I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods – Chapter 24

Chapter 24
The recent atmosphere of the Silver Dawn Knights was nothing short of gloomy.

Even during the three meal times a day, only minimal conversation took place, and it was hard to find the same liveliness or bustle as before.

The cause was, of course, the new recruit who had recently joined.

The monster that even Claudia failed to subjugate and returned heavily injured from, the new recruit had suddenly left, declaring that he would subjugate it alone, so the atmosphere had sunk as everyone worried about his safety.

Rize, who was always at the level of creating nonexistent liveliness and atmosphere, was the first to shut her mouth, and Erika, perhaps influenced by her older sister, became even quieter than her already calm personality.

Iris even occasionally grabbed her head and blamed herself. With three out of the four total people in the castle like this, it was only natural that the overall atmosphere would be a mess.

Except for one person, Claudia.

Claudia was no different from usual. She wasn’t close to the new recruit, and she didn’t really know him.

Of course, she was worried that he might not return, but that was simply the Knight Commander’s concern for a new recruit.

The other three, especially Rize, didn’t seem to see that man as just a new recruit.

Above all, he hadn’t been forced to go when she said she wouldn’t, and he hadn’t been persuaded by others to go. He had insisted on going alone despite everyone’s opposition, and had stubbornly obtained permission and left.

If he had acted recklessly, rushed out alone, failed to subjugate the monster, and died, then that’s all there is to the man. She had seen more than enough of how foolish recklessness ends.

If, by some miracle, he succeeded and returned, then it might be a different story.

Thanks to these thoughts, Claudia was the only one who remained as usual, but since she had been staying in bed all day without moving, it didn’t help much in changing the atmosphere.

“Claudia, do you think the new recruit can come back alive?”

“That question again? Do you know how many times you’ve asked that?”

Claudia was disgusted by the question Iris asked in a gloomy voice.

“…I can’t grasp the situation objectively right now. Neither can the other two. You’re the only one here who can stay calm, Claudia.”

Claudia shook her head inwardly.

She couldn’t understand why, after only a few days, his presence had become so profound that the people around him were restless without him, as if he had done something here.

“I’m not sure either, but maybe if that new recruit can unleash destructive power far greater than my greatsword, he might be able to subjugate it and come back alive?”

“That’s no different from saying he’ll definitely die.”

“I said that, but who knows? As you said, Iris, he might find a way out that I didn’t think of using that incredible skill. As for me, I almost died because I was flustered that my greatsword didn’t even scratch it.”

It was a very calm voice for someone who had barely escaped death.

Of course, people don’t die easily. Scratches disappear in minutes, and even if you suffer serious injuries like broken bones, twisted limbs, and torn skin, you can eventually recover as long as you’re alive.

Even if your arms or legs are cut off, you can reattach them with timely treatment using potions and magic, so human lives are quite tenacious.

Claudia was even more exceptional among them.

In fact, she could have been discharged right now without having to stay in the hospital any longer, but Erika had told her not to even think about leaving the hospital room until the treatment was over, so she was just staying put.

In the first place, her body, which had endured for two days while riding a horse at full speed with only bandages roughly treating wounds that wouldn’t have been strange if she had died on the spot, couldn’t possibly fail to recover here.

“He left with such a confident face, let’s believe in him. He must have had something in mind. And, it’s rather insulting to the new recruit to be like this. You know, right? What you’re doing is no different from treating the new recruit like someone you can’t trust at all.”

“…”

“You can roughly read people’s expressions, Iris, so you must have noticed it already, but was there any hesitation or fear on his face?”

Iris shook her head from side to side. No. Absolutely not. There was no fear or hesitation, he even seemed a little excited. She couldn’t even begin to guess why he was excited.

He was an incomprehensible man. What was he so confident about, how confident was he to feel excited about going alone to catch a monster that even Claudia had easily retreated from?

“I’m still not sure if we should have sent the new recruit there alone. Couldn’t we have followed him from a distance?”

“He told us not to even think about following him. What would we do if we were caught?”

“Do you think the new recruit can sense our presence, Claudia?”

“Ah, that’s true. He’s cursed and his level is 1, right?”

“The reason I’m worried is not that. You’ve heard about the new recruit, haven’t you?”

Claudia made a disgusted face.

“Yes, I’ve heard it to death. That the new recruit was cursed by a witch, that he single-handedly killed monsters in prison with only a crude steel sword, and what he showed when he took the entrance exam with Rize. I’m sick of hearing about it.”

“If he had at least the ability of a regular knight, I wouldn’t have worried at all. You know what it means to be cursed by a witch, Claudia.”

“I know. I know, Iris.”

Leaning back against the headboard, her pink eyes turned to Iris.

“It’s the path he chose. If he catches that monster and returns, he’s a talent we must help blossom, and if he doesn’t come back, he’s a fool who didn’t know his place and acted recklessly. It’s not something we should interfere with, and we shouldn’t. Let’s say that new recruit didn’t know his place and almost died, but we helped him and he survived. Do you think his personality will change? Not at all.”

“…”

“And, I don’t understand you even more, Iris. Why are you so overprotective of that new recruit? He killed the Human Butcher with a sword, he read Rize’s parry, and he passed the entrance exam? There’s nothing wrong with him. I don’t have any particular expectations, but I’m not worried either. He left so confidently, so let’s just trust him.”

“…Is that so?”

“It’s not ‘is that so?’, it’s ‘that’s right’. That’s how it is. You’re just worrying needlessly. Really, what did that new recruit do to make Rize and you so worried? Does he have some kind of pheromone that attracts women?”

His face and body are quite good-looking. Claudia stretched, thinking such thoughts. She couldn’t stand it because she was bored just lying in bed.

“Attracted?! It’s not like that! I’m just worried about the new recruitㅡ”

“New recruit!!!!!!”

Suddenly, Rize’s loud voice was heard from outside the window, interrupting Iris’s words.

Iris and Claudia stared at each other blankly for a moment, then got up as if on cue.

“…Why is the atmosphere like this, Rize? Did I do something wrong?”

“Wrong? You did something very wrong. Do you know how worried we were while you were gone?”

When I returned with the horse’s head, the proof of subjugation, and the huge spear the monster used, a very awkward atmosphere greeted me. For a moment, I wondered if I had done something wrong as soon as I returned.

“No, I promised I’d come back.”

“Do you think promises like that are kept just because you say you’ll keep them?!”

Rize looked at me with a bewildered face. Well, in creative works, promises to come back are usually used as death flags.

“I kept it, didn’t I?”

Of course, that’s that, and this is this. When I spoke confidently, Rize looked at me with a bewildered face. It seemed like she had no way to refute me because I was right.

“Really…”

Rize made a complicated expression, then smiled brightly and hugged me from the front. Her soft breasts touched my abdomen. I barely managed to control my lower body, which was trying to rise on its own.

As I was struggling not to react to the feeling of my lower body touching her breasts through my sleeveless shirt, Erika approached with a smile.

“New recruit.”

“Ah, Erika.”

“Really, new recruit, you have a knack for surprising people.”

It was a somewhat exasperated voice. But her expression was mixed with relief. There was no negativity in the smile on her face.

“Congratulations on your successful subjugation. Subjugating a large monster alone within a week of joining, that’s a new record. It’s probably a record that will never be broken in the future.”

“Thank you. Well, it would take quite a talent to break the record I set.”

“Quite a talent? Isn’t that too humble a choice of words?”

While Erika and I were talking, Iris and Claudia, who had been seriously examining the huge horse’s head placed on the floor, stood up.

“…It’s real.”

“Oh my, you really caught it.”

Iris was stunned as she looked at the horse’s head, and Claudia chuckled.

“I told you I’d catch it. Do you believe me now?”

“Really… you…”

Instead of Iris, who was speechless and staring at me with a blank face, Claudia strode over and put her arm around my shoulder. Since we were almost the same height, it was a very natural pose.

“Congratulations, new recruit. You’re really amazing? I have to say this. Iris, where did you pick up a guy like you?”

“Thank you, Knight Commander Claudia.”

“Are you a good drinker?”

“Yes?”

As soon as I replied with gratitude to her congratulations, I was asked out of the blue if I was a good drinker. I was bewildered and asked back.

Claudia laughed heartily and put more strength into the arm around my shoulder. Perhaps annoyed that she was putting her arm around me while I was still being hugged, Rize’s arms that were hugging me tightened.

“I’m asking if you’re a good drinker. We should celebrate with a drink at times like this. You don’t have a choice, so just follow me later. I’ll pour you a drink today, as a special occasion.”

“Um… I can’t today.”

“You can’t today? Why?”

Her androgynous face turned bewildered. I glanced down at the pocket at my waist where the demon-possessed book was securely fastened.

“I still have things to do.”

At my words that I still had things to do, the four Knight Commanders all expressed their questions at the same time.

“You still have things to do, what do you mean?”

I grinned and replied.

“You’ll find out soon.”