The bonfire crackled, and two men stood facing each other.
“I’ll just say this: I’m not an idiot.”
“I believe you.”
“…Why is that?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m talking about Ariel.”
His expression had turned more serious than ever.
Sure enough, he was the type to be scared of drifting away from his childhood friend. Quite understandable. He’s utterly clueless about his own feelings.
At this rate, it’s a huge development.
“Are you talking about that beautiful elf girl?”
“Looking at it now, that was acting, right? Or else it doesn’t make sense.”
“Please, go on.”
“Her tone and actions seem to focus more on me than on Ariel.”
Ugh, caught red-handed.
“Well, no one would do something like that openly. It’s fascinating how the carriage was handled…Do you think I wouldn’t know you got that expensive candy?”
You thought I wouldn’t notice.
That’s on me.
So, does this guy only get smarter when it comes to Ariel? Maybe I need to reevaluate. I sheathed my sword as if I knew nothing.
“Anyway, thanks. I’ll definitely repay this debt.”
Did I mishear? This is definitely the start of Kainel’s companion route.
The hero’s face had relaxed.
“I haven’t done anything worthy of thanks.”
“No matter how clueless I am, it was pretty obvious you were trying to set me up with Ariel. Thanks to you, she calmed down too.”
“I’m glad you noticed.”
“Did you feel it was frustrating too? Is that why?”
“…”
What should I do here? I have my lines down, but seeing his indecisive personality, a conventional approach won’t work.
In that case.
“I thought of someone I know.”
Time to twist the choices.
You gotta put in some effort to increase those dating success odds.
*
“He’s a strange person.”
That was Kainel’s assessment of Licht after observing him.
At one moment, he was spewing lines like a creep, and then he teamed up with the coachman to meddle in my relationship with Ariel.
He even gave me candy while trying to help, and now he’s grown alongside her and is even taking night watches for her?
Except for the first time, he didn’t glance at his childhood friend once.
This was clearly not targeting Ariel.
His way of speaking is probably the original. He sounded awkward as if he was putting on a show.
“Was I wrong?”
He had been running away from his feelings. He thought that as long as he kept lying, it would be the best option even if it hurt her.
The black knight before him might be trying to correct that point on purpose.
He even warned not to have a love quarrel in the stable.
Having solved some doubts, the hero listened intently to Licht’s story.
“A person you know? Is it a friend?”
“Kainel, do you think it’s better to confess and regret it afterward?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure.”
He crossed his legs.
“They say once you break up, you can’t even remain friends.”
“Most of the time, yeah. Not having that is a rare case.”
“Have you and Ariel known each other for a few years?”
The bonfire reflected in the black knight’s eyes.
Seeing him, I had a strange sense of something.
“…About 10 years.”
Kainel ruffled his hair. He felt like he was subtly speaking about himself. Even a clueless guy like me could catch that.
He instinctively realized.
“One party is a friend worse than clueless, and the other struggles with expressing feelings.”
“Is that so?”
“They say they’re scared. Scared of drifting apart as friends, which is why they won’t confess.”
“That’s my story!”
Upon hearing that, the black knight shrugged his shoulders.
“Well, they say human feelings can be confusing—whether it’s friendship or love. It’s hard when you’ve been friends for so long.”
“No, I don’t think that way.”
“Why not?”
“…”
The black helmet gazed at the hero.
It seemed like he was waiting for an answer.
“I also like Ariel. There’s no way I could mistake that.”
A blatant leading question.
The golden-haired hero opened up to Licht. Honestly, he couldn’t lie anymore after coming this far. He let his pride down.
“You’ve gotten quite honest. Good.”
“If I don’t answer like this, I’ll end up doing something with Ariel tomorrow. Come on, give me a break. My heart might explode.”
“Have I been caught? That’s too bad. Hahaha!”
It was a hearty laugh he had never heard before.
Is he originally this kind of person? I don’t get his intentions, but it’s clear he genuinely wants to connect me and Ariel.
“Do you realize how embarrassing it is to be coached on love by someone you just met?”
“Then, can I approach Miss Ariel?”
“Not a chance. Where do you think you’re going?”
“You were going to say yes.”
Beneath the helmet, he must have been grinning. Just thinking about it made me smile for no reason.
“Let’s call you Licht. We’re the same age, right?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I thought you were respectful, so I assumed you were some grumpy old man.”
“Don’t I look less scary now?”
“I’m not scared at all. Now.”
As Kainel reached out for a handshake, a small chuckle escaped as Licht took his hand.
“Now I feel better. If you had been a real rival, I’d be in trouble.”
“Ariel is really pretty.”
“To be honest, I was surprised when I saw her today. What if a guy starts hitting on her at the academy?”
“With you around, that won’t happen.”
“Yeah, I should stick to that from now on.”
Stretching out, they talked in front of the bonfire.
Seeing each other’s feelings, Licht’s comment about why they weren’t dating seemed believable.
Honestly, people often asked why they weren’t dating, and their parents knew each other as well.
At that moment, a question crossed the hero’s mind.
“Oh, by the way… Licht, do you have someone you like?”
A sudden thought popped up.
The knight’s movements froze awkwardly. He looked like a puppet with its strings cut.
Unexpectedly, he had a clumsy side. Kainel felt he had struck gold here.
“It’s a crush… but, yes…”
“Oh… Who is it? It’s not Ariel, right?”
“No way. It’s a beautiful woman with white hair.”
Hearing that, the hero’s doubts cleared completely. Ariel has red hair, after all.
The jealousy that had been tightening in his chest melted away like snow.
“So cheer up. Unless you want to struggle like I did.”
“Seems like it’s still about you, Licht.”
“Think whatever you want.”
“You really can’t lie… huh?”
The holy sword at my waist began to tremble.
The weeds rustled. From afar, a massive shape started rushing toward us.
The sound cut through the air.
Grrrrrr…
The threat of an angry beast. Did Licht know this was going to happen with his night watch?
*
Where did this go wrong?
‘This is not someone I should be meeting here…’
A five-star monster. A Shadow Wolf was targeting both of us.
There were tents behind us where others were sleeping. If I went to wake them, we’d be in trouble because of its habit of creeping into shadows.
“There’s no carriage left! How are we supposed to get to the academy now!”
I recalled what Ariel had said in the stables. They couldn’t leave because there was no carriage.
If I hadn’t been here…
Crap, this is because of me, isn’t it?
I was filled with a chilling realization.
So the plan was to warp straight to the academy.
I sighed, and my deductions became clear. If that were the case, I wouldn’t have needed to face such uninvited guests.
Standing before a gigantic black wolf that looked to be about 5 meters tall,
I drew my sword from its sheath. Now, this was the sword protecting the love between the two childhood friends.
I could practically see the steel I dubbed the “Pure Love Injector” right in front of me.
The beast took a deep breath.
“Cover your ears!”
“Huh? Got it!”
Awwoooooo—!!!
The roar pattern. You have to bite down hard at the start to create a window of attack.
“Use the Holy Sword, Kainel!”
“How do you know about that?!”
“If you’re going to protect her, do it right!”
If Ariel dies here, it’s straight to the Corruption Route. Love line? At least there’s none in that direction. I must end this as quickly as possible.
If the bonfire goes out, who knows what will happen.
“Let there be light.”
Light began to gather on the blade of the Holy Sword, illuminating the night. The wolf, sensing a change, stumbled back.
“Aim for the eyes. That’s its weak point.”
“Are you sure about that?”
His face turned serious.
In an instant, the wolf charged. Its target was the bonfire.
“Not on my watch.”
The moonlight reflected off the blade as I slashed toward the Shadow Wolf’s trajectory. Dust flew up.
“Grrrrr…”
The ground was marked with scratches from my blade. Black blood splattered on the helm as the wounded wolf tried to bite down in retaliation. I barely avoided a blind spot. But—
“Am I late?”
“Yeah.”
Kainel charged in, aiming precisely for its left eye. With a flash, blood began to fountain from the wolf’s eyes.
An opening appeared.
“Yip! Yip!”
Not letting it slip, Kainel and I dove in, two knights piercing precisely at its sides. Watching us, the wolf dove into the shadows.
Beginning to disappear like smoke, Kainel looked around, starting to get anxious.
“It’s going to come from the back! Get ready!”
“From the back?!”
Instinctively, the wolf moved against the wind. To mask its scent and avoid detection by its prey.
Thanks to my instructions, his anxiety eased.
Grrrrrraaaah!!!
Like dolphins leaping out of the water, a wolf leaped from our shadows. It soon soared into the air. Its gaping maw seemed like it could swallow everything below.
“Aim for the eyes!”
“I know!”
Kainel and I synchronized. We aimed directly at the beast’s eyes and cut with precision.
Two sets of contrasting blades.
The wolf’s left and right eyes split in half simultaneously.
[Shadow Wolf] is made up of shadows and blood, except for its eyes.
So if we take out its eyeballs, only the skin remains.
With a thud, the massive black fur fell to the ground. That used to cost a pretty penny.
“Licht… what the heck are you?! Why are you so strong, like me?!”
The hero’s face turned pale with shock. He had probably never seen anyone who had been chosen by the holy sword and achieved similar feats. His face turned green as he switched glances between me and the Shadow Wolf.
Hmm, how can I say something that will earn me praise?
“Pure Love Black Knight.”
“I’m the one who will become the Academy’s Pure Love Black Knight.”
Right now, this statement felt the most fitting.
That’s also my nickname in the game.
Because I have to protect the happiness of the Nameless Saintess through love.
