I felt it once again.
I have grown.
If it were before, I would have definitely shouted ‘Do it again!’ by now. And I would have methodically planned everything from the start.
Well, it’s not like a grand ‘plan’ would be spilling out of my head like the Emperor concocted.
To be honest, compared to just a year ago, I was really just going with the flow.
But…
“…….”
Charlotte’s gaze is a bit uncomfortable. And understandably so. It hadn’t been long since Charlotte called me her true friend, and now this ‘friend’ was about to cause a ruckus in her country.
However, the reason I felt awkward about Charlotte’s expression is that I thought we had gotten close enough for that.
Above all, if she didn’t think we were this close, then Charlotte wouldn’t be making such expressions towards me. She would surely have put on a fabricated smile hiding her true feelings like she was in some beginner’s class.
Right now, she couldn’t possibly have shown that kind of bold expression like—
‘Is it really okay to trust? Is there even a plan? Should I even believe that what I felt when I saw Sylvia wasn’t all a misunderstanding?’
…
It’s okay. Even if her eyes are a bit colder, she’s still my friend, right?
Thinking like that, I looked around.
It wasn’t just Charlotte who had changed her attitude in front of me.
Right now, I definitely could not stand in front of Mia and boldly say something like, ‘I killed your father. And that father deserved to die.’… I can easily imagine the expression Mia would show if I said something like that.
To rewind time and remake relationships is akin to destroying the connections that have been built up. It’s not just about fighting and drifting apart, or seeing an unflattering side of someone making it difficult to act towards them… all those negative aspects were part of the ‘relationship’ too, and honestly, it’s something that should be overcome with effort. To extend a word of reconciliation, to understand why the other acted that way…
Rewinding time ignores the weight of the memories built with those people.
I think it was more Mia who considered things first and offered me all sorts of good advice, but let’s just go with that for now.
“… So.”
After sitting for a while, holding his head, Leo was the first to speak up.
“So, the people trying to raid the cathedral in the heart of Lutetia had to be the ‘most trustworthy’ people?”
“That’s right.”
I answered.
“So, you couldn’t trust the soldiers of Lutetia?”
“Couldn’t trust them.”
It felt like the temperature of Charlotte’s gaze towards me had gotten a bit colder, but I decided to ignore it for now.
“Then what about the people coming from the Empire—”
“—I’d rather not take those.”
Upon Charlotte’s words, Leo shut his mouth, then looked up at me.
“……”
“……”
An uneasy silence lingered in the room for a moment.
“Excuse me.”
At the end of that silence, Mia carefully spoke up.
“There’s only one person here who isn’t from the Empire… besides Charlotte.”
Right, that’s true.
But even so, they were all people we could trust. We had already combined forces several times, and we knew everyone’s skills were absolutely top-notch.
Sofia was out. She must be sleeping in her room by now. Or maybe praying or something.
Rena was also excluded. She was a close friend, she admired me greatly, but she’s a foreigner for now.
As for Jake and Roti… I couldn’t find them anywhere.
They must be doing something somewhere. But still, since they’re students… I only hope they don’t rush ahead too much.
Despite those four being missing, I felt it was still definitely possible. I rewound time, and Leo and Claire, who had trained swordsmanship under the Sword Saint, would take charge, and above all, I had plenty of firepower.
There were variables like the masked woman and Lucas, but… well, if those two appeared at the same time, I would call that luck. Even if my abilities are restricted, they wouldn’t be completely sealed, and the masked woman wouldn’t team up with Lucas either.
While I had considered these variables to some extent—
“……”
That’s strange.
Even Claire, who usually shouts ‘Yes!’ at everything I say, was looking at me with a very uncomfortable expression.
With her arms crossed, she glared at me as if I had a huge complaint against me.
“Hey, what about the people who are missing?”
That was what Claire threw out.
“…… Are you talking about the missing people?”
“Sofia, Rena, Jake, and Roti.”
“Jake and Roti must be having a good time together. If I go looking for them, that would ruin their precious memories together.”
“Really? Well, forgetting those two, what about Rena and Sofia?”
Claire’s voice, with her arms slightly twitching, had an oddly cold tone.
“Those two are likely on foreign soil—”
“Uh, um!”
Mia raised her hand, looking nervous.
“We’re also foreigners! By Velbur’s standards…!”
Being from a frontier territory, she seemed to grasp the situation quickly. If it became known that she was part of this expedition, she would be in a huge dilemma.
“True. To me, you all are ‘foreign friends’. And I deliberately invited you all here. Besides, Sofia is even from the same district as me.”
Ah, right.
Charlotte still didn’t know that Sofia was from the Papal State.
Moreover, if Charlotte were to discover Sofia’s true identity, things would get massively uncomfortable in many ways. I’m not talking about national-level issues, but rather the bond between friends.
How many people can regard a friend as a ‘friend’ after discovering that friend is a spy from abroad?
“Furthermore, you know, Sofia… If you say you purposely left her out, she would be incredibly hurt when she finds out later. And Rena looks up to you immensely, right? Do you know how she talks about you?”
“……”
For reference, Alice had been glaring at me with a face full of grievances since the audience with the King.
Honestly, it looked like she was thinking, ‘Let’s see how far you can go.’
……
Well, the proper way to handle relationships is to face each other and tackle things head-on.
That way, memories remain, you know how to act in the future, and shared memories are born—
—.
Ah, who cares.
Do it again!
*
In situations that have clearly gone awry, there’s nothing better than rewinding time.
If I had such an ability in my past life, I would have used it incredibly well.
Surprisingly, timing is essential when apologizing. If a situation drags on even a little, getting forgiven becomes nearly impossible.
I can recall all the troubles I faced due to my clueless actions in my past life.
Yeah, in the community where I posted my translations, misunderstanding piled up, and when we started asking about each other’s parents, we even attempted some manipulation of public opinion to get a win.
If only I had recognized my mistakes first and apologized, the relationship with that person would—
No, that’s not right; that person was the one at fault first. Why should I even think about the feelings of someone I wouldn’t have to see again in my lifetime?
In my past life, I would have just bought a ton of coins and made sure ‘others adjust to my feelings.’ It wasn’t just to earn a lot of money, it was an enormous advantage to utilize that information.
And in that sense, I’m really grateful that I gained this ability only after coming to this world.
The very first action I used my ability for was to ‘save someone,’ so I’m truly relieved.
If it hadn’t been for that, I might have gone wild with this power in this world and still not been able to become friends in the genuine sense with anyone.
“I’m sorry.”
“Uh, what?”
Right after the meeting with the King ended, but before I gathered my friends, when the three of us had briefly gathered in Charlotte’s room, I bowed to Charlotte and said that.
“……”
Charlotte seemed momentarily frozen, not saying a word. Then her voice came out incredulously.
“Do you even know what this action means? For the Emperor’s daughter to bow her head to the Kingdom’s daughter…”
“If you want to think of it that way, feel free.”
“……”
At my words, Charlotte fell silent.
“But my apology doesn’t stop there. I’m not apologizing as ‘Fanggriffon’, but as ‘Sylvia’.”
That was something that could be taken negatively. Without the title of Fanggriffon, I was no longer such an important person.
“I’m sorry for hiding such plans until now. It’s not a simple military or political apology. It’s just… I wanted to apologize for hiding the fact that I was thinking of destroying your hometown while being your friend.”
It seems I could only realize that after rewinding time because I was that foolish.
I grew up, I’ve grown. What good would it do for me to mutter to myself? The people around me need to recognize it too.
Those words of mine wrapped the room in silence for a while.
“…… Then, I will speak not as a princess but as your friend, Charlotte. Please raise your head.”
At those words, I felt my heart brighten.
I managed to control my expression and lifted my head.
When my eyes met Charlotte’s, she was smiling brightly.
Yet, for some reason, next to her face, she had her fist tightly raised.
If this were not ‘reality’ but a game, there would be adorably exaggerated muscles bulging on that fist.
And I can assure you, that fist would be incredibly painful even without those muscles.
Charlotte, still radiating a bright smile, said,
“I’ll forgive you, but can I hit you just once?”
*
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