My Disciples Think I’m Strong – Chapter 275

Two days had passed since Leoness was revived.

There was talk of heading straight to the Beastmen’s Forest, but we couldn’t stop Maria’s exploration of the Spirit Realm.

And today, I called Leoness into the Human World for the first time. She appeared wearing a dress fit for a fairy, made by my consideration. The color was yellow.

“Where is this…?”

“Our house.”

“…You live in a nice place, huh?”

It was certainly a nice place to live. The air was good.

If it had been the same house I originally possessed, it would have been tough during cold and hot weather, but thanks to Maria’s magic, it had been remodeled into a comfortable home.

“Right.”

“I want to live here too. The Spirit Realm feels a bit weird…”

Leoness looked around as she spoke. For someone still unaccustomed to the Spirit Realm, she must have felt uncomfortable with the spirits and their way of life.

Especially the part where everyone worshipped the World Tree like a god.

In this world, it really is a god, though.

“No way.”

“Absolutely not.”

The heroes gasped in shock at Leoness’s words and made an X with their arms, insisting it couldn’t happen.

“This is our… my ‘husband’ Praus’s home, our newlywed house…!”

Husband? Newlywed house?

The sudden words that tumbled from Tina’s mouth left me no choice but to be bewildered.

“Even if you are Lady Leoness, we cannot forgive you for coveting our husband.”

Maria joined in too.

As I quietly observed their reactions, I thought about who had breathed mischief into the heroes. Knowing that they hadn’t met anyone recently, it wasn’t hard to identify the suspect who had been up to no good with them.

It seemed our cursed World Tree had blurted out unnecessary nonsense again.

I should summon it later and give it a light smack on the head to interrogate it about what it had said.

“Hmm~ Praus, you’re married now?”

“Uh, um…”

I wasn’t married yet.

I hadn’t given the kids any rings, and we hadn’t held a wedding.

Just as I pondered how to respond to Leoness’s comment, the heroes tugged at my arms.

“Hey, don’t pull!”

“It’s already a hot affair between us. Could you not interrupt?”

“I’m not planning to interfere. I know not to touch a married man.”

“Is that so? I’m glad we can understand each other.”

“But… even if I know not to touch you, ‘instinct’ is something I can’t help.”

“…No way! Iris! Maria! Let’s take down Lady Leoness right now!”

“Don’t, you guys.”

“So, are you saying you’re going to blatantly cheat on us? How shameless!”

Shameless or not, I had no intention of taking Leoness into my arms.

“Since you’re here, I won’t touch you. But who knows, maybe later Praus might feel a bit curious about my body?”

“Stop it already.”

“Ugh! If… if that happens, I will never forgive you! I’ll lock you up…!”

Lock me up, really…?

After mediating between the heroes and Leoness, I prepared to teleport.

“Let’s go.”

“Are we finally going?”

“Yeah. We need to.”

“I see…”

That was the whole point of summoning her to the Human World.

It was also one of the reasons I had saved her.

“…Why? Do you have some trauma left?”

I asked, sensing hesitation from her.

Honestly, having felt the horrific pain of being torn apart and witnessing the deaths of countless beastmen wasn’t something one would shake off easily, so it wouldn’t be strange if she had developed trauma.

“It’s not exactly trauma, but I feel a bit scared. Besides, wouldn’t the beastmen be surprised if I, who has died, arrives there?”

“It’ll be fine. Because I’m here.”

“….”

As I confidently stated that, Leoness stared at me with her tail pausing momentarily before starting to sway gently.

“Hmm~ Praus.”

“What?”

“Something… your tone has become softer… You seem more reliable. Is it what they call ‘external softness, internal strength’? That vibe.”

It wasn’t strange to feel that, since my Expression Management Skill had vanished.

“Is that so.”

“Yeah. You’ve changed a lot.”

Her eyes seemed reminiscent of the me from several years ago.

Leoness closed her eyes and opened them, smiling as if she were changing the atmosphere, and spoke in a lively voice.

“Then shall we go?”

“Sure.”

*

“By the way, Praus, you’re a magician, huh? I thought you were a warrior.”

As I cast the teleport spell, she marveled and looked around.

“Our husband doesn’t limit himself to one field. A warrior if he’s a warrior, a magician if he’s a magician! Really, he is the embodiment of a hero!”

Now she was casually calling me husband in front of everyone. And the heroes were technically theirs too?

Even if the Demon King was dead, they still held the powers of heroes. At this point, the strongest beings in this world were probably the heroes, excluding me.

“Defeating the Demon King was all thanks to our husband.”

“That’s right. I, our husband…”

Iris joined in but turned red when she referred to me as ‘husband.’ Her fluffy tail began to wag wildly.

“Okay, you don’t need to make that appeal. I’m not going to steal him.”

We exchanged meaningless jokes as we made our way to the village area established in the Beastmen’s Forest.

As we passed through the forest and caught sight of the tall city wall, I couldn’t believe my eyes, almost questioning if we had come to the right place.

It was because a true city was being built, not just a village.

“Wait? Are you heroes?”

As soon as they spotted us, the beastmen gatekeepers recognized us and approached.

“It’s been a while—”

The friendly gatekeepers, as they greeted us, were taken aback upon seeing Leoness behind us. They almost dropped their weapons in shock.

“Lady Leoness?!”

“Hey, hey! Quickly, bring Hakan over! ASAP!”

“Uh, okay!”

One of the gatekeepers hurried inside the city wall.

“Lady Leoness, how…?”

Unsure how to ask if she was truly alive, he trailed off awkwardly.

“I’ll guide you inside for now. Please follow me.”

Following the gatekeeper, we entered the Beastmen’s village.

With the grand city wall, it resembled a city more than a mere village. Though many buildings were still under construction, the place appeared significantly more developed than expected.

“Is this the City of the Beastmen…?”

It felt remarkably similar to the cities in the Empire. Did someone bring the Empire’s architectural techniques here?

“Could you please wait here for a moment? Hakan will be here shortly.”

“Who’s Hakan?”

“…He was my aide when we were operating the Resistance. A bear beastman.”

Bear beastman?

Ah, wasn’t he the one I fought against before with Iris?

If my memory serves me right, he was the one who guided Leoness to the shack where we first met.

As we waited per the gatekeeper’s instructions, a heavy bear beastman came charging towards us, kicking up dust.

“Lady Leoness!!”

The gigantic bear beastman, seemingly two heads larger than usual, approached Leoness and bowed deeply.

“Do you remember me? It’s Hakan. I assisted you when we were operating the Resistance…!”

“Of course, I remember. It’s been a while, Hakan.”

“I truly thought you were dead. It’s an honor to see you again.”

He grasped Leoness’s hand with his thick fingers, becoming emotional amidst our reunion after several years, while Hakan called out to Leoness, drawing the attention of the surrounding beastmen.

“Lady Leoness! Are you alright?!”

“We thought you were dead!”

“Where have you been until now?!”

In the face of countless inquiries, Leoness merely smiled awkwardly as she calmed them.

“Everyone, please calm down!”

Hakan took charge of the murky atmosphere. Oh, he surprisingly had some leadership skills.

He spoke to Leoness as if he were her representative.

“We’re just relieved you’ve returned. Let’s go. You need to lead us, don’t you?”

Hakan suggested that we join him resolutely. But Leoness, with a distant look in her eyes, simply gazed at his hand without giving any response.

After gazing for a while, she gently withdrew her hand. Hakan immediately recognized that gesture as a refusal of his offer.

“What…?”

“I’m sorry. I can no longer lead you.”

“What do you mean…?”

“As you know, I’m already dead.”

“Excuse me?”

Hakan’s face contorted in confusion. The beastmen, who had been listening, began murmuring among themselves.

Their reactions were entirely understandable. If she were truly dead, then there’s no way Leoness could be here.

“Right now, I’m here because of Praus… but I’m not the Leoness you remember.”

She seemed unwilling to clarify her status as a spirit, giving a vague response.

“What does that mean…?”

“But don’t worry too much. I’ll continue to watch over you. If there’s a chance, I might come to visit sometimes.”

Seeing Leoness try to speak with a forced smile, the eyes of the beastmen wavered.

“Uh, P-Praus, Hero. Can you explain what this is all about right now?”

“What’s there to explain? It is as it is.”

While my tone might seem cold, that was the full story.

She was dead and had come back to life. As a spirit, not a beastman.

Hakan couldn’t keep his bewilderment hidden. He kept glancing between us, biting his lower lip, before suddenly shouting.

“Everyone! Don’t you have your own tasks to do?”

“What?”

“Go on with your own things!”

“B-but Lady Leoness has come back…!”

“Even if Lady Leoness is back, it’s not good to delay your work. Move along.”

Under Hakan’s command, the beastmen hesitated for a moment before gradually shuffling into action. The crowd that had gathered to see Leoness began to disperse.

“We’ll see you later, Lady Leoness.”

As they left, they waved their hands or bowed respectfully, expressing their joy.

“….”

The expression on Leoness’s face, who had been trying to smile, began to crumble as the beastmen walked away.

She realized they were no longer in the same situation as her.

“…Lady Leoness, what on earth does this mean?”

“Please, don’t ask me any more, Hakan.”

“….”

He slowly released her hand as if confirming her resolve.

“I understand.”

A heavy silence descended between the two. It was a silence so weighty that neither I nor the heroes dared to interrupt.

“Hakan.”

“Yes?”

“I have one last request, though I might be imposing.”

“Imposing? Please don’t say that. I’d do anything for you, Lady Leoness.”

Hakan’s words brought a slight brightness to Leoness’s expression.

“Thank you. If you don’t mind… could you show me around the city? I’d love to see it.”

“Inside the city, you say?”

He scanned my face and the heroes’ faces as if unsure of Leoness’s intentions, before he nodded.

“Of course. I can’t guarantee it will be a city you’ll be satisfied with, but I’ll show you. Follow me.”

With that, we stepped into the city established within the Beastmen’s Forest, guided by Hakan.