Fallen Brides: Merce — You'd Think There Could Have Been SOME Attempt At Continuity

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In case anyone missed my last post, this update is a day late because of a prolonged power outage.

Merce's story won the poll, so here's another 2,500 words of it. The plot is moving at a fairly brisk pace. I hope you all enjoy it.

As Always, comments and corrections are appreciated.

(Text after the cut.)

Case 5: Mercè

A Woman's Happiness

By REID

Translated from the Japanese by OtherSideofSky (http://othersideofskytranslations.blogspot.com/)

"You're stepping in too far, Elt."

Elt — one of my men — and I were sparring on the training ground. It's high walls made it look somewhat like an arena.

My halberd parried and blocked Elt's thrusts. He moved just a little too far forward every time he stepped in.

I swung my halberd down, aiming for Elt's right leg. Adjusting my strength to his, of course.

Just before the halberd struck, Elt quickly drew back his leg. He must have judged that he wouldn't be fast enough to block with his spear. It was his best option. But... he was already in check.

Suddenly pulling his leg back threw him off balance. The opening was fatal.

I shifted to a reverse grip and thrust the butt end of my halberd at his unprotected throat, stopping just short.

"...I, I yield..." Elt declared, lowering his spear. He sounded short of breath.

"Are you ever going to fix that bad habit?"

When thrusting with a spear, stepping in is vital. It's best to step powerfully, but you can't let your gait be too wide. It creates a bigger opening, and you'll get the overextended leg swept out from under you. The key is to always put your weight, and force, into the strike smoothly and quickly.

"I try, but as soon as I forget to focus on it... I end up doing it again before I know it."

I'm sure Elt knew that as well as I did, but bad habits don't change just because you're aware of them. He was capable of suppressing the habit and moving properly when he had room to pay attention to it. That's the sort of person he was.

Of course, when he was sparring with me, or in actual combat, he wouldn't have that room to think.

"It looks like you really will just have to force your body to adapt."

It was the natural conclusion. He would repeat the correct movements until his body could make them without thinking.

"I guess that is what it comes down to..." Elt answered. He looked exhausted. He must have become painfully aware that even once you know the trick, there are no real shortcuts to mastering it.

"You've just got to do it; I did too.

"Now, let's call it here for today... and go for drinks! My treat, of course," I announced, stabbing my halberd into the ground and leaning my weight on it.

This was independent training outside of normal hours. I didn't force him, but as a general rule, Elt kept going until I stopped.

"Thank you very much for the offer, Mercè... But please, just let me take... a quick breather..." Elt answered. He walked over to the wall of the training ground and sat down, leaning against it.

He's gotten a lot tougher than he was as a new recruit... but he still has room for improvement. Still, working this late shows he's got more guts than most of the others.

"Guess I've got no choice... I'll go get changed first and wait for you."

He worked hard today; he's earned a quick break. Besides, he always nags me about changing in front of him. I've told him not to worry about it — I've told him not to treat me like a woman — but it seems like he just can't help it.

I walked off, leaving Elt sitting on the ground behind me.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

"Well, cheers."

We ended up at a familiar bar. It was the kind of place where men get together for a drink after they finish work for the day. I could see men who looked like mercenaries and adventurers, so we didn't stick out, stopping in on our way back from training. It was a little noisy, but that just made me feel more at home. I was also glad that there weren't many women patrons.

On the counter in front of me were a few snacks and a tankard of ale. With the hustle and bustle behind me, I gripped the tankard and lifted it slightly.

"Cheers," Elt answered, calmly raising his own tankard to his lips. He looked lively, considering how exhausted he'd been at the training ground. That must have been one of the fruits of his daily regimen.

"It's my treat, so don't hold back."

Elt sipped his drink slowly, tossing the occasional snack into his mouth. That was how he always drank, and I knew it, but I couldn't help prodding him.

"You always say that, Mercè... Please try not to drink too much. It's my shoulder you'll be leaning on if you do," Elt nagged back with a wry smile. He didn't mind as much as he let on; that's the kind of guy he was.

"True, I'm always getting drunk and hanging off you, and you end up taking care of me when it's really bad... But I always treat you, so we're square, right?"

I'm the one who trains you and pays for our drinks; you don't get to complain. Of course... drinking with you does taste better than drinking alone.

"Ha ha... When you put it that way, I guess I've got no right to complain."

"Man... A drink after training really hits the spot."

I tipped my tankard and poured ale down my throat.

The rich aroma, the sweet taste of malt, and the bitter flavor of gruit. I could never get enough of the way it tingled on my tongue. The scent wafted up to stimulate my nose as the ale wet my parched throat. By the time I lowered the tankard, it was half empty.

"Ha ha... As always, you can really down it."

Elt flashed me a grin.

I'm glad you're enjoying yourself; you should always have fun while you drink.

Suddenly, I felt eyes on me from the side opposite Elt's seat. When I turned to look, my gaze met that of a woman sitting a little ways away. It looked like she'd been staring at my eye patch. She looked away as soon as our eyes met.

...Honestly, talk about rude, I thought and turned back to my tankard. That was all.

I used to really mind looks like that. I'd get so mad about them I couldn't stand it. They were nothing to me now; I could stay calm, even when my eye patch was getting odd looks.

I thought back to the events of a certain day.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

The two of us had remained on the parade ground, as usual. We were in the middle of sparring.

"Ngh... That was a good o—"

Elt launched a powerful thrust. He kept his hips low and his center of gravity steady. It was a model strike.

I tilted my head and avoided it by a hair's breadth. Then, as I began to compliment him on the thrust, my eye patch fell off.

His thrust hadn't nicked it; I just hadn't noticed it was loose. It had slipped when I moved my head to dodge. Not that it mattered.

Half-reflexively, I raised a hand to cover my ruined right eye. It was a mark of that woman's abuse — a symbol of my hated past. How could I not be afraid to reveal it?

"...Mercè?"

Elt froze, then walked over and looked me in the eye. His expression, and his gaze, said that he was genuinely concerned for me.

"...I, I'm fine," I replied, half-heartedly. I had a feeling that looking into Elt's eyes helped me regain a little of my composure. Then his face left my view.

"...Here."

Elt bent down, picked up the eye patch, and handed it to me. It was a natural gesture; there was nothing awkward about it. He didn't stare at my hidden wound, and he didn't look away uneasily, either. He wasn't put off, and he didn't pry.

"Thank you... Sorry you had to see something so ugly."

I turned my face away from him and quickly put on the eye patch he handed me.

My hideous, ruined eye couldn't be a pleasant sight for Elt, either. The thought filled my chest with something like anxiety.

"Not at all."

He looked kind. His expression seemed to sweep away my worries. It made me believe his words.

"I see... Do you mind if I tell you something? It won't take long."

I ended up wanting to confide in him. Just a little. I knew that what I had to say would only trouble him. I knew I should have kept quiet. But I couldn't stop myself from blurting it out.

I was sure that Elt would listen. I was closer to him than to anyone else and I trusted him more than anyone else. That was why I wanted him to know about my past. I suppose it was a kind of emotional dependence.

"Go right ahead. Some things are easier to deal with when you talk about them," Elt answered. His gaze was sincere.

I was sure that he was concerned about me as a person, not as one of my men. I ended up believing that he would accept my weakness.

"...When I was a kid, my mother abused me. My father pretended not to notice."

The dark past I'd never talked about to anyone.

I felt some of my self-control relax. Maybe it was because I was in front of Elt. Either way, as I recounted my past, I felt my tears threatening to overflow.

If I cried, I was sure I would look feminine. I couldn't bear anyone — even Elt — seeing me like that.

"In the end... she left me with this wound and left us for another man. My father was a good man, but after that, anxiety destroyed him, and..."

I faltered, but once I'd started speaking, the words refused to stop. It was like a dam had burst. I wanted Elt to know my past. I wanted to make my heart just a little less heavy by telling him.

In the end, I ended up giving him just the outline of what had happened to me. I didn't go into detail for fear of crying. I couldn't even bring myself to say that it had been hard, or that it had hurt.

"...Sorry for bothering you with a depressing story like this."

"Do you feel any better?" Elt — who had listened in silence up to that point — asked when I tried to cut off cut off my reminiscence before I said any more. The way he said it, it sounded like he was implicitly asking if I'd said all I needed. I'm sure he really wanted to do as much as he could. He really was kind.

"...Yeah."

There were still some things I'd left unsaid, but, thanks to Elt, the load on my chest felt a little lighter. It was enough. It wouldn't be right to make him worry any more than I already had.

"Then I'm glad.

"It might not be any comfort... but as far I'm concerned, you are who you are. So... please, don't drive yourself into a corner. Don't try to hold too much in. I'm not strong like you are, Mercè, but... if you need someone to talk to, I can at least listen."

Elt stared at me with kind, strong eyes.

I was who I was... It was a worn-out saying, but Elt's gaze, and his expression, gave it the ring of truth.

"I guess... you're right. I do feel better. Thanks, Elt."

I was sure that Elt wouldn't mind my past. It wasn't that he wouldn't care about it; he would share my pain, almost like it had happened to him.

And he was telling me that it was alright for me to rely on him more. I'd only let out a little this time, but when it got really bad, Elt would be there. That did a lot more to make me feel better than telling him about my past had.

Before I knew it, Elt had become my emotional support.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

...I guess it's thanks to Elt that I can manage to keep my cool like this.

"...Is something wrong, Mercè?"

Elt's voice called me back from my reminiscence. There was concern in his eyes. I must have looked dazed.

"Hm...? Oh, it's nothing."

I realized that my body temperature was gradually rising and my heart was beating a little faster than normal.

Already getting buzzed... It's a nice feeling.

Still, he was... How should I put it? Kind? Softhearted? I mean, getting worried over every little thing...

"I hope so," Elt replied. "Still, today really wore me out. It gave me an appetite, too. The food and drink both taste great... They do say hunger is the best spice."

He didn't look tired. The worried look had left his face, but the ale in his tankard had barely gone down.

"You say that, but you haven't drunk much. I told you not to hold back. Go on; drink up."

"It'll be my job to help you home. I can't go drinking myself under the table, can I?" Elt laughed lightly and clapped me on the shoulder. "You can count on me," his expression seemed to say.

"You've got that right, Elt," I laughed back and tilted my tankard.

Guess that means I can drink like a fish today. Again. I doubt the gods will punish me for relying on my generous subordinate.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

"Come on, Elt... 'Ave another..."

I leaned over Elt from behind and forced more drink on him.

"...Mercè... You've had too much," he chided me.

"Whatsat? I can keep going... Hic..."

I haven't had too much. I'm not even drunk...

I drained the remaining ale in the tankard in one big gulp.

My body was hot. I wanted a drink. I wanted a snack. My appetite was boundless. Oh, it felt great.

Huh...? Already out of drinks and snacks...? Better order some more...

"You can keep going...? Any more and you could be in trouble. Can you stand?"

Elt turned, pushing me off him. He was pretty strong; I hadn't been training him every day for nothing.

"Of course I can...?"

Now that I couldn't put my weight on Elt anymore, I had no choice but to try to stand on my own feet... Until they wobbled limply under me, and my vision tilted.

Ah... Not good...

"See? You're reeling. Let's call it a night. I'll help you home. Here, lean on my shoulder."

Elt checked my fall, supporting my back and steadying my vision. Elt's arm was around me. He was peering gently at me.

"What...? Guess I've got no choice... Come on, time to work..."

I still haven't had my fill... My I might as well go along with him...

That was how the look on his face made me feel. I couldn't say why. I put an arm around Elt's shoulders and leaned my weight on him.

"Alright... Come on, let's go."

Leaning on Elt, I slowly dragged my legs toward to door of the bar. I was a little dizzy, but it wasn't a bad feeling.

A cool breeze blew in as the door opened. It felt nice.

"I'm already half dragging you, so please just get on my back and I'll carry you."

Once we were clear of the bar, Elt turned his back to me. He let me lean against it, then slowly crouched down. I took him up on his offer, wrapping my arms around his neck and crouching myself. His thin but well-muscled arms gripped my thighs.

"Okay... Let's get going..."

I leaned my weight farther forward so that it would be easier for Elt's back to support.

"Upsy-daisy... Hang on tight, okay?"

As Elt spoke, I felt myself being lifted up. I was by no means light, but he was firmly supporting it. Something about that inspired confidence.

"Yeah... I'm hanging on... Mmm..."

I clung tightly to Elt as I was told. His back pressed against me was warm, and that made it comfortable. I realized my body was flushed and the sound of my heartbeat was fast.

Maybe I did overdo it...

My mind suddenly began to grow hazy. I let out an exhausted yawn.

"Well then, shall we be off?"

My vision began to sway up and down. The night wind blew past me, but my body was warm.

I felt a strange mixture of elation, calm and security. It was pleasant and, added to the warm, rhythmical swaying, it was gradually lulling me to sleep.

My eyes closed, my body felt heavy, and I sank into a doze.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

"Like this...?"

It was the day after we'd gone drinking. Elt and I were staying late on the training ground again.

"Yeah, but your shaft's just a bit off again."

I examined Elt's stance and pointed out an error in his basic form. It was almost exemplary — I hadn't spent so much time training him for nothing — but it's hard to break every little bad habit. In Elt's case, it was a tendency for his whole stance to lean a little to the left. It was keeping him from ideally leveraging his strength.

It's just a little habit... but fixing it will be backbreaking work.

"Yes ma'am."

Elt consciously corrected his stance. Too consciously; he was now leaning slightly to the right. As a result, his feet ended up too close together and his stance developed all sorts of other little flaws.

"...Mmm... Like this...? No, this?"

I judged that talking wouldn't solve the issue, grabbed Elt's hands from behind, and forced his legs a little farther apart. I was patiently, attentively correcting the flaws in his stance.

We ended up close together, with my chest pressing against Elt's back. His back was as warm as I remembered.

Come to think of it, he carried me on his back last night...

I was fairly certain he'd just carried me to the door of my room. I was almost sure I'd managed to stagger inside and collapse onto the bed on my own... But I suppose he could also have carried me inside and laid me down on it...

What am I thinking? I'm supposed to be fixing his stance...

As soon as I realized that my mind had drifted to the night before, I shifted my focus back to training. I could hear my own heartbeat clearly. It must be because I'd just been working hard.

...That should do it.

"Okay, try thrusting."

When I had finished correcting Elt's stance, I stepped away from him.

Elt thrust. As far as even I, his instructor, could see, his spear went perfectly straight. I could tell by the sharp sound its point made as it cut the air.

"That's it. You did it! Now just remember how that felt."

"Yes ma'am!"

A teacher always feels happy when her student gets it right. I couldn't resist a grin and clapped Elt on the shoulder.

"Alright, next..."

I've got to hammer it into him before he forgets what it feels like, I thought.

But just then, a shout rang out across the training ground.

"A message! A message for Instructor Mercè! Enemy attack! Monsters have invaded Lescatié!"

The soldier who called himself a messenger came running up, bellowing at the top of his lungs. His look of impatience told me that the matter was urgent.

"What!? What's going on outside!?"

I couldn't hide my surprise. It was just completely unexpected. There had been no news of the Overlord's army heading our way. And it was night. It was all happening too fast.

I was full of questions: Where had they broken through? How many were there? How long had it been since the invasion started?

"A large number of monsters appeared in the city. It's in chaos. Troops are on their way to intercept them, but... they have the upper hand. We have also received information that a high-ranking monster is heading for the royal palace. There's no time to waste."

The messenger's voice was glum and heavy. He looked ready to hang his head at any moment. That lent persuasiveness to the too-sudden events. Was it really that bad outside?

They'd gotten the better of us. It was so frustrating I couldn't stand it.

"...Mercè."

Elt, standing beside me, gave me a meaningful look. He had heard the message too. He gripped his spear firmly and he had a warrior's look on his face.

"I know. Let's go."

Whatever else I did, I had to go outside and get a handle on the situation. I gripped my halberd and ran out of the training ground.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

"It looks like they haven't made it here, at least..."

The first things I saw when I got clear of the training ground were soldiers in evacuating the townspeople. There was not a monster in sight, at least as far as I could see from there. That just showed how fast the messenger had run.

"I'm heading for the palace. Follow me."

This area should be safe from monsters for a little while. It had no strategic value. I should make for the palace — where powerful monsters were apparently also headed — rather than stay to defend it.

High-ranking monsters possessed immense power. Normal soldiers didn't stand a chance against them. Elt included, of course. A Hero like me would have to take them down.

If the royal family fell into the monsters' hands, there would be nothing left to hold the country together. Even if we managed to drive the monsters out afterward, it would be no different from defeat. A nation without a leader wouldn't stay a nation for long. And if even the heirs were lost, who could be king?

That was why I had to get to the castle as fast as possible. I couldn't spare time to protect fleeing people. I had no choice but to trust in the common troops.

The average monster was no threat to me. If they surrounded me, though, they could eat up time. On a battlefield where every minute, every second counted, that could prove fatal.

That was why I brought Elt with me. Just having someone to watch my back so that I could focus on the enemies in front of me made fighting a lot easier.

As you'd expect from my training partner, he was easily the most skilled of my men. He had guts and stamina, too. We both knew each other's breathing. Most importantly, he was someone I could trust. If someone asked me who I was closest to, Elt's name would have been the first that came to mind. Elt might not be able to hold a candle to a Hero like me when it came to combat strength, but there was no one I'd rather have watching my back.

Plus, if the worst happened, I'd be there to save him.

"Understood, Mercè."

Elt and I ran up the road to the castle. I found the sound of his footsteps behind me reassuring.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

"Shit... Just look at them...!"

We cut across a dark street on our way to the castle.

It had already fallen into monster hands. In the darkness, monsters and soldiers were copulating in the middle of the street. And not just one or two couples, either.

Armor, clothes, and spears lay carelessly discarded under my feet. The soldiers had lost the will to fight and were moaning at the monsters' mercy.

As we ran through, I could hear monsters' — women's — coaxing, sweet, almost husky voices. Nothing could be more unpleasant.

When I cast my eyes around, I saw that it wasn't only soldiers they were attacking. They were preying on helpless civilians as well. Men were being raped. Women were being turned into monsters. After that they'd attack men. Like beasts.

There were no humans trying to flee. That meant that everyone in this area had fallen into the monsters' clutches.

Once a human had become a monster, it was impossible to change them back. It was too late for them. The soldiers charmed by monsters would probably try to protect them. It was too late for them too. Even if there were some soldiers here whose minds, at least, hadn't been violated yet, I didn't have time to go around saving them individually. I had to abandon them. Otherwise, it would be too late for the whole country.

That was what I told myself as I raced up the street.

I couldn't save them. I hadn't been able to save them. The feeling of my own powerlessness tormented me.

Behind me, Elt kept his eyes on the ground.

◊ ♦ ◊ ♦ ◊

We rushed through the castle gate and into the deserted front garden. It was dark and quiet. In the sky, clouds covered the moon, cutting off its light.

We hadn't run head-on into any monsters on our way here. None of them had paid any attention to us; they had all been fornicating lewdly, obeying their instincts.

Just remembering it made me sick to my stomach.

The air felt thicker and heavier. It seemed to coil around me. I sensed — even if I wasn't consciously aware of it — a dense aura, a feeling of unfathomable pressure.

My body sensed the change and froze before I had a chance to think. The powerful monster the messenger had told me about — maybe even the leader of this invasion — was coming toward us.

...So she's putting in a personal appearance.

I readied my halberd and prepared for combat. As I did so, it appeared out of a deeper darkness.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Hero."

Snow-white hair that seemed to assert its presence in the darkness. Captivating, almost translucently pale skin with runes drawn on it. Pointed ears. Such red eyes.

Ample bosoms. A beautifully curved waist. A round peach bottom. long, slender legs.

The succubus in front of me had a body like womanhood personified. It was indecent, unrealistically beautiful, and evil.

It was — barely — covered by a jet-black bondage dress with red trim and decorated with crimson eyeballs. That only added to the evil impression.

The lone succubus — she had no retinue — was hovering elegantly in the air ahead of me, wings spread.

"...You the boss?"

Even just facing here, I could feel her overwhelming mana. In terms of raw power, she was stronger than any Hero in Lescatié. And when it came to monsters that strong...

"Yes. I am Deruella... daughter of the Overlord."

A daughter of the Overlord... A lilim. The most powerful of the succubi. It was said that the just the sight of them was enough to charm men into willingly offering their bodies.

I'd come up against a real big shot, but that didn't mean I could afford to lose.

"...Elt, run."