I ran for a long time and hid in an alley.
‘Did everyone scatter?’
I looked around on the way, but couldn’t see any of the people who had been at the auction house.
Those who had been there were all wearing identical robes, so they should have stood out, but seeing none of them, I wondered if maybe they had fallen into a different timeline.
While I was lost in thought, he punched my leg and spat out resentful words.
“It’s all your fault, big sis! Why didn’t you save Lady Eileens……! She’s the only one who could’ve saved me!”
They were brown eyes that oddly reminded me of someone. Judging by his behavior and tone, it couldn't possibly be, and yet.
“Damn it! You’re so noisy it’s driving me crazy!”
Just then, Penny popped out of my pocket. At some point, she had turned back into a human and shouted with an angry face.
“Who’s saving who right now! You should at least say thank you for saving your life!”
Startled by Penny’s sudden appearance, the child began hiccupping.
“This is unbelievable! I’m the only one who can talk back to big sis, you know?”
T-That was a bit.
“And you’re not even really a person……”
I quickly covered Penny’s mouth. The child’s eyes widened briefly, then he wiped the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand.
Once Penny had calmed down, I finally let her go.
“Why are you only mean to me?”
She shot me a sullen glare before approaching the child.
“What’s your name?”
“……What’s your name?”
A curt voice responded. Penny raised her eyes and retorted.
“I asked first!”
“No manners at all, huh.”
“Well……”
As I listened to the two bicker, I finally opened my mouth. Their eyes turned to me at the same time.
“Penny, stay hidden somewhere safe with your friend until I get back.”
“Tch, ‘friend,’ seriously! And why are you blurting out my name like that!”
I let her words go in one ear and out the other as I started walking.
‘Lily said she’d wake up in two hours……’
That was only the time in the real world. In the dream, she wouldn’t wake until she’d seen all of Eileens’ memories.
‘Besides, everyone needs to understand her.’
The problem was me. I already had a rough idea of what would happen after Eileens’ seal was broken.
Even as I tried to understand her, fear kept blocking my way.
Now that I’d entered her memories too, I had no idea how long it would take to return to reality.
Absentmindedly checking my bag, I found that Arkan was thankfully intact, without a single crack.
[^^]
……Well, as long as you’re okay.
Just as I sighed inwardly and tried to close the bag, letters and an arrow floated above the frame.
[The person the lady is looking for has left the Imperial City. Oh, it seems they’re headed home.]
Was the arrow pointing to where Eileens was?
“Are you part of that man’s group too?”
Someone beside me spoke. It was a woman with her forehead wrapped in bandages.
“A man?”
“He was wearing the same clothes.”
She grabbed my sleeve with a trembling hand.
“If you see him, can you tell him thank you……? Thanks to him evacuating people first, we were able to survive.”
“U-Um, what did he look like?”
Among those at the auction house, the only one strong enough to save others was Ricardo.
“He was wearing a mask, so I’m not sure.”
“Do you know where he went?”
“That too…… not really.”
[Milady! If you don’t go now, you’ll miss it!]
Right, I had to go to Eileens first…….
But only for a moment—I couldn’t bring myself to move from the street, now in ruins.
“Someone, please help us!”
Wails rang out from all around.
It’s not even real, anyway.
That thought crossed my mind for a second, but my feet were already moving toward them.
[You’re more frustrating than I thought. I’ll remember this!]
If meddling were a crime, I’d be sentenced to life in prison.
* * *
[You can’t move forward if you care about every little thing! The ‘path’ won’t wait forever, you know. Timing is everything.]
[Oh no, the target has moved! It’ll take more time to search for a new path—what will you do? Do you have a plan?]
“There’s no such thing.”
[How tragic.]
Why did Arkan feel so much like Cedric?
I skimmed the rapidly passing letters and turned my eyes away.
“Thank you.”
The person who thanked me over and over was named Charlie. And her young son was Finn.
“You should be safe for a while. But just in case, get as far away from the capital as possible.”
Later, Eileens would be forced to yield to the Emperor and lose her name. If that happened, the Emperor likely wouldn’t attack them any further.
“Are you a retainer of Lady Eileens?”
“No, I’m not.”
I stood up from my seat.
“……Then are you an enemy?”
“Closer to an ally, I suppose.”
At my words, Charlie faltered. She gripped Finn’s injured hand tightly and breathed heavily.
“Since you saved us, I suppose it’s not a lie.”
“…….”
“Then, would you be willing to lend her your strength?”
As I hesitated, she cautiously added more.
“Lady Eileens has done a lot for us. Even Finn, he used to be a very sick child, but thanks to her help, we were given more time to be together.”
Before I knew it, people had gathered around her.
“Most of the people here received help too.”
“They say it’s the power of a demon, but if it saved someone’s life, I believe it’s the power of the divine. Everyone, don’t you agree?”
I thought for a moment, then spoke.
“……You could lose your lives.”
“Haha! We’re already like dead people anyway, since we worship the power of a demon!”
Voices of agreement broke out from all around.
“Do you happen to have a map?”
At my words, Charlie pulled a worn-out map from her coat. It was torn in several places, but still readable.
Recalling the map I knew in my head, I compared it to hers. Then I pointed to several spots with my finger.
“There are minerals here that allow the use of demonic power.”
It was the location of mines where magic stones were once extracted.
But magic stones are mined deep underground. They wouldn’t be able to go that far in their current state, so I chose a mine known to have magic stones in shallower areas.
“Like Lady Eileens’ power……?”
“Yes. But even so, none of you can use it right now. Because demonic power originates from Lady Eileens.”
I drew a magic stone and Kaen with a twig.
“Looks like just a rock……”
“I think so too.”
Dusting off my dirt-covered hands, I continued speaking.
“And you’ll probably see people wearing clothes similar to mine. I don’t know if they think the same way as I do, so be careful.”
“You’re not coming with us?”
As I stood up, Charlie asked with a puzzled look.
“No. I have something I need to do.”
“Ah, then at least take this.”
Charlie handed me some bread.
“Thank you.”
Even with magic stones, there was no magic in the world right now.
There needed to be a source of supply.
……Eileens. You once said that as an outsider, I had no place interfering in this world.
But if you really meant that, you shouldn’t have drawn me into this place.
What am I supposed to do now that this world has become more than just text to me?
[It seems the target is being held by the knights. Do you have an alternative plan in mind?]
“I told you, there’s no such thing.”
[Ah, so milady’s method is to just charge in headfirst?]
[In the distant past, there were many unintelligent humans, so there were people like that indeed. But I must add, in this day and age, it’s considered a foolish method!]
[In short, the kind of thought only a brute would have!]
When I silently glared at Arkan, he finally drew an arrow.
Should’ve done that from the start…….
“Ah!”
Just then, someone in the distance seemed to recognize me. When I turned my head, a woman was pointing at me.
Huh, that woman……
‘Amy Rowain.’
She was the noble young lady who used to look at me with disgust beside Hestia!
And number 21, no less. That meant the person whining next to me had been Amy.
Disgusted, I rubbed my arms, but stopped when I saw her expression.
Amy was rubbing her eyes repeatedly, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
“B-B-Bianca? Y-You’re not possibly……”
She struggled to speak, then her face turned pale.
She looked like she was about to faint at any moment.