I'm still frozen by Kayle's sword on my neck. Kayle spoke to me in a cold tone, giving me a dark look.
"What did you do to Dern?" Kayle asked.
"You kidnapped him and you pretend to be him?"
I'm still a little scared by the sword pointed at me, but I talk to Kayle.
"I didn't mean to—! I can explain, it's not what you think!"
"Really? Tch, even if you're acting like him in public, you're literally no longer like him. He's not that kind of person who is cold with his—..."
Kayle stops at the end of his sentence.
'Wait— what is he going to say!? Are they canonically that close? Hm... Yeah...maybe... But it seems like they're very close...' I was thinking about myself while I was being completely threatened with death. My brain is really not focused, I have absolutely no survival instinct.
'And this is the first time I've seen Kayle talk so much.'
Kayle continued talking again, sighing slightly.
"Forget what I said. Just tell me what you did to Jein but honestly, even if you give me back my Dern, I would still kill you." Kayle admitted honestly.
I looked at Kayle with a slightly irritated expression.
'At least he is very honest.' I thought.
'But how did he know I'm not Dern? I'm really such a bad actor...?' I asked myself in my head.
'Yeah, maybe I think...'
With a courage of resilience, I finally calmed down slightly, trying to confront Kayle.
'Perhaps the best solution is to tell him the truth... Or maybe it will be worse and I'll die.'
I was finally trying to talk to Kayle. "I... You already know that I'm not Dern but... I didn't do anything to him, I swear! It's just—"
Before I could finish my sentence, a shrill sound was heard from below.
—CRASH!
Kayle and I were surprised by the sudden sound. Kayle reacted immediately and removed the sword from my neck.
"It seems this little one made a racket even though I told him to stay calm, tch..."
I am slightly irritated by Kayle's words. 'Does Kayle already hate Rhun, or am I dreaming?'
I sighed slightly.
Kayle heads towards the door.
"Stay here. I'm going to go see what happened."
Kayle left the room, leaving me all alone. Of course, I disobey Kayle and follow him to the living room.
'It's not like I have time to wait for him like a dog when I'm in this world now.'
Oh, but wait, I forgot my notebook. I take my notebook in the room and I then follow Kayle.
When I reached the bottom of the stairs in the living room, I saw that Rhun was tied up. And a servant in a maid's costume who is actually a man is currently standing next to Kayle, nervously watching Rhun.
'What the— Why is Rhun tied up?'
After a few seconds, Kayle noticed that I was there.
"Why are you here? I said you should stay in the room." Kayle whispered to me.
Before I could give Kayle a clear answer, the servant who was next to Kayle spoke to me.
"Mister Verlt? I'm sorry if I interrupted your conversation with Mister Alt earlier. That man was just running away. Sorry..."
The servant seems really stressed about seeing me— no, more about seeing Dern, I think. And then, Kayle, in an exasperated tone, addressed the servant.
"Enid, go away. You don't need to explain. Leave now."
The servant, whose real name is Enid, nods and obeys Kayle's order as if it were normal.
"Yes, sir..."
Enid leaves the living room.
'So disrespectful.' I thought of Kayle.
Kayle then approached Rhun, who was still tied up, his mouth covered.
Kayle violently removes the scarf from Rhun's mouth and violently grabs Rhun by the hair.
'What does he think he's doing here?!'
I immediately go over to Kayle and Rhun and grab Kayle's hand. Kayle then lets go of Rhun.
Kayle gives me a cold look and I let go of his hand instinctually.
'Why is he so scary?' I think, slightly uneasy.
I then turn my attention back to Rhun. And Rhun is already looking at me very suspiciously, he doesn't trust me at all.
I then approach Rhun, who is still tied up, and gently untie him carefully. Rhun calmed down a little, but he's still wary of me, of course.
"Sorry, dear Eden. My butler Kayle and I didn't plan to kidnap you, you were injured, and since we are humble people, we—"
I notice that my tone is way too much like a theatrical knight's instead of Dern's. I coughed slightly in embarrassment and started talking again.
"Anyways, since you're here, Eden, why not get to know each other?"
I ask instinctively without thinking. I can totally feel Kayle's dark gaze behind me at this point.
"Why did you even kidnap me? I'm useless for you if you want to use me." Eden replied, in a rather suspicious tone towards me.
Well, that's understandable, Kayle and I brought him here without his permission... which is a kind of kidnapping....
'But at least Kayle took care of him, yeah!' I thought, trying to not feel guilty.
"Okay, so what if we sit down and talk about this calmly? Besides, we didn't kidnap you on purpose." I said, trying to calm the situation
Rhun and I sit on the couch.
*****
Rhun and I are sitting on the couch, and I'm trying to talk calmly with him even though he still doesn't trust me, which is totally normal in the body I'm in.
"So, your name is Eden, right?"
"Yeah." Rhun responded neutrally.
"Great! And you should've heard about me, right? I'm a little popular, you know." I said in a slightly arrogant tone to play the role of Dern well.
"..."
Awkward silence.
Rhun doesn't respond instantly, I'm sure he's insulting me in his head because of what I said.
"Yeah, I heard about you." Xin Rhun said in a indifferent tone.
"Alright, so now... I'll explain everything. If you are that suspicious, it's really normal but in reality, my dear butler and I wanted to save you since you were injured and we were there in that forest. And since I saw you holding a sword in this forest, you want to go to war, right? You know, it's really obvious. I can help you if you want, I just—"
Eden interrupted me because I was talking way too much.
'Well, he totally wants to tell me to shut up without actually saying it.' I thought lazily.
"Why are you like that? I know you save me but I'm just a simple villager and since you're a noble, I should be grateful to you and just leave." Eden said, already standing to go without even talking back to my request.
I'm going to him as quickly as possible. "Wait— Don't just go like that!" I grab Rhun's sleeve, holding him back from leaving.
Rhun finally stops and turns to me, a cold look on his eyes. He already looks like he hates me or something. My grip tightens even more at Rhun's sleeve and I tried to talk to him again, but he interrupted me before I could say a word. "What do you want? Are you being this clingy because you want to manipulate me? I don't want to get involved with anyone like you, even if you did save me. So, let me go."
Rhun's gaze was menacing, despite knowing that Dern was a nobleman with considerable power and absolute arrogance that could easily harm him, Rhun defied him.
'So... fascinating. He's really the protagonist I followed through these years.' I thought, smiling unconsciously by that.
I still hadn't let go of my grip on Rhun. "I don't want to manipulate. Why do you even believe in these stupid rumors about me? It seems like you're lost and don't have anywhere to live even though you're so brave like that. I can help you, I'm not the kind of person who lets someone to their tragic fate."
I really sounds like a delusional crazy like that before Rhun. But I can't let him go, if he leaves he won't find someone else and he'll be alone and never had a chance to come to the Royal Legion who will be involved in the war between these demons and humans, which will be one of the most important elements in the THFABW plot.
I really messed up to even ended up here. He was supposed to meet Seline Gernias in that forest, not Dern or me.
Rhun didn't actually answer me after what I said, he seems confused and hesitant. He then retired his hand from my grip and looked at me like I was just a guess he was resolving.
Rhun's suspicion was really clear, and even in THFABW, he doesn't trust someone easily, he's like a stray kitten who is afraid to give his trust to someone and even test them to know how bad or good they can be to him. He really has trust issues at this point.
"..."
Rhun sighed and took a breath before speaking to me.
"Okay... I accept your proposition but only because I'm lost." Rhun mumbled something I couldn't hear after his sentence.
"I'm really happy you have come to your senses." I don't sound anything like Dern, but well, it's not that important now. But Rhun looks at me like I'm some weird monster because of what I said.
"Ah, sorry!"
*****
[1 hour and 30 minutes later]
My dear Rhun and I talked and I told Rhun I'd help him with his situation. Kayle was much stronger than Rhun at the beginning of THFABW, so it would be better if Kayle could train him. But the thing is I did not obtain Kayle's consent.
'Well, it's not like he doesn't obey Dern but he actually knows I'm not Dern.' I thought while I was actually walking with Kayle 'till the office of Dern that is actually downstairs of the stairs.
Kayle and I arrived in Dern's office and Kayle closed the door with a quick gesture. He looks really angry, I think if I do a wrong move, he'll kill me. Kayle turned towards me and started to move slightly closer. I took a step back by instinct. I suddenly feel a deep beat in my heart, being isolated with someone, this is...
I suddenly felt an unbearable headache in that situation and I'm trembling slightly, I don't even know what's happening to me. 'Why am I afraid like that?' I didn't even what's happening to myself.
I'm just here to talk with Kayle and convince him. It's not that scary. So why does my body react like that? I think I... I'm not afraid of Kayle but—
My head hurts again. I hold my head with my left hand, trying to calm myself down. A blurry image formed in my mind but... I'm not concentrating, I can't see that.
Before I lost my mind with this headache, Kayle finally spoke to me.
"If you ever ask, I've cast a soundproofing spell when we entered. That way, no one can hear a thing, not even when you're yelling for help.... or our conversation, of course." Kayle said, putting the office door key in his pocket.
"W–what...?" I said, more careful with my movement, observing Kayle attentively.
'What does he mean by that..?' I thought, taking one more step back. Is he trying to do something? Should I attack him first? No, no... I don't need to think like that. He's just trying to scare me.
My heart is pounding with fear.
If he tries anything... I... I will try to beat him.
But before I can react, Kayle draws his sword. And Kayle comes straight towards me, but luckily, I was able to dodge his attack before it hit me and I fall to the ground, sitting down. And Kayle's sword was accidentally planted at Dern's desk.
'Oops. He just destroyed his beloved's desk.'
Kayle just wanted to kill me. Haha, it's not that serious in reality. I was afraid for nothing. I finally calm down and my body almost entirely stops to tremble anymore.
Kayle removed his sword from Dern's desk and he immediately turned towards me. I got up from the floor. Kayle immediately pointed his sword at me and I raised my hands.
"Kayle, calm down, please! I thought we were just going to talk."
"I don't even want to listen to you anymore. Just tell me what you did to the real Dern and then I'll kill you."
"..."
I didn't know how to answer Kayle's threat. I don't even know where Dern's soul is, so it will be complicated to communicate with Kayle.
I forced myself to smile and tried to talk to Kayle without being cut by his blade. "Kayle, at least listen to what I have to say."
Kayle's sword tightened in his hand but he pulled away his sword from me slightly, waiting for what I have to say to him in this situation. Kayle is still suspicious but he forces himself to hold back because of his care for his Dern.
'Alright, I can finally talk to him.' I thought, smirking slightly by that.
I adjusted my tone slightly before speaking again. I sat on the desk chair, with Kayle still observing me like a damn garbage with his cold expression. "So... I know you really hate me right now but you need me because of Dern. I'll explain this situation to you then. Can I start?"
Kayle hesitated before answering, he seems like it must be a long conversation if I start talking and explaining. But Kayle is actually very concerned and really needs to know what happened to Dern even if he doesn't trust me, he wants Dern back.
"Yeah. Start to explain. Now." He doesn't even say « please », so rude. But I can't complain in this situation, of course.
I started talking about the way I ended up here, I'm just telling the truth because I'm so exhausted right now. And I'm also explaining about Dern's situation but I didn't really know how to convince him without telling him Dern's soul might already be in the sky. For doing simple things, I thought Dern was maybe dead and I possess his body now.
When I was telling Kayle about this world being a story, he immediately stopped me, middle steps to talk. "You're seriously telling me, I'm just some kind of character in a stupid novel?"
I didn't know how to answer. Maybe I shouldn't tell him about this world being a story. But he's actually listening to me and concentrating and forcing him to not strangle me so why do I need more ragebaiting him.
I finally found the right decision to answer him. "Kayle... I..." For a moment, I didn't know how to say that. "I know it's complicated to hear, but I'm really telling the truth and about Dern... You're mostly waiting for him but he's... I..."
I really can't say that, damn.
I'm trying to catch my breath and really say that. "I'm not an impostor or something. I'm really in Dern's original body, and his soul... I think he might be..."
Silence. The room was quiet now, Kayle and I can't even say anything.
"So..." Kayle started with an almost quiet tone, it seems like he can't take it anymore. "Jein, right...? It's your name...?" I nodded at his question. "Ah... Really.... Jein, you're telling me that now, because of YOU... my..." Kayle hesitated in the middle of his sentence. "My employer is now dead..?" It sounds like a great break in his tone.
_
[Kayle POV]
Kayle thought about killing Jein before but now, he can't even think of what he's doing. Kayle has been there since childhood with Dern, he is his first friend, they lived together for even 15 years and they were always there for each other. And now, an unknown person is just telling him that his "world" is dead and this "world" was just replaced by an anomaly, a reader who doesn't own a place here and who is just a new problem in Kayle's life.