Trails with Cuddle-Cuddle Osbon
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Helen
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Author Note:
This is too long to be just a single chapter, so I split it.
My apologies to everyone who was looking forward to the Rean VS Aurelia battle.
The battle between the two will be in the next chapter.
Now, let’s take a look at what happened behind the scenes.
Chapter 016 – Fufufu, son. It’s the April Field Study⑤
Kurt guided Rean to the orbal car parked outside Parm.
Rean’s mouth hung open at the sudden turn of events. Kurt understood his confusion and told Rean to get inside the car.
Rean did as he was told and entered the orbal car in which he saw a young man wearing glasses sitting in the driver’s seat.
“Um, you are……”
“I’m terribly sorry, Rean-sama. I can’t answer any of your questions until we reach a certain location.”
“Eh~…………”
“Rean-san, I’m sorry for bringing you here suddenly without any explanations……”
“Ah no, I don’t know what to say since I don’t know if I should get angry or apologize.” 1
“Please relax,” said Kurt as the young man wearing glasses drove the orbal car.
Even in the car, Kurt continued to look apologetic, which made Rean hesitate to ask for the reason.
Rean simply allowed himself to be taken by the orbal car and brought somewhere.
The place he was taken to was Saint-Arkh, known as the old capital.
Stunned, Rean didn’t notice when the orbal car stopped, and he was taken by Kurt to have an audience with someone.
The place he was brought to was a mansion that looked very luxurious.
An elderly man, who seemed to be the owner, greeted Rean with a smile on his face.
“Hello, nice to meet you, Rean-kun. I am Fernand Hyarms, the person in charge of the Sutherland Province.”
Rean was so confused by the sudden turn of events that he didn’t even return the greeting, which was rude.
Osbon called out to the confused Rean.
[“Fufufu, son. I know it’s confusing because it’s sudden, but keep your head calm. Considering the Marquis Hyarms’ personality, there’s absolutely no way that he would summon a student during their field study. There must be third party involved in this.”]
I-is that so?
[“Marquis Hyarms is a neutral person among the nobles. He also has a good reputation among the people of his territory. He is one of few nobles who actually do what Jusis-kun refers to as Noblesse Oblige, so to speak.”]
Since Osbon said that much, it meant he must be a fine noble and good, like the Schwarzer family.
Despite Rean’s late greeting, Marquis Hyarms accepted it without getting angry.
Seeing that, Rean realized that the person in front of him was truly a fine noble.
Is there someone who can move another like this…………?!
Despite being in front of Marquis Hyarms, Rean immediately assumed a fighting stance and looked behind him.
The tachi he drew toward the ceiling didn’t hit anything and did not rebound, making Rean realize that it was a combat technique similar to cloning.
However, everyone around him widened their eyes at Rean’s sudden action.
Kurt was about to reprimand Rean about his strange action toward Marquis Hyarms, but before he could, a person with an overwhelming presence appeared through the door.
“Fufu, he seems more promising than I expected.”
A beautiful silver-haired woman was standing there, wearing a luxurious cloak.
Rean thought her appearance alone would attract people’s attention, but more than that, she had a presence that made one unable to take their eyes off her.
And Rean’s wariness intensified because of that.
“Countess Le Guin…… I hope you refrain from teasing young people.”
“No, I only did that because he’s also someone from the horned lion. Chicks have to be cultivated properly after all.” 2
“So you just choose people and won’t stop teasing……”
“Haah,” sighed Marquis Hyarms, which immediately made Rean feel empathy with him.
“Fufu, well met. I’m Aurelia Le Guin. I have been given the title of Countess. Nice to meet you, Schwarzer.”
“So you are Aurelia Le Guin… no, please excuse me, Countess Le Guin. Your fame had already spread far from the land of Ymir.”
Rean immediately corrected his tone, but Aurelia waved her hand and made him readjust his tone.
It was to say that this was not a social occasion, so there was no need to worry about it too much.
Perhaps because she was done teasing Rean, her earlier intimidation from before was gone, and Rean also lowered his wariness and sheathed his tachi.
After Rean apologized to Marquis Hyarms, the young man with glasses, and Kurt for the commotion, the boy martial artist asked Rean a question.
“Um… what did the countess do earlier…?”
“She unleashed a technique that only I could sense. Even though it was about to hit me, she held back enough so I was able to realize and deal with it.”
“Hou, so you noticed that.”
“It’s all thanks to the teachings of various people.”
For Rean, the people he could consider mentors were Old Master Yun and Osbon.
In addition, with eyes that had almost reached the degree of foresight, the old master with peerless skill despite his old body was the founder of Eight Leaves One Blade School of swordsmanship, and Rean considered him the pinnacle of martial arts among the people he knew.
Osbon was also knowledgeable about martial arts, and gave Rean various advice in addition to controlling the power of ogre. It seemed Osbon was most knowledgeable about the Hundred-Form Military Combat.
His father also taught Rean knight fencing, but due to the power of ogre, Rean soon adopted Eight Leaves One Blade as his main style, which made him feel sorry for his two fathers. 3
That said, it was none other than Osbon who recommended Eight Leaves One Blade after all.
“Um, so, why exactly was I brought here?”
“…………I’m terribly sorry for exposing the shame of nobles and imposing the benefactor of my people, but…………”
Hearing Rean’s question, Marquis Hyarms nodded and spoke the details.
An incident started during the daytime today. 4
Although it was done out of Sara’s request, Rean was having a match against Jusis and Machias.
The final result was Rean’s defeat, due to the foul, but those who had watched the match would realize how overwhelmingly more powerful Rean was and how he was the actual victor of the match.
Apparently, this commotion spread out from the training ground and to parts of Parm.
And this news reached the ears of nobles. Moreover, in a distorted state, due to imperfect transmission of information, just like that of the messages in games.
Jusis…… or to be more precise, a member of the duke family being defeated by a member of a baron family, moreover, by a vagrant at that, was apparently, a fact that some nobles couldn’t accept.
Since the nobles knew that much, perhaps it’s from that noble who was requesting dyeing just now back there, thought Rean, but apparently, there was a group of nobles who felt self-satisfaction by showing off the superiority of their status.
[“There are many nobles like that. They mistake the power and wealth they had inherited which they hadn’t achieved as their own, and became intoxicated with harming others.”]
Osbon told Rean in a serious voice.
Rean hadn’t been particularly conscious of the disparity in social status, and while he had seen Machias as an example, all he felt was that I guess there were commoners who hate nobles.
But it seemed the same could also apply to nobles.
It seemed that the nobles couldn’t tolerate the difference between the top or bottom of peerage being overturned.
“Isn’t that just sophistry……?”
“Exactly. It’s not even a dispute between students, just part of schoolwork, yet they intervened. Of course, I didn’t consider it an issue at first, but there’s something strange about it being just a display of power. That is also because of your actions.”
“My action?”
“It’s about how you went around hunting monsters throughout the Sutherland Province. I had no idea why you did that, but it is true there were people saved by your actions. Therefore, I can only express gratitude for that, but apparently, there were monsters bred by nobles among those you hunted.”
“They were bred? Not hunted?”
“As you know, monsters have a tendency to store sepith in their bodies. Due to this, people hunt monsters to collect sepith and use them as a source of funds or for various purposes such as improving quartz. And the nobles in question took note of this, captured monsters, left them alone, and accumulated certain amounts of sepith.”
“That’s…………”
“They were among the monsters Schwarzer hunted. As a result of you hunting those monsters and leaving the remains alone, you ended up ruining the sepith production plan those said nobles had planned.” 5
Rean was just desperate to return back then, but apparently, among the monsters that Rean defeated on his way back, there were ones with sepith supposedly belonging to nobles.
However, they were in abandoned locations all over Sutherland Province, so it seemed they only managed to get less than half of what they had expected.
“Let’s leave aside for now why Schwarzer was there and hunted all those monsters. The important thing is that by following the trails of monsters Schwarzer defeated, we found a breeding facility for monsters. In addition, they seemed to have bred and sold monsters for military use.”
“This came to light while we were investigating the things Rean-kun had caused. Personally, I’m very grateful to Rean-kun just for bringing this to the light but……”
At that, Marquis Hyarms frowned as if he had bitten into something unpleasant.
Eventually, as if he had made up his mind, he began to speak in a quieter manner, trying to suppress his anger.
“Unfortunately, it seems that other breeding facilities exist, and the one you destroyed was just one of them. While we were investigating, we also found several facilities and destroyed them. However, it seemed that because they were done by a skilled broker, we couldn’t find any evidence that a noble was involved.”
“In addition, there’s a reason why the provincial army can’t take action.”
Marquis Hyarms seemed to deeply regret not having been able to see the evil that had lurked in the Sutherland Province which he ruled.
As if sensing the marquis’ state, Aurelia took over his words.
“What is the reason?”
“The most likely site for that is the Kreuzen Province…… the territory of Duke Albarea. If we move the provincial army, it would provoke them. If Wallace and I could enter from that direction, I am confident we can conquer them, but they will definitely not let us in. That said, in Wallace’s case, it’ll make it seem like I’m forcing myself in and him drawing back to open the way.”
“So, does that mean Duke Albarea bred monsters?”
“We have no idea if Duke Albarea was involved or if his subordinates did it without him knowing. What we do know is that the most likely site for the monster breeding facility is near Kreuzen Province, which is adjacent to Sutherland Province, and the fact that we can’t intervene it.”
“I understand the situation. However, how is that related to me being called here? From what I heard, I think Jusis would be the correct person to be called here……”
“Naturally, we will ask for him later. The reason we summoned you first was to deceive the eyes of nobles.”
“Deceive their eyes?”
“I’ll be direct. Get seriously injured and go to jail.”
Rean couldn’t understand what Aurelia meant.
“Countess Le Guin, your words are too insufficient…… to be more precise, you will wear make-up done by Celestin-kun who will stand there to make it seem like you are seriously injured. Then, as the son of a baron who opposed the ducal family, you will be detained, or at least that’s what other nobles would see.”
[“I see. From the perspective of the nobles who managed the breeding facility, you are their nemesis who have exposed the facilities that had been hidden until now. When they learn that you were lynched and thrown into prison, they would feel fulfilled and become less wary. Moreover, there’s a noble who is also a master who is likely to reach ‘Boundary’ here. You can guess the rest, right?”]
I see, nodding Rean to Osbon’s words.
It wasn’t a big deal. Things would be resolved as long as he just went to jail and spent a night there.
“I understand. So things will be resolved as long as I spent a night in jail and getting lynched by Countess Le Guin the following day, right?”
Rean’s answer made Marquis Hyarms blink.
Aurelia couldn’t stop her mouth from curling upward and held her stomach as she laughed.
The way tears formed in the corner of her eyes gave an impression of her being a little girl.
“N-no, Rean-kun. Do you understand what you just said?”
“? Yes. Was I wrong?”
“No, you’re mostly correct. What you’re mistaken about that it’s not a lynch, but a training session. It just in a format that is very close to a deathmatch. Originally, you are supposed to consider whether you want to receive my training in prison, but I never thought you would actually volunteer yourself.”
“R-rean-san. Do you really understand what you’re saying?”
“What?”
Seeing Rean talking casually about it, Kurt, who had been silent until now, told Rean about Aurelia in a panic.
“Countess Aurelia Le Guin is a swordswoman who is known as the ‘Golden Rakshasa’…… moreover, she is undeniably an master of martial arts who had mastered two major schools in Arseid and Vander. To volunteer for a training session in a format that is similar to that of a deathmatch…… do you still want to accept that?”
“Well, I can say there isn’t, but I can also say there is.”
“Y-you have a reason?”
“It’s for my friend… I guess.”
“For…… your friend……?”
Kurt repeated Rean’s words in a daze.
“I won’t go into details, but I want to be strong for my friends. That’s why I’m grateful to have a match against a more powerful opponent. I’m sure there’s something I can gain from the experience of fighting someone like that.”
Rean possessed the Power of Ashen.
It was the realm of seven attributes, that could rewrite the world, that he had obtained in the old schoolhouse.
If it was in that world, Rosine could see Osbon.
Therefore, Rean must master the Power of Ashen to the extent he could deploy that realm.
Although the place was limited, the fact it could make it possible for the number of people who could see Osbon to increase was enough to be made into Rean’s life goal.
“Do you have someone like that, Kurt?”
“Ah……Um, if it’s someone I want to protect, then there is. But I’m still very lacking in it……”
“I see. If you’re trying to become stronger for the sake of that person, why don’t you consider it a blessing that you have something you lack? The real pleasure of training is being able to experience the fruition of hard work and growth. It is a part of being a martial artist to find enjoyment as you come up with ideas on how to improve. Besides, when the moment comes when the person you want to protect is truly in danger, I think there’s no loss in learning to fight a person more powerful than you are. Even if you don’t win, you can persist if you have not lost, and it’s good to learn how to buy time.”
“That’s such a clear decision.”
“Hahah, that’s what my dad taught me, though. I don’t know if it’ll suit Kurt, but if you feel lacking in strength, having another person to pull you up is one method —— just like what I’m going to do from now on.”
After saying that, Rean looked at Aurelia.
It seemed that her laughter had finally subsided, and she was looking at Rean with a genuinely amused expression.
Rean bowed his head in response.
“Marquis Hyarms, I will accept your request. That’s why, Countess Le Guin, please help me achieve what I am aiming for. Ah, also, regarding the incident of a baron family opposing the duke family, after the situation is concluded, I don’t mind bearing the reputation, but please protect the honor of Schwarzer Family.”
“A-aah. Of course I will take care of that. Since you are cooperating to help us fix our mistakes, I will definitely do my best to avoid causing trouble to the Baron Schwarzer family.”
“My Le Guin family will help in that regard as well. Fufu, your greed of trying to use me is admirable. A problem student of Thors Academy, huh…? Kuku, I guess the academy just couldn’t handle you properly.”
Leaving the two who hit it off aside, both Marquis Hyarms and Kurt, who were people with common sense, couldn’t conceal their confusion.
Meanwhile, the young man wearing glasses, Celestin, accompanied Rean to apply special make-up on him and leave the room.
Aurelia looked at the leaving Rean in a fired up manner while Marquis Hyarms saw him off apologetically.
＊
The next morning, Class VII Group B, who rode an orbal car guided by Kurt who headed to the inn to give an explanation, was told in detail about the request that Rean received from Marquis Hyarms.
In particular, Jusis couldn’t stay calm after hearing that his own family might be involved.
Although it wasn’t good to call it good fortune, today’s request happened to be the subjugation of a wanted monster, so they concluded it along the way.
The collaborator, Kurt, was a beginner in Vander style, and while he wasn’t as good as Laura and Fie, he was about as competent as Jusis and Machias, thus he was allowed to accompany the group.
As Machias’ anger flared up again over the series of events caused by the nobles and the atmosphere of the orbal car became unsettling, Laura asked Kurt a question to change the atmosphere.
“Come to think of it, why did you visit Parm, Kurt? From what I have seen, it doesn’t seem like you’re working under Countess Le Guin or Marquis Hyarms.”
“I lived in Parm until I was ten years old. Today happened to be a holiday, so I returned home yesterday. When I happened to meet Countess Le Guin on the train, I didn’t think I would end up getting involved in something like this at all, though……”
“From what I’ve heard, she sounds like a heroic woman.”
“A master of both the Arseid and Vander sword style …… only a handful of people can achieve just one, yet she achieved both. Is Rean really safe?”
“Yes. According to Countess Le Guin, she will at least not let him die. However, in order to attract the nobles’ attention, a long battle is probably expected.”
“The more time passes, the less likely Rean-sama would be able to withstand it. This would be a race against time.”
“That Aurelia person should be close to Marquis Hyarms, right?”
“Yes. However, her outward stance is on the nobles’ side which happened to include the offending ones, so she wouldn’t be able to help as collaborator. The only help she can offer is to prolong the match against Rean-sama for as long as possible.”
By the way, Rean didn’t receive an explanation due to Osbon’s advice, but if he didn’t come to Parm, Aurelia would have planned to forcefully solve the case.
But in that case, it would have been inevitable that there would have been a fair amount of bloodshed in order to solve the issue, and tension would have ran deep between Hyarms and Albarea, so Rean’s existence was just like offering them a pillow when they were sleepy.
That said, Marquis Hyarms, who was known for his honest personality, would prefer to go on with the operation without Rean, but it was Rean himself who had offered cooperation so the concern of this problem that would ignite into a bigger flame was resolved. Hence, the marquis had no choice but to agree.
“……Did you find out where the facility is?”
“Yes. As a result of our investigation, we believe that the mine shaft managed by Duke Albarea is suspicious. It seems that the remains of the facility were destroyed by Rean-sama as well, but there was something that was used to tame the monsters. In the worst case scenario, even if we can’t punish the nobles, it would be a good idea to get that item or incinerate it.”
“That is quite a big deal. Is it okay to leave it to just us?’
“If the facility is concealed in a mineshaft, they would probably have reduced the security instead. I think we have a chance especially since we’re a team of elites that is small in size.”
It was Sara who responded to Fie’s concern.
She was contacted through ARCUS, rushed to Parm overnight, led Class VII Group B and Kurt, and assumed the role of infiltrating the mineshaft.
Marquis Hyarms also received the message from Celestin and said that since it was Sara, an A-rank bracer known as Purple Lightning, he would be able to entrust the case to her.
It meant the group received another request in the midst of field study, but Sara, with a flexible mindset, accepted it and thought it was fine in its own way.
That said, she never imagined Rean would cause such a commotion.
Was that boy and Emma aware of this? No, it’s likely a coincidence…… Even so, it’s hard to believe that coincidences could lead to something like this. I guess that boy is loved by Aidios…… or rather, her mischievous spirit.
Sara got a headache at the student who strayed too far from common sense, but she managed to endure it somehow.
“However, wouldn’t it be suspicious if Jusis just went to the mineshaft?”
“Certainly, it’s one thing if it’s in the city, but the mineshaft is in a place adjacent to the Sutherland Province after all. It would be difficult to go upfront unless there’s some reason.”
“What are you talking about, isn’t there a request from the field study?”
“Ah! So we’re investigating the mineshaft under the guise of the field study?”
“That’s right. If they’re going to get in the way, if we insist they are interfering with Jusis’ schoolwork, we can make them split their watchful eyes, at the very least.”
“So that means Sara is acting separately?”
“Yes. Celestin-san and I will act separately from all of you to secure the objective and evidence.”
“Um… you’re a butler, right? Will you be okay?”
“Thank you for your concern, Machias-sama. But despite my appearance, I have learnt some martial arts to some extent, so I should be able to help Sara-sama to a degree of not becoming a hindrance to her.”
Machias was worried about Celestin, perhaps out of a sense of kinship as fellow people who wore glasses, but he didn’t seem to be worried.
The people who noticed his strength were Sara and Fie, and while Laura wasn’t sure, she suspected he was actually strong.
“However, is it really okay for me to accompany you?”
“They won’t bother remembering the faces of students, so it should be okay. Rather, does the size of the uniform fit you?”
“Y-yes. Celestin-san fixed the hem and the other things after all……”
Kurt was currently wearing the red uniform of Thors Military Academy.
This was a borrowed uniform from Rean, and he was cooperating in investigating the incident while disguising as a student.
“Kurt, is it okay for you to come with us? If things went badly, won’t it cause trouble to Vander……”
“No. Rean-san, who originally had nothing to do with this, had put himself on the line and set out to solve the incident. As a Vander, whose sword is a symbol of protection, I can’t overlook this.”
“Well, if we look deeper, it’s all caused by Rean’s action to begin with though……”
“He exposed others’ wrongdoings. This fact makes it hard to be angry at him.”
“To think the reason he skipped school for a few days is actually because of something like this.”
That’s likely a coincidence, thought everyone except Kurt and Machias.
However, it was true that he put himself on the line to resolve the incident.
In that case, they couldn’t afford to lose as members of the same team.
The group of five, students and collaborators, were united in their desire to uncover the evidence of monster breeding and help Rean no matter what.
Sara had a thought while looking at them.
Rather than making them cooperate with Rean, wouldn’t things go in a better direction if Rean was made as a competitor?
Sara thought the answer to that question would be revealed in the future.
The orbal car stopped and Celestin announced their arrival at the mineshaft.
Here, the Class VII Group B excluding Rean, began their second day of their field study.
Author Note:
This was the original plot about the problem with nobles during the field study, but I hope you enjoyed it.
Was there a mineshaft there on the map? I didn’t have any detailed location information either, so I thought it would be a good idea to have something like this out of convenience.
The activities of Class VII Group B + Kurt will probably be omitted.
I felt like Rean VS Aurelia would take away my energy, so…
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