I Reincarnated as a Mob Villain in a Game World I Had Been Playing~ Using My Knowledge of the Game, I Lived a Carefree Life but for Some Reason I Became Famous Everywhere~ - Chapter 34 - Exceptional Insight

Chapter 34 – Exceptional Insight

“It was nice to meet him, wasn’t it, Miss Nina?”

“Yes. That’s absolutely right.”

After the meal.

Nina, who was returning to the church in a carriage, and her escort, who had her hand on a sword, looked at each other and extended this exchange.

“You seemed quite friendly with the inn-keeper.”

“Yes… I had acted rude to him. I regret it.”

“Fufu, shall we come back next week to apologize? I too regret that I relied on you so heavily.”

“—Understood. Then, please.”

“Yes. …Thank you very much…”

Having the master accompany you to an apology is the wrong thing to do as an escort. 

Normally, one would have to head out on their own, but—As Nina said thanks—This was in consideration of her feelings. 

“…Ah. I’m going to change the subject a little bit, but I’d like to ask you one question.”

“Yes. What would it be?”

“How was it from your point of view? What was your impression of Sir Jet-black?”

“Impression… is it…”

Jet-black was Nina’s favorite person.

Nina was interested in the opinions of the people around her because Jet-black is the person she favors.

“Well, he’s definitely a strong man.”

“Eh? Is that how you see him? I meant more about his personality…”

“I’m sorry. You could say I was constantly surveilling… I didn’t have the leisure to do that.”

“Hmm, surveilling, you say?”

“Yes. The man kept glancing.”

“Eh…”

Nina, who had not noticed anything, screamed in a panicked voice.

“It’s well-known that guards tend to relax during meals. So, perhaps he was checking to see if I had let my guard down… Our guard unit has had a major blunder, like when Miss Nina was abducted.”

The guard made a clenched fist in frustration and continued to speak.

“…And not noticing his presence as well… I deeply regret it.”

It happened quite early on. When Jet-black came to sit at the counter naturally.

Even Nina was one of those who were surprised not to notice.

“We were conversing with the inn-keeper, but that doesn’t mean that I was less vigilant.” 

“C-Could it be that Sir Jet-black was lowering his presence…?”

“Such a thing is impossible. It’s a complete difference in ability.”

Unless you are hard on yourself, you can’t be an escort. The escort shook her head at the possibility of what Nina had told her.

“Not only that… It is even possible that the man anticipated a collision between me and the shop owner.”

“…H-How is that possible?”

“The timing is too good to be a coincidence. Either he got information that we were heading to that inn, or he possess exceptional insight.”

It’s always better to keep these possibilities in mind. In fact, the fact that the word “coincidence” didn’t even cross her mind was exactly why she felt an intensely unsettling premonition.

“What could his remarks mean, I wonder? Of course, I will also discuss this with His Eminence…”

“About what we’re going to reward that man…?”

“So Miss Nina caught that too?”

Nina nodded her head. 

They could understand each other without saying it out loud. It was that uncomfortable.

“I don’t want your parents to come over,” said the Jet-black.

“There is no way he would waste an opportunity to connect with His Eminence, the Archbishop, or with the Bishop of the Holy Church. And that too, while being in a position to quickly gain a favor… And he mentioned his reason was not wanting attention, but even a visit from Miss Nina and Miss Marie would attract attention.” (T/N: Nina’s father and mother.)

“So it’s a pretext.”

“……”

“……”

The conversation that had been going on until now stopped here.

Both were working their brains out, with the escort putting her hand on her chin and Nina putting hers on her cheek.

“It is commonly said that people tend to be uncomfortable around those in positions of power, but we cannot apply that to him, as he seemed to interact with Miss Nina in a very natural manner. There are even rumors that he may be associated with Vertal, so it can be said that he is skilled in handling such situations.”

“…………”

“…………”

Again silence loomed.

“I don’t like to think about it, but does this mean that he may have some trouble that only Father or Mother can solve…?”

“I don’t know either. However… It’s that person. There must be a significant reason. He wouldn’t have said something like that for a trivial reason.”

No matter how much the escort thought about it, she couldn’t get the answer. She was no match for someone with exceptional insight.

“We need to consult this as soon as possible. Miss Nina, I’m sorry, but would you mind asking the coachman to hurry the carriage?”

“Yes. Please hurry.”

“Thank you very much.”

—The two exchanged serious looks.

Jet-black had no way of knowing that as a result of pushing the conversation forward with his own self-interest, the conversation had been interpreted so deeply.