Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 177 (Part 1):

“Hey, hey, calm down!”

James, who had been on guard, swiftly pulled back with exceptional reflexes.

Whoosh! A fist, fierce enough to break bones, swept past right in front of his eyes.

Asuka, who was swinging his fist with such force, was finally restrained by several people reaching out from behind him. It took five of them clinging onto him before they could finally hold him back.

James, who had narrowly avoided getting hit, shouted.

“See, I told you you would hate it!”

“If you knew, then why the hell did you ask, you bastard!”

Asuka was seething with anger, his eyes glaring as if he truly wanted to kill.

But James responded seriously.

“No, I thought maybe you’d surprisingly like it. It’s worth a try if it suits your taste…”

“What nonsense are you spouting? Go try it yourself!”

“Look at my size. If I did that, even the guys from our faculty would start throwing stones at me!”

The people around echoed in agreement, “Right, right.” Asuka made a face that screamed he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, his strength draining away from sheer disbelief.

The question that James had thrown at Asuka was this:

“How about you participate in the cross-dressing contest?”

The cross-dressing contest was an event with history and tradition, held every festival at Greta Academy.

Participants would go on stage, wave their hands, or show a special talent, and the audience would vote for the one who suited cross-dressing the best.

However, finding participants was always a challenging task.

James muttered as if it was a shame.

“Thinking about it, you would be perfect among our year. Look at those muscular guys in the fencing department. Just imagining them in drag is enough to lose my eyesight.”

“Perfect, you say! You want to get hit so bad?”

Asuka’s eyes narrowed sharply, and his struggle resumed fiercely, causing those around him to be shaken by the aftermath.

James cautiously said.

“Ah, if you hate it that much, you don’t have to do it. I was just asking.”

“If you ever ask me such a disgusting question again, I’ll hang you from the swordsmanship department building!”

“Okay, okay, I got it…”

Everyone glanced at Asuka with a look of disappointment. Asuka, panting, finally calmed down and fiddled with his fist. Then, someone asked.

“If Asuka hates it, how about Helmut? He seems to fit the role too.”

However, when Helmut glanced at him with a dark look, the person shut his mouth as if dead.

Helmut didn’t really think much of it. He actually didn’t understand why Asuka was so repulsed by the idea of cross-dressing. He was somewhat intrigued.

‘3,000 marks isn’t bad. It’s just for a short while.’

Even considering the mercenary request fees, it was a generous amount.

But there was no guarantee of winning if he participated, and it would be somewhat awkward to run off the stage if the High Priest appeared during the contest. It was just regrettable that he couldn’t attend.

Asuka asked gruffly.

“Isn’t it decided who the winner will be if Alea from the magic department participates?”

“Alea? Well, that’s true.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Alea would win hands down. Who could compete?”

“But since Alea won’t participate, there’s a chance.”

“With Asuka, our department’s victory is guaranteed.”

Everyone murmured in disappointment. However, as soon as Asuka glared at them, they promptly shut their mouths.

Helmut knew all too well what it meant for Alea not to participate.

Having Alea participate would be cheating. Even if she wanted to, the guardian, being the Dean, wouldn’t allow it.

‘Cross-dressing, huh.’

Come to think of it, had he ever seen Alea in women’s clothing? He had seen her in a teddy bear pajama, but that was it.

‘I’m curious.’

Will there ever come a day for him to find out? That remained an unknown future, not likely to happen any time soon.

However, when the festival began, Helmut faced an unexpected situation.

*

It was the first day of the festival. Alea was called into the Dean’s office.

“Heike sent you a gift. She said to have fun at the festival.”

The Dean, with a stoic face, handed Alea a box.

Although he was recognized as a quirky mage, to Heike, he was just an easily manipulated subordinate. The fact that he was running errands like this indicated he couldn’t refuse, perhaps due to some leverage or a past connection with Heike.

Alea shelved her curiosity. She didn’t want to know, nor did it concern her.

“Is there nothing weird inside?”

Alea eyed the box suspiciously. Knowing the capricious nature of the sender, even if he was her mentor, trust was out of the question.

“The contents are for you to check. At least the box itself isn’t cursed.”

The Dean waved his hand wearily.

“Go on.”

Otaku_Tensei

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