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Translator: Barnnn
Late into the night, both the men’s and the women’s parties showed no signs of winding down, persisting unabated.
Amidst this, the former guardians of the Capital, both of the Magic Guardians and the Warrior Guardians Brigades, had gathered at a different place of their choosing — a T’oued-style restaurant called an izakaya.
Among them were Konoha, Viola, Jeanne, Hornel, and Egd.
“So… Sir Egd, is Sir Dragan coming?” Jeanne asked the young man sitting beside her, munching on some boiled beans.
“Yes, I believe he will be here soon,” Egd replied, “He said he would come once his duties at the Warrior University were finished for the day.”
“Wow, now that’s a surprise… seeing that Sir Gaston isn’t expected to come over here.”
“What can I say? My mentor… he always fusses over us all. I’m quite sure he’ll bring something delicious to share with everyone, too.”
“That’s something to look forward to,” Jeanne said with a chuckle.
Hornel, sitting beside them, observed Jeanne’s expression. There was a hint of confusion on his face.
“It feels a little… strange, hearing you and Jeanne talk like this.”
“Oh, how so?”
“I mean, I know Egd IS one of the Six Braves, but this is not quite how he usually talks when he’s with someone from school, that’s all. And as awkward as it sounds, I’m not good at changing how I talk myself, you see.”
Though from different Universities, Hornel and Egd were of the same age and had fought side by side when they were out working for the Adventurers’ Guild.
Thus, they spoke to each other without any sense of distance.
However, Jeanne was two years their senior. It was natural for discomfort to arise when Jeanne spoke to Egd in such a manner, instead of Hornel.
“Come now, SIR Hornel, can’t you at least show some respect towards me?”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what I said felt strange…”
“Hahaha, I suppose– Hey, what is that supposed to mean!?” Egd laughed, and then exclaimed with slight annoyance as he got up from his seat.
He and Hornel proceeded to laugh some more, and then Egd noticed something in the corner of his eye.
“…Huh, what are they up to over there?”
Neither Hornel nor Jeanne was looking at the gathering of the Magic Guardians Brigade that caught Egd’s attention.
After all, since Jeanne and Hornel were members of the Magic Guardians Brigade, it was obvious to them what was happening among them at the moment.
And they spoke of it without seeing — the truth of the situation.
“It’s like a… reverse mourning, I guess?” Hornel explained, “Sir Gaston practically came back to life, after all — everyone was so happy for that.”
“Hahaha, yeah, that’s one way to put it,” Jeanne replied with a wry smile, unable to disagree.
Egd, with a troubled expression, looked at Viola in particular.
“Ahh… Sir Gaston… He’s alive… He’s alive!”
Viola’s voice choked with emotion, tears streaming down her face as she wiped them away with a towel, while Konoha at the table tried to console her.
“Hey, your tears are dripping from the towel! How much more are you going to cry!?”
“Oh, yes, I suppose… I should change to another towel…”
“Uh, that’s not what I’m asking… Hahaha…”
No matter how much Konoha tried to cheer Viola up, he could not make sense of her.
And this sentiment echoed among the elite members of the Magic Guardians Brigade as well.
The news of Gaston’s survival, whom they respected like a father figure, had brought nothing but joy to their hearts.
From a distance, Egd chuckled as he watched on with a mixture of exasperation and understanding.
“Some of the Warrior Guardians have joined in as well. That just shows how significant Sir Gaston’s presence was to them,” he remarked as he sat down.
Jeanne and Hornel responded to his comment with quiet laughter.
Just then, the door of the izakaya swung open, revealing two large figures.
“GAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! We have come, everyone!!” exclaimed the boisterous Charlie, and by his side was the Dainty Tiger Dragan.
“Sir Charlie, I will not sugarcoat it any longer… You are too noisy.”
“Well, well, sounds like you’ve lost your respect for me now, eh, Dragan?”
“No need to worry, sir — It is with respect that I can be perfectly honest with you.”
“Hah, very funny! Gahahaha!”
At the sight of the duo, Egd rose to his feet and exclaimed,
“Master Dragan! Why did you not tell that you would bring HIM, of all people, along!?”
“Heh, he probably kept the news away from YOU specifically for a reason,” Hornel pointed out, not entirely wrong.
“”SIR CHARLIE!!”” chorused the majority of the Warrior Guardians.
Most of them had been raised under Charlie’s wing.
Currently, it was Egd who effectively led the Warrior Guardians.
Consequently, all of the Warrior Guardians’ complaints directed at Egd had reached Charlie. This led to a negative cycle where Charlie consulted Dragan, who would then proceed to lecture Egd.
Egd harbored an aversion towards Charlie as a result of this cycle.
With how Dragan had brought Charlie along, Egd’s contorted expression told the whole story.
“T-tactical retreat!” Egd exclaimed before disappearing into the restroom.
“H-hey! Where do you think you’re going–” Hornel called out, following him.
Opening the ventilation window above the restroom, Egd deftly slipped through and made his escape from the drinking party.
“Curses! I have to follow him!” Hornel muttered as he crawled through the window, vanishing into the depths of the night of Eddo.
“Ah, that’s it! There is an after-wedding party going on! That is where I shall go and hide!” Egd declared, making his way to the venue where Asley and the others were hosting the men-only gathering.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
“Pardon my intrusion!”
At the sound of that cheerful voice, everyone turned around.
The gathering that Egd joined was bustling with members so intense that even Egd, a former member of the Six Braves, seemed overshadowed.
“Whoa, Egd! I didn’t know you’d come!” Asley greeted Egd, who smiled bashfully in response.
“W-well, I suppose my curiosity is too great, sir — when I heard what you were up to, I just couldn’t not come, you know!”
“It’s great to have you here! Take any seat you like. Our neighbors lent us some extra chairs,” Asley offered.
“Thank you!”
Despite the warm welcome, Egd’s choices were limited.
[Next to Sir Gaston… No, not happening. Sir Bruce’s table seems like too much trouble, too… Then, perhaps over there?]
Egd headed towards the seats next to Bright and Barun.
“Pardon my intrusion,” Egd said as he sat down.
“Oh, you’re finally here!” Barun exclaimed, as if he had been waiting for Egd.
“…Yes?”
Egd tilted his head in confusion.
To explain Barun’s words, Bright spoke up,
“Just now, he was on a Telepathic Call with Miss Viola. She relayed a message from Dragan.”
“Gah–!?” Egd exclaimed, surprised by Dragan’s ability to see through everything.
“He didn’t tell me to lecture you, so you can relax,” Barun reassured Egd with a grin.
“Uh, no, I can’t bring myself to trust your statement when you do that smug face,” Egd retorted.
“It’s true, though. Anyway, I’ve got an interesting story to tell you, so you’d better listen up,” Barun insisted.
“An… interesting story?”
As Egd said that, another man took a seat next to him.
“Warren!?”
And so the seating order became Bright-Egd-Warren-Barun.
Barun seemed to be enjoying himself, while Egd wore a tense expression, sandwiched between the two Black Emperors.
“What… what is even going on…!?”
“Nothing special, really. Sir Warren and Sir Bright are simply going to talk. The topic is ‘Strategic Insights on Fighting the Devilkin,'” Barun explained.
“Wait, isn’t that too serious for a drinking party?”
“Nah, this is fine! It’s always good to bolster your knowledge.”
“Oh, so it IS serious! We should talk about something fun instead! Otherwise, I–“
Before Egd could finish, the arms of the Black Emperors stopped him from leaving.
“Haven’t you heard, Egd?”
“Surely you’re aware of what we are.”
“”One does not simply walk away from the Black Emperors.””
Barun burst into laughter, clapping his hands as he celebrated Egd’s misfortune.
Meanwhile, Hornel, who had caught up with Egd, entered the room.
“Oh, hey, Hornel. I didn’t know you’d come,” Asley greeted him, mirroring Egd’s welcome.
“Well, to be fair, I didn’t plan to come, either. Where’s Egd?”
“Right there — and he’s in the clear, by the way. Just got a message from Sir Dragan, and he’s having fun with Warren and Bright over there — Look.”
Asley pointed his thumb at the bashful Egd.
“Yup, looks like he is TOTALLY enjoying himself,” Hornel remarked with a wry smile as he glanced around.
Most were familiar faces — familiar comrades.
However, Hornel’s gaze stopped abruptly at the counter where Gaston and Leon were seated.
It was not Leon that caught his eye. By now, Hornel and Leon at least recognized each other’s faces. And of course, there was no reason for him to be surprised by the presence of Gaston, once the commander of the Magic Guardians Brigade.
Hornel’s eyes stopped further ahead. In addition to Gaston and Leon, in the corner of the counter, there was someone else.
The back of a man Hornel did not recognize… He was certainly there. He saw him.
“Hey, Asley, who’s that guy over there?”
“Huh?”
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
The same was happening in the women’s gathering as well.
Jeanne had come at the instruction of Dragan to make sure if Egd had indeed not attempted to attend this party. Reflected in her eyes was a figure she did not recognize.
Besides Ferris and Minerva, there was another person in the corner of the adjacent counter.
Jeanne saw the back of a woman she didn’t know… Indeed, she saw her.
Jeanne turned to Lylia, who had greeted her, and asked,
“Excuse me, Miss Lylia… Who might that be?”
“Hmm?”
Lylia turned to look at the woman.
…And as it turned out, it was actually a man with makeup.
At least, that was how it appeared to Lylia from the side profile.
Then came the voice of admiration from Minerva and the voice of disbelief from Ferris:
“…Ah, yes, that is a brilliant idea, Miss Jolyne.”
“Uh, I dunno, makeup can only do so much…”
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
“Oh, so besides the Magic Direction, there are other things we can work with?”
“I see my Magitek still cannot hold a candle to yours. Hahaha…”
Gaston showed interest in the potential of new Magitek developments, while Leon praised the individual in question.
This was the moment when Asley, having gone through the trouble of stopping him from leaving for the bouquet toss time outside, saw his efforts go in vain.
As Asley saw his profile, as did Lylia, they both sighed in frustration and resignation.
“”Why the hell are you even here?””
“”What? Why would you leave me out of the fun like this? Ahahaha!””
Giorno and his second self, the so-called Jolyne, existed in separate places at the same time.
Truly, it was the workings of God.
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