Gerald woke up to find himself naked beneath the linen sheets of a large, simple bed, with the thin cloth accentuating his diligently trained chest muscles that were next to Joe’s in perfection.
The sun was streaming in from outside the window, and the warmth appears close to noon.
Clutching his forehead as he rose despite the dull ache in his brain, Gerald felt a strange dry thirst in his throat.
He hadn’t experienced something like that before, but he quickly identified it as a hangover.
What happened yesterday? Why, aside from his brain, was his butt feeling a fiery ache?
Gerald looked around by instinct and noticed that he was within a small room. From the looks of the furniture that was one size smaller than what humans used, one could vaguely tell that it was a Long Ears’ room.
And on the other side of the room was the youth who had dragged him along for another round of drinks, seated on a chair and looking out the window with a thousand-yard stare, an expression of fatigue and doubt of his entire existence on his face.
“I’m sorry, can I get some water?” Gerald asked.
Edward jumped, startled, and turned to Gerald with an awkward smile. “Ah, you’re awake… water, was it? Please wait a bit…”
Taking the wooden cup Edward passed him and drinking a mouthful, Gerald then found him wanting to say something only to stop, and couldn’t help but ask in curiosity. “What is it? Did something happen last night?”
“No, nothing! Absolutely nothing happened!” Edward quickly denied.
That agitated reaction only made Gerald feel that something definitely happened yesterday..
***
Being born nobility, Gerald was still chastebut not to the extent to claim that he was not untainted or unaware of the ways of the world.
Therefore, he naturally had heard of certain preposterous rumors circulating around noble circles, and news about male nobles engaging in mutual penetration with boy toys wouldn’t exactly make headlines.
Gerald face dropped once he remembered that, and connected it with the fiery ache on his butt.
“Nothing happened? Really?” He asked again, very serious this time.
“N-nothing…” Edward was immediately crushed by the aura he exuded, his words becoming choppy and stumped.
That reaction made Gerald even surer.
What? If that wasn’t his fault, was it the fault of the bright red chicken wing skewer he last remembered eating?
Hence, he narrowed his eyes at Edward. “Well, where are my clothes?”
“Uh, yesterday… it was dirtied after you went to sleep, so a Long Ears’ woman took it to wash.” Edward struggled to make an excuse.
Woah, things went utterly rock-bottom-how passionate had it been if clothes were actually dirtied!?
Gerald blanked out. Aside from feeling dispirited no thanks to losing the first time of his posterior, he felt Edward’s reaction unacceptable.
And from the looks of how sheepish the youth was, he was definitely the victim and not the perpetrator… could Gerald have forced himself upon him after getting drunk?
“Well, uh…” Gerald said tentatively. “I’ll take responsibility.”
“Really?!” Edward looked much relieved, which only made Gerald more certain of his transgression.
In fact, apart from feeling troubled, Gerald was already planning to return to Lancaster and resign from his duty as a knight-he had no right to keep holding such a title after making such a massive blunder.
“It’s my first time, so I don’t know how to take responsibility…” Gerald then added calmly, even though he had quite a few ideas.
“Oh, just money would do.”
“Aren’t you being too honest here?!”
Gerald gaped at Edward, an indescribable feeling rising inside.
Are you fine with anyone as long as they paid
you!?
“I think that’s enough. It usually costs two-hundred Rions, but things got a little out of hand yesterday… so, considering psychological trauma, five-hundred Rions (approximately 1,000 yen) would more or less be right.”
“That cheap!?”
Gerald felt that his world view which was corrected after much difficulty was once again shaken.
Meanwhile, Edward looked much relieved.
“That much is enough. And here are the clothes the Long Ears prepared for you-might be a tight fit, so you’ll have to make do for now. Hurry up and change, we’re going back to the Eastern Continent.”
***
After Gerald changed while feeling as if his soul had left his body and followed Edward out of the hut, they headed straight towards the Lifestone.
On the way, Gerald could feel many Long Ears studying him with weird gazes, but they would avert their eyes whenever he looked at them. It was a combined reaction of feeling weirded out, a little coldness and even a little disgust, and clearly different from how they behave towards Players.
Moreover, Gerald and Edward also came across Edward’s party members, with whom they only shared a brief greeting despite being comrades. Their smiles were stiff, and it looked like they were embarrassed about meeting him.
Which only made Gerald even more certain that he’s done something unforgivable.
Still, after he and Edward had gone far, Joe knocked Gou Dan on the head, who was beside him.
“No thanks to you slipping him that super-spicy fried chicken wing. Wonderful, now he’s sick!” Joe complained quietly. “He can’t be resurrected because he’s a Player! I was so shocked when he straight up puked away last night!”
Gou Dan pouted. “Who could’ve known he’s not resistant to spicy food… still, to think that he actually got so sick that he vomited over the whole square…”
Beside him, Eleena impassively knocked Gou Dan to the ground even as he was about to add more, and started to beat up Gou Dan alongside Edward.
Joe’s face actually went pale. “Don’t make me remember, bastard! Don’t you know how long we had to clean up with Long Ears after that?! We were planning to have him follow other Players back to Lancaster today, but thanks to you it’s only Edward who now even dares to stick with him! There’s no telling how Old Marni is going to do to you if he knew!”
***
After arriving at the Lifestone, Edward didn’t hesitate to return to the Unnamed Town with Gerald.
“What are you planning to do?” Edward asked.
“Return to Lancaster, probably… I traveled here to protect Sir Marni in the first place, and with him gone, I could only go back…”
But the lonely words became stuck in Gerald’s throat even before he could finish.
He stared in immeasurable shock at the figure making his way towards them.
“Mar-mar-mar-mar…”
Marni eyed Gerald, who was repeating the same syllable like a broken recorder and nodded. “Perfect timing. There’s some trouble I need your help with.”
