NOVEL WEB Chapter 7
“……Who are you?”
I didn’t even feel the presence of someone next to me. It was as if she had been standing there from the start. As I trembled at that thought, the woman flashed a bright smile.
Her long azure hair was tied at the back of her neck, flowing beautifully like it might nearly touch the floor.
Her bangs hung low, completely covering her right eye, while her hair that framed her face reached down to her collarbone. The left eye, however, matched the same azure color as her hair.
She wore a white sleeveless top like Iris, but the huge chest, nearly the same size as her head, was drawing attention to itself from all directions.
It felt as though her outfit, burdened by that overwhelming weight, was screaming in agony.
As if that wasn’t enough, the sleeves of her top rolled up, revealing her abdomen and sides without reservation. The size of the shirt seemed accurate, but the sheer size of her chest was causing it to stretch.
Even the length of her dolphin shorts was incredibly short. Compared to her thick thighs, it looked almost absurdly modest.
Wearing the same white sleeveless top and dolphin shorts as Iris, I guessed that she was likely the commander of the Silver Dawn Knights.
“Hmmm. Quite the looker, aren’t you?”
The blue-haired woman casually ignored my question while circling around me, making a sound of evaluation. Her gaze was incredibly serious.
“This is unexpected. Did Iris really care about men’s appearances? Hmm, definitely worth remembering.”
“No, who—”
“Your body is pretty decent too. Where did she pick up such a fine man?”
As she poked her finger into my chest, she started feeling my arms and repeatedly murmured in admiration. It was clear she wasn’t listening to a word I said.
“Uh—”
“What are you doing being so forward with a stranger, sis?”
“Kehuck.”
The next moment, a red-haired woman suddenly appeared from behind and yanked the blue-haired woman by her neck, pulling her towards herself. I hadn’t sensed her approach at all, of course.
The newly appeared red-haired woman was also dressed in a white sleeveless top and dolphin shorts.
Her hair was an intense crimson, styled in a way that the curls at the back resembled a dumpling settled at the nape of her neck.
Her side hair flowed long down to meet her collarbone, while her bangs nearly covered her forehead. Below that, crimson eyes, the same color as her hair, were shining bright.
Her dolphin shorts were red as well. Though she wore a white sleeveless top, unlike the blue-haired woman, her outfit appeared quite loose-fitting.
The ends of her top were tucked into her dolphin shorts, leaving no skin visible, and the length of the dolphin shorts barely reached mid-thigh.
Most notably, there was a stark contrast in their chests. While the blue-haired woman had an ample bust that looked ready to burst out of her outfit, the red-haired woman barely had any curves.
As she was being dragged, the blue-haired woman continued to grumble while pointing at me.
“Hey, Erica, aren’t you curious? Iris brought a man home! The girl who seemed like she’d never hold hands with a guy! And you’re telling me you’re not even curious? Are you really human?”
“That’s not my concern. Nor is it yours. The only thing we need to know is that you’re being rude to him. And you, of all people, have never held a man’s hand either, so what makes you think you can act like you have experience?”
The red-haired woman, now identified as Erica, finally let go of her sister’s neck after dragging her to stand beside her. The blue-haired woman started muttering something while fixing her clothes.
“I apologize for my sister’s rudeness. I’m sorry.”
The red-haired woman bowed her head lightly.
“It’s fine since you intervened. But, who are you?”
“Oh, right. I should have introduced myself first, but I forgot because someone barged in randomly and caused a scene.”
Her tone had a bite to it. Under the chill of their gazes, the blue-haired woman averted her own eyes slightly.
“Let me introduce myself. My name is Erica, and I’m the commander of the fourth squad of the Silver Dawn Knights. And this one here… sigh, it doesn’t seem like she’ll introduce herself properly, so I’ll do it on her behalf. Her name is Lize, and she’s my sister. She’s the commander of the third squad of the Silver Dawn Knights.”
So the blue-haired one is Lize, and the red-haired one is Erica. They were names I hadn’t heard in the game, just like Iris. There might be NPCs I could suspect, but until there’s concrete evidence, I’ve got to be cautious.
Their personalities were different, their appearances varied, and their actions were completely distinct. Ultimately, the only tangible evidence for comparison would be their spells or weapons, and I hadn’t seen any of this dialogue in the game before.
An NPC coming up right after joining the knight order to examine and evaluate the player character’s body; if there weren’t any mods, would it mean these two were originally guys?
If there were NPCs like that, I’d have killed them off right away.
“So, what are you here for?”
“I went out to welcome Iris since I heard she was back, and she was carrying a man on her back! I had to sneakily follow to figure this out. Plus, you were chatting pretty comfortably with Iris. How could I just stand by? This is definitely not something to overlook. Right, Erica, you agree, don’t you?”
“If you say that, it makes me feel like I just watched you act. I just got here. Plus, I don’t agree. Why should I be treated the same way as you?”
Despite her sister’s fierce gaze, Lize, the blue-haired knight, smiled brightly and approached me again. Seeing this, Erica let out a deep sigh.
“Sis. Please maintain some dignity. What are you doing at our first meeting?”
“What’s wrong with that? It’s just the truth. And let’s be honest, Erica, you’re curious too. How could you be uninterested in the man Iris brought back?”
It seems contrary to their appearances, their personalities are actually opposite…
Judging solely by looks, Lize bore a calm and composed demeanor, like a dignified cat. In contrast, Erica had a lively and vibrant presence, resembling an affectionate dog.
Even their hair and eye colors were starkly different, making this even clearer. Generally, cooler tones project calmness, while warmer tones seem lively.
But it was the exact opposite. The composed blue-haired Lize had a lively personality, while the vibrant red-haired Erica had a calm demeanor.
They say you shouldn’t judge people by appearances, and these two were prime examples.
“What are you doing here, Lize?”
“Ah, you’re here? Iris?”
Iris walked out of the stable just in time, striding in confidently. Lize waved her hand in greeting.
‘…Is that our knight order’s regular attire?’
Iris, Lize, and Erica were all wearing white sleeveless tops that fitted snugly and dolphin shorts matching the color of their respective hair. It was an outfit that made it difficult to know where to look.
“As you can see, you brought a man home, so I couldn’t just sit idly by, right? I was taking a good look at the situation.”
“I’m not sure what that means, but if you’re jumping to conclusions, please refrain. He’s a newbie.”
“Uh? A newbie? Really?”
Lize looked at me with surprised, wide eyes.
“Technically, he hasn’t taken the entrance exam yet. So he’s a prospective recruit. We were just about to head to the training ground to take the entrance exam.”
Upon hearing the word “newbie,” Lize’s eyes sparkled. Erica also seemed somewhat surprised, almost like someone encountering a seasoned player for the first time.
I’m not used to this.
I was the one giving that kind of look, not receiving it.
“Iris, can I take the newbie’s entrance exam? The more I hear about him, the more curious I am about what kind of man he is.”
“Do as you like. Just make sure to control your strength well.”
“Okay, okay. Being a commander, I wouldn’t mess up that much, right?”
“I mean, make sure to control it even more. Because you’re under the Witch’s Curse.”
At those words, the looks in Lize’s and Erica’s eyes changed once again. They held a mix of shock and pity. Based on the background alone, it made sense they’d look at me that way.
The Witch’s Curse was a short backstory you received if you chose the Forsaken as your past. It stated that I was cursed by a witch, my level and all stats having regressed to 1. It served as an explanation for why this character started at level 1 with all stats at 1.
It was surprising to bring in a character, who was almost indistinguishable from a common person or worse, as a potential recruit for the knight order.
As a side note, you really can meet that Witch in the middle and late game. You can choose to do nothing, fight and win and spare her, or fight and win and kill her.
Even if you chose a different background, it’s still possible to encounter her, but to interact in that way, you must choose the Forsaken. With any other background, the conversation would end after one line.
That Witch’s Curse seemed to be rather infamous, considering when Iris asked for my name, and I said I couldn’t remember due to the curse, she immediately understood.
“Uh… really? Can you accept someone like him as a newbie?”
“It feels a bit cruel to say this in front of him, but in that state, you wouldn’t last long after joining the knight order, would you?”
Lize and Erica both voiced their concerns and questions, one after the other. It wasn’t unfounded worry or doubt.
Unlike the player character, NPCs didn’t gain experience to raise stats and levels. To raise my strength by 1 point, I had to train diligently.
That was already bound to be a limited method as well. Even for player characters, as their levels increased, the required experience points to gain even one stat point kept rising.
But Iris simply smiled and dismissed Lize’s and Erica’s concerns with one line.
“Don’t worry about it. You’ll see.”