Bullshit Done Properly (2)
The squinty-eyed man's name was Amir. A thoroughly rotten bastard who tormented Evan without mercy.
As was typical of the squinty-eyed archetype, Amir was an extremely meticulous and intelligent lunatic.
Rather than delivering a single moment of despair, he preferred to dole out small, continuous doses of it — then leisurely savor the pleasure of watching it take root.
"Ahaha. Have I done something to upset you? Why won't you return my greeting?"
So what reason did Amir have for tormenting Evan?
Truthfully, there was no reason to speak of. Classic psychopath psychology — he did it simply because he wanted to.
The face hidden behind that false mask was the very picture of a disgusting psychopath's duality.
"Hmm? Evan? If you keep embarrassing me like this, I'll start to feel hurt, you know?"
"Ah, Amir. Just let go of me for a second…"
The woman squirmed, trying to shake free of Amir's hand locked around her waist.
Of course, the struggle was meaningless. The more she fought, the tighter his grip became, binding her all the more securely.
After that brief tussle, Amir turned his question back to Evan.
"By the way, where are you headed? Looking for Chloe, by any chance? Well, how convenient — she's right here beside me."
Amir released the hand holding her waist.
Freed at last, Chloe glanced around nervously before sidling over toward Evan.
"E-Evan, look, about that…!"
She tossed out a flurry of excuses. Watching her, Evan sank into thought.
It's already started?
The situation just now made the answer obvious.
The story was currently in progress, and the NTR of Evan's heroines had not only begun — it seemed to have advanced quite a ways already.
Not just Chloe. The other three heroines had probably already been cooing and fawning in other men's arms as well.
"A-Amir said he had something to tell me! So we just talked for a bit, that's all!"
Still, this seemed to be the early part of the story.
By the midgame, Evan and his heroines wouldn't be on peaceful enough terms to chat like this.
And judging by the way Chloe kept reading the room, she still seemed to have feelings for Evan — for now. Not that it would stop her from being stolen eventually. Just a waste of time.
That's not what matters right now.
The urgent issue wasn't Evan's personal drama.
Sorting out his own chaotic mind came first.
Evan casually answered Chloe's chattering excuses.
"You. Do you know where Archmage Karen is?"
"H-Huh? What's that supposed to mean all of a sudden…?"
"Karen. Do you know where she is or not."
"…Huh?"
A face of pure, blank confusion. Expecting a solid answer from this idiot of a woman was clearly a lost cause.
Evan shifted his target to Amir. Meeting that gaze, Amir's lips curled into a playful smirk.
"Do you know?"
"I'm not sure what you're asking about? Ah~ I get it. You were looking for Illinet, weren't you?"
"Not that bitch. Karen."
Amir, who had been about to launch into his usual banter, fell silent.
He simply stared at Evan's face with puzzled eyes.
…I have no idea what that came out of nowhere for.
Amir searched Evan's expression as if trying to read his emotions.
At first he'd assumed Evan was hiding his feelings behind meaningless small talk — but that face held not a shred of falsehood.
From what Amir could observe, the question had been asked out of genuine, pure curiosity. And for a moment, that threw him off.
"Haa. For fuck's sake…!"
Evan squeezed his eyes shut and clutched his forehead.
The way he kept groaning like that, he looked like a patient reeling from vertigo.
"Forget not sending me back to Earth! Why the hell did it have to be this bastard?! Does that make any sense?! Hey! Am I wrong?!"
Suddenly pointed at, Amir could only blink, unable to form a reply.
What the hell has he been on about? Amir found Evan's abrupt change in attitude thoroughly absurd.
Chloe was no different. She stared at Evan with wide, startled eyes, as if she couldn't begin to understand.
"Am I wrong?! You've got a mouth — say something! Huh?!"
"Ah, ahaha. Right? I suppose Evan has a point."
"…Tsk. Forget it. What the hell did you even do wrong. I just took it out on the wrong person."
Evan clicked his tongue and stepped closer to Amir.
Then he patted him on the shoulder, as if offering encouragement.
"…Ahaha."
Evan's kindly intention failed to land as intended.
If anything, the consoling gesture felt more like pity — like being looked down on.
…Hoo.
But Amir was not some fool who got swept up by his emotions.
Just as he always had, he wore an easy smile, buried his true feelings, and looked at Evan.
Evan was still tapping away at his shoulder.
"How about you stop now? Do you know what mysophobia is? I really can't stand other people touching my body."
Even after that, Evan kept poking Amir's shoulder.
It wasn't a provocation — the touch had a meaning of its own.
"What are you talking about. Move."
"…?"
"Stop blocking the road and get out of the way. I'm busy."
He shoved the dazed Amir's shoulder aside and walked straight past.
At that, Chloe nearby urgently grabbed Evan's hand.
"E-Evan. You know it's a misunderstanding, right? N-Nothing happened."
"I get it, so can you move too? Did I even get mad at you in the first place, or did I just ask a question. Why are you the one flinching and having a meltdown."
"…Uung."
"Evan? Aren't you curious?"
Peel one of them off and the other sticks. Peel that one off and the first one comes crawling back.
Thoroughly annoyed, Evan furrowed his brow.
"Ah, what now. What business do you have with me that you keep clinging like this?"
"Ahaha. I'm asking if you aren't curious about what Chloe and I got up to. You of all people would be curious, wouldn't you?"
Amir said this while shooting Chloe a look.
Receiving that glance, Chloe flinched and trembled.
"Curious? Shall I tell you, then?"
"Not curious."
"Hehe. Chloe, would you tell him for me? It's a bit embarrassing coming from my own mouth."
"You need to clean out your ears. I said I'm not curious and you just keep running your mouth alone. Clear the road already. Stop following me around being a pain in the ass."
For an instant, Amir's smile dipped slightly.
The hardened expression lasted only a moment. He immediately corrected it, reclaiming his previous grin.
It was a laugh so natural it might as well have been there from the start.
"He says so, Chloe. Isn't that strange?"
"Uh, uuhh…. Y-Yeah…."
Chloe's face was considerably shaken as well.
If her earlier fluster had been born of anxiety, what showed on her face now was the curiosity of someone facing a mystery.
And a faint hint of hurt mixed in too.
"Anyway, good luck."
Evan walked straight past Amir.
Whether those bastards are screwing or having a threesome, what the hell does that have to do with me.
He was already confused enough. He had no energy left to deal with them.
Amir tossed one last line at Evan's departing back.
"Ah, right. If you're looking for Illinet, try the sparring grounds' rear courtyard. She was there with Gale."
"Oh, is that so?"
"Yeees~ The heat was really something. I wonder what kind of sparring they were doing, haha."
"Thanks for the tip. You two take care."
"…Haha. Sure."
Even that final provocative remark left Evan completely unfazed.
He simply walked the path he needed to walk, and Amir watched that back and let out a hollow laugh.
Haha. That composure of yours won't last long.
If anything, this was better.
A fish already caught was boring. One that struggled to escape was far more fun to hunt.
Hah. So it's real. Then what the hell are the rest of them doing, besides that crazy bitch Karen.
He'd gone out for a walk to organize his thoughts, but the longer time passed, the more the confusion only compounded.
How did things end up like this? That goddess bitch called it a mistake, but no matter how he thought about it, it felt deliberate.
And where the hell was Karen, who was supposedly hunting the Demon King for revenge?
Beyond that, he couldn't think of any way to reunite with his scattered comrades.
Hopeless. Completely hopeless.
Worries bred more worries, which mixed with still other worries and birthed yet more — an endless cycle.
He groaned in silence for a while.
In the end, having found no proper solution, Evan turned back the way he'd come.
"Your face looks even worse than before. Something weighing on your mind?"
"It's nothing. Just a lot to think about."
He brushed off Gadel's concerned question with a noncommittal answer, then headed for his own room.
—S-Stop already!
Just as he was about to open the door, a lewd moan rang out from the other side.
For a moment he thought he'd misheard — but the moan that followed shattered that illusion.
—Hhk! E-Evan might come back…"
The voice belonged to Judy. Normally a tomboyish, free-spirited type, the woman on the other side of that door was so thoroughly feminine she might as well have been a bitch in heat.
That guy must be something else. What kind of equipment is he packing to make her lose it like that.
Evan entertained the thought briefly, then knocked on the door.
—Knock knock!
"That's my room, you know? Wrap it up already and get out."
Judy's intermittent moans cut off.
What followed was the sound of frantic scrambling.
—Evan?! J-Just a second! Wait a little!
Then the door opened and Judy appeared. Her appearance was a complete mess.
Her clothes looked hastily thrown on, rumpled and disheveled, and her hair was a wild tangle.
Especially eye-catching was the clear fluid smeared around her mouth. Next to it, a few curly hairs clung as well.
"W-When did you get here?! A-And what brings you here…?"
"What kind of question is that coming from you. This is my room, so of course I came here."
"Ah, uuh…! Right?"
Judy gestured to the man behind her. He was slowly pulling his top back on.
These people really do all kinds of shit. Why the hell are they doing this in my room?
Was this just how NTR games worked?
Of all places, consummating their affair in Evan's own room — truly an inspired choice of venue for adultery.
"S-So, um, Philip said there was a big bug in your room! S-So we came together to catch it…."
"Can you wipe that hair off your mouth? It's been bugging me this whole time."
"…!"
She flinched in shock and scrubbed furiously at her lips.
Having wiped the hair away, she scrambled for something else to say.
"R-Right! We were wrestling around a bit catching the bug with Philip! His hair must've stuck to me then!"
Mm. Bullshit has its own grades, I guess. Those curly hairs are obviously from down there.