The Yellow Liquid Tastes like Nectar [Part 1]
“—bleghh!!!“
Emma removed Violet’s thread on the ninja’s mouth intending to talk with him, but the exact moment she did, Koumei-san landed a violent cat punch on that ninja’s cheek.
” ” “!!!!!” ” “
“Wai— Koumei-san! Isn’t it unfair to him if you punch so suddenly!? Ah, you knocked a tooth out…”
William picked up the tooth the moment it fell off.
“Hm? This doesn’t look like a tooth”
“Isn’t it… that? You know, the trope of swallowing poison when they fail their mission so no information will leak?”
George replied while looking at the tooth-like thing William was holding.
“? Dying if you fail your mission? They wouldn’t go that far, right!?”
‘What a violent way of thinking you have,’ Joshua criticized George.
“Nah, it’s… ’cause they’re ninja…”
“Well, that’s true.”
“They’re ninja, after all.”
The three siblings explained to Joshua that a ninja was like a spy, but the Kingdom didn’t make their spies take their own life for failing a mission. In the military and the like, there had been cases where one would be executed as a consequence of one’s failure at a mission, but those cases were extremely special situations that rarely occurred.
Even Joshua, who was used to foreign countries, couldn’t fathom the peculiar culture of Imperial Japan. Yet, the three siblings talked about it like it was a commonplace thing.
“So, what has Koumei-san been trying to do, and for a while now?”
“Meow?”
Koumei-san put the tip of her fluffy forepaw into the mouth of the ninja whose tooth had been knocked off.
“Ah, did you do that so he won’t bite his own tongue?”
“Meow♪”
It’s a very Koumei-san-like kindness, but the image of a ninja with something fluffy stuffed in his mouth looks so unreal. Um, how to say it? I’m a little jealous.
“Ninja-san, what’s your name?“
Koumei-san removed her paw from the ninja’s mouth so they could hold a conversation, but the ninja didn’t answer.
“Unfortunately, even if you bite off your tongue, we have an emergency first aid deputy here. We won’t let you die, you know?“
Emma spoke with her signature sweet smile to assure the ninja, but his face only showed fear. The cats… just how much had they tormented him?
“My name is Emma Stuart.“
Emma introduced herself with the bow she learned from Hilda. Well, the ninjas had been lurking around their mansion, so he probably already knew her name, but Hilda had taught her that any attempt at a smooth conversation must start with a proper greeting.
“This is my older brother, George Stuart, and my younger brother, William Stuart. Also, my childhood friend, Joshua Rothschild. The cats, Koumei-san, Ryuu-chan, Kan-chan, and Chou-chan. And the spider, Violet.“
Emma went on to introduce everyone in the room, but the ninja’s stiff expression didn’t show any signs of cracking.
Only, the false information that the Kingdom’s cats and spiders were not just absurdly huge but also monster-level strong was etched into the ninja’s mind.
“Ninja… because there are many of you, I will call you Hattori-san[1] for our convenience, okay.“
[T/N 1: from the popular Japanese anime/manga, Ninja Hattori-kun]
You see, if we’re talking about ninjas, then it must be Hattori-kun. When Emma wanted to continue the conversation after simply declaring a name for the silent ninja, she noticed that Hattori-kun had an astonished expression.
“Does this mean… you know all there is to know about our side…“
The ninja sighed as if in resignation.
‘Huge cats and spiders with abnormal battle capabilities that can even sense a ninja’s presence.
They removed the poison I inserted for use in case of mission failure, then predicted that I would bite off my tongue and prevented it.
Out of 19 ninjas dressed identically, they pinpointed me as the head, and while they said that it’s out of their own convenience, they even guessed my name right… We’ve been utterly defeated.’
“What… do you want to know?“
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