I Became the Burden of a Conscienceless Party

206 – Side Story 2. The Story After, Esmeralda (3)

The story after, Esmeralda (3)

To be honest, Esmeralda didn’t have any desire for that.

No, rather, it was awkward.

How could she, who cannot even fully accept the feelings of a god, dare to discuss the night?

But what she despaired of was this: for once, she knew that she liked Jim.

Okay, I decided to admit it.

It’s ridiculous not to admit it when things have come to this point.

‘Jealousy? Yeah, a little bit.’

Because she’s human too.

If there’s someone who’s ahead of you, you get a little jealous.

But, I can understand.

She’s not mentally ready yet, so if she falls behind, isn’t that her fault?

The only problem is that everyone.

Esmeralda is the last. Unless Jim’s personality is such that he makes a distinction between his wives, that also means all of the marriages Esmeralda forced him to marry.

Yes, that includes Lilith and Garnet, who Esmeralda tricked to hide her shame.

“Ugh… … !”

Self-inflicted wounds.

The reason she despaired was not because she was the last one to arrive, but because she was the one who created the situation.

“will you do it?”

“I won’t do it!”

Jim asked Esmeralda in a subtle way because she was so miserable, but the answer he got was a fierce rejection.

“What do you think of me… …!”

“… … I see you as my wife?”

Jim speaks the obvious as if it were obvious. However, Esmeralda shudders at Jim’s words.

“… … ?”

Why are you doing that?

No, you say? Now?

Already uploaded the slogan? Question marks began to form in Jim’s head.

I couldn’t figure out Esmeralda’s intentions at all.

Yeah, wouldn’t it be better to just wait and see what happens? Jim stopped talking and decided to watch Esmeralda struggling alone for a while.

“Whew, whoosh.”

After a brief moment of calming down, Esmeralda, who had been lying face down and screaming, stood up.

There is emptiness in those eyes.

“Let’s stop talking about this for now.”

“Isn’t this important? If you’re hoping to break off the engagement… … .”

“Ah! That’s not it, so just keep quiet!”

“I see. That must be the day. Now I understand.”

“I’ll kill you!”

Esmeralda strangled Jim, who had spoken out of turn, as if she were going to kill him at any moment.

This time the luggage was bad.

However, there was no more perfect hypothesis to explain Esmeralda’s condition, which was more prickly than usual.

At least that’s what Jim thought.

“Don’t treat me like those frivolous women.”

“So you’re saying that between a married couple? That’s not something light. It’s something that’s natural between a married couple.”

“It’s noisy.”

“yes.”

Esmeralda knows.

That everything I’m saying now is just nonsense.

But now it’s hard to admit it. She admitted that she liked Jim, but she couldn’t see beyond that.

Okay, to summarize it simply… … .

‘How could something like that get into my body! That’s ridiculous!’

She was scared.

The problem was that she had prior knowledge that no one else had.

Other people had to face an irreversible situation without knowing it before they could confirm its true identity, but Esmeralda had already confirmed its evilness, so she couldn’t even think of doing so.

“Let’s go platonically.”

“What does it mean?”

“… … Let’s have an emotional exchange.”

“Can you please let go of my collar and discuss emotional exchange?”

Swish.

Esmeralda nodded, unconsciously stopping her grip on Jim’s collar and threatening him.

Jim assumed that he had accepted it even though he had not responded.

“… … Well, that’s fine. I’ve known for a long time that you’re very shy.”

“… … .”

It’s not just shame, though.

This time the fear is greater though.

Esmeralda didn’t bother to point that out.

“Okay, so let’s think about what we should do now. That’s more important to think about right now.”

“Well, that’s true.”

What should the two lost people do now? That was a more practical question than a story like ‘who did it with whom.’

If we make a mistake, isn’t this a problem that is directly related to the survival of life?

“I don’t think it would be a good idea to move around at night. So let’s camp today.”

“Camping, that’s a good idea. It brings back old memories and it’s nice.”

Esmeralda nodded at Jim’s suggestion.

Yes, it is not good to move at night. If you are already lost, wouldn’t it be better to stay still rather than go on an unfamiliar path?

“But there’s nothing we can do. The most we can do is cut down some trees and make a windbreak.”

Squeak!

As Esmeralda swung the holy sword, the surrounding trees were instantly chopped down and turned into usable wood.

It was an unfair solution for Jim, who had to go on a painful journey to find Esmeralda.

But now there was even better information.

“Now that I think about it, with your physical abilities, you could just jump into the sky and check what’s around you.”

“There was nothing but forest around.”

“If I look at it, wouldn’t it be a little different? Even if the environment has changed, the terrain probably hasn’t changed either.”

“Oh… … . I feel hopeful.”

“However, my physical abilities are close to that of a human, so you must carry me and jump into the sky.”

“Well, that’s about it.”

“And it’s dark now so I can’t see anything even if I do that, so I think it might be better to try this tomorrow when the sun rises.”

“Mr. Jim, you seem so competent for the first time in a while. This makes me a little nervous.”

Esmeralda giggled.

I was feeling hopeful about the current situation to the point where I was joking.

Yes, Jim, unlike Esmeralda, lived in the Demon World for a long time.

Moreover, since he was also a guide, if you check the surroundings from a high place as he said, you may be able to find the way easily.

“Then let’s prepare for camping today and go to bed early.”

“Yes! Yes!”

Esmeralda nodded her head excitedly and began to stack the pieces of wood she had cut.

Perhaps because of his overwhelming physical abilities, he was able to build a makeshift cabin large enough for two people to stay in, even if only for a short while. Of course, it could at least block the wind.

“Yahoo! Now go in and rest!”

“yes!”

So the idiot and the idiot… … no, the two of them entered the cabin together, with hopes for tomorrow.

Esmeralda was anxious about being alone with them until she fell asleep, but fortunately, she was able to fall asleep without tossing and turning for too long.

The two people who greeted the next day with such dreams and hopes… … .

“… … It’s raining.”

“It looks like it’s going to take a while.”

The heavy rain has me tied up again.

***

Of course, the plan to climb high up, look around, and find the way never even started.

Esmeralda, it wouldn’t be a problem if you got a little rain, but Jim’s physical ability wouldn’t allow him to see his surroundings through the raindrops.

I didn’t even try in the first place.

Having to jump into the air with a load on your back is a surefire way to fail.

Knowing that, Esmeralda decided to postpone the challenge itself because it felt like she was trying to shoulder a burden with selfish motives.

Fortunately, the two had a hut built to block the wind, so if they reinforced it a little more, they might be able to survive this storm for a while.

Of course, there were some minor issues.

“… … What should we do for dinner?”

“It’s not a good idea to be out and about in this weather… … But it might be better to stock up on food before it gets too late.”

The problem is that all the pre-picked fruit has disappeared. Half of it has been eaten and the other half is inedible.

It was a fruit that was so soft that it had no taste to chew in the first place. Since it was already close to the end of its life, it could not be stored for a very long time.

And the condition of such tree fruits caused another problem.

“This… … is unusable.”

Esmeralda, who had set out to find food, could see that all the fruit she had picked and eaten yesterday had fallen to the ground and been crushed.

Another harmful effect caused by soft fruits that are so soft that they are tasteless.

The fruits that could not withstand the storm and fell to the ground were crushed by the impact of hitting the ground and then rolling around in the wind.

That means it’s not edible.

And since it was a fruit that could not be stored for a long time in the first place, there was no food to replenish it immediately.

“If we can’t endure the food shortage like this and the hunger continues… … .”

It’s going to be quite difficult.

In the worst case scenario, Jim, who was extremely fragile by Esmeralda’s standards, might just starve to death.

Of course, this is just imagination.

Jim is not that weak, and has the physical ability of a healthy adult male.

However, from Esmeralda’s perspective, it is no different from a newborn baby.

“I can’t help it… … .”

If that’s the case, you’ll have to find another food source. The only problem is that you might not be able to tell if it’s edible or not.

That is, Esmeralda was in a situation where she had to collect things that might possibly be dangerous foods.

And that’s what she saw as she set out to find food.

“… … Aren’t mushrooms okay even in humid weather?”

At first glance, it was a suspicious mushroom.