“But how foolish. To kill someone who was the main healer like that. We have to think about persuading to bring her back later…”
Meyer clicked his tongue.
After sending April and August out, he and I were alone, so he seemed quite loose.
I sat facing Meyer and sipped the tea. It was tea made by Meyer.
Maybe it’s because Meyer made tea from the beginning, but somehow, Meyer’s serving tea naturally stuck between us.
So I continued to enjoy the luxury of serving as a tea attendant for the Black Knight.
As I gazed at the calm surface of the teacup, I thought of Fabian.
Was he triumphant because he thought he fucked us over, or was he filled with self-pity?
“I don’t think he even had time to think about it. Because with Jeanne joining the Black Knights, he must have been worried that April might do so again.”
Those who are backed into a corner make foolish choices.
Although the judgment in the midst of life and death in the dungeon was made accurately, this political thing or the kind of use of people seemed to be a poison. A side of things came together that I hadn’t noticed in the first round.
‘Deca and April helped me a lot in using people… In addition, I also sneakily poked at the information I knew, and I could always have the upper hand in human relations, so I wouldn’t have been cornered.’
Perhaps, I thought, even if Fabian had defeated the Demon King and become emperor, as the game’s ending suggested, the empire would not have been sustained for very long.
‘Or… I may have ruined the environment in which Fabian grew emotionally.’
Originally, he would have grown up well, struggling in a sedentary manner, looking around, and keeping his head down.
The information I gave him may have been his overnutrition.
But Fabian was not a growing child, and he was already an adult when he met me.
There is a saying that if you want to know human nature, you have to seize power.
I didn’t take the chance away from him, I gave him the chance and he turned out like that, which shows the hidden nature of Fabian.
Meyer, who had been pondering over my story, muttered quietly.
“Sometimes, I think like this.”
“What do you think?”
“That it is your existence that separates me from Fabian.”
“No way.”
“I’m serious. If you hadn’t chosen me… That’s the kind of thinking that could have happened to me. I would have fallen into obsession and only thought about defeating the Demon King…”
What kind of absurd feeling has he fallen into? It was because he was pretty sentimental. He always thought of something weird like this once in a while.
I grumbled.
“You still think about defeating the Demon King.”
I thought Meyer would laugh at my complaints, saying yes.
But Meyer stared at me without saying a word. He seemed to have something to say, but he seemed unable to say it.
What the hell. He usually didn’t say anything when I was cockier than this, but now was I going against his feelings again?
In any case, I have no idea.
I can’t believe I have a man who is both sensitive and difficult as my boss.
If I revealed this to someone who didn’t know Meyer, I bet they would tell me to quit that job immediately.
I opened my mouth involuntarily.
“Anyway, don’t think about weird things. The Commander kept Tragula alive even though you knew he would betray you, and Fabian thought April would betray him, so he killed her. It’s completely different.”
“…”
“Fabian dug his own grave… Don’t worry too much about his collapse.”
I said this and happily poured the remaining tea water into the teacup. It was a habit that spilled out unintentionally, closer to drinking alcohol than drinking tea.
When I said so, Meyer replied with a sigh.
“…I feel at ease because you say so.”
His face still looked uncomfortable…
However, it was a little too much to ask about the cause of the inconvenience.
Well… Since he says he’s feeling at ease.
The reason I affirmed about Fabian’s fall was to ease Meyer’s worries about Fabian, but it was also because it was a roughly drawn future.
‘Now that April is gone, the things that Fabian can’t take care of will come to the surface one by one. Besides, Deca is subtly sharp… No matter how well Fabian made excuses about April this time, he would have already noticed something suspicious.’
“…Speaking of which, Fabian, do you know where the expedition that bumped into you is?”
“… Why all of a sudden?”
“It’s not bad to know. If they say something later on…”
“That’s not going to happen. Don’t worry, Deca.”
“…”
‘And Aegis, too… In the character settings that I remember, even though he usually looks bold, he was practically not a very strong-minded person. Will Fabian be able to take care of Aegis well without April? No, did he take care of him from the beginning?’
“Fabian, I have something to say. It’s important.”
“…what is it, Aegis?”
“I’ve been thinking about it, but I… I want to quit the expedition.”
“What?”
“I realized that I’m still inexperienced as a tanker… In the end, Jeanne was injured because I was pierced. Jeanne could have died in the near future.”
“Wait, Aegis. It was an unavoidable situation. You did your best…”
“I did my best, but she got injured. All the attackers did their best, but I… It’s my fault. Jeanne is a child. Jeanne was the one I should have protected…”
“Aegis, Jeanne is also a member of the expedition. When you followed us, you promised many times that you wouldn’t treat us like children.”
“I’m sorry, Fabian. I can’t be that cold like you. I’m only big… I don’t think I’m a vessel worthy of being a member of the expedition.”
“Aegis, Aegis!”
However… It is only my guess that there may be discord with Deca and Aegis.
Maybe Fabian can overcome this crisis better than I thought.
If he set his mind properly, he would have been able to rebound by overcoming April and Jeanne’s escape.
But looking at his twisted mind at the time he tried to kill April, his downfall was a matter of timing, a procedure that was eventually decided.
How far the Fabian Expedition crashed would be seen when the results were reported next year.
So far I’ve also had to concentrate on upgrading the Black Knights.
I’m already too attached to the Black Knights. The same was true for this large, unpredictable beast-like commander of mine.
I really didn’t want to go through the death of loved ones twice. Besides, this is the second round. It was the last chance.
It would have been easier to just let them roll them hard and never let them die. It was better for my mental health, too.
I laughed quietly, thinking of the list of dungeons to go forward.
Now that we were done at the Imperial Palace, it was time to leave the capital.
Chapter 15. Cannot Be Swallowed and Cannot Be Spit
For April, we decided to leave the capital as soon as possible.
Everyone was wondering about the existence of the healer who suddenly appeared, but everyone accepted that she was a talent who went to the cathedral with August and was picked up.
“April… No, Anasta’s origin may be questionable, but Priest August’s assurance of identity has helped greatly. Thank you very much.”
“…Do you think it’s all thanks to me?”
“…? Of course, right?”
In response to my thanks, August crumpled his face and glanced at me with a strange gaze. Then, soon after, he shook his head as if his mouth hurt.
‘Even if I compliment him, he’s still like that.’
I shrugged and went to my business.
I was already out of my mind because there were quite a lot of things to take care of as a Vice Commander.
When everyone left the capital, Tragula remained in the imperial palace.
It was to talk to Countess Nerus.
Will Countess Nerus accept the exchange of the Fulgor Pumpkin for the Golden Falcon?
“I hope you get the results you want.”
“…I agree with you.”
Tragula smiled awkwardly.
The fingertips of touching the Golden Falcon on his shoulder looked somewhat uneasy. His face also looked gloomy and full of skepticism.
Whether he was afraid of talking to Countess Nerus or unsure of his choice… I thought it could be both.
As soon as I reached out to him with a small tap on his shoulder, Meyer, who was far away, called me.
“Jun! Come here for a second!”
“…Then good luck.”
The timing was everything.
At Meyer’s urging, I parted ways with Tragula by comforting his hand and saying a brief goodbye.
I rushed to Meyer’s side, thinking it was urgent.
“Why did you call me?”
“Hold on, hold this for me.”
And yet, what he handed me was his horse’s reins.
Meyer’s horse was great, so it was quiet even if no one dared to hold the reins, and most importantly, I had no reason to hold these.
I narrowed my eyes at Meyer.
“You called me on purpose.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Do you hate it when I talk to Tragula?”
“I do.”
He pretended it wasn’t so, but less than 30 seconds later, his true feelings came out.
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