We'll Be Apart for a While
The first day of exploring the imperial palace yielded excellent results.
From the servants' quarters to the rooms of the attendants and maids, and even from the kitchens to the royal guards' training grounds.
No matter where they went, they were never stopped, all thanks to their Hero.
Normally, rummaging through the servants' rooms would yield a small amount of pocket change. However, since this wasn't just a game world, Rin strictly stuck to collecting items to prevent any unnecessary trouble.
To be precise, he was hunting for the skill scrolls hidden throughout the palace.
[Intermediate: The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Lv.6)]
A weight-reduction skill obtained from dust motes dancing in a precise pattern along a sunlit corridor.
[Advanced: Presence Concealment (Lv.Max)]
A skill plundered from the clothes of a spy they caught hiding in a ceiling chandelier.
For the record, they had no idea who the spy worked for; Lucy had simply handed him over to the royal guards.
But the biggest jackpot of all was...
[Special: The Era of Pixels is Over, 3D Shall Rise]
He had found this Special-rank unique skill scroll in the kitchen, which was empty during the staff's break time.
"Whoa!"
Rin was so amazed he couldn't help but gasp aloud.
Watching Rin rejoice, Lucy let out a quiet, happy chuckle.
If he was happy, she was happy.
"Since we're already here, should we whip up something to eat?"
Feeling bad for Lucy, who had become almost as timid as Nydrian lately, Rin decided to show off his culinary skills.
Yet, what Lucy wanted was surprisingly simple.
"A sandwich. The one you made for me in Waltercroix."
"That was just mashed potatoes and jam, though. We have so many ingredients here, I can make you something much better."
"I really loved that one."
She meant it.
Back in Waltercroix, when Labin and Lucy had praised the sandwich upon their first bite, Rin had offered them a gentle smile.
That smile, along with the taste of the sandwich, had been deeply engraved in Lucy's mind.
"But... I want you to make a lot of them."
For the record, Lucy was a glutton.
Back when her limbs were severed, her profound despair had stripped away even her will to live. Afterward, seeing how carefully Rin managed their expenses, she had voluntarily held back.
"It might be a bit bland on its own. Should I add some bacon?"
"No, it's fine."
Growl.
The moment she denied it, her stomach gave a loud rumble.
Come to think of it, they had been wandering around since morning without eating a single thing.
Lucy looked mortified that her stomach had reacted the instant bacon was mentioned, but Rin casually picked up a slab of bacon.
"The saltiness will bring out the flavor."
"...Please."
Rin made himself at home and began to cook.
He trimmed the crusts off the bread and mashed the potatoes.
Laying the bacon onto the heated pan, Rin looked at Lucy.
"Crispy? Or soft?"
"Crispy."
Watching Rin cook like a baby bird waiting for its mother, Lucy swallowed her saliva.
It suddenly occurred to her that she had never really watched Rin cook before.
During their journey to subjugate the Demon King, she had always told him to call her when the food was ready while she focused on her own tasks. Immediately after he rescued her, she could barely move, so she had only been fed honey.
A wave of regret washed over her. If she was destined to rejoin the Hero's party anyway, she should have cherished the time they spent alone together, watching him cook over a campfire.
How wonderful would it have been to help him prep the ingredients, or to have a passionate debate about exactly how crispy the bacon should be?
Instead of just thinking about it, she decided to take action.
"Um, Rin, is there anything I can help with..."
"This is my domain. I don't share it with anyone."
Flatly refusing her help, Rin handed her a plate containing two sunny-side-up eggs fried in bacon grease and three strips of bacon.
"Did I sound too harsh? Sorry. If I lose the kitchen too, I feel like I'm completely useless."
Rin quickly added, checking to see if Lucy was sulking.
He grabbed a bottle of ketchup and skillfully wrote a message on the empty space of the plate.
Seeing that, Lucy burst into tears without realizing it.
She hated herself for crying over something so small, but she couldn't stop the tears.
"Aw, there, there. It's okay."
Rin gently patted her back, then pulled out a soft piece of cloth to wipe her face.
He then cut the bacon and eggs, skewered a piece with a fork, and fed it to the embarrassed Lucy.
"Is it good?"
"Yes..."
"I'm glad."
"Rin."
"Yeah?"
"Thank you, always..."
Rin smiled faintly at her pleading gaze and heartfelt gratitude.
Yes, humans were creatures whose hearts could be warmed by the simplest of things.
Clang!
One of the chains turned glowing red, burned away completely, and its warmth lingered in Rin's chest for a long time.
The sun set.
Back in their room, Rin watched Lucy eat sandwich after sandwich without stopping.
"It's nice to see you eating so well."
"Mmph..."
"I'm not teasing you."
When Lucy, her cheeks puffed out, tried to politely set her sandwich down, Rin handed her another one instead, encouraging her.
"Man, before your body recovered, you barely ate anything. It was a real struggle."
"Before your body recovered" was a euphemism for the time when her limbs had been shattered.
Remembering how she had screamed at him, asking why he had saved her, Lucy looked away and chewed her sandwich vigorously.
"You got some hair in your mouth."
Rin leaned in close again, gently brushing away the stray strand of hair that had slipped into her mouth.
In the end, Lucy quietly put the sandwich down.
"What's wrong?"
"I feel like such a pig..."
"A pig? You just look healthy eating like that."
"Calling me 'healthy' also feels a bit..."
It certainly felt a bit far from being called "pretty."
"You asked me about my ideal type before, right?"
"Yes, I did."
Back then, Lucy had described her ideal type with traits that reminded her of Rin, only to be horrified when she realized those traits actually fit Reinhold better.
"I like women who eat well. That's for sure."
"...Who likes a woman who eats a lot?"
Having come from a fallen noble family, Lucy had often been scolded by her parents for eating too much when she was young.
Perhaps because of that, she believed that eating a lot made her less attractive as a woman.
But she didn't realize that all those nutrients were going straight to the two melons resting on her chest, which made Rin's heart ache with pity.
Filled with pity, he brushed back her cascading hair. Lucy's face flushed crimson, and she couldn't bring herself to look him in the eye.
"Besides, I already saw you eat well every single day during our journey to defeat the Demon King."
Flinch.
Ah, here it goes again.
Even though she wanted to remain calm, whenever Rin brought up those days, her past sins naturally came rushing back.
The gluttonous Hero who had devoured even Rin's share, leaving him with nothing but an empty pot.
Rin also realized his slip-up.
He had tried to lighten the mood, but ended up digging at the wound instead.
On the other hand, he wondered if this dynamic was even right.
He was the victim, yet the perpetrator was so paralyzed by guilt that he had to walk on eggshells around her.
Of course, it was a hundred times better than her acting shameless, but Rin realized once again how tangled his relationship with Lucy had become.
He was at a loss as to what to do with this knot, which was tied so tightly that neither the one apologizing nor the one receiving the apology could easily untangle it.
Even so, he felt it was still far too early to grant her forgiveness.
"Lucy, I told you it's fine. The past is already gone. If we don't focus on the present using the past as a foundation, our future will only be dark."
This topic, repeated so many times, still showed no signs of resolution.
Hesitating, Lucy squeezed out the thoughts that had been lingering in her mind.
"Even if that's true... I don't think I have the right to say that."
Her tear-filled eyes stared at his mask.
"I don't deserve to."
The sun had set, and the room, devoid of any artificial light, was illuminated only by the soft glow of the moon.
Torn between his reluctance to forgive her easily and his pity for the regret-stricken Lucy, Rin finally spoke after a long silence.
"Then, shall we look at just today?"
"Today?"
"Today, you protected me all day long."
As a reward, he stroked her hair.
"You even got angry at the archer on my behalf."
Appreciating her loyalty, he let her lean against his shoulder.
"And you caught the spy hiding in the ceiling."
Out of gratitude, Rin consciously offered Lucy a smile.
Only then did her tears subside, and Lucy let out a sigh of relief.
"Looking at today alone, you've done nothing but help me. You haven't hurt me at all."
Lucy took a deep breath.
Even her breathing was trembling.
This wouldn't do.
Rin steeled himself and whispered to Lucy.
"See? You did a wonderful job today."
"I'm so glad."
"So, you can have a reward."
"A reward?"
"To be honest, I know. Every time you listen to my heartbeat, your breathing gets really heavy."
Understanding his meaning, the fine hairs on Lucy's arms stood on end.
As her entire body flushed hot and she panicked, Rin deliberately spoke to her in a calm, soothing tone.
"You must have been under a lot of stress lately, yet you've always worked hard by my side. So... I'll grant you one wish."
"Really?"
Her voice was barely a whisper.
"Really."
"I can't... It's a perverted wish."
He had already braced himself for that.
Normally, he would never have agreed, but to prepare for what was to come, he needed to actively take care of Lucy's mental state.
"It's fine."
"R-Really?"
"Well, if you don't want to, we don't have to."
"No, I want to! I want to, but..."
Her face completely flushed, Lucy stammered several times before finally voicing her desire.
"I want to... lick your sweat, Rin."
She wanted to taste the essence of the one she loved.
The Hero's wish carried a deeply dark, obsessive affection.
For a moment, Rin's mind went completely blank.
"I guess... I can't, right?"
"No, it's not that..."
He squeezed his eyes shut.
"Just... don't leave any hickeys, okay?"
"Okay..."
"Uh... what should I do?"
"Just lie down on the bed."
"I'll take care of the rest."
Rin quietly lay down as Lucy instructed.
Lucy slowly unbuttoned Rin's shirt.
As his bare skin was revealed, the scent of a man wafted over her.
The scent of his flesh made Lucy's eyes glaze over.
A heavy, unrefined gulp echoed from the Hero's throat. Following her nose down to his abdomen, her cute lips parted, and a pink tongue peeked out.
Slurp.
The sensation, like a bird pecking at seeds, was quite ticklish.
As she trailed her tongue along the contours of his abs, she gradually moved below his navel.
"Haah... Haa...!"
Lucy stared intently at the space below.
Her eyes, as bloodshot as her crimson hair, showed that her reason had completely vanished.
I want to bury my face in there.
Is Rin reacting to me?
She wanted to check.
She wanted to know if a wretched woman like herself could still arouse lust in him.
"Haah...!"
Panting heavily like a vampire resisting blood, Lucy eventually pressed her tongue against his abs again.
This time, she moved upward.
Reaching his neck, Lucy pressed a light kiss beneath his chin, then rested her ear against his chest.
His heart was beating faster than usual.
Pressing against that heartbeat, Lucy made a promise.
"I won't do anything you haven't permitted, Rin."
At her words, his heartbeat gradually regained its calm.
When his large hand stroked her head, Lucy buried her face in his chest and smiled.
Rin's sweat was intoxicating.
Aside from his heartbeat and the red thread, this was a victory she had won—and one that Rin had granted her himself.
Lying together, the two yawned, overcome by a pleasant drowsiness.
"Lucy."
"Yes?"
Barely forcing her heavy eyelids open, Lucy responded.
"If my guess is correct, we will be apart for a while."
What?
All sleepiness vanishing in an instant, Lucy bolted upright and stared at Rin.
"Are you leaving me? Is that why you allowed this?"
"It's not like that."
"I was wrong, Rin! I'll never make a wish like this again. I'm sorry, Rin. Please, please...!"
Kneeling on the floor and begging, Lucy looked utterly desperate.
Rin quickly pulled the panicked Lucy into his arms.
"Lucy, it's not like that. It's just necessary."
"For what? I can't exist without you, Rin. You know that. I'll do better. So please...!"
"Shh..."
He held her tighter, waiting for her to calm down.
Once her trembling subsided, Lucy hugged him back.
"Lucy, do you remember what I told Labin earlier today?"
"To provoke the Imperial Princess..."
"I said it was to prevent Reinhold from interfering."
"Yes, you did."
Rin decided to tell her the truth.
He believed that Lucy would surely understand if he did.
"Our temporary separation is for that very purpose."
"To prevent Reinhold's interference?"
"To be precise..."
Rin leaned in and whispered close to Lucy's ear.
"I'm going to beat him half to death so he can never set foot in the Hero's party again."
Taking Reinhold out of commission.
That was Rin's plan.
"I hate him."
"Yes, I hate him too. I absolutely loathe him!"
Lucy agreed frantically.
She had intended to kill that traitor herself from the very beginning.
"Rin, does 'half to death' mean I can kill him?"
"No. If we kill him right away, cleaning up the aftermath will be a headache."
"So I need to control my strength?"
"Even if it's not your full power, hit him hard enough that it feels like he'd definitely die. He's quite sturdy."
"Right. I will. I'll do exactly as you say, Rin."
If Arciel had seen this, she would have found this side of Rin—plotting to harm someone—completely foreign.
But that was only because he had previously devised plans tailored to Arciel's straightforward nature.
Back when he served under Rinacien, even if he proposed subpar strategies, he was more than capable of employing underhanded tactics.
Gutter Alley was a place where the naive did not survive.
"So it's fine. Since we have no choice but to be apart for a while, you can make as many wishes like that as you want until then, Lucy."
"...Then, can I lick you a bit more?"
"As much as you want."
"No... hearing that you're not abandoning me made me relax. I just want to sleep like this today, listening to your heartbeat."
"Alright, let's do that."
Before long, Lucy fell asleep, her breathing even.
She still couldn't sleep properly without Rin by her side.
It leaves a bad taste in my mouth, but I have no choice.
Even though he despised Reinhold, Rin's nature wasn't cruel enough to kill him.
Yet, there was a reason he had to retire Reinhold.
If they began their new journey with the Shield Knight still in the party, it would lead straight to a Game Over.
Unlike Rinacien, the meticulous Reinhold would bide his time, eventually taking Rin hostage to blackmail Lucy.
To ensure Rin's safety, Lucy would meekly disarm herself, leaving her defenseless against the attacks of the other party members, resulting in her death.
And once his usefulness expired, Rin would be killed next. Cruelly and miserably.
Rin was the only one who knew this, and he was moving to prevent this Bad Ending.
For now, that was all that needed to be known.