Episode 50
Translator: RaidenTL
Episode 50
Startled as if he’d been burned, Evan shot up from his seat to leave, but at that very moment, all the lights went out. A heavy silence fell between the two.
“…”
It seemed the play was about to begin. Elysia smiled bitterly at his blatant attempt to avoid her. She irritably wiped a hand over her face and sneered in a sharp voice.
“I’m not going to eat you, so sit down. I won’t even talk to you.”
“…That’s not it—”
“It’s starting. Shut up.”
With a frustrated sigh, she settled into her seat. Evan glanced at the still-open exit for a moment, then, cautiously reading Elysia’s soured expression, he took the seat beside her.
A grand trumpet fanfare, reminiscent of a military band, filled the theater. In that instant, Elysia saw the man’s hand, which rested on the armrest, begin to tremble violently.
Elysia tapped her fingers, her face an emotionless mask. Behind her cool, aloof expression, she was thinking:
This is astonishingly boring.
I shouldn’t have even come in! Elysia ground her teeth, picturing the good-natured face of Johan, who had pushed her into this theater. Rage quickly consumed her thoughts. Ugh, should I just kill that guy?
The play was painfully cliché. In Act 1, the male lead was relentlessly unkind to the woman. But in Act 2, the moment she declared she was leaving, he did a complete one-eighty and dropped to his knees.
Yeah, right. The bus has already left, you bastard. Elysia clicked her tongue and glared at the stage.
The man clung desperately to the woman who was trying to leave, spouting a series of cringe-inducing lines with dramatic flair.
“You are my life. Please, don’t leave me!”
My life, my ass. You piece of trash. Shaking her head, Elysia glared at the female lead. Hey, you’re not actually falling for that, are you? If you believe that crap, your family will be suckers for three generations—
“Oh, please don’t say that. If anything were to happen to you, I would—”
…Oh my god, she’s actually a sucker.
Unfortunately, the play’s heroine fell for the man’s tears, and Elysia wanted to scream. Why is she so stupid? There was that decent guy who was nice to you earlier! Go for him!
Though she claimed to be bored, her body was completely immersed in the drama. The two characters, who had done nothing but trade insults, now confirmed their feelings for each other with a kiss, and she let out a genuine sigh of despair.
As if to represent her bursting frustration, a firework exploded with a loud bang.
Well, isn't this just a picture-perfect romance. Ignoring Elysia’s utterly disgusted expression, the orchestra below the stage launched into a powerful piece, signaling the play’s climax.
This goddamn play! Just a moment ago, it looked like she was going to end up with the sub-male lead!
Bang! Another firework went off. That doesn’t sound like a firework. It sounds like my sanity snapping. Just as she had that thought, Elysia noticed Evan, sitting beside her, shaking uncontrollably.
What the? Why… Is Senior pissed off too?
He squeezed his eyes shut, gripped the armrest fiercely, and began to pant. Clamping his other hand over his mouth, Evan finally crumpled forward, his body folding over.
Utterly bewildered, Elysia could no longer hear the actors’ lines.
“Senior, are you—”
“Get off.”
Shoving away her hand as she hastily reached for him, Evan bolted out of the theater. Even the actors on stage seemed taken aback, and a brief silence fell over the performance.
The man, looking as if he was about to vomit, slammed the door shut with a loud thud and fled.
After a moment’s hesitation, Elysia shot to her feet and ran after him.
Where do you think you’re running off to now?
That was part of it, but she was also genuinely worried.
She could hear some people in the audience clicking their tongues, judging her unladylike movements. She subtly flicked her middle finger in their direction and continued on with an indifferent expression.
Let them judge! Who gives a damn!
Just as she was about to burst through the door after Evan, a cheerful sound chimed, and a system window popped up.
♥<‘Evan Sylvester’ Route Event>:
‘His Trauma’ event has occurred! ((っ´ω`)♥(´ω`⊂ ))
Even the ever-confident man has a weakness. Now that you’ve witnessed it, will you become his adversary (๑ó⌓ò๑), or will you become the object of his obsession? ◡‿◡✿
Reward: Favorability increase and route change based on the player’s reaction ♥
…What is this?
Unable to open the door or return to her seat, she stood frozen in place for a long time.
*
The moment he burst out of the theater, dry air flooded his mouth. Coughing, Evan exhaled in ragged breaths, staggering forward as if he might collapse at any second.
He didn’t know where he was going. Just forward, wherever his feet would take him, anywhere away from that terrible sound…
BANG!
The sound of another firework erupted from inside the theater. He flinched and crumpled to the floor. He struggled to breathe. It was a strange but familiar sensation—the futile gasps of air that he would swallow down his throat only for them to bounce back, failing to inflate his lungs.
His hazy green eyes saw not the empty hallway, but something else. The suffocating pain seared into his memory like a scar.
“I don’t want to die. Please, please…”
Cries and screams echoed around him. He could name every single person whose voice he heard. He was standing in the peaceful hallway of an academy, a place devoid of battle, yet it had somehow transformed into a vision of hell.
Shells exploded on all sides. Everyone but him was dying. Something splattered onto his face. He wiped it with his hand and saw it was the blood of a comrade.
And then came the words, uttered by the countless hands that gripped his ankles.
“Save us, Your Excellency!”
One voice became a hundred, then a thousand, crushing him under their weight. The world spun, and he felt dizzy. This is wrong. This whole battle is wrong. It was an illogical defeat, as if an absolute being had willed that everyone here must die.
He looked up at the enemy and froze. They were…
“Are you going to snap out of it?”
He felt a firm grip on his shoulder. Gasping, he lifted his head, feeling tears stream down his face.
He saw brown hair, calmer than usual, perhaps due to the humid air. The war-torn landscape that had consumed his vision vanished in an instant, extinguished by Elysia’s presence like embers doused with a bucket of water.
Biting her lip, she muttered.
“Breathe.”
He tried to inhale, but it was useless. He shook his head to show he couldn’t control his breathing and coughed again. A white palm immediately covered his mouth and nose.
With her other hand, she covered his eyes and whispered calmly.
“Okay, then let’s try holding your breath. Just for about twenty seconds. Then we’ll try breathing again.”
As if acknowledging her words, Evan closed his eyes. A tear escaped from under his dark lashes, rolling down to wet her hand. She applied gentle pressure to the hand covering his mouth and nose and grumbled.
“If you feel like you’re going to die, you’re supposed to grab the person next to you and beg them to save you. What are you doing, running off on your own? Ask for help. It’s not that hard.”
Grab you.
Her clueless words pierced through his hazy mind, and a faint laugh escaped him. El, just a moment ago, I wanted to die.
Your touch was the only thing that broke through that hellish landscape, and now I’m alive again. I can’t possibly let you go. What am I supposed to do?
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Evan Sylvester’ Favorability +350 | Maximum Favorability exceeded. >0< | ‘Trusting Person’ route in progress ♥
♥ SYSTEM: ‘Evan Sylvester’ Favorability has reached LV.MAX! ♥
Seeing the system window appear before her, Elysia hesitated, then squeezed her eyes shut and took another bold step toward Evan.
At that moment, the man’s hand moved from her own, which was covering his eyes, and intertwined with her fingers. His wet eyes, which held an emotion too deep to ignore, locked onto hers as he held her hand, which had frozen in surprise at the sudden intrusion.
“…You can breathe now.”
Unable to look away, Elysia slowly pulled her hand from his lips. He closed his eyes, now filled with a burning desire, and began to breathe slowly.
Once she confirmed the steady rise and fall of his broad chest, Elysia slumped to the bare floor in relief.
“Ugh! That fucking bastard. Why’d he have to set off fireworks!”
Elysia kicked out irritably in the direction of the theater, only to blink in surprise as a pair of strong arms suddenly wrapped around her.
Evan pulled her against him from behind, leaning his head on her shoulder. He had only just regained his breath, and his short, ragged pants tickled the skin near her collarbone through the strands of her hair.
A shiver ran down her spine. Uh, this is a little…
“…I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry. I… you.”
What was he sorry for? Elysia turned her head in confusion, but startled by how close their faces were, she tried to pull back. At that moment, a system window appeared.
♥ Route change detected! Commencing search for a new route! ♥
♥ SYSTEM: Searching for a new route… ♥
It was bizarre. The text spun around chaotically, like a roulette wheel. The cheerful, tinkling sound felt more terrifying than joyful.
She felt as if all the blood was draining from her body. Elysia squeezed her eyes shut. Like a child facing a monster pounding from inside a closet, she covered her ears. No, I don’t want to hear it, I don’t want to see it…
The system window that had filled her vision vanished the moment her eyelids closed. The roulette sound that was driving her mad also faded. She curled into a ball, wanting to be trapped in the comfortable ignorance of a peaceful death.
She didn’t want to see, and she didn’t want to hear.