Becoming the Guide of the Mysophobic Villain? Absolutely Not! - Chapter 274

“I’ll return as quickly as possible, sir.”

“Alright, and…”

Claude, half-listening to the solemn messenger, handed him a large stack of letters. The messenger’s eyes widened in surprise.

“W-What is all this?”

“These are the things you need to deliver.”

“Oh, I see. So if I deliver all these letters to the Center’s Director…”

Claude interrupted him sharply.

“No. Only the first one is for the Director. The rest are all for my Guide.”

“…Pardon?”

The Esper asked again, as if he couldn’t believe his ears.

“I said deliver all the rest to my Guide.”

“…”

“…You don’t know who that is?”

Claude looked down at the Esper with a disdainful expression, as if questioning if he even knew who his guide was.

“N-No, I know. I’ll make sure to deliver them to Lady Rose.”

The Esper replied with a puzzled look but answered nonetheless.

How many letters did he write in that short time? Oscar clicked his tongue.

It had only been about ten days since he suggested writing letters, yet the messenger was holding dozens of envelopes. This showed that Claude had been writing several times a day without being told.

And here he was, ordering a messenger on an official mission to deliver his love letters. As the head of the unit who should uphold authority, no less.

Of course, the embarrassment and incredulity were for the observers—Claude himself didn’t seem to mind at all. Instead, he spoke even more shamelessly.

“Make sure to get a reply too.”

“Wh-What?”

“She might refuse to write back. Even so, make sure she does.”

“…”

“…Any objections?”

“N-None at all, sir.”

The Esper’s face showed clear discomfort, but he answered obediently.

Claude, naturally, didn’t care. In fact, after sending the letters, he seemed to be in a strangely good mood for several days. He was likely anticipating getting a reply from his Guide, whom he hadn’t heard from in nearly two months.

But this didn’t last long. The situation in the war showed no signs of improvement, and Claude often frowned and held his forehead.

Oscar knew why. The severe headaches, which had been absent since meeting Rose, had returned.

Being the tough guy he was, Claude didn’t show it, but even he couldn’t avoid the issues caused by guiding depletion while enduring such a strenuous schedule.

Oscar was extremely anxious. Even if reinforcements arrived, as long as there were no clear leads, the battle’s duration remained uncertain. All the other Espers were also exhausted, but the rapid deterioration of Claude, who was single-handedly holding the line, was particularly troubling.

Oscar was starting to doubt whether this mission could succeed.

Then one day, while Oscar was sleeping, Claude called for him.

Do I have to run to you even when I’m resting? Oscar grumbled to himself, but he obediently headed to Claude’s tent. He didn’t want to find out what would happen if he didn’t follow orders.

“Did you call for me?”

Oscar entered, pulling aside the tent flap.

Claude was sitting on the edge of a makeshift bed, head bowed, holding his forehead. Even without seeing his face, the atmosphere was already ominous.

“…What now? What’s the problem?”

Oscar, already nervous, stood before him. Claude still didn’t raise his head.

“…Claude?”

At that moment, Claude suddenly grabbed Oscar’s wrist.

Oscar was dumbfounded. Claude rarely allowed physical contact. Although he was wearing leather gloves now, Claude had only grabbed his wrist twice in the past decade, and those times…

Those times were so horrific that the memories were buried deep in Oscar’s mind, now resurfacing sharply.

Claude had grabbed him like this only twice, and both times were indeed…