Volume 11 Chapter 4 Part 3
「I, Ester, personally confirmed Michio’s ability. If there is a person who objects to his admission, may they step forward and let their objections be known.」
Even if you say something like 「If there is a person who objects to his admission」, it is literally my first time meeting the people here beside the examiner, Ester and the referrer, the Duke, so this whole speech is probably just a part of the ceremonial procedures.
「Let it be know that there are no objections to Michio’s admission to the Society.」
After waiting for a while, the other witness, the Earl, speaks. It would seem that his role in all of this was to sum up me and my potential in front of other participants.
「I acknowledge Michio’s admission to the Empire Liberation Society. Michio, repeat the following words of the Empire Liberation Society’s oath after me.」
「Understood.」
So we even need to swear an oath as part of the ceremony?
「I hereby swear that as a member of the Empire Liberation Society, I will not neglect putting effort and devotion into my duty of exterminating the monsters and the Labyrinths.」
「I, Michio, hereby swear that as a member of the Empire Liberation Society, I will not neglect putting effort and devotion into my duty of exterminating the monsters and the Labyrinths.」
「And I swear not to leak any internal information of the Empire Liberation Society to the outside world.」
「And I swear not to leak any internal information of the Empire Liberation Society to the outside world.」
I repeat Ester’s words and take the oath. I don’t have any particular reservations about the content of the oath either.
「The initiation ceremony is now over. Welcome to the Empire Liberation Society, Michio.」
「Thank you.」
「After the initiation ceremony for the remaining two people has been conducted, the new members will partake in the additional admission ritual where you will have to confess one of your embarrassing sexual secrets before the other members. Partaking in this ritual is essential in order for you to be reborn as a strong member of the Empire Liberation Society.」
Do we really have to go so far as to partake in such a ritual?
I realize that a confession of a secret will raise sense of solidarity which will enforce sense of belonging to the society, but still…
This initiation thing is starting to get out of hand, especially since I have a lot of secrets
「Reveal a secret?」
「Now that you have joined the Empire Liberation Society, it is against the rules to expose your personal secrets before others. But rest assured; whatever you choose to reveal here will not be leaked outside of the walls of this room no matter which of your secrets you will choose to reveal to us. As for the referrer, because they are often close the people they recommend, it is possible to have them leave if that is going to be your wish. As for the two in the back, think over what you will confess during the ritual carefully to make sure that you won’t say something you will end up regretting.」
「Very well.」
「Of course.」
The Emperor and his bodyguard both replied swiftly.
Are you going to make even the Emperor confess his sexual secret? Or maybe instead of anything sexual, I should just reveal that I actually came to this world from earth?
If I reveal that secret here, I can have only the Emperor, the Duke and the people here know about the secret without it leaking outside.
It may come in handy if something happens to me at some point in future. However, they might consider it a joke if I said I came from another world.
Then maybe I should reveal that I can cast magic even though I am an Adventurer since it is possible to verify it on the spot?
If I showed it right in front of them, they would have to believe it, right?
「I have gotten tired of hearing confessions of not being able to stop masturbating. Keep in mind that until I recognize your confession as a genuine one, you will have to keep going.」
So It is actually like that, huh? It will not be acceptable if it is not an embarrassing sexual secret? I wonder if something related to Sex Maniac would do the trick then?
There is a merit in sharing a secret with the Emperor or the Duke; however, exactly what kind of secret, it is difficult to decide.
If there is a research institution in the Empire’s infrastructure relating to fighting against the Labyrinths, it may be sent there as research material.
Confessing a normal secret should be fine then.
Thereafter, the Emperor and his guard perform the initiation ceremony. Except for the Earl taking the Duke’s place by the table, everything, even the speech, was exactly the same as it was in my case.
These must all be cliched lines that every new recruit hears when they join.
「Since it will be Michio’s admission courtesy now, do I excuse myself for a bit?」
After the bodyguard’s initiation ceremony, the Duke asks me that. It is better not to let my referrer hear my embarrassing secret, and it is better to have less people listen, of course.
「Can I request you to do so?」
「I understand. Then, I will leave my seat for a while.」
The Duke simply moves to the neighboring room.
He leaves just like that. Is it because of the rules?
「Then, Michio will reveal his embarrassing sexual secret first. Everyone, myself included, are forbidden from laughing; we can only listen seriously. However, if you judge that his secret isn’t enough of a secret, reproach him for it. Michio, come here, if you would.」
After the Duke went out, Ester reiterates inside the room which had gone back to being dimly lit.
「Okay.」
Ester urges me to the other side of the table. Inside the dark, only the edges of the table are visible because of the candlelight.
I can faintly discern the appearance of the audience comprising four people. It is a good setting to make a confession.
「You may begin.」
Ester, who had moved to the other side, instructs me.
Then, which secret I should share… maybe that one?
「Once, there was a pretty female clerk at a shop in the neighborhood close to where I live.
When she returned the change, she would always clasp my hand gently. I was certain that was a sign that this girl was interested in me. Ever since then, I would always buy from that shop and line up in front of that girl. I would always pay in large denomination even if I had small denomination available. Later on, I heard from people that she was a clerk responsible only for returning the change. Was this story different from what you usually hear?]
That was a terribly embarrassing misunderstanding for me.
「So trivial!」
「We didn’t get it. What was it about, really?”
「That is a pretty common story, is it not?」
The Baron, the Emperor and the guard evaluate my secret, but it didn’t receive good reviews.
The Emperor probably doesn’t understand what ‘change’ means, so even if I gave it to him, it would still be no good, because he himself probably didn’t do much shopping himself in his life.
「What… what do you mean? Don’t tell me that the girl clasping your hand means…」
One of them seems to be stuck at a strange part, but he probably liked it?
「I didn’t get the lining up before the girl part; however, he was certainly going to propose a marriage because of the misunderstanding.」
Ester interrupts. They don’t even understand lining up at the cash register, but that’s a given since there are no cash registers in this world, so they mistook it for me asking for her hand in marriage!
「No, it didn’t go that far.」
「That won’t do. Confessing because of a misunderstanding, getting dumped, returning home disgusted and the following series of events; if it didn’t go to that extent, then I am afraid that it cannot be called an embarrassing secret.」
「Then, I will talk about the time when I visited a town for the first time and asked a little girl for directions. Afterwards, there were warning leaflets plastered all over the town warning the locals about a pervert who talks to young girls out of the blue.」
I share another embarrassing story because Ester had refused to accept the first one.
「This doesn’t sound like that big of a deal.」
Soooo cringe