They Say When You Drink, You Become a Dog (2)

After that, the meal proceeded quietly. Reinhardt wasn’t the type to chat much while eating, and in Ariel’s case, while she might be different at home, she wasn’t so unaware of danger as to be lively in front of Reinhardt, who was practically her death flag.

“How was the meal? Was it alright?”

“Yesss, it was very satisfying.”

Ariel’s response was somehow drawn out. Reinhardt felt something odd about it.

Usually, Ariel would show a slightly silly side and tend not to speak properly due to being nervous in front of him for some reason, but now it’s different. That tone, as if she had let go of all tension…

“I should come again next time. Hehe…”

From Ariel’s brightly smiling face, as if satisfied, Reinhardt was certain. She was not in a normal state right now.

Glancing, he saw that Ariel’s glass in front of her was completely empty. Come to think of it, she had been emptying her glass quickly from halfway through. At first, she drank as instructed by asking the waiter, but at some point, she started pouring for herself and drinking, and the pace gradually quickened. Reinhardt thought it would be fine and ordered more alcohol. And the result was…

“Ehehehehe…”

Ariel, grinning broadly. Her flushed cheeks, eyes that had somehow lost focus, and exaggerated gestures were clearly revealing her state.

‘She’s drunk.’

And not just a little, but thoroughly drunk. It wasn’t just a slight rise in spirits or feeling good; she had completely lost her reason. As proof, wasn’t she showing such a relaxed face in front of Reinhardt, who she usually was careful with her words around?

“Ariel.”

“Yes!”

Seeing her raise her hand high to answer, Reinhardt quickly looked around. If others saw the duke’s daughter in this state, it would be perfect fodder for gossip. They should have been somewhere out of sight of others…

‘I guess it’s fortunate.’

Thankfully, there were no other guests nearby. It was partly because they had deliberately chosen a secluded spot, but also because when the two of them, who could be said to be at the top of noble society, arrived, others left a bit faster than usual. If they were opportunistic nobles, they might have looked for a chance to speak, but fortunately, those who came today didn’t seem to have that courage.

“Are you alright?”

“Nooo, not at all!”

“What?”

He had asked if she was okay almost unconsciously, but the answer was beyond imagination. Not at all? Why?

“How can you make everyone who sees you get cancer, Your Highness?”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m trying to give you so many chances! Huh? This is because there’s no progress at all!”

“I don’t understand what you’re suddenly talking about.”

As is often the case with drunk people’s ramblings, Ariel’s words were all disorganized and failing to convey proper meaning.

But Reinhardt decided to wait patiently. This could be seen as an opportunity. Ariel usually tensed up unnecessarily in front of him and didn’t speak properly, but with the help of alcohol, he might be able to learn about what she usually thinks.

He was also curious about why she kept avoiding him like this.

“It’s about Mari, Mari!”

“Mari? Ah, you mean your roommate. What about her?”

“Why isn’t there any progress with Mari? You two should be getting together!”

What is this about now? Reinhardt desperately racked his brain to understand what he was hearing.

“Why should I be getting together with her?”

“Because that’s how it should be. Later, you two will hold hands and kill me.”

What nonsense is this now? What reason would he have to kill her? Moreover, from Reinhardt’s perspective, Mari was just Ariel’s roommate and a talented commoner. That’s all.

He did think that her usual appearance of diligently attending the academy and working hard to hone her abilities was admirable, and he thought about giving her an important position in the future, but he never had any other thoughts. Yet Ariel was talking as if it was natural for the two of them to be together. Why?

“Why do you think I would do that?”

“Because that’s the true ending, of course! It’s already destined for you two to end up like that.”

Destiny? Had she gotten her fortune told without his knowledge?

Come to think of it, Ariel had been talking about Mari here and there at some point. At the time, he wondered if she was trying to look after her roommate or introduce a talented person, but he didn’t dig deeper, thinking it was just that.

But it wasn’t. The reality was beyond Reinhardt’s imagination in many ways.

“Ah, right! I need to do bad things!”

“Bad things?”

What is this about now? Reinhardt had thought that Ariel was someone whose inner thoughts he couldn’t understand, but he thought he had grasped her to some extent based on what he had seen so far.

But that wasn’t the case. Ariel’s way of thinking was beyond imagination. How could such words come out? Even Reinhardt, who was praised for his brilliant mind, couldn’t find any point of reference.

If he had to make one guess, it would be the thought he had earlier.

‘Could she have gotten her fortune told by someone without my knowledge?’

He had never heard that Ariel believed in such things, but considering her usual silly and naive appearance, she does seem like the type who would firmly believe if someone told her such things.

“Because I have to become a villainess. Because I have to do bad things…”

This really makes no sense. Ariel, a villainess? Certainly, if it were the past Ariel, those words might have some credibility. The behavior Ariel showed before losing her memories was certainly fitting for a villainess.

But the Ariel who lost her memories is different. She’s too clumsy to be a villainess… and too considerate.

If asked to describe the current Ariel’s personality, Reinhardt would add various things, but objectively speaking, he could say she was kind and considerate.

Although not as much as her previous self, most nobles tend to look down on those below them because they were born and raised being revered, but Ariel, despite being the daughter of a prominent ducal family, always respected others and looked at them properly as individuals.

As proof, all the servants in the Walpurgis mansion showed genuine smiles when dealing with Ariel. Even Meurie, her personal maid, while saying she had a headache because of her troublemaker mistress, never failed to smile while saying so.

Ariel, a villainess? Unfortunately, all he could say was that she had chosen the wrong person. Who on earth instilled such unconvincing words in her while mentioning destiny?

‘I don’t know who it is, but there’s a need to have a conversation.’

He didn’t know who had instilled such vain hopes in Ariel, but there was a need to meet and talk at least once.

“It seems you’ve had too much to drink. Let’s get up now.”

“Yesss!”

Reinhardt momentarily hesitated at the sight of her raising her hand with a bright smile. Ariel’s genuine smile, who usually only wore expressionless or awkward expressions, deeply entered Reinhardt’s mind.

“From now on, refrain from alcohol.”

“Huh? What are you saying, Your Highness!”

“Think about your current state, Ariel.”

“What’s wrong with me…”

Reinhardt’s lips twitched unconsciously at her grumbling, as if she was sulking. He didn’t even notice that he had casually called Ariel by name.

“I’ll call someone to take you back. I can’t accompany you to the dormitory, after all.”

“Ah! I’m telling you I need to do bad things! Originally, I should have just gone all out while drunk! Then I could claim diminished capacity and just naturally get away with it…”

“What were you trying to do?”

This is clearly a useless, nutritionless conversation. Objectively speaking, there’s no reason to have this conversation. But for some reason, Reinhardt found Ariel’s rambling extremely interesting.

What on earth was she trying to do after drinking? Since she said she was aiming to be a villainess, it must be something troublesome if caught. Given that she mentioned using the power of alcohol, perhaps she was planning to attack someone with magic.

If Ariel was really planning a serious crime and succeeded, it wouldn’t be easily overlooked. Even if she was drunk, or rather, especially because she was drunk, she could receive a harsher punishment for failing to control herself.

What could be the evil deed she was planning to do even while drinking?

“Umm, so… Messing up the room! Or throwing almost-completed assignments out the window! Or placing banana peels on the street! Or bullying someone for having lower grades than me!”

“Pfft…!”

Reinhardt finally couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.