Chapter 75: From Dusk Till Dawn (2)

Ibi was looking down at this scene with eyes that purely couldn't understand it.

Meanwhile, Lily was so absorbed in drinking my blood that she seemed to have not noticed Ibi's presence at all.

Only after I silently patted her on the shoulder did Lily slowly remove her lips from my neck.

“Hoo──”

Lily, with a flushed face as if savoring the taste of my blood for the first time in a while, belatedly realized something was strange and looked towards the entrance.

“──?!”

And then, startled, she fell away from me.

“Th-This is…!”

Then she hastily wiped the blood from her mouth with her sleeve.

“…….”

Ibi, who had been watching her at a loss for a while without a word, slowly nodded her head as if she finally understood the situation, and then.

“…Haa.”

She finally let out a sigh and said.

“Keep it down.”

Then she slammed the entrance cloth shut.

At that, Lily and I looked at each other for a moment.

“W-Wait a minute!”

“N-No, it’s not!”

And without anyone having to go first, we immediately rushed out of the tent.

Ibi glanced at us who had rushed out as if she had seen something she shouldn't have, and clicked her tongue.

“What? What is it?”

“First of all, whatever you thought, it’s not that. It's a misunderstanding.”

“…What did I think?”

“…W-Whatever. Anyway, it’s not.”

Seeing that reaction, there was no way Ibi had reached the truth.

So while I was momentarily thinking about how to clear up the misunderstanding, Ibi shook her head again.

“Well, it’s none of my business if you guys are making out or whatever, just don't do it in front of me.”

“…First of all, we weren't making out.”

Of course, my neck was bitten and my blood was sucked, but anyway, it’s a bit different from that.

“Besides, if we're going to get technical, didn't you come to see first this time…?”

Would I show you this on purpose?

“….”

As expected, Ibi seemed to have no reply to this.

“No, come to think of it, why did you come into my tent in the first place?”

“…Tsk. Ah, right! I couldn't sleep, so I came out for a walk and heard a pained sound, so I came to see! Happy?”

“….”

This time, I didn't have much to say.

It was true that I was in pain….

“But I didn't know you were in the middle of enjoying yourselves and I interrupted? Oh dear, I'm so sorry!”

I saw Lily, who had been unable to intervene from behind, flinch at Ibi's sarcastic remark with her arms crossed and a snort.

“Huh? Why is everyone up and not sleeping?”

At that, Miki, who was on night watch, heard the sound and trotted over.

“Well, you see…”

Ibi seemed about to grumble, but she suddenly stopped talking.

Then she looked at Miki with a pensive expression.

“…No, this isn't a story for you to hear, kid.”

“Huh…?”

Then she patted the shoulder of Miki, who had tilted his head at those words, and said.

“When you grow up, don't become a guy who messes with a cleric like that. You'll go to hell.”

“I-It’s not Mr. Yubin…!”

At that moment, as if she couldn't just stand by and let my reputation (?) be ruined any further, Lily intervened with a determined tone.

“I-I asked for it!”

“Lily……”

But in this situation, such words would only fuel the misunderstanding rather than help at all….

Ibi, once again, said to Miki.

“…Try not to meet a cleric who bewitches people either.”

“Ugh…!”

At those words, Lily flinched as if she had been hit where it hurts, but.

“Yeees……?”

Miki, for his part, only became more and more confused.

Before long, Rine also came out of her tent, probably awakened by the commotion outside.

“Hey, elf. Did you know?”

“Know what?”

“Their relationship.”

“…?”

Hearing such a question as soon as she came out, Rine tilted her head once, then looked back and forth between me and Lily, whom Ibi was pointing at.

Then, after a quick glance at my neck, which probably still had blood on it, she answered calmly.

“If you are referring to the draining, I was aware.”

“What?”

“Ah, you knew?”

This time, even I was surprised and had to ask again.

“…? Yes.”

But Rine, who nodded her head nonchalantly, seemed to have no idea why I was asking such a thing.

“Sister Lily’s magic, which had been in a state of exhaustion since I first met her, was overflowing overnight one day.”

“Ah, that time…”

Ibi also seemed to have guessed when she was talking about.

She must have immediately remembered that day when she was so energetic, as if her personality had changed, and her skin was glowing.

“On the other hand, Mr. Yubin was weaker than usual. So I presumed that a draining had occurred, but was I mistaken?”

“…No. You’re right.”

Was it impossible to hide it completely from the beginning?

“…So you did it, right?”

“I just gave a little blood like before.”

I let out a short sigh and continued.

“I’m just keeping my word that I would help her control her instincts, that I would take responsibility.”

Then, when I looked back at Lily, she had her head bowed low, completely hunched over like someone caught in the act of a crime.

Just looking at her, it really seemed like she had been caught doing something bad. …No, well, from a cleric's point of view, it might actually be something bad.

“The reason I took on that role is because my blood is the most efficient for Lily among us.”

At least I hadn't committed a wrong (?) that would break the mutual trust between the party.

“What's so special about your blood?”

…I thought about telling them later, but it would be better to just say it now rather than let the misunderstanding grow and create distrust (?) among the party members.

I couldn't hide it forever.

“I have… demon blood flowing in me.”

“……What?”

“Y-Yeeees?!”

At my sudden confession, Miki, who had been unable to follow the conversation at all, belatedly reacted with a loud voice.

“D-Demon blood?!”

Perhaps because Miki was shouting so loudly right next to me, Rine's two eyes also seemed to be much wider than usual.

“No…”

At that, Ibi, like Lily when she first heard this confession, seemed to be looking me over for horns and a tail.

“…There aren’t any?”

And asked again as if she didn't understand.

“It's a bit of a, peculiar constitution.”

I scratched the side of my head and added.

“To be precise, I’m human… but I should say that the power of a demon is dormant within me.”

“Dormant?”

“I remembered a part of my lost memories. Someone warned me. That the power of some devil is dormant within me, so I should go to the Demon King's Castle to put it to sleep.”

At these words, I saw Miki's jaw drop.

“What devil?”

“I don't know that far yet.”

Actually, I do.

It's the ‘Demon King’.

To be precise, a certain being who was once called the Demon King.

“Anyway, that's why Lily can easily satisfy her hunger by drinking just a little of my blood.”

I deliberately spoke in a nonchalant tone, but for the listener, it must have been a shocking content that couldn't be heard that way at all.

In fact, Ibi, who was staring at me with her mouth agape, soon said this.

“……This guy is making up all sorts of stories.”

“…Huh?”

So you weren't surprised?

“No, I really don't care if you're rolling around in a tent with someone in the middle of the night or if you're going to hell for messing with a nun, okay?”

Ibi seemed to think that I was making up a lie to get out of the situation.

“But why are you making up such ridiculous excuses like a guy caught cheating?”

“It's not an excuse….”

Indeed, it was a story that was hard to believe right away unless I showed some proof.

But I couldn't let her drink my blood like Lily…

While I was pondering this, I suddenly heard a sniffling sound from somewhere.

Surprised, I turned around.

“S-Sister?!”

And saw tears welling up in Lily's two eyes.

“Wh-Why are you crying?!”

“I should have protected Mr. Yubin’s secret… I-I… because I couldn't control myself…”

At that, even Ibi was flustered and checked Lily's reaction, saying, “Wh-What? What's wrong with her?”.

“I am, disqualified as a cleric…!”

She must have thought that it was because of her that I had no choice but to reveal my secret, the ‘confession’ that she had to keep solemnly.

“No, Lily. I was going to tell them soon anyway. I can't hide it forever.”

I first tried to calm Lily down by gently stroking her arm.

“And honestly, it wasn't really something to hide.”

“…That you have demon blood, you mean?”

At that, Lily, who had raised her head, asked back in puzzlement.

It was a look of incomprehension.

Lily had spent her whole life thoroughly hiding her identity, the ‘secret’ of her horns and tail, under her veil and clothes so that they would never be discovered.

It was impossible for me to now tell her, ‘Actually, it’s no big deal, so you should confess right now’.

It's not possible in the first place, and I don't want to.

“I might be saying this so casually because I don’t have visible horns and a tail. No, that’s probably it.”

However, I could give her ‘clues’ little by little.

“Still, I was actually glad that I had demon blood.”

“What…?”

“Thanks to that, I can help you, can't I?”

And Lily, too, because she had the power of a demon, could do things that ordinary clerics couldn't.

At that moment, Ibi suddenly let out a small sigh, “Haa….”.

Seeing Lily's reaction, she must have realized that my words weren't just a made-up excuse.

And also that she had touched on a part that could become a little troublesome for her.

“So, anyway, you're saying that you weren't subjected to any strange things by that guy, or that you didn't do anything to him, right?”

Lily quietly nodded her head with a tearful expression.

“I told you from the beginning. It's not that.”

“Would you believe it if you saw that?”

“……Well, it would be hard.”

“M-Mr. Yubin has done nothing wrong…!”

Suddenly, Lily wiped the tears from her eyes and said.

“It's all because I'm lacking…”

“Ah, why does she say everything is her fault again? Isn't it tiring to live like that?”

“…What?”

At that, Ibi waved her hands as if she couldn't listen anymore.

“Blame God instead. Isn't that what you believe in him for?”

“What are you saying in front of a cleric…”

“Hey, if things go well, it's my credit, if they don't, it's someone else's fault, that's how the world works. And a god can't even listen to such an excuse?”

Then, as if she was embarrassed for having misunderstood (?), she scratched the back of her head and said.

“No, well, if it was really because of control, why would I say anything about that.”

“…Doesn't it, make you feel bad?”

“What?”

“T-That I have to drink… someone else's blood…”

“Do I look like I'd feel bad about that? It's not my blood.”

“T-That I… visit Mr. Yubin, every night…”

“…What nonsense is that?”

“B-But, last time, you were clearly, jealous…”

“Are you picking a fight with me now?”

“…!”

At Ibi's sharp glare, Lily flinched and instinctively grabbed my arm next to her.

At the same time, I, who had learned the full story of the mystery I had forgotten for a while, could only make this sound.

“Ah…”

So that was the source of the misunderstanding.

I had only said it to tease her playfully, but for the always serious Lily, it must not have been taken that way.

She really, had misunderstood that Ibi had feelings for me.

“So that's why Ibi appeared in my dream…”

“……Ah?”

I have to be careful with my words.

The moment I unconsciously muttered that realization.

“……What? In your dream… what? Me… what?”

I saw Ibi, who had frozen in place, repeat the same question like a broken wind-up doll.

Then, as if the spring had completely unwound, she froze in place.

But that was also for a moment.

“──!?”

Whoosh! Ibi's face turned beet red, and my vision immediately flipped.

“Th-Th-This bastard…!”

Ibi had grabbed me by the collar and started to shake me violently.

“Wh-What did you do, you bastard!? What the hell did you do to me?!”

“I-I didn't do anything…!”

And strictly speaking, it wasn't you either…!

“M-Me, with those eyes…! I’ve never been with anyone── h-how far did you go, you crazy pervert bastard!?”

“H-Help…”

“Erase it from your memory! Erase it!!”