Chapter 96 Thin Moonlit Boys' Talk
The clouds are thick, making the moon seem faint on this night. In this quiet moment, the noise of the day, filled with news about a guard mission, feels far away.
A vague sigh echoed in one of the rooms of the knight's dormitory.
"Ha... not again."
Quollio, who didn't even try to hide his gloomy expression, lightly cradled his head in one hand, holding a letter in the other.
That letter was probably the source of his gloom. It looked so fancy that Quollio seemed ready to throw it into the lantern on the desk.
"Hey."
"Hmm?"
Quollio was actually reaching for the lantern when his blunt roommate stopped him.
"What's your sob story? Stuck on another lame paper, or what?"
"It's not that. Actually, I've been getting pressure from home about an arranged marriage."
"An arranged marriage?"
"Yeah. They keep sending me profiles of some noble girls and insisting I pick one. I'd rather spend my time looking at some questionable papers than deal with that."
Hiiro, who had been looking troubled, was taken aback.
Back in their trainee days, and even after joining the main unit and moving into a new knight's dorm together, Quollio had never brought up such a romantic topic.
That's probably why Hiiro's frown showed more surprise than annoyance.
"Thinkin' 'bout love's just a sign you're soft, got it?"
"It's a proper political arrangement. It's not about love at all. In fact, I think you should be the one worrying about love."
"You're tryna pick a fight? I ain't got nobody to stress 'bout. You think I'm gonna settle for scraps from you?"
"...Please spare me. I don't want to get cut down yet. I value my life."
"?"
Seeing Hiiro tilt his head in confusion, Quollio felt like he wanted to hold his head in another way.
"But Quollio, you're gettin' special treatment from those cat sisters, ain't it? Always beefin' with Sham and lendin' books to Lyam. Don't see you extendin' no favors to me, though."
"You're being pretty friendly, huh? That's not like you to say it that way."
"What's that supposed to mean? You're accusin' me of somethin' or somethin'?"
"...Never mind. I just don't want to get dragged into anything weird by pointing it out."
"???"
'If they're on good terms because they borrow and lend books, then what about you who's called Hiiro? Are you stupid? You should just get slashed once,' Quollio thought, clutching his stomach.
"Also, the reason I won't lend you a book is that you'd just treat it carelessly."
"What're you talkin' 'bout? The Star Beast Crown catalog?
"No. I'm not petty enough to bring that up again. It's just that seeing you every day, I can totally picture you accidentally tearing pages, creasing them, or damaging the cover."
"That's whack, bruh."
He was being treated like a wild animal or a small child.
Because Hiiro couldn't just let it go, he quickly tried to fight back.
"Well, ya got some nerve bein' careless about how you look. Them mismatched socks are a joke."
"Ugh."
"That tattered robe of yours is an eyesore too."
"Ugh."
"You'd still be rockin' that bedhead if I didn't say somethin'. Your usual spoiled attitude is really showing."
"Stop calling me spoiled! It gives me goosebumps when you say that."
"Mind your own business, freak. You're one to talk, lookin' like a disaster area yourself!"
"What kind of nonsense is that! I don't want to hear that from you, who looks like a mess and actually is one!"
It was a terrible argument, like a water fight. But this wasn't the first time. Their long acquaintance sometimes led to these strange competitions of pride.
If Ms. Eshurareze, who has also known them for a while, were here, she'd probably just say they're both ridiculous.
Of course, she herself is also quite ridiculous, but that's beside the point.
"You just don't know when to shut up. I was actually going to tell you something you wanted to know."
"What's so secretive about it? Ain't no big deal anyway."
It was just a silly little squabble between guys. Even the tally of their past wins
But tonight, the decision went to Quollio.
"Really? For you, Ruzure and Shouk's situation isn't a big deal?"
"Wh-what...!!"
"I asked a bit from my family to look into it. It seemed like you were concerned about it one way or another."
"......"
Since that incident, Hiiro hadn't directly mentioned it, but it was clear he was worried about Ruzure and the others.
So, Quollio secretly relied on his family's servants to find out what happened to them.
"You want to know, right?"
"......Yeah. Spill it."
"Heh. You're such a softy."
With a smug attitude, he looked like just a good friend who cared.
Not realizing this, Hiiro felt a bit annoyed at Quollio's self-righteousness.
"First, about Shouk. Since he got stripped of his position, it seems he's cut ties with Ruzure. I hear he's making a living somewhere in the southern area of Asgardam."
"That dirtbag Shouk, huh? Probably just waitin' for the next mark to rip off."
"Who knows? But for now, it seems he hasn't done anything to get involved with the knight order. It's not like he has the personality to turn over a new leaf and be serious."
"......at least he's still breathin', I guess."
"How kind of you."
"Tch, spare me the sympathy act."
After hearing about Shouk's situation, Hiiro creaked his chair as he sat down. To Quollio, Shouk was just a little punk he couldn't stand, but for Hiiro, it was different.
Not wanting to pry too deeply into Hiiro's distracted expression, Quollio held back.
"Now, about Ruzure... it seems he's still under house arrest in the Senegal family's territory."
""That dude got stripped of his rank, huh?"
"Yeah. I thought he might have bribed someone to escape punishment, but it seems that's not the case. Given his family's situation, I couldn't dig up much information, but it seems he's just resting in the mansion."
"......that's that."
It was a report with not much progress, but still, Hiiro murmured as if he was chewing on the words. From his perspective, it might have been good news that Ruzure wasn't trying to protect himself through shady means again.
His profile, with eyes closed softly, didn't look like the usual Hiiro and felt a bit uneasy.
"...Ah, right, right. I almost forgot to mention something."
Maybe that's why.
Quollio seemed to have resigned himself to something and quickly revealed the last piece of information he had been holding onto.
"About Ruzure, actually, I heard something interesting from Lastel the other day."
"L-Lastel?"
"...He was the one who managed the dorm when we were still trainees. You remember, right? He was the one who took care of you that night when you got all muddy with that book in hand."
"...Yo, that pesky goody-goody. So what's the deal wit' him?"
"...Hah, well, it's fine. So, it seems that Lastel happened to run into Ruzure when he was moving out of the dorm. Apparently, he confronted him."
"Huh? ...Confronted 'bout what?"
"Oh, that's the thing... Hiiro. It's about the 'training content' you did every day."
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