I Was Reincarnated as the Villainous Knight Commander Who Betrays Everyone at the End, So I Plan to Leave the Fake Hero’s Party with the Exiled Girl Who’s Actually the True Hero! ~While Watching Over the Protagonist Up Close, I Somehow Ended Up Destroying the Whole Scenario~ - 15

Chapter 15: The Villainous Knight Commander Gazes Upon Something Big

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Morning. I rubbed my heavy eyelids lightly with my hand, even though I should have had plenty of sleep. I crawled out of bed and stood in front of the wall-mounted mirror to fix my bed hair.

“…Hmm. As I thought, it’s hard to describe.”

Every time I looked at my face in the mirror, I thought the same thing. In the original story, I—Lars—had never shown my true face. So even as the author, I had no idea what Lars’s face looked like. I hadn’t even come up with some cliché twist like “under the helmet was actually a handsome face.”

So when I first saw my own face, I got nervous myself. Even when I looked back on Lars’s memories, there wasn’t a single moment that could confirm my own appearance now. While thinking about that, I looked at my face once again.

“I do look cool, and the features are well-defined,but… My face is kind of plain.”

I wasn’t ugly. It was just…rugged, I guess. I wasn’t one of those sparkling pretty boys. I was a young man with gRei hair who gave off a strong impression.

“Well, with this face I could probably show it to Ciel… No, for some reason that feels incredibly embarrassing. Better not.”

When I imagined showing my face to Ciel, the Lars inside me recoiled. Maybe he was actually kind of shy.

“…Alright, all ready.”

“Good morning, Lars-kun.”

“Hmm.”

Just as I finished putting on the helmet I’d left on the table, Rei appeared.

“Could you not just stick your face out of the wall like that? It’s not good for my heart.”

“Ahaha, sorry.”

Her name was Rei, Rei the Elder Wraith. Having met a tragic end in life and turning into a monster, she had recently changed jobs from being a vengeful spirit to a clerk at Mofumofu Potion Shop.

Rei, being a semi-material creature halfway between substance and insubstantiality, could pass through walls and floors. When her head alone poked out from a wall, it was honestly terrifying. Mofumaru had been so scared he holed up in his backyard doghouse for a while.

“More importantly, did something happen?”

“No, I just came to tell you that breakfast is ready.”

“I see. My apologies. Thank you for your help.”

I left my room and headed for the living room. There, a large table for four with four chairs was set up, and Ciel was sitting in one of them, waiting.

“Ah, good morning, Lars-san.”

“Good morning, Ciel. You seemed to stay up quite late last night…”

“Ehehe, I got so absorbed in it. I wanted to increase our stock of potions before we open the shop.”

“Don’t overdo it.”

“I’m fine!! Rei-san is helping me out, too!!”

Right—Rei did have some know-how when it came to potion-making. She used to run a general store during her life, and apparently enjoyed making potions as a hobby on the side. Thanks to that, Ciel’s work efficiency had improved. She could now make roughly 80 to 100 bottles a day.

“And we’ve also expanded our product lineup!!”

“I was really surprised. You actually analyzed and turned into recipes several potions I’d made purely by instinct back when I was alive.”

Ciel said with a beaming smile, while Rei pursed her lips in a slight pout but couldn’t help smiling too. Besides healing potions, Rei had apparently created ones that would explode on impact or paralyze someone’s entire body if ingested.

Ciel had analyzed them, turned them into recipes, and made mass production possible. They would definitely need to be used with care, but for adventurers who lived by the sword, these potions could come in handy in an emergency. They’d probably sell well.

“How’s the herb garden?”

“About that… Ehehe.”

Ciel averted her gaze and tried to cover it with a smile. The garden behind the shop had been turned into an herb garden to cultivate medicinal plants. That said, they hadn’t succeeded in growing any herbs yet.

She’d tried transplanting whole roots from the forest and seeing if they would multiply, but the results hadn’t been promising. The herbs withered the day after they were replanted.

“They’re dying far too quickly, so I think there must be some specific conditions needed for herbs to grow—maybe the water, soil, or temperature…”

“So we just have to be patient, huh.”

“Yes…”

“Well, until we can grow them ourselves in the backyard, I’ll gather herbs from the forest.”

“Thank you so much. Ah, but I’m also thinking of putting up a gathering quest at the Adventurers’ Guild, so you don’t have to push yourself.”

“Hmm, I see.”

The Adventurers’ Guild. An organization that managed the rowdy adventurers and arranged requests from townsfolk and the kingdom.

“Hmm. But if we do that, the quality of the herbs will be inconsistent. Many adventurers are rough after all. Some might just rip them up carelessly.”

“That’s the problem. I’m thinking of offering bonus rewards for good quality, though.”

“I see. But in that case, some might try to haggle or cause trouble. Looks like I’ll have more chances to step in to keep those rowdy folks in check.”

Well, it’s always better when a bodyguard’s work stays unnecessary—that’s the peaceful ideal.

“Everyone? Could we stop the work talk for now and have breakfast? It’ll get cold…”

“Hmm, sorry.”

“I-I’m sorry!!”

Ciel and I quickly apologized, and Rei smiled as she made a little beckoning motion with her finger. Plates carrying breakfast floated softly through the air and lined up neatly on the table. That was Rei’s poltergeist ability.

What amazed me even more was that Rei had prepared all these dishes herself. She’d skillfully used cooking utensils with her poltergeist power to make breakfast. And what truly shocked me was…

“This is delicious!!”

“I agree.”

Rei’s cooking was insanely good. Ciel’s food was great, but Rei’s was right up there too. Today’s breakfast was bacon and eggs, vegetable soup, and toast. The eggs in the bacon and eggs were perfectly soft and runny, with just the right touch of salt.

The bacon was crispy, and when I bit into it, the savory fat burst with flavor. The vegetable soup had been simmered thoroughly; the moment the vegetables touched my tongue, they melted and went straight down. The honeyed toast was sweet, crispy on the outside, and delightfully fluffy inside.

“W-was it really that good? I can’t taste it myself, so I’m not sure…”

“It’s professional-level!!”

“Agreed.”

At first, I’d been wary of living with an Elder Wraith, but with food this good, it became hard to care about the core of her existence.

“Woof!!”

“Mofumaru says it’s delicious too!!”

For Mofumaru, Rei had made original dog food: shredded dried meat mixed with finely chopped vegetables and lightly salted. Honestly, it looked delicious even to me. I’d tried a bite myself, and it was surprisingly tasty.

Mofumaru, who had initially been terrified of Rei, was now completely attached to her.

“Um, I-I’m just glad you enjoyed it.”

Rei must have been a gentle person by nature. Hearing our compliments, she looked a bit embarrassed but smiled. It was hard to believe this woman had once been a vengeful spirit who cursed people to death.

Well, she must have had good reason not to forgive those who betrayed her. Most importantly…

“Um, Lars-kun? You’re staring at me… Is something wrong? Don’t tell me you’re thinking of physically exorcising me again…”

“…No, it’s nothing. I’m not going to exorcise you, so don’t worry.”

She was simply beautiful. I kept almost forgetting because Ciel was a super gorgeous girl herself, but Rei was stunning too. And she had ridiculously huge boobs.

She could cook amazingly well, had her own shop, was stacked, pretty, kind, and had a sweet personality. I couldn’t understand how the man she dated had ever dumped her. 

Was the friend he cheated on her with really that much cuter than Rei? So much so that the guy had actually dumped Rei for being ‘plain’? It was hard to believe this was the same Rei who had once sobbed like a baby while clinging to Ciel for “mommy comfort”; now she had a graceful, big-sister vibe.

“Lars-san? What are you looking at?”

I sensed a murderous aura from Ciel. Had she caught me staring at Rei’s chest? Either way, her smile was terrifying. Her face smiled, but her eyes didn’t. In fact, it seemed her pupils were completely dilated.

“N-no, it’s nothing.”

I quickly averted my eyes from Rei’s chest and desperately tried to play it off.

Come on, I’m a man. Of course I like big things.

Then Ciel placed a hand on her own chest and muttered something quietly under her breath.

“…Even though mine are pretty big for my age…”

“Hmm? Sorry, Ciel, I didn’t catch that. Could you say it again?”

“It’s nothing!! Let’s hurry up and eat so we can finish preparing the shop!! We will open the shop tomorrow!!”

“Hmm, r-right.”

After that, we finished the final preparations for the grand opening and welcomed the next day.

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