Upon hearing Riddell's request, Naoki momentarily felt as though he were sitting on a cushion of thorns rather than a sofa.
Someone blew up her Botany Department laboratory?
Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
Because it was Naoki who did it! He was the bastard Riddell was referring to!
'Could this be connected? What an absurd coincidence!'
Naoki found it hard to believe.
It all started with Kayneth's combat class. To earn credits, he requested special training from Merlin, but the training stressed him out immensely. Combined with the taunts from the nobles, he ended up blowing up the lab.
After that, he began working to repay his debt to the Botany Department, which was how he met Gray.
Naoki thought the matter would end once he paid off the debt, but now the owner of the lab he destroyed was standing right in front of him? And she was even busy dealing with the aftermath of the explosion?
'This is too much of a coincidence! An unnatural one at that!'
'But judging by her tone, it seems she only knows her lab was blown up, not who did it?'
Hearing this, Naoki felt relieved.
"Hm? What's wrong? You suddenly look relieved."
"Ah… well, since it's a request from a Lord, I thought it would be something extremely important, so I was a bit nervous. Turns out it's just standing in for you, so I feel relieved." Naoki explained. "A task like this is no problem at all. In fact, I feel like we're the ones benefiting since you're helping us settle our accommodation issue."
After all, he was the one who blew up her lab. Even if Riddell didn't know, Naoki still felt guilty.
'Maybe I can help her with a few more things? Just in case she finds out later, it might lessen the punishment.'
Noticing the hidden look in his eyes, Riddell smiled. "Hm? You're quite the kind soul. But—unconditional help usually has ulterior motives. You're plotting something, aren't you?"
"Thinking about it, I suppose so." Naoki scratched the back of his head. "It's more like preparing for the worst. If I ever accidentally offend you, maybe the help I've given could earn me some forgiveness—that's what I was thinking."
The unexpected answer caught Riddell off guard.
She hadn't anticipated such a reason at all.
Riddell had met countless people with hidden agendas—some wanted her beauty, some her money, others the status of the Archelot family… all sorts of fools. Having seen it so often, she'd grown disgusted by such people.
She expected Naoki to say something similar.
But he didn't.
"I see, so you're preparing a 'forgiveness ticket' for yourself? You're quite risk-conscious—no, perhaps it's more accurate to say you treat conflict with me as an inevitability? Do you possess Mystic Eyes that see the future?"
"Not a chance. Though I wear glasses, it's just for nearsightedness. Think of it as my way of building goodwill."
"Hmmm~"
Riddell studied him for a moment before chuckling softly. "Fine, if that's how you want to play it, I won't refuse free labor. But for now, I don't need your help, so just focus on standing in for me."
"My room is next to yours. I need to go prepare a new song, so I'll take my leave now. The disguise clothes will be sent to you later."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Once Riddell left, Naoki immediately flopped onto the sofa—right onto Gray's lap.
"Brother!"
Gray's face turned bright red as she yelped, quickly lifting Naoki's head and placing it on a pillow instead.
"Sorry, Gray. Everything that just happened was a bit shocking, so I didn't realize… Are your thighs okay? Did it hurt?"
"N-No, I'm fine, just surprised." Gray mumbled, her face still flushed. "By the way, are you really going to stand in for that woman? I remember the Magus substitute…"
"Shadow Warrior. A magical substitute that erases the original's name to protect someone, bearing all curses and damage meant for them—Waver mentioned it when telling the story of Iskandar. Seems like you remember it too, Gray."
"Mr. Weber looked so sad back then, so it stuck with me."
"Yeah, he… could be considered Iskandar's subordinate." Naoki said melancholically. "But don't worry, what I'll be doing isn't the Shadow Warrior type. Besides, becoming a Shadow Warrior takes time and information manipulation, and the current situation doesn't call for such a complex method. It's more like Merlin's illusions."
"All I have to do is change clothes, put on some makeup, wear a wig, and walk around outside. Basically, just crossdressing to resemble Miss Archelot—oh, speaking of Merlin."
Naoki's eyebrow twitched violently. He immediately sat up and called Merlin.
[Hm? Naoki? What's up, calling so suddenly? Oh, right, you two should've arrived in Paris by now, right? How is it there?]
"Before we talk about that, Merlin, explain why there's no reservation under mine or Gray's name at this hotel? Didn't the TV station book it, and we were just supposed to check in!?"
[Hah? No reservation? Impossible, I double-checked—maybe since I won the prize, the reservation's under my name? Are you staying there now?]
"We ran into the Botany Department Lord, and she helped pay for the room. But the annoying part is we can't freely enjoy ourselves since we have to set aside time daily to help her. Also, I just found out the lab I blew up two months ago was hers."
[Isn't that super awkward? Is she blackmailing you with it?]
"No, she doesn't know it was me."
[Thank goodness… Well, seems like a lot's happening there, but I hope you two enjoy France. Don't forget to bring… souvenirs…]
"Hey? Merlin? Your voice is cutting out."
[...]
"Merlin?"
Hearing the static on the phone, Naoki frowned. "What's going on? Bad signal? Even if it's an international call, it shouldn't be this bad after just a minute or two."
"Whatever, at least I know this isn't Merlin's doing. Now, let's enjoy our time in Paris—Gray, let's unpack our things."
"Okay, Brother."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Meanwhile, in London.
Merlet set the phone down and gazed toward France, a faint smile playing on her lips. "The call dropped? That wasn't part of the plan. Is there a Bounded Field over Paris?"
"But this is better. The more surprises, the more interesting it'll be for him."