The Hero Stole My Lover, So I Decided to Steal the Hero's Lover Instead - Chapter 36-37

Chapter 36

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“We’ll let him see you and Alicia naked in bed while holding each other.”

“…Excuse me?”

“No, I mean, in other words… You and Alicia will—”

“Ahh, ahh, you don’t need to say any more.” 

I cut her off. 

“I get it without you spelling it out.”

“Good.”

Sharon said it casually, then just as casually drained her beer and ordered another with a smooth motion like it was second nature.

Let him—let Cain see it? Let him see… but how…?

In my case, I had no choice but to see it—well, more accurately, I should say I happened to see it. It wasn’t like Cain and Sheryl meant for me to see what they were doing either.  That had been a sort of accident. A minor one—but an accident that was bound to happen sooner or later.

So now I was supposed to go to my old house—now technically Sheryl’s place (?)—sneak in while Cain and Sheryl were out, do that, and then have Cain walk in on it? Then, while he was in shock from what he saw, Sharon would ambush him?

No way… That’s just too much.

Sharon took the newly arrived beer stein, drank it down in big gulps, and I did the same.

“So, how exactly are we going to do this?”

Sharon pulled a crystal ball from her pocket and held it up for me to see.

“This.”

“That’s—”

“Right. A recording crystal.”

Both recording and communication crystals were expensive items. I hadn’t thought she’d own several of them. Then again, considering she was the ruler of a country, it wasn’t strange at all for her to have the money to buy a few.

“We’ll use this to record it.”

“…”

“Hey, are you listening to me?”

“You mean… Record it? Wait, really? Record it?”

“Exactly. Record it.”

Saying “absolutely not” and firmly rejecting the idea outright wasn’t exactly easy. I owed Sharon a lot, and honestly, if it weren’t for her, I never would have met Alicia in the first place.

…There was no helping it. I’d go along with what Sharon was saying.

But still, it was not like Alicia and I were going to get to that stage right away. It would take time (maybe I could shorten it a bit?), and even if we did end up like that, recording it without her permission was kind of lacking in sincerity. Or cowardly, maybe.

While I was lost in those thoughts, Sharon kept talking.

“We’ll record it and then show the footage to Cain. It’ll be longer and more direct than what you saw between Cain and Sheryl.”

“…Sharon. Didn’t you say something before like, ‘To steal someone and you know, to get physically close, there are proper steps that must be taken.’”

“Now that you mention it, I did say something like that.”

She tilted her head slightly as she said it.

“In other words, even if we’re going to record that kind of footage, it’s going to take some time to get there.”

“Hmm…”

“Also, we’d need Alicia’s permission to record it.”

“…Doing it without permission really is bad, huh?”

“Of course it is.”

“I see, it’s bad. Yeah, you’re right…”

Sharon began muttering to herself.

“Hmm, even if ask Alicia for her permission, would she really agree to it? And if I want to convince her, can I do it without explaining my situation at all…? That would be hard. Then maybe… Maybe I should just tell her everything about who I am? No, I don’t need to tell her everything. Maybe just part of it…? Hmm…”

After thinking and thinking, the conclusion Sharon came to was—

“For now, let’s put the plan and everything else on hold.”

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Chapter 37

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

The next day. I went to see my girlfriend, Alicia. My girlfriend, Alicia. Yeah, that had a nice ring to it. I almost grinned just thinking about it.

Beside me was Sharon. As for why Sharon was here—well, she said, “I wish to see Alicia as well.”

Come to think of it… Or to be precise, I didn’t even need to think about it. Sharon and Alicia were already friends. It wasn’t strange at all for a friend to want to visit another friend. In fact, Sharon had known Alicia longer than I had. Well, even if I say “longer,” the actual time difference wasn’t that significant.

“Hmm…”

Sharon let out a low groan.

“Something wrong?”

“No… I just wondered if Alicia might start suspecting our relationship, seeing the two of us together like this.”

Right. Sharon and I—we both knew that our relationship was not something to be ashamed of. But from Alicia’s perspective, she might interpret it differently. I didn’t want her to be suspicious, but I also understood it would be hard to blame her if she was.

Still—

“Well, who knows? But I think we’ll be fine. I mean, remember last time—”

That time.

Alicia asked us a question.

“Are you two, um… Dating?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. That’s impossible.” 

Sharon said.

“Yeah, no way. We’re not dating.” 

I added.

“We’re like childhood friends. We’re more than friends, but not quite lovers.”

Sharon explained.

Alicia didn’t seem dissatisfied or suspicious in the slightest when she heard our responses.

—End of flashback.

“That’s why I think we’re okay.”

“I see. Right. Then I guess it’s fine.”

As we chatted like that, before we knew it, we had arrived at Alicia’s house. I knocked on the door.

Knock, knock.

“It’s Luke.”

“Sharon here.”

Introducing ourselves was important. After all, the person answering the door couldn’t be sure we weren’t suspicious individuals. The door opened almost immediately, and Alicia appeared. Her smile was as radiant and refreshing as today’s weather. Just seeing her made me feel happy.

“Hello, Luke-san, Sharon-san.”

“It’s been a little over a week, hasn’t it, Alicia.” 

Sharon said.

“Yes, a little over a week, Sharon-san.” 

Alicia replied. Then she brought her hand to her mouth and giggled in a refined manner. We entered Alicia’s home, and the three of us chatted happily. The main topic of conversation was that Alicia and I had started dating.

“Yeah, it’s truly a happy occasion. You two make a great couple.”

“R-Really?”

Alicia asked shyly, and Sharon nodded repeatedly.

“Weren’t you surprised when you found out Luke-san and I started dating?”

“Not at all.” 

Sharon answered matter-of-factly.

 “I already knew you both had feelings for each other.”

“Eh, really!?”

Alicia seemed surprised that Sharon had known she had feelings for me (Luke). It must have been a quietly held, faint affection on her part. She had underestimated Sharon’s powers of observation.

As expected of a Demon King.

“By the way—Alicia, Luke.”

“Yes, what is it?” 

“Hmm, what?”

“You’re a couple now, so speak more casually with each other.”

“Casually…?”

Alicia looked troubled.

“Yes. Your tone of voice, and also how you refer to each other.”

“How we refer to each other?”

“No more using honorifics.” Sharon said. 

“Alicia, try calling him ‘Luke.’”

Still looking uneasy, Alicia fixed her eyes on me and said,

“Lu-Lu-Luke…”

She turned red with embarrassment and timidly said my name.

“Once more.”

“L-Luke…”

“Say it more clearly, with confidence!”

“Luke!”

Alicia shouted with all her might.

“Alicia.”

I responded.

“Luke!”

“Alicia!”

“Luke!”

“Alicia!”

“Luke!”

How long is this supposed to go on for?

“Luke!” “Alicia!” “Luke!” “Alicia!” “Luke!” “Alicia!” “Luke!” “Alicia!” “Luke!” ………

“Enough already! That’s enough, you stupid lovey-dovey couple!”

Apparently getting fed up, Sharon yelled at us to stop. At almost the exact same moment…

Knock, knock.

The door knocker sounded again.

“Yes?”

Alicia said, heading to the entrance. When she opened the door, there stood a large man in a military uniform holding a package, standing at attention. It was the same person who had delivered something last time.

“You’re Alicia-dono, correct?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

They had the same exchange as before. It was just a formality, since it was already obvious she was Alicia.

“I’ve come to deliver a package.”

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー