As I was lost in thought, a figure suddenly blocked our path. Kill him.
It was the elf guy. Standing beside the ninja girl, he seemed like one of the orc officer's henchmen. He was the one who had violently assaulted Titania in front of me the other day—a despicable bastard. Kill him.
I swallowed the killing intent rising within me and watched as the elf girl and the elf guy began talking. Were they siblings or something? Kill him.
While talking to her, the elf guy glared at me with sharp eyes.
I had a feeling he knew I'd humiliated the elf girl. For a moment, I saw a flicker of hatred in his eyes. Fine. Kill him.
I glanced around and noticed Ferris hiding behind me. On closer look, the elf girl seemed annoyed by the elf guy too. Had he hurt them both? Absolutely. Kill him.
Eventually, the elf girl waved goodbye to Ferris and left with the elf guy. Watch your back on moonless nights. If you do wrong, the Beast of Gévaudan will come for you.
There we were, Ferris and me, left alone.
—Huh?
Just then, I felt an unexpected gaze.
I turned my head, searching for the source.
Soon, I spotted something unnatural in the flow of alien pedestrians far down the road.
They seemed to be tailing us. Earthspite, maybe…?
But their movements looked amateurish, not trained. Were they deliberately acting like amateurs to seem more alien?
Still, Ferris, are you still being targeted?
The humans have been marking you so persistently—it's not just your healing magic, is it? Lydia called you part of a mage clan, right?
This is troublesome…
I can't afford to lose Ferris now. I need to use her as leverage to get Lydia to remove this control device from my head. If Ferris dies, my plan falls apart.
Last time, Ferris's home was easily raided by the Tango team. That exposed how complacent the aliens are about threats. They probably underestimate humans, calling them subhuman.
Humans aren't weak. If a special forces team launched a suicide mission, they could take out one or two aliens. That day, Ferris would've been in danger if not for me.
I've exploited that overconfidence before. As a soldier, I sniped several high-ranking alien officers.
Aliens are relatively vulnerable to assassination.
I want to be thorough here.
"△□〓〆○, Gévaudan…?"
Lost in thought, I stood still on the road. Ferris, looking worried, furrowed her brows and said something to me.
I tapped her shoulder with my finger.
"Li…di…a…?"
Using my usual initial-word method, I mentioned Lydia's name.
Ferris's mouth formed a wavy line, and her brows furrowed sharply.
She's… really uncomfortable with Lydia.
But I pressed on.
I kept pointing and repeating Lydia's name.
Li, di, a! Li, di, a!
My rhythm accelerated, and eventually, Ferris sighed, resigned, and began leading me.
Lydia's house wasn't far from there.
Wow…
Ferris's home was a nice Mediterranean-style mansion, but Lydia's was an impressive Gothic estate. It suited a moonlit night.
That girls' school is definitely for wealthy young ladies. And Ferris, Lydia, the elf girl, and that dragon girl—Ashera, Lydia said—are all daughters of powerful figures.
Ferris took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
A demon-like alien servant answered.
After Ferris said a few words, a girl rushed in from inside before the servant could respond.
It was Lydia, breathless and surprised, wearing a casual T-shirt and spandex. It was refreshing to see her dressed so casually—more fabric, oddly enough.
"Ferris coming to see me? I thought it was a sign of the apocalypse!"
Lydia and I sat in the parlor, communicating telepathically.
"My fortune said today was my lucky day. Guess those things aren't to be ignored… So, what's up, Gévaudan?"
"Ferris is being followed."
When I said that, Lydia looked confused at first, then her eyes sharpened.
"Followed? By who?"
"Not sure. Probably the same group from before."
"Before?"
I told Lydia about the time Ferris's home was attacked.
She seemed shocked—she hadn't known about it. Then Ferris and Lydia started talking, and Ferris looked increasingly scared.
"I have to leave soon. I don't think they'll bother us right now, but I wanted to tell you quickly. Please protect her."
The control device in my head starts screaming if I stay out too long. Ignore it, and my brain fries. I can't babysit Ferris forever.
Unless the fox woman takes me on another escort mission, but if Ferris dies before that, it's a disaster.
I described the alien tailing us—likely another human in disguise—to Lydia. She looked like a leopard-like woman.
"Lydia, don't mention I said this. I don't want them to know I can talk. Just say… you two were walking with me, I suddenly stopped and stared. You followed my gaze, and the person ran off. They know I can spot trouble, so that should make them act."
She nodded firmly.
"Got it! I'll tell Phoenicia."
"Phoenicia?"
"Yeah, you've seen her. Ferris's sister."
So the fox woman is Phoenicia. Finally, a name.
"I'll send word to Phoenicia today. Ferris can stay at my place. Don't worry, we've got some tough folks here! …Hehe."
Lydia's eyes gleamed with desire as she stared at Ferris's tail. Drool glistened at the corner of her mouth. She's planning something tonight. Honest woman. Time to tease her.
"I'm here for my request, not Ferris', so no mischief with her."
"Huh…? Okay…"
Lydia looked visibly deflated. She's so obedient.
"…You know, Gévaudan, you're like Ferris's knight."
"Yeah?"
I tried to sound playful, but did the nuance land?
That's all I could do for Ferris.
As I started to leave, Lydia grabbed my arm. "Wait! Talk to Ferris before you go."
But I'm almost out of time—
"Gévaudan… can you hear me?"
A bell-like voice echoed in my mind.
Startled, I turned to see Lydia holding Ferris's hand with her free arm.
"—Surprised? If I touch her, we can communicate like this!"
"—Surprised."
"I finally hear Gévaudan's voice!"
Ferris's face lit up as I nodded.
I quickly corrected her:
"My name's Gévaudan, Ferris."
But Ferris looked up at me, pleading:
"I know… but can I still call you Gévaudan?"
"…Sure."
"♪"
My second name is now Gévaudan. Thanks, I guess.
"Thanks today. You were a huge help."
"No problem!"
Ferris smiled, then paused, tilting her head.
"…Your voice sounds different than I imagined."
I wonder what my inner voice sounds like to them. At least to me, Ferris and Lydia sound just like they do in person…
Lydia's cheerful voice interrupted my thoughts.
"What's up? Ferris, what did you and Gévaudan do today? Tell your big sister!"
"Hehe, listen, Lydia. Today, Gévaudan and I ran a butcher shop! Tirel was there too. Gévaudan froze when he was suddenly put in charge—"
We talked endlessly until my control device started screaming.
Like Abigail, everyone here loves talking too much…