Chapter 19
But the duke’s reaction was somewhat different from what Cynthia had imagined. At first, he seemed doubtful, but he accepted it much more quickly than expected.
“So that’s how it is… Then what am I supposed to do from now on? As you know, I’m not really in a position to repay all your efforts.”
It’s that easy?
This was what she’d wanted, but he went along with it far more smoothly than expected. Flustered, Cynthia even forgot to keep pretending to cry.
Still, things had worked out well. From here on was what really mattered. Cynthia composed herself and made a proposal.
“Don’t you want to get your lost memories back?”
“…I suppose I’d need them, memories.”
“Yes. I’ll help you find them. So from now on, please cooperate with me. If you stick with me and protect me from danger, I’ll help you recover your memories. How does that sound?”
The duke’s red eyes slowly rolled as he considered it.
Cynthia watched, hiding her tension, and he finally nodded expressionlessly.
“All right. I’ll cooperate. I’ll protect you, and you’ll help me recover my memories. Good, simple enough.”
Ding—
‘What’s with these choices?’
She hesitated at the weirdly glitched choices for a moment, but this was obviously something she needed to accept eagerly, so Cynthia selected [Yes] right away.
Come to think of it, she finally remembered the villain’s real name.
Right. Segleninde—that was his real name.
“…All right. You must never break this promise.”
Given the way he was still gripping that longsword so tightly, it seemed that, at least, his muscle memory was still intact. This sudden amnesia was strange. No wonder he felt so different from the gentlemanly persona in the game—it must be his true personality surfacing now that his memories were gone.
So, as expected, this villain, Segleninde, was truly this indifferent and brutishly bad-tempered by nature. At times, he’d look at others with empty eyes and a vacant expression, seeing them as nothing more than objects—like a murderer who saw human lives as just prey.
Cynthia forced down a shiver at the thought.
‘Still, is he only being cooperative because he’s lost his memories? Looks like he’s even forgotten the fact that he’s a monster who kills people and feeds on their life force.’
Anyway, things were going more smoothly than she’d anticipated up to this point.
Cynthia left the area with him. Even though the corpses had disappeared, the overwhelming stench of blood and the foul odor from the fluid the Harvesters left behind made it unbearable to stay any longer.
They crossed the eerily silent hallway together, talking as they went.
“First, we need to find a way out of this mansion. Do you think any of the doors might be open?”
“You must have visited this mansion a lot, right? As my fiancée, and the one who took responsibility for my family’s honor. In your current state, you’d know more than I would with my lost memories, wouldn’t you?”
“What? A-Ah, yes. Of course. I just thought I’d ask, just in case. You said you had a few memories left. But judging by what you’ve said, it doesn’t seem like anything’s coming to mind.”
Cynthia almost said she didn’t know, but caught herself and answered skillfully. Instead, she recalled the contents of the game.
In the Wincastle Manor, there was a magical device installed in the Sky Garden that could forcibly open the doors with magic in an emergency. Its location was the Sky Garden, known as the final map of the mansion on the fourth floor. If you just activated the device there, the doors would open.
And then, if you made it safely back down to the first floor and escaped, you’d reach the ending. Maybe she could return to the real world, too.
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