Translated: Sei, MTL-sensei-tachi
Edited: Sei, Grammarly no Danna
Source: Syosetu

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Chapter 331


　Those two utterly despicable guys threw us off a cliff, landing us deep in a forest.　
　The old me would have sustained at least some injuries, but now that we’d survived that hellish training with those scumbags, everyone managed to break their fall properly and landed unscathed.

"That healing magic devil!! How dare you!!"

　I kicked the tree repeatedly, taking my frustration out on it.
　How is it that everything is exceeding my worst fears!?

"When I get back, I’m gonna beat the crap out of him... beat the crap out of hiiiim!!"

　The tree I kicked shattered, and once it fell over, I finally felt a bit better and took a deep breath.
　For now, I decided that my goal in life would be getting revenge on that idiot in the white coat who keeps committing devilish acts under the excuse of “healing magic,” and then I turned around.

"Shawn, I’m tired already..."

　For now, I ignored Nono, who had completely lost her willpower.
　That girl will probably get back up somehow anyway.

"Check your belongings!!"
""Yeees!!""

　What should I do? I don't want to get involved with the overly enthusiastic energy of those guys.
　Still, checking our belongings was important, so while kicking Vina in the butt now that she’d finally calmed down, we checked the things we’d been given too.

"It was definitely worth coming here!"
"You definitely joined the Demon King’s army for some impure reason, didn’t you?"
"Yes!"

　Honesty can sometimes be a deadly weapon.
　I understood that painfully well just now.

"I joined because someone who seemed like a companion asked me to, but at this point, I kind of stopped caring anymore."
"You were asked to?"
"That’s my business. Ufufufu."

　... Let’s not pry too deeply into that.
　Anyway, time to open the bags.
　Well, I figured they’d have food and survival supplies in them...

"...Ha?"

　The moment I opened the bag, a rock rolled out with a thud.
　...
　Ha? Ha? Why?
　With the unpleasant feeling I’d already lost count of today creeping up again, I turned the bag upside down, and the rocks packed in tightly spilled out.
　The now-empty bag had nothing else inside.
　No, wait, there was something like a notebook in there too.

"What is this..."

　For the moment, I opened it, and written on the very first page was a message that seemed to have been written by Pen and Usato.

———

　If you’re reading this, that means you guys are in the forest right now!
　You're the one who got stuck with the heavy load!


　You hit the jackpot!!

———

"El-san, your face looks like a grim reaper’s right now. Are you okay?"

　Not good, not good.
　That opening line from Usato provoked me, almost made my anger wipe my emotions blank.
　Snapping back to myself at Vina’s voice, I continued reading the letter out loud.

"Etto, one of the six bags is a fake. Also, the food packed into the six bags only amounts to a minimum of three days’ worth..."

　... At this point, is he even aware of how insanely reckless this is?
　Throwing your subordinates off a cliff... aren't the healing mages of the Lingle Kingdom absolutely insane?

"‘I want you all to live in the forest with this. No, considering you lot have already made it through harsh training, I know full well that something at this level still won’t be enough for you.’."
"Captain..."
"Now is the time to rise up...!"
"He thinks that much of us...!!"
"I know I shouldn't be saying this, but I think there's something a little off about the three of you."

　Even Vina is pointing out how thoroughly corrupted Kevin and the others are.
　At this point, Kevin and the others are probably beyond saving, so I’ll just give up on them.

"‘There’s no need to worry. I’ll be properly watching over you all’... Wait, what is this? That’s terrifying."

　Doesn’t this basically mean he’s watching us so he’ll know even if we try to run away?
　I want to think there’s no way he could know what we’re doing this deep in the forest, but... with that guy, nothing would be surprising anymore.
　Pointlessly looking around the area, I checked the contents of Nono’s bag.
　... Food, a water flask, simple medical supplies, a blanket, and a knife were inside, and everything else was, unbelievably, just weights.

"GURUOOOOO!!!!"
"""!!!"""

　At the roar of some kind of monster, we tensed up.
　This was... a threatening cry similar to a Blue Grizzly’s...? Since Blurin, Usato’s companion, isn’t here, then it’s either another individual or a different monster altogether?
　There are a lot of bear-type monsters.
　Every one of them is dangerous and troublesome, so getting attacked in this situation would be pretty bad.
　More than anything, the only weapon we have right now is a knife, so we’d have to fight back with magic.

"!"

　A rustling sound came from a thicket about 30 meters away.
　It’s noticed us too, then.
　It might only be a matter of time before it attacks.

"Nono, wake up!!"
"Ueeh, I'm a cavalryman, so I'm not good at individual combat!"
"You’ve survived the training up until today, that already makes you anything but normal!!"
"Doesn’t that sound kind of sad coming from you...?"

　...
　Still shaken by Nono’s painfully accurate comment, I nearly felt like crying while circulating my magic and wrapping my body in a current of wind.
　Kevin placed his hand on the ground, preparing to manipulate trees, while Wol partially coated his arm in a stone armor, readying himself to intercept the monster.
　Something slowly emerged from the rustling bushes.
　Just as I was about to prepare for battle, I let out a gasp of astonishment when I saw the creature that had emerged.

"Nya"
"...Cat?"

　What came out was a small black kitten.
　It was probably just born recently. It was only slightly larger than the palm of a hand, and its tiny body was covered in patches of mud.
　However, what caught my eye the most was its two tails.

"Ara, isn't that a Lynn Cat?"
"... Vina, you know it?"

　I lowered my guard and asked Vina a question.
　I could vaguely tell that the kitten was a monster, but it was one I’d never seen before.

"A monster in the form of a cat with two tails. It’s said to be a very rare existence possessing a magic eye, and apparently it should already be extinct..."
"So this is a survivor?"
"Most likely."

　Vina nodded in response to Nono’s question.
　The mud covering its body probably meant it had just been attacked by that roaring monster earlier?
　Even Kevin and the others didn’t seem to see any hostility in something this small, and quickly lowered their guard.
　Then the Lynn Cat padded over and rubbed its head against my leg.

"...Nyaa"
"..."

　Without hesitation, I picked up the kitten.
　My clothes got dirty from the mud, but I didn’t care at all.
　The kitten squinted its eyes comfortably, purring softly, and all the resentment that had been building up inside me until now faded away.

"I’m going to"
"Yes?"
"raise it."
"Haa"
"Is it alright to name it Lynn?"
"...I think that's fine."

　Alright, it’s settled...!
　Given that there's only one of them in this situation, it's likely that its parents are no longer alive.
　Then I have no choice but to take responsibility and protect it.

"GUOOOOOOOOH!!"
"!"

　I now have something to protect, but what I need to do remains unchanged.
　We were thrown into a forest full of vicious monsters.
　Limited food, water, and supplies.
　Large monsters.
　Usato and Koga, embodiments of human-shaped malice.
　In this hellish environment, we have to survive and then make it back alive so I can take revenge on Usato.
　First, we need to find a base, and after that, secure food.

"Nyaa"
"Even if I'm the only one left, I'll protect you...!!"

　I’m definitely going to survive...!!
　Meeting the gaze of the kitten with its red eyes in my arms, I steeled myself with the resolve to resist this situation.

●
——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

"Monsters? Yeah, they appear. Not violent ones, though."

　After dropping my subordinates into the forest, Koga and I met up with Hanna-san, Ururu-san, and Blurin, who had already set up a base on a high cliff overlooking the entire forest.
　While gently stroking Blurin’s neck, who had just let out two roars for us, I answered Hanna-san’s question.

"...Eh, what do you mean, not violent monsters?"
"Hm? I didn’t hear that either?"
"I told Koga, though? ...I mean exactly what I said. This forest has a rather special environment, so there are almost no aggressive monsters here."

　There’s no way I’d carelessly throw my important subordinates into a dangerous forest without thinking.
　I made sure to consult with the Demon King and check the map before proceeding with today's exercise.

"There's a place nearby where miasma...poisonous magical energy is rampant. It doesn't directly affect us here, but monsters that are sensitive to magic dislike it and tend to stay away from this forest."
"...I see. But then, wouldn't that defeat the purpose of the training Usato-kun was talking about?"
"Preconceptions are not something to be taken lightly."

　Right, if it’s like that, then it wouldn’t be training.
　That’s why, during my explanation, I casually emphasized the fact that there are vicious monsters here.

"If they’re told there are vicious monsters around, they can’t help but stay on guard, right? So I had Blurin let out a roar earlier, turning that preconception into reality."
"Ururu-san, Keira-chan. Is this person really human? His methods are downright ruthless."

　Hanna-san, still clearly taken aback, called out to Ururu-san and Keira while they were gathered around the campfire, hidden by illusion magic that concealed the smoke.

"Hmm... Usato-kun and the others were actually dropped into a forest with real monsters, so I guess this is still the gentle version...maybe?"
"If it’s something necessary, I don’t mind."
"Eh? Am I the weird one here? No, no, that can’t be right..."

　I gave a wry smile at Hanna-san, who was completely flustered.
　Once you realize it, this exercise is simple.
　Right now, even the Demon King is circulating his power through the land and maintaining balance, so we won’t have any trouble with food.

"The important thing is making sure they don’t see through the imaginary monsters they themselves created."

　They will have to fight threats that cannot be seen and never appear.
　There’s no risk of being directly attacked.
　They won’t get injured either.

"Monsters that cannot be solved by defeating them will steadily wear down their minds."
"..."
"How much they can draw out their own strength in such a situation, that’s the real point."

　While enduring Hanna-san’s gaze, which looked at me as if I were some incomprehensible creature, I leaned my back against Blurin, who was lying down behind me.

"Koga will stay on standby for emergencies."
"Ou"
"Hanna-san, please use illusion magic to show the presence of monsters. Nothing extreme, just enough to make it clear that monsters are around."
"Haa... understood."
"Ururu-san will also stay on standby with Koga in case anyone gets injured."
"Roger that!"
"And Blurin, go into the forest and let out roars periodically."
"Guruah!!"

　Keira will wait here with me.
　... Though I might have her accompany me for a favor from the Demon King later.
　No, since Gref-san has entrusted her to me, I can't let her get into any danger.

"Oi, Usato. Where’s Nea?"
"Now that you mention it... she was right there a moment ago, wasn’t she?"
"She’s definitely not here."

　Koga and the others noticed that Nea was gone.
　It wasn’t as if she had just wandered off on her own.

"Oh, I asked Nea to handle a job."

　Far below, beyond the forest.
　I confirmed the figures of El-san and the others, no bigger than specks.

"A very important job."

　It’s something that wears you down mentally, but in a survival situation in an unmarked forest, it gives them a sense of purpose and a mental anchor.
　In that sense, I have to admit the efficiency of what Rose did.
　Watching Nea now in the form of a red-eyed kitten, I faintly smiled.

——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

Author's Notes:
Usato continued to make villainous moves.
This is also for everyone's sake (heartbreaking).