In a World of Reversed Chastity, I Strive to Become an Honorable Male Knight, but Lustful Women Keep Targeting My Body - 335

Chapter 335: The Kukkoro Male Knight and the Reunion

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Vanka was dead, and the ninja leader had been taken away by Nael. In all likelihood, the leadership of the Vanka faction had been decimated. Unfortunately, however, the war was not yet over. Unless something dramatic had occurred, over two thousand soldiers from both sides were likely still entangled in a bloody, chaotic struggle on the battlefield.

Actually, when things reached this stage, the life or death of the enemy leader was almost an afterthought. The real issue was how to stop the rest of the massive horde of soldiers. I had prepared a plan for that, but… Nael’s sudden assault had ruined it. I needed to get back to our positions as quickly as possible and resume Operation Vittles, but…

“H-how embarrassing for you to have seen that…”

Bishop Fiorenza said, her face turning as red as a ripe apple. She was hiding her entire body under the cloak I had lent her. After all, she had been so overcome with terror at the sight of Nael that she had lost control of her bladder and collapsed right into the puddle. Her trademark bishop’s vestments were completely soiled.

Urine-soaked clothes were inherently unhygienic, and besides, it was late autumn. If she stayed in wet clothes, she would undoubtedly catch a cold. She had no choice but to strip them off, but since she couldn’t exactly wander around naked, I had lent her the cloak I was wearing as winter gear. …A naked-under-the-cloak look. I hate to say it, but she looked like a total pervert.

“It couldn’t be helped, Fio. Given the circumstances…”

Since it was just the two of us, I spoke to her using the familiar tone of childhood friends. Nael truly had been terrifying just now. I had nearly wet myself too. Speaking of Nael, she hadn’t returned yet. The screams of the ninja leader echoing from the depths of the forest had ceased a few minutes ago, but was she still doing something to her?

…Nael had clearly been acting strange when she caught that ninja leader. Judging by her remarks, there seemed to be some sort of history between them. I didn’t feel like getting in her way. If I played my cards wrong, that violence might be turned toward us.

“But this is a problem. We finally got free, and I want to get back to the main camp immediately, but…”

“That mantis person… Nael, was it? She told us to wait for her. It seems it would be best to avoid leaving on our own without her permission…”

Bishop Fiorenza said with a twitching face. I felt the same way. I mean, the current Nael was incredibly scary. It wasn’t wise to risk getting on her bad side by doing something rash.

…Then again, there was the argument that we should escape precisely because she was scary. However, since the opponent could fly, I didn’t think we could outrun her on foot. Bishop Fiorenza could fly and escape on her own, but the Mantis insectfolk seemed to have a much higher flight capacity than Winged People.

She seemed to be directing an extraordinary amount of malice toward the ninja leader though. Did they have some kind of history? Well, she did say she was kidnapped as a child…So I guess there would be some bad blood between them. The ninja leader must be going through something truly horrific right about now. It was a pity, but poking that nest would only stir up more trouble. I had no choice but to ignore it.

“…You’re right. Let’s wait a bit and take a rest.”

I said this, and then suddenly strained my ears. I heard something coming from the distance. The sound of military boots treading on soil, the metallic clatter of armor plates rubbing against each other. I even heard a voice saying, “The gunshot earlier came from this direction, right?”

“My lord! Where are you! My lord!”

If I listened closely, wasn’t that Gilberto’s voice mixed in there?! Naturally, a smile spread across my face. It seemed a detachment of the Liseben army had come looking for me. I shouted, “Hey! Over here!” and the sound of frantic footsteps approached.

“My lord!”

A group of armed soldiers appeared, pushing through the brush. They weren’t Elves or Ant-men. They were dressed in the familiar military uniforms of green field gear and steel plate armor. Leading the charge, an armored knight came running toward me. It was Gilberto. She charged at me with the momentum of a bullet and threw her arms around me.

“Gwah!”

A Dragonewt clad in full plate armor had slammed into me at full force. I was sent tumbling to the ground, but Gilberto didn’t care and kept hugging me tighter and tighter.

“My lord, it really is you! Oh, thank goodness! I am so glad you are safe! If something had happened to you, this Gilberto… Gilberto would have…!”

Saying this with tears in her eyes, Gilberto proceeded to steal a kiss from my lips. It was a quite passionate kiss. 

Whoa!? We aren’t even dating, isn’t she being a bit too aggressive!? I mean, I don’t exactly hate it, but!

“M-my, Gilberto certainly is passionate, isn’t she? Well, I don’t mind this sort of thing myself.”

Bishop Fiorenza, looking quite taken aback, said this as she crouched down beside us. A wry smile was plastered on her face. When Gilberto looked over at her, her face turned pale.

“B-Bishop!? You were here!?”

“I was indeed.”

“W-Whaaaaaaaaat!?”

Her face turning instantly scarlet, Gilberto began rolling around on the ground while clutching her head.

“Since you did such a thing in front of a member of the clergy, well… It would be quite troubling if you didn’t take responsibility, wouldn’t it?”

“Ha, hawa, uwawawaaa!”

As Gilberto rolled around in agony while letting out strange shrieks, Bishop Fiorenza continued her pursuit with a smirk. It was a very rare sight: a suspicious individual in a naked cloak cornering an armored knight.

…However, looking closely, Gilberto didn’t seem to entirely dislike it. A memory of her failed confession flashed through my mind. …Once this business is over, I might have to think seriously about marriage. Though the problem of the Blondin family heir needing to be a Hume hadn’t been resolved at all.

“What do you think you are doing…”

A voice full of utter exasperation called out to us. It was Dalaiya. She looked around the area and found Vanka’s body lying at the base of a tree. Her cute eyebrows shot up, and she let out a small sigh. She seemed to have guessed roughly what had happened to us.

“I see. No matter how much she was consumed by madness, she couldn’t throw away her soft side… It is just like her, I suppose…”

Dalaiya pressed her hands together in prayer toward Vanka’s body and bowed deeply. They had apparently been like childhood friends. Even though they had parted ways, her death was clearly sad for her. She had a very complex expression on her face.

“…Never mind. For now, we should celebrate your safety. To be captured by a Mantis insectfolk and succeed in escaping safely… It is nothing short of a miracle.”

“I didn’t exactly escape to be precise….”

The Mantis insectfolk were natural-born hunters… or rather, they were essentially killing machines. If one truly targeted you, escape would be almost impossible. I was safe only because Nael had treated me with a “ladylike” attitude. …Though, there was room for debate on whether kidnapping me and trying to eat my arm counted as being ladylike.

“What? Then, how on earth…”

At that moment, the brush deep in the forest began to rustle noisily. The relaxed atmosphere vanished instantly, and the surrounding knights and soldiers hurriedly took their stances. Gilberto, who had been acting like a rolling lady-knight, sprang up like a clockwork doll and drew the sword at her waist.

“Who goes there?!”

Gilberto demanded in a sharp voice. …Emerging from the brush, as expected, was Nael. Her green exoskeleton was heavily stained with blood spray, making for a truly gruesome sight. She looked exactly like a creature out of a splatter horror movie.

“A Praying Mantis!”

Dalaiya shouted in a voice that sounded extremely panicked. The soldiers grew bloodthirsty, and Gilberto stepped forward to shield me. The Bishop, for her part, let out a strange “Hee!” and collapsed again. 

…Bishop Fiorenza, has Nael become a trauma for you?

“My, my, my, my. Look at this. Is it… is it a meal…? I mean, quite a lot of guests, isn’t it? Like an all-you-can-eat, perhaps?”

Nael grinned, wiping the blood dripping from her mouth with her scythe. From among the soldiers, several sounds like muffled screams could be heard. I could see Gilberto’s body tense up. 

…Ah, she’s taking Nael’s words literally.

“…By the way, that was a mantis joke. Don’t take it seriously, okay?”

Seeing their reaction, Nael scratched her head, looking a bit troubled. However, naturally, the Liseben soldiers did not lower their guard. 

…Man, it looks like it’s going to be quite a chore to clear up this misunderstanding. Don’t go dropping such bad jokes as your opening move!

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