“Of course it’s Lewis! Amazing!”
“Haha… I was just lucky.”
The original protagonist… right?
That must be it?
The water attribute magic specialist Perinne and the dog—no, the dog beastman magician Shuri. And the boy, who was referred to as Lewis, looking quite refined.
This guy named Lewis is presumed to be the original protagonist simply because the original heroine is sticking to him. With that alone, I could be about 80% sure, if not 100%.
I can’t quite remember if there was an event in the original where he had a duel with Perinne… but anyway, the fact that he has connections with both heroines seems like pretty solid evidence to me.
“Johann? What’s wrong?”
Should I make contact? If he really is the protagonist, getting to know him wouldn’t be a bad idea.
After all, the trials I need to overcome to reach the ending were originally meant for the protagonist. Ideally, I’d take advantage of the breaks and sneak away from the things I need to dodge… but first, there was something I needed to confirm.
Is that guy a reincarnated person?
“Johann!”
“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking for a moment.”
My mind is all jumbled. The circumstances would change a lot depending on whether he’s a reincarnated person or not.
If he’s a pure 100% local, I can’t trust that I’d see a happy ending in this chaotic game world, and if he’s a 100% reincarnated person, he’d probably be running around trying to utilize game knowledge, which would be annoying.
To check whether he’s a reincarnator or not, I have to talk to that parasite-like guy. So, I forced myself to squeeze out some justification and approached the furry—no, beastman heroine hugging Lewis.
“Hey. It’s illegal to duel here.”
That’s right, isn’t it? Honestly, I don’t know the rules. But typically, fighting while using magic in a marketplace like this has to be illegal, right? Or not.
Anyway, it seems my killer line landed because Lewis and Shuri were looking at me with puzzled expressions. Yeah, if a knight suddenly popped out at a time like this, that’s the kind of look they’d have. Still, not wanting to lose the protagonist vibe, Lewis quickly asked me with a calm expression.
“Who are you?”
Who am I?
“Johann Quartz. I’m a knight working at the Academy.”
I pulled out the pendant that symbolizes my status as a knight.
Oh, and yes, I do work as a knight at the Academy. More specifically, I’m in Yeomyeong-gwan that’s inside the Academy. Of course, I don’t have the authority to torment students, but I can use my status to make brief contact without it being a problem.
I tried to put on an imposing expression and pretended to scold the two of them.
“Do you not know how dangerous it is to have duels in a place where people are passing by?”
“Ah… that’s true, but if not, Shuri…”
“Y-Yeah! Lewis was just trying to protect me…”
Why are both of them turning pale? It’s not because of my face, is it?
Ignoring the excuses being fervently thrown by the two, I glanced over at Perinne.
She looked down, still shocked from her defeat. It seemed taking a loss in a duel on a marketplace was quite the blow. After all, the presumed protagonist did manage to win.
In the early game, winning against Perinne is really tough. Especially using the swordsman tree. Perinne is supposed to be a natural enemy to swordsmen.
I lowered my gaze and scanned the standard iron sword hanging from Lewis’s waist, which is used by the Academy knight students.
Being Kalon Academy, the quality is decent, but calling it a good weapon seems ambiguous. It doesn’t seem like he’s carrying a powerful early-game weapon that typically drops from specific dungeons, so did he win purely based on skill?
“Let’s skip that part. What I want to know is why you fought with Perinne… the noblewoman.”
“Well, um…”
Lewis’s explanation went like this: Shuri accidentally bumped into Perinne and dirtied her clothes, and the proud noblewoman Perinne couldn’t hold back her temper and threw all sorts of insults at Shuri, which made Lewis angry, and that arrogant noblewoman requested a duel… something like that.
And miraculously, he beat that Perinne and was celebrating with Shuri with a joyous hug.
Considering the original Perinne was a character known for having a severe temper before her redemption arc—well, that’s putting it nicely; to be blunt, she could be quite the nuisance—it doesn’t really clash with the fragmented memories I have.
I don’t think there was an event that straight-up eliminated her like this.
After all, in the game, it’s nearly impossible to win early on because of the vast differences in stats.
“I get the circumstances, but having a duel in the marketplace isn’t a really good choice. I’ll let it slide this time, but don’t do it again next time.”
“Yes! We won’t do it again!”
I had put too much strength into my shoulder. I patted Lewis’s shoulder a couple of times after he gave a model answer.
“Now, you should get going.”
I’d like to talk more, but I don’t really have a valid reason to stop them.
I’m not the security guard responsible for maintaining order; I’m just a knight guarding Karina. It’s not like I can force a reason to detain them and end up turning red in the face with the guards.
Still, the mere fact that the original protagonist exists is a big gain, so I guess it’s best to be satisfied with this for now. Forcing it might only worsen the relationship.
At least for now.
…Either way, whether it’s the final exams coming up or the second semester, I’ll definitely have contact opportunities with that guy.
If he’s a reincarnator, he’ll definitely try to contact Karina.
If he’s not… Hmm. I can think about that later.
For now, it’s quite enough just preparing the plans I’ve laid out.
Perinne had disappeared while I spoke to Lewis, so I had no chance to talk to her, and honestly, I didn’t want to get too close either.
I absentmindedly watched the new worries drifting far away.
Until Millia pinched my palm with all her might.
———————-
“Johann! I want to try that too!”
Millia seemed to have found a new stall and tugged at my hand. I pretended to be helpless and let Millia lead me while scanning the snacks sold at the stall.
Hmm, is that a waffle? If it’s made well, it can be delicious.
“Please give me the apple cinnamon flavor!”
“Uh, um, that… I also…”
Elisa. I didn’t know you had such a big appetite. I bought waffles for both me and Elisa from the stall owner. After a little while, both of them held warm waffles in their hands.
“Let’s sit on that fountain chair and eat.”
“Okay!”
We immediately sat on the fountain chair and began to eat the waffles. Millia stuffed her mouth full of waffles like a squirrel and skillfully chewed and swallowed them. Our well-fed Dullahan certainly eats with enthusiasm.
…She should have been born in the 21st century, not here. With her eating habits, she’d make a great mukbang streamer.
She’s cute, has a great appetite, and is pretty; becoming popular would be no problem.
…But this is a game world, so that’s not going to happen.
“Johann! Ah~”
With Millia’s voice, my vision was filled with golden waffles. Is she asking me to take a bite? I took a reasonable bite from Millia’s waffle.
It’s sweet. Really ridiculously sweet. I feel like I might lose my mind from this overwhelming sweetness that feels like I’ve just swallowed a week’s worth of sugar. As I savored the waffles’ sugary taste, memories of Korea naturally came to mind.
I feel like I often bought 1000 won waffles when I was a kid.
Did the waffles I had in Korea taste this sweet? Honestly, I can’t quite remember. Aside from the strangely clear memories I have of this game knowledge, almost everything else feels like mere fragments left scattered behind.
“It’s delicious.”
“Right?”
Does she like the waffles? I shifted my gaze away from Millia and tried to fall back into thought mode when…
A slight pull on my sleeve interrupted me.
“Elisa. Do you have something to say?”
Instead of answering, she held out a waffle that was one third gone. Is she asking me to eat it?
As I looked at Elisa, she appeared shy yet had a twinkle of anticipation in her eyes. If I don’t comply, she’ll probably fall into that gloomy mode again, so I guess I have to oblige. I immediately bit into the edge of the waffle.
“It’s delicious.”
The socially awkward little witch representing Kalon Academy smiled a damp, mysterious smile as if she had just aired out the gloom while letting out a strange sound.
“Hehehehe…”
A sound you’d expect to hear in a haunted house at an amusement park.
But if it makes her happy, then so be it.
Having spent that delightful snack time, we left the fountain and re-entered the marketplace.
There’s still plenty to see, and it will take a while to drain all of Millia’s surplus energy that rivals that of a Beagle.
———————
Our marketplace exploration didn’t end until the sun was setting. With people starting to leave and the stalls getting tidied up, we headed toward Yeomyeong-gwan.
“I can’t eat anymore…”
Are you dreaming of food even in your sleep?
I felt the damp sensation of Millia’s drool soaking into my back as I adjusted her while she was sleeping on me. It’s not like I’m babysitting or something.
“Y-Yo, Johann…”
“What’s the matter?”
“Um, that…”
Elisa stammered with a shy face, stealing glances at me while turning her eyes away repeatedly.
She seems to have something to say. I silently waited for her to gather her courage and speak to me. After all, Millia was sound asleep, so there was no worry of her interrupting us.
I only finally heard Elisa’s words once we passed through the Academy’s front gate and could see Yeomyeong-gwan.
“Uh, um… thank you…”
“Thank you?”
“Yes…”
“What for?”
“For, um, taking me to the market… it was fun.”
A shy voice. In this moment, it wasn’t her gloomy voice but a beautiful one that seems like it can make any guy turn around at least once.
“I’ll take you again next time.”
“…I’ll… I’ll rely on you again next time…”
That was our final exchange just before entering Yeomyeong-gwan.
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