Author: Himezaki Shiu	Original Source: Syosetu
Translator: Jiro	English Source: Re:Library

Project GB is an official initiative by Re:Library.

“By the way, Lullus, you can take on a Beastman’s appearance, right?”
“I can. Do you want me to try it?”

In one of the rooms provided to us in Tree of Spirits, Lullus transformed back into her human form without hesitation when I asked her. I assumed she already knew where we were headed next—probably because she’d heard my discussion with the king. When transformed, Lullus looked just like me, but with cat ears and a tail.

“So that’s your Beastman look?”
“That’s right. However, I can’t move naturally, so I’m not sure if it’s correct or not.”

She said, and I nodded, realizing that she only had one pair of ears on her. I was tempted to check if she didn’t have a pair of human ears hidden beneath her hair.

I wouldn’t know unless I first saw it with my own two eyes, and it could cause problems if I didn’t first see it before I transformed as well. So, I decided to first make sure that her ears felt right to the touch.

“Are we leaving tomorrow?” Lullus asked.
“That’s right. We could have left today, but I thought it would be better to take some time to prepare.”
“Maybe so, but what’s the point of touching my ears?”
“As expected. Fluffy and fuzzy, I could get addicted to this¹.”
“I didn’t ask…”

Poor Lullus seemed troubled, but I didn’t stop until I was completely satisfied.

“We’ll head to the Beastmen settlement after we first stop by Fraus to check on the situation there.”
“I see. I’ll accompany you.”
“I’ll be able to get us there in no time, so for tomorrow you can go back to your spirit form.”
“Was there even any point in me going back to my human form now?”
“There was. There certainly was.”

Above all, it would’ve been a crime to prolong experiencing this tactile sensation any longer. Not touching these ears would mean that I’d be missing out on 80% of my life.

It was something you often heard, but if you added up all the things you missed out on by not knowing about them, you’d end up missing more than 10% of your life. Maybe humans were always just losing out.

◇◇◇◇◇

Here we are, Fraus. Oh, nostalgic Fraus. I was now looking at the royal capital from a distance, and I could feel a strange tension in the air.

Getting here had been incredibly difficult. Although I had already expected it, I ended up being followed after leaving the Tree of Spirits. I’d used Stealth to somehow shake off my pursuers, but due to that, it had taken me several hours to get here. What made it particularly challenging was trying to hold myself back.

At one point, I ran at full speed, only to stop when it felt like the world itself was trembling. Then tried moving at a more restrained pace, but even that ended up being excessive. In addition, on the way, I had to locate a safe place for the former king of Viridis to hide and confirm the location of the Beastmen’s settlement, all so that I wouldn’t have to do it later.

Honestly, if I’d gone straight for Fraus, it wouldn’t have taken more than an hour.

I was fast enough to make even Lullus shocked. Lullus was still not able to catch up to my speed at all, so I simply ended up carrying her. It was a way of repaying her for letting me touch her Beastman ears.

Once we arrived at Fraus, the rest was straightforward.

We infiltrated the castle as we had done before, gathered the information we needed, and left without incident. I briefly considered showing myself to Princess Topersion, but since I had promised not to disturb her, I opted to stay hidden. The most annoying part of all this, however, was having to wait for a customer to drop by the hooded man’s shop.

As I moved through the borders like this, I couldn’t help but wonder if these borders were really necessary.

“It looks like you’ve come back at a pretty good time,” Lullus said.
“It was a good decision to come here first. I’m not particularly interested in the war itself, but if the Heroes end up taking part in it, then it’ll feel like my wish has been granted. I just can’t help but see the heroes as nothing more than tools at this point.”
“Wasn’t it like that for you too, Master Finis?”
“I doubt they considered me a tool in the first place. I was more of a hindrance than a tool.”

It was likely that they’d wanted to get rid of me since the start.

“Still, I’m surprised the heroes weren’t here.”
“What do you think of the heroes’ situation, Lullus?”
“I’d normally feel pity. We were in the same situation, both being taken advantage of by Fraus. But considering what you went through, Master Finis, I don’t feel anything.”
“Do you think that’s okay?”
“Don’t you feel the same way, Master Finis?”
“I guess I do.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at that exchange. It felt oddly comfortable. There was something about this distance—this camaraderie—that struck a chord with me. I had always wanted a friend like this.

“Didn’t you say you wanted me to be rewarded?”
“That’s that, and this is this.”

This connection—where we didn’t interfere deeply with each other, didn’t pander, and didn’t deny each other—wasn’t indifference but rather a measured sympathy. It was a partnership, a balance. That’s what Lullus represented to me now.

“So, what do you say we go pay a visit to the place where the heroes are headed?”
“We might as well.”
“You look quite excited despite not feeling anything.”
“It’s because what awaits us doesn’t only involve the heroes.”

Our destination was one of the towns in Fraus that was the closest to the Nigel Kingdom. The strategy planned there was known only to the upper echelons of Fraus’ leadership. I could only hope that the heroes’ spirits wouldn’t be broken there.

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