Chapter 273

Chapter 273

It had been afternoon when I awoke.

Returning to the Temple for classes that day was out of the question. Hence, I was absent for two consecutive days.

Charlotte had already come up with an excuse for my absence, so she told me not to worry about it. She seemed to have told the others that I had gone on a special assignment, under the instructions of Mr. Effenhauser. She had taken care of this the same way she deleted my entry records for the Imperial Palace.

Rather than just being happy that she was safe and that the power that tried to consume her had gone dormant, Charlotte had thought about what needed to be done immediately and proceeded with those tasks.

Before that, she had given up on everything, but as soon as the situation changed, she had gone about doing what needed to be done.

It was quite a peculiar experience.

The people of the Spring Palace were tight-lipped, and I was reassured that news of my unexpected visit would not leak out. That said, I didn’t wander around inside the palace, and stayed only in Charlotte’s bedroom.

When Charlotte told me that I could go back, and that I should resume my lessons in the Temple the following day, I shook my head.

“I should watch over you for one more day,” I suggested.

“...”

Charlotte stared at me intently.

“Does that mean you want to stay in my bedroom for one more day?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

She seemed rather taken aback. “Reinhart. I really appreciate you, and I acknowledge that you are very important to me, but isn’t this a bit too shameless?”

‘Just because you’ve slept here for a day, do you think it’s your room now?’ her expression said.

“Well, for the safety of your precious self, there’s no other choice,” I boldly declared.

“Why are you saying it like that?!”

Even though I had an important reason, I did sound a bit like a jerk.

Anyway, even if I returned to the Temple before nightfall, all the classes would be over. I wanted to keep an eye on Charlotte’s condition for one more day.

If nothing else happened that night, it would be safe to assume that everything would be fine for a while.

Charlotte knew that my words made sense, so she didn’t kick me out. Until that moment, she’d had no choice but to let me sleep in her bedroom because of my injuries, but she now found it absurd that I was being so brazen and insistent.

“... Alright. Then I’ll sleep in the guest room,” Charlotte said.

I shook my head. “What are you talking about?”

‘What is she saying?’

“I’m staying here for one more day to keep an eye on your condition. What’s the point of me staying if you sleep somewhere else? You should sleep here.”

Charlotte’s lips quivered, and color gradually drained from her face. “Y-You... Are you saying you want to sleep with me?”

‘No! How did it come to that?!’

“Do you really have to put it that way? I’m just saying that I need to see if anything unusual happens while you sleep!”

“I-I... I understand that, but...”

Charlotte was visibly trembling, unable to believe that she would receive such a request.

“I’m not going to do anything to you! I’m just going to watch!”

“W-Why would you watch someone while they sleep?!”

“So, you don’t like it if I sleep, but you also don’t like it if I stay awake? What do you want me to do? You’re the funny one here!”

“The f-funny one...?”

Charlotte seemed mentally shaken by my blunt words.

‘Why do I have to listen to this?’ her reaction screamed.

Harriet had been treated as a precious gem growing up, and Charlotte certainly had the same sort of upbringing. In fact, Charlotte had to have grown up receiving even more special and noble treatment.

However, while Harriet had learned to adapt to the way I spoke and usually went along with it, Charlotte’s immunity to such words was still weak, so her reactions were raw.

“Y-You know what, just... give it back. You’re... you’re scary.”

Apparently, Charlotte wanted to take back the brooch she had given me.

‘Is she worried that I might sneak in while she’s sleeping to check in on her and then leave?’

“Hey, you don’t take back something you gave as a gift. Don’t you know that rule? And do you think I would just give it back like that?”

“N-No! Give it back! Give it back! I shouldn’t have given it to you!”

Charlotte chased me around the spacious bedroom for quite a while.

In the end, Charlotte grew exhausted and collapsed.

“It’s not fair...” she complained, struggling to catch her breath. “You’ve trained so much and have much better stamina than me...”

Charlotte, completely worn out, sat on the bedroom floor and glared at me.

“Then you should exercise too,” I said casually.

“You’re the worst, really!” Charlotte screamed, as if she was genuinely annoyed.

Aside from Vertus, I was probably the only one in this world who could tease the princess in this manner.

***

In the end, I remained in Charlotte’s bedroom, having made the decision to stay for one more night.

Charlotte seemed restless.

‘I mean, I’m just going to sleep on the sofa or something... Is there a need to be so tense?’

This had to be a first for her, given how sheltered she had been growing up.

Of course, she had been subjected to something far more dreadful during her captivity in the Demon King’s Castle, but this situation was different.

The servants brought food at meal times, and I hid whenever they did so. Charlotte gave instructions that she did not require any attendants, and to bring more food.

I thought that I’d be able to eat a lot after not eating for a whole day, but because I was completely starved, I ended up eating less.

Charlotte looked at me, then at the amount of leftover food.

“Aren’t you going to eat more?”

“If you’re too starved, you can’t eat that much when you break your fast.”

“... Ah, that’s true...”

Charlotte would know that too.

The luxurious feast we had at the Allied Forces’ headquarters after a long period of starvation—Charlotte and I had eaten together then.

As she remembered that time, Charlotte’s expression grew wistful and sad.

***

We stayed in the bedroom the whole day. After dinner, night came, and there was still nothing much to do.

Charlotte was fidgeting like a puppy who needed to go outside. She seemed to be gathering her courage for something, got up halfway but sat back down, then tried to get up again but sat back down.

‘What’s with her?’

Eventually, Charlotte groaned and then stood up as if she had made a decision.

“I-I... I’ll be right back,” Charlotte said.

“... Where you going?”

“To another room...”

“I told you to sleep here. I’m not going to be here all the time; I just need to keep an eye on you tonight.”

Charlotte glared at me.

“That’s not it! I’m going to take a bath!”

‘Oh. So she wanted to wash up in the bath or shower attached to the bedroom but felt self-conscious about it?’

“... If you’re going to wash up, just do it here. Why do you need to go to another room?”

Charlotte’s face flushed red. “Because you’ll hear the sound...”

‘What? How should I describe her hypersensitivity? So what if someone could hear the sound of her washing up? Is that not allowed? Are girls around her age all this sensitive? I don’t really get it.

‘But isn’t it irrelevant if she has attendants who assist her with bathing in the first place? Is it natural to be concerned about this? I... have no idea... I have no idea what’s right or wrong in this situation!’

I blanked out for a moment, overwhelmed by my thoughts, then said, “You know what, that’s not something I should dictate. Do as you please.”

“My actions are not supposed to be dictated by you in the first place! Ugh!”

Charlotte stormed out of the bedroom in a whirlwind of frustration.

While Charlotte was off washing up, I took the opportunity to wash up in the bathroom attached to the bedroom.

It was quite large, but I didn’t bother getting into the tub.

After washing up, I realized something. I had no change of clothes.

What could have happened to her?

Holding my hand, Charlotte took a deep breath and spoke.

“We starved for so long in there.”

“...”

“Everyone there... We survived on so little food and water for such a long time. And then, when the war intensified, they stopped giving us anything.”

“...”

“People... went so long... without eating anything.”

“Charlotte,” I quietly said as I looked at Charlotte. Her eyes were already brimming with tears. “If it’s too hard to talk about, you don’t have to.”

“...”

“No, don’t talk about it.”

“...”

“It’s painful for you. So stop.”

Even with just that much, I could already understand what had happened.

From the fear, terror, and guilt in Charlotte’s voice, I could piece together what had transpired.

People torn to pieces by something formless...

I remembered that scene.

I knew that Charlotte was trying to talk about what happened after the cannibalism began, and not the act itself.

When I told her not to speak, Charlotte burst into tears.

“If it weren’t for me... If it weren’t for me... everyone could have survived. Everyone. If it weren’t for me. If I weren’t there... M-Mom... Mom wouldn’t have...”

Clearly, Charlotte had never told anyone else this before.

Even though everyone knew she had suffered something at the hands of the Demon King, this story she was telling me was being let out for the first time.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t be crying so sorrowfully, confessing her guilt like this.

I didn’t offer any words of comfort, sympathy, or rationalization. I just held Charlotte’s hand tightly as she sobbed uncontrollably.

Charlotte gripped my hand tightly and cried for a very long time.

***

After calming down, Charlotte told me what had happened.

There were two types of people who knew about Charlotte’s ability.

There were those who believed it was a supernatural power that controlled the shadows, and there were those who knew that she had gained this ability after suffering something at the hands of the Demon King.

The latter group consisted of Dyrus, Sabioleen Tana, the head maid of the Spring Palace, and the emperor—only four people.

“What about Vertus?”

“I hope he doesn’t know... But I think he does. If he found out, it would have been only recently.”

The power to control shadows was already a sinister and eerie ability, and could easily be framed negatively.

Charlotte was looking for a way to control or eliminate her power. That was why she was seeking out magical sealers and such.

But all those efforts were in vain, and Charlotte’s power continued to grow, gradually consuming her.

She had begun sleepwalking as well, and so Charlotte started finding herself in strange places in the middle of the night.

Only then did I recall seeing Charlotte barefoot in the mansion’s hallway after the group mission, looking out at the snow.

“Wait, then could it be... That time...?” I hesitantly asked.

“Yeah, that was the first time,” Charlotte said.

Charlotte’s behavior back then had seemed slightly strange.

She had probably been asleep, and then suddenly found herself in the hallway. She had seemed quite startled at the time.

She said that, for a while after that, nothing similar happened.

However, she then experienced the exact same situation in the Temple dormitory.

After it happened in the Temple dormitory, Charlotte realized it was a serious issue and left the dormitory to live in the Spring Palace.

The sleepwalking then continued and became more frequent.

Eventually, she had been consumed by her power, wandering the palace shrouded in darkness. Up until that point, it was still manageable.

Although she lost consciousness and couldn’t remember anything during these episodes, she didn’t attack anyone, and when Dyrus and the head maid guarding her bedroom door brought her back inside, she did not resist.

At some point, though, she began appearing and disappearing throughout the palace without the door ever opening.

Then, she had attacked and killed a maid.

Charlotte remembered nothing, but she sensed that it was too late, and that everything was over.

She had asked the emperor to kill her, but the emperor refused.

Instead, he sent Sabioleen Tana to the Spring Palace and reduced the number of palace staff to a minimum until a solution could be found.

But the imperial family could not find a solution.

Although I couldn’t say for certain, it felt as though, if I hadn’t been there, Charlotte wouldn’t have reverted to her own self after that night.

That night had been the final moment.

That night, Sabioleen Tana would have died, and Charlotte would have eventually faced death at the emperor’s command.

In the end, if it hadn’t been for me, Charlotte would have died.

“I was scared to sleep.”

“... I can imagine.”

“But even if I didn’t sleep, I would lose consciousness. So I knew sleep wasn’t the problem... but I was still just as scared.”

Charlotte’s hand no longer felt cold and clammy with fear. It was warm.

“Reinhart?”

“I’m listening.”

“I think I can finally sleep properly for the first time in a while,” Charlotte said as she closed her eyes.

“That’s good.”

I could only offer those words.

“Reinhart?”

“Yeah?”

“Tell me that nothing will happen.”

I looked at Charlotte quietly.

Borrowing the power of Incantation, I earnestly declared, “Nothing will happen.”

“Okay.” Charlotte nodded with her eyes closed. “I’ll believe that.”

With a faint smile, Charlotte gradually fell asleep.

I quietly listened to the evenness of her breathing and watched Charlotte’s peaceful, sleeping face.

And then...

[Special Achievement Unlocked - Turning Point in History]

[A key figure (Charlotte de Gradias) who should not exist in the original timeline has survived.]

[The future has changed significantly.]

[You have received 1000 Achievement Points.]

The exact same system message as in the prologue appeared.

It seemed a bit late...

‘Why is this message appearing now? Shouldn’t this message have appeared after the battle the night before last?’

I quietly regarded Charlotte’s sleeping face. Charlotte, holding my hand tightly, was sleeping peacefully.

Apparently, the fact that I had stayed by her side until she’d fallen asleep safely had some unknown significance.

I didn’t know what that significance was, but as long as nothing happened, I decided not to bother wondering what might have happened.

Borrowing the power of Self-Deception, and borrowing the power of Incantation...

‘Nothing will happen. You will be safe. I will make sure of it.’

In my heart, I kept believing and declaring it countless times.