Author: Suisei
Translator: Rinkage

Character page: Here

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Chapter 180 – I consulted my girlfriend and the vampire

“Now that we’ve settled down a bit, shall we finally get to the main topic? Cecilia, are you good with that?”  [Youki]

“Yes. It’s a matter for the individuals involved now, so I won’t say anything more. It seems that the lady inside the coffin has also accepted things to a certain extent…”  [Cecilia]

When I glanced at the coffin, a card with a circle was sticking out through the gap. 

She probably likes Caius too, and maybe she feels a sense of guilt for making him wait 200 years. Even so, it was a bit too much at first. I mean, the guy was carrying a coffin with groaning sounds. That startled me, too.

Caius, the culprit in my mind, was currently kneeling in seiza. Cecilia had given him a polite yet firm lecture, so hopefully, his behaviour towards his girlfriend would improve from now on.

“To think that I, of all people, would be lectured on how to treat my lover… even after nearly two hundred years of playing cupid…. Young demon boy, your girlfriend is quite a catch, truly.”  [Caius]

“Right? Right? Cecilia is amazing, you know? She’s kind to everyone, from children to the elderly – our Holy –”  [Youki]

“Youki-san.”  [Cecilia]

“…Yes.”  [Youki]

Just as I got carried away, the pressure from Cecilia hit me. Caius, who couldn’t understand what was going on, tilted his head in confusion, but it was for the best. As for Cecilia’s moniker, I decided not to mention it again.

“W-Well then, I’d like to finally get to the main issue. I’m here to consult about my friend, who seems to be getting into a love triangle.”  [Youki]

I could finally move on to the main topic. It seemed that Cecilia and Caius couldn’t get along with each other, but I decided to trust their individual abilities. They would likely have more sensible opinions than I. I often got swept up by emotions due to my lack of experience, after all.

“Could your friend really be Raven-san?”  [Cecilia]

“Bingo.”  [Youki]

“I can’t believe it. He cherishes Happiness-chan so much. I can’t imagine him getting involved with another woman.”  [Cecilia]

As expected of someone who knew him longer than I had. She seemed to understand Raven well, so it was no wonder she found it hard to believe.

“Hmm… So the subject of this topic, Raven, can I ask what kind of person he is?”  [Caius]

Since Caius didn’t know Raven, I decided to give him a brief description from my angle without getting into too much personal information: He’s the captain of the knight, who used to communicate via writing because he was self-conscious about his voice, and I’d like to think his romantic abilities are about the same as mine. Also, he has a girlfriend named Happiness who is also a harpy.

After finishing my explanation, I shared with them the events that had happened recently.

“And then, a love letter arrived from a mermaid…”  [Youki]

“Youki-san, I still can’t comprehend the situation. Why would a mermaid send a love letter to Raven-san?”  [Cecilia]

“Oh, it’s quite simple. Love can bloom, regardless of species. Just like it did for us. He, too, just happened to spark a new love…” [Caius]

“I’m sorry, but could you please be quiet for a moment?”  [Cecilia]

Their personalities didn’t mesh well. When I glanced over at the coffin, a card with an ‘X’ popped out. She probably agreed with me, too. Thank you very much.

“I’m only stating the facts.”  [Caius]

Even after Cecilia’s reprimand, he still didn’t stop.

“A-Ahaha, well, I’ll explain how we ended up helping the mermaid, so sorry, but please hear me out…”  [Youki]

I was feeling overwhelmed with everything piling up, but I resolved to do my best. Since both of them were smiling, I figured I could still push through. Keeping an eye on Cecilia, I began explaining about Shike-chan, the mermaid who sent Raven the love letter. We had helped her during a mission some time ago, and after it was over, Shike-chan kissed Raven, while I got punched by Happiness. Apparently, Happiness did something after she hit me, but I’m still not sure what it was.

“So, yeah. That’s pretty much how it went down.”  [Youki]

“I see… Youki-san, you’re worrying too much. At that stage, we don’t even know if Raven-san will go to meet her.”  [Cecilia]

“He already went.”  [Youki]

“Eh?”  [Cecilia]

A few days after the letter arrived, he left on the pretext of going for an inspection.

“W-Wait, Happiness-chan knows about this, right?”  [Cecilia]

“Happiness went with him.”  [Youki]

“What!? A-Ah… now that you mention it, I haven’t seen her since I came back.”  [Cecilia]

Actually, Cecilia had been away for her work for about ten days, and she just got back yesterday. That was why she wasn’t around when I saw Raven and Happiness off the other day. Personally, I felt awful for dragging her into this when she just returned.

“As for Shike-chan, the mermaid, she seemed to get along really well with Happiness, so… I’m scared it might turn into some kind of messy love triangle.”  [Youki]

“…I hope Raven-san handles this situation properly. But really, why did he even go to meet her in the first place?”  [Cecilia]

“Hahaha. Do you think he’s the type of man who would ignore that letter? After she mentioned that she would be waiting for him? From what I heard about him, I don’t think so.”  [Caius]

“That’s true. Then, what about Happiness-chan?”  [Cecilia]

“She trusts him. I think she went along partly because she was worried, but also because, as a friend, she wanted to meet the mermaid girl. Well, if you ask me, I’d recommend the reason being that she wanted to be with the one she loves.”  [Caius]

After Caius finished speaking, he gave a slight smile towards the coffin where his beloved was resting. His sense of ease likely came from his two hundred years of experience.

“So, what do you think will happen when they meet?”  [Youki]

“The key is whether he can clearly express his feelings. Giving an ambiguous answer isn’t good. It’s rude to give false hope, and sometimes it can lead to tragedy. I don’t want him to follow that path.”  [Caius]

He looked serious – it was clear these were his true feelings. He probably didn’t want others to make the same mistakes he did in the past. I wondered what the woman inside the coffin thought about all this. I glanced over, but neither ‘yes’ nor ‘no’ signs appeared. It was probably not something that could be conveyed with a simple yes or no.

“…Youki-san, I also want Raven-san and Happiness-chan to have a pure, wholesome relationship. That kind of messy love triangle… well…”  [Cecilia]

Cecilia seemed really worried, too. It was understandable, though. It’s not every day you see a love triangle forming right in front of you.

“If Raven ever makes Happiness cry, I’ll team up with Duke. Then we’ll, heh…”  [Youki]

“Youki-san, you’ve got a wicked look on your face.”  [Cecilia]

Opps, did it show? That’s not good. I shouldn’t be showing that expression to Cecilia. But Happiness is like a family to us, so we can’t let this turn into some messy, complicated love affair. It wouldn’t be good for Sheik’s upbringing either.

“So, let’s quietly go meet up with Raven and Happiness. They should be returning today as planned.”  [Youki]

“…That’s awfully convenient timing.”  [Cecilia]

“Your schedule just happened to align perfectly.”  [Youki]

“Well then, shall we? Lead the way.”  [Caius]

Caius hoisted his coffin, ready to head out, but it was hard not to notice how conspicuous he looked. Even Cecilia had a blank expression, probably still finding it hard to believe there was really a girl inside the coffin he carried. But since the girl was fine with it, we had no right to judge. She likely enjoyed that kind of thing too.

Oh? A card with an ‘X’ popped out from the coffin. Can we really work as a team like this? Well, nothing we can do now.

Before setting off, we put on our disguises. Despite that, Cecilia’s calming aura and Caius’s coffin drew a lot of attention. We ended up attracting quite a few stares as we walked through the town. Thankfully, we avoided causing a scene and arrived at the carriage stop where Raven was supposed to arrive.

“Ah, it looks like we took too many detours trying to avoid attention. The carriage has already arrived.”  [Youki]

“Seems like avoiding trouble had its own consequences.”  [Cecilia]

“Not much we can do about it now.”  [Caius]

“Well, this is my time to shine. I’ve got tracking skills for a reason.”  [Youki]

Given our unusual group today, I won’t get many more chances to show off. Let’s enhance my senses and start tracking their location.

“Oh, I see Happiness-chan!”  [Cecilia]

Before I could even begin, my spotlight moment was already over.

It’s fine, I guess. Cecilia is a saint. She’s bound to notice everything around her…

Feeling a little sulky, I let Caius nudge me forward as we moved on. Up ahead, we spotted Raven and Shike-chan as well.

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