Tap the text to show or hide reading controls.
Of course, it wasn’t as if Edelina went around openly proclaiming herself an unbeliever.She was simply treated as a bit of an eccentric by those around her. Because of her profession, even when she said something odd, people usually brushed it off, thinking she just possessed the typical innocence and quirkiness of a scientist. I only knew about it because I’d seen the event that triggered in the latter half of Edelina’s route; it made sense that the protagonist wouldn’t know.
Anyway…
The following options appeared before Mo Je-won.
“The Saintess told me not to say anything, but… isn’t option one just too ridiculous?” Mo Je-won asked the chat.
-Yeah.
-Yep.
-Standard dialogue, so cheesy.
-But isn’t this one of those unavoidable situations?
“It is an unavoidable situation. Plus, the protagonist’s Mental Strength drops if he lies. I think it’s better to just tell the truth,” Mo Je-won reasoned.
-Go go go!
-Let’s try it.
Ignoring my warning that blabbing about it would land him in a difficult spot, Mo Je-won chose the second option.
“What? A revelation?”
“Don’t be too surprised, just hear me out. In the near future, magic beasts are going to attack the Marquisate.”
“M-magic beasts? Our territory?”
“You know the Saintess awakened recently, right? She gave me this revelation herself.”
“Hereis. Did you have a nightmare or something? You look tired, so go inside and get some rest.”
-Huh?
-She doesn’t believe him?
-He’s screwed.
“And don’t put too much faith in the Saintess. Those things are just propaganda tools for the Church,” Edelina added.
Whether Mo Je-won screamed in frustration or not, Edelina continued coldly.
“Surely you didn’t come all this way just for that? And with Sir Arianne in tow? I feel like a fool for being happy to see you after so long. I don’t know what I was expecting.”
“Wow~ I’m getting shut down this hard?” Mo Je-won groaned.
-Crisis already.
-I thought she’d believe him T_T
-What now?
“Since you’re already here, enjoy yourself with Sir Arianne. I’ll tell my father not to disturb you, so don’t worry about that.”
-Ahh!
-Don’t go!
Coldly turning her back on the protagonist, Edelina left the room. The protagonist reached out, but his hand failed to reach her, swaying pitifully in the empty air.
‘This is getting troublesome.’
Falling affection was one thing, but it had become difficult to expect any cooperation from Edelina. Man, what am I supposed to do now?
The heartbroken protagonist immediately explained the situation to Arianne. It was an unavoidable choice of personnel since Ilian was out for a walk and I was currently washing up. After hearing the circumstances, Arianne nodded.
“I can understand Lady Edelina’s perspective.”
-Not you too, Arianne!
Arianne seemed to realize her blunder as soon as the words left her mouth, and she clarified while gauging the protagonist’s reaction.
“Ahem. We witnessed the Saintess’s miracle with our own eyes, but others haven’t, have they? A revelation isn’t exactly an easy concept to believe.”
The protagonist nodded in agreement.
“That’s true. Even within the Church, they said opinions are divided.”
Arianne’s eyes widened in surprise. Soon, as if realizing something, she muttered calmly.
“So she said that. Then, the Saintess has no one to rely on but us.”
“…”
“She probably stopped us because she feared the revelation would be rejected like this if we tried to pass it on.”
The protagonist groaned, admitting he hadn’t thought that far.
“We’ll have to figure something out on our own.”
“Right. We can’t estimate the scale of the magic beasts, but with the Saintess here and three knights, it won’t be impossible.”
The two made a grim resolution. At the same time, their eyes gleamed.
“First, I need to see the defensive facilities of the Marquisate. The training status of the troops. We also need to check the weapons and armor…”
“Yeah. Then I’ll go ask the Marquis for permission—ah.”
BAM!
Hereis cut off the conversation as he sensed someone approaching. That someone proceeded to commit the outrage of kicking the door open.
“Hereisssssss!”
It was the Marquis of Peyers. Stunned by the absurdity, the protagonist and Arianne were momentarily frozen in place.
“You! How could you do this! To our Edel!”
Is this guy crazy? Has he lost his mind?
In the illustration, I could feel all sorts of unpleasant thoughts flashing across Arianne’s face.
“Marquis! What is the meaning of this rudeness!”
Even for a married man with children, entering a lady’s room without permission was the ultimate taboo. No, you just shouldn’t barge into anyone’s room, period. Arianne expressed her righteous indignation. However, that anger collapsed somewhat awkwardly in front of the Marquis, who fell to his knees at the door and wailed.
“Uwaaaaah! After her mother passed, I swore I’d be responsible for our daughter’s happiness! How dare you make our daughter cry tears of blood!”
-?? What’s happening?
-This is what happens if you come to the Marquisate without being on Edelina’s route…
“My father-in-law is a tough one,” Mo Je-won joked.
-Lol, he’s already ‘father-in-law’?
How long has it been since this guy got his donation money, and he’s already talking nonsense again? Does he want more? Is he protesting for another deposit?
“Ahaha, just kidding~”
I don’t think you are.
“What are you two doing in one room! A young man and woman who aren’t even m-m-married!”
“Calm down, old man!”
Before long, the Marquis of Peyers was hoisting the protagonist up by his collar.
“You betrayed our Edel, didn’t you! Coming all the way here just to deceive her while weighing your options!”
The protagonist’s face went pale as he realized the magnitude of the Marquis’s misunderstanding.
“It’s not like that!”
Finally, unable to watch any longer, Arianne stepped in and desperately pried the Marquis off Hereis.
“Marquis! It will be troublesome if you cause any more of a scene!”
“Ugh… Hicc…”
It was a stroke of luck that Arianne’s room was at the end of the hallway and that she had dismissed the nearby staff before the protagonist entered. Otherwise, this whole disaster would have been witnessed by the servants.
“Hicc… I wasn’t going to say this, but…”
…?
The Marquis’s ragged breathing settled, and he spoke with sudden clarity. For some reason, it felt ominous.
“Our Edel, ever since she was a child, she has… you…”
No, surely not.
He wasn’t about to fire off a proxy confession while his daughter wasn’t even there, was he?
-He’s definitely lost it.
“Marquis! You’ve misunderstood,” Arianne cut him off, fortunately.
The Marquis, who had been sobbing intermittently, cautiously lifted his head.
“Misunderstood?”
“Yes. The Vice-Commander did not visit my room with such insidious intentions.”
“Th-then why did you tell everyone to leave the area…?”
“That’s…”
“Why can’t you answer! I-I knew it! I was right!”
“I told you, it’s not like that!”
Even Arianne was failing. Just as I was wondering how this would turn out, a sound effect announced the arrival of a choice.
Ding!
“Wow, is there even a right answer here?” Mo Je-won asked.
-This is seriously brutal.
-None of them seem right.
I felt the same way. Since the Marquis appeared as a deceased character in the original game, it wasn’t easy to deduce his personality.
“Well, option three is definitely out.”
-Yeah, he’d probably just riot even more.
“I have to choose between one and two. I’m leaning more toward option one. But I don’t know if the Father-in-law—I mean, the Marquis—will believe us,” Mo Je-won mused.
-He seems easier to handle than Edelina, at least.
-Shall we pray he’s a devout believer?
“Sigh… Maybe it’s better to just make up an excuse…”
I didn’t know either. The viewers didn’t seem sure either, as they failed to suggest a specific number. The chat slowed down noticeably.
-Just pick whatever you’re feeling, Je-won.
Ultimately, everyone left the choice to Mo Je-won.
“Hmm… then let’s go with option one! Personally, I don’t really like evading. The Marquis seems a bit faint-hearted, too. I think he’ll listen if we give him a good scare!”
Is that so? Well, let’s leave it to fate.
And so, option one was selected…
His Mental Strength increased by a small margin.
“What? A revelation from the Saintess?”
The Marquis’s reaction was…
“My goodness, what a joyous occasion! To think the Saintess would grant me a revelation in my lifetime!”
He… he loved it.
“Wait, old man. I’m saying this place is going to be attacked! It’s going to be dangerous!”
“But the Saintess personally sent you two, didn’t she? She’s taking a direct interest in our territory! Heavens, what an honor! This land has been blessed!”
-Did that actually work out well?
…It seemed so.
“Ah. So that’s why Edel ran into her room. The children these days refuse to rely on Ralphican… so she must not have believed you. I suppose it could sound like a tall tale to her.”
-I guess there’s a generation gap here too.
The older generation with deep faith versus the younger generation that couldn’t understand it—was that it?
“Edel has always been fond of science.”
“Edelina went into the scientific field at the Academy, didn’t she? Didn’t you say she’s a professor of Anti-Monster Engineering?”
“That’s right. Isn’t she amazing at such a young age?”
“You mean the Kataten Science Academy? I heard the competition there is intense. To become a professor there… you definitely have something to brag about!”
“Furthermore, not only does she develop anti-monster weaponry, but she’s also nurturing the students who are the future of the Empire. If it were me, I wouldn’t have enough hours in the day even if I had multiple bodies.”
At the sincere admiration from Arianne and the protagonist, the Marquis became elated—as if he hadn’t been crying just moments ago—and began to ramble about his daughter like any other doting father.
“Edelina was special since she was a child! Even before she could walk, she was cobbling together bombs! Phew, you have no idea how flustered I was.”
-???
-She made… bombs…?
…I questioned how a book in their house contained instructions for making bombs, but I decided to let it slide.
“In that moment, I felt it was destiny! My girl! She’s going to be someone great!”
“That’s incredible. I suppose only someone with that kind of talent could create anti-monster weapons.”
“Oh, you’re too kind! It’s thanks to knights like Sir Arianne that Edelina can focus on her research in peace!”
“Oh, please. We’re just people who swing swords around.”
-The mood is pretty good, isn’t it?
The Marquis’s mood wasn’t just good; it was soaring. On the screen, the protagonist gave Arianne a thumbs-up behind his back. With just a few words, they had secured the Marquis’s cooperation. Of course, the price was having to listen to stories about Edelina for a long time until they were sick of them.
Reading Settings
