Me, a priest? How could that be!

Chapter 121 6 Strikes in 1 Second

Chapter 121 Six Strikes in One Second

"Are you kidding me?! Are you kidding me?!"

Darkness gripped Charlotte's neck tightly, even lifting him into the air. If an ordinary person saw this monstrous strength, they'd run away as soon as they saw him, let alone go on a blind date.

"Hey, what do you want?! Didn't you come here to help me?!"

"Wait, Darkness, you're strangling Charlotte to death!"

"Just strangle him already!!"

Despite saying that, Darkness still released Charlotte's neck. Perhaps it was the cloak's fault, but Darkness also liked to choke Charlotte when she annoyed him.

"Cough cough————"

Charlotte, finally able to catch her breath, was patted on the back by Aqua. Darkness was increasingly showing signs of developing into a violent woman, which was not a good thing.

"Listen to me, Darkness, I'm trying to sabotage this blind date."

"—Ah, destruction?"

Kazuma Sato blinked, looking at Charlotte with some confusion. He probably thought Charlotte, like him, wanted to facilitate this blind date.

Darkness puffed out her cheeks.

"Then why did you stop me just now?!"

"—I remember Kazuma stopped you too, didn't he?"

'

Um!?"

"!!!?"

Sato Kazuma, who had been glared at, was completely flustered. Afraid that he would be choked as well, he quickly protested, "No, no, anyway, calm down first, Miss. You forgot something important, didn't you?"

"Don't call me 'Young Miss' when it's just the three of us! — What's the important thing you're talking about?" Darkness calmed down a bit, her attitude softened, and she was willing to listen to him.

Kazuma Sato explained, "You've completely forgotten about not being able to damage your own reputation, haven't you? If you generate any really bad negative feedback today, you'll be the one who suffers the most."

"Tsk." Darkness clicked his tongue in annoyance, but also as if in defiance, and said, "What does it matter?"

"Don't you care about your reputation?"

"Isn't this perfect!?"

"—What?"

"As long as negative rumors spread and I have nowhere to marry, I can continue working as an adventurer without any worries!"

The worst-case scenario is that I'll be kicked out of the house by my father, and I'm already somewhat prepared for that—being kicked out of the house and feeling uneasy about the future—even so, I'm still desperately trying to survive, and I might even take on a bunch of overburdened tasks because of it.

Then, after stubbornly pushing himself to the limit, his body gave out, and he was captured by the Demon King's army's henchmen and brutally subdued! — This is the kind of life I wanted to live!

"Wow—" X3

This guy is completely hopeless.

Ignoring Darkness's exposed true nature, Charlotte and Kazuma Sato began their discussion.

"I don't understand why Charlotte had to ruin the blind date? Wasn't Bart a good guy? He seemed like a pretty handsome man."

"Bart is a very good person. The residents all speak very highly of him; he's a sunny, handsome guy. He often comes to church to deliver things and distribute supplies to help the poor. He's undoubtedly a good person."

"That----"

"Because his father was Aldap."

"----Um?"

Kazuma Sato was confused. He knew that Eldap was a bad person, but he didn't understand what his relationship with Balt was.

In reality, Charlotte knew that Eldap already possessed the artifact capable of swapping bodies, and he was waiting for Barth and Darkness to marry before he could switch places with them. Given this, how could she possibly let him have his way?

Aldap was quite persistent about Darkness, first sending his son Barth to arrange a marriage, then trying to matchmake the First Prince, and finally stepping in himself—

Charlotte looked at Darkness and sighed deeply.

"W-Why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's nothing, just that I'm amazed that someone like you, a pervert, actually has someone who likes you. It seems perverts attract each other after all."

"Hmm!?"

Darkness shuddered; that disappointed look gave her a strange sense of satisfaction.

of course.

Charlotte ruined the blind date, partly because Darkness was very dissatisfied with Barth; the reason for her dissatisfaction was quite problematic.

In addition, Aqua also said that although she did not understand, she respected him and felt that even Darkness's father did not have the right to decide her life on his own.

Kazuma Sato, however, has a different perspective on this.

They believed that nobles had so-called aristocratic obligations and that it was normal for them not to be able to freely decide their own marriages. Moreover, for nobles, being an adventurer was a very undignified and dangerous job. Since they had met such a good man, they should honestly retire and get married.

The squad suddenly split up.

They had been out for a while, and the four of them didn't have time to discuss it before quickly returning to the reception room.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting."

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

When they returned, the Darkness family patriarch and Barth were having a pleasant conversation. Darkness also sat down opposite them, but her gaze remained fixed on Charlotte, and she suddenly let out a playful laugh.

"hey-hey."

"----hey-hey?"

Charlotte sensed something was wrong.

There was no time to ask questions in the current situation, and Darkness also whispered a threat to Kazuma Sato: "Hey, I'm saying this for your own good, give up. Otherwise, when you go back, I'll make sure you encounter a situation you'll regret so much you'd rather die."

"Ugh!!"

Kazuma Sato visibly trembled. He thought of the scene where Charlotte was being choked earlier, and when he connected it to his own experience, he felt terrible.

I thought he would give up, but to my surprise, he gritted his teeth and went ahead regardless.

"Excuse me for being presumptuous, sir. Shouldn't the arranged meeting between the young lady and Lord Barth begin? The young lady has seemed quite eager since just now."

Kazuma Sato took the initiative.

Hearing him say that, Darkness glared at him through gritted teeth, as if protesting the butler's meddlesomeness.

The head of the Dustinis family was completely unaware of Darkness's reaction and readily agreed to Kazuma Sato's suggestion.

Just as he was about to suggest that Barth and Darkness go to the courtyard for a chat, Darkness suddenly spoke up.

"Father, I feel there's something I can no longer hide from you."

"—What is it?"

The head of the Dastianis family was somewhat frightened; he was genuinely worried that Dastianis might say something shocking.

Then Darkness spoke up: "Actually, I already have someone I like. That's right, this gentleman—the priest Charlotte from our squad—and I have become a couple."

"————————What!?" N

The head of the Dassinis family opened his mouth slightly, and Balt's eyes widened slightly. Sato Kazuma and Aqua were even more incredulous, certain that this was a lie Dassinis told to avoid the arranged marriage.

Charlotte was completely devastated. He never imagined that he would become the protagonist of such a common trope in third-rate anime: being used as a shield.

Having a shield certainly saves a lot of trouble, but—

The gaze of the Dustinis patriarch fell upon him, and the scrutiny of someone in such a high position made Charlotte extremely uncomfortable, and he could only keep reassuring himself.

No, it's okay.

This story is obviously a lie. The head of the Dustinis family isn't an idiot; he'll definitely know that Darkness is lying. Besides, he hasn't done anything wrong, so he wouldn't be hit six times in one second.

"But... Oh, really? So Lalatina already has someone she likes? I'm so touched!"

The head of the Dustinis family was moved to tears.

Wait, are you out of your mind?!