Chapter 65: Bat Effect (3)
L0NM4The Tornado Bat that settled outside the city only gave a small amount of damage to the city itself. Thanks to the early resolution of the matter, only a small portion on the outskirts of the city was damaged. There were a few people who lost their houses because of the storm but… it was within a recoverable level.z3nbO
oMQW“Please take your meals! Today, we have potatoes and onion soup!”yfi
HwLtsGuardians were commonly viewed as heroes who fought against evil, even more so than the army. Since each and every one of them was superhuman with an overwhelming degree of power, this sense of heroism was unavoidable.FdfSAtA
Jh1Volunteering to give out meals to the victims of this incident was a part of an image-making strategy.ZMi
nFDr“Thank you, Sir Knight!”wUX76Q
KBMqE“No worries.”LlZS
R80nahFThe citizens who suddenly ended up becoming homeless lined up and received their giveaway meals.G9nYu
YqH“Can you please give me one more potato, Sister?”btO
7fqkeEaThat person must have been quite hopeful on the inside when asking that question. The clerics of the New Faith were known to be generous not only to their believers, but also to the non-believers.g3o2
9WUAEven though she was wearing chains, which seemed absurd at a glance, Hua Ran still looked like a sister.BX5e
7YUDELo“Be content with what you have.”JVUD
8yeB“…Okay.”PlV
3CfHearing the cold voice of Hua Ran, the man dejectedly walked away. The meal quantity was set and it was indeed difficult to give out more to a specific individual, but the important thing was not what you say, but how you say it.cBdu
bRnrVN“Sister Hua Ran? How about you be a bit nicer?”UlADE
Iqmp“I don’t care.”W8PEPv
ysh6“Since you are doing a volunteer job, why don’t you try to be nicer?”viNH
1Cc3jh“Not like I wanted to.”AfSi4RQ
9LFfUIjHua Ran was a guardian but at the same time, she was a probationary nun of the New Faith. Because of that identity of hers, she seemed to be the first to be chosen whenever they lacked volunteers.EMhtVT
lCV“…Why do you help people?”683D
qt0“What is this about all of a sudden?”Kkc0C
viJm3Bd“I don’t understand why you would help people without anything in return.”B4tC
z5VMBxIt seemed that this girl wasn’t used to the concept of volunteering in a human society. That wasn’t the best thing for a sister to say, though.RAXGNJa
OWmbNBb“A nice society needs to have people helping each other. Helping each other when in need is how you get the society rolling in a healthy manner.”yns
rlVK9Z“???”H7TN5f
SnVzShe had a totally clueless look on her face. Her social skills were the same as the ones she had 3 years ago, it seemed.wtDz2i
qOFX“You can have a glass of juice on the way back. If you go over~ there, a lady with water-colored hair will give you assistance.”FOi9Z
hykjgJ0“Thank you Sir Knight.”BwI
KeOYgwP“And all these potatoes are supplies from that lady’s family so don’t forget to thank her!”1H46cKk
gpKusO“Oh, thank you very much. Miss!”UbZR6Z
EeB2“Uun? It’s nothing!”S2u
WQAI7fWhile giving out the meals, I decided to teach Hua Ran about society.hPbuS
mQ0“When do you think was the beginning of humanity’s civilization?”VSaSNHS
rqoV9wX“…You are talking like a professor.”z5kH2MU
sPEwaKAnything is fine so please give me an answer…oDUUe
W54SvZgLooking at her sharp and uncooperative attitude, it seemed that even though she was okay with listening, she was not going to actively participate in the conversation.J8JgAr
0ohc3“This is something I heard from somewhere but apparently, the first discovered trace of civilization was when they discovered a broken leg bone that had signs of recovering back to one piece.”i6qFp
qwAeMRH“…”yST9Sn
Ex06fBlAs if she wasn’t interested in the topic, she continued placing boiled potatoes on giveaway plates but her ears were pointing in this direction.3uD8
D1Z“In a barbaric society of the survival of the fittest, a broken leg is the same as death. That means you cannot run away from danger, nor can you drink water or hunt for food.”TGQ
clC8That was the same even for a society of animals. A wounded beast was nothing but easy prey for other predators.T1Vd
DxwSs“But the sign of a recovered leg bone means that someone was helping them until they healed back up. Helping people out when they’re in distress… Apparently, that was the beginning of civilization.”tQP
89kX“So in the end, it’s because humans are weak.”Jfpl
vNv“So you were listening from the start huh!”Av1tJR
VqLu“…Be quiet.”Ne78kgo
twxFzbHer ears were slightly flushed. When you look at her like this, you wouldn’t imagine her as anything other than a cute little girl.aRP5Af
BswvCuQ“You’re not wrong but in any case, helping each other out was one of the survival tactics of humans. In a way, what we’re doing now is similar to that right?”SxzcQ
zQknxI think that was quite a logical explanation as to why we should help people who lost their houses from the tornado.N2Ja14
JYpyeC“That means nothing to me. No one is going to be helping me anyway.”mqKQj
kLx“I can help you,” I replied.euCh
PlcNTRE“…”8vq3QL
QoPXdQHua Ran turned and looked at me with her crimson eyes for the first time in a while.HPbr
A2RzRP“Don’t say random things in your mind. You’re weak.”hjpRA
HJ224XAShe said with a cold gaze as if she did not need my help. However, I did not miss the faint quiver in her eyes.GDcmE
tROfYIRNow that the food distribution was over, I gave soup to the last person standing in the line and gave one of the leftover potatoes to Hua Ran.ZwvhL8
iP2lzSD“We’ll see.”gis4J
MX9o6Her piercing gaze was very cold. You know, even though I look like this, this oppa is quite worried about you so please don’t look at me like that.MMoYr
o1nIn the empty plot of land next to the food-distributing tables were kids of the families that lost their houses energetically playing around with each other.Hwv62
FVimLYIt seemed that kids had the positive power to safely pass through this depressing turn of events.6QNsf
AVKj“Guys! This sister here is saying she’ll be playing with you guys!”fm8de
jSaqhM“What are you…!”87lXT92
PjW3p2z“Hua Ran, go play some soccer with those kids. Make sure to hold back…!”QAQZ
yfY“Sister! Are you playing with us?”zFc
cEJNG0“Wow. Look at those chains. They’re so cool!”gzB
VUs“You…!”cbXVNW3
ev3“Well then, see you later.”fzh
ztByaBidding farewell, I left behind Hua Ran who soon got surrounded by the kids. Her nun clothes were definitely effective at closing the distance with kids.YufNjjL
SRrsP………DLlqDeM
4Vyn……qkoXFUt
PNK…ScuWZ
gEcWI was drinking instant coffee on a bench when Master Erin came up to me.I1p4
gLY1VU2“Are you doing fine?” she asked.P3YA
gteLb4“Yes, of course.”dXr1X
qVxMaster Erin sat on the bench. I offered coffee to her, who was wearing the mask of the young man called Chairman Eriu.9Tj
V0ytvj“Seems that you are a very considerate young man.”Sq1
v7jWb“I hear that often.”gOeiD
uJp“Huhu…”4zPusmW
qXGEven though the fake body created with a rune stone did not need to eat anything, there was the necessity to disguise it as a real person.RSMivm
rnIwYIE“Hua Ran…”YWsJ
jrGcjJTShe turned to the empty plot of land in the middle of her speech. On the field was a girl wearing nun clothes kicking a ball around with kids from families that lost their houses to the tornado.YebSMF
5ArYeoTIt was evident that she was involuntarily forced into playing with the kids, but she seemed quite intrigued by the sport itself. On top of that, she was also holding herself back just fine.bo7qDZ
7F8“How much do you know about that child?”HfcTM
UtDvA“I heard she was a living Jiangshi.”vHC64Dj
NqmJust like Marie, Hua Ran’s exact identity had also been announced to the public even though it was actually possible to hide their traits. My master Erin was the one who disclosed their identities without hiding them.sHyk
65tAlthough it was partially because she wanted a transparent academy, it was also probably because she wanted those who were viewed with prejudice as demons to commute to the Academy with pride.kiPb
1wN2Beazeker, who received half of his genes from a giant, a demonic beast,aE25P5
xFeVampire Marie Dunareff,Dvq
p3jZEVILiving Jiangshi from the eastern continent, Hua Ran.IhYnP
4Ckx4The three of them coming to the Academy without hiding their identities was because of my Master’s conviction that demi-humans should also be able to study as students.XhH
vuZSY“When I was bringing that child from the eastern continent, there were many objections. In fact, there are still a lot of people that are not happy with her.”pLsPIY
oYmEven when Marie became a vampire, Master had to visit the Tower of Mages, the Old Faith and the royal court to prove that Marie was a safe existence. Considering how the Heavenly Yaksha had destroyed one of the castles of the eastern continent, it was hard to imagine all the objections she would have had to face during the admission.Dvs5D
xB4“She hurt many people and made big mistakes. Both Clara and other professors called her dangerous.”G5iK0s9
OUqPdlzMaster said while composedly gazing at me. It appeared that she was asking me for my opinion.PiDUC
U68“Ohh~. Look, she scored a goal.”3fXfKIF
WseY7JWe turned to Hua Ran who kicked the ball into the goal post. She had an annoyed look on her face, but her lips were in a faint curve.A1W4Iq
xJvP“Is it important that they’re pure humans, halves, or demons? As long as they can help people, worry about them and laugh together…”LIQLyvx
vICvqPLooking at how she was carefully controlling her power so that the kids wouldn’t be hurt by the ball she kicked… it was safe to say that her innate personality was definitely quite good.41R8D
ZZixapB“Then that’s more than enough.”ZJgFrDh
vgS“…”j4nNIQ
1EN50VThat was all there was to it.i9H3l
3jKw“You are quite a sentimental child for Valtazar’s disciple, aren’t you.”m8uL
JKsc“Huhahaha.”H1vMp
qBWI am your disciple after all.LzuO
MwUf6mB****i4Mobq
x32“Huu~!”Cg9f
OhTUd8After a long stretch to relax my muscles which became stiff from standing up the whole time, I turned my gaze to Hua Ran.w5aJpH
8eP“Aren’t you tired?”Zfk
smp4“Not really.”zPJ
aK0DDuring lunch, we gave away meals and in the afternoon, we had to remove the remains of the buildings that were destroyed by the tornado. It was a purely physical job so Marie wasn’t with us and we had to do manual labor for hours on end.HNmQ
ZCtUn“Should we go get dinner?”U9ddW
phU“…Sushi.”WuuHtVI
BbRH9gWe were now close enough to discuss the dinner menu together without reserve. It was quite the progress compared to the last iteration.cPP0fqM
6DUXo“Let’s go.”BPB
q7jPP4“Is it okay?”coID
FWaACt“If you’re talking about Chairman and Senior Professor, it’s okay. I told them we might have dinner outside today.”jiSaD
zrcxETThey were probably confident anyway that they could immediately locate Hua Ran as long as she stayed inside the city.HVy
zvC“So, let’s go get some sushi.”2Zh
Cofu“…Ah.”asz
nhfsbLike that, we decided on the menu but Hua Ran let out a short lament.o5LL6mH
TSNk3fC“What’s wrong?”FZW
aJq“My wallet… I didn’t bring it.”vh6h
DfxoC“Don’t worry about it buddy. I will buy it.”pBE13K
Tbs3“…”udB6WLE
Cv5tsNWe usually split our bill when I was eating with Hua Ran. It was great that she wanted to pay for herself but I got to save all my property thanks to her.XdG
V2Dy3fnHuu… thinking about all those gold coins that I could have lost because of that Tornado Bat still gave me goosebumps.PvyM3
KBdUAnd by the way, the half-destroyed corpse of the Tornado Bat was to be split equally to everyone that was there including Hua Ran. Professor Deina, who was short on money, was in tears after seeing the smushed corpse of the bat.O91vY
qDb“Okay. Let’s go! I will buy you the most expensive otoro[mfn]Otoro is the fattiest portion of the tuna, found on the very underside of the fish. This cut is fatty almost to the point of falling apart and can literally melt in your mouth. [/mfn] out there!”iOl7SB
LLOD“…Otoro.”uvXQ
9XtyYXvBeen a while since I’ve last been to a sushi restaurant. Let’s go hear that ‘Irasshaimase’[mfn]’Irasshaimase’ means ‘Welcome to my shop/restaurant’ and is just one of the many formal Japanese ways of politely welcoming new customers.[/mfn]!N83qLnK
aRPF『We are closed for today.』wwAk
pp8a………A1d8
z3U……ehjK
BQ5qdmN…UwXCe
58oyd3Hua Ran and Korin returned to the special dormitory and walked into the dark building.ERM
l3grfQd“No one’s here.”zws
tqcTJosephine was probably still working and Marie said she would be meeting her friends after the volunteer work so she would be home late.IvKEm
kxFWbBHua Ran was greatly disappointed by the sushi restaurant that was closed for today and felt like immediately going to sleep in her room but was stopped by the boy.kMSvL
Q6SyFR“Let me cook something for you.”7c0m
6KO6h0PShe was stopped from having otoro, so would his dishes be able to make up for that disappointment? Hua Ran wanted to turn him down but…hhHy
edYU“I should probably make a bit more for Senior Marie and Lady Josephine while I’m at it.”REsa
Uvo7GWithout even waiting for her reply, Korin headed to the kitchen and it was too late for Hua Ran to say anything.D9LFk2
ONNLqX1“Haa…”lJCf
rEltHua Ran didn’t bother following him into the kitchen just to turn him down. In fact, it was also true that she was hungry and so it would be a fairly logical choice to wait for him to bring something that could satiate her hunger.RGIj
N1KK6If he was going to cook something, then there was no reason not to wait.VarI
L03uK“Meat.”dxv
8MX3XShe whispered to herself in an inaudible voice. Last time it was terribly disappointing when he cooked nothing but a bunch of fried oden, stir-fried anchovies, and spinach. It was because he had the habit of cooking side dishes in large bulks due to living alone for a long time but Hua Ran had no way of knowing that.wqc
ywXSince she couldn’t have otoro, he had to cook something that was at least about 40% as delicious as otoro otherwise…gUTjtnj
tEcb‘Maybe 30% is okay.’4Lo
LrRgHe wasn’t a professional chef, so she decided to be more lenient.dH7fmb
Xsb6Unconsciously, Hua Ran was more magnanimous with Korin today and frankly, it was because the words of the boy had shaken her heart a little.IL3rasS
LQF81Ze『I can help you.』qXLrI3J
qzfziIt sounded like a promise that he would help her whenever she needed help, but she was most likely assigning too much meaning to a random sentence he threw out.RsLeO0
uXlillShe was a living Jiangshi – a being closer to a demonic beast that was created from a living human.hKMZO
ezMzxoThe wish of her ‘father’,ZNEtTFB
ltNThe greed of her neighbors,9BAnr
rgygkThe officials,gP411pU
67S7iQAnd the emperor…Crm
KcGyWould the boy be able to say the same thing even after laying his hands on the Jiangshi called Heavenly Yaksha? The monster that everyone wished to control to satisfy their greed?Mo1Ny
dOj“Nonsense.”uFVpqp
Vb3ulKOHua Ran knew – because she knew of her innate evil nature, she all the more denied the words of the boy. Oblivious to her internal turmoil, Korin continued cooking inside the kitchen.YdMr
PnJ0caU『Hua, you are a monster.』64S9kF
P0J5If he knew about her past and her true nature, would he be able to show his back like what he was doing right now?Ez2Rw7
3RGEkU“Stupid.”Kj4K
VZbCPdLetting out a ruthless remark, Hua Ran stayed alone in the darkness. Her eyes were fixed on the dazzling back of the boy inside the bright kitchen.rYAfGi2
yYvXy‘Give it back! Hua…! Give me back my body!’Uuok4
Munw“Uhk…!”mNK17
bJBu3NHer head throbbed in pain. It was here again. ‘It’ was still flailing around without giving up.yB5THR
U2aF62“Be quiet… This is mine. This is my body.”H6526
JYF37JNShe knew better than anyone else how this was not her body.1KOyu
wNC8“I will not give it back to you.”hG86
GTgGAGx…If you knew about this, would you still help ‘me’?7MT
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