Side Stories: Chapter 18

Side Stories: Chapter 18

“The event will take place on the day that the Pope is scheduled to give his speech. If you can, try to avoid guarding and escorting duties since you all might also be affected.”

“I will bear that in mind. Even if things go wrong and we are put in charge of guarding the dragon itself, proceed with the plan. We will take care of things on our own end.”

“I understand.”

“Then, why don’t we separate if we’re done talking?”

Piros watched Wesker get up and said firmly, “Keep in mind that the success of this plan depends on whether or not you do a good job from now on.”

“Don’t worry about that.” Wesker turned around to leave the house.

“Wait!” Piros called out to him again.

“What is it this time?”

“Is the dragon slayer Zich, perhaps, already here?”

Wesker recalled his recent meeting with Zich and replied, “Yes.”

“Be extra careful with him. According to my sources, he’s incredibly sharp-witted and scheming. He could catch onto our plan.”

“...You think very highly of that man.”

“He is the biggest figure behind the dragon and the Bellids’ annihilation. I can’t help but evaluate him highly.”

“I will remember that,” Wesker said and finally left the house.

‘Things are going well.’ Wesker felt the magic box containing the dragon’s corpse inside his belongings. Though the magic box maintained the same weight no matter how heavy its contents were, it felt heavier than usual right now.

‘Did he really say that I should avoid guarding or escorting duties if I can? How utterly absurd.’ Wesker had already volunteered to guard the dragon on that day, and he would get the role if nothing big happened. Then, when the dragon was resurrected, the ones closest to it would be Wesker and the Miftil Kingdom’s troops centered around the Grashane knights.

‘We will defeat the dragon!’ Wesker thought. Then, a new dragon slayer would be born into the world. Of course, the battle won’t be easy and since many important figures from different countries and many tourists were attending the festival, there would be many sacrifices. However, Wesker didn’t care about that.

‘There must always be sacrifices for great things to happen,’ Wesker reasoned, and he thought such a situation would dramatize his fight over the dragon. Thinking about the cheers and praise he’d receive after his great victory, Wesker couldn’t stop smiling.

***

Joachim and Evelyn looked at each other. They looked at each other with love-sick eyes. Joachim now gave off the aura of a fully-fledged high-ranking aristocrat, and Evelyn showed the attitude and mannerisms befitting of the Countess. However, as expected, their old selves still showed up sometimes in front of Zich and Lyla since they were close to them.

Joachim and Evelyn were extremely happy to meet them. It was because they considered Zich and Lyla to be very good friends, but most of all, it was because they didn’t have to maintain their dignity and manners as aristocrats. In front of them, they didn’t have to act as Count Dracul or Countess Dracul; instead, they could return to their former selves as Joachim and Evelyn and purely enjoy themselves.

“By the way, when are you two planning to get married?” Evelyn’s eyes twinkled as she asked.

Then she looked at Lyla and said, “You even received my bouquet at our wedding.”

When Evelyn threw the bouquet at her wedding, it landed right in Lyla’s arms.

“Haha. I just caught it by chance...”

“What are you saying? If you couldn’t get it with your physical ability, you were planning to even use magi...ugh!”

Lyla stepped on Zich’s foot as he was about to add meaningless information and continued, “Nothing’s been decided yet. We also just want to travel around for now.”

“You won’t put it off for too long, will you?”

“Yes.”

“Did you hear that, Sir Zich? You should propose as soon as possible.”

“Don’t worry. It might not seem like that, but I’ve been rigorously planning my proposal.” In a way, it was a very romantic thing to say. However, Joachim, who deeply trusted Zich, Evelyn, who was obsessed with love stories, and even Lyla, who would receive the proposal, looked at him with lukewarm eyes.

“If it’s alright with you, may I ask what your plan is?” Although proposals were usually done without the receiver’s knowledge, Evelyn had a strong premonition that she should listen to it now. Since Joachim and even Lyla, the one receiving the proposal, felt the same way, they didn’t stop her.

“Although it’s supposed to be kept a secret, I’ll tell you briefly. Proposals are done to move people’s hearts, right? That’s why people give unexpected gifts or perform surprising actions. I decided to focus on human psychology instead.”

With just these words, their ominous premonition seemed to already be correct.

“I’ve heard that it’s easy to fall in love in crisis situations because it’s easy to confuse thrill with love. In short, extreme thrill can also feel the same as extreme affection.”

“...Please go on.”

Evelyn didn’t want to hear it, but for her friend Lyla, Evelyn was determined to sacrifice her heart and ears.

“Rather than a proposal in an ordinary situation, I’m sure that a proposal given in a special situation would be more touching and memorable. That’s why I’m trying to look for bad guys suitable for my proposal—ones with a lot of people and power. If I wipe them out with Lyla and propose after that, there won’t be a better event than—.”

“Don’t even think about it!” Lyla couldn’t hold it in the end. She grabbed Zich by the collar and furiously shook him. Joachim laughed bitterly, and Evelyn clutched her head.