“Ah shit······.”
*Thud.*
Jin, who was barely standing against the wall, slumped down, clutching his side.
It hurt.
Oh, it hurt so much.
I never imagined it would hurt this raw.
After sweating for a long while, I finally adapted enough to breathe properly.
I didn’t think having one kidney burst would hurt this badly.
“Ha······ this sucks.”
I laughed out of incredulity.
Schlus always recognized me.
No matter how much my body changed, he could always tell.
As if he could smell me or something.
Even if I sprayed perfume to mask it, it was pointless.
So, I had to conclude that he possessed some kind of ability to recognize me, not just my traces.
The method I devised to break that was to use a part of my body.
My body could transform into any form.
Of course, even a part that detached from it.
As long as I infused mana into it while it was alive, I could transform it as I wished.
Using that, I removed a kidney and placed it on my attendant.
I made her, unconscious as she was, impersonate me.
The result was a huge success.
He completely mistook his own attendant for me.
“Now that it’s all done, I just needed to poke a little more······.”
I could have made him kill her.
I could have made him watch in despair while he shed endless tears.
And I could have seen him scream until his voice cracked······.
“Why was I found out······.”
He suddenly pulled a handkerchief from his pocket.
I had no recollection of putting it there.
There was no way for me to know why it was there.
But one thing was sure: I lost.
I was utterly defeated.
If only I had inflicted some permanent damage on that attendant, it would have felt less unjust.
At least not touching a hair on her was a silver lining, maybe.
If I had injured her, Schlus would have chased me until the day he died······.
Still, for now, I could claim that this was all a necessary evil done for a request.
Then, even while harboring hatred for me, Schlus would continue using me as a crow.
Because I was competent.
“Total failure. I messed it all up.”
-Disqualify Schlus Hainkel from the midterm exam.
In that regard, the request itself was a success.
But I failed to achieve all the other goals.
Even after pouring all my mana and losing a kidney, I couldn’t bring Schlus Hainkel to despair.
It was an opportunity to drag him into the abyss.
“Ah······ wait?”
No, rather, wasn’t there still more opportunity?
That thought crossed my mind.
Despair grows larger only when there’s more to lose.
Right, when Schlus Hainkel has everything,
when he’s the happiest—
that’s when I’ll strike again.
To give him an even deeper despair,
as punishment for daring to aspire to the light, coming from the shadows······.
*Hehe······ Ugh····· Hehe!*
A sound that was neither laughter nor crying echoed out.
*
I’ll be honest.
I was a bit disappointed.
No matter how hazy my consciousness was, I wished my name, no, Schlus’s name would come out first.
“Big brother?”
“······.”
But that was probably too greedy.
It was Hertlocker who saved Emilia and raised her as a little sister for those years.
If I thought I could cover up a few years of that bond with a couple of months of cold living together, that would be a massive greed.
So, I understood.
In a tough situation, the first person she seeks is Hertlocker.
Bitter, but I understood.
“Ahh······.”
Was it because my body was weak? Emilia leaned on me.
I silently embraced her, wrapping her in my arms.
She could think of me as her big brother for now.
If I could provide comfort and reassurance to Emilia, that was all that mattered.
Of course, once she regains her senses and realizes she mistook me for Hertlocker, she would feel unbearably embarrassed, but I didn’t care.
Not at all. Seriously.
“You’re not surprised anymore?”
“······?”
“Then it means it’s okay for you to keep calling me like this, right?”
A weak voice softly reached my ear.
I could hear it, but understanding it was another matter entirely.
What on earth was she saying?
“Schlus big brother.”
“What······”
“Big brother. Big brother. Big brotherrr. Hehe······.”
Emilia’s arms were softly wrapped around my waist.
Her arms, trembling as if they would fall off with just a light touch, clung to me as if to refuse to let go.
“You’ve given your permission, right? That it’s fine to call me big brother.”
“······.”
“Then call me Schlus big brother. Emilia, okay?”
“I never gave you permission.”
“Ahh······ really. What’s with the formal speech? You’re ruining the mood.”
“······.”
She sounded a bit annoyed.
It was definitely odd.
An attendant younger than me was speaking casually, while I was using formal speech.
It felt awkward, but…
I couldn’t get my lips to move.
“Hurry up. Do you think I’m not embarrassed? Calling you Schlus big brother······.”
Every time she said “big brother,” it seemed she hesitated just a bit.
As if it was embarrassing.
Is this acting too?
It must be acting.
It certainly has to be that way.
Otherwise, would she be such a good actor?
“But I will keep calling you. Again and again. Until Schlus big brother calls me back warmly.”
“That won’t happen······”
“Big brother. Big brotherrr. Schlus big brother. Schlus big brother. *Hehe…*”
Emilia kept calling me, then suddenly gave a cute laugh as she buried her face in my shoulder.
It seemed her embarrassment had reached a critical point.
“It’s just that the first time is hard, but if you keep it up, you’ll get used to it. You need to keep practicing. Right? Right? Or are you going to stay stiff even though I’m calling you like this?”
“······.”
“Then I’d be sad. I gathered this much courage, and you’ll continue to cower?”
Cower?
Whatever, let’s just do it.
Crossing this river, I wouldn’t be able to return.
I would no longer see Emilia as a mere pawn, something I could toss aside.
If I were to die······
Shit.
That kind of crummy experience was enough with just Mary.
“Coward.”
“······.”
“Pathetic.”
“······.”
“A pervert who can’t respond back when a much younger girl insults him. A coward with no courage to retort. Bad at human relations. You, who doesn’t even realize how you captivate hearts, can’t do anything when drawn close. Pathetic.”
“This is seriously······.”
Are we joking now?
I finally grabbed Emilia by the shoulders and pulled her away.
She seemed to have regained all her energy.
So, she should be able to stand even if I let go.
“Huh?”
“······!”
As soon as I released my hand, her legs wobbled, ready to collapse again, so I quickly embraced her once more.
She had been so active that I thought she was back to full strength.
But it seemed all her regained energy had gone to her mouth.
“Shut up. Who’s a coward?”
“Wah. Wowww······. You said it informally.”
“Is it your first time seeing someone speak informally?”
“It’s my first time seeing Schlus big brother do it… Always dignified and formal. This feels much more fitting.”
Sorry.
I didn’t mean to come off that way.
“Should I just start speaking informally from now on?”
“No. You can’t. Keep using formal speech outside.”
“What? Why?”
“Because I only want to see this side of you. Schlus big brother like this… I want only me to know. I don’t want anyone else to find out.”
“······.”
That was a ridiculous reason.
Can I just act like this?
If the character changes, it really changes too much.
Is she purposefully trying to let me figure it out?
No, that can’t be.
Or do I really look like an idiot silly enough to be tricked by this?
“There’s no one else to speak informally with anyway.”
I decided to play the fool.
I chose to be dense.
So I could stay with Emilia a bit longer.
Despite knowing she could stab me at any moment, the thought of parting was a bit sad.
That was all there was.
“Why is there no one? The Saintess is there.”
“Iris?”
“Yeah. You’re close with the Saintess, big brother······. Always joking around.”
“It’s just a business relationship.”
“Business?”
“Yeah. Just pretending to be close.”
In other words, we were forcing a friendly act to ease the tension.
With Iris, who it’s hard to read, every time we meet, it turned dark, and we seemed ready to eat each other, which is exhausting.
“I see······. What a relief. It’s really only me then. Only I can be with you······.”
That dialogue felt oddly touching.
“But how did you know?”
“Know what?”
“That I was inside. You were toying with me from the beginning······.”
“That’s not it. I really didn’t know.”
“Then how?”
“I saw your handkerchief. The one with your mana. It always gives off a faint scent, so if you weren’t nearby, it would have vanished long ago.”
“Oh, I see······. You remembered my mana.”
“······.”
Of course, how could I forget?
The entire house was saturated with your mana’s aftertaste.
From food to furniture, even laundry, every single thing was permeated by your scent. How could I ever forget?
“Let’s go now.”
“Okay······.”
Before the atmosphere got any weirder, I stood up.
If I keep still, I’ll be late for the midterm.
‘If I get caught, I’m dead, you shit.’
And I decided to kill Jin the moment he came into my sight.
Crows weren’t dependable.
If there was a strong one blocking my path, it was only right to stomp them down.
*Thud.*
“Found······!”
As I chased the noise, I turned into the plaza.
Hertlocker was about to shout, eyes wide, then covered his own mouth.
Emilia was on the ground, slumped over.
And there, Schlus Hainkel was standing.
And that guy······
“Ugh······.”
“Are you coming to your senses?”
I wrapped my arms around the staggering Emilia.
Hertlocker felt an unfamiliar surge of fury rise within him.
Until now, he had never been this intensely angry.
He felt like he could run over and smash Schlus’s head right there.
“Big brother?”
“······.”
Yeah. Your big brother is here.
I’ll just punch that bastard a little and come back.
With that thought in mind, Hertlocker moved forward—
“Schlus big brother.”
“What do you······”
“Big brother. Big brother. Big brotherrr. Hehe······.”
Emilia’s bright smile cut off his breath.
His little sister was smiling.
With the happiest expression ever.
As if she possessed everything in the world.
That wasn’t acting.
To Hertlocker, who had spent years with her since she was little, it was evident.
He recognized Emilia when she couldn’t hide her emotions.
He saw her red ears.
“······.”
Hertlocker clenched his fists tightly and stepped back.
He didn’t need any amplification magic; he could hear it all.
Emilia whispering to Schlus Hainkel.
That sweet voice.
It was a voice completely devoid of pretense, pure 100 percent sincerity.
“······.”
He shook his head.
This wasn’t the Emilia he knew.
This wasn’t the cute Emilia he remembered.
With that, Hertlocker lowered his head and turned away.
“······Damn it.”
With a sigh, he moved away, heavy footsteps behind him.
He couldn’t continue watching any longer.
By now, the blood had completely cooled.
*
“Can you walk?”
“No. I can’t. Carry me.”
“······.”
Emilia stretched out her arms and leaned towards me.
I flicked her forehead to push her back and turned my back.
“What’s going on here?”
“Carry me.”
“Why? Just carry me.”
“Why have you suddenly regressed into a child? Stop talking nonsense and just get on.”
“Chii······.”
I hoisted Emilia onto my back.
While shifting my hands, I brushed against the scabbard on my thigh, but decided to ignore it.
I had to avoid the garter belt, so my hand inevitably got closer to her backside.
“Pervert.”
“Shut up.”
Honestly, carrying her like this was easier.
To clear my head, I had to mentally sing the national anthem to the last verse.
Though it wouldn’t be tough, it certainly wasn’t too much time.
If I didn’t take it too easy, I had enough time to reach my destination.
“Ah······ I was going to buy fish and cook for you. But I lost the shopping basket.”
“Don’t worry. You can just do it next time.”
“They say it’ll take two months······.”
“Then we can just eat it in two months.”
“······.”
Emilia tightened her hold from behind, as if she were anxious about falling while running.
“This is your exam paper?”
Emilia, resting her chin on my shoulder, poked at my inner pocket.
Now that I thought about it, I hadn’t finished problem number ten.
Timing wise, it would probably remain blank…
But I should at least unfold it for a last look.
Maybe Emilia could answer something in the time we had left.
“Uh. Can you pull it out?”
“You want me to pull it out? Okay. Hm······.”
Emilia strained and leaned her body until she grabbed the scroll.
The scroll she lifted······
“Ah.”
“Ack!”
Except for the end, it was all burnt to a crisp.
