Falling: How to Survive as a Cannon Fodder

HTSCF CH 006 Are you an open pervert or a closet pervert?

A/N: This chapter's title was inspired by a conversation between two characters from the anime Log Horizon about how there are only two types of perverts lol

Beta: Jeannette

Jun looked back and forth between Eli and Azel. There seemed to be a battle of eye sparks and lightning between them. Was this that legendary battle between two men over a woman? Oh, wait, the wrong gender.

"Azel you shithead, you sure did a fantastic job protecting Jun." Eli sneered. "Since you did such a fantastic job, then Jun is completely mine from now on."

"... What?" Jun turned to look at Eli.

Azel's eyebrows narrowed, his eyes moving down Jun's frame, stopping at his slender legs. "What are you talking about? Who's Jun?"

"Good, very good." Eli laughed mockingly. "You seem to have forgotten our deal. Whatever, if it means taking you out of the picture, then I can let things go since Jun is still safe and sound."

Without another word, Eli dragged Jun away, leaving behind a confused Azel. Wasn't the deal regarding Dahlye? As for Jun...

Azel felt a headache coming on. These days he had been trying to slowly enter Dahlye's life again, but she was so different from what he remembered. Not only was she bossy and short-tempered, but she was also showering her affections on people like Charles Erwin and Gerard Narukami, and there were even two other men even though she had promised herself to just him and Eli long ago.

For the last 12 years, he had been keeping watch over Dahlye from a distance, making sure she was safe and that no misfortune would befall her according to the deal he made with Eli. After they parted with Eli, he and Dahlye grew apart after an argument. He still remembered her last words to him: "I'm Dahlye, not Jun! Why does everyone keep mistaking me for him!?"

Azel's young and pure heart had been so shocked by her angry tears that he ran away, never to meet with Dahlye again in person until a week ago. There was someone he had mistaken for Dahlye around the same time. What had he said?

"Nope, wrong person. I'm her older twin brother."

Azel clutched his head. The memories from 12 years ago were so fuzzy and every time he tried to recall, his head hurt.

He remembered now that he used to call Dahlye Jun. When she threw that tantrum, he was so surprised he didn't think. But if Jun is a boy, has he been protecting the wrong person all this time? The headache was getting worse...

Back in the barracks, Eli was sitting next to Jun with his arms around his shoulders, enjoying their closeness. After explaining things without withholding information this time, Eli said with a smirk, "Azel is a bit slow, but he's probably figured out where he went wrong by now. But you shouldn't forgive him so quickly, baby. After all, he neglected you for over 12 years!"

Though Eli appeared quite content with himself, Jun couldn't help but mentally shake his head. Wasn't this a case of the pot calling the kettle black? With the addition of male lead #3, his survival chances would rise again, but wouldn't stealing a harem member evoke the female protagonist's ire? In that case, things would just cancel out and his survival chances would remain the same. Maybe he should just leave Azel alone. There was already one pervert to deal with.

Jun had been slowly rereading the plot of this world during his free time, to better deal with the female protagonist and her harem in case they came after him. From what he'd read, Azel was what you'd call a closet pervert, whereas Eli was an open pervert. Basically, Azel was a stalker. He secretly monitored the female protagonist, took pictures, and had people follow her at all times.