Alcohol and Ogre-girls ch26

p2
>There's no medicinal plants!?

>Oh shut up.
>I forgot to restock.
>Can't keep track of every little herb I've got in stock, y'know.
>That's so half-assed!

>At any rate, I ain't got what I ain't got.
>If we want to cure Hinata...

>you'll have to get some more.
>Eh?

>Like I said...

p3
>Could you guys get some more medicinal plants for me?
>There's a spot that grows them in the woods out back.

>Get them...?
>We don't know that much about medicial plants... Shouldn't you be going, Urabe-sensei?

>Huuuh?
>Huh? Sounds like a pain...

>You still wanna put me to work?
Just how many jobs do I gotta... COUGH COUGH COUGH
>Aw man, I gotta wash your coat again~
>Did you just say it was a pain!?
>You're pretty skilled at coughing up blood.

>Okay, I'll go.
>There's no other choice.
>Eh...?

p4
>There's no telling what lies in the woods at night...
>Leaving my weapon inside Notarou's ballsack just in case was the right choice.
>The worst four-dimensional pocket anyone could ask for.

>Are you really going...?
>Yes.
>Sticking around here won't do any good.

>Then...

>I'll come with you.
>I can't be the only one standing around doing nothing.

p5
>Y-...
>...I won't hold you back!

>At least... I don't think I will...
>...

>...Trying to persuade you otherwise would be too much effort.
>...Then...!

p6
>Hinata.

>I'm taking your bartender with me.
>We'll be back once we have the medicinal plants, so wait for us.

>Mikage...

p7
>Protect Naori.

>Please.

p8
>...Got it.

>...These girls
>are always so awkward,

>so I can't say they have a friendly relationship.
>...But what they do have right now

p9
>I promise.
>is the sacred bond between Ibaraki-Doji
>and Shuten-Doji...

p10
>...The plant I want you to get is called "kasumihiyosu".

>It grows in the deepest part of the woods.
>Right around the turf of the monster than runs the place.

>Well, just make use of that and grab it.
>"That"...?

>Oh, and take this.
>?

p11
>Drambuie...?
>Why...?

>Cos it's good.
>It's just your recommendation!?
>It's my favorite liqueur.
>Have as much alcohol as you want. Drink it on the way.
>...Alright, I'll accept it...

>Please look after Hinata... while we're gone.
>It's gotten heavy...
>Please don't be too rough with her.

>...I can't promise that.
>She's an ogre, after all.

>I need to make her understand who's the top dog around here.
>Wah!

>I still can't agree with your way of thinking!
>I hate you!

p12
>...She totally hates me.
>Let's go, Mikage-san.
>...I've never seen you get so worked up before.
>Sensei, getting people to hate you is the one thing you're good at~
>But weren't you particularly harsh towards Hinata and that human~?

>...Hmph.
>She may look like an adult but she's a brat on the inside. Her reasoning just rubbed me the wrong way.

>She doesn't know what ogres are like.
>It's because she doesn't know that she can flaunt that innocent kindness of hers.

>It sounds all well and good, but this isn't something you can resolve with kindness.
>If you half-heartedly lend a hand to the oppressed, you'll just end up hurting them instead.

>...Is that~

p13
>something you're telling your past self?

p14
>Did you say something just now?

>...Nope.
>Nothing at all~
>So scary~

p15
>...Then quit yapping and get back to work.
>Do something about that filthy tanuki that just keeps sleeping.
>Shall I make tanuki soup~?

p16
>I haven't been in the woods at night since our search for the Shinpen Kidoku Sake...
>Those were different woods from these ones, though...

>Fweeh~
>It's dark~ It hurts~
>I acted all cool when I showed up in front of Hinata-san back then, but I was really scared on the way there...

>Eep!

>A twig...!?
>Sorry. That took me by surprise...

>...Are you scared?
>You can still turn back and return to the hospial.

p17
>I'm used to being alone.

>I-...

>I'm not scared!
>I can handle this much perfectly fine!

>Hinata-san may have been with me, but I still fought against Notarou-san!

>...What was that sound...!?

p18
>There may be a monster nearby... Be on your guard.

>It's certainly nearby.
>The monster known as an empty stomach, that is.

>...

>She seems a teensy bit embarrassed...

>...There's a rocky area over there.
>Shall I fix you up something?

p20
>It's ready.
>One Rusty Nail.

>I heard the rumors, but you really can make drinks outdoors...
>It's easy if you have the right tools on hand.
>Go ahead.

p21
>...

>...What do you think? It's not too sweet, is it?

>...It's just right.
>Thank goodness!

>...Why is that?
>Since Urabe-sensei gave me that Drambuie, I used it to make a cocktail,
>but Drambuie is really sweet, so you need to balance it out with whiskey when making a Rusty Nail.
>I figured you probably wouldn't like alcohol that's too sweet, Mikage-san... so I used a 3:1 ratio of whiskey to Drambuie this time around.

>...You gave it a lot of thought, I see.
>It's my first time drinking Drambuie.

p22
>!

>She gulped down 40% alcohol just like that...

>...
>But I wonder...
>if she's thinking that it tastes good...

>...I'm sorry.
>Heh?

p23
>I'm not very good at expressing my emotions like Hinata is.
>So please don't be offended.

>Not at all!
>I'm sorry for not noticing you hadn't drunken any alcohol in so long, Mikage-san...
>It wasn't that long ago...

>I'm guessing you couldn't focus on that when you first met Urabe-sensei.
>Don't worry. Despite how she looks, she does her job properly.
>Even when she was rough with Hinata, she was checking her throat for any swelling.

>Is that so...?

>...Even so,
>I don't approve of that woman.

p24
>Even if she has a destiny with Shuten-Doji... that attitude is just too cruel.
>...You think so?

>...Ever since Shuten-Doji was defeated long ago,
>that's always been "the way it is"
>between humans and ogres.

>Those who would question it after all this time,
>be it ogres like Hinata
>or humans like Shida Naori, are rare.

>...What about you, Mikage-san...?

p25
>What kind of ogre are you?

>...
>I'm... Ibaraki-Doji.

>...
>...What were you like as a kid?

>What was I like...? It's not that interesting.
>From birth, I was raised to be the successor to the general's name.
>I was charged with keeping the monsters in check,
>and now, as the next Ibaraki-Doji, I work to help Hinata safely become Shuten-Doji...
>N-

>Not that.
>I don't mean Ibaraki-Doji.

p26
>I want to know about you, Mikage-san.
>Like your hobbies
>or what kind of alcohol you'd like to drink.

>I don't have anything... like that.
>I've never thought about it.

>My role...
>as an ogre and as Ibaraki-Doji, is to serve and protect Shuten-Doji.
>That is all.

p27
>Even though everyone should be born with a clean slate,
>something has been meticulously woven inside of Mikage-san over a long time
>stopping her from thinking for herself.

>Something,
>someone
>has kept her trapped

p28
>to such an extent...
>...There must be something!

>It's not that you don't have them. You just haven't found them yet.
>Things that you like. Things you want to do... Not just your duty.

>I'm sure you just haven't found them yet.
>You've just been treated in such a way that you can't find them.

>The humans...!

>They may be taking them from you right now,
>but the truth is you can choose anything, Mikage-san.

p29
>It's okay for you to want anything.

p30
>I don't...
>really get it.

p31
>...Why do you look so depressed?
>Well... I'm just so incompetent...
>And yet I'm saying all of this nonsense...

>Incompetent?
>As if.
>It'd be troublesome for an ogre's bartender to think that way.

>When you fought against Notarou...
>you did as I said and pulled the trigger,

>awakening Hinata with your Silver Bullet.

>So,

p32
>this time,
>use me properly too.

>Shuten-Doji wishes for you to return home safely.

p33
>...What I want to say to Mikage-san probably won't reach her the way she is right now.

>But she's right.
>I may be incompetent... but I'm not powerless.

>...Mikage-san.

p34
>I have a favor to ask...

p35
>What if Mikage was Ibaraki (prefecture)-Doji...
>...
>Cut it out with that blank face lol (Hinata)
>Hey, treasure that sinking feeling (Aju)