I Was Reincarnated as the Villain Who Confines the Heroine in an Eroge World, But for Some Reason I'm the One Getting Confined by the Heroine Instead

Chapter 10: Investigating the Duke’s Daughter’s Secret

That day, Safira’s onslaught showed no sign of stopping. She stuck to me like glue during every break, lunch, and even in the middle of class.

Because of that, I could barely talk to any other classmate. The only person I ever exchanged words with was Luxol.

Personally, I wanted to chat a bit more with the rest of the class, but every time I tried to talk to someone, Safira got in the way.

At first I thought it was coincidence.

But when the same thing kept happening over and over, anyone would start to get suspicious.

No matter how you slice it, it was weird.

In the classroom it’s one thing, but even while walking down the hallway she blocked every single attempt I made to talk to someone else.

Even if she had sky-high affection for me, would a normal person interfere this much?

Wasn’t there something fishy going on?

That kind of doubt started bubbling up. After all, in the original story, incidents were always happening around her.

Maybe right now she was caught up in some kind of trouble and couldn’t leave my side because of it.

That was totally possible.

It made enough sense. It was weird otherwise. There was no other explanation.

But no matter how many times I asked, she’d never give me a straight answer. She’d just brush it off with something vague.

So, what should I do?

During history class I scanned the room.

Investigating on my own would be tough. Was there anyone who might help?

The only person I actually talked to was Luxol, so it was really hard.

Ideally I’d want someone completely unrelated to the original story who could unravel her secret for me.

Yeah, like that kind of convenient person would just show up.

If someone like that existed, they wouldn’t be a mob character—they’d be a named one.

In the end, I had no choice but to investigate alone.

※

【Side Safira Hartz】

—When should I lock him up?

That was the only thing on my mind during class. Truly the only thing. Everything else didn’t matter at all.

The repeated engagement annulments.

Getting scolded by Father because of it.

The rumors about the succession issue in the ducal house.

The fact that hostile factions regularly tried to kill me.

All of it was trivial.

Because as long as I had Ask-kun, that was enough for me.

Yet…

—Why has Ask-kun been looking around the room like that?

I stole a glance at his profile. After scanning the classroom, he seemed deep in thought.

That look was cool too, but now wasn’t the time to swoon.

—He’s not looking for another girl, right?

The moment that thought crossed my mind, a sharp pain stabbed the back of my heart.

It wasn’t anger or jealousy. It was something sharper. A thorn I couldn’t put into words. An emotion so intense it felt like it would overflow.

—That’s not it, right? Right, Ask-kun? You wouldn’t look at any girl besides me, would you?

I clenched my fists under the desk.

Then he suddenly fixed his gaze on a certain person.

—That guy again.

The one he was looking at was a commoner named Luxol. The guy who greeted him on the first day of school. The guy who ruined our reunion.

—Does Ask-kun like that kind of man?

I couldn’t understand. Where was the appeal in someone so plain, not particularly strong, and who always had girls hanging around him?

According to my maid Lavanda, who was undercover at the academy, yesterday he had been running around the school grounds with three different girls. One of them was even that girl known as the Saintess.

—I absolutely cannot let that guy steal Ask-kun from me.

This was a serious problem.

I needed to act fast.

※

“Achoo!”

I can’t stop sneezing lately. Someone must be talking about me.

Thinking that, I pretended to head to the boys’ restroom after class and casually called out to a random classmate.

I needed information about Safira.

“Hey, can I ask you something real quick?”

“Me?”

The one I spoke to was a classmate named Ekoro-kun.

His family runs a vineyard and grows Chardonnay, apparently. He mentioned it during self-introductions, so I remembered clearly.

I think there are about three vineyard kids in our class. I definitely want to get friendly with those three.

“I have something I want to ask. Do you have a minute later?”

“Sure, but what’s it about?”

Ekoro-kun was tiny for our age and had perfectly trimmed mushroom-cut hair that swayed as he spoke.

I leaned in close and whispered.

“I can’t say it too loudly, but… it’s about Safira.”

“The duke’s daughter!?”

The moment I said her name, Ekoro-kun’s eyes went wide with shock.

“I-I don’t know anything!”

“You don’t have to know a lot. I just want an outside opinion.”

I smiled to put him at ease, but it seemed to scare him instead. He slowly backed away.

“I really don’t know anything!”

“Wait, Ekoro-kun!”

He shook off my attempt to stop him and hurried back to the classroom.

I guess my senses had gone numb. Of course the duke’s daughter had overwhelming influence in these lands. Nobody wants to get involved with power like that.

I get it. I really get it. If I could, I’d live a slow life far away from any authority too.

“For now, I’ll try the other vineyard kids.”

Ekoro-kun didn’t work out, but maybe the others would hear me out.

Clinging to that faint hope, I kept investigating.

But things didn’t go that smoothly—

“Nope, huh.”

I tried the remaining two, but the moment I mentioned the duke’s daughter they ran away just like Ekoro-kun.

—Just how feared is she?

In the original story she was a proud character beloved by everyone, so why was it so different now? It was honestly mysterious.

※

【Side Safira Hartz】

According to the report from my maid Lavanda, every person Ask-kun approached today was from a vineyard family.