29 - How to Escape the Reverse Harem Cliché
Chapter 29
“But Guides can receive protection from Espers, and power…!”
“I don’t want protection from Espers, nor do I want power.”
“…….”
“You know. How I want to live.”
It was shortly after I possessed this body. Driven mad by the single thought of returning to reality, I didn’t even consider that I was a seven-year-old girl and recklessly threw myself out the window.
Of course, thanks to the large tree below the window, I didn’t die but survived, but young Aiden, who witnessed it, must have been deeply traumatized.
My sibling tried to die… That might have remained a lifelong trauma for him.
That’s why Aiden was overly mindful of me from a young age, and if I showed even a hint of despair, he would panic and rush to my side.
“First of all… I understand. Laila, I understand how you feel. But it’s too dangerous. What if there’s another Esper hiding in that academy, like Olivite’s Spiritual Body? Then it’ll be even more dangerous, Laila.”
“I know. But I’m hiding it well, and I’ll graduate in two years anyway.”
“Are you perhaps being blackmailed into Guiding Olivite’s Spiritual Body too?”
“No. He’s my friend. His dedicated Guide sent by his family recently ran away. I agreed to do it for him for the time being.”
I couldn’t bring myself to say that I was Guiding for money.
Aiden still looked at me with suspicion as I gave him a vague explanation, but he soon gave up and stood up.
“Rest here for now. I’ll find Valerian before you do, so don’t worry.”
“Yeah. Thanks, Aiden.”
“Of course. I’ll get you anything Laila wants.”
As Aiden left, he must have taken Orion, who was waiting outside, with him, because no one else came looking for me in the bedroom.
Only then did I relax my tension and look at my disheveled state.
“Wow, I look like a mess…”
I was soaked in the rain, smelling of dampness, and my hair was limp and messy.
Back in my previous world, I had straight hair, but here my hair is thin and curly, so when wet, no matter how much I brushed it, it tangled and wouldn’t come undone. I finally gave up on drying it with a towel and headed towards the large window.
Outside was chaotic. Valerian and Aiden, each acting as commander, seemed to have split into two units to search.
There might be an Esper here who can track traces, and even if not, there are resonance stones, so they should be able to find him soon.
I hoped Evan had returned to the Olivite Marquisate, but I was worried he might have collapsed somewhere, his Guiding having failed.
“I won’t do it anymore.”
“…….”
“I’ll never Berserk where you are.”
The last time he came to receive Guiding from me, Evan looked me in the eyes and said that.
Even then, I was ignoring Evan, so I didn’t even pretend to listen to whatever he said.
“I deliberately overused my abilities to get your attention. I think I was wrong.”
“…….”
“When my Guiding levels drop, my thoughts become paralyzed. I become driven by instinct and only say what I want.”
“…….”
“If I had known I would say things that hurt you, I wouldn’t have done it. I’m sorry, Laila.”
Even with his sincere apology, I didn’t even reply. I just wanted to remain in a relationship where we exchanged obligatory Guiding until Evan graduated. For the reason that I didn’t want to get involved.
It’s annoying. He keeps bothering me. What does ‘I’ll never Berserk where you are’ mean? Does that mean he’ll Berserk where I’m not?
Does it mean he’ll leave me if he feels like he’s going to Berserk? I’m his Guide, where would he go without me? Whether it turns out for the best or worst, he should be receiving Guiding from me, right?
Why do you only make me feel guilty from beginning to end?
Even after wiping away all the rainwater, moisture remained on my face.
\ \ \
While Aiden and Valerian’s units scattered to search, Orion sent a Teleport Esper to the Olivite territory.
However, the response they received was that Evan had never returned to his family, nor had he sent any news of his return.
“Laila. Why don’t you wait inside? You’ll catch a cold.”
“I’m fine. I’m not cold.”
Orion, who handed me a teacup filled with warm tea, looked at me with a worried expression, checking my complexion.
As a result, the murmuring around us directed at me and Orion grew louder, but this was not the time to worry about such gossip.
“Is he a very close friend?”
“Are you talking about Evan?”
“Yes.”
Orion, holding the blanket that had slipped down one of my shoulders, asked with a gentle smile.
Holding the warm teacup, I fell silent in thought for a moment before shaking my head.
“We’re not that close.”
“Really? I thought he was your closest friend, seeing how distraught you were searching for him.”
“He’s just a senior student at the academy, that’s all.”
“Would you search for me like this if I disappeared too?”
Orion’s words, carrying a nuance strangely similar to Aiden’s, made me turn my head to gaze at him. Even under my stare, Orion simply smiled softly.
“I was just asking. I… am still your old friend, after all. Aren’t I?”
“I’m looking at you because you’re stating the obvious. Orion, you seem to think I’m too indifferent. Of course, I was rude to you when I was younger.”
“Rude? Laila, you were always kind since you were little. Truly.”
“You’re just saying sweet things again.”
“Laila. Me too.”
He bent at the waist to meet my eyes and smiled beautifully again. Then, he gently tapped the tip of my nose with his finger and whispered so only I could hear.
“If you disappear, I’ll search for you too.”
“…….”
“No matter where you are. I’ll definitely find you, so don’t go too far.”
Orion said it as a joke, but my heart sank unexpectedly.
Just as I managed to control my expression and lightly hit Orion, stepping a little away from him.
“Sir Restro? What are you doing there?”
A woman with a peculiar voice spotted Orion and was approaching us. As she got closer, my eyes began to widen.
And when she arrived in front of Orion and me, my guess turned into certainty.
…It was Rose.
She was the S-rank Guide from the original work, Rose.
“Why is the camp so chaotic? Training ended this morning, yet it seems quite disorganized… But who is beside you?”
She glared at Orion with eyes that seemed to say, ‘Don’t you know outsiders are forbidden?’* and narrowed her eyes, scanning me up and down.
I, too, pretended not to, while thoroughly scrutinizing the woman. She had a tall, slender build, but she exuded an overwhelming aura that was not inferior to Orion standing beside her.
No. Rose’s presence was more captivating. If people glanced at Orion as they passed, Rose made them stop in their tracks, her presence so commanding that their gazes were fixed on her.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us? This is a battlefield. Do you think it’s okay to bring civilians to such a dangerous place?”
“This is Lady Pascianne. Laila, and this is Sir Rose from our camp. We attend the same academy.”
“Sir Rose. Nice to meet you. Regarding the violation of military law…”
“Pascianne?”
She cut me off and her eyes widened as she stared intently at me. Then, she tilted her head and let out a laugh that was either a sneer or a hollow chuckle.
“That damn bastard Adrian.”
Her somewhat familiar curse surprised me, and Orion openly scowled, expressing his displeasure.
Rose was an S-rank Guide who appeared out of nowhere.
Initially, she showed a rebellious attitude towards the royal family and the dedicated academy, but for some reason, she came to the academy of her own volition and completed the trainee program at an accelerated pace.
Everyone said it would have been better if Rose had been born an Esper instead of a Guide, but she silenced even those who said such things with her combat skills, which were second to none.
In the original work, she was treated as an antagonist, perhaps due to her position, but according to Laila’s inner monologues, Laila and Rose were not on bad terms.
On the contrary, when Rose’s Guiding ability was absorbed and she died for Laila’s growth, the two shared a special friendship, to the point where Laila locked herself in her room for a month, weeping uncontrollably.
Most readers, including myself, considered Rose a charming antagonist.
When her death was revealed as a spoiler, the comment section went wild. People raged, asking why this world didn’t have Espers with the Revive ability, capable of bringing the dead back to life.
“Sir Rose. There are many superiors watching. Please choose your words carefully.”
“So what? It’s my prerogative. Can’t I say what I want?”
Rose’s appearance alone doubled the number of onlookers, and the staring contest between Orion and Rose, who belonged to the same faction, made it impossible not to notice them.
No, why are these two like this again? Aren’t the relationships between Espers and Guides, who usually move as a team, supposed to be good?
Orion, looking at Rose as if she were a nuisance, and Rose, glaring at Orion as if he were old-fashioned.
Suddenly caught between the two, I, conscious of the surrounding gazes, secretly stepped back and left the spot.
Honestly, it’s so bothersome. The protagonists in the original work are all so eccentric, it’s hard to deal with each one individually.
If there’s one thing I’m determined about, it’s to avoid getting involved with Rose and Male Lead 3. With that thought, I gulped down the now-cold tea and left the camp.
