The Strongest Villain, Who Had Secluded Himself Deep in the Mountains To Avoid the Destruction Flag, Is Forced Onto the Main Stage by the Heroine He Helped

The field trip to let the students experience the harsh reality of the world was, of course, canceled because of the unexpected occurrence of powerful demonic beasts.

The students were safely protected by the knight order stationed in the royal capital, and not a single person, including the teachers, were injured.

It wasn’t because the knight order reacted quickly and came for their rescue — the reality was far from it.

By the time the knight order arrived, all the demonic beasts had already been defeated, leaving only bloody corpses behind.

Surprisingly, the story of Alba defeating them didn’t come up.

That’s because neither the teachers who were fighting at the front lines nor the fleeing students witnessed the moment Alba defeated them.

Perhaps the presence of Yuris, who had been fighting on the front lines, led to a misunderstanding.

There might be some people who suspect the truth.

After all, Alba had suddenly appeared covered in blood and stood out even more due to his attempt to return secretly, which only drew more attention.

In the end, he managed to get through the situation with the excuse, ‘I was attacked by demonic beasts while trying to escape alone!’ Alba’s icy reception by the knights is another story, and the fact that Alba’s true identity was barely concealed is even more irrelevant.

But that’s beside the point.

Having gained the protagonist’s favor and even made a promise as the new target for conquest, Alba and Sheria returned home together after extracurricular activities were canceled and today’s classes were called off—

“Are you alright, Al-kun?”

Sheria, who was setting plates in the new house, asks in concern.

Having changed out of his school uniform and with his slightly longer hair setted on one side, Alba was seen in the kitchen.

The villain was responsible for cooking, as he was wearing an apron that exudes a commoner’s aura, as always.

“Um? What do you mean?”

“I mean, about today. Even though Alba defeated most of the demonic beasts, no one’s saying anything about it…”

“It’s fine. I don’t want to stand out. There are more important things than basking in the applause from the gallery.”

Even if the information about ‘the infamous Alba’ has already spread to some extent, actively promoting it would be nonsense. The villain at the brink of a precipice, seeking peace, tranquility, and freedom more than rewards or fame, must always remain inconspicuous like a speck of dust against the wall. Or else he will die due to a death flag.

Well, that’s the prelude… and it’s not very convincing when he has already drawn so much attention.

“But still—”

“And besides, I didn’t do it for any reward. I helped you because I wanted to help you, got it?”

“Ah, um…”

Alba casually says those words, causing Sheria’s face to turn beet red.

Alba has trouble dealing with such cool declarations. That’s probably why mischievous vixens would come after Alba. Sheria grumbles inwardly, her heart pounding faster.

“Hey, why am I even invited to your house?”

Finally, Ireina, who was sitting at the table, speaks up.

She was wearing glasses, which she doesn’t usually wear, either for fashion or some other purpose, and was engrossed in reading a book.

That’s probably what they call a gap. Looking at Ireina, who also looks good with glasses, slightly surprised me.

“What are you saying? We’re introducing Mina to everyone! I don’t want to deepen friendships in a place like the academy where you never know whose eyes are on you. It’s embarrassing and draws attention!”

“It’s not a bad thing if people pay attention.”

“That’s no good!”

Yes, that’s right. The girl he met before at the secluded rooftop is finally coming to their new home.

It’s because of a promise to establish connections. They could even talk at the academy, but there are always people watching and there is a chance that someone might eavesdrop on them.

Sheria and Ireina are popular to some extent, for better or worse, and Alba is the center of bad rumors.

If these people gather together, they’ll naturally stand out, and weird rumors about Mina might spread because of Alba’s bad reputation.

To calmly deepen their friendship, inviting her over to their house is the quickest and easiest way.

More than anything, inviting friends over is a truly friendly event.

That’s why Alba and Sheria along with Ireina are preparing for the hospitality.

“Inviting people over is a first for me, so I’m a little nervous. I hope they’ll be pleased…”

“If you were planning all of this from the beginning, then why did you call me earlier.”

“That’s because Ireina is already a friend!”

“…A friend.”

Ireina blushed slightly when she heard the word “friend” from Alba.

Observing this, Alba couldn’t help but feel warm-hearted and directed a tender gaze toward her, thinking, ‘She must be really happy about having friends’.

“Stop before those eyes of yours get crushed from being so annoying.”

“Ah…”

However, it seemed that even those warm eyes were not to Ireina’s liking.

“Alba, is it okay if I set out these dishes for the number of people?”

“Yeah, go ahead and set them out.”

“Understood!”

Sheria took the plates for everyone from the shelf and arranged them on the table.

It was a natural and practiced movement without any discomfort. Watching this, Ireina put her chin on her hand with a surprised expression.

“Really, Alba is living together with the Saint.”

“Well, you know, it just sort of happened.”

“It’s been about three years, I think?”

“It might be a bit shorter. Feels more like two years to me.”

In other words, they had been living together for over two years.

Talking like this was natural, but saints were originally figures who symbolized a religion that had an influence on a national scale. They lived in the main cathedral and were rarely seen by ordinary people. Normally, living in such a small house would be unthinkable.

And yet…

“Are you two in some kind of relationship?”

“Fueh—?!”

Sheria’s face turned bright red after hearing Ireina’s words.

“Well, well… what are you suddenly saying, Ireina-san!?”

“No, I mean, when people of opposite genders live under the same roof for years, it’s natural to have that question, don’t you think?”

It was quite unusual for a saint to leave the main cathedral and live with a single man. Doubts about whether they were in a relationship or even married were only natural.

“N-No, it’s not like that! Sheria and I aren’t like that… It’s just that… Well, it’s like we…want to be, or something…”

Sheria looked at Alba in the kitchen who was fidgeting. She understood that he cared for her, but she found it a bit hard to believe that there was nothing between them despite their close relationship.

Meanwhile, after calming his emotions, Alba approached the two with a dish in each hand and said…

“That’s right, Ireina. I mean, it’s not like I’m in a relationship with Sheria, right? S-something like th—ouch!”

…and he was promptly slapped by Sheria at the cheek.

[T/N : Thank god, it’s not the balls]

“Ow! I might have been hit by my parents before, but that hurt like a normal punch!”

“…Baka!”

“Apologize! I demand an apology for this unjust treatment, Your Honor!”

“I reject your request.”

“Why?!”

Seemingly, there was no one siding with the clueless Alba. Both beautiful girls gave him cold looks, and Alba teared up seeing that he was left alone.

At that moment…

“U-Um, sorry to interrupt… Ah, Al-kun? I’m here.”

The door was knocked, and a feminine voice was heard from the other side.

Alba quickly reacted to the voice, as he stood up, and headed to the entrance.

Upon opening the door, a silver-haired girl with a slightly nervous expression stood there.

“Welcome. You can come in!”

“Um, your cheek is swollen, is everything okay…?”

It wasn’t really okay, but Alba smiled widely at his new friend, unconcerned.

☆☆☆☆☆☆

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