Chapter 52

A week passed in the blink of an eye.

Since I’d been busy all day, every day, it felt as though time had flown by even faster than usual.

And, well, there was no helping it.

Preparing for the school trip was something that was originally supposed to take an entire month—but we had to finish everything within a single week.

‘Still, I somehow managed to get it all done.’

After loading the last supply box onto the wagon, I looked around.

It was the evening before the school trip.

The Student Council members were busy finishing up their work, and I was helping them out.

Well, to be precise, I wasn’t the only one helping.

“Lisa, you’ve worked hard.”

“Yeah, you too.”

Lisa, who had been working alongside me, replied in her usual emotionless tone.

Although we’d spent the entire week working busily together, her attitude toward me hadn’t changed much since the beginning.

Just as she had been a week ago, she still treated me with no emotion—simply as a junior in the Disciplinary Committee, nothing more and nothing less.

‘Ah, well, it’s not like she was like that the entire week.’

Three days ago, while Lisa and I were sorting through supplies together—

She suddenly bit my arm.

Probably because she hadn’t had my blood for several days and finally couldn’t hold back any longer.

‘It still tingles a bit.’

I glanced at my left arm, which was wrapped in a bandage.

Lisa had only come to her senses after drinking a lot of my blood that day.

And the moment she did, she muttered a single apology—then ran away from the spot as if fleeing.

‘She could’ve just asked. I would’ve prepared it for her without needing to get bitten.’

Still, I could understand Lisa’s position.

She probably wanted to draw a clear line between us, which was why she kept her cold demeanor.

Since she was deliberately keeping her distance, asking me for something like that must’ve been hard for her.

‘Then it’s on me to adjust.’

After all, I’d chosen the Disciplinary Committee route—a path that depended entirely on Lisa’s support.

So, it was best not to get on her nerves unnecessarily.

‘At least she still seems willing to help me.’

The reason she wanted to draw a line between us in the first place was because she didn’t want to hinder my future.

So Lisa would probably help me if anything, rather than stand in my way.

‘I get her help to become a knight, and she gets my blood in return. Not a bad give-and-take.’

As long as we could maintain that relationship, becoming a knight shouldn’t be too difficult.

But honestly speaking—

‘It’s a little disappointing.’

I glanced at Lisa beside me.

A red-haired girl with an expressionless face.

She was stunningly beautiful.

‘It’s not every day you get a chance to date someone that beautiful… but realistically, this is the right way.’

Yeah, it was just a shame, nothing more.

There were too many problems if I tried to pursue her.

Lisa was the Lady of the House Balmuth, while I was the head of an insignificant baron family. And being “Lisa’s lover” could easily become an obstacle to my career advancement.

‘My goal is to revive my family and uncover its secrets. I can’t forget that.’

My purpose was to return to my original world—a safe, familiar world.

I couldn’t afford to ruin that because of a passing desire.

“…Me.”

“Pardon?”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Even though I’d been careful not to make it obvious, Lisa had already noticed my gaze.

Her sudden question left me momentarily frozen.

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

“I can tell that’s a lie. Don’t lie—just tell me the truth.”

Lisa spoke coldly, her expression as blank as ever.

For a moment, I felt that if I didn’t answer honestly right now, I’d be in serious trouble—so I just told the truth.

“I was staring because Lisa, you’re just… too beautiful.”

To be exact, I was wondering what it would be like to be her lover, someone that beautiful.

But saying I looked because she was beautiful wasn’t exactly a lie, either.

At my somewhat honest answer, Lisa flinched slightly.

Then, instead of looking colder—her gaze turned… tense.

Yes, tense rather than cold.

I could clearly see that her whole body had stiffened.

‘Did I say something wrong?’

I suddenly had a bad feeling about this.

It seemed best to leave quickly.

“Lisa, then I’ll take my leave for now. And if I happened to say something inappropriate, I apologize in advance.”

“…Huh?”

“W-Well then, I’ll be going first.”

As I said that and tried to leave—Lisa suddenly grabbed my hand tightly.

“Lisa?”

“…Don’t go.”

“Pardon?”

“I said, don’t go.”

I turned back to her.

She was still expressionless, yet her eyes looked like she had something she wanted to say.

“Do you have something to tell me?”

“…I do.”

“What is it?”

“……”

At my question, Lisa pressed her lips together.

She simply held my hand and stared at me quietly.

It was obvious she had something to say, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it.

As the silence stretched on, I spoke first.

“If it’s hard to say here, we can go somewhere else to talk…”

“Gi, Gideon.”

“Yes, I’m listening.”

“I… um, I mean, we… that is…”

I waited quietly for her to finish.

But Lisa, unlike her usual composed self, hesitated, fumbling for words without managing to say them.

Then finally—Lisa let go of my hand and stepped back.

“Tomorrow… see you then. Make sure you pack well.”

“Ah… yes, understood.”

After hearing my answer, Lisa turned away and left in a hurry, almost as if she were running away.

Something about that felt… off.

It was clear she had something important to say to me.

‘That’s not like Lisa.’

The Lisa I knew would’ve spoken her mind clearly if there was something she wanted to say.

But seeing her hesitate like that and fail to speak in the end—maybe drinking my blood had affected her mentally more than I thought.

‘Well, anyway, like she said, I should get everything ready.’

It would’ve been nice if this school trip could’ve been a relaxing, romantic getaway, but since I’d played through the school trip episode several times, I knew better.

To prevent any casualties and stop the possible catastrophe waiting in the future, I had to prepare thoroughly.

‘And as for that preparation… I’ve mostly finished it already.’

Even amidst the busy schedule of school trip prep, I’d made time to quietly get various things ready.

Tonight—the night before the trip—I planned to organize everything I’d prepared in the dormitory.

—

“Let’s see… half a cup of water, mix in basilisk bone powder, crush the needlethorn berries and add them in…”

After returning to the dormitory, I immediately began potion brewing.

I’d already purchased all the necessary ingredients a few days ago in Daigon Village.

‘I asked Regnil to craft the potion cauldron for me.’

Potion cauldrons required special manufacturing techniques, so they had to be made by a skilled blacksmith.

Fortunately, Regnil was one of those blacksmiths, so I was able to ask him for help.

Anyway, since I’d received the cauldron from him the day before yesterday, now I could make potions anytime as long as I had the materials.

‘Alright, let’s make good use of it again this time.’

I stirred the mixture inside the cauldron with a stick, then began rhythmically dipping it in and out, repeating the process endlessly.

If I followed the normal recipe, this would’ve produced nothing more than a simple ointment for minor scratches—but according to what I knew…

“…It’s done.”

The sticky green liquid suddenly turned clear.

Aside from a faint glow, it was indistinguishable from pure water.

“One bottle should be enough.”

The highest-grade potion—Tantalr.

It was one of the ultimate antidotes in this world, capable of neutralizing almost any poison.

Normally, it would require tearing apart the organs of countless mythical creatures, but I could craft it through a kind of bug.

‘The faction executives we’ll run into on the way to the school trip use deadly poisons, so having at least one of these on hand would be smart.’

Just a few drops of Tantalr could detoxify any poison.

Now I just had to store this precious potion safely—

“Woof! Woof woof!”

“Hey, hey! Stay still, this isn’t water!”

I quickly stopped the young hellhound from leaping toward the cauldron.

Then, before an incident could happen, I poured the Tantalr into an empty glass bottle.

“If you’re thirsty, here. Drink this.”

“Woof!”

Siri eagerly drank the water I poured into her bowl.

Watching her, I began to think.

“Now then… what should I do with you?”

“Woof?”

“I’ll be gone for a few days, so I need someone to look after you while I’m away…”

Siri was technically a hellhound—a monster—but since she was still young, she looked just like a small black puppy on the outside.

So it would probably be fine to leave her with Regnil for a few days.

“Do you think you can stay at someone else’s house for a while—”

“Woof! Woof! Grrr! Woof!”

Before I could finish, Siri barked in protest, eyes full of indignation.

It was as if she were saying, How dare you even think of leaving me behind?!

“Hey, come on. Taking you along would be tricky. If you were still palm-sized like before, I could hide you in my bag or clothes somehow, but you’ve grown two or three times bigger since then.”

“Woof!”

“Anyway, it’s not really possible to bring you. If you could enter my shadow like the fully grown hellhounds do, that’d be one thing—but you’re still too young for that, right?”

“…Woof?”

Siri tilted her head, looking puzzled.

“Why are you tilting your head? You can’t enter shadows yet.”

“Woof? Woof!”

Suddenly, Siri bolted forward and leapt straight into my shadow.

Naturally, I expected her to hit the floor—

“Huh?”

But instead, Siri sank right into my shadow—like she was diving into water.

“Uh… hmm…”

I blinked, still processing what had just happened.

“Woof!”

And then Siri popped back out from my shadow again—without the slightest hint of strain.

“When did you learn to do that?”

“Woof! Woof woof!”

“No matter how much you bark, I still can’t understand you. And, well, trying to have a conversation with a dog probably makes me the idiot here.”

“Woof?”

“Anyway. So… you’re saying you want to come along?”

“Woof!”

Siri barked loudly, as if affirming it.

I couldn’t help but smile as I picked her up into my arms.

“Alright. But don’t come out of my shadow without permission. Only when I say it’s okay, got it?”

“Woof!”

“Good, good.”

I wasn’t sure if this little hellhound truly understood what I was saying, but I had the feeling she did.

And besides, it was about time Siri got to go outside with me anyway.

‘Let’s give her some real combat experience this time.’

In the game, a hellhound’s greatest potential came from its raw stats—and the fact that it could fight alongside the player.

I figured it was time to start testing and nurturing Siri’s potential.

‘Well, looks like I’ve got a travel companion now.’

The school trip would begin tomorrow.

And somehow, I had the feeling Siri would play an important role there.

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