Chapter 129

Anyway, I had something to say, and I couldn’t refuse.

There wasn’t really a reason to refuse.

‘What should I do…’

It would be nice if I could bring up a completely different story from what I’m currently thinking.

Just from the fact that I walked out after mentioning that story in confession, and he approached me to talk, it’s clear that he figured out I was in charge of the confession.

Bringing up another topic was essentially the same as running a happy circuit in my mind.

It’s a sad story…

‘Ah…’

Surely he wouldn’t suddenly confess while apologizing here.

Given Evan’s personality, I thought that wouldn’t happen, but if he did confess, I wouldn’t know how to respond.

If I reject him, our relationship would be shattered. I can’t just accept it easily… but accepting it would cause problems too…

“I don’t dislike Evan…”

In fact, I like him quite a bit.

It’s just that this feeling is more about friendship, or camaraderie… the kind of feelings you have for a favorite character or a protagonist, rather than romantic feelings between a man and a woman, which is the problem.

There is the option of reluctantly dating him for the sake of defeating the Demon King, but that would leave a great wound on Evan.

The situation would spiral out of control to a point where all my sacrifices in maintaining this kind of romantic relationship would seem meaningless.

I cannot allow that to happen, even if it kills me.

If I wanted to truly love Evan, it would be absurd to do that.

I’m not trying to bring about the end of the world…

‘If the world ends, I won’t be able to go back…’

Even if I genuinely started to like Evan, I’d still wonder if I could return.

‘Ah, how did it end up like this…’

My original plan was to lead Evan to like Stella, Uriel, or some other heroine that might come into the story.

But for some reason, rather than liking those two, he’s saying he likes me…

He even let me find out about such a fact.

I thought I had hidden it well, but it’s not easy to conceal what lies deep in your heart, and it got discovered during this trial.

It’s unfortunate for Evan, but if he confesses here, wouldn’t it be better for me to resolutely reject him?

‘No matter how I think about it, that seems to be the best option…’

There are other better people out there… it would be a loss for someone like him to like someone like me, who could die at any moment. I might as well try to persuade him.

‘Convincing him like this doesn’t seem to work at all…’

In movies, novels, or animations, when someone like me is asked why someone would like them, they always come up with various reasons to express their love in some way.

I think if I keep tearing myself down and tell him not to like me, but rather like someone else, he might feel more inclined to embrace me…

But what can I do when it’s actually true?

I’m portraying this concept as a saint because I have my own tastes, but ultimately, it’s to efficiently defeat the Demon King and return home without any harm.

Right.

Since I said I would grant a wish… disappearing from this world while returning home could essentially be seen as inevitable.

Well, failing to defeat the Demon King and dying here could also be considered as disappearing, and thus, inevitable.

Anyway, regardless of which way it goes, by the time this story ends, I should be gone, but if we’re in a mutually loving relationship, isn’t that impossible?

I didn’t want to create such a relationship.

If I go back, I’ll never see him again, which would only hurt Evan.

‘It’s complicated…’

This situation is just too complicated for me…

As I walked to a secluded spot to talk to Evan, I sighed inwardly.

“… I think this should be good.”

“[Ah… so you’re going to talk here?]”

“Yeah, is it okay?”

“[Yes… please go ahead.]”

Sure, maybe everything I’ve thought until now was just me jumping to conclusions.

It’s possible there’s something going on, and he simply called for me.

But…

“That is… um… well…”

It was hard to talk about it, and I began to hesitate over whether to say this or not.

If he was going to hesitate like this, why did he call me… I felt a bit perplexed, but that very thought made me feel even more anxious.

One of the difficult things to talk about was what I had just experienced.

‘Could it be real…?’

That’s why I couldn’t help but be suspicious.

If it’s something that’s that hard to say, isn’t this the situation where he confessed, saying he desired me in confession?

A cold sweat was trickling down my back.

Anyway, as I said before, it’s not certain until Evan brings it up, so it would be best to listen to what he has to say first.

If I leap to conclusions, I might end up misunderstood as someone who likes Evan…

Isn’t it better to pretend I don’t know anything…?

With that thought, I stood quietly in place until Evan spoke.

It seemed it was really hard for him to talk because he had been quiet for a while, but finally, he opened his mouth.

“Um… this might come suddenly, but I called you because I have something to say…”

“[…]”

Why is he so serious about this…?

If he’s going to be that serious, it really feels like something genuine…

I could feel the cold sweat starting to flow down my back even more.

“Maybe you’ve already noticed, but…”

Ah.

Oh.

Oh dear.

“I like you. Aria.”

He just confessed out of nowhere, what a madman!!!

*

I messed up.

In the end, I messed up.

Now that we’ve gotten this far, there’s no running away.

‘I’ve never seen Aria make that kind of face before…’

Usually, she always had her eyes closed, wearing a gentle, subtle smile, but the expression she’s showing now is a bit different.

It’s as if…

‘Just like that time…’

Was it during the trial?

That was when Aria first opened her eyes for me.

That was the first time I saw Aria’s eyes.

Her blue eyes shining brightly, her lively appearance…

The expression she had when she saw a beautiful landscape popped into my mind.

It feels like it’s not coming to me clearly as if I were dreaming, but perhaps because that nostalgic smile of Aria was so impressive…

While I think I don’t remember much, whenever I see Aria’s face, it seems to come back to me vividly.

“[You… like me…?]”

“I love you as a man loves a woman.”

“…”

We’ve only known each other for nearly a year.

It hasn’t been that long, but in that short time, Aria has become an unforgettable… an irreplaceable presence for me.

Everything that brought me this far was thanks to Aria.

But…

“However, I didn’t confess just to hear your answer right now.”

“[… Huh?]”

What does that mean?

Aria tilted her head in confusion.

It indeed sounded strange.

If I was just confessing and suddenly said I didn’t want to hear her answer right away, wouldn’t anyone react like that?

I chuckled to myself at Aria’s cute reaction and began to explain.

“We have the duty to defeat the Demon King right now. I thought that during this time, confessing and starting a relationship, or confessing and being rejected… either way, wouldn’t be a good thing.”

So I intended to withhold my answer.

“I want you to think about your answer until I defeat the Demon King… By then, I will certainly be someone who suits you.”

After I finished my entire explanation, I took a deep breath and looked at Aria.

Her face was blank, just gazing at me.

I didn’t want to hear her answer right now.

Maybe that was why.

“… Then I’ll, go!”

Having said everything I wanted to say, I left the place as if I was running away, leaving only those words behind.

‘This doesn’t seem right…’

As I fled the scene, I regretted how I would face her again, or whether we could have a normal conversation.

I hadn’t intended to confess like this.

I wanted to be cooler about it… to say that I’d wait for her answer and ask her to think it over, and then leave grandly.

‘I don’t know…’

Sigh… I really feel like an idiot…

Oh dear…