Chapter 19: Noelle and the murder, Part 2

Knock knock knock knock

“Excuse me? May I come in?”

That crazy… what is she doing here?

Is she really so obsessed with Allen that she’d commit murder to see him?

…No, the victim was Noel’s fiancé. That’s… strange.

Could it be… she’s not here for me, but for…

“…Noel?”

Damn it, this complicates things.

If she’s here for Allen, I can just talk my way out of it and run.

But if she’s here for Noel… Noel might die.

Especially after what I just saw… I’m even more worried.

I need to get Noel out of here…

“…[Lock].”

Bzzzt

“U-Uncle?”

“…I’m just coming in. Excuse m—”

Rattle rattle

“…What? Why is it locked?”

Rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle

“Listen, everyone. The person at the door, the one banging like a maniac… is that the same person from the newspaper?”

“…Yes. It’s Hero Yerin.”

“I don’t know what she wants, but if she’s killed someone, she’s dangerous. I’ll stall her. You two run.”

“B-But Uncle!”

His self-sacrifice is touching, but Yerin won’t even spare him a glance.

But I appreciate the gesture…

Rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle rattle

…It’s only a matter of time, judging by the way she’s trying to break down the door.

And…

“How do we escape?! Won’t she see us if we go out?”

Even if we go out the window, she’ll hear us and come running…

“Allen.”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t touch your secret stash.”

“…!!”

Oh, right! That!

“…Noel, let’s go.”

“Wh-Where are we going?”

“To my room.”

Allen’s usual room. He took advantage of the inn’s unpopularity and his regular guest status to create…

…a secret stash in his room.

He got permission from the innkeeper while helping with the inn’s spring cleaning.

Crash!

“Damn it! She broke down the door already?!”

“Allen, what’s ‘damn it’?”

“Good girls like you don’t need to know!”

And this stash… Allen, who can barely use magic but can still channel a little bit of mana… if he imbues the stash with mana…

Click

“There!”

I grab a potion and give one to Noel.

“What’s this…?”

“Noel, listen carefully. Go out the window, pour this potion on the ground, and when the puddle glows, think of your home and step into it.”

The potion I gave her is a teleportation potion. The same kind I used after defeating the Demon King.

“Step into the puddle…?”

“Just… imagine you’re stepping on it with both feet…!”

“But my shoes will get wet… that’s uncomfortable…”

“No, it’ll be fine. Won’t you listen to me, good girl Noel?”

“…Promise me.”

“What?”

“Promise me we’ll meet again.”

“Yes! Noel! We’re friends, right? Good friends don’t just meet once and say goodbye! We’ll meet again!”

“…You’re right. But Allen…”

“Hmm…?”

What is it now…?

“I don’t like it when you say ‘friend’ so much.”

“Oh.”

Creak… whoosh

Noel, reminding me of how I rejected her by calling her a “friend,” opens the window and jumps out.

Luckily, Yerin and the innkeeper are still talking in the lobby…

Footsteps

Nope, she’s coming this way.

Creak… thud

I close the window and prepare to face Yerin.

My mind races, trying to figure out how to break her.

Footsteps…

She’s at my door.

There’s no point in letting her in. The bed is out of place, she’ll know something’s up.

So…

Rattle

I open the door from my side.

“Oh my?”

I push Yerin, who’s hiding her face with a cloak, against the wall.

Slam!

I close the door.

“Aww♥ What’s wrong, Allen… Don’t be shy.”

She didn’t see inside. And even an idiot like Noel should be able to teleport away.

Now, for my method acting, with a dash of genuine emotion.

Watch closely, Allen. I, a complete stranger, will play your part.

“…Hey.”

“Hmph…！ Allen’s informal speech… it’s so… precious…”

“Who are you to come looking for me? You’re a murderer.”

“But… he insulted Allen first. He deserved to die.”

“…You still don’t get it.”

“Nope! I’m crazy about Allen. I can’t live without him. So let’s go back, Allen… okay?”

“…”

Footsteps

“Wh-Where are you going, Allen?!”

“…What did you do to Uncle?”

“Huh? Oh… he wouldn’t answer my questions, kept trying to kick me out… so I knocked him out. But I didn’t hurt him badly. He’s important to Allen, so I didn’t kill him!”

“…You’re insane.”

“By the way, Allen. That friend of yours, Noel… where is she?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Really? But… I smell another woman’s scent on you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s probably just the blood on your hands.”

“No, no. The scent of another woman on Allen… it’s far more nauseating than blood. The thought of another woman being with Allen… it’s disgusting, infuriating.”

“But it’s okay, Allen! Everything will be fine when we go back. I’ll apologize for everything, I’ll listen to all your complaints, I’ll fix everything. So let’s go… okay?”

“…Do you even understand the concept of power dynamics?”

“Huh? What do you mean—”

Slap

Thud

“Oh.”

“Why are you sitting down? It’s harder to hit you like that.”

Slap slap slap slap

“Hmph…！ Ugh…！ I-I’m sorry…!”

Slap slap slap slap

“Ugh…！ I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”

Slap slap sla—

“…You’re hopeless.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I’m sorry for ignoring Allen’s pain… I’m sorry for being useless and not defeating the Demon King myself… I’m sorry for killing someone…”

“Yes. You know. You’re guilty from the moment you dragged me into the hero’s party. I clearly refused, but you kept pushing, using your supposed ‘good intentions’ to manipulate me.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry”

“I was genuinely trying. With a pure heart. And you trampled all over it. Do you understand?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry”

“You’re sorry, Hero Yerin? Then what should you do when you’re sorry?”

“When you’re sorry… y-you reflect! You reflect and ask for forgiveness…! Allen, I’ve reflected so much, I’ve realized so much… I’m so, so sorry… I’ve sinned against Allen so much… I’ll spend the rest of my life repenting… So, will you forgive me? Will you forgive me and come back…?”

“No. I’m not forgiving you. And I’m definitely not going back.”

“Aah… no…!”

“So go back. Go back to the palace and pay for your crime.”

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!”

…Is that enough?

Yerin is more broken than I thought. She was perfectly fine before Allen left, but now… just one day without him, and she’s like this.

What kind of life did she have on Earth to become so dependent on Allen?

The way she’s clutching her head, screaming… she’s completely insane.

“…Now’s my chance.”

There’s nothing more to do here. I’ll just leave Yerin to her self-destruction and get out of this inn…

“…Where are you going.”

“…?”

“I can’t accept this. Allen, you’re not going anywhere. You’re going to ignore me and leave, even after I begged you?”

“…Begged? What the h*ll does your begging have to do with me? I’m useless, remember? Keeping me around is just a burden. You just go and pay for your crime.”

“No, Allen, you’re coming with me. I’ll take you by force if I have to.”

She slowly gets up and walks towards me.

Damn it… is this really happening?

She’s completely irrational…

“It’s your fault, Allen. You didn’t accept my apology, so I have to do this. I wanted to end this peacefully…!”

Then let’s end it peacefully. By you quietly disappearing.

“How are you going to take me? You can’t be seen in public. If you carry me, everyone will see.”

Just give up…

“No. I’m still taking you. As long as I have Allen, nothing else matters.”

So, this is how it’s going to be.

“…I didn’t want to use this.”

When she’s less than 20 meters away, I quickly drink the potion I took from the stash.

“…Ugh. This tastes awful.”

“Aaaaaalleeeeeen—!!!”

As she lunges towards me, trying to embrace me…

Whoosh!

“Huh?! Wha—?!”

I dodge her embrace.

And sprint towards the forest near the inn.

After drinking the speed potion from the secret stash, which doubles my speed…

“Come and get me, you stupid hero b*tch.”

“No! Allen, stop!!”

…with Yerin hot on my heels.