2.
Romance Fantasy Trope 1
『Any man near the main character is shady at first.』
Romance Fantasy Trope 2
『The man who seems the most ordinary is actually the most extraordinary.』
3.
My heart throbbed. I was anxious. Like broken piano keys, my heart was playing off-key. That was how ominous the Heretic Questioner's smile was.
I felt a premonition that we were going to slide all the way down this slippery slope.
And what was at the bottom, I could not see.
"Heretic—"
"You look unharmed, Lady of the Golden Silk."
Before I could finish saying his title in the Tower, the Lady of the Silver Lily used the protagonist's title in this world first.
"I heard you were attacked by an assassin…. But you're a girl who grew up in the borders. The thread of your life is as tough as a weed. A single assassin must not be a big deal for you."
"Hmm."
The corner of the Heretic Questioner's mouth tilted up.
A little later, I would find out that it was out of ridicule.
Words that the Heretic Questioner would never say flowed from his lips.
"Did you deliberately come out this late to compliment my healthy body? Truly, I thank you, milady. His Highness did the same. I am happy that many people care for my inexperienced self! So much so that tonight's misfortunes feel like luck!"
The Lady of the Silver Lily's eyes became ferocious.
The Heretic Questioner had planted two thorns in his words just now.
'Aren't you the one who hired the assassin?'
Intimidation.
'The crown prince came to visit me personally because he was worried about me.'
Provocation.
"...Your head is as disheveled as a weed, too. There is a thin line between imagination and delusion. Our choice of whether we step over that boundary determines our human dignity. As a noble, please act with decorum."
"Ah, I'm sorry! So it isn't against decorum to slap someone's face at a ball. Well, I did grow up on the outskirts, so I don't know the manners of a duke's daughter!"
"...."
"If it is not disrespectful, when will you invite me to your salon? I'd like to receive etiquette lessons directly from a wonderful lady. I'm not used to hitting people, so I think I need to learn about the angle and strength of my hand."
There was a motorcycle engine running on his tongue.
I wondered where the engine sound was coming from, but after listening more closely, the crazy noise was the sound of my own heart.
Thump. Thump.
Dread wrapped around my heart and held me by the neck.
"Milady! Don't be rude!"
"A mere baron's daughter from the countryside is saying such thoughtless words…."
The duchy's servants became indignant at the waltz of the Heretic Questioner's tongue. Some of the attendants had probably betrayed their master and belonged to the crown prince. I didn't know if it was just one or if there were more traitors, but that wasn't what mattered now.
"I apologize!"
I hurriedly intervened between the gold and silver ladies.
The Lady of the Silver Lily furrowed her brows.
"You are…"
"Milady is greatly shocked today because of the strange events that occurred. From this lowly servant's understanding, she desperately needs to rest. Since it's late at night, would your ladyship please allow us to excuse ourselves? The misunderstanding will be resolved tomorrow."
"...."
The Lady of the Silver Lily closed her lips.
Behind her, the servants were buzzing.
When their mistress raised her right hand, they all stopped moving. In an instant, stillness enveloped the hallway. It would have been impossible to do if she did not keep her subordinates on a tight leash from the beginning.
"Excuse me, butler. What are you talking about?"
Rather, it was the Heretic Questioner, the Lady of the Golden Silk, who protested.
"I still have a lot to say to her ladyship. You can't just end the conversation at will..."
"Be quiet."
I grabbed the Heretic Questioner's wrist. I grabbed it, then walked away while dragging him behind me. The Heretic Questioner said, "Ah, wait, butler! Wait a minute!" He struggled, but I never let go of his wrist. We really couldn't let our character immersions rise here.
"Milady."
Just before exiting the hallway, I looked back. The Lady of the Silver Lily was looking at us with an equivocal expression.
"…What is it?"
"I have always admired the upright conduct of the duchy's servants. Tonight, your attendants were quite virtuous, unlike a common man like myself."
I politely bowed my head to her.
"I have realized many things. This humble self pays respect to your ladyship."
"Now, please excuse us."
With that, I pulled the Heretic Questioner out of the hall.
The Heretic Questioner, who was rebellious at first, had calmed down.
There was a wide garden between the ballroom and the dormitory. Moreover, it was a spring night.
The newly bloomed magnolias were drooping by their heavy heads. The night was soaked in the scent of flowers, thick under the white trees. As we stepped forward, pale magnolia petals fell and touched our toes.
"My goodness."
The Heretic Questioner stepped on a fallen magnolia petal.
"Ah."
He stopped and looked up at the night sky. After a while, the Heretic Questioner turned his head and looked at me. His face was impassive. He seemed to be disoriented.
The Hunter said to be the craziest person in the Tower muttered to himself as if he couldn't believe what he had just done.
"Death King..... What did I say back there?"
4.
As soon as I closed the door of our quarters, I said, "Choose a password."
We had been quiet as we walked to the dormitory. No word was exchanged between the two of us. It was a little difficult to walk because my ankles were bound by the silence.
Was it due to the increased character immersion? I knew the path from the garden to the dormitories like it was natural.
Perhaps the characters' memories became clearer the more immersed we were. Right now, it was difficult to judge whether that was good or bad.
"A password...."
The Heretic Questioner blinked.
"Is it a secret password...?"
"If we leave things as is, it'll become really dangerous for us. You have to keep it together."
"We do. Death King, you're right. Yes..."
The Heretic Questioner seemed to be struggling to speak. He kept slipping. His voice was slipping faster than an accident on a slippery road. It was a red light, signaling that the person in front of me was in danger.
I firmly grabbed the Heretic Questioner's face with both hands. Then, I forced him to meet my eyes.
"When spring comes, magnolias fall."
"What...?"
"When I say [when spring comes], you, the Heretic Questioner, will reply [magnolia falls]. That's our passcode. It's the phrase that tells us to get a hold of ourselves. Now, if you understand, tell me. When spring comes?"
"Magnolia..."
"Again. When spring comes."
"Magnolias fall."
Little by little, the eyes of the Heretic Questioner showed that he was returning to himself. He started to look in front of him, rather than blankly into space. The Heretic Questioner shook his head, saying, "Hmm," and "Well!" Then, he nodded.
"Yes! I'm back!"
"Okay. Good job."
"Thank you, Death King! Aha. Indeed, today had a storm of surprises. I'll never forget this day."
"Would you like to rest and have a cup of tea?"
"Please!"
Good. It wasn't over yet. It was too early to give up this round.
I handed the Heretic Questioner a blanket and headed to the kitchen. Because it was a dormitory of the academy where royalty and nobles attend, there was a small kitchen in the Lady of the Golden Silk's private quarters. I easily found the tea leaves and kettle.
"Wow."
I was boiling the tea, but this was ridiculous.
"My body just moves on its own…."
I never really made tea other than the ones in tea bags. It had been like that my whole life, but my hands moved automatically as if I had steeped tea for years. It was a side effect of the immersion.
My body was even feeling [joy] by making tea.
'The lady likes it best when I add milk and a spoonful of honey.'
I was humming.
'I obtained this precious honey from an academy employee for occasions like this. It cost some money, but milady is usually so frugal that it isn't a waste. This much luxury is okay...'
[The immersion toward the character is deepened.]
[Currently, your immersion rate is 6%.]
It wasn't okay!
Not okay at all!
Fuck!!
This dumb romance! What's so pleasing about adding honey to black tea? Should I open up a skull and spread honey on the neurons?! Stick a honeycomb in your head?!
[Shiny is concerned about the warrior's condition….]
[However, Shiny thinks the warrior's butler outfit is very attractive.]
My weapon shone by itself in delight. Maybe it was because Shiny was happy, but the sword's sparkling color looked more exquisite. And I, the owner of that sword, squatted down while holding my head in pain.
'You can't let a butler take over your mind.'
I clenched my teeth.
'No way. I've worked too hard to clear the stages so far!'
I was determined.
Even if I made tea, I wouldn't make it like the original character. I used a kettle that he didn't normally use and pulled out a different teacup from usual. Like that, I gave the tea to the Heretic Questioner.
"Death King."
The Heretic Questioner took a few sips and tilted his head.
"Yes."
"The tea tastes weird!"
"So what?"
"If my taste buds are working correctly, this iffy taste is salt, right?"
"That's just how this tea tastes."
"Oho. Rather than tea, isn't this more like saltwater? If you just measure the salinity, I think it'll be judged simply as saltwater, nothing more, nothing less."
"Just shut up and drink."
"Understood! I'll shut up and drink!"
The Heretic Questioner slurped up the tea.
"Thank you for the tea! It was salty!"
The Heretic Questioner smiled broadly. Yup. This was how things should be. Our natural psycho finally regained his guilelessness.
"So, what do you think we should do from now?"
"We have to make sure the villainess and the prince
stay together."
I sighed.
"Or at least crush the [love line] between the Lady of the Golden Silk and the crown prince into powder. Let's aim for one of those two endings."
"Operation Sneaky Sneaky...?"
The Heretic Questioner chose the name of the operation on his own.
Well, it didn't matter. I also preferred the second ending.
I had never dated before, so I didn't know much, but—
'Wouldn't it be much easier to break something than making it?'
It would be difficult to matchmake the crown prince and the Lady of the Silver Lily, but it would be easy to have the Lady of the Golden Silk break up with him.
In this part, the Heretic Questioner and I were 100% on the same page.
"To do that, the prince's love for the Lady of the Golden Silk must become cold! Do you have any plans?"
"I do."
I realized something when I was losing my mind while making tea. We need to take special measures for this stage.
'There is a way.'
Not only would it reduce the prince's affection for the protagonist, but it would also be very effective in allowing the two of us, especially me, to keep our consciousness.
"What's the plan?"
"In the end, the more you act like [The Lady of the Golden Silk] and the more I act like a [butler], the more immersed we become in the roles."
So flipping that thought…
"Then what if you do [something the Lady of the Golden Silk would never do] and [something the butler would never do]?"
"The character immersion rate may drop. Even if it doesn't fall, it won't go up. How does that sound?"
The Heretic Questioner's eyes shone.
"...Ooh. Indeed. It's a simple yet good method. As expected of Death King! You're the Hunter who broke through the unyielding 10th floor and cleared the 20th floor!"
"You flatter me. Mm. Anyway, our conclusion is simple."
I flicked my hand and triggered a skill.
"From now on, let's become a [bad girl] and a [bad butler]."
The Heretic Questioner tilted his head.
"What?"
The Hundred Ghosts Reincarnation activated. I didn't have to bring in a lot of spirits like I did in the Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon. We only needed one specific ghost.
My shadow wriggled and took on the shape of a person.
"...."
A ponytail at the back of his head.
Eyes that were more asshole-ish than that of any other being in the universe.
"Hey...."
The Flame Emperor. It was Yoo Sooha.
As soon as Yoo Sooha was summoned, he frowned. His expression crumpled like tissue, and he opened his mouth.
"Fuck, you dog bastard. What are you going to make me do this time—."
"Come on, let's be quiet. Hush."
"—Mmph mmmpph!! Mmppphhh!"
No matter how much he tried to intimidate me, he was a ghost that could not disobey my orders. Yoo Sooha shouted like a hostage whose mouth was sealed by a terrorist, going "Mmph! Mmph!" and so on.
Seeing the Flame Emperor's appearance lifted my melancholy mood. What could I say? It felt a bit like closing the lid on top of a trash can. The dust in my heart was refreshingly tidied up. The Flame Emperor. He was like the dustbin inside a vacuum cleaner.
"Heretic Questioner."
"Yes, Death King!"
"Looking at you, your outer appearance is too much like a model student."
I put on a stern expression.
"Your gestures and your actions feel very pure. However, if you earnestly want to become a [bad girl], you can't go on in your current state. It'll be impossible."
"Ah."
The Heretic Questioner's ears perked up.
"If there is something I lack, please let me know! I'll learn!"
"Yes, and you'll be taught. It's a 1-on-1 last-minute tutoring session."
I slowly looked at Yoo Sooha.
"The greatest tutor will teach you how to be a bad person."
"Aha. I'm looking forward to it!"
"Mmph—, mmph!! Mmm mmph!"
The Heretic Questioner laughed brightly like a young puppy. Yoo Sooha frowned like a bitch. Between the puppy and the dog, I nodded seriously.
"Now. Let's be bad."
The next day, Sormwyn Academy would explode.