Chapter 84: Sabaody Archipelago – The Warlord Invitation (Part 2)
"So, how was Sabaody Park? Was it fun? Uuuhh," Da Vinci and Scáthach asked while munching on the snacks and food the others had brought back, clearly curious.
"Why don't you just go tomorrow and see for yourselves? If we told you, it'd ruin the surprise."
"No no," Da Vinci waved a finger, "Why would a genius big sister like me care about a kids' amusement park? I'm more interested in showing off my technological inventions and receiving endless praise for them."
"Well, whatever makes you happy. Tomorrow I'll stay on the ship with Esdeath. You all can go have fun."
Kurumi suddenly looked uneasy. "You specifically said Esdeath would stay with you? Eric ~ what do you mean by that?"
Esdeath stood tall, puffed out her impressive chest, and pointed at Kurumi. "Isn't it obvious? Eric means I won!"
"That's not it," Eric replied calmly. "Kurumi, don't be upset. If I don't keep an eye on Esdeath, she might turn the entire Sabaody Archipelago into a giant battle royale. You, on the other hand, I can trust."
"Then I'll stay too. That's alright, right?"
"Of course! If Esdeath tries to do anything to me, I'm totally helpless."
"If that happens, you'd probably just lay down and enjoy it." Kurumi, as expected, had Eric 's personality and behavior patterns figured out to perfection—Tokisaki Kurumi: Walking Encyclopedia of Eric .
Esdeath's eyes lit up. "Oh? So what Eric is saying is—I can take him by force?"
She looked at Eric the way a starving predator might look at a buffet. Her deep, passionate eyes shimmered with a dark red glow, hidden just beneath the surface...
Eric trembled, but deep inside, he also felt… a flicker of desire. If Esdeath got forceful, should he fight back? Not resist? Or just surrender?
Kurumi's "Eric Radar" activated. "Hey, you seem kind of agitated. Want me to 'slice' it off to calm you down and restore your sage mode?"
"Slice what?! That's terrifying!" Eric yelped, clutching himself.
"Don't worry. I could use my Fourth Bullet (Dalet) or the senzu bean you gave Esdeath to fix it~"
"No way! It'd come back, sure, but it wouldn't be the original me anymore… I wouldn't even be a man…"
Everyone laughed and joked around, spending their first evening on Sabaody Archipelago in high spirits.
...
"Everyone's gone… now then…" Esdeath watched them disappear into the distance, then slowly reached for Eric 's hand and interlocked fingers with him. Her fair cheeks visibly flushed to a cherry blossom pink.
Eric thought: If only you were always this adorable.
Click—the sound of a safety being released echoed from the right. Kurumi had drawn a pistol, bringing it up from her waist and pressing it against Eric 's right side. With her left hand, she also held Eric 's right, whispering in his ear, "Look at me, or I'll shoot~"
Shing—a blade was unsheathed on the left. Esdeath grabbed her rapier, extending it past her own back to rest its tip against Eric 's left side. "Keep looking at me… or else."
What should have been a romantic moment with one man and two women suddenly turned into a horror scene of dual-sided hostage threats—look away and get stabbed.
With no choice, Eric crossed his eyes—his left eye looked at Kurumi, and his right eye at Esdeath. The ridiculous expression made both women laugh, finally lowering their weapons and letting him go.
Eric thought: Is this a blessing or a curse?
Just then, flap flap—a government messenger bat flew overhead and dropped a white envelope bearing the Marine insignia at Esdeath's feet before flying off.
"Hm? For me?" Esdeath caught the falling letter between her fingers.
"Ara, Esdeath- has acquaintances in this world?" Kurumi was surprised. After all, Esdeath had been summoned into this world by Eric and Kurumi—she didn't belong here. Who would even know her, much less write her?
Esdeath opened the letter and read it carefully, then gave a small laugh. "The Navy wants to invite me to become a Warlord of the Sea."
Though both Eric and Kurumi were standing next to her, neither tried to sneak a peek. Instead, they said, "Let us see."
"Here."
Eric and Kurumi leaned in together to read the letter from Marine Headquarters.
"Ara, they're asking that you be a captain in order to accept the invitation. This is a trap," Kurumi observed.
"Hm? How so?" Eric and Esdeath asked.
"In this world, pirate crews follow the captain's orders. If Esdeath wants to become a Warlord, she'll either have to leave and form her own crew, or betray Eric and take over this one. If it's the latter, it weakens the crew's overall strength."
"And even if she declines, the Navy still planted a seed of discord—a wedge between you and Esdeath. Sooner or later, it'll create problems, maybe even internal collapse."
"Hmm…" Esdeath rested her chin in her palm. "Did you just show genuine concern for me? Is the sun rising in the west?"
"Tch, I'm just worried you'll run off." Kurumi turned her head dramatically, her long ponytail smacking Eric in the face—painful, but fragrant.
Was Kurumi afraid Esdeath would leave them? Or did she truly know that Esdeath would never do so? Her true thoughts remained unclear. But...
"Kurumi-chan is so tsundere."
"I'm not tsundere! Mm…"
Kurumi, enjoying a head pat from Eric , half-closed her eyes in contentment. She must've been a cat in her past life.
Esdeath murmured, "So my greatest rival really is the one who understands me best."
Then she called out, "Eric !"
"Here!" Eric instinctively responded, unsure why.
Esdeath said seriously, "Become stronger—stronger than me."
"Yes!" Eric snapped a perfect salute. "But… why suddenly say that?"
"So you can fight me. Let's spar." Esdeath's sly grin said, 'You fell into my trap.'
"You just want to cure your boredom and feed your combat addiction!" Eric complained as he turned toward the island. "Let's go fight on Sabaody, not on the ship—we don't want to break it."
Esdeath recalled, "Come to think of it, it's been a while since our last duel."
"It's only been five days! You beat me up under the excuse of 'testing the training room's durability,' and then started sparring with Scáthach instead!"
Esdeath blushed. "I'm touched that you remember every little moment between us."
Kurumi sighed. "What even goes on in your head? It's like you're schizophrenic."
"Kurumi, fight beside me. Let's beat this battle junkie up together."
"It would be my honor, Eric -~ Let's teach this lovesick warrior a lesson."
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 40 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Johanssen10