n

n

n

nNow that we got permission, we set foot into the historic ruins.

nHowever, I felt disheartened upon looking into the ruins.

n“──There’s nothing.”

nThere was a room with tree roots and ivy crawling along the walls and floor. It seemed to me like a modern building that grew old, but to Livia, it seemed like an ancient site packed with adventure.

nLivia was the only one delighted.

n“Amazing! Look Leon, objects of this shape have been found in other ancient ruins. The form is a bit different, but that thing near the door is a feature of ancient sites!”

n“──I, I see.”

nThat object she’s referring to was a card reader.

nThe machine, which would read card keys, was already broken and was only there for looks at this point.

nLuxon looked at the joyed Livia and asked a question.

nIt’s better not to tell her the truth, isn’t it?

nLivia looked happy wondering what kind of meaning the object could have.

nIt seemed that Luxon was worried about whether it should tell Livia that it was a device for reading cards.

n“She might me happy if you told her.”

nThere’s also some fun in having her discover it herself. You wouldn’t understand, Master.

n“You really are a terrible thing, aren’t you?”

nNot as much as you, Master.

nLuxon then turned its line of sight towards Anjie and the others.

n“Is there really no treasure? Well, viewing some historic ruins is itself worthy of conversation, but──is there really no treasure?”

nShe felt down since not only was there no treasure, but the place had already been thoroughly examined by others.

nJilk was the same.

n“I had my hopes up since I heard there were some historic ruins belonging to elves, but there’s nothing here.”

nGreg seemed to have given up on the possibility of treasure.

n“Did you really think that we would find ruins with treasure so easily? It’s fun because of the chances of finding nothing. Though, it’s also quite novel for us to go this far and still find nothing.”

nSurprisingly, Hertrude also seemed disappointed. ──Had she actually been looking forward to this?

n“Oh? Did you actually get your hopes up?”

n“I did. Something wrong with that?”

nSince she answered me, I continued conversing with her.

n“Not that it’s bad, but I do find it surprising.”

n“The principality can be traced back to being the kingdom’s territory. Like you people, we also admire adventurers.”

nSo why in the world is the situation for marriage-searching so different there?

n“So when you heard about the ruins, you wanted to venture into them?”

n“Despite how things may look, I do hold such views. After all──such opportunities are rare.”

nWell, isn’t that cute?

nHertrude, who averted her gaze while seeming embarrassed, looked like a girl her age.

n“All you had to do was say it honestly.”

n“──Detestable.”

nI watched Hertrude depart and turned towards the most depressed person in the vicinity, Marie. She was so down that it was pitiable.

n“──I don’t want to do this anymore. It can’t be like this.”

nJilk comforted Marie while she was in such a state.

n“It’ll be alright. We can search for a different set of ruins and go on an adventure together with his Highness and the others.”

n──There was a bit of a misunderstanding there.

nMarie didn’t want to go an adventure, she just wanted treasure.

nEvident of that, she made a complicated face after hearing Jilk’s words.

n“R, right.”

nPerhaps leaving Livia, who was absorbed in the historical ruins, to her own devices, Anjie came over to my side.

n“Leon, what should we do now? Should we withdraw at this rate? It seems like the village chief here with us is bothered as well.”

nTaking a look, I saw the figure of the village chief watching over us from the entrance of the ruins.

nHe gave me a particularly cold gaze.

n“He’s looking down on me. Quite the annoying guy.”

nI want to knock him off his feet right now.

nI don’t know if the demon lord is long gone or whatever, but I’d love to ask them to strike the hammer of judgement down on that guy.

nThough, that may not be possible since the demon lord doesn’t exist.

nThe village chief called out to us.

n“Have you had enough? There’s nothing worth seeing in these ruins.”

n──All things considered, something’s off.

nWithin my fuzzy memories of the game, these historical ruins should definitely have──

n“We can’t give up! My debt’s increasing as we speak! I──I absolutely won’t give up! I hate a life of debt!”

nMarie recklessly ran towards the depths of the ruins alone.

nAnjie seemed angry at Marie, who acted out of line.

n“Moving around alone as she pleases──what a troublesome person.”

nWith Luxon beside me, I readied my rifle and went ahead to bring back Marie.

n“Luxon, follow me. Anjie, stay here with everyone. I’ll be back in a moment.”

n“It’s hard being a commander, isn’t it?”

n“You’re still a student. Don’t push yourself. I’ll be back soon.”‘

nLivia was worried about me, but…

n“Leon, please don’t do anything rash. U, um──”

nDid she think I was going to do something with Marie? ──Well, she’s right.

nAfter telling Jilk and Greg to stay put despite wanting to come along, I chased after Marie.

n──An opportunity has arrived. Now I’ll be alone with Marie.

n──Finally, we can have a talk between fellow reincarnators.

n◇

nThe depths of the ruins were dark.

nWith her lantern placed on the floor, Marie looked for something.

n“Not here. Not here! There’s no entrance to the underground layer!”

nLuxon’s eye, serving as a light, shined on Marie, surprising her. Marie turned around and stood with her back against the wall as if she were a cornered criminal.

nI had my rifle ready while speaking to Marie.

n“You’re alone at last. Even in the airship, I didn’t have the chance to talk with you, and that caused me some trouble. With this, we can have a leisurely chat.”

nAs Marie trembled, she tried to pick up a handgun she brought for self-defense.

n“Freeze. Any movements and I’ll pull the trigger.”

n“I, if you kill me, you’ll become a big criminal! I’m a saint!”

n“You’re just a fake who took the position of the saint from Livia though. Now then, how about we hear what you have to say for yourself? What do you plan on doing from now on?”

nI wanted to know what reason she had for the risky deed of stealing Livia’s position as the saint.

n“Huh? What do you mean? Tell me what it is that you want to hear from me.”

nHowever, Marie acted bold, even in this situation.

nI really want to shoot her. I wonder if just one shot would be fine.

n“In that case, I’ll ask you some questions one by one, and you’ll make sure to answer me. Are you a reincarnator?”

n“Yes. I am. If you’re asking whether I have memories of my previous life, then that’s correct. It seems like you’re one too.”

n“Are you aware of this world being the same as ‘that’ otome game?”

n“What about it?”

nShe’s not denying it. Marie indeed knows about this world being the same as an otome game, that otome game.

n“If so, why did you take Livia’s position as the saint? When there’s a war with the principality──”

nMarie laughed and answered before I could finish my question.

n“Aren’t you an idiot? You think I can’t do what that girl can? I can use healing magic. I have plenty of talent for being a saint. Besides, the temple and saint items all recognize me.”

nThat’s weird. Leaving the temple aside, I didn’t think that the saint items would recognize Marie.

n“So it’s alright to expose you if you turn out to be fake.”

n“Try it out for yourself. No matter how much of a racket you make, it won’t change the fact that I’m the saint. Too bad for you.”

n──Indeed, even if I kick up a fuss about it, nobody would listen to me. What an irritating person.

nLuxon suggested something to me.

nThere is a discrepancy when comparing this to your information, Master. It’s advisable to mutually share information.

nMarie was a little bewildered.

n“What? What are you trying to say? Let me say this, I’ve seen that otome game’s sce──”

nBefore Marie could finish speaking, we felt a rumble as the floor dropped out.

n“Wha?!”

n“Aaaaah!”

n◇

nAnjie, who stood at the entrance to the ruins, looked at a restless Jilk and Greg.

n“The both of you, calm down. Let’s leave it to Leon.”

nDeep down, Anjie couldn’t tolerate Leon having to take care of Marie.

n(Even on the airship, Marie seemed to be on Leon’s mind, but──could it be?)

nJilk’s gaze sharpened.

n“That’s why I’m worried. He’s alone with Marie. Can you say with certainty that no mishap will happen?”

nWhile staring at the ruins, Greg also spoke.

n“Aren’t they taking a little too long? Let’s go find them. I’m worried about whether or not Baltfault will do anything strange. Since he might have a hunch that Marie isn’t a woman yet, and since she’s so cute──”

nHearing about Leon’s interest in Marie, Anjie got flustered in a different manner from usual.

n“D, don’t say such foolish things! Leon is different from you people!”

n“How are we different? He’s the same as us, a guy. Furthermore, Marie is a great woman. It’s impossible for any mishap not to happen.”

n“It wouldn’t be strange for any boy in that situation to make a move. No wait, maybe this was his aim?!”

nIn response to the two’s opinions, Anjie felt more worked up than usual.

n“Don’t lump Leon in with the likes of you!”

n“I don’t want to be likened to him either! Besides, Viscount Baltfault was trying to approach Marie on the airship. I know that since I was beside her as an escort!”

nAnjie’s face turned red in response to Jilk’s objection.

n“Leon loathes Marie. You all should know that! Livia, say something too. There’s no way Leon would lay his hand on Marie.”

nHowever, unlike the agitated Anjie, Livia went a bit pale.

n“U, um, I only noticed it now, but──why was Leon carrying a rifle? It’s not necessary since monsters won’t appear in these ruins, right?”

nAnjie’s, Jilk’s, and Greg’s eyes widened.

nLeon, who usually kept a distance from Marie, was now trying to approach her.

nFurthermore, Leon refused to let other people come along as he searched for Marie while carrying the unneeded rifle.

nThe three went pale as they imagined the scene of Leon shooting Marie to death.

n“My fair Marie!”

n“Marie!”

nJilk and Greg rushed into the ruins.

nAnjie and Livia chased after them.

n“W, wait! Even he wouldn’t go that far!”

n“Right! He’d only use it to threaten someone at most!”

nThe four left the vicinity, leaving Hertrude, Kyle, and the village chief.

n◇

nMarie had a dream.

nA dream about her fondly remembered past life.

nThe summer sun was strong and it was humid.

nDuring the evening, her surroundings were dyed orange, making for both a nostalgic and sad scene.

nMarie remembered the heat of that day.

n(Oh, right. This was also a thing.)

nA girl stumbled, crying over her scraped knees.

n‘Brother, carry me on your back.’

nThe one she asked help from was her older brother.

nThough she recalled that her brother ticked her off──she strangely couldn’t remember his face.

nEven though the two were in front of her, their faces were a blur.

n‘If it’s that small of an injury, you can walk by yourself. Carrying you will make my back heat up, so no thanks. Besides, you’re heavy.’

n(I am not heavy! This guy really infuriates me! I have a very slender figure!)

nEven in that point of time──she was cute in her previous life.

nShe was aware of it in that life as well. That was why she looked up in confusion at her brother’s reply.

nIn her surprise, she stopped her fake tears.

n‘Huh?’

n‘See, you were pretending to cry. I hate how you fake things like that. You won’t fool me.’

nIn the vacant street, her previous self gasped.

nBy this time, she knew that she was cuter than the girls around her.

nUnderstanding that people around her would do anything she asked for, she tried to order the boy, her older brother, around.

n‘M, my knees hurt.’

n‘The pain is proof that you’re still living. Good.’

n‘I, I want you to carry me. I can’t get home.’

n‘Oh really? Then stay here. And if you don’t like that, then walk, nitwit sister.’

n‘──Stupid brother!’

n“I’m fine with being stupid! I’d rather choose to be stupid than do what you tell me to!’

nSeeing her older brother say that with a smile, Marie thought about something.

n(This guy really is the worst. Remembering him now, he’s the number one──no, number three most heartless guy.)

nNumber one belonged to the man who abandoned her and her child.

nNumber two belonged to a leech who associated with her.

nAfter those people was Marie’s older brother.

nMarie then tried to recall what happened after this incident.

n(Huh? What happened to me after that?)

n◇

nShe slowly came to her senses.

nHer surroundings were dusty and she heard the sound of a gunshot.

nShells dropped to the floor and there was a metallic sound.

nAs she lifted her head, there stood Leon with his back facing her.

nHis voice seemed to carry an air of tension, perhaps due to a sense of urgency.

n“Next!”

nAn unidentified creature crawling along the ceiling is approaching. Master, be cautious about your remaining bullets. Furthermore, these things aren’t monsters.

n“It sucks that they won’t disappear when I kill them.”

nLeon readied the rifle and pulled the trigger, creating the sound of a gunshot as a bullet pierced through the head of a mysterious creature appearing from the darkness.

nThe creature dropped from the ceiling and spasmed on the floor.

nMarie jumped and tried to get up, but──

n“Aah! O, ouch!”

nShe couldn’t stand up, perhaps from an ankle injury.

nLeon maintained the same stance, only his voice reaching Marie.

nHe was cautious of approaching enemies and couldn’t turn his head around.

n“Are you awake? Luxon will tell you the situation.”

n“Huh? What?”

nThe floor of the ruins collapsed and we fell down underground. While you were unconscious, Master has been killing unidentified creatures coming out of the passage.

n“What do you mean by unidentified creatures?!”

nMarie, who wondered if they were different beings from monsters, looked at the creature from just now.

nIts limbs were different from those of humans, but its torso and head looked the same.

nSeeing what seemed like a reptile taking a human form, Marie screamed.

n“Aaaaaah!”

nHowever, as for Leon and Luxon──

n“You’re distracting me, so shut up. Damn it, is it hopeless unless I get this useless charm to do something? If it were Livia or Anjie, I would have been determined and serious about defending them.”

nScreaming won’t change the situation. Be still.

n“Huh? But, my leg──”

nAs the saint, your specialty is healing magic, right? Heal yourself. Ah, Master, the next one’s coming.

n──Both took a very cold attitude.

nMarie thought to herself.

n(These guys are like my older brother, aren’t they?! Now I’m really pissed!)

n