“A way to escape? There’s nothing like that. We’re basically rats caught in a trap.”
“Who doesn’t know that?! Then why did you act like you had something?!”
Kyle started shaking me by the collar.
But no matter how much he interrogated me, there was no solution in sight.
It wasn’t like I had any ideas either.
“Can’t you use that weird teleportation Ability of yours?”
Kyle asked if I could use Position Exchange to escape.
I shook my head at his question.
“And why is that?”
“Well, it would be possible for me to escape alone.”
“Then escape.”
“If I do that, you’ll be in danger.”
“……Th-That’s…”
Kyle hesitated, unable to speak.
I removed Kyle’s hand from my collar and shrugged.
Just as Kyle said, if I used Exchange, I could escape this place.
However, if I escaped, who would protect Kyle?
This is all for you, you see.
“Ah, then you could escape and ask the Bares family for help… That wouldn’t work either, would it?”
“Yes, there’s no way that would work.”
In the war against the Nina family, 90% of the Bares family’s forces had perished.
That meant the remaining 10% were all that remained of the Bares family under Anna’s command.
Moreover, with Crete dead, there was no one strong enough to rescue us.
Well, if there was a way, it would be for me to run to the Gluttony’s territory and ask Samuel and Miriam for help.
I could also ask for help from the Headmaster, who had shown me subtle favor.
But that was an impossible story in the current situation.
It would take at least two days to get to Gluttony’s territory and Sytan.
Of course, that was assuming I used the teleportation Ability and a carriage to their fullest.
If I couldn’t get a carriage, it would naturally take longer.
Could Kyle survive that long?
Well, I didn’t think so.
“A way? There’s none. Resting for a while would be more helpful in this situation.”
“……Isn’t that too irresponsible? What are we going to do if that Fron who stabbed you in the stomach comes back?”
“Don’t worry, I told you. Ms. Fron has no intention of killing us.”
These words were sincere.
If Fron wanted to kill me, she would have done so immediately.
But not only did Fron not kill me, she even helped me.
‘She said she used her power on me because she was going to manipulate me.’
I chuckled.
Fron was as bad at lying now as she was in the past.
There was only one reason why she used her Authority on me.
Swish-.
I raised my hand and manifested mana.
Then, instead of black mana, Fron’s pure blue mana formed at my fingertips.
Fron’s mana was replacing mine.
‘Fron said this was the Lust family’s mansion.’
She also emphasized the word “mother” to me.
That meant she replaced my mana with hers to protect me from her mother’s eyes.
That way, Fron’s mother would think Fron was using the mana, not me.
And that wasn’t all.
‘…It’s so obvious.’
Fron had even cast a spell on me that suppressed my mana.
If I chanted the technique even for a moment, my mana would recover rapidly.
But there had to be a reason why Fron was preventing me from recovering my mana.
And even more so for the way, she ‘warned’ me by using such a crude spell to prevent my mana recovery.
So, for the time being, I decided to trust Fron and bide my time.
It didn’t mean I could just sit here and do nothing, though…….
‘I get that Fron is trying to save me. But I have no idea what she wants.’
My head was pounding.
If she was going to say something, she should just say it properly.
Of course, I wasn’t clueless about Fron’s situation.
It was probably because of those girls who looked exactly like Fron that were around.
If my guess was right, they were probably tasked with reporting Fron’s every move to her mother.
Lastly.
‘What was that look in her eyes?’
Fron, why…
Why were you making a face that longed for death?
I recalled Fron’s appearance.
Fron, looking down at me with dying eyes.
That look was so much like Crete’s.
Once, to stop Crete’s invasion of the human world, I had rushed at him.
The result was a crushing defeat, but I saw Crete’s face at that time.
With eyes longing for death, the one who started the war,
He had a look as if he wished someone would stop him.
The way Fron looked now was so similar to Crete’s face that I couldn’t say anything.
Why did Fron seem to desire her own death?
And who in the world was Fron’s mother…?
The head of the Lust family.
I had written about her in the original work.
But Fron was a character that didn’t appear in the original.
It was just that I had a vague idea because of the setting I had created.
The head of the Lust family, that is, Fron’s mother….
* * *
Swish-.
Fron scratched her ear canal with her index finger.
Rene, whose hair had been released from Fron’s grasp, blinked.
“What are you doing?”
“Someone say something about me? My ear’s itching. Anyway, did you understand even a little of what I said?”
“Yeah, I understood.”
“You did? Then explain what I just said.”
“If I beat you, I can meet Adel.”
“You didn’t understand.”
Bam!
Fron chopped down on Rene’s head with a hand strike.
But.
“……Too slow.”
Rene, as if Fron’s movements were familiar, immediately dodged.
Then, Rene made a confident expression.
Seeing Rene like that, Fron laughed in disbelief and once again formed a blade with her hand.
“What do you mean too slow?”
Bam!
However, Rene couldn’t avoid the second hand strike.
In the end, another bump formed on Rene’s head.
Small tears welled up in Rene’s eyes.
Looking at Rene’s teary appearance, Fron let out a sigh.
Why were all the girls who liked Adel like this?
It was a world she couldn’t understand.
Ugh.
Letting out a deep sigh, Fron opened her mouth towards Rene.
“Behave yourself if you want to save Adel. The more you act up, the higher the chances of Adel dying.”
“……?”
“See, that stupid look. You don’t understand at all.”
Fron clicked her tongue inwardly.
To save Adel, Rene literally had to behave herself.
No matter how much she tried to help save Adel, if this clueless young lady kept doing conspicuous things, Adel would surely die.
“What do you think will happen if you cause a scene here?”
“……I don’t know.”
“Of course, attention would be drawn to you. It’s not a small matter for the daughter of Bares, the largest family among the Seven Deadly Sins, to cause a stir. Do you think Mother wouldn’t notice?”
“What do you mean?”
“You idiot, I’m saying even a small incident you cause will blow up because you’re a bigger deal than you think.”
“I’m bigger than you.”
“GAAAAAH!”
What kind of child was this?
Fron screamed, tearing at her hair.
Rene stared blankly at Fron, then said,
“You’re the one causing a scene.”
“GAAAAAH!”
Fron let out a scream even louder than before.
Hey, was she doing this on purpose, or did she really not know?
This wasn’t just being ditzy, it was high-level, intellectual trolling.
Or, maybe not.
Fron took a deep breath and looked directly into Rene’s innocent eyes.
“…….”
“……?”
Rene tilted her head, not understanding why Fron was looking at her like that.
Seeing that, Fron sighed once more.
This child really didn’t know.
What kind of position did she hold?
It wasn’t hard to understand.
She had heard that Rene had only trained within the family to avenge her mother.
So, she probably didn’t even know her own social standing.
The daughter of Bares.
In reality, this meant a status equivalent to the Demon King’s own child.
Although the Bares family’s power had waned after the war between demons and humans, a prestigious family was a prestigious family forever.
Moreover, if anything were to happen to Rene in the Lust territory, it could escalate into a political issue.
And for her mother, Rene would be a headache.
It couldn’t be helped.
The significance of the Bares name in the Lust territory was by no means small.
Rather, what should she call the Bares family to Lust, to the Laurel family?
Nemesis?
Well, to be precise, it was more like a love-hate relationship.
Anyway,
“Be careful. Especially in our territory. I’ve taken care of Adel for now, so he’ll be able to get out of here on his own.”
“……?”
“There are things I can’t tell you. I’ll really die if this gets out.”
“Liar.”
“No, just trust me on this.”
This, too, was sincere.
Well, it was ridiculous that he had said he would kill her mother for her, only to be trapped in the family’s mansion.
Thanks to Adel, Fron was able to have a fun time as a student in Sytan.
For Fron, life in Sytan was like a brilliant light.
It was so dazzling that she forgot about her true duty.
But it was time to stop this game of make-believe.
That’s why Fron wanted to send Adel back to the Bares territory and put an end to everything.
‘I wish I could see Luna one more time though.’
Ugh.
Fron muttered quietly to herself.
Fron, Luna, and that hopeless little shorty.
A faint smile appeared on Fron’s lips.
But that smile disappeared as quickly as it came as if it had never existed.
Fron had returned to her usual dark expression.
“By the way.”
“What.”
“What’s wrong with the Bares family?”
Rene grasped the essence of Fron’s words and asked a question.
Contrary to Fron’s thoughts, she didn’t know her exact social standing, but she knew that the Bares family’s reputation was not to be taken lightly.
But Rene couldn’t understand why Fron was so wary of the Bares family.
‘It shouldn’t be that serious…’
As Rene muttered to herself, Fron put the cigarette back in her mouth.
“Not that it’s something I should be telling you.”
Then, chewing on her cigarette, she opened her mouth.
“My mother is fond of your father.”
“………!!”
Rene’s eyes widened at the unexpected truth.
“`
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