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 30: A Temporary Peace

A temporary peace had arrived.

At least until the time came to head to the grape farm Safira was developing, it seemed like calm days would continue for another month.

There was no worry of being attacked by bandits, no threat to our lives.

In that sense, it was peaceful, but problems were piling up, and the atmosphere inside the academy could hardly be called calm.

“So, because of its climate, the Northhild Kingdom wasn’t suited for grape cultivation. That’s why they specialized in growing wheat instead.”

—During geography class.

While the teacher explained about the neighboring country’s land, I looked around the classroom and noticed an unusually large number of empty seats.

Apparently, many students had been mentally shaken by yesterday’s incident and were absent.

Some had gone back to their family homes until safety could be guaranteed.

“After beer was invented, the Northhild Kingdom developed its own unique culture. They imposed heavy tariffs on wine imports and established it as a luxury item. As a result, beer became the only drink that ordinary people could afford. In our country, wine is cheaper than water, but in the Northhild Kingdom, beer is the cheaper one.”

Even so, we were attending class as usual.

Luxol was the same as always, yawning while listening to the teacher. Business as usual.

But Safira, who sat next to me, was anything but her usual self.

「……」

She had clearly been acting strange since yesterday.

The night before last, she had boldly climbed into my bed, but last night she was like a completely different person.

She perched timidly on the very edge of the bed, head bowed, not saying a single word.

When I asked what was wrong, she didn’t respond at all, so I had no choice but to give up the bed. Her cheeks flushed bright red, she slipped under the covers looking terribly embarrassed.

Then she hugged the pillow tightly and fell asleep.

—She was clearly acting strange.

The Safira I knew would never hold back from pouncing on me.

In the end, I spread out a sleeping bag on the floor. I was relieved to have avoided a crisis to my chastity, but at the same time, I felt uneasy.

Because it was so unlike her.

And that didn’t change even when morning came.

While I was watching her sleeping face, she suddenly opened her eyes, covered her face with both hands, and let out a tiny “Ughhh…”

Her reaction was clearly one of embarrassment.

Even though she had been so aggressive the day before last, now she would shyly run away the moment I looked at her.

Look, even right now.

When I glanced over, my eyes met her blue ones.

Normally, whenever our eyes met during class, she would always be the one to make a move, but…

「……っ」

Her shoulders gave a small tremble, and she looked away in embarrassment.

—She looked just like a girl in love.

That couldn’t be right. She was supposed to be the type of wild beast who came at me aggressively.

For her to be blushing like this was absolutely strange.

What in the world had happened?

※

【Side: Safira Hartz】

—When did it become so hard to look Ask-kun in the face?

I don’t really know myself.

But without a doubt, it started after yesterday’s attack.

From that moment, the way he looked at me changed.

Somehow, the way he gazed at me had shifted.

Until the day before last, except when he was looking at grapes, his eyes always held a distant, spectator-like quality. He never directed the same passion toward me that he gave to grapes.

But after the attack, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Ask-kun’s eyes were finally seeing me as a girl.

And I was pretty sure it wasn’t just my imagination.

Because today our eyes kept meeting over and over, and there was a kind of heat in his gaze.

He was definitely aware of me.

That realization filled me with unbearable happiness, but at the same time, I had no idea what to do.

When someone you thought wasn’t conscious of you suddenly becomes aware of you, it makes you—the one who was supposed to be the aggressor—become painfully self-conscious instead.

I became more and more aware of him. I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

—Ugh!

Because of that, my heart kept pounding, my face felt hot, and my chest felt like it was about to burst.

—What should I do? What am I supposed to do?

I love Ask-kun so much.

But this felt like a completely different emotion.

It was like I was suddenly seeing him as a man all over again, and the excitement was so overwhelming I felt like I might lose my mind. Ahh, no way. It’s too embarrassing—I can’t even look him in the eye.

Of course, I was happy when I kept him locked up.

I was overjoyed to have him all to myself, to make it just the two of us.

But the happiness I was feeling now was different.

It was soft, sweet, and so warm it felt fragile.

Why did I feel this way?

Part of me wanted to lock him up again. I didn’t want to give him to anyone else.

But at the same time, I didn’t want to break this feeling, and I had no idea what to do.

—I really don’t know what’s wrong with me anymore.