Chapter 31: Everything Was Overturned
The sky brightened up.
Yukari, who had cried herself to sleep, woke up along with the morning sun.
“Here, drink up.”
Saying that, I gave her an abnormal status recovery potion. In a sense, this was similar to an energy drink. Thanks to it, I was able to endure being awake all night. It failed last night though…
“……I am sorry.”
I lowered my head to Yukari.
I got her into a dangerous situation. All because I was careless.
“…………”
Yukari just silently stared at me.
Then, after hesitating for a while, she finally opened her mouth.
“Me too, I’m very sorry.”
“For your attitude up until now? “
“Yes. The truth is.”
“Ah, I already know. Brainwashing, right?”
“……! “
“Probably ‘brainwashed to be wary of that who becomes your master’. It’s a skill possessed by Duchess Lucia.”
In response to my words, Yukari’s eyes rounded in surprise. Those eyes that were still red and swollen.
“……How do you……?”
She tried to say something, but it seemed like she hadn’t yet sorted out her emotions.
Although it was because of the brainwashing, up until now I was considered an enemy after all. She might still be a little cautious.
“It’s okay to take it slow. Here, let’s talk while we walk.”
Standing up, I took out a banana and an apple from my inventory and handed them over to her.
After she received them, Yukari too began to walk a little behind.
We walked while eating.
We continued walking after finishing eating.
Then, we just kept walking.
After around two hours of walking, Yukari began to speak.
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“I’ve spent all my life as an assassin, as a pawn of Duchess Lucia Icene.”
“Pawn? “
“Yeah. Lucia-sama picked me up as an orphan, she didn’t even give me a name, and just raised me as a pawn for assassination.”
“……I see.”
Although I have a rebuttal, I’ll keep silent for now.
“Most likely, I was brainwashed to believe that I was happy. So that I could be a good assassin serving under Lucia-sama. Truth is, until the moment when I was captured by the thieves and had fallen into despair, all my days as a ‘shadow’ were beautiful.”
“Is that so?”
“……It was all a foolish misunderstanding. No, it was all because of a cruel brainwashing. Then, I got to taste real despair after the brainwashing was undone.”
Yukari’s voice trembled.
“I was… not loved by Lucia-sama. I was being deceived all this time. A false love was forced into this heart of mine. A respected master, a kind mother, there never was such a thing……”
Maybe sadness, maybe frustration, or maybe something else.
Yukari continued speaking while shedding tears.
“Let’s talk about why I was silent… no, about why I was made to remain silent by the brainwashing.”
“That’s the reason why Duchess Lucia was executed, right? “
“Yeah. Lucia-sama was executed under the crime of rebellion, but that was a blatant lie. It was all a scheme plotted by the opposite faction. Her enemy was the Queen Consort, White Castall… That I know.”
“How do you know? “
“I was a shadow. My role was to dirty my hands in place of Lucia-sama. There is no way I wouldn’t know. But……”
“Huh? “
“The fact that I was brainwashed and kept from revealing this information to my new master means, this was probably inconvenient to Lucia-sama.”
Yukari had a troubled look.
The master that had taken care of her until now, and whom she felt indebted to, did not love her. From there, doubts began to sprout and finally, she revealed this information to me. But even then, she still had a sense of remorse. I wonder if the roots of the brainwashing were so deep.
“…………! “
I suddenly had a good idea.
I was planning to ‘use something’ after the brainwashing was undone to earn her trust.
A deal, so to speak. I remembered about Silvia’s time.
Although I’m not sure if she’ll accept. Therefore, in order to raise the certainty of it, let’s start by telling her my ‘thoughts’.
Only those who know of Mobius as a game would be able to do it, these little ‘thoughts’.
“Can you listen to me for a bit? “
I asked, looking into Yukari’s eyes.
After a little silence, she simply nodded.
“Your thoughts are certainly on target. But, Lucia Icene―― She certainly loved you, Yukari.”
“No way……That can’t be. I was just being brainwashed, remember? “
“What if that brainwashing was made in order to protect you?”
“……No, that’s impossible. If so, then why didn’t she give me a name instead of just raising me as an assassin?”
“In order to protect you, that’s why she didn’t give you a name, and that’s also why she brainwashed you so that you wouldn’t leak any information. That’s how she created the front of 『A poor slave who was forced to assassinate by orders of the Duchess’ brainwashing』.”
“That was not a front. I actually spent truly harsh days as an assassin.”
“But you were happy, right? You thought it was good to be the Duchess’ slave, right? “
“Like I said, that was because of the brainwashing.”
“Here, listen closely―― Brainwashing Magic only works once per person.”
That was a restriction of Mobius’ 《Brainwashing Magic》. It might be the same in this world. That’s why I felt a sense of discomfort and then noticed this possibility.
“……Eh……? “
“In your case, the one brainwashing was the one to keep you alert against me. In other words, you truly thought you were happy in your days as a shadow.”
“But, that……”
Is hard to believe―― she might think. Yukari’s expressions are really easy to understand.
Half of those thoughts were my true feelings, and the other half, a ‘sweet bait’.
A sweet bait you really want to take, that she really wants to believe.
Yukari was troubled.
There’s no way. No. But, what if……she was troubled because she gradually ‘wanted to believe’. Something like ‘How happy would I be if this was really the case’.
And then, as I waited for the right moment.
I brought that ‘something’ I had prepared to the table in order to earn her ‘trust’.
“Yukari. Do you want to break out from slavery? “
＊ ＊ ＊
I confessed everything.
I haven’t completely trusted him yet. However, I had no path other than to stay with him.
Surprisingly, he silently listened to my story.
And when I finished talking, he spoke out his thoughts.
……I can’t believe it. Honestly, that was the only thing I could think of.
But if what he said is true, then… the day may come where I can be proud about myself, about my days, about that which was dear to me and feel that I was not mistaken in thinking so. He seemed to give me that gentle explanation.
“Do you want to break out from slavery? “
He said confidently, with a calm expression.
“Break out? “
“Yeah. I was thinking of doing it after the brainwashing thing was solved…… well, if I had to explain it, it would be something like a ‘loophole’.”
As those sweet words entered my ears, anxiety and doubt grew inside me.
“In short, your condition as a slave will be lost. The 『Unable to attack』thing will also be lost.”
“……Such a thing will? “
There’s no way this will work.
“The Maurice Company will keep an eye on me, but well, there’s no problem with that. This is something more important than that.”
What would be more important than turning a large company into an enemy?
“Trust me. And also, I want you to be my blacksmith.”
…………
Nonsense.
It would usually be the other way around.
Besides, even if he says this, there’s no way it can be done.
“What an unfunny joke.”
Breaking out… in other words, releasing me from slavery without the proper release by slavery magic.
Impossible. Such a thing can’t be done. If it was possible, there would be no way to maintain the slave business.
“Then, if I can break you out from slavery, will you trust me? “
He grinned and said defiantly.
“…Sure, I don’t mind. I’ll trust you.”
I answered with those words. Like challenging him, if you can do it, show me.
“Eh? Alright, then head-butt me in the chest as hard as you can.”
“…………Excuse me? “
I don’t know what he means.
“With your head, hit me in the chest. Do it like you mean it.”
“No, but according to the contract, I can’t…”
“You can do that. It’s fine, just try it. Come on.”
Opening his arms wide, he took a pose as if waiting for me.
I wonder why is he so confident?
Where does all that composure comes from?
……And I wonder why I’m feeling drawn to him?
“I’ll do it, you know? “
“Yeah. I’m here.”
There’s no way this will work.
While thinking so, I closed my eyes tight and plunged into his chest with my head.
“Ouuff! “
He groaned.
The air leaving his lungs―― My head hit his chest, and the pain visibly begun to spread.
…………I did it. I was able to do it.
It wasn’t a lie. This was undeniably an ‘attack’. Just how on earth……?
“It was a success.”
Lifting up his face, he said with a smile, and gently patted my back.
———————
“………………I.”
I was…
I was probably under a huge misunderstanding.
Didn’t he never, not even once, lie to me since we’ve been together?
Then I noticed something.
In my head, various scenes pass through at a high speed.
Tokun, tokun, tokun. A bit earlier I could hear his heartbeat.
Ahh, he’s like me, just a lonely person. I felt it so. My heart then started to beat faster and faster.
And then, I found it. His ‘traces of trust’.
When he rescued me from the thieves, his hands were trembling as he cut my rope.
He was scared. He fought against many bandits, and killed a lot of them. There’s no way not to be afraid.
It was the same with me. The shaking couldn’t stop after my first job.
——————————-
……It can’t be. No way!
Is he truly aiming to be the top in the world?
The reason why he left things in the dungeon to those two was for training them?
The reason why he didn’t leave my side was because he was protecting me?
The random teleport wasn’t a lie either. The 255km wasn’t a lie either. The distance of seven days to Pae Ho was also true.
He kept persistently quarreling against me in order to break my brainwashing?
He kept guard at night in order to protect me?
He didn’t attack me. In the first place, according to the contract, he wouldn’t be able to attack me.
Was it my mistake?
Was it my misunderstanding?
He also saved me from the thieves.
He listened to my story.
He was kind and considerate so as to not hurt me.
He freed me from slavery. ‘Trust me’, that’s all he asked.
All of this, everything just in order to make me grow as a blacksmith……?
He did all this for my sake?
For my sake, for the sake of someone like me, to go this far…!
————————–
“Can you trust me now? “
My heart jumped when I heard his words.
“…………Yeah.”
I responded while nodding and wiping my tears in his chest.
“For the time being. I will trust you…… my Master.”
Second, a quirky man aiming for the top of the world.
Maybe, if it’s him…