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“Or… der…”

So he’s saying that for those who believe in the Fortuna religion that worships the Goddess, this is an absolute command from Her? That no matter what the order is, they will make sure to fulfill it in the name of the Goddess?

Even though I don’t really care about his circumstances since it has nothing to do with me, I also can’t bring myself to retort. I feel bad for him after a part of my brain tells me about the burden of his position, and I hate that I feel this way.

Schwede’s dawn-colored eyes turn apologetic. “…I’m very sorry for resorting to such measures… But if I were to ask you to leave the village, I’m sure you’d never agree, right?”

“Of course! I—”

“Having been acquainted with you for a while, I understand perfectly well that you’re very headstrong. So much so that it pains me. No matter what I say, you definitely won’t budge. You’ll insist on staying. So—”

“Enough.” I lower my head and palm my forehead.

So that’s why he took me here even if he had to deceive me?

…That’s right. I have no right to blame him.

Like him, I’m also trying to protect something using all means possible. Even if I have to lie.

We’re the same.

What he did is no different from what I’ve been doing. I know. This is probably what they call retribution. Now all my lying is coming back to bite me.

But then…

Ahh, really.

Goddess!!

We had a proper talk back then, didn’t we?

I asked her to let me do what I want, and she agreed. “Go do whatever you wish,” she said.

If she’s moving me away from that village to keep me from dying, then this is reneging on that promise. Her purpose in asking for my help in the first place has turned to smoke.

Nevertheless, why is she moving only me away to a safe place?

That’s…

After realizing that I can’t find any words to scold him, I look up at him with a fake smile, which he should be able to see through easily since he’s a liar like me. Then in a sarcastic tone, I ask, “…Does ‘the safest place in the world’ even exist?”

In response, Schwede also makes that same fake and too-gentle smile. “Well… I think the safest place in the world right now is the Holy Land, the Tierra Promision, which is located in a permanently neutral country. It is the headquarters of the Fortuna Church, built near the mountain summit where the Goddess descended.”

“Wha…”

If I’m not wrong… that place is extremely far from here, right?!

If he’s going to take me out of this country, it’ll take more than a week by carriage.

The Holy Land is protected by the blessing and light of the Goddess, so demons and evil people aren’t able to approach the Holy Land out of fear. That land does not belong to any country and is permanently neutral. No country is allowed to invade it.

Ok, sure. It’s definitely a safe place. I agree too.

But does he really mean to do what he said?

No way. He’s going to take me to such a place?!!

No way. Please don’t. I have to do something.

Also, isn’t that the place the protagonist will visit at the end of the story?!

“I won’t go to that kind of place! I beg you, please bring me back to the village!”

Once I go there, I probably won’t be able to go back anymore. No, I’m sure of it.

I won’t be able to see the village again my whole life.

Schwede squints and flashes another smile. A soft smile that stinks of lies.

“Lian-dono… ‘During his trip to the royal capital to buy something, Lian-dono collapses as a result of an ongoing epidemic in the area. Currently, he is under the care of the Fortuna Church.’ Also, ‘His condition is so severe that he can’t even get up from the bed. He needs bed rest whilst emergency treatment is administered to him.’ That’s why you can’t go back to the village anymore.”

“Epidemic…?”

“Well, when the coachmen saw me holding you at the time you collapsed, he started crying, and his face was very pale. I probably… traumatized him a bit.”

This bastard! It was you who drugged me, wasn’t it?!

On top of that, he even lied to Shurio—

“Ah…”

It is then that I notice something.

He probably told that reason to everyone…

To Shurio and the escorts, to Lowendal, to the people living in the mansion,t o Marie, to Efa, and…

…Alfred’s frowning face comes to mind.

“Hey, Schwede… That story… Did you also tell Alfred…?”

Schwede’s hair sways as he shakes his head. Then he shrugs. “…I’m not sure about that. I asked your coachman and escorts to relay the message, so I don’t know whether the message reached Alfred-dono or not…”

When I hear his overly irresponsible lie, blood rushes to my head. I violently grab Schwede’s collar with both hands, my body seeming to move on its own.

However, he doesn’t twitch at all. Not even a change in his expression either.

“Uhh…”

I feel a cold, hard object on my neck, causing my body to quiver.

I hate this so much. So so much.

I currently have something around my neck. A collar-like ornament made from a thin sheet of silver with eight colors of strings intricately woven around it.

It must have bounced when I moved, hitting my skin.

I feel like I’m wearing an ice collar. It makes me feel terribly uncomfortable and dizzy. I lose strength, and chills run through my body. This is really the worst.

And just like the cuff around my right foot, I want to remove it, but I can’t.

This is the so-called “magic seal collar.”

This liar in front of me put it on me. So that I can’t use magic.

With the amount of magic power circulating through my body restricted to a minimum, I often feel like I’m being choked. I can’t properly utilize my strength, and my body feels heavy.

And like the shackle, I can’t remove or destroy it.

The worst.

If you’re wondering why he put these things on me, it’s because…

I previously lunged straight at this ‘Knight of the Sword, Schwede’ without thinking… I know that it won’t change anything, but I felt so helpless at that time that I decided to give it a try. I managed to deal a blow to his chin by imbuing my elbow with a bit of magic. A technique that my teacher taught me. But in the end, I lost.

After that, he attached this thing around my neck.

I don’t have to wear this kind of thing, do I? Damn it. My combat ability shouldn’t be much better than an average person. He’s overdoing it!

As for the shackles… The only thing running through my mind at that time was that I had to go outside. I managed to escape my room after defeating the guard but didn’t go too far. That was my third escape attempt. He probably already lost his patience by that point and put this on me.

My teacher taught me how to escape if I’m ever captured, which is very useful. Even so… There are too many people here. It makes escaping extremely hard. And once the guy in front of me appears, escaping becomes completely impossible. He always catches me. It’s frustrating, but his legs are too fast. He’s as fast as a track and field athlete. He’s a knight, but why are his legs so fast? How unpleasant.

With my track record, I was deemed untrustworthy even faster than I expected. And although he apologizes, he also tells me that he’s going to keep me restrained like this for a while.

And just like that, even shackles were placed on me.

Cruel. Too cruel.

Why did this happen? I didn’t wish for this.

“Schwede, please. Can’t you take me back to the village? Please, I’m begging you. I don’t want this. Plus, I have to go back no matter what. I promised the Goddess. I have to protect everyone in the village…”

Still looking down at me, Schwede gently rests his hand on top of mine that’s still holding his collar. His face looks grim for some reason. “Since the Goddess told us to take you out of there, doesn’t that mean you’ve fulfilled your role already?”

“What are you saying?! It’s not enough! Not enough at all! There are still many things I have to do. That’s why I have to go back to the village!”

“…No. You don’t need to do that anymore. This might sound rude, but I’ve done a lot of research on Lian-dono. You have… No. The ‘tender-hearted angel’-sama has been implementing defensive measure after defensive measure to ward off the evil demons for a long time now. Isn’t that right? Little by little, all on your own. You spent so much time on them that your health is deteriorating. Marie-sama’s very worried about you. She also told me that everything you’ve done is already enough, and I agree. So please leave the rest to me—”

“As if I can do that! I don’t want to leave this to other people! I can’t! And I haven’t been doing it alone! I got a lot of help from everyone! I want to see this until the end! It’s my responsibility and my obligation, so I—”

All of a sudden, the smile disappears from Schwede’s face. His dawn-colored eyes turn serious as they quietly peer at me.

His stare somehow reminds me so much of Marie’s aura whenever she warns me after I don’t listen to her words. It makes me strangely uncomfortable.

“Until the end? Are you planning to watch over them until you die?”

I suck in a breath, eyes widening.

“…It’s not like that…”

“You’re trying recklessly hard. All I see is that you can’t even see yourself or your surroundings anymore. Please leave the village for a while and slowly think through everything again. You have ignored your body too much and have lost sight of many things. And yet, you’re pretending not to notice in fear of something you think you shouldn’t ponder too much on. You’re not thinking of dying when ‘that time’ comes if you fail, are you? Lian-dono?”

For the first time, the person who always has a gentle smile and a kind voice is scolding me with such a strong tone.

I unconsciously wince and back off.

I feel like a child being scolded. Why?

“N-no… I have no thoughts of dying. I don’t want to die either. I’m doing everything I can so that I won’t die. So that I can survive…”

Sorry for the late chapter! Another one coming right up!