The Academy’s Barbarian

Chapter 96: What Happened In The Capital (8)

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Ulan gazed steadily at the bed. Soon, he spoke, "You sleep on the bed."

"Huh? Where will you sleep then, Ulan?"

"I'll be fine here."

He patted the sofa after finishing his answer.

It was sufficiently large and soft, perfect for use as a substitute for a bed. However, Ibella seemed somewhat displeased with his answer, "But it's uncomfortable."

"It's okay. It's softer than the floor."

"But......."

"Besides, if we sleep together, you'll be uncomfortable. It'll be too cramped."

The bed in the suite was quite huge; there was enough space for two adults, or even three, to sleep comfortably… The only problem was Ulan's immense size.

In other words, it was a form of consideration.

But even with this consideration, Ibella was not happy. After a while, her fingers fidgeted, and she spoke up, "I-I don't mind being a little uncomfortable..."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…, it's okay!"

A slightly raised voice, seemingly flustered.

Perhaps realizing it, she closed her mouth.

Blushing on her cheeks, she quietly gestured towards the bed. Then, in a somewhat timid voice, she said, "Y-you can sleep in here too..."

"What?" Ulan's eyes widened. As if he hadn't expected the answer.

Then Ibella threw up her hands in frustration and excused herself. "I-it's not like I have any other thoughts! If you sleep on the couch, you'll be uncomfortable, so..."

"That's fine with me, but are you sure?"

"......Yes."

Ibella nodded, her face flushed.

Meeting her eyes, which glowed with a strange heat, Ulan slowly lowered her head.

"I see. I'll sleep in the bed then."

A bed was always more comfortable than a couch and Ulan accepted her favor.

Once the sleeping arrangements were settled, Ibella lay down on the bed. As Ulan followed suit, the bed swayed momentarily.

"If it gets too cramped, let me know."

"Mhmm, I will."

A small voice, like a whisper; that was all Ibella had to say.

After her reply—

CLICK!!!

—the magic lamp turned off; the room was instantly plunged into darkness. The sound of rain and wind pounding against the windows broke the stark silence.

And one more thing.

There was a sound that disturbed her sleep.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

It was the sound of Ibella's heart pounding.

She clutched the blanket tightly.

'I can't sleep!'

She didn't realize it before she lay down, but now that she was here, she was too close to Ulan.

An arm's length away.

In fact, she can even feel his breath on her skin. It's as if he's whispering to her.

'Ugh, I can't calm down.'

Once shattered, her composure did not return easily. She gently pressed her chest, fearing that the loud thumping of her heart would give her away.

‘I wonder if Ulan......’

Is he as nervous as I am? The question suddenly struck her.

'After all, this is his first time too.'

She wondered what kind of expression he was wearing and soon, she made a decision.

'Oh well, I don't know.'

Just take a sneak peek once.

Cautiously, Ibella tossed and turned, stealing a quick glance at the direction Ulan was lying.

And then.

"......!"

For a moment, it felt like her breath stopped.

Ulan, lying sideways, was staring directly at her. Their eyes met by chance, and her heart fluttered even more.

FLUTTER!!!

As if about to burst outside; the heart beating faster and faster.

Soon, she became aware of Ulan's gaze, and somehow, she felt her body heating up.

As consciousness gradually became hazy,

Suddenly, Ulan spoke, "Thank you."

"...W-what for?"

Caught off guard, her tongue twisted again.

On the other hand, Ulan continued, unfazed, "I had a wonderful day thanks to you." He said with a newfound sense of gratitude and a faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

"I've never had the chance to leisurely explore the imperial capital like I did today."

It was true.

In all his life, this was the first time he had been able to explore the imperial capital so peacefully.

The reason was simple.

'In my past life.......'

Right after the Gate of the Abyss opened, the imperial capital was completely destroyed.

This wasn't just an exaggeration, it was literally wiped out. The entire capital, except for the Imperial Palace, disappeared as if it had never existed.

That's why he was so grateful.

He was grateful for the opportunity to experience things he had never been able to experience in his past life. He was also grateful for her celebrating his birthday.

Meanwhile, Ibella barely managed to regain her composure thanks to Ulan's honest and straightforward gratitude.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." Leaning on the pillow, she nodded with a sheepish smile, "I was actually worried that you might get bored."

"It was anything but boring."

Ulan immediately denied it.

The theater, the cafe, the night market, and so on.

All of the experiences he had with Ibella were new and refreshing. He also enjoyed meeting his old comrade from his past life, Perticia.

It was a fun and meaningful day in many ways.

"I also enjoyed seeing something new."

"Oh? What's new?"

"I'm talking about the way you dressed up."

"Ah, that's..."

Ibella's cheeks flushed a little. She remembered this morning, when they had met at the Academy's front gate.

Ulan must have been thinking about that time as well, as he murmured in a voice that betrayed his feelings, "You were very beautiful."

"......Uh!"

Her face flushed instantly.

She didn't expect him to attack her like this. This is unfair, she thought to herself.

However, as she didn't feel bad about it, she quickly embraced a bright smile.

'Still.......’

As they began to share the time they spent together today, the tension that had been gripping them gradually melted away; the heat that had flared up so passionately also disappeared without a trace.

Perhaps because of this? Ibella relaxed and talked with Ulan about all sorts of things.

From what had happened in the past, to what they had experienced today, to the Academy's schedule.

As they talked about various things.

The night grew deeper and deeper.

* * * * *

The next morning…

…Ibella's eyebrows furrowed.

The sunlight filtering through the curtains had disturbed her peaceful sleep. After tossing and turning for a moment, she opened her heavy eyelids.

"...Ugh?"

Her expression was dazed due to her lack of sleep.

Still not fully aware of the situation, she looked around with a sullen face.

Everything around her was unfamiliar.

"Why am I in this place......."

Murmuring in confusion, she looked around with a bewildered expression.

It was because of her outfit. She was only wearing a loose bathrobe and was naked underneath.

She hugged the blanket in panic—

"Ah."

—when, suddenly, the memories of yesterday came flooding back.

How the carriage service had been abruptly canceled, how she had ended up at the hotel, staying with Ulan.

She also remembered lying in the same bed with him, talking about all sorts of things.

‘That's right. And then we fell asleep, right?’

After recalling all the memories,

Ibella breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that nothing unusual had happened. If something had occurred, with her keen senses, she would have noticed right away.

At that moment,

"Are you awake?"

She heard Ulan's voice. He was up and out of the shower, his muscles damp with moisture. Seeing this, Ibella suddenly covered her face with the blanket.

"What's wrong?"

"...It's somehow embarrassing."

Although part of her gaze went to the muscles, more than that, it felt unexpectedly embarrassing to meet Ulan's face right after waking up.

However, as time passed, the feeling of embarrassment gradually faded. On the other hand, Ulan pulled the curtain aside a bit and pointed outside.

"It's stopped raining."

A clear and sunny day.

A bright blue sky spread out before her eyes.

"We can leave now."

Hastening the preparations to depart.

Meanwhile, Ibella had a sullen look on her face. Then she spoke up, sounding a little grumpy, "Are you not feeling anything strange?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that we slept together, and somehow I feel like I'm the only one embarrassed......."

Was it because she remembered everything from yesterday? Even now, she couldn't look directly at Ulan's face properly. Ulan, on the other hand, was different. He faced her with his usual demeanor.

After realizing this fact, Ibella, in a somewhat suspicious tone, asked, "You're not used to this by any chance, are you?"

"To be exact, it's somewhat familiar."

"Yeah, I didn't think so...... what?"

Ibella nodded reflexively, then her eyes widened. It was the reaction of someone who had just heard an unexpected answer.

On the other hand, Ulan thought about the memories of his past life.

Before the Gates of the Abyss had opened. At the time when he roamed the battlefield and gained fame, he had met Ibella as a comrade, and they had fought together.

'And along the way.......'

There were quite a few times when they were homeless or sleeping together. Of course, it wasn't just her, but also Dilia and Perticia, who often slept together.

So he expressed it as something familiar.

Ibella, on the other hand, took it a little differently.

"Why is it familiar?"

"Because......."

“Is it something recent? When? Where? With whom? Could it be someone I know?" Ibella pressed her face close. Somehow, a strange vigor

in her turquoise eyes, an intense emotion that couldn't be identified surged. On the other hand, facing this, Ulan hesitated for a moment.

'I can't talk about the events of my past life...'

He thought about the most recent event. And then he answered immediately, "Yes, I slept with Dilia."

"D, Dilia?!"

"We spent a night together in the cave."

Before the attack by the Abyss Worshipers happened.

Ulan described his experiences with Dilia on the practical hunt.

Some time afterward, after he was finished, it finally dawned on Ibella — that when Ulan said they slept together, he literally meant just sleeping.

"......what?"

However, it was still too early to be relieved. She had heard some information that irritated her nerves.

"You said she was hugging you when you woke up?"

"Yeah. Probably because she wasn't used to the hardness of the cave floor."

Dilia had fallen asleep with Ulan in her arms. Ibella wiggled her eyebrows and bit her lip nervously.

Whether she knew it or not.

After finishing the explanation, Ulan turned around, "Let's go out now."

"......."

"The rain has stopped, so the carriages should be running again."

The weather was still clear, but there was a chance that it would rain again. So it would be wise to head to the academy while the carriages are running.

However, strangely, there was no response from Ibella. Perplexed, Ulan turned to the bed and asked, "Ibella?"

But at that moment, she suddenly embraced Ulan; no, it would be more accurate to say that she threw herself into his arms. Soon, along with a gentle and soft sensation, a faint scent of shampoo wafted from her hair.

"What are you doing?"

Ulan's eyes widened at the suddenness of the action.

Ibella's ears, on the other hand, quickly turned red. She then buried her face in Ulan's chest and whispered as if muttering, "......No."

"What?"

"Me too, I'm not used to it."

"What do you mean......."

"I couldn't get used to the bed."

Even after ending the seemingly unreasonable explanation, she didn't leave Ulan's embrace for a while. At that moment, they stood silently, feeling each other's heartbeats.

"A-anyway, that's it!”

Ibella finally released herself from his embrace.

Her face, ears, and even the nape of her neck were flushed red. She quickly left for the bathroom, saying she would be right back after washing up.

Meanwhile, alone in the living room, Ulan, who remained on the bed, exhaled a sigh that he had been holding back.

"......Hoo."

This time, it was genuinely dangerous.

If they had embraced a little longer, he might have lost the self-control he had maintained all along.

But it was understandable.

From yesterday morning until now, Ibella had been sufficient to stimulate his senses.

'It's undoubtedly different from my past life.'

Skin as white as jade.

A tender touch and a curvaceous figure.

And a beautiful face.

If the Ulan from his past life were here, Ibella would have been charming enough to make him lose reason in an instant.

However, it couldn't happen this time.

Because there was a fact that restrained his emotions.

'Ibella and I aren't like that.'

Sword Maiden, Ibella Elearde.

They had traversed numerous battlefields together, fought through countless enemy lines, and were comrades as precious as family; his relationship with Ibella was not so light that he could be shaken by a night of lust.

'Of course, just because we're comrades doesn't mean... '

There are no absolutes.

Originally, there was no such thing as absolute in relationships between men and women.

In his past life alone, he would often sleep with female mercenaries he met while traveling the battlefields as a mercenary.

If their hearts matched, they would roll around in bed for days on end.

'But.......'

Ibella was a little different.

It was difficult to explain the exact reason, but he didn't want to sleep with her with such a light heart.

Also, there was the fact that they were trusted comrades.

So from yesterday morning until now, he had been exerting superhuman self-control to suppress his desires.

"Whew."

After exhaling once again.

Just as he was about to calm down his excitement.

Creak!

Ibella, who had finished showering, came out.

She was dressed in the same dress she wore yesterday.

However, perhaps because she remembered hugging Ulan earlier, she couldn't quite meet his eyes.

"Shall we go then?"

"Uh, yeah, let's go back."

The atmosphere was somehow a little awkward.

But that didn't last long, and the two of them started talking about various things again, as usual. Later, on the way out of the hotel and to the carriage platform, suddenly, Ibella blurted out.

"By the way, Ulan, you're a warrior through and through."

"What do you mean?"

"I felt it when I hugged you briefly earlier. I didn't think you'd be carrying a sword in front."

"......."

"I thought you were only wearing a robe over your bare body, but you were carrying a sword just in case?"

Ibella asked with an innocent look on her face.

After a moment of silence, Ulan shook his head, "That's not a sword."

"Huh? It was definitely a sword though?"

"No, it's not."

"Then what is it?"

"You'll find out later."

"Later? Oh, you're going to tell me later?"

The answer didn't come.

Instead, Ulan's pace quickened.

After an unplanned, two-day, one-night outing.

The two men and women boarded a carriage for the ride back to Arsene Academy.

About a month later.

About thirty students from the Holy Kingdom's Eloden Academy came to Arsene Academy.

It was a prearranged event.

It was for the 'Exchange Event'.

End of Chapter. . . . . . . .Thanks for Reading. . . . . . . . .

Translator's Notes:-

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