With just one look at the street food that was covered in blazing red sauce in front of them, anyone could tell that it was very spicy.
“Can you handle spicy food?” Davey asked, prompting the dazed Reina to approach him.
Reina’s eyes narrowed to a slit when she saw the food that Davey handed over to her. She muttered, “This…”
“What do you think? This place is famous for its flavor, want to try some?”
“The…Lord knows something like this?”
“It’s because they’re my family.”
With a gaze expressing slight trepidation, Reina’s nose twitched as she sniffed the skewer.
The one that Davey had previously tried with Illyna was far less fragrant and stimulating in terms of smell. As for this one in front of Reina, its smell was beyond anyone’s imagination.
Reina, in fact, looked more concerned about something other than the spicy fragrance that lingered in her nose.
“Because of the experiments, I have lost my sense of taste. It has been years since I last tasted anything. In other words, I cannot taste anything. Well, are you trying to raise my hackles by making me eat something spicy?”
“If I were you, I would take it easy.”
“I’m sorry, but even if it’s spicy, I won’t be able to taste anything. I don’t know what you’re trying to get at, but at the very least I will not forget to show you my gratitude for saving our party,” Reina said as she looked up at Davey.
Taking a casual bite of the skewer, she kept her calm expression. She appeared to have no problems at all.
However, Davey simply raised three fingers and folded them one by one in a countdown. By the time he folded the third finger…
“Ah? Urgh!!!” Reina’s confident expression instantly crumpled as she collapsed onto the ground. “Ughh!!!”
The more Davey looked at Reina’s ugly expression, teary face, and crumpled figure, the more he saw the figure of the girl she had been.
Just like the girl who Davey was very much acquainted with, Reina also tried to not let out a scream or make her suffering obvious. However…
“Ah… Aaaaaah… Aaaaaaaaaaah!!!”
Unable to endure any longer, Reina completely threw her face out of the window as she grabbed the fruit juice that Davey handed over to her and gulped it down as fast as she could. Only after doing that did she breathe a sigh of relief, her expression finally easing on her reddened face.
Of course, she did not forget to glare at Davey. Whether it was her younger self in this world or her current self from another world, she remained proud and egoistical.
“Bahahahahaha!”
—You’re terrible. You have screwed over both women, the present her and even the future her.
Reina looked up at the laughing Davey with an even sharper glare. Her expression had a distinct coldness, but it was slightly different from the usual expression that Davey had seen from her so far.
“Now, you look like a human.”
Reina gritted her teeth. Normally, someone who ate something that spicy would immediately spit out and throw away the skewer. However, she did her best to chew it and swallow the mouthful that she had in her mouth.
Pushing the skewer back to Davey, she demanded, “Please eat it.”
“I’m fine.”
“Do you think this is edible for humans?!”
“Cough! Lady, even if you did not like it, for you to speak about it like that… Well, it’s your loss,” said the dwarf with a cough.
Startled by the dwarf, Reina lowered her head in shame. “I’m… I’m sorry. I didn't mean it like that…”
“Bahahahahaha! Well, I believe this situation is similar to the last one.”
“Ugh… Stop talking and eat!”
Davey laughed as he reached for the skewer. “It does not really have an effect on me.”
“You’ll… You’ll regret it,” Reina mumbled, unconsciously having a proud and confident expression flash across her face.
—I think a gentle approach will have a greater effect?
‘Let’s raise her hackles a bit more.’
“Is that so?”
[Pain Reduction]
[Olfactory Delay]
—This is no different from when you cheated on that child, Illyna, before.
It did not matter to Davey. It was their fault for getting deceived.
Reina watched Davey chew and swallow casually. She expected that the spiciness would flare out soon and bring Davey to his knees. She wanted to see his eyes and nose becoming runny. However…
“Are you human?! Why the hell… Why are you acting all normal?!”
That was a perfectly normal question.
Davey just ate everything up before shaking the now empty skewer in front of Reina and saying, “It seems like your cat’s tongue is still the same as ever.”
“Eeeeek!”
Davey ruffled Reina’s hair furiously as he walked by her and moved on. He said, “Follow me. We’re going somewhere else.”
“H-Hey!”
Reina did not notice that, ever since visiting the dwarf vendor, she had been entirely focused on Davey. She was no longer wary of her surroundings.
A human should live like a human, even if they were at the end of the road. Seeing Reina’s slight smile on her face, Davey began to walk to their next destination.
***
Inside a loud and boisterous pub that was crowded with excited residents and mercenaries passing by the territory, the atmosphere was incredibly lively.
“This place…”
“You should know this place very well, right?”
“I don’t like noisy places very much. I don’t even like alcohol.”
“But I think you used to like it very much.”
“It has become more of a trauma. Those demon bastards also like drinking.”
Illyna obviously liked lively places, since she enjoyed listening to people talk with bright expressions on their faces. However, Reina was different. In the first place, there was no such law that stipulated that she had to be the same as her younger self from ten years ago. It was only natural that she had changed.
“Welcome! What can I get you?”
“Two barley beers. Also, some appropriate grub.”
The pub owner chuckled and nodded as Davey took out some silver with practiced ease.
“I hope you have a good time, My Lord.”
“Quick-witted bastards.”
“Hahahahaha! If someone does not recognize Your Highness, then they’re not a permanent resident of the Heins Territory but a spy. Those who don’t recognize you due to a slight change in your appearance are most definitely outsiders.”
“How are things going these days?”
“After Your Highness’ men knocked everything over, those gang bastards have disappeared. The ones who remained usually tend to keep to themselves,” the pub owner said, chuckling.
“That’s that. Please bring us our drinks. And if I catch you putting in something like last time, I will definitely break your wrists this time.”
“Eyy. Your Highness, that herb is our family’s heirloom. It has been passed down…”
“Shh. That’s for you to consume, then.”
“Tch… Fine, I understand.”
Davey had worn a proper disguise so that he would not stand out. He now decided that he was going to completely change his appearance next time. However, there was no reason for him to go that far since he was just going out and roaming around the territory.
“You…come here often?” Reina asked carefully.
Davey was definitely the Lord of this entire territory. However, it was very surprising for Reina to know that the Lord was used to drinking in such an ordinary pub.
“What does it look like?”
“I don’t know… I don’t think it looks bad…”
Reina was unable to speak any further. Not long after, Davey handed over one of the barley beers that the pub owner had delivered to their table. He urged, “It tastes fine. Have a drink.”
“I don’t drink.”
“Think of this as the medical fee for you and your party. Drink up. If you don’t drink, I will charge your party the medical fee. You have to remember that there’s no such thing as medical insurance in this world, it will be very expensive.”
“…” Reina appeared discontent as she picked up the glass of alcohol, drinking everything in one shot.
“Goodness. So, you drink well. Here! Have another drink,” Davey said, pushing another glass of beer towards her.
“…What do you plan to do by making me drink alcohol?”
“Stop thinking about useless things and take this.”
“Wa… Wait a moment! Just now…”
“Ah, I don’t know!” Davey shouted, his temper flaring up.
Reina drank another glass, then said, “It’s… It’s delicious. Is this really beer?”
One glass, two glasses, three glasses… Reina continued to drink. It seemed like she was a bit wary of Davey’s reasons for passing her drink after drink, but she did not drink everything in one shot anymore.
However, what could she do? It was already too late.
This was the pub that Davey always visited whenever he patrolled the territory, and the owner here usually sold the alcohol that he had mentioned before. Although the drink was called barley beer by the people, the owner’s alcohol was very notorious for tasting too good. It was a drink that one would continue to drink without even realizing that they were already drunk.
***
Clack!
Reina, who had become heavily drunk, glared sharply at the empty glass in front of her. “It’s empty.”
“That’s right.”
“Give me more!”
“No more.”
“M… More!” Reina whined like a child throwing a tantrum.
Pretending that he had lost, Davey poured Reina another drink. “Take this.”
Reina gulped down the beer as if she had been waiting for it.
The pub should obviously be lively and boisterous. However, the pub was now empty. This was because the quick-witted residents had already noticed that something was going on and had started leaving. Davey never intended to do anything, but it seemed like they had misunderstood his act of drinking with a woman.
No one here knew that the woman drinking in front of Davey was the rumored Warrior. Because of this, Reina’s complaints resonated loudly throughout the pub.
Clack!
Reina slammed the empty glass down, hiccuping and glaring at Davey blankly. As if something had snapped within her, she yelled, “What the hell is wrong with you?!”
“What?”
“Why didn’t you come to save me?”
“…”
The Illyna who Davey was familiar with rarely showed a drunk side to her, so he found this display from Reina rather unexpected.
“I saved you, you know?”
“I’m not talking about that! I was talking about when Nyx captured me and treated me like a lab rat… When those demon bastards held me captive…” Tears started to appear in her eyes as Reina continued to speak, “How painful it was… How dreadful…”
“Right. I know how you feel. Now, now. Drink some more,” said Davey as he offered Reina another drink. He did not say anything anymore.
“I… I look pathetic, right? I ended up cutting off my men’s throats because I lost reason and could not overcome the pain. My hands are filthy…”
“If you look at a human’s body, their hands, feet, and tongue are always covered in germs. If we put it that way, then there’s no one who is not dirty.”
“I’m talking about me! I’m not a pure and clean woman like you think! That’s why…”
“Is it really necessary to bring up the details and remind yourself of something unnecessary?”
Reina gulped down another drink and promptly fell down on the table.
“If it was… If it was going to be solved so easily… Then, why…? Why did everyone have to die to protect me…?”
In the world that Reina lived in, a rebel force had been created to resist the demons. And Reina had lost most of her comrades from that force. Lyndis Empire’s Grand Duchess Kathryn had obviously been in that world, as well as the others. However, all of them had died to protect Illyna. Why? Because she was the only one who had a way to kill Nyx.
“I failed… All of them died… I can’t even kill Nyx… Even I was left on the brink of death. But when I opened my eyes, I was already in this place… I…” Reina mumbled with tears in her eyes. “Why the hell am I sent to this place…?”
“That group you call the Rebel Forces fought until the very end. However, I don’t know how many of them are left.”
“…”
“It’s already a very amazing feat for someone to receive God’s miracle, and you are no exception. It’s not that easy to gain that much affection from God when you’re not even a Saint or a Saintess.”
Reina continued to hiccup and cry. “From the start… If I had known… If I were in this world from the very beginning… How nice would that be… I, I also wanted to do a lot of things… I wanted to fall in love too. I also wanted to travel and fulfill all of my immature dreams, just like the adventurers in the stories.”
Reina kept on rambling, “The Alpha Reinforcements and the White Bird, the people who followed me, would not have died and disappeared in vain…”
Hearing the regret in Reina’s voice, Davey said quietly, “Right, right. You’ve worked hard.”
“Now, I only have a week to live,” Reina answered regretfully before her voice trailed off.
She was starting to get sleep when she said, “If I could have… If I was given the chance to live in such a pleasant world, then… I also want to be greedy…”
Davey stood up only after Reina had fallen asleep.
“Are you finally done with your business?”
“That’s right. Here’s a tip.”
“Oh my. You’re giving me a lot. Your Highness, you don’t know how much I’ve been benefiting from rumors about your visits here. Please come anytime, I’ll make sure to serve you to the best of my abilities.”
Davey grinned at the chuckling pub owner before carrying the passed-out Reina on his back.
—She lived in a reality where she could not live the way she wanted to… And she was just a young girl too.
Mumbling bitterly, Perserque looked at Reina pitifully.
“That’s not something that you can say. It’s none of your business. You shouldn’t feel guilty about it.”
As someone who was considered the Demon Lord and someone with a history of fighting against her own father, who was Perserque to sympathize with Reina’s situation? Besides, the Demon Lord Perserque in Reina’s world was different from the Perserque in this world.
In the first place, Reina did not have much time left to live. If she hadn’t done something so stupid, then she would have lived for much longer. Because of that, she only had a week left in her lifespan. No one could save her now.
Reina was a fragment that should not have existed in this world, and she herself believed that she should not exist on her own. She only had one thought, which was to protect the Illyna of this world, even at the expense of her own life.
However, deep inside her heart, she wished to live and smile happily. It was a lingering desire that she had hidden deep within her.
“Well, I’ll take care of her until she departs.”
None of the people here were aware of the memories of the very human who had fought alone for humanity’s sake. Even if her own country knew, they would not be able to give her what she wanted. After all, it was something that went beyond what they could give.
—Are you saying that this is the job of a Saint?
“In this world, no Saint has a fixed job scope.”
Anyone could do good deeds in this world. In fact, Davey could tell that Goddess Freyja was cleverly using her God’s Will. The rewards that she had offered Davey were quite clear-cut so Davey did not mind her schemes that much.
However, when Davey opened his status window, he could see that the items promised in their deal were beginning to blur. It was as if they would disappear at any given moment.
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