Chapter 7

Of course. When even the emperor would have turned a blind eye to the horse’s attack, and with no mercenaries in a small village, it seemed like everyone would just die without being able to do anything.

“Are you okay?”

The warrior appeared like a savior and single-handedly defeated all the horses.

As I watched the warrior tidy up the village within a short time of less than 30 minutes, I was just munching on snacks nearby.

‘I can’t just sit back and watch the warrior being bothered like this…’

It was an urgent situation, and having a nuisance around didn’t help. Glancing out the window, I realized that the room was on the second floor, so jumping out naked might leave me unable to walk for about a week. But I couldn’t just give up.

My gaze returned to the bed.

“Maybe it’s better for you to give up, Nuna. Mom can be quite scary. Next time, I’ll come into the room myself and keep watch.”

“…”

“Nuna?”

“…”

“Nuna, don’t tell me?!”

By the time Tommy noticed something was wrong and opened the door, I was already gone.

“Is this a rope? …No, it’s a blanket?”

When Tommy saw the blanket connected to the wardrobe and extending out the window, he finally realized the situation and shouted towards me as I fled.

“Eve Nuna!!”

Oh dear, if you shout like that, everyone will hear. Are you trying to wake everyone up?

I hurriedly wrapped the black robe tightly around me like a fugitive and quickly fled to a secluded place where no one was around.

Tommy, I’m sorry. But for now, you have to go home.

I have to somehow relieve the warrior’s stress as the quest demands!

Hoo-hoo…

“Ugh.”

Despite boldly leaving the house, the evening forest was extremely dangerous. For no apparent reason, the bushes behind me rustled, and relying on a single small torch, the path to the Demon Castle was treacherous. Fortunately, having traveled back and forth several times, my legs remembered the way.

But there should have been no one in the forest.

It felt like someone was whispering.

“…”

At that moment, I felt the breath of something beside me.

“Aaah!”

Taking it as a signal, I immediately dashed and ran.

The Demon Castle was right in front of me. Although it seemed strange to consider this place, the origin of the horses and the palace where the king of the horses lived, as a lifeline, there was the warrior.

“Heeerooo!”

“…”

Adam, who was standing blankly in the main hall of the Demon Castle, finally recognized me belatedly.

Touching his necklace, Adam spotted me and tucked the necklace into his shirt.

“You… came again.”

His face seemed even more haggard than before.

He kept muttering to himself, waving his arms around in the air. Could it be that his stress levels were too high?

Stress – 51%

‘But it seems like the index has increased compared to before.’

Am I the main cause of the stress?

Nah, couldn’t be.

“I have a personality where once I start something, I have to see it through to the end.”

“…”

Adam approached me slowly without saying a word twice. His smiling face was scarier than if he were angry.

I didn’t notice it while playing the game, but he always had that smile on, so I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“But Warrior, listen to me! I didn’t come to the Demon Castle recklessly!”

But even with my earnest plea, the warrior took another step closer with a smiling face.

It was the same smile of courtesy before he knocked me unconscious.

I reached out my arm to keep a distance between the warrior and me and hurriedly took out a piece of paper from my bag.

“Wait, please listen! Let’s make a contract.”

“…A contract?”

The warrior’s step halted. It was worth it to have written it by hand all night, just in case.

If the warrior knocks me out again and takes me home, Mrs. Violet will personally watch over me.

So, there won’t be a second chance.

I just wanted to get out of this doomed game as soon as possible. As a possessor, I should have the privilege of knowing the future, but coming into a game where the hero kills the final villain made it difficult to see even an inch ahead.

Who knows if I’ll just stumble on a loose rock and die while wandering alone.

There’s no guarantee I can go back home if I die here.

‘For now, I’ll stick to the protagonist!’

Taming the warrior who returned questions like, “Why?” whenever I gave him tasks turned out to be simpler than I thought. Temples and imperial courtiers found him difficult to handle because they didn’t know this, but it wasn’t the case for me.

All I needed was validity. As long as there was a reason, he became infinitely more lenient and obedient.

So, what I prepared was a contract.

With no one in the Demon Castle and me not making him a companion in this round, he had to manage this vast castle alone. Despite the obedience collar, the beast-type monsters followed his orders, but what could you expect from creatures like them?

As long as he didn’t break anything more than necessary while cleaning up, it was fortunate. Commanding the few remaining demons would be beneath the title of a warrior.

If anyone accidentally discovered him like this, they would assume he was charmed by the demon lord and would drag him away as the hero.

So, they should hire me. Even in the original world, I was praised for being adept at every part-time job I took.

Dishwashing, serving food, cleaning, flattering—just leave it all to me.

‘Hehe, how about that? It’s just like what you did! You can’t send me back immediately, can you, since what you did is the same as what I’m proposing?’

I proudly explained the contract to him while holding my head up high.

“I heard that the esteemed warrior killed the demon lord and recaptured the Demon Castle.”

“…Is that so? Then, what is this contract about?”

As expected, he showed interest in the contract. I passionately explained it with exaggerated gestures as if I were a con artist.

“We can’t just leave this stronghold alone! Although it’s located near the capital, the emperor can’t interfere with the demon lord, so it remains ignorant and acts as an independent territory! It’s what you possess right now.”

Adam nodded thoughtfully.

“It’s not that I possess it… Well, there was someone I wanted to give it to.”

Whether he gives it to someone or not, it wasn’t an important matter anyway. I couldn’t miss the opportunity to do my self-promotion to a warrior who seemed to be willing to listen to me for the first time.

“The Demon Castle is very vast! It’s too difficult for the warrior to manage alone. The monsters? Demons? Goblins are stupid.”

“…”

“So, it’s time to hire a perfect employee like me, warrior! You won’t find a faithful servant like me anywhere else.”

Being a friend and providing mental support!

However, I refrained from saying “becoming a friend last time, becoming a colleague this time” as it might have a negative impact.

“Huff…”

Adam sighed deeply as he covered his face with the contract I handed him. Over the paper, I could imagine the warrior frowning.

The fleeting moment of eternity had passed.

Adam slowly removed the paper covering his face and spoke.

“I have a bad temper.”

“…Will you kill me if I make a mistake?”

In a place where no one was watching, he could easily kill me. Otherwise, there was no reason for him to mention his bad temper here. What was there to boast about it?

Adam, gaping in disbelief at my words, retorted belatedly.

“What?! Hah, I don’t kill children.”

“Are you saying you’ll kill me once I’m not a child?!”

I deliberately exaggeratedly leaned back and took a step back.

I had just received a murder threat.

Oh, dear. How sophisticated the nobility of this world is. How did I raise a warrior? The moment I became an adult, he said he would kill me.

Stress – 52%

Gasp, the stress level is going up again.