Breakthrough with the Forbidden Master-Chapter 387: A Fleeting Moment
“Seriously… where do I even start… or rather, what should I even say first… there’s just too much going on, what a hassle… but, even so, first of all…….”
After the battle, Norja, who had become docile, was clinging to me when that guy approached with a wry smile.
Although he was blind, his steps were steady, and it was clear that he knew who I was.
“That time… the Onii-san I met in Vienna… it’s been a really long time ♪.”
When he said that, I glanced over at Espie and she gave me a slight nod.
Apparently, that has already been confirmed.
“Yeah. It’s been a while since we last saw you, Koujiro.”
“How nice to meet you again.”
So I responded without hiding it.
“I… I couldn’t keep the promise I made to you back then… to Espie.”
“Hmm~? What are you talking about? It’s been a while since I last saw Espie-jou, but she doesn’t seem unhappy at all.”
“…… Ah~, that’s ……”
“Rather, feeling Espie-jou with you…… ah…… even though we fought for our lives together, it made me realize once again that ‘we’ just weren’t enough.”
“Koujiro ……”
“This one is so glad you’re still alive…… and this one is glad we met once more!”
Saying that, Koujiro lightly thrust out his fist, and I hit it with a light bump.
Although I only met this guy briefly in the past, I didn’t have a bad impression at all, so I was able to respond honestly.
“Ahem…… Koujiro…… is he an acquaintance of yours?”
“Is he really?”
Watching our exchange, the black-hooded man, Kagerou, and several dozen other ninjas who seemed to be their allies appeared.
“Indeed. Danna, Nee-san, as you know, this is Espie, one of the Seven Heroes, just like me…… and this Onii-san is the man that Espie-jou has looked up to as her older brother since she was little.”
“…… A brother to Espie-dono of the Seven Heroes!? No, wait, Koujiro. The young man…… no matter how you look at him, he is younger than Espie-dono…… and above all, that outfit… I remember now. That’s the uniform of the Imperial Academy, isn’t it.”
“You’re right~, I was wondering about that too. I thought she was just calling him ‘Big Brother’, but they really act like siblings… so what’s the deal with that?”
The questions were only natural to those who didn’t know the circumstances.
And it seemed Koujiro felt the same way, as he nodded with a serious look on his face.
“This one was curious about that as well. What I feel of Onii-san’s body… his strength has improved from back then, yet his physical age seems unchanged…… but how can that be, considering that over ten years have passed? He’s not a demon or a demi-human either… and yes, Onii-san was wearing the Imperial Academy uniform back then……”
And to answer those questions, I would have to tell the whole story.
That is, my name, my true identity, and everything I’ve done in the past.
“Yeah. Well, it seems you have done a lot for Espie…… and even taken care of this land in various ways, so maybe I should tell…… you…… about.”
But before I talk about it……
“Sniff sniff, huff puff… Kuun, lick lick, chu chu, hug~♡”
“Hey, stop sniffing! Stop licking! Don’t kiss my neck or anything! Don’t cling to me, let go!”
First of all, I’ve been ignoring this until now, but it’s about time I address it.
“Ah… yes, of course.”
“That’s right, Norja! Get off Big brother already!”
In this state, with the subdued Six Supremacy clinging to me.
Koujiro, Espie, and the others all nodded in agreement.
“Norja! What is this all about!? If you’ve calmed down, explain yourself! Being hugged by Big brother is supposed to be me and Slay…… uun, my exclusive privilege!”
“Kuu~n…… nuzzle nuzzle“
“Don’t snuggle him! I mean, get away from Big brother! Speak properly!”
“Fushaaa! Grrrrr~, fusha!”
“Ah, this fellow! If you’re going to do that, then I will too!”
The fox that clung to me and wouldn’t let go…… no, Norja was now purring and clinging to me like a cat, and when Espie tried to pull her off me, she bared her fangs and threatened her.
This is weird. Why is this happening?
“Hmm, Norja has already gone from weird to even weirder! What should we do? Should we really just hit her a couple of times?”
“No, wait, Espie. I want to do something too, but I don’t want her to go on a rampage again in this situation……
“You’re too soft, Big brother! If you can’t discipline her properly, you can’t keep her!”
“I’m not keeping her! Is she a pet!?”
Norja has been brainwashed and has lost her mind. And even though she admitted defeat and surrendered to me, she has not regained her sanity.
She doesn’t speak a word, and just purrs and clings to me like a pet that has lost its wildness.
「Tre’ainar…… what should I do?」
『Well…… likely the brain…… Hmmm…… tis not magic…… nor hypnosis of any kind…… yet it feels like something has been implanted in her brain…… however, I know not much beyond that.』
“Eh… her brain?”
Tre’ainar didn’t seem to understand the situation since he hadn’t looked closely yet, but the words “something is implanted” were unexpected, and I blurted it out.
And then……
This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.
“Hmm? The brain? What could you mean, Young man.”
Mr. Chieftain responded to my muttering.
“Eh, ah, no… something about Norja’s state… it doesn’t seem like magic or anything… I wonder if something is implanted in her brain or something. I’m not sure~……”
“Implanted…… within the brain…… ah……”
“Hmm? Mr. Chieftain?”
“The brain… no… surely not… but… could it be…….”
Then, as if Mr. Chieftain had some idea, he seemed to think for a moment and approached Norja, who was clinging to my chest……
“Ah~, well met, Miss Norja. Might I have a word for a moment?”
“Grr? Uh~~~, gau, uh, gauuuh!”
“Hmm? What was that? ‘I take this man as mate’…… yes, yes… ‘you get in the way, I bite you’? Yes, yes, I shall not meddle, I shall not meddle. Mating? That needs to wait till later.”
“Grr? Garru? Konkon.”
“Yes, I but seek to speak to you… First, pray tell, what befell you?”
Oh, I see. Mr. Chieftain can talk to animals.
So, he can communicate with Norja even though she doesn’t speak human language…… Mating?
“Oh, I just realized, who is he? A companion of Espie-jou and Onii-san?”
“…And… an elf, at that…… this is my first time seeing one…….”
“Come to think of it, I haven’t heard about this either…….”
And now Koujiro and the others have become aware of Mr. Chieftain’s presence.
As usual, Mr. Chieftain was…… ah, it seems like Mr. Chieftain is a bit down, maybe shocked by something.
But for the time being, he continued to talk to Norja……
“Ah~…… sure enough, this one… this child? Whatever the case may be, it seems fair Norja here doesn’t know of her own self. She but obeys some command, holding nothing in her mind save the thought that she must slay the foes that dwell within this forest…….”
She doesn’t know who she is?
Somehow, the conversation shifted away from the topic of her sanity, and we all grew restless.
“At the least, for now, she has come to her senses and vows to be a good child…… yet, well… it is as feared…… some manner of ‘parasitic mechanical worm’ has been planted within her brain and it meddles with her very being… a most loathsome thing… Truly, these relics of the ancients are naught but wretched abominations.”
“P, parsitik?”
“However, said worm was originally designed for use on humans, the form of demonkind differs much from that of men. Perchance, it may not unleash its full dread power upon her, but rather keep her in an unstable state…… Mayhap, if left alone, the wretched parasite shall wither and perish, and she shall return to her former self. I don’t know how long it may take, yet in time……”
“Um, I don’t really get it, but… is there hope? Will Norja be saved?”
“Yes. Had she been a human, the horror would have been far graver. The cursed device does not only compel absolute obedience, but moreover, it strips away all restraint, unlocking even the deepest wells of power hidden within one’s soul…”
I can’t believe something like that was implanted in Norja.
Just hearing the word “brainwashing” was unpleasant, but implanting it in the brain? Parasitic? Worm?
“Good grief. Who the heck would do something like this…”
That’s what everyone here thought.
And……
“Well, why don’t you just ask those guys? Big brother.”
Espie glared in the direction of the group that was waiting outside the forest with Norja, certain that they knew the answer.
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