'Sigh, I don't even know anymore...'
I couldn't help thinking that as I let out a deep sigh.
If I tried using harsh words again to push him away, this damned Tsundere Image had already made it difficult to get any results with ordinary insults.
No, even aside from that.
I don't want to consciously hurt someone.
Because facing someone I've hurt is too painful and difficult for me.
'Anyway, Reisir is supposed to withdraw from the Academy at the end of this semester, and after that the people around him start dying off, right? So once Reisir leaves the Academy, if I just ignore all his attempts to contact me and never see him again, everything will be fine.'
I decided to settle on that compromise.
That doesn't mean I plan to become close with Reisir. My attitude toward him won't change in the future either.
This compromise was nothing more than a way to reassure myself that even if I failed to push Reisir away, there was no need to stress over it or tremble with anxiety.
'Now that I've settled on how to deal with Reisir mentally, it's «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» time to focus on the matter at hand.'
Not much time had passed since Reisir's figure disappeared into the winding alleyway.
Judging by his running speed and the time that had passed, had he just arrived at the destination?
While calculating that in my head, I stepped out of the carriage.
Even if I arrived early, it didn't matter. I could just observe the situation from outside the building and go in at the right moment.
"A-are you really going...?"
Just as I was handing the coachman a tip and promising additional payment if he waited, Ríolíkin asked that question.
To think he would ask something like that after hearing the entire conversation between me and Reisir on the way here.
"What do you mean by that?"
"W-well... it's dangerous, isn't it...? From what I overheard... Lord Karvaldr, even if you t-tell Tryggdrik to stop... it might not work... And you could get hurt too..."
"Are you telling me to just sit back and let myself get framed?"
"U-uh, but anyway, Reisir... he said he be-believes you, Lord Karvaldr... so isn't that enough...? Besides, with the po-power of the Ducal Family... even if you get framed, I think you could... could get out of it..."
The legal issue could probably be resolved. But the problem is that you can't stop people from saying whatever they want.
Even if Reisir came forward and defended me, would people really believe him so easily?
Wouldn't they gossip that he'd been bribed or threatened into giving false testimony?
And if I secured a not-guilty verdict through the power of the Austri Ducal Family, people would say even worse things behind my back.
'Not being punished isn't everything.'
Is Ríolíkin really so stupid that he can't understand such a simple fact?
Or is he saying this to protect Tryggdrik?
One question after another rose in my mind.
"If you're only going to say such nonsense out of fear, then why did you follow me here in the first place?"
"I-I, uh... I'm sorry..."
"When did I ask for an apology? I believe I told you to explain why you followed me."
"Ah, th-that's, well..."
I could understand the stuttering. That wasn't something he could help.
But the fact that he couldn't answer immediately and avoided my gaze made me frown.
That kind of reaction meant he was hiding something. At this point, it was certain that he hadn't followed me out of concern for anyone.
"I'm not foolish enough to head into a dangerous place with someone whose intentions I don't know. The situation isn't relaxed enough for me to wait around until you decide to answer, and even if I had the time, I wouldn't particularly want to. So if you won't answer, don't follow me."
After saying that, I immediately turned and started walking.
At the same time, I focused intently on the presence behind me, staying on high alert.
'How will he react?'
The worst-case scenario would be Ríolíkin trying to knock me out and drag me to Tryggdrik, but I considered that possibility close to zero.
It's not because I think Ríolíkin has no reason to obey Tryggdrik.
Even if Tryggdrik had somehow ordered Ríolíkin to attack me, Ríolíkin lacked the decisiveness to actually carry it out.
At most, he would probably block my path and try persuading me again.
He might even simply stand there and rationalize that he had already done his best by trying to stop me once.
Even in the original novel, there were quite a few moments where he only half-followed Karvaldr's orders like that.
Timid. Passive.
Even those words were nowhere near enough to describe Ríolíkin.
"I-if I stayed in the lecture room, everyone... would probably a-ask me what happened..."
Ríolíkin wasn't the type of character who could smoothly make up excuses on the spot.
So there was no way those words were a lie.
"You followed me all the way here for a reason like that? And you expect me to believe it?"
The reason was so incomprehensible that I had no choice but to stop and turn around to ask.
At that, a faint trace of color returned to Ríolíkin's face.
As if he had found some hope in the fact that I had stopped walking and looked back at him.
"B-but it's true... I-I don't know why T-tryggdrik suddenly started d-defying you, Lord Karvaldr... If the other guys ask whether something happened between you two... I wouldn't know what to say... So if I said I didn't know, I thought everyone would ignore me... J-just like how you gave your fiancée the job of telling me the lecture contents later... If you had... given me a task too... then even if I stayed in the lecture room, I think it would've been a little easier..."
I genuinely couldn't understand what he was talking about.
Once the lecture started, nobody would even be able to talk, so why was he worried about that?
And I couldn't understand why he thought not knowing about Tryggdrik's secret kidnapping plan would make people ignore him.
And what was this about things being okay if I had given him a task too...?
'At this point, this feels less like speculation and more like persecutory delusion. No, before that, does this guy never look in a mirror?'
Even though he was still in his teens, his face looked not merely rugged but like that of a man in his forties.
[N1]
Then I lowered my gaze and checked his muscles, which went beyond merely large and bordered on monstrous.
Did it make any sense for someone who looked like that to tremble in fear over being ignored by others?
I just hadn't mentioned it until now because I didn't think it was particularly important, but every time I faced Ríolíkin, I had to mentally prepare myself.
So I wouldn't instinctively flinch or feel intimidated.
Ríolíkin simply had the kind of appearance that provoked that reaction.
In that sense, what he had just said could only be described as a serious plausibility error.
Author Senna must have messed up the character settings.
"S-since I told you... can I come with you...?"
"...For now."
For some reason, it didn't feel like Ríolíkin was only asking about 'right now,' so instead of saying it was okay, I gave a temporary answer.
It seemed I would need to have another conversation with Ríolíkin after this incident was over.
It's not that I want to dig into his personal backstory and figure out how he ended up thinking like this.
To begin with, it's doubtful that such a story even exists.
It can't be helped. Ríolíkin isn't even a 'villain,' just a 'minion.'
I doubt Author Senna would have written some long, tragic backstory for him.
Even if there was a setting for it, it probably wouldn't be detailed or elaborate.
'So what I need to confirm is... why Ríolíkin follows Karvaldr.'
Actually, I could already roughly guess the reason from what Ríolíkin had said earlier.
But now wasn't the time to analyze or verify something like that, so I decided to set it aside for the moment.
I assume the readers are more curious about the progress of the kidnapping incident than Ríolíkin's circumstances anyway.
I moved through the alleyway with Yor, while Ríolíkin followed behind us.
Once we completely exited the alley, I could see the building written in the note.
It was a fairly large warehouse. Tryggdrik had probably rented it under the name of his transmigrated body.
Perhaps because the area was deserted, nobody was standing guard outside.
Thanks to that, it wasn't difficult to quietly approach the slightly open warehouse entrance.
Fortunately, it seemed I hadn't arrived too late either.
"I believe I told you it would be best not to move carelessly."
Tryggdrik was saying that while pressing a dagger against the neck of an unconscious girl who was presumably Helga.
Meanwhile, Reisir was crossing weapons with someone who looked like a mercenary.
"Where the hell did that spear suddenly come from?! Drop it now!"
It seemed that while the two of them were talking,
the mercenary had received a signal from Tryggdrik and launched a surprise attack on Reisir.
Unable to simply take the hit, Reisir must have pulled a weapon from his inventory to defend himself.
Tryggdrik's dagger nicked Helga's skin, leaving a small cut.
The moment he saw that, Reisir immediately released the spear in his hand, and it clattered across the warehouse floor.
Apparently satisfied, Tryggdrik curled the corners of his mouth into a smirk.
"Good, very good. Now kick the spear over there and get on your knees immediately."
"You're the one who should be kneeling."
Without hesitation, I shoved the door open and entered the conversation.
It wasn't that I acted recklessly simply because I couldn't stand seeing the original protagonist I supported kneel before someone like Tryggdrik.
Though if you asked whether that feeling played no role at all, I couldn't honestly deny it.
'Anyway, this is exactly the situation I expected. I can solve this easily.'
It was because I had that confidence that I could boldly open the door and step in.
Although Reisir reacted with obvious disbelief, as if he thought I was just being recklessly brave.
"Did you really have to make such a dramatic entrance? We could've waited until Tryggdrik let his guard down, slipped in through the back, subdued him, and rescued Helga, couldn't we?"
"Can you not see the mercenary standing behind Tryggdrik like a bodyguard? A strategy like that would never have worked."
"I still think it would've worked better than barging in like this..."
"I'm someone who's never even sparred before, let alone experienced real combat. The same goes for Yor, who has no combat experience either."
"What about Ríolíkin?"
"You're asking for too much."
"But he looks like he'd be insanely strong?!"
Reisir shouted with an expression of disbelief.
Honestly, I agreed completely. From my perspective too, Ríolíkin looked like he possessed tremendous combat ability.
Unfortunately, according to the original novel, Ríolíkin's abilities were entirely specialized toward defense.
Not only that, but apparently terrified by the three mercenaries hired by Tryggdrik, Ríolíkin was currently pressed flat against the wall and trembling.
Judging by appearances alone, the mercenaries and Ríolíkin looked about evenly matched.
'At this rate, I can't even use him as a shield.'
Not that I had been expecting anything in the first place.
Besides, it didn't matter, since a fight wasn't going to break out anyway.
