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 39: I've Reached My Limit

Chapter 39: I’ve Reached My Limit

【Side Safira Hartz】

I wonder when it started—when people began trying to take my life.

I don’t remember exactly, but it feels like it was a few years after I met Ask.

Back then, the only thing keeping me going was the hope of seeing him again one day.

Ask had powerful magic. He was bound to end up at the academy sooner or later.

That’s why I believed we would meet again, and I waited patiently for that moment.

But there was no guarantee we would ever reunite.

No—to be precise, there was no guarantee I would even stay alive.

All my siblings were dead. I was the only one left. My life was always in danger.

I lost count of how many times someone slipped poison into my food.

Each time, I fell ill, collapsed into bed, or lost consciousness. Yet somehow, I never died.

Before long, I built up resistance. Small doses stopped affecting me.

Today was the same.

Poison had been mixed into the meal, but even after tasting it myself, I felt fine. If anything, I felt better than usual.

I believe it’s all thanks to Ask.

My desire to protect him makes me strong. Losing him would be worse than death.

“I’m sorry, Ask.”

I do feel bad about what I did to him.

I gave him a sleeping drug because I didn’t want to drag him into the fight.

Ask is strong—probably far stronger than me. But there’s always a chance he could lose. The risk isn’t zero.

I couldn’t accept that. I didn’t want to take even the slightest chance of losing him.

So I put him to sleep and planned to end everything while he was out.

“I’m sorry.”

If he had come to the farm alone, everything would have been peaceful.

He could have lived the quiet, slow life he wanted.

But because of me, conflict keeps arising. I’m the spark that starts the fire.

“I’m sorry.”

I keep apologizing today, but I truly mean it.

Even so, I can’t leave him. I can’t bring myself to stay away.

My reason for existing is to be with him.

I’ll probably follow him around for the rest of my life. I won’t let him be alone.

But please, at least allow me that.

Even if you can’t forgive me, please forgive the part of me that will keep following you anyway.

※

When I stepped out of the mansion into the garden, the situation was far worse than I had imagined.

The duke’s guards, Lavanda, the estate manager.

They were deep in conversation, and behind them knelt about a hundred men.

The men all wore cloth of the same color. From their appearance, there was no doubt they were thieves or worse.

And the ones giving those thieves orders were supposed to be members of the duke’s household.

So that’s how it was. The drugs, the constant intrusions by thieves—it had all been their doing.

My teeth ground together at the reality of it, but I took a step forward anyway and spoke coldly to my former personal maid.

“Lavanda, so you were a traitor too.”

Lavanda turned at my words. Her eyes widened for a moment before she looked down at the ground.

I never truly trusted her anyway.

I can’t trust anyone except Ask.

But for some reason, something sharp stabbed at my chest and began eating away at my heart.

I faced forward again. The thieves who had noticed me now turned hostile glares in my direction.

There was no one here but enemies.

Every single person present wanted to crush me.

“Young lady, if you surrender now, we will spare your life.”

In the tense silence, Lavanda spoke.

“Don’t insult me. Did you really think I would give in this easily?”

“These men are the elite of the elite within the organization. And Lord Masquerade is the strongest of all. You cannot hope to defeat them.”

It seemed the estate manager’s real name was Masquerade.

It didn’t matter. The only thing I could do was take them all down.

“Bring it on. You’re going to pay for trying to kill me over and over.”

“Young lady… if you surrender, we will spare—”

“Be quiet, Lavanda.”

I scolded my former maid, then readied my sword.

I would cut them all down.

For my sake, and for Ask’s.

With that resolve in my heart, I charged forward.

Thus, the signal fire of battle was lit.

※

“Grapes!?”

I woke up.

My head was spinning.

My body felt heavy.

“Huh? Why was I asleep?”

I sat up while pressing a hand to my head.

I looked around, but no one was there. Not even Safira, who should have been here.

“It’s pretty noisy out there.”

Through the gap in the curtains, I could see the night sky.

Yet outside was in an uproar. The clash of metal echoed along with men’s roars.

I could tell just from the sounds. Something had definitely happened.

And I could easily guess what it was.

“Safira!”

Safira had probably been attacked by the organization.

If that was the case, the loud clanging of metal was the sound of swords clashing.

Safira was fighting the organization’s men right now.

Once I reached that conclusion, I couldn’t stay still any longer.

“Safira!”

I shouted as I got out of bed.

But my head throbbed. My body was heavy. My legs wobbled beneath me.

I was far from feeling good.

“What the hell kind of drug did they give me?”

It was better than when I was locked up, but the damage was too great to call myself in top shape.

I had decent resistance to drugs and poison, so I could still move, but there was no guarantee I could fight at full strength.

“For now, I’ll drink some grape juice.”

There was still about half a bottle left.

I chugged it straight from the bottle, soaking my clothes as I caught my breath.

“I’m alive again!”

My legs still wobbled, but my vision no longer swam.

With that thought, I pulled back the curtain, stepped onto the terrace, and scanned the surroundings.

“What the—?”

An unbelievable sight spread out before me.

“Safira?”

She had lost.

Her golden hair was disheveled, both arms bound, and she knelt on the ground.

She was surrounded by the organization’s men, forced into a humiliating position.

Around them lay people bleeding on the ground.

One, two, three, four, five.

No—more than that. At a glance, more than half seemed unable to fight.

As expected of Safira. But even she hadn’t managed to wipe them all out.

The aftermath of the battle had left the area in ruins.

The grapevines were trampled, and the area near the mansion was destroyed.

Grapes that had been hanging beautifully just hours ago now lay pitifully on the dirt.

I stood frozen at the sight.

“What the—?”

They ruined the grapevines?

“What the—?”

They really ruined the grapevines?

“What the—?”

That’s something you just don’t do.

Even if I overlook people fighting each other?

Humans are ugly creatures, and fighting is unavoidable.

But you don’t mess with the grapes. The grapes are innocent. That’s crossing the line.

Yet they trampled the vineyard without a second thought. They defiled a sacred place that should never be touched.

“I won’t forgive this.”

There was no way I could forgive it. Not only did they gang up on Safira, but they even ruined the grapes.

It felt like everything I had was taken from me. My head boiled, and power surged in proportion to my anger.

Rage raced through my whole body. There was no holding it back.

“I’ll crush them.”

I’d reached my limit.

I had planned to take them down anyway, but I wasn’t going to stop at just defeating them.

“Apologize to the grapes and to Safira!”

I shouted those words and leaped straight down from the second-floor terrace.

Thus began my battle to take back the grapes and Safira.