The Escort Knight Who Is Obsessed by the Villainess Wants to Escape - Chapter 29.2

Eliza, who refuses to die no matter what.

Even if her innermost wish was to be realized through her death, she would still refuse to.

It’s all meaningless unless you achieve and observe it yourself.

On the other hand, even if he dies, Judas will never bend.

Even if he is on the guillotine, under threat of execution, he will assert himself and cry out for his freedom to the end.

They were at extremes.

As if to achieve the dialectic synthesis.

The two different entities, thesis and antithesis, meet to find and advance towards a new direction, the synthesis.

Eliza chuckled.

The two of them were not on the same level.

She had no intention of reaching an agreement with anyone.

So the question arises.

‘Could you and I become a synthesis?’

Lia stayed still, watching Eliza.

A face with a satisfied smile.

A rarely seen gentle smile.

Hugging a doll as if it was precious, swinging her legs back and forth as if excited—she was a lovable and cute child.

A sight not seen for a very long time.

Something not seen for a very long time.

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

A matter important enough to interrupt Eliza’s study time.

“Come in.”

Eliza responded.

The visitor was Miguel.

“What is it?”

“I discovered this.”

Miguel handed something over.

“Paper? There’s nothing on it.”

“Yes. But it shows signs of use.”

Eliza scrutinized the paper.

She even heated it with a fire kindled from her hand.

It wasn’t ink that reacted to heat.

By touching it with his fingertips, she could feel the impression of something written.

Though slightly ambiguous due to creases.

“It seems like someone might have written a secret instruction on it.”

It was plausible.

However, Eliza focused on a different aspect.

‘I sense remnants of magic on this paper…’

A mage can cast or store magic through various mediums.

Artifacts are a prime example.

Or they might temporarily install magic in books or on the ground.

Just like this paper.

She couldn’t tell what kind of magic it was.

Or when it was used.

“Where did you find this?”

“A servant discovered it while cleaning. We couldn’t pinpoint the exact location. However, according to the servant’s testimony, it was near the place where the candidates for the guard knights are selected.”

“It seems it might have been close. It’s an unclear guess though.”

“Yeah…”

It’s difficult to make a hasty deduction without knowing the contents.

An old-looking piece of paper.

Is it from the nobles currently in the banquet hall, or from the past?

Or perhaps, it really drifted in by chance from outside.

‘I didn’t sense any magic being used near the mansion recently…’

I can’t be certain.

If the magic on this paper had been activated before she awakened the power of the Mad Fire, she might not have been able to sense it.

However, her intuition brings to mind a highly likely hypothesis.

The given clue is just one scant piece.

It’s close to the place where the selection ceremony for the knight candidates took place.

‘Is it the assassin’s?’

She doesn’t know the contents.

What kind of magic it is.

Whether there were other contents besides magic.

But, considering how such an important piece of paper was left like this…

‘Whether the assassination succeeded or failed, the assassin’s fate would have ended with that. They must have decided it didn’t matter who found it. In that case, there’s likely nothing on the paper to deduce the mastermind.’

There were no special clues on the body of the assassin she killed back then.

If it was secretly discarded while waiting for Eliza, it makes sense.

‘This is just a guess. Without knowing the other possibilities, it’s merely a thought process trying to find an answer from what is known. It’s not objective.’

It’s something that can be figured out gradually.

“Is it possible to restore the contents? It’s quite damaged.”

“I will look for a technician.”

“Alright. If it can’t be done, there’s nothing we can do.”

If the restoration can’t be done, it would be unfortunate but it’s fine.

Just securing this paper provides clues to uncover various things.

Eliza stared intently at Miguel and then smiled gently.

“You haven’t fully made up your mind yet?”

Miguel gulped.

He tried to maintain a calm expression, but that girl easily saw through him.

She always did.

She was exceptionally skilled at uncovering others’ masks and understanding their emotions.

While never showing her own true face.

She might not be aware, but except for one person.

“Is this paper a kind of insurance for any eventuality?”

“……”

“It’s better to think carefully. While you have time. I will remember today separately.”

“Thank you, miss.”

Gradually, it was time to clearly distinguish friend from foe.

***

A few days passed.

The routine continued.

In the morning, a hearty meal, then off to the training grounds.

After training, return after dinner.

Taking care of Eliza and the moon deer, then sleep.

On some days, twice a week, receiving personal training from Gawain.

In spare time, always enhancing fitness through exercise.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened.

During trips to the training grounds, Anna, who Eliza introduced, was with the Knights.

Soon, they say they will officially assign a escort knight to me.

A escort knight candidate’s escort knight….

It’s a bit of a strange phrase, but I’m grateful.

Eliza didn’t come back to my bedroom.

Luckily.

Such heart-stopping experiences often happen.

But sometimes when I wake up, my hands smell like Eliza, I don’t know why.

Maybe because we slept together once.

“I’ve even had dreams where someone touched my hand…. All sorts of strange dreams.”

No special news from the Information Guild.

There are matters to attend to, but no suitable opportunities.

I hope some news comes soon.

Finally, the schedule for the first exam for the candidate is set.

I stand at a crossroads of dilemma.

“Originally, it would be right not to apply….”

I have no intention of becoming a escort knight.

I don’t want to pique Eliza’s interest.

I know I stood out.

I admit it.

Because of that personality.

It’s not entirely unfair.

… A little bit, anyway, I just didn’t avoid getting involved.

Just like I’ve lived so far.

I didn’t know it would catch Eliza’s interest in such a mess.

It must have stood out, but I really didn’t know it would keep her attention.

But.

“If I don’t apply in test, it’s suspicious in itself….”

I acted as if I wanted to become a escort knight more than anyone else.

In fact, Eliza misunderstood that even receiving personal training from Gawain.

“But not applying? It’s suspicious to anyone. It stands out too much.”

So, first of all, here’s the conclusion.

‘…Let’s take the exam first.’

I can’t guarantee whether I’ll pass or not.

Because I don’t know what the first test entails.

However, it would be odd to fail without putting in effort.

It’s too different from how I’ve approached everything with such determination until now.

‘I don’t know what the outcome will be, but… let’s give it our best shot.’

Eliza probably expects to pass.

Well, I’ve kept winning in seemingly impossible situations.

She’ll probably think the same way as usual.

That somehow, I’ll manage to pass this time too.

‘But then, following that expectation wouldn’t be very interesting.’

It wouldn’t be strange to fail either.

People fail sometimes.

It wouldn’t be particularly interesting to fail just due to a lack of adequate ability, without any special reason or incident.

‘Passing this doesn’t mean I become a knight in shining armor.’

There are many tests to becoming a escort knight.

One test should be fine.

‘Someday, when the interest fades away quietly…’

At that moment.

[‘Twist of fate, beginning of cause.’ has occurred.]

A new quest has appeared.

‘…?’

I roughly understand the word ‘fate’.

In games, the ‘main quest’ of a playable character is called fate.

‘Does Judas also have such a fate?’

[Please choose your reward.]

As the main quest progresses to a certain level, rewards are given.

And the rewards for the main quest are somewhat special.

The hidden quests I’ve solved so far give rewards related to growth.

Traits, stats. Items that haven’t appeared yet.

The main quest is different.

It doesn’t promote growth.

Instead, it serves as a guideline for what the user should do in the future, somewhat…

[1. Paragraph of comedy]

[2. Sentence of tragedy]

…fragmentarily revealing the future.

A frozen scene composed of inevitability.

The fate of a certain character.

This future depicted as comedy or tragedy is unchangeable.

No matter what you do, it’s a fate you must inevitably face.

‘Comedy tells of good or happy events to come, tragedy tells of bad and dreadful events.'”

Is there anything specific you’d like to discuss or explore further about this text?

Someday, something will definitely happen.

Instead, it doesn’t specify exactly when.

Why such a thing happens. And what happens afterward.

If it’s going to happen anyway, there’s no need to confirm it in advance as something good.

[Tragedy chosen.]

Something that must happen. Destiny.

But I can’t live with that predetermined nature.

I will struggle somehow.

Just as I have been so far.

Even though I’ve never succeeded.

Above all, I don’t want to face tragedy without knowing anything.

‘Could there be a future where Eliza kills me…? Such a thing?’

[Would you like to confirm your reward now?]

‘…Yes.’

Scenes form in my mind.

Pieces of a puzzle scattered come together in a frame.

The puzzle pieces fit together one by one.

The randomly completed picture is a tragedy that will definitely happen in my future.

‘The place… is Eliza’s adjacent room where I am now. There are two people.’

The one lying on the bed is me.

‘The other one is a woman… seems like Eliza.’

Me and Eliza are on the same bed.

Their expressions cannot be seen.

I was just lying still as if asleep.

Eliza is sitting.

It looks like she’s on top of me.

Since the scene isn’t complete yet, it’s unclear.

‘What are they doing…?’

The last puzzle piece is filled, and the picture is complete.

‘…Huh?’

In the frame of tragedy, Eliza was choking me.