episode_0203

A moment of silence passed. Deborah, who had been blankly blinking her eyes, made a tearful face and then clung to my chest. “Why, why? Why can’t we? We just kissed! Are you just playing with my body and throwing me away? You trash!”

“Calm down. It’s not like that.” “Then what is it?! I won’t move until you explain… no, that’s not right, just explain as we go!”

Deborah, who was angry and about to respond emotionally, seemed to recall Alisa and took a step back. At the sight of her picking up the broom again, I grabbed her hand and pulled her. “Wait a moment. There’s somewhere we need to stop before we go to the wedding hall.”

“Somewhere to stop?” “Yes. There’s someone I need to meet.” “Alright. Let’s go!”

Deborah, surprised but understanding, quickly put away the broom and followed me. She walked beside me and asked, “So what’s the reason? Why are you throwing me away?!”

“Geez, seriously. Choose your words better, will you? What do you mean ‘throwing you away’? Don’t worry, I’ll never abandon you, even if I die.” “Oh…!”

Deborah’s cheeks turned rosy. Just a moment ago she was angry, but to react so much to such a simple comment, it made me awkward. Well, it’s fine because she’s cute.

“Th-then why can’t it happen? You said you loved me too, Ruan!” “That’s why it can’t.” “Please tell me in more detail!”

I looked at Deborah. Her furrowed brow. Her puffed-out cheeks. Her eyebrows forming an angry frown. Although her expression was full of anger, her eyes, in fact, held deep affection and interest towards me. The light that was already intense now glowed so brilliantly after the kiss that it was difficult to meet her gaze.

“Deborah.” “Yes!” “What would you do if I told you I had sex with another woman?”

“Huh? S-suddenly?” “Yes. Suddenly. What will you do?”

At my question, Deborah seemed to ponder dejectedly for a moment, then firmly nodded her head. “First, I’d ask why!” “And then?”

“If it’s a convincing reason, I’ll be sad, but I’ll accept it! That’s because of the Rape Declaration, right? Because you have to use it if a dangerous situation arises.” “That’s right. Because there’s no guarantee you’ll always be by my side. In the end, if it’s dangerous, I’ll have to use my ability, and that will make things difficult for you. So it can’t happen.”

Although my relationship with Deborah has already reached a level no different from lovers, the difference between formalizing it or not is significant. Things that could be overlooked because we weren’t lovers become impossible once we are. Even me having sex with other women—something that could be casually brushed off when we weren’t lovers, saying it was unavoidable due to danger—will leave a lump in her heart, even if she understands it, once we become lovers.

If such things accumulate, eventually, disaster will come to us too. I don’t want that. I want to be with Deborah for a long time and continue to receive her affection. In the end, this is also my selfishness.

Fortunately, Deborah, who was stupidly kind, willingly understood my selfishness. “Alright. Then I won’t push it. Instead, promise me just one thing.” “What is it?” “That you’ll be with me forever once everything is over.”

“…Deborah. That’s difficult.” I looked troubled. My goal is to return. To go back to Earth, but there’s no guarantee that I can come back once I cross over. Then I would either have to part ways with Deborah forever, or give up my home and cross over with her, and either way would leave a wound. I didn’t want to deceive her with a promise I couldn’t be certain of.

When I revealed that fact, Deborah confidently grinned as if I was worrying needlessly. “Don’t worry too much. I’ll make it happen somehow.” “You will?” “Yes! Your words, Ruan, are premised on your return, aren’t they? That means a two-way passage is open, and if we research, we can develop magic that allows us to freely travel between the two worlds!”

“That’s possible?” “Of course! That’s how all new magic begins!”

A small flap of a butterfly’s wings can also create a massive storm. Perhaps Deborah really could develop dimension-traveling magic in the future. *‘I hope that’s true.’* I held an optimistic thought but still voiced a negative opinion.

“What if it doesn’t work? Even if it does, it might take too long.” “Hmm… that’s true. Then let’s just ask the Goddess-nim to let us cross over to Earth together!” “Together? What about your family?” “My Teacher-nim? Can’t my Teacher-nim just come with us? The Goddess-nim would surely allow that much!”

“……” I couldn’t say anything. It wasn’t that there were no logical points to argue, but I didn’t want to crush Deborah’s hopes in that way. On the contrary, if it truly came to that, I would even be willing to express my gratitude to the Goddess.

As I maintained silence for a moment, Deborah playfully poked my side. “So, what are you going to do?” “Huh?” “Promise. You’ll do it, right?”

Her straight, upward-gazing purple eyes. Not a trace of anxiety or doubt could be found within them. I nodded readily. “Yes. I promise. Once everything is over, I will spend my life with you.”

The moment she heard the confirmation, Deborah’s expression wavered. Her eyes welled up as if she was about to cry, but she calmly pointed forward, pretending to be unaffected. “Good. That’s all I need. Then let’s go in! I can see the student council room over there!”

Deborah ran forward. Along the path she took, tears sparkled and scattered in droplets. That sight overlapped with one I had seen a week ago, but my heart didn’t ache as it did then. Only unending happiness and affection continuously welled up.

*‘I need to become stronger.’* Even to protect this happiness, I need to become stronger. I firmly resolved.

*

Inside the quiet waiting room, Alisa, left alone, was gazing at the mirror in front of her. “…I’m beautiful.”

She was currently fully dressed. She had received professional makeup, her hair was decorated even more elaborately, and she was wearing a wedding dress.

As expected, the wedding dress was a design that purely reflected Count Geto’s taste 100 percent. Both the hem and the top were extremely short, openly exposing her thighs, as well as her shoulders and cleavage. It was easy to take off, and to begin with, wearing it was no different from being naked, so it was easy to predict what he would do the moment the wedding ended.

“Ha, ahaha…” A dry laugh escaped her lips. She had been thinking about it constantly for the past few weeks, but it simply didn’t feel real.

“Should I just die?” Rather than suffer humiliation from that old man for nothing, wouldn’t it be wiser to end her life? Anyway, she wasn’t afraid of pain. Physical pain was only temporary. A pain that ends after a few minutes of endurance. But mental pain was different.

It would torment her throughout her marriage with Count Geto. If that was the case, dying would be a more comfortable way out. As a bonus, it would inflict significant damage on her damned father and that repulsive old man.

“Yes. I’ll die.” Alisa, having made up her mind, pulled out a hairpin that was holding her hair. The tip of the pin was sharp enough to tear human skin. Even if it wasn’t that, if she forcibly squeezed out her magic, she could create a sword aura, so dying without pain was possible.

Alisa closed her eyes and brought the pin to her neck. Just as she was about to rip her throat with the pin, a man’s apparition suddenly popped out from beyond her pitch-black vision. “Ugh…!”

Alisa opened her eyes wide. Her hand trembling, she soon let her hand fall weakly. “Why… why do you keep appearing?”

In fact, this wasn’t the first time she had decided to commit suicide. She had been constantly tormented by such impulses until now, but whenever it came to a decisive moment, Ruan’s face would always appear. It felt as if he was telling her not to die, and it seemed like a hope that he might come to save her, so she couldn’t bring herself to die.

Even while thinking it couldn’t be true, she ultimately couldn’t let go of her lingering attachment. “Idiot. Stupid bitch!” Alisa was so disgusted by how pathetic she was. She flung the hairpin onto the floor.

Thus, another suicide attempt failed today. A moment later, a maid came in through the door. “Young lady. It’s time to go out… Oh my! What happened?! What’s wrong with your hair…? Ugh, really! It can’t be helped. Just go out like this.”

The maid fussed about, tidying her disheveled hair, then pushed her out. Alisa slowly exited the waiting room. *‘It’s all over now.’*

As of today, Alisa Bretes’s life would end, and her new life as Countess Geto would begin.

*

“Ruan! Look over there!” After traveling for a long time on a broom, we finally arrived at the wedding hall. It was just as we landed in front of it.

“Huh? Ruan?” “It’s Ruan and Deborah, isn’t it?” “You two came, nya!” Abel and his party, who had been slumped on the entrance bench, greeted us and ran over.

As I landed on the ground, I asked casually. “You couldn’t get in because you didn’t have invitations?” “Uh, uh? Th-that’s right! Because we didn’t have invitations, the guards wouldn’t let us in.”

Abel pointed to the strictly placed guards and knights around us. *‘The security level is stronger than I thought?’* It was just a wedding, but what was he so afraid of? Count Geto mobilized a considerable number of soldiers and knights. It was to the extent that Abel and his party couldn’t break through even if they died and came back to life.

I shifted my gaze to Pernia. “What about you? Couldn’t you get in with your ability?” “Me, nya? I tried to, nya, but I met a strange knight in front of the bride’s waiting room and ran away, nya. That knight knew my location, nya!”

“…Is that so? He must be at a considerably high level.” Pernia’s unique ability possesses powerful stealth capabilities, but it’s not omnipotent. Those who have awakened their sixth sense can sense nearby threats even if they can’t see them, so it was impossible for Pernia to approach stealthily.

As I calmly nodded, Abel asked in an eager voice. “Ruan! You have an invitation, right? Your family would have been invited. Right?” Bright, sparkling eyes were fixed on me.

Getting such a gaze from a guy made me feel disgusted, like my fist was going to fly out. I pushed Abel’s face away.

“No, I don’t.” “As expected… Ugh. Huh? You don’t?” “Yeah. I don’t. Just in case, I went to my sister, but unfortunately, she didn’t have one. Perhaps because the wedding was hastily arranged, they probably didn’t send invitations all the way to our distant family.”

In a way, it was obvious. The Friuli territory doesn’t even have a direct teleport gate, so one has to cross snow-capped mountains, meaning it would take at least a week for an invitation to arrive. By the time the letter arrived, it would already be the wedding day.

“Th-then what do we do?” “What do we do? We just go in.” “But we were kicked out when we tried that?” “That’s because it was you guys. I’m the eldest son of a Marquis family, no less. They can’t just kick me out. Let’s go!”

I shouted energetically and confidently strode towards the wedding hall. Then I was blocked by soldiers. “May I see your invitation?”

“Invitation? I lost it.” “If you don’t have one, I’m sorry, but you cannot enter.” The soldier glanced sideways at the other soldiers and subtly retreated.

If I were to carelessly charge in, the formation was such that I’d be skewered by spears thrust from all directions. But in front of them, I arrogantly puffed out my chest. Time to play the scoundrel!

“Do you know who I am?” “…No, sir.” “I am Ruan Friuli, the eldest son of the Friuli Marquis family, who rules the north, no less! I personally came to congratulate this wedding, and you’re going to kick me out just because of a mere invitation? Do you all want to be screwed?!”

“Th-that is…” “If you understand, get lost quickly! If you keep this up, I’ll speak directly to Count Geto.” So natural and convincing was the act that the soldiers furtively exchanged glances amongst themselves.

Just as they were about to step aside, “Young Master Ruan. I’m sorry, but that is impossible.” A knight emitting a powerful aura, who had appeared out of nowhere, blocked their path.

One of the soldiers shouted. “W-we greet Deputy Commander Berman-nim!” It seems Count Geto is putting a lot of effort into this wedding. It was impossible to just pass through.