Chapter 4. Escape and Service (5)

[Isn’t a childhood friend a losing flag?]

[In harem stories, I’ve never seen a childhood friend end up with the protagonist.]

[Is the win rate of childhood friends similar to that of a golden-haired, twin-bun-haired noble character?]

No, I couldn’t agree with such words.

There’s no way the first heroine to appear in the story wouldn’t be the true heroine.

Isn’t that right?

Yet, they’d spit blood if their childhood friend got a boyfriend.

It’s no different from Netorare when a character who has been built up from the beginning suddenly gets another lover…!

If you change the gender, isn’t it just BSS?

A character who comes to wake up the protagonist in the morning to tell them not to be late, who blushes while giving chocolate on Valentine’s Day, and who blushes anticipating a date with the protagonist on Christmas-that character must be the heroine!

“……Isn’t that so?”

“It is not so?”

“Because of you, I was able to break the fixed notions I held. In this narrow world I’ve lived in, you are the only one who has opened my eyes, trapped under the shadow of my mission.”

……Don’t make me laugh.

A heroine should be diligent and sincere. Even if she’s a bit prickly normally, there’s a dignity of true affection flowing from the depths of her words.

A tsundere is not a losing flag.

As numerous works have appeared and concluded, exchanging clichés, the tsundere character archetype has also evolved. The violence and profanity that always appeared in the early days have disappeared, and the maliciousness has decreased. It’s no exaggeration to say that surviving tsunderes today have only retained that atmosphere.

Therefore, being a little prickly towards the protagonist cannot be considered a losing flag.

Even if the episodes of the main heroines are placed at the beginning, it doesn’t matter what status the other heroines have, such as Saint, Hero, or even a high-ranking noble of some country.

Rather, it’s precisely because of that that the episodes built up by simply being a childhood friend and spending time together shine even brighter-

“Si-yoon, actually, there’s something I haven’t told you.”

“Something you haven’t told me?”

“I… I am actually the only princess of the Elf Kingdom-“

“That never came up!?”

I exclaimed in shock at those words and sat up.

“……Huk.”

And then, I realized that the place that came into my vision was not where I had collapsed.

I took several deep breaths, my shoulders heaving, and exhaled slowly.

And I quickly organized my thoughts.

Right. Those eyes.

Even if the mole was a given, those heterochromatic eyes were definitely the eye colors of the character I knew. Even if her hair wasn’t in twin buns.

In the original work, she appeared as a noble, not a princess.

Thinking about it again, her true identity never really came out. She just appeared as a ‘noble,’ and her family name or how high a noble she was wasn’t revealed.

I just thought the author created her to include an elf character-

……Ah, I see.

Thinking about it, that alone wouldn’t make her competitive with the other heroines. A character who is just high-ranking is not easily attractive. Even if she was drawn beautifully, it’s not like the other heroines aren’t beautiful.

Without a good backstory, preferably one that makes you feel sorry for her, one that allows her to receive help from the protagonist, there’s no angle to develop her episode.

“……What do you mean by that?”

“Kyaak!?”

As I was caught off guard, someone suddenly spoke to me from beside me, and I let out an embarrassed sound on my own.

When I turned my head, Ria was there.

Clutching my pounding heart, I let out a deep sigh.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

Even though I made a strange sound, Ria didn’t tease me. She just asked that.

And she wasn’t sitting in her own bed as usual. She had pulled a chair next to my bed and was sitting there.

Normally, she would have a book in her hand to pass the time, but Ria wasn’t like that at all now. Instead, she was holding a clean towel in her hand. Was she perhaps wiping the sweat I had shed?

“……Have you been nursing me the whole time?”

“Uh, well.”

Ria, as if a little embarrassed, threw the towel towards her own bed.

“Heh.”

“Why?”

As I let out a laugh, Ria asked, glaring at me.

“It’s nothing.”

I replied, collapsing back onto the bed.

Grumble.

As expected, my stomach growled again. I had exerted so much power, after all.

Only after recalling that I had exerted power did I belatedly think that there might be injured people.

“Are there perhaps any other injured people? Someone hit by an arrow from beyond the gate…”

“…….”

But even when I said that, Ria didn’t answer and just stared at me intently. Her expressionless face was a little scarier than when she glared at me. It felt like there was weight in her gaze.

“……Let me ask you something.”

“Yes?”

“You said you wouldn’t use that power on yourself, right?”

“…….”

I do remember saying that.

Well, if you think about it, I didn’t completely keep that promise. When I received power that I could touch with my hands, I immediately used it on myself and Ria.

In such situations, I had to be alive to save others. And, well, I don’t want to die either.

However, it’s also true that I’d rather not use it if possible.

“And you were still trying to rush forward thoughtlessly like that, even with that thought?”

“That… I’m sorry.”

I replied, rubbing my fingertips together.

I know I shouldn’t act like that in such a situation. It’s not a rational action at all. Moreover, if I rush into a dangerous place while so many people are trying to protect me, those people could also be put in danger.

But, somehow, when I see someone injured, it’s hard to resist.

This is also due to a thought I’ve had since my previous life. Or perhaps it’s become a habit.

“…….”

Perhaps slightly taken aback by my honest apology, Ria remained silent for a moment, gazing at me.

Then she relaxed her body and leaned back in her chair.

“You do know, don’t you.”

At Ria’s words, I hunched my shoulders unnecessarily.

But the words that followed were not unpleasant to hear.

“……Last time, you called yourself my knight, didn’t you?”

“……Don’t I?”

Wondering if she had gotten tired of it, I asked cautiously, and Ria let out a snort as if it were absurd.

“No, that’s right. I haven’t quit that job, after all.”

After saying that and pondering for a moment, Ria looked at me and said,

“Do you remember? The day I first said I would be your escort knight.”

“……I remember.”

In the midst of being troubled in many ways, Ria’s words gave me so much peace of mind.

While I thought about wanting to leave the church someday… at the same time, I was a little scared of going outside. I hadn’t done it in my previous life. Moving out alone, finding a job. It wasn’t that I hadn’t lived without my parents’ help.

But it wasn’t easy.

Settling down without having to ask anyone for help, and with more than half of my friendships severed, was difficult. Naturally, children are younger than their friends. Even if you ask for help, there are few friends who can truly help.

It’s also because of that that I was strongly conscious of stalkers.

When I was a man, it wasn’t something to worry about much-but it’s different now.

In a situation where there is such a person, having the surrounding fence completely disappear is a little frightening. That’s perhaps why I tried to escape like that.

“That was said with genuine sincerity, you know. It wasn’t just something I said to make you stay here a little longer.”

“……Oh.”

“Well, I intend to follow through on what I said once, as I will eventually become a Hero myself.”

Ria remained silent for a moment,

“I know one person. Someone who died by rushing headlong to save people, just like you.”

“…….”

That… I know that too.

It’s also the reason Ria came here.

It was about Ria’s mother.

Ria’s mother was a Hunter. Naturally, she wasn’t a church official.

However, she was also an excellent Grade 1 Hunter, comparable to Ria’s father, the Hero.

Not only was her skill excellent, but her character was also outstanding. So much so that the greatest Hero was completely smitten after working with her just once.

And if such a person died in a novel like this, there could only be one reason, couldn’t there?

“To be honest, you are weaker than that person. Well, I’m not stronger than that person either, but at least I know how to fight.”

Ria looked at me with a bitter smile.

“Well, I have my own duties, and you’re thinking of leaving the church someday, so I won’t follow you forever, but still, if I hear that someone I shared a room with died for the same reason, I’m sure I’ll have trouble sleeping.”

“…….”

“As long as I’m here, please don’t just rush to your death. At least do it when you have a weapon in your hand.”

“……I understand. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Knowing the reason why Ria said that, I no longer felt like arguing.

A brief, awkward silence fell between us-

Grumble.

-It couldn’t last.

My stomach, thinking the conversation was over, was sending signals diligently.

Ria chuckled and got up from her seat.

“Alright, shall we go eat then? Do you want to eat something other than ramen today?”

“Something else?”

“Wouldn’t it be okay to order something like chicken? We can just receive it over the wall, right?”

“Chi… Chicken…!?”

Of course, I don’t really know if that’s theoretically possible or not.

Somehow, I thought Ria could easily do something like that.

No, well, I know it’s a violation of the rules, even if the Nun Superior looks the other way.

……How can I resist chicken on a hungry late night like this?