the Red-braid girl flying in from the side drew everyone’s attention to the animal sandwich. A gasp of admiration rises from all corners of the table.

「Please let me taste it! …..Oh, despite the cute look, it tastes spicy.」

Without waiting for her answer, the Red-braid girl took one sandwich with her hand, throws it into her mouth, and then frowned and complained. This kind of freedom is only possible between two young women of that age.

By the way, the reason for the serious expression on Black Tights-chan’s face wasn’t because she was defeated in cooking skills.

(In this world, at least in the royal capital, there’s no culture that respects 『home-cooking food』.)

It is common for families to eat out at food stalls in the morning.

Therefore, the kitchens in every house are little more than a hair’s breadth from a wash basin. Even on this table too, everything is pre-made, except for Plain-chan’s sandwiches.

(I can tell. That is envy.)

Black Tights-chan who always speaks in a stiff tone with anyone she talks to. However, many of the accessories she carries are cute animals.

(Wan wan-kun, and nyan nyan-chan, was it?)

In front of the mirror in the playroom of the brothel. I recall a handkerchief that was sticking out of her handbag with an adult design placed there.

It was embroidered with a yawning round dog and a cat.

(Well, I better eat my lunch too.)

While looking at Plain-chan, who is getting a lot of questions, I open my basket on the lawn, take out the contents, and put them on the table.

Naturally, it is from a food stall, but it is slightly different as it is a bit expensive.

「Boss, is that…?」

Cool-san asked, and I nodded. A long, thin slice of bread with vegetables, eggs, and meat sandwiched in between. It is called 『Panini』 or 『Milano』 sandwich.

The difference between these sandwiches and the typical ones is that the fat content is kept to a minimum. As evidence, the wrappers are not soaked in oil.

「Delicious and healthy. It’s from a food stall an old man recently set up just south of the red-light district.」

I intentionally said it in a loud voice so that the people around me could hear me.

「I think the sign on the stall reads, 『If you flip the banana peel halfway up, you will find cucumbers inside』. It’s pretty conspicuous, so I think you’ll recognize it right away.」

This old man’s stall serves good food, but the prices are so high that he hardly had any customers in the downtown area.

I like it very much and I hope he won’t go bankrupt anytime soon.

(I hope he will get more customers, even just a little.)

With this wish in mind, I have been advertising it at every opportunity.

Judging from Cool-san’s reaction, she must have at least heard about it.

「Wow, there are so many vegetables in it. It looks like a very balanced sandwich.」

Light Cruiser-sensei has expressed her interest, so I decided to give it another push.

「Your body is your greatest asset, after all. You have to spend a good amount of money on good food.」

At first, the old man was planning to sell his sandwiches to students. He wanted the young people to grow up strong.

Unfortunately, the students had no money to buy it, were gluttonous, and had no health concerns.

As a result, it didn’t become very popular among them.

(People who are willing to loosen their purse strings for the sake of their bodies. We need to appeal to these types of people.)

Now, on my advice, he has changed his target to men and women who work in brothels.

By the way, I am in charge of promoting it to the ladies. For the older men who work in the brothels for women, my comrade, a tanned man, is in charge.

「Please have some.」

I imitated Herbivorous Mechanic and gave an 『Ah—*』 to Light Cruiser-sensei. A little embarrassed, she put it in her mouth and then offered her own lunch to me with an 『Ah—』.

「*TL Note: Sound a person makes when feeding another person.」

「It’s the best. I’ve never tasted anything this good before.」

I said the exact same thing Herbivore Mechanic had said earlier. As I thought, being fed by the hand of a beautiful woman made the taste more delicious on several levels.

『My, you’re exaggerating it.』, 『No no, I’m serious.』, while enjoying a flirtatious experience like this, Cool-san called out to me.

「May I also receive the honor of being fed by you?」

Naturally, I agreed, and 『Ah』 her as well. Then, I continued with Black Tights-chan and Plain-chan.

When Herbivore Mechanic opened his mouth too in turn, I took a scoop of mustard and pressed it against his nose.

「You’re too cruel, Tauro-san!」

Herbivorous Mechanic complained and his girlfriend took out her handkerchief and pampered him. Putting these two people aside, we were all excited to talk about the old man’s food stall.

My belly was getting a bit full, so I decided to serve fruit for dessert to everyone.

(I thought it would be too many, but with this many people, it’s just right.)

While reaching for the basket beneath my feet, I recall the figure of the fifth instar larva of the swallowtail butterfly.

『For the other’s share too.』

As I was bending down to pick them up in the morning, he poked his warty leg at me and encouraged me to take more.

As a farmer, I guess he wants more people to taste his products.

「Please have some.」

The strawberries I laid out on the table were as big as Miyagawa mandarin and were shining like rubies.

In addition, the shape is also a beautiful strawberry shape that everyone would imagine.

(It’s the fruit of a spirit beast, born from the feces of the 『Forest Sage』. Taste it!)

Of course, it has been washed with water.

Everyone around the table let out a sigh of surprise and amazement.

「Could it be a gift from the vice commander?」

I nodded at Cool-san’s question.

「And from the general. He wants to give you something to reward his lovely subordinate for her hard work.」

The one who suggested strawberries was General Dangorou. Vice-commander Imosuke suggested watermelon, but I dismissed it because it was too heavy.

「Thank you very much.」

Light Cruiser-sensei who is sandwiched between me and Cool-san and is listening to our conversation that makes no sense to her. But she doesn’t seem to mind.

She seems to think that the 『Doom Squad』 is a 『Play Circle』 organized by me.

『Me teaching Cool-san how to do acting when we were in Jayanne’s staff waiting room.』

It’s probably because she saw this.

I had Cool-san conduct several night raids to steal the virginities of sleeping virgins in human settlements.

『Sneak into a stranger’s bedroom, straddle him on top, and shake your hips without letting him sleep until morning.』

The best way to make this work is to make them think it’s just a dream. We were practicing this in Jayanne’s waiting room when Light Cruiser-sensei entered the room.

「My, that sounds really fun.」

Cool-san, dressed in what looked like a stage costume, delivered a series of unusual lines. At first, Light Cruiser-sensei was surprised by her appearance.

However, as she continued to watch, she seemed to misunderstand the situation in a positive way. Toward the end, she even started to applaud.

「There’s a lot of it, so please don’t hesitate to eat!」

The people around the table were just gazing at the beauty of the strawberries. Once I urged them for the second time, they took a piece and put it into their mouths.

「I’ve had the chance to eat it several times now, but the fruit Tauro-san brings is always so good, isn’t it?」

Herbivore Mechanic said as he took a bite of half of it at a time, and I nodded with a smile. Light Cruiser-sensei’s eyes widened as she held her cheek with one hand, while Cool-san’s eyes grew even sharper.

But I didn’t notice it at that time. I didn’t realize that while I was eating the strawberries, Light Cruiser-sensei was watching Plain-chan very keenly.

(The red butterfly-shaped mask. It looks like she’s back to her old self if she takes it off.)

Light Cruiser-sensei murmured in her heart. While her heart is melted by the aroma of strawberries coming out of her nose, she does not let her attention leave Plain-chan.

(As I thought, she is 『Cassabell’s Storm』. In terms of power in the brothel, she would be at least as strong as I am.)

If she is Jayanne’s number one in the shadows, her opponent is Cassabell’s poster Queen.

The clash between the two is, putting it in a way, a serious contest between the top three brothels.

(It was worth coming to the pilot school. I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful opponent to fight)

Light Cruiser-sensei narrowed her eyes and loosened her cheeks.

『It is only when one fights the strong that one can grow.』

That’s what she believes as her hobby is self-improvement. She can’t stop her heart from pounding at the prospect of a fight with an opponent of her size, which doesn’t come often.

Her only worry is that she will be defeated before she can fight her.

(Yet another reason why I can’t lose!)

Without changing her gentle smile, she shifted her eyes to her colleague.

On the other hand, Cool-san, whose eyes were also turned to her, was also thinking about Plain-chan.

(There’s too little information.)

She noticed the gaze from Light Cruiser-sensei, but she doesn’t seem to mind it. She knows exactly how she likes to fight strong opponents.

The current Light Cruiser-sensei is probably like a beast that doesn’t want her prey to be stolen.

(Good grief, she never changes.)

Cool-san shrugs her shoulders lightly. She puts a predator’s menacing look on top of her smile while looking at her colleague.

With a small sigh, she turns her attention back to the Plain-chan again.

(Does that mean she’s going to hold back until the regular practical exam starts?)

The eligible mark to enter the advanced class. She completely went under the radar because she had been staying at the bottom of that limit.

Therefore, no one knows anything about her. On the other hand, she had definitely done a lot of research on her classmates.

(She really got us. How clever.)

Cool-san raises a white flag in her mind. She had to admit that she had lost the intelligence battle.

But the truth is, Plain-chan did not attempt to hide at all. If she had not listened to the Smirking Boy’s conversation in the washroom, she would have lost all the qualifying rounds without transforming.

But because she thinks with 『If it were me』 mindset, Cool-san reads it that way.

(I won’t get in your way, so go ahead and fight her in the semi-finals. And why don’t you expose your opponent’s hands to me while you’re at it.)

Cool-san thinks as she looks at Light Cruiser-sensei who is happily chewing on her strawberry. By the way, the pairings have not been announced yet.

Unlike her colleague, she only seeks the result of 『Victory』. Since her gaze is focused on the finals, she wants to win with ease.

Receiving her gaze, Light Cruiser-sensei tilted her head, knowingly or unknowingly what the gaze directed at her meant, and smiled like a spring flower.

(These strawberries are delicious.)

And this is the thought of Black Tights-chan.

She ate the fruit that the spirit beast grows for the first time in her life and was greatly surprised.

(Not too sweet, not too sour, and not too green.)

She looks at the surface where she took a bite and sighs deeply.

Black Tights-chan doesn’t know that Plain-chan is the Queen of Cassabell. But it wouldn’t matter much.

Since a strong enemy, which is Jayanne’s duo, had been there from the beginning, she had no other thought than to turn her full strength to the opponent in front of her.

(What a nice texture and taste this is. If these are strawberries, just what have I been eating all this time?)

After finishing her meal, the girl exhales deeply with regret. Then she hears the voice of her former instructor, whom she calls 『Instructor-dono』.

「Do you want to eat another one?」

「Yes please!」

Black Tights-chan answered instantly with her back straight.