Chapter 124: We're Brothers for Life!
[Tomoe Gozen wants to interview some of your friends.]
[But the interview turns out to be far more troublesome than you could have ever imagined.]
[The sheer amount of information directly overloads her CPU and causes it to crash.]
"Ah, yes, okay..."
Tomoe Gozen was now completely frozen, her brain lagging; she only nodded mechanically.
"Not only the married female Servants at school — he even set his eyes on his own class's homeroom teacher…
"So everything Raikou-sama said was true after all…"
Eikou couldn't bring himself to look up anymore.
Damn it, he wanted to argue back, but the problem was — that did actually happen.
It's over. This is social death!
At this rate, forget about joining the student council — if he doesn't get expelled, that'll already be a blessing…
If he'd known things would get this messy, he should've just used Disaster With Women to conquer Tomoe Gozen instead!
"Haizz..."
Eikou sighed, sinking into deep despair.
Meanwhile, Roland was still going on and on passionately.
"He truly sacrificed himself for his brothers — Eikou threw himself into battle to take down the demon king Scathach! Such a debt of gratitude, I'll never forget it!"
Remembering that party night, Roland and the other guys got so emotional they nearly burst into tears.
All the boys raised their thumbs together and said in unison before Tomoe Gozen:
"Our friendship with Eikou — that's a bond for life!"
Nice words, but you bastards are no longer my friends! What a fleeting friendship!
...
[June 1st, afternoon]
[Throughout the entire ride, the boys kept babbling nonstop, showering Tomoe Gozen with every compliment imaginable about you, doing their absolute best to glorify you — painting you as some kind of saint: giving money to widows outside, carrying water for widows at home — congratulations, you've officially secured the number one spot on the "Must-Eat by Married Women" list.]
[You were so touched that you began to consider killing them.]
[You could feel the subtle shift in Tomoe Gozen's attitude toward you.]
[...]
[After two hours of bumpy travel, you finally arrived at the campsite, and the torturous ride — targeted squarely at you — at last came to an end.]
[Please enjoy your vacation to the fullest.]
"Even if you say that… I don't think I'm in the mood to enjoy anything anymore..."
The vehicle slowly stopped along a mountain road beside the river, revealing before their eyes a lush green field and overlapping mountain ranges.
Eikou weakly lifted his head, gazing out at the vivid natural scenery beyond the window — like a landscape painting slowly unfolding.
The midday air was hotter and more stifling than expected; the bus hadn't even had the air conditioning on, and the moment they stepped outside, sweat already beaded across their foreheads.
The scenery was also different from their spring visit — the mountains now draped in a deeper green, adorned in the bright makeup of summer. Under the blazing sunlight, the breeze carried the rustling sound of leaves, while the specks of light filtering through the canopy swayed gently upon the grass.
Even Eikou couldn't help but sigh in admiration — today really was a perfect day for an outing.
"Eikou, Eikou, why do you look so pale?"
After everyone got off the bus, Artoria Caster was the first to notice the lifeless look on his face.
"Probably because we praised him too much and made him shy," Charlemagne said with a hearty laugh. "I get it — Eikou's a bit prideful, so being embarrassed like that is totally normal."
"Haha, it's just what brothers should do," Tristan said proudly.
"...I want to die...."
Eikou could only wear an expression of pure suffering, looking like he was about to cry.
"Don't rub salt into his wound anymore, my King,"
Gawain spoke heavily from beside Artoria. Sitting in the driver's seat, he had overheard the entire "torture session."
"Sir Eikou has already endured enough torment. You may slay a man, but you must not humiliate him. I advise Your Majesty not to wound his spirit a second time."
"What exactly happened?"
Artoria blinked her innocent green eyes, her face full of curiosity.
...
[June 1st, around 3 p.m.]
[Everyone chose a scenic grassy area, set up tents together, opened parasols, arranged tables and chairs, prepared the grill and charcoal — all ready to enjoy the beautiful mountain landscape.]
[You notice footprints and bits of food on the ground.]
[Perhaps other Servants from Chaldea Academy are also camping here...]
[Please perform a skill check for "Fairy Eyes E."]
A die rolled down.
The result was A.
[Check failed. Your "Fairy Eyes" could not discern the remaining traces on the ground, so you're unable to track where those Servants went.]
[You notice Jeanne Alter also seems weary, while Bradamante keeps sneaking glances at you.]
[You and Jeanne Alter both lie sprawled across the folding table, sighing together.]
"To be honest, even though it hasn't even been half an hour since we got here..."
Jeanne Alter couldn't help saying,
"I'm already dying to go home, what about you?"
"Exactly the same." Eikou sighed in reply.
"What's wrong, idiot? Don't tell me you and Tomoe Gozen don't get along?" Jeanne Alter lifted her head to ask.
"Haha, thanks to those dumbasses, now Tomoe Gozen sees me as the enemy of all women..."
Eikou said, glancing at Tomoe Gozen standing not far away.
"...I have to find a way to redeem my reputation with her, or if she reports me to the Disciplinary Committee, I'm done for."
[In this camping trip, you've gained a new objective.]
[You must regain Tomoe Gozen's favor before the two-day, one-night trip ends.]
[If she returns to school and reports you, your situation will become extremely dire — you might even be branded as 'Enemy of Women'.]
[That would deal a fatal blow to your reputation, and you'd lose any chance of being nominated for the student council — best not let that happen.]
"Haa, this is way more troublesome than I thought..."
Reading the reminder text, Eikou took a deep breath.
"No other choice — I'll have to give it everything I've got to win back her favor, and let her feel the true charm within me!"
Of course, he absolutely didn't plan to use the skill Disaster With Women again.
Partly because that skill didn't seem to have any effect on Tomoe Gozen.
And also because using Disaster With Women to deal with problems involving women was basically like drinking poison to quench thirst.
Better to take it step by step, using normal, honest means to regain her goodwill.
"...Two days and one night — no, just one day and one night left. Let's see how I'll turn this around in spectacular fashion!"
Eikou said with burning determination.
Would he lose?
Nah, he'd win!