My Disciples Became Scoundrels - Chapter 87

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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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Bella’s reasoning was sound. I might be able to glean clues about resurrection through my body.
Logical, efficient. Yet what moved me in the end was their faces.
Jenia, sitting to my left, gazed up at me with quiet intensity.
“I don’t want you to die again.”
Fear rippled across her clear eyes. The other disciples wore the same expression.
Though their iris colors differed, the emotion within them was singular.
I had died once before. I was their trauma. I could not turn away from those faces.
Gently, firmly, I took Jenia’s hand. I made a promise to her and the others.
“I will not leave you and die. Not again. Never again.”
* * *
Garlands hung between the buildings of the Small City. Multicolored cloth swayed in the breeze, and the passersby carried the air of celebration.
The city wore the spirit of Festival. Yet worry rode the wind.
“Do you think this year’s Festival will be safe? The Kids Eater has been quiet for a few years now, but…….”
“The hunters are on patrol, but we should give the children strict warnings all the same.”
While armed adults huddled together, the children blazed with joy. Running wild, their voices high and careless.
“Run, run! The Kids Eater is coming to get us!”
“Eek, the Kids Eater!”
Delighted screams rang out. A child in white cloth chased after them.
But the cloth obscured the child’s vision. He collided headlong with someone in front of him.
Thud!
The child landed hard on his rear. Above the sprawled figure came a gruff voice.
“Hey, can’t you watch where you’re going?”
“Aaah, a thug!”
The child shrieked and bolted. Cesare stared after him in bewilderment.
“What’s gotten into these kids these days? Why do they call me a thug?”
“You’d find your answer if you looked in a mirror.”
Bella’s retort made Cesare pout. I patted his shoulder.
His heart was soft as white bread, but his face did it no favors. When he was younger, even that had been gentle.
“Still, we’ve arrived safely enough. You said you knew a healer in this city?”
Only two of us had come this time. Since the purpose was treatment, there was no need for everyone to come along.
Bella, who knew of the healer, and a single escort—that was sufficient.
It was Arkel who had volunteered to stay behind, saying he wanted to reinforce the house against potential attackers.
“Very well. Then I suppose we should purchase some magical devices.”
“There’s no need to spend heavily on defensive equipment. I will construct Magical Formations for you.”
“Sound Detection Devices as well?”
“I shall create those for you.”
“We’ll need to buy an Identity Recognition Device, though…….”
“I shall create that for you as well.”
His zeal for thrift was excessive. It was possible, perhaps, but it would burden Arkel too greatly.
Spending coin was better than wearing out a disciple. As I moved to dissuade him, Jenia sided with Arkel too.
“I’ll help Big Brother. And I’ll take care of Gai. I’ll put his leash on nice and tight, and take him on walks.”
“Miss Jenia. I am not a dog, you understand?”
He touched the necklace set with a red gem, displeased.
“One can hardly blame the confusion, wearing a dog collar like this.”
I had fitted Gai with a Spirit Crystal Necklace. The necklace would not come off or break without my consent.
That was why Cesare could depart with ease. He shifted his weight and asked:
“So where is this healer?”
“I don’t know exactly where the house is. Somewhere in this Small City, at least.”
“This will be tedious. What does he look like?”
“Golden hair, crimson eyes. Flirtatious. A rake.”
The description grew less appealing with each detail. Cesare’s brow furrowed.
“Bad personality?”
“His skill is good. That’s what matters.”
And so we searched the city for the healer as twilight descended. The small town grew dim, and lights flickered on one by one.
Children who had been playing in the street scrambled to their feet.
“Let’s go home. Before the Kids Eater comes.”
“Can’t we play a little longer?”
“No! My mom will scold me.”
The children waved to one another and disappeared into the alleys. Cesare watched them go, then let out a soft laugh.
“Children will be children. Trusting in a Kids Eater.”
“The Kids Eater is real, I assure you.”
“Really? I thought that was just a story.”
The Kids Eater was a creature that appeared often in fairy tales—a demon that lured children away and devoured them.
“It mimics parents and snatches children away. According to the children themselves, it shows them illusions.”
Because it was a demon that rarely revealed itself, most people believed it to be nothing more than myth. Cesare scratched the back of his head vigorously.
“It actually exists……. I had no idea.”
“You believed in the Tooth Fairy too, didn’t you?”
“……That doesn’t exist either?”
While Cesare’s childhood innocence crumbled, we spotted outdoor market stalls clustered together. It was noisy with the bustle of a festival.
Among them, one spot was unusually rowdy. People had gathered around, watching something. A sharp voice cut through the air.
“Are you insane? Why are you touching someone who’s already taken?”
“How was I supposed to know she was? If I’d known, I wouldn’t have touched her!”
The voices belonged to women. Before I could wonder what was happening, Bella approached them. I peered through the crowd.
Two women stood there. One appeared to be in her mid-thirties. Her clothing was rather loose and casual. Had Arkel seen her, he would have called it tasteless.
Amid it all, a Locket Necklace stood out strangely. It gleamed, polished to a shine.
The woman in the shabby attire spoke.
“Why can’t I flirt if someone’s taken? Isn’t that too restrictive?”
“Are you out of your mind?!”
The younger woman grabbed the other’s blonde hair in indignation. Shrieking, she began to fight back.
The onlookers made no move to stop them, watching with fascination instead. Bella sighed and pressed her temple.
“The woman with her hair being pulled right now is Anais, a genius healer.”
The promiscuous flirt I’d heard about. Cesare’s face went slack with bewilderment.
“Shouldn’t we stop this? Should I step in?”
“Stopping her by force won’t work. Lend me your ear.”
Bella whispered something to Cesare. Then she dashed straight toward Anais.
What was she planning to do? I watched Bella intently as she moved.
Grab!
“You touched my husband, and now you’re touching another man?!”
“Ow!”
Bella seized Anais by the hair. Her eyes blazed with malice.
The woman who had been fighting moments before released her grip. She visibly shrank back from Bella’s momentum.
“Come with me. I’ll set your head straight today.”
Bella began dragging Anais away. So that was her plan—to whisk her away. Rather forceful, admittedly.
Just then, the woman who had been fighting regained her senses and grabbed Bella’s shoulder.
“Wait! I have things to say to Anais too!”
“Later.”
“Who are you to cut in line like that?”
Was she going to fight Bella now? Cesare clenched his fists and stepped forward. A strained voice emerged from his lips.
“……Honey, I’m sorry! I was wrong. Let’s not do this where everyone can see.”
So Cesare was playing the husband. Even as an act, it was hardly an appealing setup.
Bella’s eyes narrowed into slits as she shouted hoarsely.
“Can you even call yourself a man? We’re having our second child, and you still have the audacity to think of other women? Aren’t you ashamed to face the baby in my womb?!”
“I, I’ve lost my mind?!”
Cesare’s face flushed crimson. He hoisted both Bella and Anais onto his shoulders and bolted away.
Everyone stood frozen at the sudden chaos. Even the woman who had been fighting lost the will to pursue.
Honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted to get tangled up any further either.
I chased after my disciples in the direction they had vanished. I found Cesare hunched down in a secluded corner of an alley.
“Hey! No one said you’d have to act that intensely!”
“What’s the problem? It was just acting anyway, and we got Anais out of there smoothly enough.”
While the two of them argued, Anais stood watching them. Her expression was somewhat bewildered. I approached her.
“Are you all right? We had to be rather rough getting you away from there.”
“Yeah. It was rough. The girl’s got some serious grip strength.”
Bella had certainly seized her hair without mercy. Fortunately, Anais didn’t seem particularly upset.
“Still, thanks for helping. Do you know who I am?”
“Yes. I came to receive a consultation from Healer Anais.”
At that, Anais blinked once.
“I’m not a healer. You’ve got the wrong person.”
“Top graduate of the Royal Medical Academy. Savior of the Northern War. The healer Anais who was driven out of the battlefield for touching men. Am I mistaken?”
These were the details Bella had told me. They were honorable, magnificent accomplishments. All except one.
“You’re right, but I’m done treating patients. I’ve retired.”
I’d never heard this before. Bella pointed at me and spoke.
“But you said you’d treat handsome men, didn’t you?”
So the ugly ones don’t get treated.
I had no idea my face would determine whether I qualified for medical care.
It didn’t bother me that she called me ugly. The real problem was my disciples would be disappointed if I couldn’t get examined.
Anais looked me up and down with a scrutiny as delicate as an appraiser assessing a work of art.
“I can’t treat you.”
So I really am ugly. I thought I could brush it off, but somehow it stung.
“Does that mean our master is ugly?”
“No, he’s handsome. But he’s far too young. If he were ten years older, I’d have treated him. What am I supposed to do with a greenhorn?”
Weren’t we here to get treatment? What was she planning all along? Bella dragged Cesare forward.
“What about him?”
“Now he’s sexy. Want to date me?”
“Hey, Bella. Are you out of your mind? Who gave you the right to propose?”
Cesare recoiled with obvious distaste. Still, it meant my disciple was good-looking.
Bella sighed and turned to Anais.
“And you?”
“I don’t like women.”
Bella’s expression suggested she’d expected as much. A healer who discriminated against patients not just by appearance but by gender.
The situation seemed hopeless. Then Cesare stepped forward.
His expression was grim, like a calf being led to the slaughterhouse. His eyes glistened with moisture.
“I’ve made up my mind. I’ll date you so you can treat our master!”
“Cesare, abandon that resolve.”

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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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