Chapter 92: You… if you don’t knock it off, I’ll seriously kill you

While continuing to eat the roast beef sandwich, he thought about what he should do.

He figured if there was roast beef sandwich in his mouth he would not accidentally say what he thought.

(No, but... this is Monica. Would I feel like doing it with Monica?)

Glancing at Monica’s profile, he asked himself.

(In terms of looks alone, she is in the beautiful category.)

She gave a harsh impression, her chest was poor, and she lacked sex appeal, but Monica had a face that could be called beautiful.

(If you ask whether I’d feel like doing it... it’s not that I wouldn’t.)

Leaving personality aside, Monica seemed to him like an attractive woman.

Enough that if you asked whether he would feel like having sex, he easily would.

(But if I fail... she’ll definitely tell all kinds of people and use it as material to make a laughingstock of me. Something like, "Even Kazu had the nerve to try hitting on me.")

He could vividly imagine Monica making a laughingstock of him in front of adventurers that way.

(Well, as I thought... it’s safer to leave it.)

He reached a conclusion about whether to invite Monica.

(But if I were going to invite her, how would I call out to her?)

He had decided not to invite her, but he still ended up thinking how he would invite her if he did.

Only as a hypothetical, out of curiosity.

(Mild sadist with an interest in outdoor play means I should use that in the invitation, but how do I invite her?)

He tried thinking about how to invite someone with a mild sadist hobby.

(Do I act like the type she wants to bully and then invite her? What kind of invitation would that even be? I have no idea.)

Unable to think of a good way to invite her, he next tried thinking about a method of inviting Monica using her interest in outdoor play.

(Do I bring up outdoor play and invite her that way? No, how do I even bring up outdoor play in the first place?)

Even just inviting a woman and talking about sexual things was a high hurdle for Kazui.

On top of that, he had no idea how he should talk with Monica about outdoor play, which seemed like a fairly special hobby and was not something he knew much about.

(Ah, come to think of it, I do have experience with outdoor play, with Vice.)

He realized he was experienced with outdoor play.

(Maybe if I bring up the experience with Vice she’ll get interested. Then inviting Monica by bringing up outdoor play from there... how about that?)

While thinking, he emptied the roast beef sandwich plate.

The last bite was still in his mouth, but he had somehow managed to finish it.

(Once I swallow this I’ll leave quickly. So I don’t say anything extra.)

He took the cider that was still a little left into his mouth.

With the cider he swallowed the roast beef sandwich in his mouth in one go.

Noticing Kazui stand up to leave the shop, Monica called out.

"Leaving? Well, a stupid brat who doesn’t even know cider is alcohol is better suited to drinking milk at home, so that’s better."

Still holding the stout glass, she continued in a mocking tone.

"If we run into each other in an exhibition match again, I’ll beat you to a pulp, so look forward to it. I feel like I didn’t hurt you quite enough today."

Hearing Monica’s provocative words, the memory of being beaten by her in today’s exhibition match came back to Kazui.

To be honest it had been frustrating, so he got irritated and ended up wanting to talk back to Monica.

—-

Kazui was normally the type to talk back when something was said to him, but with alcohol in him now the brakes were not working.

He felt like dealing Monica verbal damage.

And thanks to Sexual Appraisal he already knew all kinds of information he could use for that.

"Before I leave, I’ll get one back."

So the bartender would not caution him, Kazui brought his face close to Monica’s ear and whispered in a low voice.

"Don’t act so full of yourself when you’re hung up on still being a virgin at your age."

"Eh?"

Monica let out a surprised voice without thinking and her eyes went wide.

"Y-you... what kind of stupid thing are you..."

Whether from embarrassment, she answered in a voice that seemed about to vanish.

"Me, a virgin... I’m a twenty-one-year-old adult, there’s no way..."

"Frustration’s built up too, so you can’t stand wanting a man to do you, and that’s why you came to a tavern during Honey Hour, right? To hunt for men?"

"D-don’t screw with me. Me... frustrated, hunting for men... that’s impossible."

Seeing Monica clearly flustered and shocked, Kazui felt guilt. He thought he might have said a little too much.

But the current Kazui, whose restraint was not working because he was drunk, did not stop.

"But nobody will take you. There aren’t any guys who’ll call out to a harsh-looking woman like you."

Remembering Tint’s story, those words came out of his mouth.

"...You, if you don’t knock it off, I’ll make it so you can’t even..."

Before Monica could finish in a trembling voice, Kazui declared it in a provocative tone.

"If you want to lose your virginity and you want a man, I can do you. You... leaving personality aside, your looks are good, so I don’t mind taking you on."

Suddenly Monica slapped her own cheek.

She fired herself up against how flustered she had become at Kazui’s sudden words and actions, and recovered her composure.

Back to her usual aggressive expression, Monica glared at Kazui.

"You... if you don’t knock it off, I’ll seriously kill you."

Threatened by Monica in a low voice, even Kazui panicked quite a bit.

It was the first time Monica had gone as far as saying she would kill him.

"I should stop around here. I can’t afford to get killed."

He judged it was about time to pull back.

"Well, I feel better after talking back, so I’ll just run."

The series of things Kazui said had only been to talk back because Monica’s words had irritated him.

He had used the information from Sexual Appraisal to deal Monica mental damage and get even.

Because he was drunk his restraint had not been working well, and he had provoked Monica with risky words he normally would not say.

"Then tonight you’ll be drinking all alone and lonely again!"

Saying it like a parting shot, he left Monica, turned on his heel, and started walking.

"Wait, Kazu! Don’t you run!"

Monica declared it toward Kazui with a stronger tone.

Because she had strengthened her tone, the bartender noticed their argument.

"Customers, please drink enjoyably in the shop. If you’re going to fight, please do it outside."

Only Monica had strengthened her tone, so the bartender only admonished Monica.

"Ah, sorry."

She had no intention of causing trouble for the shop, so Monica apologized to the bartender honestly.

But with eyes harsh enough that she looked ready to kill someone. She glared at Kazui as he walked away as if fleeing.

"Good. The shop person stopped her."

Hearing Monica and the bartender’s voices behind him, Kazui muttered in relief.

"Well, I did... go a little too far."

Talking back had made him feel better, but he was actually aware he had gone too far, so he continued talking to himself with an awkward look.

"When I order a drink at a tavern I have to be careful to confirm whether it’s alcohol before I drink."

The reason he had gone too far with Monica was drinking cider without knowing it was alcohol.

Because he got drunk, he had triggered the nasty drinking habit of what he thought coming straight out of his mouth.

When that drinking habit triggered, even things that would normally rise in his head but be stopped by reason and not said came out of his mouth.

Because of that, he was aware he had gone too far with Monica this time.

Reflecting on tonight’s failure, he walked quickly toward the entrance as if fleeing.

Then he opened the entrance door, vanished from inside the shop, and started walking onto the night road.

"If I go back to the apartment like this I’ll end up saying all kinds of things to Yuri, so I’ll sober up first and then go home."

Walking the night road, he muttered to himself.

Normally he would only think it in his heart, but because he was drunk now it came out as muttering.

"There should have been a park near Tax Street. I’ll go there and sober up for a while."

To head for the park, he changed direction.

"I did something a little bad to Monica..."

Because he was drunk, his true feelings slipped from his mouth.

Feeling awkward, he kept walking down the lively street where drunk customers passed by.