Akatsuki Translations

“Welcome back, both of you. You’re quite late,” said Julia with a sulky expression as Farsa and Zenobia arrived at the house where they were hiding Roux.

Julia was seated on a chair in front of Roux’s room on the second floor, her legs crossed, and her chin resting on her hand—hardly the most polite posture.

One might wonder why Julia, who disliked demons, was here. It was all about atoning for her sins to Farsa.

Farsa and Zenobia had a few of their subordinates taking turns to monitor and protect Roux, but it was a top-secret mission, and they couldn’t spare too many people for it.

That’s why Julia reluctantly offered to help, even though she didn’t really want to protect demons. But she saw it as a way to be of use to Farsa, and he accepted her offer, knowing that having a powerful figure like Julia around would pose no problem, especially since she seemed concerned about the incident when she accidentally stabbed him.

“Sorry for coming back late. Thank you for taking watch all this time.” -Farsa

“Welcome back, Julia. Thank you for taking on the watch. The meeting ran quite long, so it’s gotten to be this late. I hope there haven’t been any issues?” -Zenobia

Even Zenobia, who would usually reprimand Julia for her lack of manners, showed only words of consolation, likely understanding the complex emotions she was going through. Although Julia volunteered for the task herself, her grudge against demons hadn’t dissipated, and she still felt conflicted inside.

Both Zenobia, who hated magicians, and Julia, who loathed demons, had experienced the pain of losing loved ones. They understood each other well.

Meanwhile, Farsa, while stroking Julia’s head as if saying, “is there no end to it?” replied to her.

While wearing a slightly displeased expression, Julia was savoring the sensation of Farsa’s hand, and gradually, her demeanor began to relax.

“Oh, Far-nii, do you think you can make me happy just by petting me like that?” -Julia

“That’s not it at all. I’m just touching Julia’s hair because I want to. It feels really nice to touch, so I could keep petting it forever.” -Farsa

Though Farsa’s words might have sounded like something perverted to others, they held a different meaning for Julia. Her stiff expression quickly turned into a sloppy smile, and Zenobia, who stood behind Farsa, wore an exasperated look.

They had seen this scene countless times before, and although Farsa felt relieved that Julia was back to her usual self, he had been more worried about her emotional state than the danger of assassins targeting Roux.

However, Palmina was already with Roux, and she had calmly dealt with her before leaving for the meeting. In fact, Palmina said Roux cried and apologized profusely for him being stabbed, so everything should be fine. At least that’s what Farsa believed.

Farsa and Zenobia had plenty of busy work ahead, and Palmina would have to return to the church the next day. Roux, being a wolf demon, could easily be targeted by dangerous individuals.

Considering their safety, having Julia, trained as a hero, guard Roux provided the most reassurance in terms of strength.

Moreover, Farsa also wished to use this opportunity to help Julia understand the existence of demons.

He had no intention of opposing her pursuit of revenge. Yet, he wanted her to realize that not all demons were her enemies.

Thankfully, Roux was a young wolf demon who knew little about humans, making her an approachable partner for communication.

“Goodness! Far-nii, you’re as unchanged as ever! Well, it’s a bit sad to part, but there’s no helping it if we stay like this forever, right? How about we go inside the room? That demon over there has been talking to Pal-nee since she woke up. We might have been able to get some information out of her.” -Julia

Julia likely understood that the main purpose of sheltering Roux was to gather information. While normally she would have monopolized Farsa’s attention, this time she was voluntarily encouraging him to prioritize his work.

“Well then, let’s go and meet the demon girl.” -Farsa

Farsa knew Roux’s name already, but he had to be careful not to reveal that he knew it without Roux herself saying it. Especially now, when the situation was already complicated, he needed to pretend that he didn’t know much about teleportation magic or demons and act as if he were analyzing the information and making predictions.

Thinking objectively without letting subjectivity interfere was extremely challenging, and for Farsa, erasing the sense of incongruity that arose from his own knowledge was a difficult task.

Moreover, Roux possessed the sharp sense of smell characteristic of wolf demons, so he needed to be extremely careful during their encounter.

In particular, the sense of smell while lupinized was extraordinary; it allowed her to locate prey in the dimly lit forest, and even distinguish the scents of her comrades.

Because of this, Farsa found himself a little more nervous than usual. He approached the door and was about to knock when a cheerful voice came from inside.

“Oh, Roux-chan, you really like this Mirage Onii-chan, don’t you?” -Palmina

“Yes, Mirage Onii-chan is very knowledgeable and cured not only me but also the illnesses of everyone in the village. Even my father said he wouldn’t mind marrying me off to Mirage Onii-chan when I become an adult like Mom!” -Roux

Feeling slightly embarrassed to be discussing matters about himself without Roux’s knowledge, Farsa decided to knock lightly on the wooden door.

“Oh, Farsa-kun, it seems you’ve both returned. Come on in.” -Palmina

“Excuse us. It seems you two have become quite friendly. Also, Palmina, thank you for looking after her.” -Farsa

“Excuse us. It seems she’s been well taken care of by Palmina-dono.” -Zenobia

“…” -Julia

Upon hearing Palmina’s response, the three of them, Farsa, Zenobia, and Julia, stepped into the room. Farsa and Zenobia seemed to have been sitting on the bed, engaged in conversation. However, they appeared surprised by the sudden visitors and Roux, perhaps taken aback, hid behind Palmina with an expression of slight trepidation.

No one else was in the room except the two of them. It seemed Palmina had been considerate, as she anticipated that Roux might be frightened if she woke up to a large group of people.

Apart from Julia by the door, other guards were stationed in places directly below the room where Farsa and the others were, as well as at the entrance and backdoor of the house, maintaining a vigilant watch.

Zenobia and Julia had expressed concerns about being alone with demons, fearing potential dangers. However, Palmina had quickly brushed off these concerns as irrelevant.

“Oh my, these people aren’t scary at all. That person over there is Farsa Onii-chan, the one who protected you. Do you remember?” -Palmina

Roux, hidden behind Palmina, seemed to be listening intently but didn’t respond. Farsa bent down to her eye level, smiling gently as he extended a courteous greeting.

With a familiar and soothing voice, Palmina speaks words of comfort to Roux.

Among the activities conducted by the Church of Fortuna is the management of an orphanage, which serves as a haven for children who have lost their parents, including Julia from the past.

Alongside her duties as a priestess, Palmina made time to visit the orphanage, actively engaging with the children by playing, teaching, and taking them on outings. This energetic involvement had been an integral part of her routine.

Even during the commotion caused by Roux, when she was causing havoc, Palmina was shopping with the orphanage children in the commercial district located on the south side of the royal capital. This allowed her to reach the southern gate before Zenobia, enabling her to respond promptly.

The fact that Farsa’s life was saved was a product of chance. And not only Farsa, but also Julia, who was unable to calmly use healing magic, heard about this incident, causing her to feel a chill down her spine.

By the way, after Farsa and the others headed to the palace, Julia received a sermon from Palmina.

Considering Julia’s actual abilities, she could have healed Farsa’s injuries. It seems she was once again reminded not to lose her composure.

Normally, Palmina’s gentle sermons were delivered with a smile, calmly and serenely. Yet, there was an indescribable intensity in her demeanor.

Even the mischievous kids at the orphanage became well-behaved when dealing with Palmina. This was a well-known story among the church members.

“Farsa Onii-chan… The person who protected me.” -Roux

“Nice to meet you, adorable young lady. My name is Farsa. Can you tell me your name?” -Farsa

Roux continued to stare at Farsa, sniffing the air a few times, looking puzzled as she tilted her head to the right, then to the left, and back to the right again.

“What’s wrong?” -Farsa

As if drawn by that movement, Farsa tilted his head and called out once more. Roux, in response, descended from the bed with a somewhat languid expression and approached Farsa, wrapping her arms around Farsa’s waist.

“Hey, what are you doing? Hugging Far-nii is my privilege!” -Julia

Even Julia, naturally, couldn’t remain silent in the face of this and started to complain to Roux, but Farsa internally retorted that she didn’t recall creating any such privilege.

With her face pressed against Farsa’s abdomen, Roux sniffed and smelled just like before, then finally uttered some words.

“It’s different… Why…” -Roux

To Roux, who seemed unsatisfied, Zenobia and Julia had expressions that showed they didn’t quite understand what was happening, while Palmina wore her usual gentle smile.

As the party involved, Farsa’s face indeed carried a puzzled expression, but inwardly, he let out a relieved sigh.

Roux is a wolf demon, and it was possible that she remembered Mirage’s scent, of course. However, during the time Farsa was in the wolf demon village as Mirage, the scent of the medicinal ingredients used for treatment was pervasive, and Ruu herself was suffering from the Black skin disease. So, the likelihood wasn’t that high, Farsa predicted.

Even though their species had keen senses of smell, Roux, being a child, had no experience utilizing that for hunting, and normally, she couldn’t intricately remember the scent of a specific person.

However, for Roux, Mirage was her savior, and the feelings hidden in her young heart were undoubtedly those of love.

Mirage himself hadn’t paid much attention to the child’s actions, but for Roux, the deed of gathering the courage to convey her feelings was that kiss on the cheek from back then.

“Hmm, I wonder if something’s up with my scent?” -Farsa

“S-Sorry. Your scent felt similar to someone I know, so I just… But, it seems like I was mistaken.” -Roux

“Scent… Do I really have that strong of a scent… Haha…” -Farsa

“F-Far-nii’s scent is very calming and has a nice fragrance! Without a doubt!” -Jukua

“That’s right! I agree with Julia! I’d gladly welcome even the scent of underwear worn all day!” -Zenobia

Roux hurriedly jumped away from Farsa and hid behind Palmina again.

And then, Farsa pretended to look dejectedly at Roux’s words, while Julia and Zenobia threw in words of unclear comfort.

Lately, there seems to be a lot of talk about scents, Farsa thought casually, stroking his chest in relief while also feeling like he had taken necessary precautions.

When it became clear that the opponent appearing at the South Gate was a wolf demon, Farsa activated his illusion magic just as he did now. Furthermore, he had taken into account the climate of the Valois Kingdom, where the west wind blows for two months in early summer, and he had been careful to position himself as much downwind as possible.

However, when he lost consciousness after taking Julia’s sword to protect Roux, the effect of the magic wore off, and they found themselves in very close proximity to each other.

Roux herself was confused and didn’t realize it immediately, but even so, Farsa’s scent had reached her nose. It seemed she had taken action earlier to confirm it once again.

Farsa’s illusion magic was much weaker compared to Astarte’s, but it was still possible to influence the sense of smell to the extent of fooling Roux’s wolf demon senses. While he couldn’t faithfully reproduce someone else’s scent, it was manageable to mask his own scent.

However, since Farsa had delegated parts of illusion magic to Astarte, using it himself had become a rarity, and he didn’t have much confidence in handling it well.

Of course, given Farsa’s confidence based on his magical genius standards, the likelihood of actual failure was minimal to the point where it could be said that others would undoubtedly make a fuss if they knew. Illusion magic, as perceived by ordinary magicians, was not so easy to handle, so it was natural to say that.

” Roux-chan, come on, try greeting them as I taught you earlier,” Palmina said, calling out to Roux who was hiding behind her.

It seemed that she had been teaching her even while they were waiting. Roux slowly stepped forward again, placing both hands in front of her chest. She glanced up at Farsa and the others’ faces and began to speak.

“Um, well, uh, thank you for helping me earlier. My name is Roux, from the Wolf Demon Tribe. Nice to meet you. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know.” -Roux

Roux’s words, accompanied by a slight bow, seemed to be echoing what Palmina had taught her, yet it was still a dignified expression.

For Roux, the place she was in was the territory of humans, where she had no family or acquaintances. It must have been quite unsettling for a young child.

In this situation, it wouldn’t be strange for a child to cry, shout, try to escape, or do any of those things. However, Roux was different.

Although it was unclear what she had talked about with Palmina, Roux seemed to adopt this attitude in order to move forward in her own way.

Seeing her like this, Julia had a complex expression, Zenobia appeared impressed, and Palmina had her usual saintly smile.

As for Farsa himself, he secretly resolved to ensure Roux was returned to her parent’s side without fail.