WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Natty

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◈ The Regressor and the Blind Saintess ◈

Chapter 47: Friede - 2

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Freide looked over the mangled corpses scattered everywhere, then at the grim-looking man standing among them with a sword in hand.

“Is this your doing?”

Their voice was beautiful, with a faint resonance.

As they spoke, they nodded toward a half-undressed, headless corpse.

The other bodies were in terrible condition as well, but that one seemed to demand an explanation first.

“And if it is?”

Vera answered coldly.

His wary eyes resembled those of a beast threatening its prey.

Freide folded their arms, gently rubbing their chin with one hand as they looked between Vera and the corpse.

“Hmm. Are you attracted to corpses? You are quite an interesting fellow.”

“I do not believe I have any obligation to answer that.”

Vera replied provocatively as he continued to think.

There is no hostility...

Considering the expression Freide wore while making a joke in a situation anyone could misunderstand, Vera could only sense a trace of curiosity.

What should he do?

After a moment's thought, Vera put away his drawn sword and spoke to Freide.

“I came from Elia.”

“Hmm?”

“I am here to assist the Apostle of Abundance.”

“Ah.”

It was a brief reaction. As Vera waited for the reply that would follow, irritation rose within him when Freide suddenly seemed lost in thought.

It was because of memories from his previous life.

There was no need to say it. Freide had been the greatest reason Vera had suffered the heroes' curse.

Back when the heroes had been pursuing him, Freide had troubled him most. They chased after him day and night, firing winds at him.

The exhaustion caused by the wind Freide fired had clouded his judgment and led him into a trap. Even if none of it had happened now, Vera, who remembered that moment, could not possibly like Freide.

As Vera somehow suppressed the hostility boiling inside him...

“I seem to remember hearing something of the sort.”

Freide's beautiful voice rang out.

Freide smiled faintly and added,

“I was told that the Saintess would be coming...”

Freide's gaze traveled over Vera from head to toe.

“...Yet no matter how I look at you, you do not seem like a Saintess. Are human women all built so sturdily these days?”

What were they talking about?

After a moment, Vera realized Freide had mistaken him for the Saintess. His expression twisted as he answered.

“I am the Saintess's escort.”

“Ah, is that so? Hmm, yes. That must be it. Would it not be troublesome if someone as illustrious as the Saintess were this brawny and practiced necrophilia?”

Grit.

Vera ground his teeth. Veins bulged in the whites of his eyes.

“First, I do not practice necrophilia. Second, refrain from such vulgar remarks in front of the Saintess.”

“Vulgar? I find that quite hurtful. And there is no need to hide your preferences so fiercely. I am not so narrow-minded as to interfere with another's tastes.”

Thud!

Freide dropped down from the tree.

“Then, will you lead me to the Saintess? I shall guide you to the Great Forest.”

As Freide approached, Vera nodded toward the corpses.

“What about them?”

“Ah, my runaway siblings? What can be done? They are already dead and have returned to nature.”

Siblings. For someone calling them that, Freide seemed remarkably indifferent. There was sorrow on their face as they looked at the corpses, but paired with those words, even that seemed somehow insincere.

...Were they always like this?

It was something he had not known in his previous life, when they had only fought and never spoken.

It was difficult to discern Freide's true feelings.

Vera examined Freide closely, trying to determine their intentions, but the only response he received was another sort that grated on his nerves.

“If you stare at me so passionately, I shall grow embarrassed. I am sorry, but I have no genitals, so I cannot satisfy your carnal desires. Hmm, unless you would settle for the rear?”

“...Shut up.”

The words came out before he could stop them. Still, Vera did not regret them.

He decided that swearing at Freide was not rude in the slightest.

* * *

Before the campfire.

Rene sat on a tree stump, carefully eating spoonfuls of soup. As Vera still had not returned after quite some time, worry rose within her, and she asked Norn a question.

“Where did Vera go?”

“Ah, I heard he went to scout the area. He said we should prepare for any possible danger, since we are at the entrance to the Great Forest.”

“Ah...”

Rene nodded in understanding and continued eating her soup absentmindedly.

He is taking a long time...

He was surely going through hardship for her sake. After all, she was the only one vulnerable to danger here.

There was no need to mention Norn, and Hella was at least a probationary paladin who had received paladin training.

Suddenly, Rene felt uneasy at the thought that she was becoming a burden to Vera.

She wanted to be of help somehow, but there was very little a blind person could do in a situation like this.

Her spirits sank abruptly, and her expression began to darken.

Rustle.

The sound of grass being crushed rose nearby.

Rene recognized Vera's footsteps and quickly raised her head, only for confusion to cross her face.

...Two people?

There were two sets of footsteps.

Behind Vera's heavy, powerful footsteps came a faint sound, so soft that one might not even recognize it as footsteps without listening closely.

“Saintess, I have returned.”

Vera's voice. Rene stopped the thoughts she had been having and was about to answer brightly.

“Ah, welcome...”

“Yes, this is what a Saintess should be like. What a lovely person.”

From the direction of Vera's voice came a beautiful, resonant voice.

Rene's body suddenly stiffened. Her expression shook more than ever.

A woman...!

That was the only way the voice sounded to her.

Squeeze! Her grip tightened around the spoon. Feeling strangely anxious, Rene spoke in a voice that trembled so much it was painful to hear.

“W-Who...?”

Who are you? Even saying that was difficult, so she could only force out the most important word.

Freide answered with a faint smile.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Saintess. I am Freide, forest guardian of the Great Forest.”

“Ah...!”

Her anxiety melted away in an instant.

Genderless!

She realized that the beautiful voice she had heard belonged to a genderless elf.

“I met Freide while scouting the area. They have agreed to guide us to the Great Forest.”

“Hmm? Why are you suddenly being so polite? You were so friendly just moments ago.”

“That did not happen.”

“Hmm, you are quite a shy fellow, are you not?”

“Shut...”

Vera swallowed the curse that had been about to escape and glared at Freide. He always needed to watch his language in front of Rene.

But Rene, unaware of that, felt her heart drop with a thump at their conversation.

He was friendly when she was not around, then kept his distance when she was present? Was that not suspicious?

It could not be true! It made no sense! Vera had explained it himself!

But elves were beautiful. What if Vera had suddenly awakened to love beyond gender?

Was that why usually taciturn Vera was talking so comfortably with Freide?

Cold sweat streamed down Rene's face at the thought. Deciding she had to stop their conversation, she hurriedly spoke.

“N-Nice to meet you! Shall we eat first? Vera left before eating, so come and eat quickly!”

The words came out without any order.

Her emotions had been flying between heaven and earth, leaving her confused.

Freide blinked at Rene's shouted words, then smiled faintly and sat beside her.

“Saintess, you are truly considerate. It is no easy thing to concern yourself with the meal of someone you have only just met.”

That was not quite the truth, but Rene could not bring herself to say so. She gave an awkward smile and nodded.

“E-Eat a lot.”

“I am grateful for your consideration.”

Rene was confused, unable to understand why she felt so tense. The tension enveloping her did not fade until Vera sat beside her, on the side opposite Freide.

Rene realized that the first crisis in her love had not yet ended.

...Or so she thought.

* * *

The next morning, after the group cleaned up the camp they had made the night before, they headed toward the Great Forest.

Inside the carriage, Rene kept fidgeting with her fingers anxiously.

It was because Freide was in the carriage.

Silence filled the carriage, but Rene did not like the thought of Freide and Vera being in the same space. She began to resent the fact that she was blind.

What if Vera was looking at Freide? What if he was secretly conversing with Freide through lip movements?

Her imagination continued without end.

Once, Vera had praised Rene's imagination as a talent important to elemental arts. Now, that imagination was conjuring such fantasies.

Cold sweat beaded on Rene's forehead as those thoughts continued.

Her fidgeting fingers had tightened into fists before she realized it.

Unable to remain still any longer, Rene squeezed her eyes shut and made a firm decision.

If there was any chance they were talking in secret, she only needed to cut off that possibility at its root.

Rene suddenly raised her head and spoke.

“Um, Freide!”

She intended to lead the conversation herself so the two could not do anything else.

Freide chuckled softly at Rene's sudden shout and replied.

“What is it?”

Why? It was a question that always made Rene uncomfortable whenever she acted on impulse.

But today was different.

Rene was strong when facing a romantic rival.

“What is the Apostle of Abundance doing in the Great Forest?”

For once, a plausible excuse came from Rene's mouth. She cheered inwardly and praised herself.

I did well!

It was the most intelligent-sounding question she had asked in a while.

“Were you not told before coming here?”

“Ah, yes! The Holy Kingdom only said that it might be a good idea for us to come here and help.”

“Hmm...”

Freide seemed to consider Rene's question briefly, then nodded deeply and continued.

“Mari is postponing Mother's death.”

The answer came suddenly.

Rene tilted her head, and Vera, who had only been listening until then, stiffened.

Unable to understand what Freide meant, Rene stopped thinking about anything else and carefully asked again.

“When you say Mother...”

“In your words, the World Tree. I mean the Deepest Root, Aidrin.”

A faint smile touched Freide's lips.

But what followed was not something anyone could laugh at, even as a joke.

“Mother is dying. Mari is in the Great Forest, trying somehow to delay that death.”

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