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~ - 6

Chapter 6: The Villainous Knight Commander Sells Potions

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Let me start with the conclusion. The sales of the potions that Ciel made were not going well. Or rather, after an hour of walking along the main street trying to sell them, we hadn’t sold a single bottle.

Something was wrong. In the original story, it was true that at first people were too scared to approach because of Mofumaru’s presence. However, before long, children would start gathering out of curiosity about Mofumaru.

Thanks to the kids, people would realize Mofumaru was harmless, and then they’d approach Ciel, interested in the potions she was selling. But right now, for some reason, not even the children were coming near us.

No, let’s stop making excuses. I know exactly why the kids weren’t coming.

“It’s almost certainly because of me, isn’t it?”

“N-no, I don’t  think so…”

“I would have liked you to say it with more confidence…”

If it were just the fluffy Mofumaru, kids wouldn’t be wary. But from a child’s perspective, a man wearing only a helmet must look pretty scary. I did stand out. In a bad way, you might say.

From an outsider’s perspective, Ciel was just a potion-selling girl with a massive wolf-dog and a man wearing only a helmet standing on either side of her. Unintentionally, we were drawing the gazes of passersby, and a few of them looked like they were interested.

All we needed was a spark. Yes, with just the right spark, those people might actually buy Ciel’s potions. I wanted to take advantage of the attention we were getting from standing out so much. Otherwise, the potions wouldn’t sell like in the original story, and Ciel would struggle to make a living.

Is there a way to turn things around…? Ah, that’s it!!

“Mofumaru, let’s do some tricks.”

“Woof?”

After all, when it comes to dogs, tricks are a must.

“First, sit. Sit.”

“Woof?”

Mofumaru tilted his head but then promptly plopped his butt onto the ground.

“Oh, you got it on the first try. Mofumaru, you’re so smart. Next, shake. Come on, shake. Give me your paw—”

“Ofu!!”

“Whoa!?”

Mofumaru completely ignored my outstretched hand and leapt on me with full force. His fur, previously dirty with dirt and blood, was somewhat clean thanks to my purification magic, but…

“O-oh, so fluffy… Hm, you’re still a bit thin. I’ll have to feed you more—h-hey, stop it, don’t lick my helmet! It’ll rust!!”

“Woof!!”

“Stare…”

Mofumaru and I both stiffened. When I glanced at Ciel, she was pouting and glaring at us.

“W-wait, Ciel. We’re not just playing around—I was trying to teach Mofumaru some tricks to attract customers, you know?”

“Hmph, is that so?”

“Oh, that face says you don’t believe me at all…”

This was bad. Very bad. At this rate, I’d lose the trust I’d worked so hard to build with Ciel.

“Mofumaru. I’ll give you some meat later, so could you do the tricks I tell you to do?”

“Woof?”

“I’m serious. I’m a former knight commander—I don’t lie.”

Mofumaru barked.

“Woof!!” 

That was probably his way of agreeing with me.

“Alright, shake!!”

“Woof!!”

Mofumaru placed his paw gently on my outstretched hand. Whoa, his paw pads were so soft and squishy. And warm too. It was such a wonderful sensation I almost didn’t want to let go. Then I felt Ciel’s gaze on me.

“Stare…”

“Hah!? A-alright, Mofumaru. Next is down!”

“Woof!!”

Mofumaru obediently lay down as I instructed him. When I looked around at the passersby, some of them had started to stop and watch.

Good, this is going well.

If possible, I wanted to go one step further and show them something really impressive…

Alright.

“Mofumaru, breakdance!”

“Woof!? Aw, ofu!!”

Mofumaru glared at me like he was saying, “There’s no way I can do that!!”

No. Don’t give up, Mofumaru. You can totally do it. Because you did it in the original story.

In the story, Ciel eventually opened a shop in Handel City, but in the early chapters she sold potions on the streets to earn money. At that time, they’d often earn extra by having Mofumaru perform tricks—and breakdancing was one of them.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. You can do it. I’ll give you meat for dinner tonight.”

“Wau? Woof!”

Mofumaru shook his head in protest.

“You deliver a hard bargain. I’ll give you meat tomorrow night too.”

“Woof! Wooff!!”

“And the night after that too!!”

“Ofu!!”

Negotiations complete. Mofumaru began performing a sort of breakdance-like movement on the street. It looked more like he was scratching an itchy back—rolling around and wiggling on the ground.

Hmm, it seemed breakdancing was still a bit too much to ask for. But many passersby had stopped, captivated by Mofumaru’s adorable antics. And kids, ignoring my intimidating presence, started gathering around.

“Big doggie!!”

“So cute!!”

“He’s so fluffy!!”

Mothers who seemed to be the children’s parents gathered too, forming a small crowd on the main street. People attracted more people, and even adventurers started to gather.

Yes!! Mofumaru’s “breakdance” wasn’t quite what I pictured, but it stopped the passersby!! Now if we could just pitch Ciel’s potions—

“Ofu!?”

“Huh? Ohgof!?”

Suddenly, Mofumaru, who had been wiggling on the ground, sprang up like a fish flopping on shore. He looked surprised himself, as if he hadn’t meant to do it. Then, his rear end slammed right into my unguarded torso with a critical hit.

I couldn’t keep my balance and tumbled across the ground.

“A-are you okay!?”

“Y-yeah, just a few scrapes on my hands and feet.”

“Geez!! It’s because you made Mofumaru do weird stuff!!”

“S-sorry… Wait!!”

This was the perfect chance!!

“Ciel, the potion!!”

“Huh?”

“Use your potion on my wounds—show everyone how effective it is!!”

“Oh!!”

Ciel immediately understood my intention, pulled out one of her potions, and poured about half of it over my scraped wounds. In an instant, the scratches closed up. A gasp rose from the crowd gathered to watch Mofumaru’s antics. It came from the adventurers.

“D-did you see that!?”

“Y-yeah. Healing potions can work when applied directly to wounds, but…”

“The effectiveness is usually way worse than drinking it, and it takes a while to close a wound. But that potion healed him instantly!!”

“That recovery speed is unreal!! If it works that fast when applied directly, what happens if you drink it?!”

“What kind of ingredients are in that? Or more importantly, who made it?!”

Yes, yes, yes—this was perfect!!

“Um, I made this potion. They’re five silver coins each.”

“Five silver, huh. That’s a bit pricey, but with that effect it’s practically a steal. I’ll buy one!!”

“Th-thank you very much for your purchase!!”

One adventurer, who seemed to have money to spare, bought a potion from Ciel. The other adventurers looked back and forth between their wallets and the potions, hesitating.

There’s no other choice. It’s time for me to give these wavering adventurers a little push.

“Hey, you there.”

“Eh, me? W-what is it?”

I beckoned one of the adventurers from the crowd and handed him the remainder of the potion I’d used.

“Try drinking it.”

“Uh, n-no way!!”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. It doesn’t taste bad, I promise. Trust me, okay?”

“Ugh…”

I’ll say this upfront: I, Lars, have an intimidating presence.

Even though I’d sold my armor and was only wearing a shirt and pants, I was still a big, muscular guy who could move effortlessly in full armor. My height and build alone made me look scary when I loomed over someone. It wasn’t my intention to terrify some adventurer whose name I didn’t even know, but it was necessary to sell Ciel’s potions.

“F-fine… Dammit, why do I have to drink some nasty potion!?”

Muttering complaints, the adventurer gulped the potion down in one go. Then he exclaimed in surprise.

“H-huh!? It tastes… Good!?”

“Exactly. Unlike normal potions, this one tastes great. I’m telling you, you’d be crazy not to buy it.”

“I-I’ll buy it!! I’ll take one—no, two!!”

From there, everything happened fast. Adventurers one after another decided to buy, and as they saw the stock dwindling, others rushed to make sure they didn’t miss out. In just a few minutes, all nineteen bottles (with one used for the demonstration) were completely sold out.

Those who hesitated and missed their chance slumped their shoulders in disappointment. That was when Ciel delivered the finishing blow.

“Um, I’ll be here selling again at the same time tomorrow, so please come back!!”

The adventurers pumped their fists in excitement. The first day of potion sales had gone remarkably well.

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Author’s Note

A quick word from the author.

Author: “I could watch a dog’s butt forever. Only people who’ve owned one will understand.”

Lars: “I-Is that so…”