Author: Suisei
Translator: Rinkage
Character page: Here
Chapter 122 – I encouraged my friend
“It’s unusual for Duke to invite me.” [Youki]
As I straightened up my appearance in my room, I muttered to myself.
A few days ago, I found a note saying, “I have something I want to talk about. Let’s get together.” It was an invitation to meet with only the guys. I couldn’t deny that I was somewhat pleased, but for Duke to bring this up, it must be something serious. I didn’t know what happened, but I had relied on Duke a lot. So, if he really needed help, I should at least listen to his concerns, not only as a repayment for what he’d done but as a friend.
Once I was done, I made sure everything was locked up before leaving the inn.
“So, I’ve arrived at the usual cake shop, but…” [Youki]
“Who are you talking to, Captain?” [Duke]
“Just talking to myself. By the way, what happened to Raven? He’s completely pale, his eyes have lost their light, and his hair is a mess. I’m not even sure if he’s capable of performing his basic duties as a knight anymore.” [Youki]
As soon as I arrived at the cake shop, I immediately spotted Duke, fully geared up myself. However, the person next to him looked as though he was turning to ash.
“I told you, didn’t I? He’s been acting strange ever since you and Happiness took him out.” [Duke]
Raven’s body twitched at the mention of Happiness’s name. He seemed to be in pretty bad shape.
“Yeah, he doesn’t seem like his usual self. It’s obvious something happened, but I have no idea what it could be. I got knocked out by Happiness, after all.” [Youki]
He reacted to her name again. Watching him behaving in such a manner was a little amusing, but Duke might get mad if I were to say anything, so I decided to let it go.
“Knocked you out?” [Duke]
“I mean it literally. She landed a full-force straight punch right to my jaw. My neck was forced into a 90-degree angle!” [Youki]
“Hmm. I’m going to set aside how your neck twisted. If you fall apart, you’ll just end up like me.” [Duke]
“I guess I should consider myself lucky that it just twisted. My bad.” [Youki]
There were people out there who lost their heads – literally. In fact, there was someone like that pretty close by… like right in front of me.
“Let’s not get sidetracked. So, Happiness had something she didn’t want anyone to see, so much that she knocked you out, right?” [Duke]
“Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. She won’t say what happened back then, and Raven…” [Youki]
I glanced over, and his condition hadn’t changed at all from before.
“Hmm. So that’s how it is.” [Duke]
“Did you figure something out?” [Youki]
“Nah, not at all. If even you don’t know it, there’s no way I’d figure it out by listening to the story.” [Duke]
The way he phrased it sounded like I had said something ridiculous like I was the one being clueless here. But, it seemed like he had figured something out.
“Then, what did you mean by ‘so that’s how it is’ a moment ago?” [Youki]
“Yeah, I just thought that Happiness must have opened up her heart a bit, that’s all. I don’t know the details, and prying into it would be tacky. As humans, it’d be kinder to let it be a memory just for the two of them.” [Duke]
I almost wanted to comment about the ‘human’ part, but since Raven was around, I decided to let it be. Kindness transcends species, after all.
“So, it’s best not to poke around too much.” [Youki]
“We should just watch over them. Although, talking about this so openly right in front of him isn’t exactly ideal.” [Duke]
“You’re saying that now?” [Youki]
I could hear laughter coming from inside his helmet. He didn’t call me here just to have a normal chat, right?
“Duke, that’s not the main issue, is it? What’s really going on?” [Youki]
“You’re sharp today, Captain. The thing is, with Raven in this state, the vice-captain seems to be eyeing the captain’s position.” [Duke]
“What kind of cliché fantasy plot is that?” [Youki]
It was like something straight out of a classic fantasy tale, where it could either lead to a heated duel or end in an instant. But, considering Raven’s achievement as part of the hero’s party, it wouldn’t be easy to remove him from his position. That was what I thought.
“I’m not sure about cliché plots, but yeah, like you’re thinking, considering Raven’s past accomplishments, it doesn’t seem like a realistic scenario.” [Duke]
“Right?” [Youki]
“But there are a few people who don’t think well of Raven. You could call them the vice-captain’s faction, or something like that.” [Duke]
I suppose factions are inevitable in any organization.
Duke looked rather disheartened. Even though they were supposed to be comrades within the same organization, it seemed that humans and demons weren’t so different in that regard.
“And so, you’re tired of covering for Raven, who’s in this state?” [Youki]
“Exactly!” [Duke]
“…Hey. What do you have to say about that?” [Youki]
I called out to the person who felt like a ghost of their former self, but there was no response. I shook his shoulder, telling him to snap out of it, but there was still no reaction. At this point, it was strange enough to make me wonder what could have happened.
“Hey, could he have been poisoned or something?” [Youki]
“Or maybe he is under some kind of dark magic spell.” [Duke]
We started throwing out wild theories.
If he still doesn’t react after listening to all these, then it could be that he’s been affected by some kind of drug or magic…
“…Rest assured. I’ve been awake the whole time.” [Raven]
“Ah, so you’re okay.” [Youki]
“…You don’t need to worry too much just because I wasn’t reacting. Rest assured, Youki. I’m fine.” [Raven]
“The ones who say that are usually the ones pushing themselves too hard, so I don’t believe you.” [Youki]
It seemed that we didn’t need to worry about magic or poison, but there was no doubt that he was struggling emotionally.
I have a pretty good idea of the reason, though.
“Exactly. You keep telling us not to worry, but you’ve been off your game a lot lately.” [Duke]
With a reliable witness like Duke, there was no way Raven could talk his way out of this.
“…Damn it. What am I doing? At this rate, I’m…” [Raven]
“You’re putting too much pressure on yourself. Did something happen? If you need to vent, I’m here to listen. If you have any worries, I’ll help you out. It might help clear your head.” [Youki]
“Yeah, exactly. Normally Captain’s kind of unreliable, but he’s offering to help, so you should take him up on it.” [Duke]
“Sorry for being an ‘unreliable Captain’!” [Youki]
“…Heh, sorry. I’ve made you worry. But I’m fine now.” [Raven]
It didn’t look convincing at all when he said that with a forced smile.
“No way! If a single exchange like this could cheer you up, Duke wouldn’t have called me here in the first place. Right, Happiness?” [Youki]
“…What?!” [Raven]
Raven turned around at lightning speed, but the person he was expecting wasn’t there – because I lied. However, this helped confirm my suspicion.
“Captain, you shouldn’t have done that to the current him. Look.” [Duke]
Following Duke’s words, I looked over. There he was, his face buried in his hands as he slumped over the table. I didn’t expect him to take that much damage just from this. I decided to change the subject.
“R-Raven, sorry about that. I’ve been feeling a bit out of sorts lately too, unsure of what to do.” [Youki]
“…Is that so? You too?” [Raven]
“Yeah, the other day, I went on a trip to this town. There’s a rumoured legend there about a cupid of love, so I decided to go there to get some advice.” [Youki]
“Oh, there’s a town with a legend like that?” [Raven]
I wanted to steer this conversation away from anything related to Happiness. Raven seemed to be interested in this topic as well, so I decided to keep it on a safe path.
“It’s a town called Breitling. It was a hassle, especially after running into Yuuga.” [Youki]
“…Just the two of you, huh? Were you all right?” [Raven]
Even Raven was worried about me.
If we were to include Mikana in this group, the title, ‘The Hero who Makes All Worry’, should be awarded to him. An embarrassing and uncool title, but fitting for him.
“Well, yeah. After all that, I came straight back to Minerva and went to see Cecilia right away… ah.” [Youki]
I accidentally brought up Cecilia, skipping over the memories with Yuuga that I’d rather forget.
“…So, Youki went to see Cecilia, huh?” [Raven]
“Captain, Raven’s getting depressed.” [Duke]
“Is that my fault!? Listen, Raven. Me having tea with Cecilia is between me and Cecilia. Just like how going to see Happiness is your choice.” [Youki]
So basically, don’t get jealous just because I went to see someone I like. That kind of thing isn’t good, and Happiness might end up disliking you for it. Not that I know if she’d care about something like that.
“…That’s true. Sorry, Youki.” [Raven]
“As long as you understand, that’s what matters. So, to sum it up, if you want to see her, then just go see her.” [Youki]
“How did you come to that conclusion!?” [Duke]
Duke started making a fuss, but in the end, he had missed the point. Everything would be resolved once Raven looks for Happiness.
“All right, shall we go now?” [Youki]
“…That might be a bit too much. I mean, she might have other plans. Oh, it’s about time for training. Duke, let’s go.” [Raven]
“Wha!? I don’t know anything about that training! Hold on, wait!” [Duke]
Duke’s voice faded as he shrank into the distance. I didn’t expect him to flee like that. He was definitely anything but okay.
“Does this call for some drastic measures?” [Youki]
I had been through this scenario many times – charging ahead alone and screwing up. This time, I decided to consult someone reliable before making a move. And so, I contacted Cecilia to set up a strategy meeting.
RinkageTranslation 
Thank you!
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