Me, the Weakest Member of the Hero’s Party? I’m the Villain Though? - Chapter 19
I couldn’t believe my ears. I must have misheard. There was no way the Crown Prince, whom I’d just met today, had actually told me to take off my clothes.
Maybe he meant something else? Or maybe he thought my clothes smelled bad and wanted them removed for that reason?
I stood there, visibly confused, and Reynold picked up the sword from the desk, tapping the hem of my clothes with the scabbard tip.
“I said take off your clothes.”
“…Why do you want me to take them off?”
“I need to confirm something.”
The more he spoke, the less sense it made. What could he possibly need to confirm that required me to undress?
As I hesitated, fidgeting with the edge of my garment, Reynold let out a long sigh.
“Should I undress you myself, or will you do it?”
Yeah, no thanks. I’d rather undress myself than have Reynold do it.
Fine. It’s not like taking off my clothes would kill me.
After some hesitation, I reluctantly pulled off my upper garment. Reynold’s gaze slowly dropped from my face to my torso.
His eyes hovered near my chest, and I instinctively curled my shoulders inward. Despite my effort to shield myself, Reynold stared like he could see right through me and muttered under his breath.
“So I wasn’t mistaken. It’s been over ten years, but I remember.”
Conversation is supposed to be something both people can understand… but I had no clue what he was talking about.
“We’ve met before.”
“…Me?”
I blinked in disbelief and asked back automatically.
As far as I remembered, there was no instance in the novel where the human form of Lysian appeared. At least, not in anything I’d read. But Reynold’s gaze was filled with unmistakable certainty.
“Fifteen years ago, a great sage in black robes named Lysian Felix suddenly appeared in the capital. I’d only seen your face once, so I wasn’t sure at first. But when I heard your name, I was certain.”
I forgot how to breathe for a moment.
Even if he’d heard Lysian from Kyle, knowing the surname Felix as well meant he really did know something about me.
“You performed countless miracles for five years, then vanished without a trace over ten years ago. Everyone thought you had died somewhere unknown. But to think you’re alive and well…”
Even I didn’t know about details like that.
I had no idea how to respond, so I just blinked at him. Reynold poked my chest with the tip of his scabbard.
“Look. This scar. You’re not seriously going to deny it after seeing that, are you?”
Wondering what he was talking about, I looked down at my chest. I hadn’t really examined my body since taking on human form.
But sure enough, just above my unnecessarily firm-looking chest, there was a distinct red scar in an unusual shape.
I had no idea I even had a scar like that, but the fact that Reynold knew about it meant he probably wasn’t lying.
“Why are you making that dumb face? Explain. Why did you suddenly disappear? Why are you pretending to be a woodcutter and running around with Kyle? And why do you look like you don’t know anything?”
I didn’t have a real answer to any of Reynold’s questions. My eyes darted around rapidly, searching for a way out of the situation.
“Well, the thing is…”
In transmigration novels, there’s always that one go-to excuse for this kind of crisis. I didn’t know if it was the right choice now, but I didn’t have anything better.
“…I lost my memory.”
Reynold raised his eyebrows sharply and let out a brief sigh.
After a short exchange, he seemed to believe that I’d lost my memory. Not only that, he even started treating me generously.
He lent me clean clothes to replace my filthy rags and gave me a generous dinner. It had been so long since I’d had a proper meal that my hands moved busily across the table, scooping up food.
While I stuffed myself, Reynold sat across from me, watching the whole time. They say the worst thing in the world is to have someone watching you eat, and now I could see why.
