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THE beast’s eyes gleamed high above the ground.
A bear.
It raised its massive forelegs. He’s in mauling distance! I grabbed Kraut, flinging him away, while Stern fired an arrow at a nearby tree. The arrow whirred by the bear’s head, distracting the animal just long enough for me to step in and sink my sword into its body.
I approached Kraut. His face paled at my blood-drenched sword. “What were you thinking?”
He was silent.
“Acting alone is against the rules, even if you did know the forest better than me.”
“…Yes.”
“And do you know what would’ve happened if you’d used offensive magic before the mission started?”
“It would’ve provoked the monsters.”
“Worst-case scenario, we would’ve had to scrap the entire operation. Have you ever downed a bear without magic?”
“No.”
“Your hubris will get you killed out here. That is all.” I shook the blood off my sword, sheathing it.
Stern grinned as he pried his arrow from the tree. “Bern can get mad too, you know, just not very often. Don’t think you got off scot-free, though. He’s most certainly furious with you. Now, grab that bear for me, will you?”
Kraut nodded. He hoisted the bear over his shoulders, carrying it the whole way back without so much as a peep. My opinion of him improved slightly.
We were greeted with great joy upon returning to camp. Fresh meat was a feast in its own right.
Felzen looked at me in disbelief. “Bern… What on earth were you thinking?” For whatever reason, he’d chosen to chastise me. Not that he was off target, I was the one who had killed the bear after all.
“I didn’t think I’d get flak for bringing meat back, of all things,” I shot back.
“Tell me you didn’t use magic.”
“I used my sword!”
“Don’t be too hard on Bern. I had his back,” Stern interjected.
“He saved my—”
“Kraut!” I glanced at him meaningfully, signaling him to shush. His being put under suspicion of a military offense, trivial as it was, would result in a mountain of paperwork for me. I hated paperwork.
Kraut went quiet, his face turning pink. “Y-Yes, sir.”
Felzen put his arm around me. “Tell me everything.”
“We just ran into a bit of trouble is all.”
“Anything you wouldn’t want me knowing about?”
“Not really, just too tired to explain.”
“Too tired?”
“You should’ve seen Bern back there. He was sooo cool,” Stern said, a frosty smile on his face.
“Cool,” he says. I’m sure he totally means it. Why is he trying to provoke Felzen? Keep your mouth shut, traitor!
“Stern, you—”
“I do wish you’d hold back sometimes though.” Stern’s voice was cold.
Did I anger him somehow?
Felzen’s grip tightened. “Care to explain?”
“I will, I will! Just wait a little, okay?”
“Now.”
Stubborn as always. I sighed in resignation. “Come closer.”
“What?” Felzen blinked in confusion.
I brought his head nearer to mine, raising on my tiptoes. “Don’t tell anyone, you hear?” I whispered in his ear.
“I-I hear.”
“Kraut got attacked by a bear. If the higher-ups find out, I’ll be swarmed with paperwork.”
“That’s your issue? Paperwork?”
“Please.”
“…Alright.”
I released Felzen’s head. His face was notably pink. Perhaps I squeezed too hard.
Sensing someone’s gaze, I turned to see Stern’s displeased expression. The entire encampment seemed to have gone quiet. Stern glowered into the distance, his face flushed. Everyone else was looking at me funny.
Huh? What’d I do?
“What did I say about holding back?” Stern pushed between me and Felzen, separating us.
I might’ve gotten a little too buddy-buddy with Felzen.
Stern always inserted himself between us when that happened, fearful that I’d take his childhood friend away. I’d play along—I had no intention of stealing Felzen, nor did I wish to start a fight between us.
“I-I’m sorry,” I apologized, only to be ignored.
“Now then,” Stern said, “let’s bring our spoils to the chef.”
Kraut hefted the bear up again, and we hauled it, the bird, and the firewood over to the camp cooks, who began skinning the body. Meat was always appreciated in the field, where sources of protein were often scarce.
On our way back, Kraut suddenly started acting all friendly with me. “Thank you, again.”
“You’re welcome. Just, don’t bring up what happened around others. I don’t want to deal with any fallout.”
Kraut’s eyes lit up. “You’d cover for me? Why? I was prepared for whatever may have come my way.”
“I just don’t want to have to write up something so trivial. It’s not like we were in battle or anything.”
“How noble of you to undersell yourself thus!”
“No, no, you’re the one overselling me. “
What’s up with him? Is he still keyed up from just barely making it out with his life, or is he just the type to blow things out of proportion? Stern was listening to our exchange, his expression superficially gentle. I know you’re internally mocking me, I thought grumpily.
“I want to be like you one day, Bernstein”
How am I supposed to respond to that?
“I now understand why Sternchen and Felzen place their utmost trust in you!”
He’s gonna go on some weird rant, isn’t he?
“The way you took down your prey without spilling so much as a drop of blood was simply awe-inspiring. With handmade rope no less!”’
Didn’t you make fun of me for it earlier?
“When I, your brother-in-arms, was about to be mauled by the King of the Forest, you wasted no time in coming to my rescue.”
Neither did Stern.
“You appeared before me, swift as the wind, my very own guardian angel!”
What is he saying? I can’t keep up. “…Uh, would you like me to teach you how to make rope, or?” I hazarded.
“By all means!”
Getting all starry-eyed over rope making. Where’d your knightly pride go?
“Also, I’d like to ask if you—well, how do I p-put this…” stammered Kraut.
Does he need to go to the bathroom or something? “Out with it.”
“Are—are you and Felzen d-dating?”
“The hell he is!” Stern barked. Kraut recoiled in fear, and even I felt a little disconcerted. “Right?” Stern drew nearer. “Right?!”
Your face—your face is too close!
“O-Of course not! We’re both guys!” Officially, anyway.
“It’s not all too uncommon nowadays,” Kraut pointed out.
It isn’t? Huh.
Kraut looked at me inquisitively, his face a rosy color. Stern gave me a “now you’ve done it” look.
I didn’t do anything!
“I thought I saw you two k-kiss just now, so I thought that maybe you, erm, swing that way.”
K-Kissing?
“No, we weren’t!” I protested. “I was whispering in his ear! You know, to keep his mouth shut about you?” So that’s what caused all the awkwardness. “We’re childhood friends, it’s how we talk.”
“Ah, I see.” He smiled. “What a relief!”
Relief?
Stern just glared at me
“Uh-huh. Well, glad I could clear things up.” If rumor spread that Felzen and I were dating, his search for a significant other would be greatly inconvenienced, which I naturally wanted to avoid.
“Bern, a word?” Stern wrapped his arm around me, an ominous smile on his face.
Oh, he’s mad. He’s so mad. “I swear there’s nothing between us! I would never dare take Felzen away from you; you know that better than anyone.”
“Oh, I’m not worried about Felzen. He’s a notorious womanizer, after all.”
“See?”
“You don’t get it, do you? I think we need to have a chat.”
“A chat?”
“A nice, long chat. Just the two of us.”
“Are you two dating?” Kraut asked abruptly.
“No, we’re not! We’re childhood friends too! I’m not going out with anyone, period!” I said, exasperated.
“Good!”
Good? What do you mean “good”?!
Stern’s smile had grown even more foreboding.
Help.