The Bird That Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (5)

“Uh, um…”

“So…”

They’re flustered. They’re definitely flustered.

Banyan bit her lip to hold back her laughter. And she furrowed her brows and clasped her hands together to make that very appearance look worried. Then she said:

“Um, I came from the countryside because I really wanted to meet the hero… Is, is he not here?”

As she shot a desperate look, the porter rolled his eyes and pulled up a chair.

“Uh… He’s just stepped out for a moment. How about waiting a little? Have some tea here…”

Lena nodded and agreed with the porter’s words.

“That’s right. That’s right. He’ll be back soon. Just wait here for now.”

Banyan shook her head and took a step back.

“Ah, no. That would be rude. I’ll come back a little later.”

As Banyan stretched her steps to the outside of the shop, Lena said:

“What’s your name? I’ll let the hero know when he comes back.”

“Ah, that… You, you can tell the hero, but he probably won’t know… Um… I’ll, I’ll be going!”

Banyan shouted that and disappeared into the distance. Lena stared blankly at the spot where Banyan had disappeared, then nodded and sat down. Banyan, having distanced herself, erased her shy expression and stretched triumphantly, exuding a sinister atmosphere.

It’s impossible to perfectly imitate another person. No matter how much you investigate someone, accidents happen from unexpected directions.

Especially, it was impossible to perfectly imitate a person based on just a rough description of their appearance. Acting confidently to mimic someone based on a few words is an amateur’s skit. Banyan was not an amateur but a professional among professionals.

In the end, for an assassin, disguise was not the goal but a means. Those who mistook this would eventually be caught up in arrogance and make a big mistake, and only those like Banyan who were aware of this could survive safely in the dark back alleys.

[Mary was a very cute girl with freckles on her face and curly pigtails. The ribbon on her blonde hair suited her so well, and she had a big chest and liked to wear fluttery skirts.]

She couldn’t perfectly imitate Mary, the country girl, but she could mimic an atmosphere that would make people who heard the description think of Mary. A shy, big-chested woman with pigtails, curly hair, and freckles who came from the countryside.

Of course, Banyan had no intention of claiming to be Mary when facing the hero. Mary was just a keyword. A keyword that would inevitably draw the hero to her. How would a playboy hero act when faced with a sensual, proactive, and innocent country girl who resembled his first love?

She was someone who could lead even an ordinary man to bed within an hour. It was natural that even a hero would fall if she targeted a point and seduced him.

“Well then… Should I go to a coffee shop for a bit?”

As she said this, Banyan’s appearance had already changed into a woman with red hair in an elegant suit.

---

“A woman resembling Mary?”

“Yes. She looked exactly like the description. I was really surprised.”

“Who’s Mary?”

“Huh?”

The porter asked back with a surprised face.

The hero’s eyes widened a beat late as he exclaimed. His face repeatedly turned pale blue then red again, giving an octopus-like impression. She flailed her arms and shouted:

“…Ah! Mary! Of course I remember! How could I forget!”

“Hero, you just acted like a real piece of trash.”

As Lena sneered, the hero scratched his head and laughed exaggeratedly.

“Hahaha. Y-yes, that’s right. I, I almost became a real playboy. A woman resembling M-Mary, I really want to see her!”

Both the porter and Lena looked at each other and smiled. They didn’t say anything specific to the hero, but it was obvious what the two were thinking.

---

Banyan sat in a coffee shop with a clear view of the inn, watching the hero. Although she couldn’t hear the conversation, seeing the hero’s flustered appearance, it was clear he was agitated by the mention of a woman resembling Mary.

How could someone who gets emotionally agitated so easily have seduced women? It was as incomprehensible as how he had repeatedly defeated the Demon King’s army with that seemingly defenseless, slender body.

“But once you’ve fallen for me, that luck ends.”

Now all she had to do was take the hero to a bar. Men often take women they like to bars. If she pretends to be weak to alcohol and sways with a flushed face, playboys who like to play with women will eagerly drag her to their lodgings.

Then they mindlessly explore the woman’s body and spew out their desires like pigs.

Everyone becomes defenseless and weak during intimate moments. Banyan knew how to hide a dagger under the pillow and how to slash the carotid artery at a speed even knights couldn’t react to. She knew how to subdue an opponent with just bedroom skills and was also well-versed in aromatic candles and pharmaceuticals that could induce lewd feelings.

“So, Lena. I’ll take your man.”

Saying that, Banyan gathered her supplies. From the alley where the woman in a suit had entered, a blonde girl with an innocent face carrying a small bag emerged. She flicked her tongue and walked towards the inn, and as soon as she saw the hero, she smiled brightly with tears in her eyes.

---

“H-hero! Hello!”

The hero hesitated on how to react to the woman who had really appeared. In fact, if it was just a woman throwing herself at him, it would be simple to push her away. Should he just coldly and firmly push her away like a proper hero? But this woman looked exactly like that ‘first love’ he said was waiting for him in his hometown.

Moreover, his companions who had heard the story of his first love were watching right in front of him.

It would be suspicious to suddenly push away this woman whose purpose for coming was unknown.

“Hello.”

So the hero decided to be friendly for now. When the hero greeted her, the blonde woman seemed moved, her eyes welling up with tears as she stamped her feet in excitement. It was such a pure maiden-like appearance that the porter smiled warmly, while Lena turned her head, scanning the menu.

“H-hero…! It’s such an honor…! I came from the countryside because I really wanted to talk to you! Um, could you please sign this for me?”

She held out a handkerchief. The hero gladly took the handkerchief and signed it. Then, trying his best to smile naturally, he said:

“Thank you for supporting me. For coming such a long way. I’ll work harder to fight against the demons from now on.”

“Th-that, H-hero…!”

The blonde woman grabbed the hero’s collar. The hero looked at the awkwardly extended hand motion and the flexible finger movements gently grasping. After staring at her hand for a moment, the hero looked back at the woman’s face.

The woman, with a flushed face, spoke in a coy tone:

“Um… I really want to treat you to a meal… If, if possible…”

Lena raised her head. She looked at the woman with narrowed brows. The porter asked Lena:

“What’s wrong?”

Lena shrugged and asked the porter:

“Then should we not order for the hero? Ashuria and Mille said they’d be here soon too.”

“What will you do, hero?”

“Uh…”

The hero pondered. He usually rejected these kinds of proposals outright, but this time it seemed not so easy to refuse.

“Well… Usually I make it a rule to reject such invitations. But it’s hard to refuse someone who came all the way from the countryside… I’ll go.”

When the hero said he would go, the blonde woman grabbed his hand with a bright smile. She thought the hero was just pretending to be nice in front of his companions. She had seen many villains before, and they all pretended to be uninterested in women or strict about relationships with women like the hero, while doing dirty things behind closed doors.

He probably thought he would lead her into his control after reluctantly accepting her dinner invitation, but once someone fell into her grasp, they all lost their senses as if hypnotized.

Today, Banyan’s small bag contained aphrodisiacs that would excite someone with just one dose, and aphrodisiacs that were sticky and sweet like honey and could be disguised as seasoning. Even if the hero didn’t eat these drugs, she had a final measure prepared.

This match could only end in victory. Banyan was confident of this and smiled invisibly. Then she changed her expression again and urged the hero.

“Come quickly! Quickly!”

Banyan’s hand pulled the hero. Coincidentally, the setting evening sun stretched the shadows of the buildings, and darkness had settled outside the inn.

At a time when the lights hadn’t been turned on yet. Banyan’s expression was hidden in the long shadows, and the hero was awkwardly matching her pace. A long, long darkness was stretching towards the destination of the two.

And in the inn, the porter and Lena were choosing their menus while watching the two.

Lena said:

“I’ll have this. Pepper roast chicken.”

“I’ll have this sliced duck pizza.”

“Oh, that’s delicious. As expected, you know your tastes, old man.”

“I was a well-known gourmet even in the Empire.”

Lena smiled slightly at those words and closed the menu. The porter lightly tapped the table and looked around.

Amidst the white noise of people chattering loudly and glasses clinking,

only Lena’s voice was heard clearly.

“What are you going to do? Should I go?”

The porter looked at Lena and smiled.

“Where do you mean?”

Lena patted the porter’s shoulder and said:

“What do you mean, where? The hero just left. You noticed that woman was suspicious, right?”

The porter rolled his eyes for a moment, then glanced outside and nodded. Then he cleared his throat and said with a very confident expression:

“…Yes. She was a very suspicious woman. I had noticed everything too.”

Lena said with an incredulous expression:

“…Are you starting to resemble the hero more and more?”