In a World of Reversed Chastity, I Strive to Become an Honorable Male Knight, but Lustful Women Keep Targeting My Body - 331

Chapter 331: The Kukkoro Male Knight and the Man-Eating Mantis

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The mantis girl had been more reasonable than expected, but that did not change the fact that she was after my chastity. And although we could hold a conversation, she was still a man-eating mantis. My predicament was far from over.

“L-look, um… I have work to do, you know? I need to get back right away, or rather, um… could you maybe let me go?”

I made that excuse while breaking out in a cold sweat. Normally, I would have said something like “Tch, just kill me!” to bait the enemy into letting their guard down, but if I said that to this mantis, it might turn into “Okay then, bon appétit!” I had to choose my words very carefully.

“I see. In that case, it cannot be helped. Nael is a civilized human, so I will not force you.”

“Huh?”

However, the mantis girl’s reply was unexpected. She set me down on the ground and gave me a gentle smile.

“Um, is that… really okay?”

“It is fine. Please, go as you like.”

The mantis girl nodded.

“However, I have one warning. Right now, Nael is very, very hungry. If prey walks in front of me, I will pounce immediately. …By the way, a man who is not a mate is simply prey, right? You look very delicious. Like a moth flying into a flame?”

“That’s a straight-up threat!!”

I could not help but shout. In other words, if I did not become her mate, she would kill and eat me. 

What is with this mantis girl? She is incredibly difficult to deal with!

“I am joking. A mantis joke.”

“You call that a joke!?”

“It is a joke. Hehe, probably. But it is true that you look delicious. …So, if you do not want to be eaten, give me more food.”

“…Yes, ma’am.”

What even was this… This was not the kind of troublesome opponent I had expected. I had thought she would be difficult, but in a completely different way. Well, either way, I definitely wanted to avoid being eaten. I took out a canned chicken ration from my pouch. It was something I always carried as an emergency supply. Using the can opener attached to my bayonet guard, I quickly opened it and handed it to the mantis girl.

“This is food I have never seen before. Hmm… munch munch… hard to eat… ah, but it is tasty. Munch munch.”

Using her large and vicious-looking scythe arms with surprising dexterity, the mantis girl began eating the contents of the can. It felt like I was feeding a wild beast.

“By the way, you. Do you want to return to where you were? I can really let you go. …munch munch.”

“Wait, seriously?”

So that part was not a joke? …If that was the case, I wished she had not kidnapped me in the first place.

“However, there are conditions. Munch munch. It cannot be free, you know? Nael must live as well.”

“R-right. Conditions, huh. What are they?”

Demanding conditions in exchange for returning a kidnapped person was clearly the behavior of a criminal, but I chose not to point it out. The fact that negotiations were even possible was surprising enough. There was no need to risk souring her mood.

“First. From now on, please provide me with food regularly. There is no proper prey in this land. If I were to survive only by hunting, I would have no choice but to hunt and eat humans. However, Nael is a civilized human, so such troublesome… I mean, cruel acts are not something I wish to do. I would like a situation where I can eat and sleep peacefully.”

“Ah, I see.”

That made sense. There really were not many wild animals in Liseben. Maintaining a body of that size through hunting alone would be impossible. In that case, eating humans would be the only option. I did not want her to eat people, but living beings would do anything to survive.

However, as the ruler of Liseben, I could never allow human hunting. 

But stopping her by force would be difficult. Mantis insect-humans were basically like flying armored vehicles. With our current equipment and manpower, even if we managed to subdue her, it would come with heavy casualties. If that was the case, it would be more cost-effective to keep her fed instead.

“Second. Nael wishes to become your friend.”

“Friend?”

“Yes. Ideally, a married couple would be better. However, that would be difficult for you to accept immediately. So this is a compromise.”

Whoa, so she really was after my chastity! …But the fact that she wanted to start as friends made her far more civilized than those elves who tried to force marriage by brute strength! Were the elves really worse than a man-eating mantis? This was giving me a headache…

“…So you will not force yourself on me?”

“Forcing things is truly not good. I have an acquaintance, an aunt, who entered a forced marriage and ended up regretting it deeply. A cautionary tale, you could say.”

“I see…”

Was she talking about Vanka? Regretting it deeply… Maybe the reason she aimed to exterminate the elves was due to marital discord…

“Well, even so… how should I put it…”

I had no intention of traveling with this girl and befriending a species that might eat its mate was honestly terrifying. As I hesitated, she tilted her head slightly.

“…Are you perhaps taking what I said earlier seriously? About instincts and such?”

“Well, um… yes…”

“That was also a mantis joke. It is true that we are creatures whose appetite and sexual desire are linked. However, if we ate our partners every time we mated, our species would go extinct in no time. Men are very precious, after all.”

“…Now that I think about it, that makes sense.”

In this world, men were truly rare. Killing them carelessly would lead to the extinction of one’s own species. That was why even the most barbaric tribes protected males.

“Well, it is true that my mother ate my father.”

“That part is true!?”

I shouted instinctively. Talking with this girl made my blood pressure spike up and down.

“There was nothing else to eat. My father threw himself into the fire despite my mother trying to stop him… Hmm, even though I am starving, I seem to be losing my appetite. How strange.”

“…Please do not drop such heavy stories out of nowhere.”

I turned pale as she casually dropped that bombshell. She cleared her throat. Just how much of these “mantis jokes” were actually jokes? She presented them as humor, but there seemed to be a fair amount of truth mixed in. Was she deliberately shaking me to gain the upper hand in negotiations? If so, she was quite sharp.

“That is why Nael is a relatively safe human. Please feel at ease and become my friend.”

“Well, even so…”

That was a separate matter. As I hesitated, she lightly waved one of her scythes.

“Of course, I am not saying it is free. Nael is a civilized human, so I can also make deals. If you accept the conditions, I will help with exterminating elves and ants.”

She said this while tossing aside the empty can. Hey, do not litter.

“You are from Vanka’s faction, right? Does that mean you are betraying them?”

“They are not a good group. They kidnapped me when I was a child. And despite abducting me, they barely fed me. So rather than betrayal, it is more like revenge.”

Wow, that sounded like the background of a child soldier. Vanka really did some awful things. I could not forgive that woman.

“Nael is strong enough to clash head-on with the Liseben army and abduct you in the process. I think it would be beneficial to have me as an ally, you know?”

W-wait, was my kidnapping actually a demonstration to gain leverage in negotiations? She was smarter than I thought. Honestly, if she was going to do that, I would have preferred she approached me peacefully from the start…

…No, that would have been impossible. Because of the muzzle, she could not speak. And on top of that, her appearance was terrifying. That was why I had ordered an attack the moment she approached… There really was no proper way for her to initiate negotiations. I could see her point a little.

“I see. …But let me confirm one thing. The second condition, just becoming friends is enough, right? Anything beyond that is difficult for me to decide immediately, given my position…”

Personally, I wanted to accept her conditions as quickly as possible and return to the front. I had been abducted right in the middle of an operation, just before its final stage. It was a nightmare situation. The Liseben army must have been in chaos. I really did not have time to be chatting here. But since the power balance heavily favored her, I had no choice but to go along with this prolonged conversation. Still, talking with her was unexpectedly enjoyable.

“That is fine for now. Nael is a reasonable human.”

She nodded proudly.

Strange. This negotiation was going far more smoothly than when dealing with elves. Well, elves were a group while she was an individual, so it was not a fair comparison, but still…

“Alright, I will accept your conditions. …If we are to be friends, we should introduce ourselves. I am Albert Blondin, son of Knight Desiree Blondin, and Castellan of Liseben. …Nice to meet you.”

“Nael is Nael. I may be inexperienced, but I look forward to a long relationship.”

“That is totally a marriage greeting! I said we are just friends!”

I shouted, and Nael chuckled. She looked genuinely amused.

“That was a mantis joke. My, this is fun. Talking like a human. The elves treated me like a monster, so I never had conversations like this. It was very boring.”

“…Well, if it is just chatting, I will keep you company until you get bored. After the operation is over, that is.”

“Thank you.”

At that moment, her stomach let out a loud growl. She blushed slightly and scratched her cheek with the tip of her scythe.

“…Even so, I am very hungry. Honestly, I feel dizzy. I have had nothing but water for nearly a week.”

“That long…?”

Vanka truly was cruel. I could not help but frown. Everyone on this peninsula was starving. To stabilize Liseben’s rule, increasing the food supply would be essential. After the war, agricultural and food policies would need to be revised.

“When we return to camp, I will let you eat your fill. Hang in there until then.”

It was not like we had abundant food either, but Gilbert’s main force should be arriving soon. I had ordered him to prepare sufficient rations before departing, so we should be able to feed her.

“Oh, I look forward to that. However, in my current state, I do not have the strength to return you to your original location. I would collapse halfway. Please give me a bit more food.”

“…Huh? Well, um… I do not have any more.”

“What do you mean?”

“Food…”

After all, I had been abducted while commanding from headquarters. There was no way I would be carrying sufficient food. The canned ration alone had been a miracle.

“Is that true?”

“It is true.”

“…”

“…”

“Gulp”

“Could you not drool while looking at me!?”

A chill ran down my spine as I shouted. Nael’s eyes had clearly turned into those of a predator targeting its prey.

“One arm, just one arm is fine. Will you let me eat it? Nael is so hungry that I am about to become a beast. While I still have reason… it would be best to eat something. If I become a beast, I will eat your entire body.”

Clacking her fangs, Nael brought her face closer. There was not a trace of humor in her eyes. This was not one of her usual mantis jokes. So no matter how reasonable she was, a man-eating mantis was still a man-eating mantis? 

N-no way! Am I going to get eaten??!!

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