– There’s someone I wish would see me as a romantic interest. But that person just doesn’t see me that way, no matter what I do. It’s driving me crazy…
– That person is actually the owner of the company you introduced me to before. It’s Count Vermont. How can I make him see me as a romantic interest? I’m writing this letter to seek your advice, mustering my courage.
My head started throbbing.
The mental state I had managed to stabilize was crumbling, and my thoughts became a chaotic whirlwind.
What on earth does this mean?
It was so absurd and complicated that it took me a while to shake off the shock and begin to understand.
‘Does “romantic interest” refer to my standards? Or his? Oh, both are the same. Anyway, it means he wants to be seen as a woman by me.’
I was sweating trying to understand this child’s psychology.
Calm down.
Right now, I’m Mr. Black.
I’m someone with whom Yuri shares all his dark and secretive preferences; I’m like a mental pillar for him.
So Yuri wants my advice on how she can be seen as a romantic interest by a man, specifically by me.
In other words…
‘He’s upset because I don’t recognize his cross-dressing skills!?’
A bizarre conclusion had emerged.
So Yuri, all this time, wanted to be seen as a woman by me…
Now it makes sense why he goes so far as to wear women’s underwear to work — such a risky hobby.
‘I can’t believe it. He’s a genuine p*rvert who wants to draw attention to himself!’
Is he wishing for a situation where she can be mistaken for a woman without outright cross-dressing?
This situation had become much more serious than I had imagined.
Yuri was deep into cross-dressing to a degree that surpassed my expectations.
What will happen if I leave this unattended?
The answer is obvious.
He’ll start pushing the boundaries beyond just underwear, gradually becoming bolder in his outfits.
He would certainly change his clothing to be more feminine, trying to appeal to me.
Doesn’t he realize this?
Isn’t he worried about being seen as a woman?
‘The fate of this world is at stake…!’
If that happens, Yuri will cross a river he can never return from.
He would turn from the heroic protagonist who saves the world into a monster who has lost his sense of gender identity, consumed by cross-dressing.
How terrifying and dreadful would that be?
I can’t let that happen.
I must guide Yuri back onto the right path.
I closed my eyes tightly, and with a resolute heart, I picked up my pen.
“Mister, why do you look so troubled?”
“The fate of the world is in great peril. I’ve just made a significant decision to prevent destruction.”
“Wow! You’re so cool, Mister…!”
Scribble Scribble.
I began to write my response.
– Since you’ve shared your secret with me, I can’t help but share one of my own. I occasionally meet Count Vermont, and during a private conversation with him, your name came up. At first, he thought you were a boy, but as time went on, he increasingly saw you as a girl…
Sometimes, a little white lie is necessary.
To prevent the hero’s corruption.
To keep Yuri on the right path.
To stop the youthful flights of fancy from straying too far, I carefully tried to persuade him.
This should be enough.
There’s no need for him to draw any more attention.
He’s already so very much a girl…
‘Not just a parasite, but a brother who wants to be a girl…’
Ah, this is truly a ridiculous situation.
It was even worse than the review I wrote for that awful game.
Suddenly, I felt wronged, and tears nearly welled up.
“Mis… Hah! Mister! Hah, heehee…!”
“Catch your breath and speak.”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ scolds you for not serving water to our necromancer.]
At that moment, the door slammed open, and Julia stumbled in, looking unsteady on her feet as if she had been running around the training field nonstop.
“Ah! Hah!?”
“…!”
Just then, Julia’s legs seemed to give way, and she tilted toward me.
As I instinctively moved to catch her, Charlotte darted in at lightning speed and embraced Julia.
“Gotcha!”
“Ahhhh!!! Charlotte, you really!” “Why are you acting like that? You were furious when I did this before, saying it was cheating.”
“Th-That’s… Ah, I don’t know!!!”
Suddenly, Julia’s legs, which had seemed weak, stood firmly on the ground as if nothing had happened.
Was her breathlessness an act?
What on earth was she up to?
“What’s important is not that! Aslan! We have guests outside! …Please!”
“Guests? Who is it?”
“Um… Who was it again? That sneaky-looking mister…”
“You mean Count Ariente.”
I recognized him immediately upon hearing it.
Count Ariente does have quite a sly look to him.
But why did he suddenly come to the mansion?
If he had business, he could have sent a letter or had his son come. Is it something urgent?
“Alright. Thank you. First, drink some water.”
“I just drank some water earlier…”
“Unless you’re fine, drink it.”
“I-I’ll drink…!”
Snatching the cup of water away, Julia rushed forward and grabbed it.
Then she stared at the cup for a while, her expression tense, and her pupils were wildly shaking for some reason.
“Don’t worry, there’s no poison in it, so you can drink safely.”
“Th-That’s not it… Aslan… Is this the cup you were drinking from? …Please?”
“You don’t need to worry about that either. It’s a brand new cup that hasn’t been used yet.”
“Ah.”
So, she doesn’t want to drink from a cup someone else has used?
Quite the neat freak.
In truth, I had taken a sip from it, but I just lied and put on my coat to head outside.
“Brother! Brother! Emergency! Problems have occurred! It’s a state of emergency!!!”
“Count…?”
As soon as I stepped outside, I was greeted by Count Ariente, who was banging on the bars and shouting. His face was pale with fear, looking even whiter than usual.
Could it be that there’s another monster rampage?
Shooting a suspicious glance behind him, I saw the earth-dirt creature, who was sunbathing in the garden, shaking its head in indignation.
[Kyahhh! Why are you looking at me again! Damn it! You think I’m easy prey!]
It seems Dirt-Dirt isn’t the culprit this time.
“What on earth is going on that you’re causing such a commotion?”
“It’s not a commotion! You’ll be in my situation if you see it! It’s just—oh my! I’ve never seen something so terrifying before; I can’t even speak properly!”
“Calm down and tell me. Is the Ariente territory in danger?”
“In danger…? Well, yes, but I don’t really know! No damage has been reported yet!”
“So, can you please tell me what specifically has happened? I’m getting a bit irritated here, so hurry up.”
“Don’t panic when you hear this! The Vermont Highway is temporarily closed! The reason is, the reason is…! Kyaaaah!!! They’re here! They’ve already caught up with us!!!”
“…?”
Count Ariente jumped in fright, clearly terrified, and his gaze was fixed on the Vermont Highway. The setting sun cast a long shadow over the road.
Was it just a few?
No, it was dozens… no, hundreds of people?
From afar, I could hear rhythmic footsteps growing louder with a thud, thud, thud!
“My Lord, that’s…”
“Right.”
Sylvia, who had somehow stuck close to my side, muttered that things didn’t look good.
The silhouettes of those shadows and the footsteps.
I quickly realized the identities of those shadows and grabbed Ariente’s shoulder, who was in a state of panic.
“I—I didn’t do anything wrong! They just asked me where the road to Vermont was, and I pointed the way with my finger! I cleared the road just to prevent anyone from getting hurt! I didn’t betray anyone, please forgive me!”
“Count, don’t worry. Those guys aren’t dangerous.”
“Huh? How can that be? Kyaaaah! They’re already here! They’ve come!!!”
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
The sound of heavy footsteps began to reveal the skeleton soldiers.
Count Ariente screamed, clutching the back of his neck.
“The skeleton grandpas have arrived!”
“Grandpas, were you not tired on your way here?”
“Crack! Clack, clack! Crack, clack!”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ smiles confidently, saying that the army that follows it has finally arrived.]
Charlotte and Julia stepped forward with bright smiles, looking pleased to welcome them.
“Clack! Crack! Clack, clack!”
“You came to keep your promise? Ah! That means you pledged your loyalty to me from now on…!”
As soon as they saw Julia, the skeleton soldiers lined up in front of her and knelt on one knee to pay their respects.
Their noble swords, shields, and armor were all gone, replaced by cheap swords wrapped in rags, like something a mere minion would carry.
The skeleton soldiers, who could not ascend even after resolving all their grievances, seemed to have decided to lend their strength to the young necromancer who saved them.
“Clack! Clack, clack!”
“Hmm? They said everyone they met on the way was really scared? What should we do, Aslan? Where should we have the skeleton grandpas live? …Please?”
“…”
That’s quite a tricky problem.
For first-time witnesses, it’s one thing to be shocked upon seeing an undead army.
Vermont Territory is already nearing a state of overpopulation as it is.
There’s no way to accommodate hundreds of skeleton soldiers regularly.
However, considering that skeleton soldiers don’t need food, sleep, or rice like ordinary people, there is indeed a suitable space.
It’s just an empty wasteland, but it’s spacious enough.
“Our training grounds are in that wasteland. There’s still plenty of land left, right?”
“Yes, my Lord. We could build at least 20 more training grounds there.”
“Let’s build a barracks there to accommodate the skeleton soldiers.”
“W-Wait, brother!? Why them in the Ariente territory? You’re joking, right? That’s what you mean, right?!”
Ignoring Count Ariente’s protests as he clutched my sleeve with teary eyes, I resolved to go forward.
Since we’ll be running into each other frequently anyway, let’s get along from now on.
