Chapter 04
“You seem very certain.”
“What if I’m not? Staying together without certainty just makes a child a burden to someone else. But if you think you must stay because you’re the rightful heir and die together, then I have nothing to say.”
You were just a kid back then. No matter how great you were, you were still just a little one.
Even though she tried to show a hint of irritation, the princess responded once again in her calm, detached manner.
“I know that much too.”
“Then why…!”
She’s making me feel guilty!
“But… was the governor angry?”
“No.”
“He seemed upset.”
“He wasn’t.”
“You know, when you get a feel for something but aren’t quite sure. Like, is it a little bland or very bland? Oh, do you even add salt? Is it really that tasteless? That kind of thing. I already know most of it, though.”
“What do you know…?”
I know. But what exactly are you comparing it to right now?
Suppressing the inexplicable frustration, she added a carefully considered excuse.
“Still, there could be justification, you know.”
Justification? Ridiculous.
“If you talk about justification, that’s even more wrong.”
“Oh, really?”
“If the princess dies, the bloodline of Izaris ends there. If you hope to rebuild the country someday, the princess must survive to secure the future. The heir must be a focal point and a symbol of hope.”
Claude spoke rapidly, line by line, but his expression was absurd, as if he didn’t even know why he was saying this.
He was supposed to be the one taking the land and the succession rights from the woman in front of him, crushing her into despair.
‘Why did I make that slip of the tongue?’
And why is the princess making that expression?
‘It’s unsettling.’
Taeri noticed his strange psychology and quietly shut her mouth after a moment.
It was oddly comforting to realize that there existed someone who would care, get irritated, and feel guilty even for matters she herself had grown numb to.
Feeling a faint gratitude for that, she smiled slightly when their eyes met, but Claude immediately turned his face away.
“Please understand my lack of skill in speaking warmly.”
“I understand.”
Completely. How could she not trust the protagonist, dropped into a strange world as a possessed character? If she wanted to get back home, she’d have to get along with him.
Acknowledging this, Claude, with a face full of lingering complaints, let it slide and continued speaking.
“Also, stop dwelling on the past. Focus on the people who are still alive.”
“The people who are still alive?”
“It seems you don’t know. Many survivors remain in this hotel and along the herbalist street. They’re all living well, so you should go and see for yourself.”
The hotel, fine, but what was this herbalist street?
Taeri tried desperately to recall it based on Claude’s hint, but no matter how she searched her memories from playing the game, she had never heard of such a place.
“Where is it?”
“East of the old town, in the ruins. Most surviving Izaris citizens have gathered there. You could think of it as a refugee settlement.”
The sudden appearance of the princess wasn’t exactly welcome to him, but it would be to the mages.
Those arrogant, haughty, and rude mages might even be seen shedding tears.
Ah, that’s going to be a fun thing to tease them about later. Swallowing his disappointment, Taeri suddenly asked:
“When will you be free?”
“…Free?”
Time? My time? Why my time?
“Why—”
“You said to go.”
“Why do you need to know my time to go there?”
“You said to tell you if I needed help.”
Wait, does that mean together? Going together? He couldn’t control the trembling in his eyes.
“I don’t know the way to the ruins. I’ve never even heard of herbalist street. And you know I don’t have anyone I’m close to here.”
So, am I that person to you? Claude looked like he wanted to question her, but unfortunately, the truth was clear.
Taeri’s closest, most familiar, and most trustworthy person here was none other than him. Her protagonist.
The man took a deep breath and gave a concise, clear answer, leaving no room for argument.
“If I go there, I’ll die.”
“Die…? Ah.”
“The Empire’s knights rarely wander near there. If I go, they’ll all grab their staffs and come running after me.”
“To smash your head?”
“…Why do you speak so harshly?”
In the ruins, the hardcore indigenous Izaris mages—the real mages—lived together tightly, and Claude’s presence was nothing more than an invader they would happily crush.
They wouldn’t like him, obviously. If he went, they’d treat him like a rabbit entering a tiger’s den, cooking him with magic.
And that would be natural. The princess was the abnormal one here.
‘That could have been a mistake.’
Always biased toward the protagonist, Taeri almost forgot her own position in this unfamiliar world.
Princess and knight.
In other places, it might have been romantic, but not in this game.
In fact, in this scenario, he should have poisoned the juice he drank, slapped her, glared, or done something to assert dominance.
‘I didn’t do any of that.’
And yet, he let out a big yawn.
“Oh, sorry. Really, I’m sorry. I barely slept last night.”
“Yes, I suppose. You did kill quite a few.”
Claude replied brusquely, as if he already knew.
“You handled a lot alone in the forest.”
“Well—”
She had faced them already, multiple victories under her belt.
When she had clicked YES with the mouse, the screen went black, and she had fallen into the middle of the forest.
She had to fight off attacking monsters desperately, and in the chaos, she found a bloodied elf, saved him, and eventually made it back to the village.
Fortunately, most of the monsters she encountered, she had defeated over twenty times before.
Knowing their weaknesses and where to strike for critical damage, she had survived.
‘Of course, I wasn’t entirely alone.’
A little of that crazed elf’s murderous instinct helped too.
“Are you hurt? You look fine even without asking.”
“I’m not hurt.”
“Then what was all that blood?”
The question was sudden, out of context.
“It was an elf.”
Taeri didn’t flinch, replying smoothly.
“I was with a wounded elf.”
Claude was surprised at how straightforward she was, and she quickly added more information.
“Probably a high elf. I saw the higher spirits resonate with him.”
“Why is an elf here…?”
“He must want something. I don’t know why he was there at that time.”
“Do you know him?”
“No, I don’t.”
Yet, she said it as if she did, her expression suggesting she wanted to respond that way. Taeri quietly chuckled.
“This is a fee for your trouble. I know I’ve been a nuisance.”
She thought of the elf from earlier that morning, Ezreal.
Though ‘meeting’ him was a stretch. She had picked up his dagger mid-battle, used it, got yelled at, returned it, and only happened to walk in the same direction for a short while.
Of course, he had vented harsh insults and frustration even then.
A major NPC, an ally navigating between friend and foe. Recognizing him immediately, Taeri didn’t act rashly and stayed quiet.
“Other fees can wait. Maybe I’ll have another chance someday.”
She cast a glance at the sword at Claude’s waist, hinting at future cooperation. He instinctively turned his body to protect it.
“Let’s get along from now on. I’ll need a lot of help. In return, I’ll be someone useful to you.”
The princess, who had been filled with despair just that morning, now felt a faint hope.
If the man in front of her could defeat dragons, if she could help him, she could reach the ending and return home. She just had to endure and fight like she always had.
‘What are we even doing? Why are we helping each other?’
But Claude was caught completely off guard. The princess’s determination to make him her ally struck him like a sudden blow.
He scrambled up as if to flee.
“I’ve been very rude today. I must go. I actually have a mountain of work…”
He tried to escape with flimsy excuses, but the princess ran after him without hesitation.
“Why are you following me?”
“To see you off.”
See off… This is maddening.
Even though she knew he wanted to be alone, she waved her hand and walked him to the door.
Once they escaped here, this whirlwind of emotions would end, right?
Claude prepared to leap down the staircase when a firm hand twisted his sleeve and stopped him.
“Wait!”
Ah, why again!
“If I want to meet you, where should I contact you?”
Right before parting, she didn’t ask, “Can I contact you?” but, “Where should I contact you?”
Does she think I’m her servant? No choice. Today’s mess was caused by his own tongue.
He had offered help first, teased first—it was all his own doing.
For the first time in his life, Claude had a woman ask for his address.
She hurriedly brought a pen and the tablecloth she had just thrown on the floor.
On that crumpled cloth, he wrote his address carefully, letter by letter.
