The Villainous Noble Tried His Hardest to Break the Original Storyline, and Now the Heroines Are Acting Weird - 26

Chapter 26

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To discuss what lay ahead, I headed to my room with Sasha.

…Sasha, huh.  In the game, she was an attacker who specialized in close combat.  She primarily used a sword and took down monsters with a variety of attack skills. Her status was quite strong, so if she agreed to travel with me as a companion, it would be very reassuring.

That said, it wasn’t without its complications.

“It’s fine for us to travel together, but I’d like to keep it a secret that your arms and such have healed.”

“Why is that? It’s a remarkable achievement of yours, Rubest-sama. Wouldn’t it be fine to make it public?”

“If we do that, wouldn’t the word reach the Demon Lord?”

“Ha!? I see… So that’s what you mean.”

Sasha had a cool appearance and was quite serious by nature, but having lived a life focused solely on combat, she was honestly kind of an idiot—or rather, a bit of a klutz. Well, I was used to dealing with people like her. Why? Because I’d already had plenty of practice thanks to the Goddess.

I heard a grumbling sound of protest from the Goddess, like a low growl, but I chose to ignore it completely.

“Well, it’s not like we’re heading out right at this moment… In the meantime, maybe you can put on a disguise.”

“A disguise? Should I dress as a man, perhaps?”

With a proud puff of her chest, Sasha struck a confident pose.  But… wouldn’t that be difficult, given her rather prominent chest? Even if it were possible, she’d have to bind it down tightly, which would probably put a strain on her body.

“No… no need to go that far. If you grow your hair out and wear a bit of makeup, most people probably wouldn’t recognize you.”

People close to her might still figure it out, but at the very least, I wouldn’t. There had been times when I’d passed coworkers outside of work and couldn’t recognize them at all just because their vibe felt different.

 They’d call out to me, and for a second I’d be like, “Who the heck is this?” Or maybe it was because I just didn’t care enough about people around me.

In any case, even that level of change should be enough to serve as a disguise. However, at my suggestion, Sasha’s expression twisted into something serious.

“M-Makeup…?”

“Is there some problem? An allergy or something?”

That kind of thing existed, after all. In the world of Dragonic Fantasy , cosmetics weren’t particularly expensive. You could hear conversations about it during party banter, where the female characters often mentioned using them. So if there was a problem, I figured it would be something like an allergy.

“I’ve never done it before, so… I don’t know the first thing about it.”

“..I see. Well, even without makeup, you’re already that pretty.”

“P-Pre…!? P-Pretty…? Me…? Ehehe…”

Despite looking embarrassed, her simple personality meant she was visibly happy. She seemed more relaxed now, probably because her body had healed. 

I hadn’t meant to flirt or anything—just said what came to mind honestly—and seeing her happy about it, I figured I’d keep praising her like that from now on. She seemed like the type, like the Goddess, who responded well to compliments.

“So anyway, if you combine a little makeup with other changes, I think it’ll help shift your appearance. If it’s not too much trouble, please give it a try.”

“O-Okay. I’ll give it a try.”

“We’ll be leaving in a month.”

“A month from now, huh.”

“Yeah. On this journey, I plan to heal people like you, Sasha.  But like I told you earlier, I can’t afford to draw too much attention right now.  So I’ll be healing people in secret or only those who can keep it under wraps, like you.”

Once everything was over, I could freely use healing magic—but until I had grown stronger, I needed to be cautious.  If I drew too much attention and the demons noticed me, that would be a hassle. Sure, I could hide and escape all I wanted—but I didn’t want to limit my actions that way either.

“…You’re truly kind, Rubest-sama.”

“…Kind?”

Her words caught me off guard, and I asked again reflexively.

“Normally, even treating wounds costs a lot of money. And yet, you haven’t asked for anything in return from me. You’re going to go around healing people like that, aren’t you?”

I see. All I’d thought about was “Woohoo, tons of EXP!” but to Sasha and the others, it must look completely different. Healing injuries usually came with a price. Offering that for free could be problematic in more ways than one. If I did heal many people from now on, I should limit it to wounds only I could heal.

“I’m only doing this for serious cases like yours, Sasha. If a regular healing spell can do the job, I’ll leave it to someone else.”

“I think that’s for the best. There’s no need for normal wounds to take up your time, Rubest-sama.”

Her understanding of the situation and my intentions were a little different—but I figured it was fine. Otherwise, I’d end up taking work away from the existing healers in this world. That was one line I needed to draw clearly.

“Well then, see you when it’s time to set out.”

“Yes. I’ll do my best with the disguise!”

With a sharp posture and formal bow, Sasha turned and left—and once she was gone, I called out to the Goddess.

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