Chapter 53: Charlotte and the Temporary Withdrawal
"Town, you say?"
Does that mean the backstreets? Sure, the underworld types are all holed up there, but… is that really how you’d phrase it? It doesn’t sit right.
"That’s right, our princess."
"Um, what’s with the princess thing? It’s embarrassing, so could you not call me that?"
Come to think of it, I’ve never done any kind of princess act with the underworld folks. I mean, if some poor guy traumatized by “princess carry” parties gave up adventuring and ran off to the backstreets, I’d get it—but that’s not the case here.
So if it’s not that kind of princess, then what kind of princess am I supposed to be?
"Hahaha, I see. You’re still not aware, huh?"
"No, it’s not about awareness… I was just raised as an ordinary village girl, you know?"
I definitely wasn’t born into nobility or anything. …Although, my hair color is unusual. Could that be it? It does explain a few things, even if other parts don’t add up. But no… it doesn’t feel right. That can’t be it.
"Well, it doesn’t matter. You’re still our princess either way."
"No, what I’m saying is I want you to stop calling me that…"
"But what else could we possibly call you? Nothing else would be fitting."
Seriously? What do you even think I am?
"Just call me by my name. Charlotte is fine."
"What! Calling you by name would be far too presumptuous!"
What on earth do you honestly, truly think I am?! Is there actually something I don’t know about myself? But if that were the case, then what about everything else up to now? Nothing makes sense—neither this guy, nor the way he treats me.
"I’m not saying this to exaggerate. Besides, it’ll surely help you as well, princess."
"Help me? How so?"
"Yes. It seems the princess doesn’t know much about herself. Don’t you want to find out?"
I don’t know much about myself? What exactly does she claim to know about me? Sure, there are things I don’t understand, mysteries I can’t explain. Does she have the answers? Somewhere in the darkness, it feels like Salem is smiling.
"Don’t you want to know about your parents, about your hair color?"
Those words hit close to the core. The very questions I’ve wondered about, the mysteries I’ve wanted to solve… Is Salem saying she knows? That she could answer them?
"Stay calm."
A hand grabbed mine from the side, stopping me just as I was about to reach into the darkness.
"Riven…"
"That’s an absurd proposal. Go to the base of someone we barely know, someone who’s already shown hostility? Impossible."
He’s right. Thinking about it rationally, we don’t know Salem at all, yet she’d almost led us along. Even if the invitation was to the backstreets, there’s no way we could just walk in there. That place is notoriously harsh toward outsiders. Even if you’re invited, you wouldn’t want to go.
Of course, I want to know the truth. But still…
"Stop trying to lure the princess in like that."
"Oh? Spoken like a typical con man. Telling her not to stay calm, is it?"
"Con man? I’m just saying an ignorant outsider has no business interfering."
"Outsider, huh? That’s rich. I’m her party member."
The tension is sparking between them… Scary. But I’m at the center of this discussion, so it’s my answer that matters. I need to decide.
I do want to know the truth. Maybe my real parents are alive. If so, I’d want to meet them, even if I’m not sure I could think of them as family. Meeting them at least—I’d want that.
…But, no. Riven is right. As much as I want to know…!
"I’m sorry, but I can’t accept your proposal."
"…Is that because of that nuisance over there?"
A chill runs down my spine. The voice was beyond anger—cold, filled with such hatred it froze me where I stood.
"So, you show your true colors."
"Heh, filthy ungrateful clan. I should’ve done this from the start."
Something stirs in the darkness. Even I can tell—it’s something bad.
"Run!"
"Y-Yes!"
Riven, already on his feet, pulls me up. My legs stumble, but I force them to move. Something is there. Something is coming. Instinct screams danger.
"Which way now?!"
"Right, to the right! Then left!"
We rush back the way we came. Whatever’s chasing us isn’t that fast—about our speed, maybe a little slower.
"Don’t run awa~y."
"Shut it!"
"I won’t do anything weird to the princess, promise~"
"And what part of that is remotely convincing?!"
Salem called out from behind, her voice lacking any force.
I couldn’t read what emotions, if any, lay behind it. That was terrifying. I absolutely did not want her to catch up.
"Monsters! Stay behind me!"
"Y-Yes!"
Without slowing his pace, Riven let go of my hand. His blade flashed as he drew it, slicing into the darkness ahead. At the same time, a lump of flesh whipped past us and hit the ground with a wet splat.
"Eek!"
"Don’t stop running!"
"I-I know!"
Not being aware of my surroundings made moving forward even scarier. What if we were taking the wrong path, even though it should be the right one? I hesitated despite knowing we had to get through before we were caught.
"Running won’t save you."
"Won’t know until we try!"
"Princess, running from the answer won’t change anything."
"Don’t listen! That’s the voice of a con woman!"
Riven’s voice kept me anchored to reality. The pressure behind us grew heavier, and if I dared to turn back, I felt like I’d see it. Fear gripped me from every direction. A small, still-calm part of me warned this wasn’t good.
One after another, monsters were cut down and fell past us with heavy thuds and tearing sounds. Where had so many even come from? Even if they’d swarmed in from untouched paths, it was unnatural how they all converged straight toward us!
"I see it—the stairs!"
Riven’s shout made me lift my head at last. Just ahead, a staircase rose to the next floor. Relief surged through me. We’d made it!
We threw ourselves up the steps, scrambling back into the chamber where the bat boss had been. The corpse was already gone. In the dimness, I couldn’t see the far edges, but now it was nothing more than an empty hall.
"…We’ll make our stand here."
Riven glanced at me, then turned, sword ready at the top of the stairs. Honestly, my stamina was already near its limit from the mental strain and the running. If he told me to keep sprinting to the exit, I couldn’t. His judgment was clear: here, we would fight.
"…"
"…They’re not coming?"
We waited, blades poised, but nothing approached from below. Time passed—long enough that my breathing finally steadied. Had she given up…?
"Well, well. Get rejected that thoroughly, and even I feel a little hurt~"
"Wah!?"
The sudden voice drifted up from below the stairs. She was there. Salem.
"But that’s fine for now. I’ll just wait here. And besides…"
Her tone was back to that lazy, sing-song calm.
"You’re going to come back eventually. There’s no way you won’t notice it."
Despite the relaxed voice, the words themselves carried an eerie, prophetic weight.
"Take care on your way back~. I’ll call the monsters off."
Her voice faded, retreating into the depths. Gone…? Maybe.
After a while, Riven finally lowered his blade. The hostile presence had vanished. Maybe she really had left. Relief washed over me, and I collapsed to the floor. Ah—wait, I’d left my sleeping bag down below. Guess I’d have to buy another one. With a bit of breathing room, even trivial things came back to mind.
Then I heard muttering. Looking up, I saw him.
"Not ‘don’t notice,’ but ‘can’t notice,’ huh?"
"Riven?"
Something was off. He kept repeating Salem’s words, as though caught on them. Was there really that much to dwell on? Sure, it had been creepy, but still.
Come back? As if we’d ever return willingly after this. She couldn’t really think we’d go back on our own. She didn’t seem like someone so shortsighted.
Well, whatever. In the end, this was my fault for accepting a shady request in the first place. I’d have to apologize to Riven later. For now, we just needed to leave the dungeon. With our overnight gear left behind, there was no reason to stay.
"Riven. Let’s get out of here already. Riven?"
"Mm… Ah. You’re right. Let’s go."
When I looked up at him, his expression said he had realized something. But it wasn’t a face of relief. Far from it.
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