Chapter 85: Charlotte and the Search

A quiet moment. Neither of us says a word. Nothing happens.

…Ughhh—why did I have to say something like that?!

If Riven weren’t sitting next to me, I probably would’ve rolled on the ground right then and there.

It’s only because he’s here that I’m barely holding myself together.

Am I really holding it together? Really? Isn’t it already too late for that?

Man, I must’ve shown him a seriously pathetic side of me. Even went on about myself, which is so not like me!

Aaaahhh, if only this were a dream and I could wake up and forget everything—how great that would be. No, this is almost definitely a dream, but I don’t feel like I’ll be able to forget a shred of it.

So embarrassing. I’m sure my face is beet red right now.

It’s that same awkwardness as when you doze off on a train and accidentally lean on a stranger.

I’m still leaning on his shoulder even now. Actually, I fell asleep there. Like we’re lovers or something. We’re not. We’re not!

That’s how desperate I am to just keep my eyes closed and pretend I’m still asleep.

…I still think it might be my fault.

But he told me it wasn’t, and his words are still warm in my chest.

I don’t know if it’s comforting or uncomfortable. Until I figure that out, I’ll just keep pretending to sleep—

“You’re awake.”

“Wha—”

“I can tell from your breathing.”

Right, he’s the perceptive type. He easily sees through bad acting.

Damn it, couldn’t he at least pretend not to notice my awkwardness?

But I’m not bold enough to keep faking sleep when I’ve been caught. With no other choice, I slowly open my eyes.

What comes into view is the back alley around us. So much for the wishful thinking that everything would be different if I just stayed asleep.

“…Good morning.”

I straighten my back and pull away from his shoulder. My heart’s pounding a little too loudly. Hopefully he can’t hear it.

“Yeah. Did you get some rest?”

“Thanks to you…”

I give a slightly sulky reply, and Riven laughs, clearly amused.

What? What’s so funny?

“Looks like you’ve gotten a lot of your energy back.”

“That’s also thanks to you. Sorry for all the trouble.”

“It’s fine. I knew what I was getting into when I came.”

His reply is cheerful.

Is he happy that I’m feeling better? If so… that’s kind of nice.

Anyway, now what?

I don’t know if this place is a dream, but I’ve got a pretty good idea it’s fake.

On the way here, we were surrounded by people, but Riven cut through them without hesitation. The ones he cut didn’t scream in pain, they just shouted accusations at me.

Even I can tell something’s seriously off at that point.

So I wondered if the Riven in front of me was fake too—but no, he’s probably real. Talking to him feels like he’s real.

At first I thought he was just pretending so he could push me off a cliff later, but there’s no sign of that. He even listened when I asked him to stay with me. Kind of an embarrassing way to judge, but still.

Besides, if this were fake, there’s no way I could come up with such clever comebacks myself. Which means this isn’t some hallucination my brain cooked up. Pathetic reasoning, but I’ve decided to trust him.

For now, if this really is a dream, then waking up should be my goal.

“You said this was inside a dream, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve got a ton of questions—like whether it’s possible to sleep inside a dream, or how this isn’t like a normal dream at all—but… what exactly should I do?”

“I’ve already decided on a plan for that.”

Oh-ho. So he already had a plan.

Riven told me with absolute certainty.

“We’re going to find Trishel. She should be inside this dream too.”

I was surprised. So it’s not just Riven—Trishel is here too? Then does that mean Reynard might also be here?

When I asked, apparently not. Guess he’s staying behind. Typical. He’s always missing when something important goes down. Usually he’d only show up later, once everything had already started.

Riven said he’d explain the reason as we walked, so we both got to our feet.

He might not be familiar with the land itself, but he seemed to have the map memorized in his head. Without hesitation, he started walking, and I followed behind.

As we made our way through the back alley, I decided to confirm the things that were bothering me.

“Riven, how did you even get inside my dream?”

“I asked Rosalind.”

“You asked Rosalind?”

So that monster of a sister still hasn’t left this town? No, wait—she can teleport, right? Or more like swap places.

Maybe she left one of her underlings here, then switched places with them. From the way Riven talks about her, she’s definitely the type to keep tabs on him constantly. That wouldn’t be surprising at all.

“She projected only her spirit into one of her underlings.”

“What?”

“Apparently, she’s made it so all of her subordinates can be used like that. What a piece of work.”

Yeah, that really is something else.

Wait—just the spirit? And she can still use magic? So magic power isn’t tied to the body after all…?

I’m kind of curious now. If I ever get the chance, I’d like to ask her. She seemed weirdly friendly, so maybe she’d even explain it.

“So Trishel being in this dream too… was that also Rosalind’s doing?”

“……”

Hey, don’t just go silent all of a sudden.

Is this one of those questions that’s hard to answer?

Even after waiting a bit, he didn’t respond. With no other choice, I decided to change the subject.

“—So, where are we headed now?”

“To the Crimson Bell clan house.”

“Ah, right. You said we’re looking for Trishel.”

That made sense. If we’re trying to find her, checking the places she’s most likely to be is the safest bet.

Still, Trishel is full of mysteries. Sometimes she just up and vanishes. Honestly, I don’t know how Reynard ever thought it was a good idea to bring such a wild one into his clan.

…Or maybe it was just like when he invited me into the Crimson Sword.

“Then we’ll have to head back out to the main street, right?”

“Yeah. You going to be okay?”

“For now, yeah. Probably.”

Even if I know they’re fake, hearing everyone’s voices in their faces still hurts.

But it’s not crushing me anymore. Not as long as he’s here. If I were alone—like before—I’d probably lose my mind.

“If it gets too hard, just say so. I can at least make small talk.”

“…Heh. That again?”

“What? Can’t be helped. I don’t exactly have much experience with this sort of thing.”

Yeah, I figured. From what I’ve heard, he hardly had any friends.

Tenyuu-san? That’s about it. That’s the only name I can remember him mentioning.

Well, and that monster of a sister. His subordinate Neil. That’s basically it. His circle of friends sounds ridiculously small.

Maybe that’s just how royalty are. Some family rule about how those at the top must remain aloof. I wouldn’t know.

“I’ll tell my side of things too.”

“…I see. I think I’d like to hear that.”

“So, how much farther until we get there?”

“Once we hit the main road up ahead, turn right, and the clan house is right there. You ready?”

“Yes.”

I hadn’t realized it until just now, but… Riven’s back is really broad, isn’t it?

I couldn’t help but smile. All this time I’ve been hiding behind it. Sure, I knew he was tall, but…

Ah, it feels nostalgic. I remember thinking the same thing about Reynard once.

Why is it that front-line fighters can sometimes look so reassuring?

We made it right up to the edge of the main street. Riven went ahead a little to scout things out, but something seemed off.

Oh—he’s coming back.

“Did something happen?”

“…I don’t know why, but the humanoids are gone.”

“Uh, gone? Like… no one’s here?”

He gave a silent nod.

Strange. There were so many of them earlier.

But hey, isn’t this actually convenient?

“In that case, let’s hurry up and just head into the clan house.”

“…Yeah, you’re right.”

He muttered something unnerving about being prepared in case we got surrounded indoors. I hadn’t thought of that, but now that he said it… yeah, that is terrifying.

Still, what’s going on? When it was just me, they showed up everywhere. The moment I stepped into an alley, they stopped chasing me—that was odd too.

Is there some kind of condition that controls when they appear?

“…Just so you know, there are only three people in this world: you, me, and Trishel.”

“Huh?”

“No one else. If you happen to see anyone, assume they’re fakes.”

“Um… got it.”

I don’t know why he chose to say this just now, but judging from his expression, he clearly has a reason.

If he—someone smarter than me—has thought it through, then I’ll just follow his lead.

Actually… from the way he said it, when we were surrounded before, did those people look like something else to him? If so, then what I saw doesn’t make sense at all.

Oh well. Doesn’t matter. It’s just us. Just us. …Right. I’ll be careful.

Keeping his warning in mind, we stepped onto the main street. And wow—it was dead silent.

Earlier the road was packed wall-to-wall with people, but now? Nothing. Like a ghost town.

Even though Riven had warned me, it still left me stunned.

“This way. Follow me.”

“Ah—right!”

Riven’s voice snapped me back to attention. I’d been dazed, but if they’re gone, that’s nothing but convenient. No need to dwell on it.

As for the clan house itself, there was no sign of life inside either. Normally you’d hear the chatter of clan members from outside, but there was nothing.

Riven turned toward me, locking eyes. It was a silent question—Are you ready? I answered with a nod.

And together, we pushed open the doors of the Crimson Bell Clan House.