I Reincarnated as a Lazy and Evil Noble Volume 3 Release Commemorative SS (Support Limited)

『Important Notice』

I am thrilled to announce that the third volume of I Reincarnated as a Lazy and Evil Noble goes on sale tomorrow!

I’ve put a lot of work into additions and revisions for this release, so I would be incredibly grateful if you could pre-order or pick up a copy.

As it stands, the first week’s sales are the deciding factor for whether or not we can continue the series.

This series hasn’t had a reprint yet, so the situation regarding a potential Volume 4 is... actually quite dire!

I humbly, sincerely ask for your support...!

I’ll be posting more about this in a Status Report later on.

In the meantime, I’m releasing a new Support Limited SS for you all.

This one is: 024 Weiss and Teacher Milk's Midnight Snack. (2739 characters)

Timeline-wise, you can think of it as a bit of a behind-the-scenes look at the Time Lapse special training!

Thank you all so much.

Pre-order here ↓ https://amazon.co.jp/dp/4041161576

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Shortly before Summer Vacation (Estarm) came to an end, Teacher Milk returned from her hometown.

I was so happy I could hardly contain myself, but since this was right after Tucker’s death, my feelings were... complicated, to say the least.

Time Lapse was his memento, but the way I’d acquired it felt less like an inheritance and more like I’d just stared him down and snatched it away.

Would using this really serve as a tribute to him?

Or am I exactly what I think I am—just a piece of trash?

"—You’re hesitating."

Teacher Milk saw right through me on the night of our first spar in a while.

As far as I was concerned, nothing had changed in my swordplay or my magic.

And yet—.

"...What makes you say that?" I asked.

"Your physical condition, your heart, your past, your future... it all flows into your blade and your mana. —The 'you' from before was stronger."

I didn't know how to talk back to that.

Whenever I was around Teacher Milk, for some reason, all my pretenses stripped away and I became my true self.

I hadn't been able to keep food down for days. And because of that—

"—Gurgle. ...Ah, er, wait, that was!?"

"Let's go."

"Huh? Go where!?"

"There’s only one thing to do when you’re hungry in the middle of the night."

"...One thing?"

Pyururururu, pyururururu—.

The next thing I knew, I was riding double on a horse with Teacher Milk. We traveled for several hours until we reached a certain town.

Wait, was a place like this even mentioned in the Original Story?

...And what's with that stall?

"That’s the one. Follow me."

"Y-Yes, ma'am."

As Weiss Fancent, I occupied a pretty high rung on the social ladder.

But Teacher Milk didn't give a damn about status. She treated me like anyone else.

In a weird way, it was comfortable.

By the way, the stall was... well, how should I put it? It was a total Allen.

When I pushed through the curtain-like fabric, I found a somber-looking middle-aged guy draining the water from some thin noodles.

A pot of soup was simmering and bubbling away nearby.

"Nn—? Oh, if it isn't Milk."

"I see you’re still breathing."

"Hah! Right back atcha. —Wait, don’t tell me you finally went and had a kid?"

"He's my employer, a noble. Watch your mouth."

"...S-Seriously?"

I told them that acting normal was fine. The guy looked like some legendary veteran warrior, but he was actually pretty friendly.

"Two bowls. Make 'em good."

"Coming right up!"

God, it smelled amazing. It was exactly like that Allen—the kind that tastes like heaven when you eat it late at night. The kind where you feel a sense of absolute sin as you slurp the noodles and guzzle down the broth.

To think something like this existed in Noblesse, too.

"Weiss. Are you troubled by something?"

"...I might be."

She had me completely figured out.

But I wasn't going to talk about Tucker.

I wasn't ready to put those feelings into words yet.

Whether she sensed that or not, Teacher Milk didn't push.

Instead—.

"People die."

"Eh?"

Teacher Milk spoke suddenly while looking straight ahead.

The man behind the counter was moving busily.

"When I was in the Knights, people died every single day. Green recruits, veterans, old-timers, commoners, mages—death doesn't care who you are. It comes for everyone."

"............"

It felt like she was looking right through my soul.

I stayed quiet and let her talk.

"Living through those days, I eventually stopped asking for names. Do you know why?"

"Because... you didn't want to know them?"

Teacher Milk’s eyes looked sadder than I’d ever seen them.

"Their pasts, their futures, the things they wanted to achieve... the more I heard, the more those things weighed on my heart. Ignorance is easy. It's better not to know who the person dying next to you really is. But one day, I changed my mind. Because someone precious to me died."

"...Someone precious..."

In the Original Story, Teacher Milk never talked about her past. Or rather, she probably just didn't want to.

And yet, for my sake...

"After the war ended, I fulfilled that guy's final wish for him. And that’s when I realized: Ah, this was probably for the best. —Weiss, I don't know what’s weighing on you. But the dead don't talk. Your own feelings are all that matter. Treasure those feelings."

It felt like a physical blow to the head.

I had been agonizing over whether it was right for me to use Time Lapse.

Weiss Fancent is trash. But I was worried that my actions were worse than that—that I was effectively spitting on the dead—.

But that wasn't it. In the end, I'm the one who decides what it means.

And what I do with that power is up to me, too.

Besides, Tucker said it himself at the very end.

『—Thank you, Weiss Fancent.』

...Sorry, Tucker.

I might be trash. So just let me use your Flash.

—You'll forgive me, right?

"Here you go! Two bowls, meat and veggies—extra helpings!"

Right on cue, a bowl of thin noodles was slammed down into the delicious-looking soup, piled high with toppings.

The aroma alone was enough to make my stomach growl.

"Once your stomach is full, you’ll stop overthinking things. When you're worried, eat. And then fight. That’s the best way."

"Hah! Milk, you haven't changed a bit."

"Shut up. Stop talking and get back to your prep work."

"Yes, yes, boss."

The rapport between the two of them reminded me of my conversations with Zebis.

I steeled my resolve, cut away my doubts, and started slurping the noodles with everything I had.

The flavor was rich, bold, and heavy.

—Delicious.

As expected of Noblesse.

After we finished, I went off alone to fetch the horses we’d tied up.

Even if I was technically the one with the higher status, I figured I should at least do that much.

――――

――

―

"Hey, Milk. I'm standing right here, aren't I?"

"Who said you were the 'precious person'? I was talking about someone else entirely."

"Hah! You can say that now. Even though you're the one who helped me set up this stall. Man, it takes me back... remember how we used to run across the battlefield with Zebis? Well—even if I lost my legs, my spirit didn't break."

The man slid his legs out from the side of the stall.

They were both prosthetics—souvenirs from the war.

Just then, Weiss called out to Milk from a distance.

As Milk stood up to leave, she threw one last comment over her shoulder.

"See ya. Your skills have improved a little."

"Hah, thanks. It's only popular now because I had you checking the taste. Give my regards to Zebis."

"Yeah. I'll tell him... Leader."

The man watched the retreating backs of Milk and Weiss.

He remembered what Milk had told him.

『He is an incredible talent. A true genius. Even if you gathered the talent of every single person in the Kingdom Knight Order, let alone my own, you still wouldn't be able to surpass him.』

"...So that kid is Weiss. Well, she wasn't lying. That was some incredible mana. —Keep at it, kid."

This man was the former—Ogre Knight Captain. He was the one who had trained Milk Abitus and Zebis Alldin back when they were just fresh recruits during the war at Biltova in the east.

That being said, Milk Abitus had stopped using polite speech with him after only two days. Her reason? It was a hassle.

"That little fledgling Milk... she started taking after me before I even noticed. Good grief, I guess there are some perks to living a long life."

The very next day, Weiss Fancent began his training with Time Lapse.