I Got Reincarnated as the Villain and Saved the World, but After the Ending I Was Betrayed and Exiled. I Just Wanted a Peaceful Life in the Frontier, but for Some Reason My Former Companions Started Chasing Me with Yandere Eyes… - 30

Chapter 30: Gustav VS Henrietta

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Henrietta and I faced each other, swords drawn. Using the power of the Evil Eyes, I had raised my physical abilities to their utmost, focusing solely on deflecting her strikes. Just because the light from Henrietta’s attack was meant to destroy the demons, that didn’t mean I was exactly safe from it either. If it hit me, it could easily burn me, and at worst, even cause fatal injuries.

“Why are you siding with the demons despite being human!? You remember, don’t you, how the Demon Lord filled the world with danger! The demons are humanity’s enemy!!”

“Yeah, that’s true… I know all too well the damage caused by the Demon Lord.”

I saw it firsthand. The previous Demon Lord and his Four Great Demons truly had committed terrible acts. Neighboring nations were ravaged, the cries of those who had lost their families, and the expressions of despair from those who had lost everything… 

Even a year later, I could recall them vividly. It was precisely because we defeated such a brutal existence that the other four were honored by the kingdom as heroes—everyone except me.

“If you know that, then you understand we can’t just let the demons roam free, right?”

“That Demon Lord and his subordinates were indeed enemies of humanity. But… Does being a demon automatically make someone evil?”

“Of course it does!! Demons came from the Demon Realm to invade us humans! They are cruel, ruthless beings!!”

“Then tell me, why are your subordinates and the nearby villagers still unharmed? Wouldn’t it be easier to kill them outright than to bother holding them up?”

“Wha-…!?”

My words made Henrietta’s movements falter slightly. She was never slow-witted to begin with.

That was why I aimed to plant doubt in her mind, to throw her into confusion. 

She might not become an ally, but if she began to question Cain, and perhaps the Ose who was likely behind him, then this tactic would be worth it, even if I could only plant a little bit of doubt in her mind. 

“Demons have a certain image, sure, but they have their own minds too. Even the Great Sage Elena was initially thought to be an arrogant elf, but in the end, she became a good comrade to you all, didn’t she?”

“…”

Her brow twitched slightly at my words. Seeing my chance, I pressed the point. Maybe, just maybe, we could avoid fighting altogether.

“That demon didn’t come here to harm humans. They came to capture a traitor hiding in the kingdom. Just hear me out—”

“Silence!!”

A dazzling light radiated from Henrietta, centered around her. My eyes began to throb, and I hurried to cover them. Holy light was the worst possible match for the Evil Eyes.

“I don’t entirely disagree with you. But… What if the demon you brought is just pretending? If I make the wrong judgment, the ones who will suffer won’t be just us! It’ll be the people of this land who are dragged into it. That’s why… I’ll fight to protect them. That is… The only wish I have left!!”

“Heh, not bad!!”

Every clash of my sword with hers, wrapped in the Light of Exorcism, sent painful jolts through my eyes. The light on her blade carried heat. If it struck me directly, I’d be dead.

Back then, she could only protect. So what changed her? Was it Cain after all? The throbbing pain in my chest was probably not my imagination.

“Didn’t anyone ever teach you to question common sense? You tend to get narrow-minded when you get heated.”

“Shut up… Don’t you dare speak the same words as him!!”

So, she did remember me, at least somewhat. The thought of the past made my chest ache a little, but convincing her now would be nearly impossible. I had bought enough time. Maybe it was time to retreat. 

But just then, she raised her sword, the blade glowing even more brightly. It reminded me of a certain knight king’s Noble Phantasm.

“I swore… No matter what it takes, I will protect this land!! Therefore, servant of the demons… Die!”

“As if I’d let such a big attack hit me!!”

I turned to flee before Henrietta could unleash her deadly technique—

“Henrietta-sama!! Now!!”

“What!?”

A knight I thought Elena’s magic had knocked out suddenly grabbed my leg with a desperate expression. I recognized his face. He was Henrietta’s sword instructor, a man who had often taught me swordsmanship as well. If I cut his arm, I could escape… But the light beam would engulf him, and he would die.

“What are you doing!! No… It won’t stop…”

Perhaps because it was a technique she wasn’t skilled at, or maybe because she was flustered, the light beam burst from Henrietta’s sword uncontrollably. Tears welling in her eyes—

Damn it. I knew it. I’m too soft for this…

“What are you doing, Edward? If you die, who will support Henrietta!?”

“You…! Could it be—”

Before I could think, my body moved on its own. When he loosened his grip in shock at seeing my face under the shifted mask, I pulled his hand from my leg and hurled him away with all my strength.

I tried to run, but the beam grazed me. The next thing I knew, I was flying, weightless under the sky, before I realized I had fallen off a cliff.

★★★

“What… Just now… Could it be…?”

I stood frozen, staring at him being blown away by the light beam. There had been something off… After all, I hadn’t felt any killing intent from him. And his words… It was as if he had been trying to convince me.

“No way… There’s no way you’d be siding with the demons…”

I had been desperate to protect the land I swore to defend… The land I swore to protect in his place. So desperate that I hadn’t stopped to truly consider my opponent’s words… An excuse as foolish as it was empty.

When I get heated, my thinking tends to get narrow-minded… He was right. I haven’t grown at all.

“Henrietta-sama, are you all right!? That man just now, was he—”

Edward, who had been blown away earlier, rushed over to me, but I had no strength to answer. I walked numbly to where he had stood. Half of a mask lay there, cracked.

“Of course… Phantom… You always wore a mask to hide your identity…”

Why hadn’t I noticed sooner? Why hadn’t I realized earlier? I watched as the cracked mask was carried away by the wind, and it felt as though I could never hold him in my arms again. Tears welled up and spilled over.

“I’ve… I’ve killed him twice now, haven’t I…”

The first time was when I didn’t follow him after he was exiled, killing Phantom’s existence socially. And now, I had killed him physically. Realizing that, a freezing pain spread through my chest, followed by a wave of nausea rising from the pit of my stomach.

“Ughhh—”

“Henrietta-sama!! Are you all right!?”

Knowing I would never see him again made my stomach turn violently. I pressed my hand to my mouth, unable to resist the urge. I dropped to my knees, but the nausea was merciless, and something hot spilled from my mouth.

“Where… Where did I go wrong…?”

My armor was stained with vomit, but I didn’t care. Tears streamed from my eyes, my body trembling uncontrollably, my mind blank. I couldn’t think, couldn’t feel—only wish that, he might still be alive somewhere even if this pain lasted forever.

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“Ugh… My body…It doesn’t hurt?”

When I regained consciousness and tried to sit up in a panic, I was gently held down by something. As my blurry vision cleared, I saw two voluptuous mounds in front of me.

What is this…? I should have been blown away by Henrietta’s attack and fallen off a cliff…

I was in some kind of cave, yet my head was resting on something warm and soft.

“Thank goodness… You’re awake.”

“This voice… Ceres…?”

Well, I recognized her by her voice and by her large chest. I sat up quickly, and the girl who had been giving me a lap pillow threw her arms around me.

“Yes… It’s your Ceres, Phantom-niisama!! And… I won’t let you get away again.”

Wrapped in her soft warmth and sweet scent, I was left completely bewildered by my situation.

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