What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 513

#513

Therefore the disaster came suddenly.

That night, we gathered again at the Marine Military Academy.

In truth, we didn’t have much choice.

We couldn’t just recklessly infiltrate Atsuma because the Griffin Clan headed there, especially since we lacked information about the place.

“Aaaah, it hurts! It hurts, gently!”

“Just bear with it, Yerun. It’s good medicine.”

“It’s okay. Don’t look! Don’t look at the wound, close your eyes.”

“Teacher! Herda is unconscious, Teacher Abahal!”

“Uheoeoeong······.”

“Hot water coming through! Hot water!”

There were too many injured people here.

“Priest! Please come this way, please! Priest!”

“My father wants to make his final confession. Please······!”

“I’ll be right there. Where is he?”

I quickly got up from where I was sitting.

Thankfully, Lord Johan accompanied me as my guard.

The spacious training hall of the military academy was packed with displaced people who had lost their homes, injured students, and busy faculty members.

The northern territory, ravaged by the monster horde, was truly a scene of chaos.

I carried the sleeping Tete on my back in a blanket and scurried around with the lizard in my arms.

Thanks to dragging all the beds from the dormitories, the patients could at least avoid lying directly on the floor.

Of course, our guild also had a spot among the rows of tents.

The monster horde that had dominated the sky had completely disappeared from Baron Jarrn’s territory, so there was no one left for the group to fight, and it was fine to rest comfortably inside now.

If we wanted, we could avoid the commotion and return to the dorms.

But I couldn’t bring myself to do that. I’m sure anyone else would have felt the same.

[Before departing to the side of the Main God, you will consecrate your last breath and confess in the name of the priest.]

“Heuheuk······. Father, what to do. What to do, my dad······!”

“Heok! I, I have, keulkeul! Sins······. Many, too many······.”

[······.]

“Dad, Dad! Daaaaad! Aaaaaaack!”

After seeing someone off to their final rest, my heart felt heavy until I could grasp onto someone else’s life.

It was something I had experienced countless times in the Liester military camp, but of course, I never got used to it.

Lord Johan calmly closed the eyes of the deceased for me.

After blessing the departed and holding the hands of the bereaved families, I quietly left the spot.

In this situation, my words would be just noise that wouldn’t reach their hearts or ears.

“It would be best if you got some rest, Princess. You’ve overworked yourself today.”

“No, I’m still energetic.”

I shook my head with a smile as Head Herit, with Dduk-ssim on his head, whispered.

Perhaps because I hadn’t relaxed, I didn’t feel tired at all right now.

Besides, we had the fatigue recovery potion that Francois had made for us, and there were also snacks made from dried Yellow Sugar Rock Peony tentacles.

Anyway, it would take time to gather intelligence and plan a strategy.

Proper defense was also essential in case the monster horde returned.

I can’t fight with them.

After the battle, I wanted to be of help in this way, at least.

I have to hold on until I’m staggering from sleepiness. Of course.

“Ah, it stings. Ah!”

“Yerun, how are you? Are you okay?”

I didn’t rest and kept looking for patients, carefully examining one of the beds.

The face, swollen thickly, immediately turned to me.

Yerun, the class president of Class 3-3, had scratches all over his body, but thankfully, his life wasn’t in danger.

He had a lot of bleeding because of the many wounds, but thanks to everyone’s efforts, the bleeding was stopped and disinfected quickly.

I had directly healed a couple of deep wounds, so I was even more concerned.

“The places you healed are clean, Guild Leader. Ayaya. Thank you so much······.”

The face that had bravely confronted us on the first day at the military academy looked a little gaunt today.

His bloodied lips were also bluish. I filled the boy’s water glass and smiled bitterly.

“No. I should have healed everything completely, but I’m sorry I didn’t have time.”

“Hey, don’t say that. There are other guys who are more seriously injured than me······. How are the kids in my class?”

“Everyone is healing well. All the friends who were unconscious have woken up too. So you should eat well and get plenty of rest.”

When I told him the good news, the boy’s face brightened and regained its color.

He seemed like he would recover quickly, which made me feel better.

It was then.

“Guild Leader!”

“Lady Stella.”

“The Grandfather is looking for you two. It’s our strategy time. About Atsuma.”

Gain, who suddenly appeared from behind, whispered in my ear.

Her hair, styled up like Isabel’s, was neatly raised.

In charge of supplying clean water, she hadn’t been able to rest properly for even 10 minutes since returning to the school.

I exchanged glances with Lord Johan and quickly nodded.

*

-Tap, tap, tap······

The indoor tent had a cozy atmosphere, and the school building primarily blocked the outside wind, making it definitely warm.

Just by covering it with several layers of thick cloth, the outside noise was greatly reduced, making it quiet.

The only brazier was dented all over as if someone had beaten it, but fortunately, there was no problem lighting a fire.

The sea dragon decoration hanging from the ceiling was covered in rust.

We sat around on the floor without a table, looking at each other with serious expressions.

Sem, the son of Baron Jarrn, Teacher Lena, the student director, and Teacher Tess, the homeroom teacher of Class 3, were also present.

Indeed, it was strategy time.

The candles that lit the place created even a secretive atmosphere.

······But now with late-night snacks!

“Eat a lot, baby. There’s a lot of monster meat piled up, so don’t worry about the students.”

“Please, Guild Leader. I froze it very hard, so there’s no need to worry about the food spoiling. You know this is a cold area, right?”

“Yes, thank you so much.”

“Eat until you’re full. Look at you, you’ve become half your size in half a day.”

‘I will enjoy the meal.’ I didn’t refuse and immediately accepted the soup bowl.

I didn’t come running expecting this, but judging from the embarrassing sounds coming from my belly, it seemed like it was time to eat something.

Until a little while ago, I didn’t have any appetite, but it was amazing.

Come to think of it, I couldn’t even remember when I had a proper meal.

I think I had a simple lunch a little early, so the last time I had a hearty meal was probably this morning.

Wow. But I didn’t even know I was hungry.

“Hoo, hoo, hoo······.”

First, I blew on the bubbling pea soup and finished two bowls in a flash.

The broth, with plenty of monster meat instead of pork, had the flavor of savory peas and rich broth at the same time.

The generous amount of celery extract added a unique aroma to this place.

As the warm soup went down, my stomach felt relieved, and a pleasant heat spread throughout my body.

I only emptied half of the last third bowl and dipped the warm sausage roll and tiger bread in it, scraping it all up like a sauce.

The soup was moderately salty, making it perfect for eating like this.

‘Aeng.’ Ropi, who was lying next to the tiger bread plate, quietly got up and moved away.

“Is that a pig or a priest? Does everything he eats go to Ether [magical energy]?”

“He’s not someone you have to feed, so shut up.”

“Ha······.”

I could hear Francois’ laughter from over there.

Next, I took a big bite of the croquette sandwich made with White Sugar Bear meat.

Crunch! The freshly fried croquette broke apart with a wonderful sound.

The bun that covered the outside wasn’t very soft, but the monster meat, stir-fried with a flame, combined with the spicy mustard sauce to create an unbelievable savory taste.

My eyes felt like they were going to pop out. It was so delicious that I devoured three pieces in the blink of an eye!

Then, I instinctively grabbed the spoon in front of me.

Huh, now that I see it, there’s also fluffy barley rice next to me······?

Am I dreaming right now?

“The school chef specially searched the warehouse for the Guild Leader. I told him you liked rice, and he said there was only barley, not rice. He picked out all the rotten ones and steamed it until each grain was soft.”

“······I’m really touched. Thank you.”

Gain’s sense is the best! I guess I have the luck of eating!

I swallowed the lump in my throat and quickly scooped rice onto my plate.

The lizard, feeling excited, wriggled in my arms.

Where should I mix this to make it taste delicious?

“This would be a good side dish.”

“Jackpot.”

The Crown Prince pointed to the Berenklauw [a type of monster meat dish] plate in front of him.

For a moment, my head went blank as if I had been hit by something.

I admired his discerning eye and looked at his profile. Oh my······.

You’re so pretty I could die. Do you even know my taste now?

“You look even more handsome today.”

“Enough.”

“Yes.”

Between the monster meat skewers, grilled well-done and densely packed, were transparently cooked onions and peppers.

Adding a reddish-brown sauce with a spicy aroma made it a perfect side dish for rice.

I only took out the meat and vegetables from the end of the skewer like filleting a fish, put it on the barley rice, and mixed it with the sauce.

Gain put a fluffy potato salad next to it, saying it was ‘the strongest when eaten together.’

If you eat the spicy sauce once and this once, your mouth will be brand new.

Indeed, someone who knows the taste. The domestic top romance fantasy protagonist class.

“Lady Stella. Try the herring pickle too. It tastes like cheese.”

“Right, it’s a bit like salmon. It’s addictive with its musty taste.”

I was going to put it on the Crown Prince’s plate too, but he, who wasn’t familiar with fish pickles, immediately gave a look of refusal.

On the other hand, Lord Johan ate everything well, making us happy to watch.

Dduk-ssim ran around, telling me to try this next.

Ah, I see, he received an order from the little young master.

“······I will accompany you to Atsuma. I know the geography there well.”

Around that time, Sem, the son of Baron Jarrn, who swallowed the grilled vegetables with the most serious face in the world, said.

I slowed down my chewing speed and quickly assessed the atmosphere.

The Grandfather was also drinking only Anise milk with a serious expression. Heok······.

“Yes, we should leave as soon as dawn breaks tomorrow. Since such a large monster army has gone there, how will the territory residents there endure the hardship again?”

“Unlike Jarrn, Atsuma has several paladins. There are quite a few priests too. They will be better off than us.”

Tess carefully replied to the Grandfather’s sigh.

Then, Lord Johan, who was cutting the monster fish fry, tilted his head.

“Unless it’s a cardinal, it won’t be of much use. Or is the lord there good at preparing?”

“So good that it feels meticulous······. He is truly a vicious person. At least, that’s been my experience.”

Sem said with a sigh. The waist wrapped tightly in white bandages caught my eye.

Tess silently placed her hand on his shoulder.

“For decades, the Atsuma baronial family has embezzled the royal support coming to our territory and used the bodies of our territory residents privately without burying them. But it was done so cleverly and slowly······. Until ‘Božena’ came before the lord and spoke, no one in the lord’s castle noticed it. I feel ashamed and miserable.”

“Wait a minute. Then isn’t there no evidence? Is there a possibility that Božena lied?”

Gain asked with sauce on her mouth. The son of Baron Jarrn smiled sadly.

“I wish that were the case, but there was already someone from the Atsuma family in the castle. They were people who came regularly for exchanges between the two families. When questioned harshly, the answer came out before long.”

“Oh my······.”

“It was all true. We had assumed that the royal support was decreasing and the support troops were cut off······. We all struggled to accept it, guessing that it was because the country’s finances were difficult.”

The man sighed as if the ground was sinking, then looked for strong liquor with his hand as big as a pot lid.

The Grandfather picked up the bottle in the corner and filled his glass himself.

He also gestured for me, who had stopped eating, to keep eating, meaning that I should.

“Eat more. Tomorrow you’ll be busy taking care of your partner again, won’t you? I’m worried you’ll wear yourself out.”

“Ah, yes.”

I guess you could think that way.

I took a big spoonful of rice and put it firmly in my mouth.

I’m not single, so I have to take care of myself.

······Gulp.

“Um, then, can you guide us to Atsuma’s cemetery?”

When I carefully asked with a spoon in my hand, the eyes of Sem and Tess widened.

Everyone’s eyes also swirled this way.

Thanks to eating rice, the calculator in my head was running fast again.

“Cemetery, Priest?”

“Yes. You said that the bodies that were supposed to go there were used for other things······. There is probably a problematic facility nearby. There’s also the issue of body decomposition, and if the moving distance gets longer, the risk of being discovered will naturally increase. Since Baron Jarrn’s territory is right next to it, Atsuma needed to be careful.”

“That’s······. I guess so. I guess so.”

Teacher Lena muttered, groping the air. I immediately nodded my head.

“And probably, with a high probability, they are hiding something there.”

“Hiding? Could it be that they are not satisfied with innocent bodies, and those people······.”

The son of Baron Jarrn couldn’t contain his anger and shrugged his shoulders. The finish wasn’t my responsibility.

“A treasure that can attract monsters.”

A sharp, low-pitched voice flowed from the side.

“They must have stolen it.”

-Weoong

The Crown Prince’s eyes, with Ropi on his shoulder, were shining like flames.