I Became the Emergency Food Supply of the Bear Family - Chapter 64

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 64

“Have you heard? There’s a Herbivorous Beastman who just transferred in, and the Grizzly Family is sponsoring them.”
“The Grizzlys?”
“Yeah, judging by how the Grizzly’s third child is always keeping them around, I’d bet he’s the one who proposed the sponsorship.”
“……Not the third again?”
During break, a male student who had been dozing face-down at his desk in the back row lifted his head, his brow furrowed sharply.
“Tch. I was sleeping. Keep it down.”
“S-sorry, Lorenzo.”
A female student quickly apologized to the clearly irritated male student. The young man let out a sigh, pressing his temples, though his anger seemed to have dulled somewhat—enough that his classmates felt an inward sense of relief.
Lorenzo Porco. The wild boar Beastman was notoriously irritable and hot-blooded, and the General Studies Department’s resident delinquent, prone to butting heads with anyone who didn’t manage his mood appropriately.
What Lorenzo had been fixating on lately was the youngest daughter of the Grizzly Family—Ber.
“So. What did the third one do this time? He brought some kid he’s sponsoring into the Academy?”
Ber wasn’t particularly the type to show off, but she drew attention simply by virtue of being the youngest of the Grizzlys. It was only natural that someone like Lorenzo, who was always seeking attention, would view her as an eyesore.
Beyond that, there was another reason Ber rubbed Lorenzo the wrong way.
“Yeah. Well, it’s not uncommon for a Carnivorous Beast from a prominent house to sponsor a Herbivorous Beastman.”
“A Carnivorous Beast sponsoring a Herbivorous Beastman? Hmm. Is that what everyone thinks?”
Lorenzo raised an eyebrow, his expression turning peculiar. With a gaze that seemed to look down upon all the students watching him, he opened his mouth.
“So you all think the third one is a Carnivorous Beast?”
“……If it’s the Grizzly Family, they’d be brown bears or polar bears. Obviously.”
“Probably a polar bear, judging by the hair and eye color.”
“You guys are really stupid.”
Lorenzo’s single remark left the students’ expressions cold. But.
“Has anyone here smelled the third one?”
“Smelled?”
“Yeah. The scent of a Carnivorous Beast.”
At this loaded question, the classroom fell into a puzzled silence.
“You don’t smell anything, right? If they’re really a bear like you all say, they’d be among the most powerful Carnivores—so how could there be no scent?”
“B-but bears are Omnivorous, so wouldn’t they have a weaker scent than pure carnivores?”
“Ha. You brats are really naive.”
Lorenzo scoffed, arrogantly tilting his chin up.
“I’m Omnivorous myself. Do I not smell? Huh?”
With that, Lorenzo thrust his face at the male student sitting in front of him. The boy laughed awkwardly, only narrowing his eyes slightly.
The Sword Arts Department was staffed with those high in combat prowess—the so-called Carnivorous Beasts. The Magic Department held many clever Beastmen. Unlike these two departments, the General Studies Department was composed largely of students with smaller frames or those who were Herbivorous Beastmen.
Because of this, students in the General Studies Department often found themselves unable to resist when faced with a Beastman of even slightly larger build or greater strength. Lorenzo knew this well and exploited it ruthlessly.
Moreover, the Porco Family was a noble house that had produced members of the Imperial Knights Corps and the Royal Mages generation after generation, and was regarded with high expectations by the faculty of the Royal Academy. Thanks to this, Lorenzo’s nose was always held high.
“You know my older brothers are in the Sword Arts Department, right? My brother said the Grizzly’s second child is so frightening that even other Carnivorous Beasts fear them. The scent vibrates.”
“Ah, y-yes, I’ve heard that story too.”
A thin male student with freckles covering his face, sitting quietly next to Lorenzo, affirmed his words. Lorenzo became even more puffed up with pride.
“If you’re going to talk, know what you’re talking about first. None of you even know what kind of Beastman the third one is.”
When everyone fell silent, Lorenzo curved his lips into a smile and brought up a new topic.
“Haven’t any of you heard the rumor? That old story about the Grizzly Family holding a funeral.”
“A funeral?”
“Yeah. They didn’t even invite people outside the immediate family, so the rumor didn’t spread much. There was talk that maybe the Grizzly matriarch, who’d been shut away for so long, had died—but she’s been spotted in good health these past few years, so that can’t be it.”
“Wait, then what? A funeral without anyone dead?”
When the freckled boy next to Lorenzo threw in the perfect follow-up, the students began whispering among themselves.
“No, there must have been someone. For instance—a young daughter who died.”
Silence fell over the classroom. Everyone seemed to grasp the same possibility.
“Right. There’s a chance the third one is an Adopted Daughter. In other words, that kid might not be a bear Beastman at all.”
All eyes turned to Lorenzo, filled with shock. Lorenzo grinned wickedly.
“So let’s verify it ourselves.”
“……But trying to confirm someone’s true identity is considered—”
“Rude, right?”
With that retort, Lorenzo rose from his seat. The Chair scraped loudly across the floor with a sharp screech. He shoved his hands into his pockets and stepped in front of the student who had contradicted him.
“First time seeing someone this pure. You think that matters? Don’t you know the world of Beastmen runs on Survival of the Fittest?”
There was nothing wrong with what Lorenzo said. The student had no choice but to look away and close his mouth.
“Anyway, I’ll help out, so let’s go verify it. You weaklings just shut up and stay put. We’ll figure it out ourselves and come back.”
With a commanding gesture and the words “Come on,” Lorenzo strode forward, and several students fell into step behind him.

***

Enya walked toward her next classroom, textbooks and notebook in hand.
Enya’s brown eyes traced over her school uniform and loafers before drifting toward the window.
The Royal Academy was beautiful. The Training Grounds, the Garden, the Dormitory—even this Corridor that she walked through every day.
‘I’m actually a student at the Academy.’
And it happened all so suddenly. Honestly, she still couldn’t quite believe it. It wouldn’t have been strange if she woke up one day to find it had all been a dream.
She’d had such thoughts before—wondering if one day she might wake to find her mother calling her name with that usual smile, wishing everything that had happened to her had been nothing but a dream.
But not anymore. There were no more realities she wished were dreams. Grandfather. Grandmother. The Clinic. The Royal Academy. And…….
Ber.

“Enya! Let’s go to the Dining Hall together.”
“Our Family is sponsoring you anyway—I should at least know which dorm room you’re in.”
“Why not? Eating dinner alone tastes awful. Of course we should eat together!”

When they first met, Enya had thought her cool and aloof—impossible to grow close to—but Ber was so bright and kind that Enya wondered if she’d become a different person entirely.
Enya’s friend. The one who insisted on being called Ber instead of Ber, who made a fuss about it each time, who called Enya’s name with an oddly familiar warmth…….
‘Is it all right to call her a friend?’
If they attended the same school, the same department, the same grade, and greeted each other warmly, calling each other by name—then by definition, they were friends.
But honestly, Enya had never had a friend before, so it felt a little strange. Most of all, calling that girl her friend didn’t seem right.
Before entering the Academy, the concern that weighed most heavily on Enya had been the Clinic’s operation.
Working as an Herbalist all this time had allowed her not only to prepare for her own future but also to help her grandparents’ finances. For that reason, abandoning the Clinic was simply unthinkable.
But surprisingly, it was Ber who brought up the Clinic first. She said she would arrange things so that Enya could study at the Academy during the week and run the Clinic on weekends. It was as if Ber had read her heart.
There had been three pivotal moments in Enya’s life.
The first was being taken in by the Earl’s house. The second was a Letter delivered to her grandparents. The third was a Letter sent to her by the Grizzly Family.
The first had led to misfortune, but the latter two brought happiness and opportunity. The two Letters with the same handwriting had been what truly changed her life for the better.
And Enya believed those two Letters were somehow connected to Ber. Of course, being an Adopted Daughter of the Grizzly Family, Ber would naturally be involved, but this feeling ran deeper than that.

“If I were nobility and had been treated that way by an earl’s house, I would’ve despised it.”

Ber knew. She knew of the past that Enya had never spoken of to anyone since arriving in the Capital.
Was it because she was the Avatar of Eoestre? Had she somehow used that inexplicable power to read Enya’s heart?
Ber was undoubtedly someone directly connected to those Letters.
Though it was mere conjecture, Enya couldn’t even dare to call Ber her friend because of it.
To Enya, she was——.
Her savior.
A smile blossomed on Enya’s lips.
‘I’ll be able to attend the next class with Ber.’
She would surely invite her to sit beside her. White hair fluttering above her forehead, and beneath it—that innocent smile.
Enya’s pace quickened as she headed toward the classroom. That was when it happened.
“Hey there, squirrel.”
At the rude voice from behind, Enya stopped.
“H-how do you know I’m a squirrel, Lorenzo?”
“Easy. Just look at you. Small frame like a fried chickpea, and that cheap hair color. Obviously a squirrel.”
Facing the male student approaching with a sneer, Enya gripped her skirt hem tightly and asked.
“……Is there something you need from me?”
“Yeah. There is.”
When Enya looked up at him silently, the male student smirked and spoke.
“Since you’re close to her, I figured you’d know. What kind of Beastman is Ber?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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