Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Stay by My Side Forever
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"What... did you say?"
I thought for a moment that I'd misheard him.
"Didn't hear me? I placed the curse on Rafne."
But his follow-up words drove the nail in, confirming my ears were working just fine.
"To be precise, I gave the order for the curse to be placed."
"Why... Why would you do such a thing...!"
A curse of fear that made interaction with other people utterly impossible.
A curse that trapped its victim in solitude for life.
That horrific curse.
Why?
Why would you?
"...Answer me!! Why the hell would you do that!!"
I shot to my feet and grabbed him by the collar.
Depending on his answer, I'd beat the crap out of him. Maybe even break something.
I'd trample him mercilessly until he begged for forgiveness.
Rage boiled up inside me.
Because I'd watched Rafne suffer up close.
I knew how much agony that curse caused her.
"...There are a lot of details to explain. But... well, to sum it up in one sentence."
He ignored my glare.
His face remained calm and composed.
Not a shred of guilt. He dropped his sly fox smile and spoke quietly.
"Because Rafne... is the child of prophecy."
"......What?"
His answer hit me like a blow to the back of the head. My mind reeled in confusion.
The child of prophecy...?
Rafne?
My grip slackened naturally, releasing his collar. Adrian smoothed out his rumpled clothes and sat back down, crossing his arms and gesturing for me to do the same.
"Sit. We still have more to talk about."
I sank back into my seat.
The child of prophecy.
That term often came up around Emily at the Academy of Epiris.
The child of prophecy was the figure from a divination given long ago by a high priest of the Lillias Kingdom.
A child of prophecy would be born in this era, and the child born to that child of prophecy...
...would become the savior who rescued the world.
And in the game's lore, that child of prophecy was none other than...
Emily Epiris.
The only one.
"...Why would Rafne be the child of prophecy?"
"First, let me ask: Do you know what the child of prophecy is?"
"The only child of prophecy I know... is Emily."
"Good, that makes this quicker."
He hid the faint smile he'd worn earlier and grew serious.
"The child of prophecy you have in mind is indeed Emily."
"But then why Rafne..."
"Because there are two prophecies."
Two prophecies...?
I'd played through the game so many times, and I'd never heard of any such hidden lore.
"No way...! The prophecy handed down in the Lillias Kingdom is clearly...!"
As I sputtered in disbelief, Adrian cut me off and answered.
"Rafne doesn't appear in the Lillias Kingdom's prophecy."
"Then..."
And what he said next was something I never could have imagined.
"Rafne is the child of prophecy from the demon race."
The demon race.
That meant the Demon King's army.
A prophecy from the Demon King's side...?
Information I'd never heard anywhere. Not in the game, not outside it.
"Wh-what's... this prophecy about?"
"It's similar to the Lillias Kingdom's. But it's entirely for the demons."
The Lillias Kingdom's prophecy said the child born to Emily would be the kingdom's savior.
Which meant...
"The child born between Rafne and the Demon King will rule the world."
Adrian revealed the secret matter-of-factly.
It felt like another blow to the back of my head.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Ken~ What're you thinking about?"
Rafne draped her arms around my shoulders from behind as I sat at the workbench, hugging me tight.
After hearing that bombshell from Adrian, I'd returned to the tower and been lost in thought ever since.
'To protect her from the Demon King's army, this was the best way.'
That was Adrian's follow-up explanation.
The Demon King's forces were targeting Rafne and had infiltrated the academy.
'That woman who threatened Emily the other day was one of the Demon King's army. The Demon King is always... after Rafne.'
I'd known about the Demon King's infiltrations from various events in the game.
I'd just never understood the reason.
Now it made sense.
They'd snuck in here to take Rafne away.
'If no living creature can come near, even the Demon King's forces won't discover her.'
That was why he'd inflicted the curse of fear on her.
If her curse instilled fear and pain in living beings...
...it would affect the Demon King's spies too.
They wouldn't be able to approach the tower either.
In that light, the curse was perfectly suited.
But.
But did that mean Rafne had to be isolated for that reason?
'Is this... to protect the kingdom that will one day be yours?'
'......Do you know who I am?'
'Is it okay to plunge one girl into hell for the sake of your kingdom's future?'
'...Yes. That's my duty, and why I'm at the academy.'
Adrian Faraday.
True name: Adrian Arnold Lillias.
I'd always wondered during the game.
Why was the kingdom's first successor in heir attending the academy?
I'd chalked it up to romantic flair, putting a prince as the protagonist.
But no.
'Listen well, Ken. If Rafne falls into the Demon King's hands, it won't just be the Lillias Kingdom's problem anymore.'
His conviction-filled gaze lingered in my mind.
'If we lose her, it will spark a war across the entire world.'
It was a bargain, he added.
Preventing that with just one girl's life.
"...Ken? What's wrong? You okay?"
When I didn't respond to her calls, Rafne pressed her cheek to my shoulder, her voice laced with worry.
I placed my hand over hers.
"Hey, Rafne."
"Yeah?"
"Doesn't the tower feel stuffy to you?"
"It's fine. You're here with me now. Hehe, were you worrying about me this whole time? Thanks..."
Lately, her face lit up whenever we were together.
She'd changed a lot from that gloomy, despairing girl I'd first met.
She pressed against me, buried her face in my shoulder, hugged me from behind.
Stable when with me.
But.
That also meant she'd revert to despair without me.
Like a few days ago during the survival event, when she'd come looking for me.
Trembling hands, tears, begging me not to abandon her.
Being okay with me was just a temporary fix.
What if I was gone?
What if some accident or unforeseen event kept me from the tower?
Then Rafne would spend her life alone here.
No one would ever come.
Even if she left the tower, no one could approach her.
Eternal solitude she had to bear.
'She didn't choose to become the child of destiny.'
That was too cruel.
'......I've decided.'
Prophecy, kingdom, war.
Screw all that.
I just wanted the precious person by my side to be happy.
Sacrifice her for the masses of the future I didn't even know?
Why sacrifice this girl for strangers I had no connection to?
Let them handle their own lives.
The game inevitably led to war between the demons and the kingdom anyway.
No matter which route Emily took, war always broke out.
Probably because the infiltrated Demon King's forces couldn't find Rafne, so they resorted to all-out war.
Right after war broke out, they'd assault the academy.
Yeah, war was inevitable.
Whether Rafne was trapped here or not.
So I'd remove her curse.
And protect her myself.
From the Demon King's hands.
I could do it.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "You seem in high spirits today."
Siegfried said that during our usual morning training.
"Huh? D-do I?"
"Yeah. You're smiling even after taking hits to the head."
"Ah, haha."
Of course I was smiling.
"Today, I can finally... give you that gift I've been wanting to."
I'd finally finished it.
The Full Moon Necklace from my deal with Annet, and the Pure Mana Crystal from the survival event prize.
Combined with other materials.
I'd completed it at last.
[Mimicked Goddess's Pendant].
Obviously, without the actual Goddess's Token, using the similar Full Moon Necklace meant it wasn't identical.
But I could make something close, with the "mimic" label.
This would definitely block Rafne's curse.
'She'll be thrilled, right?'
I hadn't needed Rafne's magic for it, so I'd made it secretly in my dorm for the surprise.
Today, I'd head to the tower, show her the pendant, and blow her mind.
Rafne, you're free now!
I could already imagine her reaction.
"I see... In that case, we'll end training here for today."
"Huh? You sure that's okay?"
"You're too distracted wanting to give that gift anyway. Better to do happy things sooner."
"Th-thank you!"
Siegfried gave a faint smile.
Was I that obviously excited? He always pushed grueling training, yet here he was letting me off.
"Alright! Tell Emily I headed out first!"
Grateful for Siegfried's consideration, I hurried off.
I couldn't wait to give Rafne this pendant.
I'd worked so hard for this day.
Brimming with excitement, I flung open the tower door.
"Rafne!"
"Wha— K-Ken! Wow, you're here super early today?"
I'd climbed the tower at breakneck speed without realizing the strain. As I opened the door, Rafne was preparing breakfast.
My early visit caught her midway through meal prep.
She untied her apron and approached me.
Then softly nestled into my arms.
"What's up? Why're you here so early? ...Missed me?"
I gently stroked her playfully coquettish head and smiled.
"I've got good news, Rafne."
"Huh? What is it?"
I gently pulled away, rummaged in my subspace pouch, and pulled out the pendant.
The noble-looking pendant dangled before Rafne.
"This is..."
"I finally made it! This'll block your curse!"
"R-really?"
She took the pendant with a lukewarm expression.
"Try it on quick."
"O-okay."
Rafne carefully hung the pendant around her neck.
"...Hehe, does it suit me?"
She blushed bashfully with a shy smile.
I immediately checked Rafne's status window.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ Name: Rafne Bell Martinez Unique Skill: Nerve Acceleration Unique Trait: Curse of Fear - Instills minor fear in living beings moving within a 50m radius. Possessed Traits: Despair – Current 16%, Dependency Lv.6 'It worked!'
The Mimicked Goddess's Pendant was effective.
I couldn't feel the curse's influence myself, so I couldn't tell the difference firsthand.
But the status description had changed.
From inflicting extreme stress and terror.
To instilling minor fear.
"Success, Rafne! Your curse has definitely weakened!"
"R-really? Amazing."
"Huh? You're not that happy?"
"O-of course I am! But more than blocking the curse..."
Rafne lifted the pendant around her neck with both hands and smiled shyly.
"Hehe, I'm happier that Ken gave me a necklace."
"R-really?"
She wasn't as thrilled about freedom from the curse as I'd expected.
I'd thought she might cry tears of joy for ages.
Like when Emily broke free from her loop curse before.
"Ah, Ken must be hungry? I'll get breakfast ready quick! Wait just a sec!"
"Yeah... Thanks."
She hurriedly retied her apron and rushed to prepare the meal.
I sat at the table in a daze.
'Well, instant joy isn't the point anyway.'
The key was that Rafne no longer had to live in solitude without me.
She could go outside anytime, interact with people.
Escape the precarious reliance on just me.
"Bon appétit."
We ate the lovingly prepared meal, time passing in our usual peaceful harmony.
"Tasty?"
"Yeah, nom nom. Rafne's cooking is always delicious."
"...Ehehe."
Filling my training-hungry stomach with the usual praise. She blushed and smiled happily, as always.
Precious, joyful time.
"...We won't have much longer for meals like this."
I murmured sentimentally without thinking.
And then.
Clang!
"Uh, Rafne... You dropped your utensils?"
Her face stared blankly at me.
"Ken... What do you mean by that?"
Ah, slip-up...
"N-no, I mean...! Not right now!"
I hurriedly explained to Rafne.
About the plan for her to reenter society now that the curse was handled.
"Now that the curse is solved, you should start seeing friends again, right?"
"......"
"O-of course I'll stay by your side! But eventually, you need to get back to a normal life."
Depending on me forever wasn't healthy for her.
She needed a sound mental state where she could meet people and be happy even without me.
We'd work toward recovery bit by bit.
Starting slow.
By gradually reducing my visits to the tower.
"So... That's okay, right...?"
After explaining the details, Rafne—who'd listened silently—
"Yeah, sure. You're always thinking of me. Thanks, Ken."
—smiled beautifully.
'G-good.'
Unlike my worry she'd panic again, she seemed calm.
"Ah, but Ken. Thirsty? Want some juice?"
"Huh? Oh, sure, thanks."
She looked no different from usual.
Rafne stood and went to prepare the juice.
'Maybe because the curse is lifted.'
I'd feared my slip would make her burst into tears again, forcing me to console her.
But she was stable.
Maybe she could feel it too?
That she could go outside freely now.
'Hope's in sight.'
I smiled faintly.
Honestly, planning her recovery alone had felt daunting.
But her reaction gave me faith it could improve.
"Here, your juice."
"Thanks, cheers."
Rafne smiled kindly, just like always.
Yeah, step by step.
Slowly forward.
Eventually, Rafne could live normally.
And everything would be fine...
'......Huh?'
Why was Rafne doubling?
Poof.
Losing balance, I couldn't steady myself.
I collapsed into Rafne's arms.
Consciousness...
...fading...