Chapter 006: I’ve Become a Ragged Mess
Thump.
Trapped within Lethe’s arms, Delin swallowed hard. It wasn’t that Lethe was particularly strong, but strangely, he found himself unable to resist.
“My name isn’t ‘Young-ae,’ it’s Lethe, Lethe! Come on, try calling me Lethe right now.”
Lethe spoke each syllable clearly, her expression dead serious. Lethe. Lethe Etoile.
Under her burning gaze, Delin’s face flushed crimson as he adverted his eyes.
“How could I possibly… presume to speak a noble’s name so carelessly—”
Only after hearing his trembling voice did Lethe realize her current posture was quite… aggressive. Though, in truth, what made Delin most nervous wasn’t her stance, but her head-on, predatory gaze.
“Aieee, I’m not going to eat you. I won’t use this to act overly familiar later, either. I’m not asking for any illicit favors. Just try saying it—Lethe.”
As Lethe pulled back and removed her arms, a peculiar sense of emptiness washed over the cold air between them. For a split second, Delin suppressed the urge to reach out and grab her arm before he finally spoke.
“……Lethe.”
Lethe beamed with a proud expression, as if he’d done something wonderful, and lightly patted the back of his hand. Her attitude suggested he had just accomplished a monumental feat.
“As expected of someone crafted by the gods with such care, even your voice is lovely. You make my name sound as sparkling as polished glass.”
“That is not true.”
“Which part? The former or the latter?”
“The former, of course,” Delin argued, hurriedly lifting his head.
Because his skin was so fair, the flush spreading down to his neck was plain to see. Lethe, fearing she might cause a misunderstanding if she kept this up, stepped back a bit further.
“Hmm. Does the Temple have different standards of beauty? I’d believe it if someone said a god had manifested in the flesh.”
“Do I not look too… weak for that?”
Certainly, Delin leaned toward the beautiful side. While his height and build were far from delicate, his face held a certain sorrowful elegance, as if crystal tears might roll down his cheeks at any moment.
“The most powerful tactic has always been the ‘honey trap.’ If I were your enemy, I’d have been so dazed by your face that I’d have just stood there and let you stab me,” she teased.
“It—it is not to that extent,” Delin replied, trying to cool the heat in his cheeks with the back of his hand.
Lethe watched him intently for a moment before tilting her head in confusion.
“Strange. I thought he’d be blunt and prickly. I didn’t know he was this kind of character.”
“Pardon?”
Hearing her mutterings, Delin blinked his wide eyes. Lethe, realizing her mistake, quickly clamped both hands over her mouth. Oops. It seemed her inner thoughts had leaked out.
“Ah, I think this is the prayer room.”
Fortunately, spotting a prayer room nearby, Lethe hastily changed the subject.
“I’ll wait outside until your prayers are finished.”
“Would you like to guess what I came to pray for today?”
To Lethe’s jest, Delin spoke with a face that was every bit the knight.
“God is not a being who simply grants wishes. He is noble in His own right, a being who watches over us.”
“Hmm. I suppose my faith isn’t very deep then.”
As Lethe entered the prayer room, Delin stood at a slight distance in a rigid, formal posture, looking for all the world like her personal escort knight. Just as he was about to close the door for her, he found himself frozen by the words of her prayer.
“There is someone who made me happy.”
“……”
She was vastly different from the woman who, until a moment ago, had been teasing and assertive. Her demeanor was calm. Her voice resonated softly. Her eyes were tightly shut, and her hands were clasped fervently.
Feeling a sense of reverence wash over him, Delin forgot to close the door and instead sent his own divine power to support her prayer. At the same time, he couldn’t help but wonder about the person who had “made her happy.”
“As much as I was happy, I hope that person is happy too.”
A blessing, he thought.
Delin closed his eyes, wearing a benevolent smile, intending to pray along with her. It was then.
“So, if you ever hurt that person under the guise of a ‘divine ordeal’ or a ‘test’…”
“……?”
Sensing something was off, Delin cautiously opened his eyes to see Lethe wearing a bright, sunny smile.
“You’re dead by my hand. Understood?”
Schlick. Lethe even made a vivid gesture of slicing her own throat with her hand.
Stunned, Delin couldn’t even think to stop her; he simply froze like a stone statue. To call that a prayer! To anyone’s ears, it was a blatant threat.
“Haah. I feel so pious and calm now. The atmosphere of the prayer room is truly lovely, Delin.”
“Wh—What did you just—?”
Having finished her prayer, Lethe looked up at Delin with a refreshed face.
“Shall we head back? I have such a poor sense of direction that I get lost every time I come here, even if it’s the tenth time.”
* * *
“This is a total character collapse!”
As soon as she returned to her room, Lethe sought out Edan. Edan, who had been leisurely sipping tea in her room, frowned slightly upon seeing her.
“What kind of bizarre term is that?”
“I mean his character is ruined! The Delin I know isn’t some cowed puppy left out in the rain; he’s blunt, cold, and possesses the firm conviction and pride you’d expect from a Holy Knight Commander!”
“Breathe while you speak.”
Edan took the agitated Lethe’s hand and led her to a chair. With a single gesture, a cup of warm tea was placed before her. Edan noticed Lethe’s hands trembling as she held the cup, and his expression hardened. Though she spoke flippantly, this was her own way of trying to suppress her anxiety.
“The real Delin has always been like that.”
“I don’t know about that. There haven’t been any major errors in Delin’s settings,” Edan said, gesturing into the air as if searching through something, before eventually shaking his head.
The game system was currently running smoothly. There were no traces of Lethe tampering with bugs.
“Then you’re saying there were settings I didn’t know about? I’ve seen every single ending, and there was never a description of Delin having that kind of inner side. Today’s episode was completely different from what I knew.”
“It’s fine even if it changes.”
“Huh? Really? Usually, doesn’t that cause errors or something?”
It was Lethe who was flustered by Edan’s nonchalant answer. She scrambled to try and see the screen Edan was gesturing toward, but of course, all she saw was empty air.
“It’s not a scene or dialogue that interferes with the game’s most vital settings. Regardless, it seems you spent a fairly decent time with a capture target today.”
Edan was right. Although today’s episode strayed far from the original work, she had exchanged names and shared small talk with Delin. It meant she hadn’t deviated from the purpose of the dating sim.
“Well, that’s a relief. I was getting a bit anxious.”
“Even if an error occurs, there is no need to worry. We didn’t bring you here to torment you, Lady Lethe.”
“Then why?”
“Your original body is perfectly fine. Naturally, you haven’t lost your life either. It’s best to think of it as being invited to a party for a little while.”
“I see… I thought I might have died from overworking.”
Only then did Lethe relax, sipping her tea with a faint smile. A warm sensation spread throughout her body.
“Ahem. Can I rest until the next episode? I don’t think I’ve even had a chance to tour the mansion yet.”
Now that her tension had eased, Lethe glanced out the window, testing the waters. Since she was getting used to this world and had finished two episodes, she planned to spend some time looking around.
However, Edan wore a strange expression and pointed to the top of the empty air.
“Please check your items, Lady Lethe.”
“Ack!”
Following Edan’s finger, Lethe quickly covered her eyes with both hands as if she’d seen something horrific.
“As you can see, the keys for hints and your current funds are at zero. You can obtain them through quests, and they will be helpful for your playthrough in many ways.”
Even if this is a game world, do they really need to bring in these kinds of systems? A daughter of a wealthy Count, yet she was penniless. Furthermore, the fact that there were items and a gold system meant…
As the realization dawned on her, Lethe’s face became hollow, looking like someone whose soul had been sucked out by a vacuum cleaner.
“Wait. If there are quests here, don’t tell me…!”
“Yes. You have to work.”
“Ah, haha……”
Lethe let out a silent scream.
Aaagh!! Work! Labor!
‘I’m a Count’s daughter, can’t I just play and eat? Can’t I just go to Dad and ask for some allowance?!’
But regardless of Lethe’s despair, Edan spoke with the bluntness of a true NPC.
“As you know, Lady Lethe, there are three types of quests.”
“I know.”
“Then, while we wait for the next episode, would you like to try one?”
The quests Edan proposed were: Martial Arts Training, Etiquette Lessons, and Enrollment in the Royal Academy.
She loathed all three, but she tried to pick the lesser of the evils. She remembered the hell of her first day of Pilates before she ran away in her past life; she had been an office worker who survived on caffeine and felt tired just from breathing. Even in university, she had barely graduated while living off black tea.
“Uhuuhuu……”
“Why are you crying?”
“I just want to be a rich person with no job……!”
This was supposed to be a healing game. Just let me play…
