episode_0014

“Sorry—ah!”

The most basic rule of professional life is knowing how to apologize well. No matter how self-centered a person may be, they can’t help but step back when faced with someone who confidently owns up to their mistakes.

Otherwise, they’d just end up looking like a petty jerk who can’t even accept an apology.

Of course, I’m a petty, selfish jerk, so even if I apologized, no one would accept it.

“Young Master…?”

The dignified head of security, Mr. Steven, stared straight at me.

Even though Chris just said all that, I doubt he’s the type to drag me away again right away—but when a heavily armed, muscular man looks at you like that, it’s only natural to feel a little scared.

Human instinct, you know? Hmm.

“What did you mean by that just now? And the conversation you had with the young lady…”

“Exactly what I said. It’s true that you went crazy and Chris locked you up, and it’s also true that you caused trouble. So now, as a member of the Grave family, I’m promising to behave better. I swear on my life!”

Swearing on my life doesn’t mean much in this world anyway.

Try killing me if you want.

I’ll just run back to my original world~

“I’m serious! I’ve changed!”

“……”

Why are they reacting like this? Maybe words alone aren’t enough, so I decided to take a stronger approach.

“Here.”

“What is it?”

I stood right in front of Steven.

“To prove I’ve changed, you can hit me once more if you want. Ah, just not too hard. If I die, we’ll both be in trouble.”

Steven and the other guards went from looking at me with suspicion to staring at me like I was insane.

What did I do wrong this time? I thought this was the cleanest way to settle things.

“Sigh…”

After waiting a few seconds and seeing no sign of Steven or the guards hitting me, I was the first to raise the white flag.

“Take that unconscious guy and get out of here. If Chris snaps out of it now, this won’t end well.”

“…Thank you.”

Even until the end, the guards muttered among themselves, confused as to why I was helping them, before quietly disappearing.

Even after saving them, they’re still like this. Well, at least I got rid of the nuisance.

I turned my head and spoke softly.

“Alright, Chris? Now that the guards have cleared up the misunderstanding, if you’re okay—”

“—I’m sorry.”

“Huh?!”

I instinctively gasped. What did Chris just say?

I’m sorry.

A clear, unmistakable apology.

“…!”

Forgetting what I was about to say, I frantically checked my body. Did something break? Tear? Was there something wrong with me?

I rolled my ankle lightly and even tested my magic, but nothing seemed off.

“Hmm.”

I’d heard words of atonement, yet no trial had been triggered. Only when I got closer to Chris did I realize why.

“I’m sorry. It’s all my f-fault. S-sorry. N-no, I mean—I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It’s all my f-fault, so p-please.”

So that’s how it was.

Chris was babbling out apologies in a near-panic, her words disjointed.

Right now, she was just speaking unconsciously, without thought.

It seemed the trial only recognized confessions and atonement made sincerely—after deep reflection and full acceptance.

The more she tried to overcome her guilt and reach out to me, the more I got hurt.

Whoever designed this trial was downright sadistic—thank goodness.

I almost started this world with a trial already in progress.

Maybe because I’d just narrowly escaped death, I noticed my tone with Chris had softened slightly.

“Chris…?”

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I was wrong.”

“You don’t need to apologize like that, Chris.”

“Eh…?”

Chris, who had been clutching her head and muttering, looked up at me with tear-filled eyes.

Finally, she’s looking at me.

“Oppa…?”

“Yeah. I didn’t come here to hear an apology. I’m leaving now—we’ve said everything we needed to.”

We’d talked about the heir position, my future actions, and even Chris herself. There was no reason to stay any longer.

The moment I turned to head back to my room, Chris grabbed my ankle like she was clinging for dear life.

“N-no! Don’t leave me! I’ll do better! From now on, I’ll listen without complaining!”

“……”

Why is she like this? It’s true I didn’t want to hear her apology, but she never had any reason to apologize to me in the first place.

I turned back, knelt down, and met her eyes.

Just that was enough to make Chris relax, but to me, it felt like walking on thin ice.

Thinking that, I ended up answering her a little irritably.

“Stop apologizing, Chris. You don’t need to.”

“But I… I!”

Hmm, too weak? Well, given Chris’s personality, she shouldn’t be the one yielding here.

I understood her desire to take the moral high ground, so I decided to be a little firmer.

After all, I’d be interacting with the hero’s party a lot from now on, and Chris would be with me. Having a reliable ally would make things easier.

Consider this an investment for the future.

“You can stop. The sense of responsibility you carry as part of the hero’s party—that’s enough. I don’t expect anything more.”

My words must have been shocking, because life returned to Chris’s eyes.

“The hero’s party…? Oppa, did your memories come back?”

I nodded.

“Yeah. Not perfectly, but at least vaguely.”

“Th-then, sorr—”

“I said enough!”

Seems my investment was a dud. Just in case, I placed a hand on Chris’s shoulder, but she didn’t resist or pull away—just quietly accepted it.

Well, at least it’s not the worst-case scenario. I removed my hand and carefully pushed her away.

Honestly, it was scary how ready Chris was to apologize even when I told her she didn’t need to.

I’m scared. I might actually die like this!

Still, now that I’d revealed my memories, conversations should be a little easier.

“Get up, Chris. You’ve got a lot to do, don’t you? As the reliable rear guard of the hero’s party and the future head of the Grave Ducal House, people are counting on you. Someone like you shouldn’t be apologizing to just anyone.”

I brushed the dust off Chris’s clothes and helped her up.

“Come on, get up. If you keep this up, people will see you like this.”

——–

To just anyone?

The moment she saw Eric walking away, Christine didn’t hesitate—she clung to him, crying and begging.

If she let go of him now, she felt like it would truly be the end.

Was it the intuition from her time in the hero’s party warning her? Even though Eric had come right up to her, for some reason, he felt farther away than ever.

He’d listened to every apology she made. But the more he did, the more Christine’s heart burned.

She’d rather he asked something of her. She’d rather he got angry, even cursed at her.

“Hey, Oppa. I—”

For a moment, she even considered pretending to have amnesia, just like Eric.

If she did, he’d surely look at her with sympathy. Maybe he’d even stay by her side and take care of her.

But in that fleeting moment, Christine reached a conclusion.

I can’t.

Unlike Eric, she’d returned safely. Doing something like that would just be despicable—it’d render Eric’s sacrifice meaningless.

If that was the case, the only thing Christine could do was atone. Even if he never forgave her, even if he resented her forever, it didn’t matter.

From his words earlier, Eric already saw her as the root of everything.

She had no intention of denying it. It was the truth. Even now, her apologies and confessions probably sounded like nothing more than pathetic excuses and self-justification to him.

But… if she didn’t speak, nothing would begin. Even if he never accepted it, it didn’t matter.

It was still infinitely better than just thinking and never acting.

A life without Eric was something Christine couldn’t even imagine.

“Oppa.”

“Yeah?”

Eric stared at her with a dumbfounded expression. Normally so absent-minded, yet when it mattered, he was quicker to judge than anyone.

“Oppa, I… I was jealous of you.”

“What?”

She’d said it.

“You could see the future, your grades were way better than mine, and on top of that, your background was impeccable. Everything you took for granted was something I envied and resented.”

An ugly, ugly confession. But the more she spoke, the lighter Christine’s heart felt.

Had she really been agonizing over something this simple?

“Every time you laughed with your friends, it annoyed me. Every time you supported me in battle, it felt like you were showing off, and I resented you. Every time you predicted the future and were right, I refused to acknowledge it and ignored you on purpose!”

The reasons she’d pushed Eric away. The feelings she couldn’t help but hate him for—she vomited them all out.

And yet, she still wished.

“Chris…”

“Hehe. I won’t shamelessly ask for forgiveness now. But still… I’m sorry. For everything, from beginning to end.”

At the very least, she wanted this feeling to reach him.

“……You damn bitch.”

“Huh?”