Volume 2 Chapter 39: I Didn’t Do It

After a light shower, Mina Carat walked heavily through the expansive mansion. Her destination was the room where Fiona Mabel was currently resting. Her expression mirrored the gloom in her heart.

The source of Mina’s unease wasn’t her recent defeat at the hands of Noil Arlens in their earlier battle. Well, it wasn’t the direct cause, at least. Mina fully understood that her loss was due to her own inexperience.

She had been careless, underestimating him as an easy opponent. Next time, she was confident she would emerge victorious. But those thoughts were merely excuses.

At that moment, Noil had undoubtedly surpassed her. That was the undeniable truth.

That was why, despite her feelings about what happened in the bathhouse, she had accepted her defeat and acknowledged him.

Sure, there was frustration, but that was all. No additional, unwarranted negative emotions arose.

So why did Mina feel this lingering gloom?

It was because recognizing Noil meant she had no choice but to allow him to stay in their mansion.

While she had no complaints about the match itself, the circumstances surrounding it were a different matter.

Even if she grudgingly allowed him to stay, the mansion was spacious enough that, as long as he didn’t approach her room, she could tolerate it. Despite the horrible impression he’d made during their first encounter and the bathhouse incident, he didn’t seem like an entirely bad guy.

When he called her “not bad,” she felt mocked. But upon reflection, Noil had consistently shown remorse toward her and had even properly apologized.

He could have played the victim—it wouldn’t have been entirely wrong—yet he didn’t.

She also remembered how he tried to avoid looking at her body in the bathhouse.

At first glance, his playful smile and mischievous eyes made him seem like a flippant person, but he might actually be more decent than she had assumed.

“And… he seems like the kind of guy who’ll do his best for someone he cares about.”

Mina muttered this as she arrived in front of her destination—the room. She had a hunch that Noil’s abrupt challenge had been for the sake of the girl now resting inside.

Of course, Noil had fought mostly for his own sake, and Fiona wasn’t his girlfriend. Mina didn’t know this. Her assumption wasn’t entirely wrong, but it wasn’t exactly right either.

This misunderstanding was why Mina felt even heavier. She dreaded the thought of apologizing to Fiona.

Although Fiona had instigated their quarrel, her fury made sense if she was indeed Noil’s girlfriend.

Even though it was an accident, Mina had acted inappropriately toward Noil. It was only natural for Fiona to feel upset. Mina herself would have been furious in the same situation. Though she didn’t have a partner, she could easily imagine it.

Moreover, during that heated moment, Mina had insulted Noil in front of Fiona. She had to apologize for that as well. She knew she had to, but…

“Haah…”

It was difficult to face someone she had once exchanged harsh words with. While she admitted she was in the wrong, she still found Fiona aggravating—a type she just couldn’t get along with. She doubted Fiona would forgive her either.

And most importantly… most importantly…

“What’s with that chest…?”

That was the one thing Mina couldn’t get over.

On top of being stunningly beautiful, Fiona had those. What even were they? How did they get that way?

It was unfair, outrageous, and downright cheating.

It felt as if Fiona was mocking her very existence.

Of course, this was nothing more than Mina’s unfounded victim complex, but she couldn’t help feeling that way. She instinctively saw Fiona as someone she could never reconcile with.

“Couldn’t she spare a little?”

Her tone turned rough without her realizing it. Before she knew it, Mina’s fist was pressed against the wall as she muttered curses under her breath.

“Why? Why did you leave Senpai alone with that woman?”

Suddenly, a loud voice broke through Mina’s bitter thoughts, snapping her back to reality. She shook her head vigorously, trying to clear her mind.

“Is there a problem?”

“There’s a huge problem! Ugh, seriously!”

The conversation inside the room grew louder. Sensing someone approaching the door, Mina quickly stepped back.

The door swung open with force, and out came a woman with sky-blue hair and a desperate expression.

Mina’s cheek twitched as she noticed the woman’s excessively ample chest bouncing with her movements.

“Out of the way, stray cat.”

“…”

Hearing such an insult from the woman standing before her, Mina’s cheek twitched further, and veins of frustration surfaced on her forehead.

Just as Fiona, the unnecessarily well-endowed woman, tried to push past Mina, she caught her shoulder with a smile.

“Hold on a second.”

“Let go of me, stray cat!”

But Fiona, looking frantic, showed no intention of listening. Her sharp retort made it clear she wasn’t in the mood for conversation. However, escaping Mina’s grasp was no easy feat. After all, a half-beastwoman specialized in physical combat. Outmatching her in strength was nearly impossible.

“Tch…! How detestable!!”

“What…! What’s your problem!? I came all the way here to apologize—”

“I don’t care about that! Just let go of me! I don’t have time to deal with someone like you right now!”

“Huh!?”

Mina’s expression darkened further. Despite her reluctance, she had come to apologize, and this was the attitude she was met with? It was beyond rude. She knew she and this woman could never get along.

Mina’s frustration boiled over. She already didn’t like her, and patience was not one of Mina’s virtues.

“What are you going on about!?”

“Senpai is in danger at this very moment!”

“I don’t even understand what you’re saying! Besides, he has El with him—”

“Tch! This is why stray cats are so useless. Your brains are too small!”

“You…! Do you want me to punch you for real!?”

The two began shouting and tussling, their argument escalating. Amid their noisy clash, Sophie appeared from the room, muttering softly:

“You two seem quite close.”

“Like hell we are!!”

Both Mina and Fiona shouted in unison, causing Sophie to tilt her head quizzically.

Growing impatient, Fiona raised her voice.

“I’m telling you, those two are about to cross a line!”

“Huh…?”

Mina, who had been too heated to think clearly, suddenly felt as though a bucket of cold water had been dumped on her. Her anger vanished instantly, replaced by shock.

What was this woman talking about?

El and Noil… crossing a line?

“That’s impossible.”

It was absurd. Not even remotely funny as a joke.

El had never mentioned anything like that, nor did she seem interested in such things. El had no interest in romance or anything so ordinary. Mina knew that much from their long friendship.

Besides, that guy? Sure, Noil wasn’t terrible-looking, but he was nowhere near El’s level. Even if Noil tried to approach El, she wouldn’t entertain it. And above all, wasn’t he Fiona’s boyfriend?

“No, that woman will absolutely go after Senpai. She’ll stop at nothing to seduce him. She might even use an aphrodisiac. If it were me, I’d spike his drink.”

The woman standing before Mina said this with a perfectly straight face, as if it were the most logical thing in the world.

“El would never—”

“That woman has been watching Senpai since our academy days.”

“That’s… El is kind, that’s all. She must have just been worried about him—”

“Would a ‘worried’ person sneak over to the dorms every night to peek into his room?”

Mina was rendered speechless by this question.

She had never known El to do such a thing. She wanted to believe it wasn’t true. But Fiona’s serious demeanor left no room for doubt. And why did Fiona even know this?

“Also, didn’t that woman claim to dislike being touched by others?”

“Y-Yeah… El doesn’t like people touching her without reason. She’s fine with me, though…”

“And yet, she willingly held hands with him and even wiped his sweat with her own hands. Strange, isn’t it? If I hadn’t stopped her, she might have even licked that sweat off.”

“Lick it…?! That’s ridiculous…”

The image of El doing such a thing was unthinkable. In Mina’s mind, El was always graceful, cool, and beautiful—her ideal woman and closest friend. Sweating over something so base? That would make her a complete pervert.

“Sophie, who lives in the room at the very end of the second floor?”

Unfazed by Mina’s turmoil, Fiona turned to Sophie, who responded in her usual flat tone:

“That is Master’s bedroom.”

“Senpai and that woman are currently there. I can track Senpai’s location using a specialized Magis device. That’s how I know.”

Mina was stunned—not because of the strange Magis device, but because Noil was in El’s room.

El never let anyone into her private space. She had refused every attempt to enter, even from Mina, politely but firmly. Only Sophie, responsible for maintaining the mansion, had access, and even she was prohibited from discussing the room’s contents.

Yet Noil had been invited in without hesitation. What could possibly be happening in there? Mina couldn’t help but imagine the worst after what Fiona had said.

“If you understand, let go of my hand.”

“I don’t want to. I can’t understand, and I won’t!”

“…Even if—if, by some one-in-a-million chance, El is actually—”

“It’s true. Now let go.”

“Even so! Noil is your boyfriend, isn’t he?!”

The man she had just fought seemed like the type to value his relationships. He wouldn’t do something like that with El.

Desperately trying to deny the unpleasant scenarios running through her mind, Mina shouted. Fiona’s eyes widened slightly before she smiled calmly.

“Yes, that’s correct. So, let go.”

“No way! Trust your boyfriend! He’s not doing anything!”

He wasn’t. Mina was certain. Noil and El couldn’t possibly be doing anything improper.

She clung to that belief. She had to believe it. She couldn’t let go. If she did, Fiona would rush to check on them, and whatever was happening in that room would come to light.

It was better not to know. Even if something had happened, as long as she didn’t know, it was as good as not happening.

“Of course I trust Senpai. But that vixen will use drugs, as I mentioned earlier.”

“Eek!”

“You have a surprisingly cute scream.”

Lost in her thoughts, Mina suddenly felt her feet leave the ground. Startled, she opened her eyes to find herself floating. A pair of silver wings sprouted from Fiona’s back, and heavy goggles covered her face.

“Wha—”

“This is getting tiresome, so I’m taking you with me.”

“W-Wait—!”

As Mina tried to free her hand, Fiona grabbed her wrist instead. Before she could say another word, Fiona accelerated sharply, pulling Mina through the air.

Sophie watched them leave, bowing expressionlessly.

“Stop! Let me go!”

“I refuse. I’ve already wasted enough time.”

“L-Leave me behind!”

“You’ll help stop the chaos if it comes to that. This involves your friend, after all.”

“N-No! I don’t want to see El like that! Nooooooo!!”

Dragged through the vast mansion by the flying Fiona, Mina could only scream as she imagined horrifying scenarios involving her friend.