The Academy’s Barbarian Chapter 277

Chapter 60. Road to the Desert (4)

8.

The next morning.

Ulan opened his closed eyes.

I woke up early, before the sun had even risen, and strangely enough, I felt refreshed.

So, I jumped out of bed and glanced at the clock on the desk.

‘5 o’clock in the morning.’

I obviously fell asleep while talking with my companions until 3 a.m., so even if I count it generously, I only woke up after sleeping for about two hours.

‘And yet it feels so refreshing.’

Ulan looked curious.

Of course, he sleeps less than others. Still, I felt a little strange because it wasn’t usually like this.

But the thought did not last long.

‘Sometimes there are days like this.’

Also, recently I only moved by carriage, so I didn’t use much stamina. So, it would be okay to just sleep this much and wake up.

So I just passed it off without thinking about it.

“Okay then… … .”

What do you do from now on?

I’m a little hungry, but it’s still too early to eat. As I was quietly thinking about what to do, something suddenly crossed my mind.

“I need to wash up first.”

In fact, Ulan does not like to wash.

To the extent that just letting yourself be exposed to the pouring rain replaces washing. However, she felt the need to wash herself this time.

‘Because it doesn’t rain often in the desert.’

In other words, other than today, there will be no opportunity to wash your body for a while. So Ulan left the room and headed to the bathroom.

Some time after that.

Arriving at his destination, Ulan walked through the fog-like vapor and then soaked himself in a bathtub filled with hot water.

Shoot!

As soon as the huge body entered, hot water overflowed from the bathtub. Then, suddenly, I heard a familiar voice.

“… … ah.”

A familiar presence suddenly felt.

After a while, moist black hair was visible beyond the hazy steam.

“Ooh, ooh, Ulan?!”

The bright blue eyes widened.

The identity of the guest who visited the bathroom before Ulan was none other than Noah. Meanwhile, Ulan dipped his body in hot water and tilted his head.

“Noah? “Why are you here?”

“Well, of course I came to take a shower! No, more than that, why did Ulan suddenly take a bath…? … ?”

A face with a clear look of embarrassment.

Noah asked back, rambling. Then Ulan responded in an indifferent tone, as if asking something so obvious.

“Because you won’t have a chance to wash for a while.”

“Well, that’s… … .”

That certainly makes sense.

Noah had a blank expression, as if he was speechless for a moment. Then she soon realized the reality and her body shrunk.

‘Ugh! ‘I made a mistake.’

Of course I thought it wouldn’t come.

Because Ulan and Sven in the original were famous for not liking taking baths.

Sven hated water itself, and Ulan thought being in the rain was like taking a bath.

‘So I thought we would never run into each other, but I never thought we would meet like this.’

Embarrassed, wary, worried, anxious, etc.

At a time when all kinds of emotions were mixing together like a whirlpool, Noah shrugged his shoulders. It was because she felt Ulan’s gaze not far away.

“What is it? “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You’ve changed.”

“yes? “What do you mean by changing?”

“I think you’ve grown since I first saw you.”

“Well, that’s because it’s the growth period.”

It’s already been a year since I left the grassland.

Enough time for a growing girl to grow up. Noah continued speaking a little triumphantly.

“Like I said when I was walking around the capital the other day, someday I will be like Ibella…” … .”

“Hair.”

“… … .”

“It’s a joke.”

Ulan chuckled.

Is it because of the fact that I was made fun of?

Noah pouted his lips as if he was pouting.

‘still… … .’

Thanks to this, I was quite relaxed.

It feels like my stiff shoulders have returned to their original state. In response, Noah glanced at her uhlan and sank her body deeper into the bathtub.

“uh?”

Meanwhile, something suddenly caught my eye. Noah, who was rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand, looked at Ulan again and then spoke.

“Ulan, look back in a moment.”

“why?”

“Okay, so hurry up.”

Ulan frowned at repeated urgings, but soon turned away without saying a word. At the same time, Noah’s eyes also slightly widened.

“This… … .”

What was reflected in her eyes was the hero’s imprint on Ulan’s back. It is the emblem of Kazan.

A pattern that emits a soft light.

Noah stroked Ulan’s back with a curious face as he saw this phenomenon for the first time in his life.

“Is there something on my back?”

“no. “It’s not because there’s anything on it, but because the hero’s imprint engraved here is shining.”

“okay? You can’t see it clearly from here… … .”

Ulan immediately turns his head.

However, it was not possible to observe the phenomenon occurring on the back. This was because Noah stretched out his arms to prevent Ulan from looking back.

“W-what are you doing!?”

“What are you doing?”

I was just trying to see if the flashing lights were real. Even though Ulan explained the reason, Noah just shook his head.

“Well, you can do that later!”

“When later?”

“After we get out of here!”

Even if you don’t really have any sense, there’s nothing wrong with it.

Noah screamed with his face and ears turning red. By the time the commotion was over.

“I guess I should get up soon.”

Now that my body feels reasonably refreshed.

After thinking that, Ulan immediately got up from his seat. Then, I started taking deep breaths as if I was expelling the moisture in my lungs.

Meanwhile, something unexpected happened during this process. Due to the enormous lung capacity, the steam that had been filling the bathroom had cleared away all at once.

“… … ah?”

At the same time, Noah muttered absentmindedly.

As the steam disappeared, Ulan’s naked body, which had been hidden from view until now, was discovered.

Ruggedly compacted muscles.

Strong, muscular arms and legs with no trace of excess, fluffy fur full of wildness, and… … .

“Noah?”

At that time, Ulan suddenly spoke up.

This was because I noticed that Noah’s face was particularly reddish. He asked back, looking at Noah with his eyes wide open.

“Your face is red, are you okay?”

“Ah, that, I… … .”

“be careful. “If you stay in the bathtub for a long time, you often cannot control yourself.”

“No, that’s not it, that…” … .”

His face was bright red and he couldn’t even speak properly. Ulan, who was looking at Noah with concern, soon turned around.

“wait. “I’ll call Ibella.”

“… … !?”

Ibella. The moment Noah heard that name, he felt it instinctively. If we send Ulan like this, a catastrophe will occur.

“Well, that’s not possible!”

“why?”

“Of course… … !”

If something like this were discovered, there would be an uproar.

Noah quickly came to his senses and immediately grabbed Ulan’s arm. Then, with her desperate face, she continued speaking as if pleading.

“… … I’ll leave on my own, so don’t call Ibella. Also, don’t tell the other kids what just happened. “It’s a promise!”

Noah repeatedly appeals to God.

Afterwards, Ulan was finally able to come out of the bathroom after promising never to reveal what happened.

9.

Some time later, after taking a bath.

Ulan headed straight to the restaurant.

I heard from a maid passing down the hallway that breakfast was ready. She was just about hungry, so she started walking.

“Ah, Ulan.”

“Did you sleep well?”

I encountered a familiar face.

Ibella and Delia.

Looking at his disheveled appearance, it looked like he had just woken up. Facing the figure with a clear look of fatigue, Ulan nodded his head.

“You look quite sleepy.”

“Haaam! That’s because we talked until dawn.”

Ibella let out a long yawn.

She lightly wiped the dew from the corners of her eyes and glanced at Delia.

“I originally didn’t plan on staying up that late, but someone suddenly interrupted and the conversation got longer. “So I’m still sleepy.”

“… … “It’s purely because of you.”

Delia narrowed her eyes.

Ibella asked back with an angry face.

“what? “Why is it because of me?”

“If you hadn’t acted so foolishly, I wouldn’t have had to intervene.”

“What a masterpiece! “I just suddenly felt sleepy and borrowed Ulan’s shoulder!”

“That’s what I call manipulative.”

Two girls bickering quickly.

But this didn’t last long.

As Ulan took a step, the two ran next to him as if they had been arguing.

When we finally arrived at the restaurant, a familiar face greeted the group. It was Countess Ideline Eleaad, a platinum-haired woman with a bright smile.

“Welcome. “It came at just the right time.”

Idelin was not alone.

Surrounding her was Sirpi, who seemed to have arrived before the rest of the group.

Meanwhile, as soon as Idelin finished speaking, food was served on the empty table.

“There isn’t much to prepare, but enjoy it.”

Her words were almost empty words.

Idelin said there was nothing prepared, but what was spread out in front of Ulan and the others was a sumptuous feast.

Conversation was unnecessary with delicious food in front of us. In response, Ulan began eating ravenously and quickly devoured the food.

After some time has passed.

Just as I was filling my stomach with food, warm tea came out, as if to indicate that breakfast was over.

A tea with a subtle green tangerine scent.

As I was taking a sip of it, Idelin, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up.

“When do you plan on leaving?”

“Oh, we talked about it yesterday, but I think it would be best if we leave right after breakfast.”

It was Ibella who answered the question.

As she said, Ulan was planning to go on his journey again after eating breakfast this morning.

There was only one reason.

‘Because the path has changed.’

Originally, the Ulan party planned to pass through the County of Deorg, pass through the headquarters of the southern front, and then set foot in the desert, their final destination.

However, having decided to follow Istan’s advice, the party had to head not to the Southern Front headquarters, but to the detour route prepared by Istan.

This was the reason we had to hurry.

“I see. Well, I heard you have urgent business, so it would be better to take care of it quickly.”

Meanwhile, in response to Ibella’s answer, Idelin nodded as if she understood. She then continued her words again with a bright smile on her face.

“Then, when you’re done with your business in the desert, please stop by the manor again. “Perhaps by then, the summons will be lifted and the Count will return.”

“Uh, that’s… … .”

Ibella spoke with an awkward expression on her face.

He probably reacted this way because he wasn’t sure when his errands in the desert would end.

Idelin also seemed to have guessed what Ibella was thinking and did not speak any more.

Some time after that.

When breakfast was over, the group headed to their respective rooms. Eventually, everyone finished preparing to leave the county and gathered together again.

“Then I’ll come back.”

“huh. “Please be careful.”

That was the end of our goodbyes.

It was thanks to the many conversations we had yesterday.

Idelin waved her hand until Ibella was out of sight, and the group left the County of Deorg and reached the main road.

Around the time we resumed movement.

Noah looked at Ulan, who was in the lead with Sven. To be precise, his eyes were focused on the hero imprint on his back.

‘It doesn’t shine again now.’

It’s different from when I saw it in the bathroom in the morning.

What is the cause of the change?

Just as he was making a puzzled expression out of insatiable curiosity, a blush suddenly appeared on Noah’s cheeks.

‘Ugh, I keep thinking about it!’

This is because while thinking about what happened in the bathtub, the sight I saw came to mind.

So I shook my head.

To erase the memories of that time. Then, Bella, who was next to her, spoke to her.

“Noah, are you okay?”

“… … uh? what?”

“I think your face is still red.”

Ibella asked, looking back at Noah.

Eyes full of worry.

It was natural. Noah explained that the reason her face was red was because she went to wash up early in the morning and stayed in her bathtub for too long, which made her dizzy.

“No matter how much you like washing, it’s dangerous to stay in the bathroom for too long. “You have to be especially careful because your body is weaker than others.”

“Ugh, thank you for your concern.”

Noah smiled sheepishly at Ibella’s advice.

Of course, the reality was completely different.

As we were finishing the conversation, Sven, who was walking with Ulan at the front, suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Then he immediately looked back at the group.

It was with an expression that suggested there was a problem.

fantasy,