Nurturing the Hero to Avoid Death
Chapter 24.3

Translator: mii

Editors: sleepchaser, ASplashofMusic

She’s too much of a critic!

But I guess that’s only natural. After all, she’s the gender-bended version of Lian!

“Well, I’ll have nothing to nitpick if you paid for him to stay by your side as decoration.”

Irritation bubbled up inside me. Voice unintentionally childish, I retorted, “Huh? Stop saying stupid things. Don’t judge a book by its cover, Luzé. I didn’t hire him for something so petty. He has amazing strength!”

Luzé widens her eyes. Then she breaks into a nasty grin. “Ohh… So he’s Lian-chan’s favorite, eh?”

“…What?”

“Hehe. Then—” Luzé shoots Alfred a scrutinizing side-glance, her grin shifting into a flirtatious smile.

She stalks toward Alfred, folding her arms under her chest. Once she stands in front of him, she arches her back to show off her chest.

Seems like that’s her signature smile, said to enchant men to the point of wanting to be her manservant. What the heck is that?

But in any case, don’t use it on Alfred.

“Hey, you. How about quitting your job as Lian’s escort, and become mine instead? I’ll pay you twice your current wage.”

“W-wha?!”

Hey! What the heck was she saying?!

“Stop being unreasonable! Alfred is someone I hi—”

“Shut up. I’m not asking you. Hey, don’t you know how easy it is to be my escort? I can just leave those dangerous tasks to the other escorts. You only have to play with me. And you’ll be earning more too. There shouldn’t be a greater deal than this, right?”

Ok, I had enough. I stuck myself between them, pushing Alfred towards the group of escorts. “Alfred! You can go now! See you later!”

“Ah, sure. See you later,” says Alfred. He nods with a confused face, raising his hand a little and returns to the escort gathering.

“Ah! Wait! …Seriously! Don’t get in my way, Lian-chan!”

“What are you saying? I’m not getting in your way at all.”

“As if! Hm? Were you panicked because I was about to take him away? You shouldn’t push too much. It’s unpleasant. Also, I don’t recommend acting so effeminate as a boy. I’m prettier than you anyway, so if you have no confidence in winning against me, it might be impossible for you to make him stay.”

She truly is someone with a shitty mouth!

She’s clearly the gender-bended version of Lian! And it’s frustrating, but she makes a really good reference for me to learn how to be a villain! That said, it doesn’t make her any less irritating!

“…Unlike you, I am very busy,” I say. “Sorry, but I’ll have to excuse myself.” Although my irritation has reached its limit, I clear my mind of those weird thoughts and ignore her.

“Hey, wait a minute! What, are you running away?”

Just as I’m about to talk back to her, I manage to swallow my words out of brute force.

I’m not running away. This is an evacuation!

Not only that, but I’ll have to accompany her to the party if this conversation keeps going on. It’s troublesome, not to mention tiring.

Luzé’s parents call her back in the nick of time. She seems to have more to say, but her mother drags her away. Most likely, Luzé needs to prepare her gown for the evening party. Well, same here. I packed my formal suit, so I just have to change my clothes after I enter the mansion.

We follow the maids who are under the orders of the smiling butler. They guide us to the rooms prepared for us.

…Before the party has even started, I’m already exhausted.

I heave a big sigh.

Lian’s father, mother, and brother enter their own respective rooms.

The servant unlocks the door to mine, holding my formal suit and luggage. He pulls the door open. “Here is Lian-sama’s room.”

“Thank you.”

He prompts me to enter before him, so I step into the room, only to find—

Two maids standing side by side.

In an instant, I stiffen.

Eh, what?

What is this?

Why are there already two maids inside?

What’s with the security here? Does the lock even have any meaning?

The maids look at me, smiling and bowing at the same time. “We have prepared clothes for Lian-sama and have been waiting to help you dress in accordance with Master’s wishes.”

“Clothes? But I’ve brought my own.”

“Yes. These clothes are also a gift from Master. His birthday wish to see you wear these clothes.”

So they are asking me to wear them now?

Since it’s impossible for me to refuse anyway, I nod. “I understand.”

“Thank you very much. Then, we will help you dress. But first of all, please take a bath.”

One of the maids walks ahead and ushers me to the door leading to the back of the room.

I’m okay with taking a bath, but I have a bad feeling about this…

Inside, a box sits on a table, the size a little too big for merely storing a formal suit. It bothers me. Makes me feel extremely unpleasant.

…My premonition was spot on, huh?

After I get out of the bath, I check the contents of the box. And my mind blanks for a few seconds.

All of my energy is drained at that moment.

I want to go home.

What the heck is this?

The clothes inside the box are full of frills!

A lightweight coat reaching below the knees, with a frilly light blue hem. A silk dress shirt of the same color, with frills as well. The sleeves are also longer than those of the coat, enough for the hem to peek out of the coat. And last but not least, silver epaulettes.

The belt is a piece of light blue silk fabric, with a ribbon tied at the left side of the waist. Its ends are made of carved silver, an aquamarine embedded in the metal.

The slender white boots that cover up to the knees have slight heels. Jewels adorn the heels and toes in intricate patterns, all sewn with silver thread.

There are also several silver accessories crafted from some ice-blue and lilac material, as well as pearls.

These clothes have a lot of gems… How much does this all cost?

I’m too terrified to know the answer though, so I won’t ask.

It’s also scary wearing it.

I mean, what is this? Isn’t this too frilly for a man to wear? And I feel like they overdid on the decorative elements.

“…Is this really for me? Not for my mother?”

“No. This is for Lian-sama,” affirm the two maids, a satisfied smile on their face.

“Ah, but this doesn’t suit me at all. I think it’s better to wear the suit I brought—”

“This is a request from Master.”

After hearing such words, I am forced to comply.

So I have to go outside in this getup? This is really embarrassing. I want to cry. Isn’t this just harassment? No, Lian’s grandfather seems to pamper Lian a lot, so that shouldn’t be the case.

Lian’s mother is his beloved youngest daughter, born when he was already of old age. And Lian holds great resemblance to his mother, so the pampering is a given.

His order probably isn’t to harass me. But then…

No, I have to do this to get that whopping allowance.

This is part of my tasks. I have to do my sponsor’s bidding as much as I can. Have to continue cultivating good relationships. I can’t afford to incur his displeasure. For the fundraising!

Do your best, I tell myself. Endure the embarrassment for the entire party. Empty your heart and mind. That way, you won’t be that affected. This is totally going to be like shame kink, but it’s only for one night. You can do it.

Looking at the maids approaching me with lips still raised in a smile, I swallow my saliva and continue my mental preparations.

I imagine Lian wearing something like this!

I’m going to re-translate sleepchaser’s other novel, ‘Violant of the Silver’! The first chapter will come out on 4th May^^ But I need help to maintain the constant releases of chapters. If you’re interested, please apply through the ‘Baby System’s on CG’s discord! 🙂 (((silently wishing many people will read the novel when it’s out)))