Chapter 77: Hero (1)

Chirp. Chirp. Chirp.

It was a morning like any other. I opened my eyes to the chirping of birds.

“Ugh. My head.”

I haven’t had alcohol in a while, so the hangover is terrible. My head is throbbing, and my throat especially hurts.

I staggered up and drank water from the refrigerator.

Gulp. Gulp.

“Phew. Now I feel alive.”

I sat blankly on the bed.

Since being possessed, I’ve had alcohol three times in total.

Twice with Armil and once yesterday with Emily. But every time I drank, I got drunk and lost my memory.

“What did we talk about yesterday?”

It was clearly a place to talk about the upsetting things that happened at the banquet and to reconcile. But I only remember drinking alcohol, and I can’t remember anything after that.

“Did I… pass out right there?”

If so, Emily would have been very disappointed.

It’s not like she forced me to drink, it’s just that I lost my self-control because it tasted good. It’s all my fault.

‘Ugh. How do I face her?’

I felt so sorry for Emily.

I quietly left the room and knocked on Emily’s door. To see her expression and guess her mood.

Knock, knock.

“Who is it?”

“It’s… me.”

“You can come in.”

I opened the door and went in.

As I thought, Emily was sitting at her desk, working.

It’s 9 o’clock. She’s a very diligent person even though we drank together.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. Good morning~”

“?”

Emily, turning to look at me, had a smile full of joy. It’s definitely not the face I saw yesterday.

‘What? Why does she look so happy?’

Did something happen after I got drunk yesterday?

“G-Good morning. Did you eat breakfast?”

“Yes. I have a lot to do today, so I ate first. Yona also went outside to play, so you’ll have to eat alone today.”

“I don’t mind eating alone… Actually, I came to apologize for yesterday.”

Emily got up from her seat and sat on the bed. She patted the side. It means to sit next to her.

“What are you sorry for about yesterday?”

“Well… I got drunk and couldn’t talk about important things.”

Then Emily’s expression hardened.

Did I make a mistake?

It was a little scary to see a woman who was just grinning suddenly erase her expression. Besides, her nickname will be Iron-Blooded in the future.

“We talked yesterday. About what you were upset about. We told each other our true feelings, don’t tell me you forgot?”

“Huh? We talked?”

I quickly racked my brain. As I tried to remember something, something came to mind.

‘Right. Emily took me to the terrace pool because I was so tired. I think we dipped our legs and talked about something… Hmm. What?’

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t remember anything beyond that.

As I was thinking about yesterday with an apologetic expression, Emily suddenly chuckled and stroked my hair.

“It’s okay. You might not remember. Actually, I was the one who was wrong yesterday. I’m sorry. Rachel.”

“I-Is that so? Well, then.”

I’m not sure, but it seems to have ended well. It seems like I’ve returned to the friendly relationship I had with Emily before going to the banquet.

“Then I’ll go eat, so take it easy. You looked sick yesterday.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

She lightly hugged my shoulder.

It seems like the physical contact has increased a bit.

Stroking my hair, hugging me.

Once we talked about what was upsetting, the bond became stronger.

‘I don’t feel bad. No. Is it good?’

I went to the dining room with my hand on my head, which Emily had stroked, and had breakfast.

When I said I drank alcohol yesterday, the chef made me a seafood soup that’s good for hangovers. It was spicy and refreshing, so the hangover disappeared at once.

“What should I do now?”

There’s nothing in particular to do.

At home, I would have done alchemy in the alchemy workshop or studied while reading a book. There was nothing like that here.

“Should I have brought a book?”

I thought I would just go to the banquet and go back, so I didn’t bring anything, but that was a mistake.

I carefully entered Emily’s room.

“Can I come in?”

“Come on in.”

I went into her room and sat on the bed.

“Why? Do you have something to say?”

“No. It’s not that, I was just wondering when we’re going to leave.”

“Well. This time, the meeting related to the Imperial family will be a little longer, so I think we’ll be here for two days to a week.”

It’s longer than I thought.

I have a carriage, so I can travel to a nearby estate by myself and teleport to get home today.

But there’s no need to do that. It’s more fun and safer to go with Emily than to go alone.

Emily looked into my eyes and asked.

“Are you bored? Do you want to hang out?”

“Huh? No. It’s okay. I’m bored, but you’re busy.”

“Hey. Wait a minute. Let’s hang out as soon as I’m done.”

“Thank you. Take your time, so don’t worry about me.”

After confirming that Emily was concentrating on her work, I lay down on her bed. The soft mattress sank in.

I took a breath and Emily’s scent filled me.

It was fragrant like a flower scent, sweet like honey, and cozy. I feel good just smelling it.

Honestly, it might seem a bit strange to smell someone else’s scent like this, but it’s really nice.

There’s nothing else to do anyway.

I snuggled into the blanket and waited for Emily’s work to finish.

‘What should I do with Emily when she’s done?’

The festival is over, so there’s nothing to play outside.

There’s a space below where you can enjoy sports like billiards and table tennis, so we can play there.

‘By the way, am I being too much of a bother?’

What if she makes a mistake by rushing because of me?

So I was about to ask Emily, but Emily, who I saw from behind, looked very excited.

She was shaking her shoulders and head as she flipped through the papers.

Fortunately, Emily seems to like playing with me.

So I waited until her work was finished.

After about an hour of snuggling on Emily’s bed, Emily’s work was finished.

“Ugh… It’s over.”

“It’s over?”

“Yes. Phew, it’s tiring to concentrate after a long time.”

I went behind her and massaged her shoulders. She finished it quickly because she wanted to play with me, so I can do this much.

As I said before, I have 6 years of massage experience.

Emily closed her eyes, leaning on my stomach.

“Mmm. It’s good.”

I was happy because Emily was happy.

Just then.

Knock, knock,

“Who is it?”

“It’s me. Miss.”

It was the butler of this house.

“Come in.”

I stepped away from her and sat on the bed. The butler looked back and forth between me and Emily, then bowed his head in greeting.

“Greetings. Baronet Rachel.”

“Hello.”

“It’s just that Acacia Evan has arrived.”

“Acacia Evan? Why is the hero here?”

Acacia Evan. He was the man who would be with Emily in this novel, and he is the hero chosen to fight against the Demon King.

He should be fighting monsters in the Demon Realm by now, so why is he here?

“I don’t know for sure, but I thought I should tell you.”

“Okay. Go downstairs.”

The butler bowed his head and went down.

After he left, Emily put on a cardigan over her clothes.

“Rachel. I think we’ll have to play later.”

“Don’t worry about it. We can play anytime.”

“Sorry. I’ll finish quickly and come back.”

“You don’t have to finish so quickly. Don’t make a mistake because of me. Go ahead.”

She gave me a light hug and went down.

Left alone, I lay back down on the bed.

“Hero…”

From what I saw in the illustration, the hero is quite handsome.

As the male lead of the romance fantasy genre, he is so handsome that he can’t be compared to Heimer.

“As far as I know, Emily and the hero are meeting for the first time today, nothing will happen, right?”

There will be no danger.

Unlike Heimer, the hero has a good relationship with the Muelia. The person who teaches him swordsmanship is Delkarmen.

Later, the Muelia collapses, and Aris helps Emily and helps the hero defeat the Demon King.

“As a result, the end of this story is that Emily and the hero get married and sit on the throne.”

I pictured Emily holding hands with the hero in my head.

It’s a good picture.

The hero will defeat the Demon King in the future, and he has a good heart, so he is a man who is a good match for Emily.

Even when I was reading the novel, I liked and watched the love scenes between the two.

But it’s strange to think that it will become reality.

“Why? What’s so wrong with it?”

It’s definitely something to be happy about.

A close friend is sharing love with a good person.

Nevertheless, I didn’t like it.

I sighed and lay down on the bed.

I was excited to play with Emily until just now, but my mood suddenly changed.

“Should I go see them?”

I quietly got up and went outside. But I sat down again.

Both of them are influential figures in this world.

They must be having an important conversation.

If I try to secretly listen to the conversation without the permission of the person involved, Emily will definitely be upset.

“I can’t do that.”

So I closed my eyes with my face buried in her bed.