Chapter 11

### Chapter 11: How to Steal the Hero's Woman (10)

As soon as I woke up in the morning, the events of yesterday came to mind.

("When the sun sets tomorrow, please come to the back garden of the village chief's house. I'll come to meet you!")

Yesterday, Viola seemed overjoyed that someone was visiting her home for the first time.

But now, the problem was me.

"Ah, palm reading is such a hassle…."

[But it's fortunate that I don't have to use much Enel anymore, as I noticed yesterday.]

Armonia was right.

But the problem wasn't the palm reading; it was the women.

After a woman came, read her palm, and left, another would line up to have their palm read, and this cycle repeated itself.

It was exhausting to say the same things over and over.

But after a few days, it became so tedious that I couldn't stand it anymore.

I went to the living room to have breakfast.

However, unlike yesterday, the village chief was there, grumbling.

"Ugh…."

"Is something wrong?"

"…The person who used to do the housework quit suddenly, saying they had an emergency. Shiburel, at least make some breakfast…."

The village chief explained that the hired woman had left early in the morning with her belongings, and it was a sudden and inconvenient situation.

I never thought she would leave so quickly.

"Well, since that's the case, we'll have to take care of our own meals. …Any objections?"

Judging by the look on his face, he had no intention of returning the crystal pearl.

I didn't want it anyway….

'What a shameless old man.'

[You could secretly use Enel to make the meal….]

'No, wait a moment.'

I stopped the old man, who was about to turn and leave.

"Hey."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"If it's okay, I can prepare the meal for you."

"Huh? You can?"

I mentioned that I could cook, as I had lived alone and knew how to do it.

"I'm not really good at housework, but I can cook."

"Hmm…. Well, then, I'll leave it to you. Call me when it's ready."

"Sure, it won't take long."

The village chief went upstairs.

Creak, thud.

After hearing the sound of the village chief entering his room, I asked Armonia.

"Armonia, how much Enel does it take to make a meal similar to what we had yesterday?"

[It takes 2 Enel.]

"Only 2 Enel to make a meal? That's amazing."

When we crossed the desert, we only used 10 Enel.

That was the amount needed for basic water, food, and a tent.

Armonia explained.

The Enel Corporation used to contribute as much Enel as the Holy War and the Zodiac did.

At that time, contributing Enel was a mandatory duty, but it resulted in a significant amount of Enel being donated, and in return, they were given minimal opportunities.

Even when Armonia was on the verge of collapse, they still accepted her selection.

Moreover, they provided us with the bare necessities of life almost for free.

…That was Armonia's opinion.

Thanks to the Enel Corporation's efforts to find talented individuals, they were able to extract a lot of Enel.

"Can you make a meal in 20 minutes?"

[But, Sir Guardian, why are you helping the village chief?]

"Now, only the village chief and I are left in this house. If my presence makes him uncomfortable and he brings in a vigilante, it will be a headache…. I'm just showing him that I'm a good guy for now."

[Indeed, a wise decision.]

After making the meal and showing it to the village chief, he was very pleased and joined me for breakfast before we went outside.

***

It was a dark night.

I couldn't see anything around me.

As usual, I read palms for the women today.

After that, when it was night, I pretended to sleep at the village chief's house, then slipped out through the window and went to the back garden.

"Should be around here…."

Viola said she could see a tree with a ribbon on it in the back garden of the village chief's house.

"Ah, here it is."

A long rope was wrapped around a large tree, tied in a ribbon shape.

Suddenly, a person jumped out from inside the tree.

"Ah! You're here."

"Surprised!"

"Surprised, right? Hehe."

I couldn't help but be surprised.

Lately, I've been having dreams where the hero suddenly appears, saying, "Hi, I'm the hero. Now die," and then strikes me down.

Viola grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the tree.

The tree let me pass through naturally, like a 3D hologram.

When I first heard about the secret passage, I imagined it to be a tunnel in a mine.

But it was completely different.

As I entered the tree, a long, grand corridor like one in a palace stretched out before me.

The inside was so bright that it felt like it was daytime.

However, I didn't notice the corridor at all.

Viola.

She was wearing a blue dress.

The top was an off-the-shoulder style, revealing her collarbone and the top of her chest, which was elegantly covered by white lace.

On the left side of her chest, a large flower was the center of a series of floral embroidery that adorned the entire dress.

It was the kind of outfit you'd see in a manga or movie.

As I stared at her, Viola, blushing, fidgeted and spoke.

"Um, is it strange…?"

"No… You're really beautiful."

"Hehe, thank you…. This way, please!"

Viola, her dress fluttering, grabbed my wrist and led me.

She was clearly excited, but not in a sexual way.

There's a desire in everyone to show everything to a new friend.

Viola was as happy as a child to be able to show her home to a first-time visitor.

We arrived at a grand underground palace.

It was like a real palace.

'This isn't a medieval bunker….

[It's really impressive. To have such facilities under the village.]

'I wonder if it was built before the village was established?'

[There's not enough information to determine the order, but it seems unlikely that such facilities were built after the village was established.]

The height was about 20 meters, with several rooms on either side. It was a place that could be called a palace.

In the center was a large dining table with only two chairs.

Behind it was a dais, and behind that, a spiral staircase leading to the ceiling.

"The rooms on the left are mine. And this is my bedroom."

Viola's bedroom was different from the other rooms, starting with the door.

While the other doors were also very luxurious, the bedroom was on a different level.

It was majestic.

Viola opened the door without much enthusiasm and entered.

If someone else saw it, it would feel like entering a king's chamber.

Inside, it was a completely princess-like room.

Isn't that even more impressive?

Viola led me around, introducing all the rooms.

The bathroom, the kitchen, and the living room were all grand.

The best was the dress room.

As soon as we entered, dresses lined both sides.

There were traditional costumes from around the world and elaborate outfits, so many that you wouldn't find them anywhere else.

"This is the dress room…."

"Wow~"

And the most eye-catching was….

"Wow, this is really beautiful."

"That, that…."

It was a wedding dress in a glass cabinet.

Unlike the other dresses, it was prominently displayed, making it the first thing you noticed.

"This… my brother brought it for me to wear later."

"Ah…."

Her expression didn't look good.

I asked her to show me other places to lift her spirits.

The more I saw, the more I thought of the ship.

'Armonia.'

[Yes.]

'Is this better than our ship?'

Technically, the ship is far superior, but the appearance is a whole different level.

Could this be an emergency escape route for leaving hyperspace? If I go there, it might feel like my atoms are escaping my body….

According to Armonia, the ship originally had various facilities, but they were all discarded as the situation worsened.

In the end, the doors are there, but opening them would only reveal a bunch of dancing jellyfish.

I could summarize it accurately.

'It's like a fish with a head, tail, and spine….'

Even the spine has no spines on the sides.

I felt a bit sorry for Armonia, who seemed down.

I need to cheer her up.

'Oh, then the exterior must be a shrimp shape.'

[….]

Did I mess up….

No! Maybe she's laughing inside?

'Go…on?'

[….]

'Sorry….'

Shiburel, no….

The energy she's giving off now feels like a less terrible act than forcing her to do something.

The ship…let's not…touch…note….

After introducing all the rooms, Viola brought me back to her room.

Viola and I sat on the bed and talked.

"Viola, what about the house in the village?"

"Oh, that's where my brother goes when he leaves. If you go up the stairs in the middle, you'll reach that house."

Viola pointed to the central part of the internal structure.

There was a spiral staircase leading to the ceiling.

"What about you, Viola?"

"I'm told not to go out if I can help it."

"Then, what do you do here?"

"I just stay here."

…Did I misunderstand her?

"Ah, do you do anything normally? Like reading books, drawing, or making something…?"

"Oh… If my brother does something, it's a big deal, so he always tells me to stay still."

"…"

"I just sleep, wake up, eat, sit at the table, and go back to sleep. When my brother isn't around, I secretly go outside and listen to people's conversations. That's my favorite time!"

Seeing Viola, who was genuinely happy and smiling at me, made me feel a burning anger inside.

'What a bastard….'

[It's a gilded cage, unlike any other in the world.]

As Armonia said.

She doesn't have to do anything.

But she can't do anything.

There are no books here, and Viola doesn't even understand the concept of tools.

Viola even said she doesn't do housework or laundry here.

The villagers bring her food, and they take care of the laundry when she hands it over.

She has lived her life by secretly listening to people's conversations and interpreting them on her own.

And she discovered me by chance when she was allowed to go out after a long time.

"I'm the happiest I've ever been since meeting you, Guardian…"

"Viola…."

I pushed her onto the bed and kissed her, trying to feel her warmth with my lips without opening my mouth.

But Viola was the first to open her mouth, extending her tongue to part my lips.

Her tongue, wet with saliva, swam in my mouth, heightening the excitement.

But I deliberately pulled away.

Viola, who was deeply engrossed in the kiss, looked at me with tears in her eyes when it was suddenly cut off.

"Ah… Why…."

"Viola, I need to confirm something."

"Please tell me…."

She quickly spoke, pleading for another kiss as she gently wrapped her hands around my neck.

I stroked her blushing right cheek and said,

"Let's run away together."

"Huh? Huh…."

I didn't really expect an answer.

I kissed her again, and Viola, unable to respond, began to explore my mouth once more.