Becoming the Guide of the Mysophobic Villain? Absolutely Not! - Chapter 50
If I was just eating with Irene in the first place, I would have asked to pack the leftovers without hesitation.
But my companion was Claude, the stoic S-Class Esper with a severe case of mysophobia, a national hero.
As someone just freeloading a meal, asking to take leftovers would seem low-class, I guess…
I was gloomily looking at the remaining food when Claude suddenly asked,
“Why? Didn’t you like the food?”
“No, it’s just that I’m full, and it’s a shame I can’t eat more…”
Claude looked at me as if he couldn’t comprehend.
“You wouldn’t understand, Claude…”
I mean, his salary is said to be more than the Center’s annual budget. Has he ever felt something was ‘too precious to waste’?
Just as I was about to leave the restaurant, unable to ask to pack the leftovers considering Claude’s prestige, the manager approached me respectfully.
“Did you enjoy your meal?”
“Yes, very much…”
“It’s an honor. The gentleman asked us to prepare some dishes for you to take home and enjoy. We’ve packed those that are still tasty even when cold.”
“?”
…?
Claude, ‘that’ Claude, asked them to prepare food for me to take back to my dorm?
Ah, now that I think about it, I did see Claude speaking to the server while I was enthusiastically eating…
I was handed the neatly packed food.
…Isn’t this pretty much a marriage proposal?
If he wasn’t Claude, I might have seriously considered setting a wedding date right here and now.
Claude seemed bewildered as I emerged carrying a package almost as big as my torso.
“Give it here.”
“Please, let me carry it…”
I held it tightly, like a mother bird protecting her eggs. The warmth of the still-hot food seeped through, warming my heart.
Claude looked at me as if he couldn’t understand me at all, but he let me carry the food.
After a day of hardly doing any work and having a hearty meal at the center, as I was about to return to my dorm, Claude spoke up from behind.
“Today…”
“Yes?”
“You worked overtime, so come in for lunch tomorrow and then start your shift.”
…Unbelievable.
The evil villain must be really out of his mind.
***
Something’s weird about Claude.
At first, I thought he realized that I was his Guide since that last festival.
But if Claude really had caught on, why would he pretend not to know? Acting oblivious while continually treating me to delicious food and letting me take time off.
Even as if reading my mind, he took me to places I wanted to visit.
Just today, after feeding me dinner, Claude and I stopped by the beach to watch the sea before returning to the Center.
Sitting on the sandy beach with a cool breeze, I suddenly felt a heavy weight on my shoulder.
It was Claude’s coat, draped over me.
“Oh, I’m fine, really…”
“Just wear it.”
Claude, now in just a thin dress shirt, sat down beside me and casually replied.
I felt a bit embarrassed and kept my mouth shut.
Was it the warmth from his coat, or was it his scent that was making me feel this strange fluttering?
“Um, Lord Claude, I have a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“Why aren’t you spending time with Miss Shana these days…?”
I finally managed to ask the question that had been on my mind for several days.
When I first started being dragged around by Claude, including three logs, we were five. With Shana, we were six, then the three logs left, reducing us to three, and now with Shana gone, it’s always just the two of us.
Even Shana had never been alone with Claude.
It couldn’t be, but… sometimes it feels like we’re on a date, which makes me feel kind of weird.
Claude glanced at me briefly, then turned his gaze back to the sea.
After a long silence, Claude finally spoke.
“That woman means nothing to me now.”
“Why? I thought you considered her your Guide?”
“Not her,” Claude answered indifferently.
“…But it could be her.”
“No.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“I just know.”
“…”
“…Because I can’t help but know.”
Claude simply answered and then fell silent.
