episode_0136

“What are you doing? The food’s getting cold. Eat quickly.”

“Mm, just a second.”

Right before taking the spoon, I pinched my cheek lightly, just in case.

“It’s not a dream.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“No, it’s nothing. Just talking to myself. Thanks for the consideration.”

I took the spoon from Lucilla and brought it lightly to my mouth.

“It’s good. Here, I’m done.”

“Understood. Then I’ll accept your kindness.”

Lucilla took the spoon from me and began slowly eating the stew. It’s nice how indifferent she is at times like this. If it were Chris or Cecilia, they’d have made a fuss about bringing a new spoon.

As Lucilla quietly ate her stew, I spoke to her.

“Once you finish that, I’ll call someone, so you can rest. I’ll also have them bring a few sets of clothes—wear whatever’s comfortable.”

“Does the mansion have women’s clothes? Chris’s clothes wouldn’t fit me.”

“The servants keep their personal clothes stored here too. They can’t exactly go on leave wearing their work uniforms. If borrowing commoners’ clothes bothers you, we can just pay the owner for them.”

Honestly, given that I’ve publicly declared Lucilla is under Chris’s protection, no one in this mansion would dare refuse to lend her clothes.

“I see. Then I’ll gratefully accept. I won’t forget this kindness—”

“No need to feel so burdened. Just relax. It was my decision to have you stay here instead of the student dorm, after all.”

“Even so, Eric and I are complete strangers. It’s only natural to express gratitude for such generosity.”

“……”

Complete strangers—just as she said.

To others, the current me must seem like an eccentric overflowing with inexplicable goodwill.

“I told you, I saw you in a prophecy. This is just an investment in you.”

“Yet you haven’t explained whether you’re truly a prophet or what you plan to do next. As expected, you’re…”

“I’m what?”

I asked nonchalantly. If Lucilla caught onto something here, this wouldn’t end as a simple matter.

Just getting caught by Chris had already saddled me with the penalty of unnecessary hemoptysis. Fortunately, I’d prepared countermeasures in advance, so I wasn’t coughing up blood constantly anymore, but it was still an annoying restriction.

The first penalty had been blatantly obvious—a ploy to trigger the other three’s flags. It did no harm to my body, only evoking sympathy.

Probably because seeing it would make the others more likely to offer apologies and forgiveness.

And the remaining penalties? They’d only get worse from here—incurable illness, loss of senses, and finally, death.

As someone who had to keep guiding them while dodging their advances, any of these would be fatal. They’d likely focus more on protecting me than the enemies in front of them. Even if I stayed in the empire to quietly recuperate, they’d never just obediently accept it.

Elia would probably insist on staying, but would the others quietly accept that? Unlikely.

Either way, in this situation, Lucilla’s next words could drastically derail my plans.

“Eric, you…”

I held my breath, waiting for her to continue.

“Did Chris tell you something about me? About all of us?”

“Huh?”

Why was Chris’s name suddenly coming up here?

“Chris?”

“Yes. Did she ever ask you to look after us, or mention the prophecy? This is important. Please answer truthfully.”

“Well…”

I see.

From Lucilla’s perspective, Chris would naturally be the prime suspect. If someone had helped me drop my madman act and reveal myself as a prophet, the closest person would logically be Chris.

She probably suspected Chris had used our shared residence to steer me in this direction. A reasonable assumption, but I quietly shook my head.

“No, nothing like that.”

“Nothing at all? No advice about the future, no offhand remarks—nothing?”

“Nothing. Chris just decided to support me after hearing what I had to say. Like all of you. I regained my sanity because the prophecy I saw in my dream was that shocking. No one manipulated or deceived me, so don’t worry.”

“I… see. My apologies. That was an unnecessary question.”

“It’s fine.”

For a moment, I considered pinning everything on Chris to ease this awkward dynamic.

But the thought quickly faded.

Doing so would inevitably place all responsibility for whatever happened to me solely on Chris. That would spark infighting and collapse their relationships in an instant.

Why did you drag me back into this battlefield? This is all your fault!—such lovely words would flourish.

And our ever-dutiful little sister would quietly accept the blame, even if it wasn’t her fault.

“If you’re curious, why not ask Chris yourself? She’s probably still awake, buried in paperwork. She’d be happy to see you.”

A glance at the clock confirmed it was late, but dawn was still far off. The fact that there’d been no word or action yet meant Chris had already been briefed about our situation.

“It’s fine. If you say so, pressing further would be rude to Chris.”

With that, Lucilla glanced around my room.

“Speaking of which, for the second son of Duke Grave, this place is surprisingly lacking.”

“Lacking? In what?”

“The security is far too lax. That window alone has no barrier. A trained assassin could take your life anytime.”

“The window?”

“Not just that. Even the bed—as a knight, I can tell it’s made of materials with no magical infusion. Installing barrier magic would be impossible.”

“That’s because I don’t need it.”

“Don’t need it? You’re severely undervaluing yourself. You—”

“Chris is already the heir, and since I support that, there’s no reason to assassinate me. Besides, you think there’s nothing in this room? I value my life too.”

I pulled something from my pocket and showed it to her.

“This is…”

“Yep. The ‘Ironclad’ artifact. Expensive, but worth every penny.”

After realizing regression was impossible, I’d spent a fortune on this artifact. True to its name, it unconditionally protects its owner from any lethal threat once and neutralizes all but the most extreme poisons. A truly versatile item.

In the original story, the protagonist found it and foolishly handed it over to Lucilla. Not me.

If it came down to it, the others could handle any life-threatening situation for me.

“No matter what, I always carry this with me.”

“With this artifact, assassination or poisoning isn’t a concern. But assassins are always one step ahead of those who worry.”

“Seriously, there’s no need to be so anxious. If it bothers you, stand guard in my room all day. See if anyone even tries.”

“In your room?”

“Yeah. We’re already living in the same mansion. What’s the difference if we share a room?”

Besides, unlike Cecilia, I was confident Lucilla would never pounce on me or do anything weird.

What about me would make her choose that?

At this point, neither of us carried burdens light enough to throw everything away over a one-night fling.

So right now, Lucilla in my room—without her holy sword—was still an exceptional knight, perfectly prepared for guard duty.

As a level-headed, non-emotional hero candidate, she’d be the most reliable protector.

“If I can sleep here, that’s fine. Especially if it’s guarding you. Leave it to me. Not even a mouse will dare approach.”

“No need to go that far… Ah.”

As I briefly explained my room’s layout and tomorrow’s schedule, I added one last thing.