Chapter 145: I Don't Know Why You're Here.

Chapter 145: I Don't Know Why You're Here.

Vivian Platonis.

For me, she was nothing less than a benefactor.

During the dark times when I was branded as the Hero Killer, she was the one who kindly accepted me, despite the harsh treatment I was destined to receive wherever I went.

There existed a fear that could not be covered even by the affection born from such gratitude.

Perhaps fearing that I, too, might end up like those who died by her hand, I hesitated to approach her rashly.

“Why are you standing like that? Uh, maybe the smell hasn’t completely gone away...?”

“No, it’s not that. But still, to continue being in such attire is, perhaps, problematic...”

Being engulfed in the instincts of a man in such a situation might make it difficult to maintain the necessary distance in our relationship.

Therefore, I must resist.

Even though I haven’t completely shaken off my feelings for her.

“Do you dislike this?”

Did she find my attempt to distance ourselves displeasing?

Vivian, clutching the towel tightly, began to speak with an anxious voice towards me.

“...Huh?”

“Well, that’s because I-I’ve been staying in my room all the time. I’ve put on a lot of weight...”

Vivian, with her arms directed under her chest.

Her ample chest visibly swayed, and a deep cleavage formed, capturing my gaze.

In the deep darkness that seemed endless to the naked eye... the moment you let go even slightly, all focus would concentrate there, possibly leading to the loss of reason.

“...Do you really dislike it? This chubby body of mine.”

“No, not at all. I don’t think that way!”

At the end of her unbelievable statement, I quickly gathered my wits and vehemently protested.

It wasn’t a lie.

Objectively, it wasn’t that she had put on weight, but that she had developed where it counted.

If only she took care of herself not to look tired and hunched from staying up all night, she could easily be considered a beauty, just like Airi or Merilyn.

“I-it’s good. In fact, I prefer it if it’s on the larger side...”

Above all, she was kind and gentle to me.

Considering she appreciated everything I did for her and dedicated herself to her research, she was exactly my type based on those aspects alone.

“Do you like it...?”

“...Yes, I like it.”

After revealing my feelings a bit too honestly, I belatedly realized what I had said and felt as though I was choking.

To say I like it in front of a naked woman. Isn’t that essentially harassment?

“...H-hehe.”

But unlike me, who realized I had crossed a line, Vivian showed no sign of feeling burdened by my words.

The smile on her lips and the flush on her cheeks indicated she had taken my words positively.

“So, that’s how it is. Men really do like this kind of thing...”

“...Um, excuse me, Mr. Housekeeper.”

“Have you ever thought about that while staying with me?”

“Wh-what?”

What kind of thought?

What is she talking about?

“Well... I read it in this book here.”

While I was still puzzled, Vivian swiftly approached a corner of the disordered archive.

Then, she brought forward a book whose cover faintly depicted a man and a woman in an intimate scene.

“Men and women... if they like each other, they get physically close, I read...”

The voice she used, while standing in front of that book, was filled with shyness and curiosity.

It was as if the innocence of just becoming aware of sexuality made the moisture that should be hydrating her throat draw into her skin instead.

“No, wait. What are you saying...?”

“With you, Mr. Housekeeper, to touch each other... and then, after that... huhu, hehehe♡”

Swiftly, Vivian moved her hand toward the gap barely concealed by the towel.

Then, her eyes, bearing a peculiar sly smile, began to shift toward me.

A gaze filled with blatant anticipation.

“So, you, Mr. Housekeeper... you think so too, right?”

“What... that means... what exactly...?”

“You said you you like my body. So, that means... you want to... with me, right?”

Step, step.

Vivian approached me with trembling steps.

The tremble in her lifted lips indicated that even her inherently passive temperament was being spurred by an impulsive urge.

“Um, Vivian.”

And the target of such an impulse was none other than me.

She, who cared not for the strength or authority of others and deemed everyone before her as worthless...

...had come to regard me as a special individual, unable to forget me due to the abilities I possessed.

“I mean, I... with you, Mr. Housekeeper, I want to continue being together from now on...”

By the time I realized this, she had already approached right in front of me.

The moment our weary eyes met, I felt my heart tremble violently.

“Let this go, quickly!”

“No, this can’t be happening...”

“Listen to me!!!!!”

A shout erupted from my mouth.

And then, abruptly, the resistance stopped, and Vivian’s hand went limp.

Fortunately, her physique was not much larger than an average adult woman’s. It wasn’t difficult to drop the knife from her hand once she ceased resisting...

“Uh, uh...”

Just as I threw the knife far away, the sound of sobbing began to seep from her lips as she lay on the ground.

“Uwaaaaaah!”

And then followed a burst of sorrowful crying... No, not just crying.

To anyone who saw it, the way she endlessly wiped her tears with both hands was like that of a child who doesn’t know how to control their emotions.

“...Vivian.”

“I’m sorry, so sorry...”

Following her apology, I felt a numbing sensation at the back of my head.

I never thought she, who had mercilessly killed people, would show such a childlike appearance.

“I didn’t know you’d be this angry, Mr. Housekeeper. I’m sorry, so sorry...”

What could it be?

Even though she couldn’t forget me because of my abilities, why is she so lenient towards me alone?

She was willing to offer both her emotions and body, and instead of getting angry at me for not being able to control her feelings, she was scared like a child when I was the one who got angry.

“But I’m not sure either... what I’ve been researching for.”

Vivian said to me with a voice strained from effort, as I felt puzzled by her statement.

“The more time passes... nothing comes to mind. As time goes on, my mind becomes completely blank.”

“...What do you mean?”

“I don’t know; I can’t remember what I’m living for... It’s just your face, Mr. Housekeeper, that keeps coming to mind.”

It sounded more serious than just being tired and not being able to think clearly.

If it were just a minor case of forgetfulness, she wouldn’t have regarded me so specially. Unless it was more than momentary and her memory was consistently fading, she wouldn’t be desperately clutching at my clothes like this.

“But when you, Mr. Housekeeper, said I’m not needed, my mind became a mess... I just started to hate everything.”

“...Vivian.”

“Don’t abandon me.”

A series of surges of emotion rose in my throat.

Facing her pitiable state at this moment, the unfettered fear I felt at seeing her naked body completely vanished.

“Please... don’t leave me alone.”

Even though her power was irresistible, I knew it wouldn’t reach me.

Considering she chose to point a knife at her own chest instead of going to kill them as I feared, I couldn’t be afraid of her killing me as before.

‘Vivian, do you really like me?’

So, I wanted to know.

I wished for a chance to spend more time with her, to understand what kind of person she was.

‘Will you not betray me?’

If she could affirmatively answer that question, perhaps we could be connected, just like the two of us.

If she could guarantee absolute trust towards me in this harsh world...

Then perhaps I, too, could rid myself of hesitation and offer my sincerity towards her.

-Crash!

But just as I intended to ask for that sincerity, the sound of glass breaking reached my ears.

Immediately feeling my nerves on edge reflexively, something that had flown from afar stuck into her neck.

It was a needle, so thin and, therefore, assumed to be very sharp.

“Ah, ah...”

“...Vivian?”

“Relax. It was just a tranquilizer dart.”

Vivian gradually losing consciousness, and the voice that followed.

Immediately, a weapon formed in my hand, now on high alert, aiming towards the direction of that voice.

“Who are you...?”

“This is really disappointing. I’ve never once forgotten you, but have you already forgotten me?”

A shudder. My body trembled.

It stemmed from a feeling of déjà vu.

Even though he was cloaked in a black cape and wearing a mask, the distinctive stern voice revealed him to be someone I knew.

“...Why are you here?”

Yes, the person was the hero who had hired me as a porter in the past and had treated me like a friend of the same age.

Even after identifying him, the reason I felt wary of him was clear.

“Huhu, asking why I came here is such an obvious question.”



“Is it so strange that I, a traitor, have business with the Imperial Palace?”

He was the most wanted criminal with the highest bounty in the current empire.

Because he was the leader of ‘Nihil’, an anti-imperialist group.