I Was Reincarnated as the Villain in an Eroge, but I’ll Live Honestly ~Because the Protagonist Was Useless, I Ended Up Making the Heroines Smile and Somehow Built a Harem~ - 29

Chapter 29: The Protagonist Unknowingly Hurts the Heroine

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“Listen carefully, Noah-sama. The most important thing is to fully breathe out first.”

“Yeah, I know…”

“This is by no means a difficult exam. If you just do what you normally do, there won’t be any problems at all!”

“Yeah, I think I heard that earlier too…”

“It’s important not to get nervous. Don’t tense up! Just like me, slowly inhale— cough, cough!”

“Hey, are you okay, Layla?!”

Noah gently rubbed Layla’s back as she doubled over, choking.

“I-I’m terribly sorry… I was just trying to help you relax even a little, Noah-sama…”

Layla is definitely the one who should be relaxing, seriously…

Even as he retorted internally, Noah’s expression looked somewhat happy.

“It’s fine. I’ve practiced a lot up until today, and this is just the beginner-level exam.”

In Noah’s world, the difficulty of the beginner-level exam was extremely low.

Simply put, the pass rate exceeded ninety percent. In other words, unless something went seriously wrong, you wouldn’t fail. The contents consisted only of reproducing standardized forms set by the knight order and mock battles between participants. If anything, it was harder to fail than to pass.

Even so, to someone as overprotective as Layla, it seemed impossible not to worry.

“I know that, but being anxious is still being anxious… I really wish I could have accompanied you…”

Layla pouted, wearing a dissatisfied expression.

“I wanted to see Noah-sama looking cool…”

At her words, Noah could only give a wry smile.

You always watch me practice anyway, so it’s not like you wouldn’t have seen that…

“For now, I don’t want to be late, so I should get going.”

After receiving all sorts of advice from the overly protective Layla, Noah boarded the carriage and headed for the exam venue.

※※※※

(Freya’s POV)

It happened just as Freya was about to start getting ready to head to Noah’s residence.

“Oh? What’s wrong, Abel? Did you come to visit again today? Sorry, but I’m just about to head out—”

“Hey, Freya. Where are you going? And more importantly, Noah came by? Were you okay? Damn it, I wish I’d been able to go help you as your childhood friend—”

“I-I’m fine, really. Thank you, as always.”

Freya replied with a slightly stiff expression.

How should I put it… He’s been a bit strange lately. It’s like he doesn’t listen to what people say, or rather, he’s kind of creepy…

On top of that, Abel was also from a marquis family just like Noah, so as someone from a viscount family, Freya couldn’t be too forceful with him.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. I’ll absolutely protect you from a trash scumbag like him! Anyway, he really didn’t do anything to you, right?”

“…What’s that supposed to mean?”

For just a moment, a vertical crease formed between Freya’s brows.

“Huh? Did you say something?”

“S-Sorry. It’s nothing…”

Freya forced a small, awkward laugh.

“And also, Noah didn’t do anything to me. There’ve been rumors going around that he’s turned over a new leaf, and honestly, that might actually be true.”

Just recalling Noah’s kind, sincere demeanor made Freya almost smile to herself. She found herself wondering if this noble society could really survive with someone like that. Maybe it showed a little on her face.

“Hey! Why are you taking Noah’s side too, Freya?! You know he’s a trash noble!”

Abel raised his voice and stepped closer to Freya.

“I-I’m not sure… I’m sorry. Did I say something that upset you?”

Perhaps overwhelmed by Abel’s intensity, Freya replied in a small voice.

“That bastard Noah… Does he plan to steal you from me too?! Not just Flora and Layla?!”

“What do you mean by that?”

For now, I must not let Abel knows I’m about to go to Noah’s house…

Freya decided that, but…

“This doesn’t concern you… Hey, don’t tell me… You’re about to go to Noah’s house right now, aren’t you?!”

At Abel’s words, Freya averted her gaze awkwardly.

“Ah—geez! I knew it was right to worry… Listen, Freya. If you go to that trash’s house and he does something awful to you—”

“H-Hey, Abel… Did Noah do something to you? And also, don’t you think you’re going a bit too far with your words…?”

“I didn’t want to use this approach, but it’s to make you wake up. It can’t be helped…”

“Huh…?”

Abel muttered so quietly that Freya couldn’t really hear him.

“You know about that incident at the market the other day, right? The one where a noble used violence and kidnapped a commoner girl? I happened to be there, so I know. The one who beat her and kidnapped her was Noah!”

Freya’s grip tightened around her hands.

Noah is absolutely not the type to do something like that… This feels suspicious. And he hasn’t been listening to a word I say…

Freya’s simmering anger was just about to explode when…

“Listen, I’m the only one who can understand how painful it was for you to fail at that dance party! Not Noah!”

At those words, Freya’s body froze as if pinned to the ground. Her mouth hung half open, but no words came out.

“Listen, Freya. You’re fine just the way you are! If failing hurts that much, then don’t try so hard anymore! I’ll protect you!”

Freya’s mind went completely blank, to the point that Abel’s voice passed right through her. Seeing Freya frozen in place, Abel misunderstood something and said, “Well, I’ll come play again sometime,” before leaving.

Am I really that strange…? I just want to check something because I don’t understand…

A little while later, Freya’s personal maid, Lotte, came by.

“Freya-sama, are you ready?”

Freya lifted her lowered face and forced herself to look as normal as possible.

“Sorry. I’ll get ready right away.”

※※※※

“Goodness, Freya-sama, what brings you here today?”

Some time after Noah left the mansion. Almost as if replacing him, Freya arrived at his estate. Layla, who greeted her, widened her eyes in surprise.

“Sorry for dropping by so suddenly. You know, yesterday Noah forgot his clothes. I had them cleaned and brought them back.”

“Thank you very much for going out of your way. Is that all you needed?”

Layla spoke to Freya with an attitude that hardly seemed appropriate for addressing a noble. From Layla’s perspective, the Present family—who had harassed her beloved Noah—was anything but pleasant.

“There’s one more thing. Could you let me talk to Noah?”

“I’m very sorry, but Noah-sama has his knight qualification exam today, so that won’t be possible.”

Faced with Layla’s flat response, Freya hesitated slightly, but…

“At Noah’s age, it’s the beginner-level exam, right? Then it should finish in the morning. Could you let me wait inside?”

“Freya-sama, our household is extremely busy due to various circumstances. We cannot properly welcome you. I’m afraid—”

Layla was about to say she must refuse, but Freya was one step ahead.

“Oh, right. If you let me see Noah, I was thinking of giving you the clothes he wore yesterday…”

“By all means, please wait in our home, Freya-sama! I’ll show you to a room right away!♪”

“Ah, um… Thank you…”

Layla replied with a tone that practically had a ♪ attached to it, while Freya wore a rather conflicted expression.

I know I’m one to talk, but Layla really does love Noah… Or rather, she’s kind of extreme… She usually seems so smart, but when Noah’s involved, she suddenly turns into a mess…

Incidentally, this method of persuading Layla had been suggested by Freya’s personal maid, Lotte. Layla snatched Noah’s clothes from Freya with the enthusiasm of a bear catching a salmon.

“Ah… Noah-sama is so close… Fufufu, these are mine now.”

She murmured dreamily, but noticing Freya’s gaze, she flushed and cleared her throat.

“By the way, may I ask why you wished to see Noah-sama?”

“…Because he said something incomprehensible about wanting to become himself.”

Freya was about to add that it made no sense, but…

“I see… So that’s why…”

Layla placed a hand on her chin, muttering as if something had come to mind.

“H-Huh? You get it…? Then tell me! Why did he say something like that?!”

Freya raised her voice without thinking. Those words had dredged up her painful memory of failing at the dance party. She hated, absolutely hated, being dragged back into those painful memories without knowing why.

“Well… Probably, the best way to find out would be to ask Noah-sama directly. Until he returns, please make yourself comfortable here, Freya-sama.”

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー