Chapter 35

“Stop hesitating and come in”

Elaine hesitated at my words but eventually climbed into the carriage. The luxurious custom made carriage was spacious enough for two. But Elaine sat as far away from me as possible. Naturally, I just chuckled.

“Good day, Miss Elaine, it’s an honor to have you here.”

Dolph quickly bowed in greeting. Having served the ‘Max’ for a long time, he was quite familiar with the academy’s affairs. It was impossible for him not to know a celebrity from the academy like Elaine.

“Thank you.”

Even in such a situation, Elaine responded with a gentle voice. True to her nature, she was kind to everyone but me.

“Where do you want to go?”

I asked.

“You’re the one who called me.”

Elaine’s voice turned cold again. It was a natural response given my original sin. But today was different. I also had something against her now, so I could take the lead.

“So, can I decide as I please?”

“Do as you wish.”

She seemed resigned, probably thinking she had to follow my lead until this Stalking matter was resolved.

“Alright, let’s get off than.”

“Huh? You’re getting off?”

At my words, Elaine’s eyes widened in surprise. Getting on the carriage implied we were going somewhere. But suddenly, I suggested getting off.

“What? We’re getting off?”

Dolph was just as astonished.

“Yes, wait here. I’ll take care of dinner.”

With that, I got off the carriage first. Elaine followed, looking puzzled.

“Follow me.”

I started walking.

“Are we going back there?”

Elaine’s question was filled with bewilderment. It made sense. The place I was heading to was a lower district.

“Yes.”

“Now is not a good time…”

Her voice trailed off with a troubled expression. It wasn’t hard to guess why she was concerned. She must have made up a hasty excuse to her father to follow me, now worried about running into him. But after all, that wasn’t what I wanted either.

“I understand your concern, but it’s fine. Just follow me.”

I kept walking, and she reluctantly followed. After a while, her expression relaxed. She must have realized we were heading in the complete opposite direction from where Turk lived.

“But why here?”

Elaine asked. I am a noble. An incredibly wealthy one at that. The filthy, smelly lower district streets were the last place someone like me belonged.

“Just because it’s close.”

I answered nonchAllently. Of course, that wasn’t the real reason I chose this place. ‘One should choose a place considering the person.’ A fancy, upscale restaurant? In most cases, that would be the better choice. But not for Elaine.

“Hmm, I heard it’s around here.”

“What is?”

“The skewer grill that’s famous around here.”

I pretended to be lost. In the game, I had visited so often I even knew the owner’s face, but this was my first time here.

“Ah. There.”

“Hmm. Do you know it?”

Elaine confirmed with a peculiar expression. Coincidentally, it was one of her favorite places.

“Come on. I’ll lead the way.”

Elaine took the lead as if there was no time to waste. I followed her. Shortly after. We entered a small shop in a corner of an alley. The smell of grilled skewers hit my nose.

“Oh, Elaine, you’re here?”

A middle-aged woman with a strong presence greeted us warmly. She was the owner of the skewer grill.

“Hello, ma’am.”

“Oh? But who’s this? A friend?”

“Yes… That’s right.”

Elaine’s face changed color as she reluctantly agreed to the term ‘friend.’

“You brought a man… and he’s a friend? Ho ho, you’re at that age.”

The owner chuckled with a knowing look. I wouldn’t mind being set up, but she certainly would. Elaine’s brow furrowed involuntarily.

“It’s not like that.”

“Ho ho, don’t be shy. I’ll keep it a secret from your father, so don’t worry.”

“It’s really not like that!”

“Alright, alright, I get it. Sit down, and I’ll prepare something quickly.”

I passed by the flustered Elaine and took a seat by the window. She sat down opposite me, resigned to the situation.

“Is there only one menu?”

I asked, looking at the wooden menu board. I already knew everything, but what could I do? I had to start anew here.

“…Yes. The fastest service of the best dish, that’s the owner’s motto.”

“That’s nice. It smells good.”

It was an honest impression. It was my first time actually getting to try it. The delicious smell made my mouth water.

“Who told you about this place?”

“Who knows. Probably one of my friends. But why do you ask? Do you think I don’t fit in here?”

I spoke bluntly. Elaine thought for a moment, then nodded slightly without denying it.

“That’s right.”

“Well, I understand. But isn’t it the same everywhere? If it’s delicious, it’s delicious if it’s not, it’s not, whether it’s in a rich or poor neighborhood.”

I summed it up neatly. She seemed taken aback. Because it wasn’t something that ‘Max’ would say.

But if I get flustered by every little thing, there will be no end to it. I may be ‘Max,’ but I’m not ‘that Max.’

A moment of awkward silence.

Then the skewers were served. “Eat up. If it’s not enough, just let me know,” said the owner with a wink as she placed the skewers down, seemingly cheering on our youthful spirits. But that wasn’t it at all.

Anyway, I picked up a skewer. I was hungry, and the delicious smell was irresistible. Crunch.

Skewers made from pork hind leg meat. A cheap cut mostly consisting of tough muscle. A cut that nobles would hardly ever eat.

But. Tough meat has its own chewing pleasure, and with the right seasoning, it can become a delicious dish. That’s exactly what these skewers were.

“Delicious.”

I muttered to myself, thinking that the meat-loving elf Hiresia would go crazy for this, when…

“Who are you?”

Choke, cough… Caught off guard by Elaine’s sudden question, I choked. She seemed not to have expected such a reaction, her eyes wide as she pushed a wooden cup of water towards me.

After my coughing subsided a bit, I slowly drank the water she offered and managed to calm down. “Haah… I’m alive. Why would you say such a weird thing and make people panic?” …In truth, it was a piercing remark.

But I couldn’t admit that, could I? So I raised my voice on purpose.

“Sorry, it just slipped out…”

She apologized, perhaps because the thought had inadvertently popped out of her head. But even as she apologized, she seemed confused, narrowing her eyes and fiddling with her hair using her fingers.

Then finally.

“But it’s strange. No matter how I think about it, it’s strange!”

She openly expressed her inner thoughts. It seemed she was too frustrated to hold back any longer. As her voice grew louder, the owner looked over from the other side, but she just smiled, probably thinking it was a common spat between friends of the opposite s*x.

“Wait, wait, you’re not drunk, are you?”

I calmed her down first. Otherwise, all the customers in the store would start looking our way.

“I sobered up a long time ago. Are you saying that I’m the one who’s strange now? Am I strange? Is my head having strange thoughts?”

“No, it’s not necessarily that…”

I backed off. They say it’s scary when a genius loses their mind, and she seemed to be on the verge of doing just that.

“Is it you who’s normal? Or am I the crazy one?”

…Look, it’s scary. Isn’t the choice of words itself a bit strange?

“I understand, I understand, you.”

I said hastily. What was needed here was empathy. I don’t know why I suddenly have to soothe her like a sulking girlfriend… It seemed her genius mind couldn’t understand the situation and was cracking. At times like this, care is needed.

“…Do you understand?”

Finally, her eyes returned to a semblance of normalcy. Indeed, empathy was the answer.

“Yes, I understand. I hid it too well.”

“Hid it? What do you mean…”

“Yes. It’s probably just as you think.”

“What do I think…?”

“Let’s leave it at that.”

I cut off the conversation there. It’s best to throw out some bait and stop while looking cool. Rambling on is something only fools do. Even with just this much, I could tell that her confusion had been somewhat alleviated. The rest can be left to her imagination.

“Now it’s my turn to ask. Why did you tail me?”

I changed the subject to shift the mood.

“…Sorry.”

Her gaze dropped, perhaps feeling guilty.

“Why did you do it?”

“…Out of curiosity.”

“What about?”

“The sides of you that you hide.”

Laying it out like this, it seems like a strangely odd situation. Ah, it is indeed strange.

“I see. Well, I understand. Let’s leave it at that.”

“Are you forgiving me?”

“There might be forgiveness.”

I spoke nonchAllently. She let out a small sigh of relief and then spoke.

“Thank you.”

“What for? Besides…”

“Besides?”

“I have something to say too.”

I spoke, thinking this was a good opportunity that might not come again.

“What is it?”

“I’m truly sorry.”

For the first time since being possessed in this place, I bowed my head deeply. This was the original sin of that ‘Max.’ But it was also a sin that I had to take responsibility for.

“For insulting you.”

I bowed my head, but I caught a glimpse of her expression in my line of sight. It was a heavy expression. She was conflicted. Her wounds were not the kind that could be easily erased. They were not the kind that could be easily forgiven. If they were, she wouldn’t have ended up in such a terrible relationship with someone knowing her personality.

But. I had already turned a blind eye to her mistakes earlier. So I used that situation to bring it up. In a situation where I had cleared one debt, it would be difficult for her to say something negative, given her personality. It might have been a cowardly timing. But it had to be done. It was something that had to be resolved no matter what.

“…If you receive something, you have to repay it, right?”

She broke the silence and asked. I immediately understood the meaning of the question. It was creating a reason for forgiveness. Because it’s better for both of us.

“I think so…”

I affirmed.

“I’ll accept your apology.”

“Thank you.”

An awkward resolution. But it was better than not resolving it at all. Although my heart still felt uneasy. That’s when.

Elaine murmured in a soft voice.

“…You remembered.”

Then I realized another reason that had affected her feelings. It was the fact that I remembered the incident and sought forgiveness first. The one who caused the wound remembering it has a completely different meaning than not remembering at all.

“Yes.”

I continued.

“That’s why I called you out.”

Finally, she seemed a bit more at ease.

“Anyway, did it work out well?”

I muttered to myself with a thoughtful look as I returned to the dormitory. After that, we talked. Ordinary conversation. It might seem like nothing, but it wasn’t for us. It meant that she had accepted me back as a fellow student at the academy, not as someone unworthy of association. But for now, that was enough. It was a world of difference from before.

“People are indeed good.”

I let out a faint smile thinking of Elaine.

Swept up in the mood. No, it wasn’t just that. It was because he had apologized and sought forgiveness first. That moved her heart.

“Hoo… I don’t know.”

Now I’m not sure. What kind of person this man named ‘Max’ is. But one thing I’ve come to know. He’s not just a person with a bad personality.

“…My head hurts. Let’s just sleep.”

Elaine collapsed onto the bed with tired eyes. Today was truly a hectic day. That much was certain.