No Beast Girls on the Western Front

Page 35

Even when he was with Ruby, if her face turned slightly red, he would always hallucinate that Ruby had a face covered in blood.

Moreover, the thought that the French would surely develop even more terrifying chemical weapons in the future, and that Germany might invent biological weapons, made him feel that the future was bleak.

Thanks to these circumstances, he had completely lost interest and could only grit his teeth and finish helping Ruby with her task.

But he couldn't be honest with Ruby and say, "I'm not in a good mood right now, let's talk about it in a couple of days," because even if Ruby could wait, the splitter wouldn't.

So now he's stuck here, not only is his talk useless, but he also has no solutions, and now the splitter is already halfway across...

Sigh... I'm so sorry for this child...

Perhaps the only consolation is that all four beasts are very dedicated to their training, and Xiao En and Grace have achieved amazing results in grenade throwing training, which should play a significant role in the upcoming battles.

The atmosphere of battle has become increasingly intense these days. Although no orders have been issued from above, any soldier who has spent half a year on the front lines can tell from the abundant ammunition reserves and improved rations.

Needless to say, they had already been working as porters for a long time before the ammunition was used.

As for the food, they, who had long only had bread and stewed meat to eat, not only ate roasted whole lamb and were given canned sardines, but soldiers who recently had birthdays even had sweet cakes to eat, and alcohol was supplied in unlimited quantities.

This is an extremely inland region, 2,000 kilometers from the nearest coastline and hundreds of kilometers from the nearest large lakes and rivers. Canned sardines are definitely a luxury here.

It seems they were not surrounded, and the supply lines were not in trouble. Their transport capacity was just tied up by wounded soldiers and ammunition. Now that the transport is over, their food supplies have returned to normal.

John's case of liquor was essentially given away for free.

Sigh... I really wanted to have a good love affair with Ruby before the battle...

As Payne taught, he kept these questions in mind. The sun, as if in a rush, drew an arc across the sky and quickly disappeared below the horizon.

Tonight's dinner was braised pork with white beans. Even Lacey, who wasn't particularly interested in cooked meat, ate it happily. Even Grace and Shawn tried some. Only Ruby didn't eat any; she just slowly cracked open her nut reserves.

After a hearty meal, the dogs, cattle, and sheep, having eaten their fill, went out to digest, while the humans and squirrels sneaked into the tents ahead of time.

Ruby sat in his lap again, and just as Payne was about to grit his teeth and get through today's errands, the little squirrel hugged him tightly, preventing him from moving.

"Hold me for a little while. Just for a little while, okay?"

Chapter 52 LII. Ruby's Solution

"Huh? Why?" Payne asked, puzzled.

“Don’t ask, just do as I say,” Ruby said.

"Then... that's fine."

Since Ruby wasn't in a hurry, Payne, who wasn't particularly interested, naturally had no objections. He simply held her petite body in his arms and did nothing else.

A large, fluffy tail swayed gently behind her, and Payne unconsciously swayed from side to side, as if she were soothing a baby to sleep.

The sounds of laughter and footsteps from the group outside the tent gradually approached and then faded away. The chirping of insects in the darkness once again took over, occasionally interspersed with the crackling of the burning kerosene lamp wick.

After a while, Payne got a little bored, but Ruby still didn't say anything, so he could only rest his head on her shoulder and gently sniff her hair.

It has a fresh, pleasant scent of leaves.

A sense of peace washed over him, and his heart gradually calmed down. His eyes closed involuntarily, and the image of Ruby climbing the pine tree to pick pine cones during the day floated into his mind.

Ruby has been quite idle these days, with nothing to do except attend classes, so even in the branching shed, she works to increase food storage.

Or was she trying to give her body a pleasant scent in this way?

After all, this place isn't close to that little river, and the summer nights aren't exactly cool. By the time you walk back after taking a bath, you'll be covered in sweat again, so it's practically a wasted bath.

It seems she really cares about this splitter.

Although Payne also longed to spend the night with Ruby, the reality simply did not allow it.

The little squirrel in her mind hadn't climbed the tree for long when the peaceful environment was shattered. A red, poisonous mist, like a sandstorm, swept in, covering the sky and reaching the tree she was in an instant. Her face was instantly covered in blood...

As if awakened from a nightmare, Payne shuddered and opened his eyes.

He felt a fine layer of sweat on his forehead.

Ruby noticed his movement and reluctantly moved away from him. "What's wrong?"

“…It’s nothing.” Payne simply shook his head; he didn’t want Ruby to worry.

But the little squirrel frowned instead and gently shook his shoulder. "I...didn't I already say? You can tell me if there's anything..."

Payne grinned. "Who was it that said, 'Don't think too much, just get started'..."

Ruby hesitated a little, "Well... that's because it was the first day, and I'd been holding back all day, I was getting impatient..."

Then she quieted down and looked Payne in the eye with an unquestionable tone, saying, "Tell me, what happened to you?"

Payne was amused by her attitude. "Are you the animal tamer or am I the animal tamer?"

"I...I don't care, you just have to tell me."

"It's no use saying anything..."

"Didn't you say that it's better to speak out than to keep it to yourself?"

"..."

Seeing that Payne didn't speak, Ruby tentatively asked, "Are you still thinking about the pony? Or are you thinking about those two new animals that died on their first day?"

“No, no, those things are all in the past…” Payne waved his hand, but still sighed.

"What on earth is that?"

Perhaps unable to bear Ruby staring at him so intently, Payne, after a moment's deliberation, chose a clever approach:

“When I was moving poisoned patients before, I heard one of them ask the doctor, ‘Doctor, how much longer can I live?’ Do you know how the doctor answered?”

Ruby tilted her head. "...What did you say?"

Payne: "'10'".

Ruby: "...?"

Pine: "The injured man asked again, '10 months? Or 10 weeks?' Then the doctor said, '9.'"

"

Hey~

The host's depressing jokes were detected.

Depression level: 100%

Funny level: 60%

Freshness: 80%

Note: Meets the reward distribution criteria

Points increased by 240

"

The joke system reacted quickly, but Ruby frowned and tilted her head, thinking for a long time, until she saw Payne's expression of barely suppressing a laugh before she suddenly realized what it meant.

"...Get out! You morally corrupt human being! You don't even spare your own kind!"

Ruby shoved Payne aside angrily, crossed her arms, and looked to the side.

Payne's smile quickly vanished, and he helplessly shrugged. "Don't be afraid of being laughed at by you. Although I can calmly tell you some funny jokes, I still can't help but think about this from time to time..."

Ruby glanced at him sideways. "Do you think about these things when you're with me? Even I can't make you forget them? Who's the one who always says 'I love you the most, Big Tail'?"

To this, Pine could only shrug and say, "...Well, PTSD is just that kind of irrational thing."

Similar to Earth during World War I, the people in this world did not yet have the concept of "post-traumatic stress disorder," and soldiers who were unwilling to return to the front lines due to illness were all classified as cowards.

More than two and a half years after the start of the war, as the number of people falling ill increased daily, doctors finally began to pay attention to the problem and coined the term "shell shock".

As for Pine, he only knew the concept of PTSD and what was wrong with him, so he didn't intend to pretend to know everything and get involved in the doctor's work.

Therefore, only he and the beast girls would talk about PTSD in private.

As for Ruby, who is still working hard to complete her primary school degree, she certainly doesn't understand what PTSD is, but she knows it's not just being dramatic or afraid of death, so the solution she can think of is quite simple:

"So, you're having a relapse, right?"

Payne watched in surprise as Ruby adjusted her position so that she was facing away from him, sitting on his stomach, her fluffy tail swaying back and forth in front of him, and a gentle breeze carrying the scent of leaves constantly brushing against his face.

"Hmph~ I wonder if it can make you forget all of this?" Ruby turned her head, a playful smile on her face.

Although he wasn't in a great mood, Payne wasn't about to let such a good opportunity pass him by. He grabbed the huge, furry tail, buried his face in it, and took a deep breath.

A dry, fabric-like scent, mixed with a faint smell of dust and leaves.

In addition, there is an indescribable, unique warmth that belongs to life itself.

Ruby's big tail is a precious treasure unlike any other plush toy.

Payne wanted to keep holding him like this forever, but he was worried that once he got comfortable and closed his eyes, the little red figure in his mind would come back to make its presence known.

Little Red Man is almost a grown-up now, but he really doesn't want to associate Little Red Man with Ruby...

Therefore, he could only regretfully let go and intend to push the big tail away.

But Ruby forcefully covered his face with her tail, saying, "What, are you worried I'll suffocate you?"

Chapter 53 LIII. Payne's Counterattack

Payne paused for a moment, then smiled helplessly, intending to push the big tail away again, "No, I'm just a little... *sobs*..."

"I finally made up my mind to give you a chance to fall into my trap, so don't waste it."

Ruby grinned slyly, the downy hair on her mouth almost blocking Payne's mouth. "I refuse to believe that this won't cure your illness."

Payne didn't think this would cure the disease, but he didn't want to let down the little squirrel who had worked so hard.

Moreover, this tail is usually very hard to get, so now is the time to enjoy it.

Thinking of this, Payne also gave up resisting and lay down completely, doing nothing and thinking nothing, just focusing on sniffing the scent of the big tail.

But he soon realized that it was impossible for him to clear his mind and think of nothing—whenever that happened, the little red man would come to visit him.

He didn't get through these days by spacing out, but by teaching the beast girls, forcing himself to stay busy for a moment, in order to temporarily forget those unpleasant experiences.

Even at night, he often has to lie still for two or three hours before he can fall into a light sleep due to the fatigue of the day, and he will wake up at the slightest noise.