"Tell me, Oryn, how the hell do you know that name?" I questioned, pulling him into a room and pushing him against the wall, my hands grabbing his collar.
"I- I…I don't know if I can tell you," He looked off to the side, his eyes distant as if he was looking at something that wasn't there.
"Yeah, well, guess what, you don't have a choice," I snarled, putting my leg on the wall beside him and taking a knife out from under my sleeve to put against his neck, "Answer. Now."
"...Alright, just let me go, please?" Oryn asked, a look of sorrow filling his face, a mere frown remaining when I pulled away, "You may want to sit down for this one."
"No, thank you, I'd prefer to stand," I replied coldly, following him over to the couch in the room. I guessed it was a reception room by the layout.
"Okay, well, um, to be honest, I am not sure where to start," Oryn sighed, sitting down, "Let's just say I am someone from Earth, who knew you quite well."
As Oryn said that, I felt my eyebrow twitch. There were three options of who he could be: one of the bastards who killed me or wanted me killed, someone who held no hostility towards me/admiration, or, the least likely option, Keiji or Yasuo.
'No, there's no way they could be reincarnated here, let alone into someone of at least some significance to the plot…Unless this is a part of the Hunapo mentioned, which is quite unlikely, he isn't that generous.'
"After I died, I was greeted by someone. She told me that the feelings I held were admirable and that I should be given a second chance, especially since my actions of throwing my life away to save another were so heroic," Oryn explained, his brows furrowing as he leaned forward, but his elbows on his thighs and intertwined his fingers.
"I see…and who exactly was this person, and what did she look like?" I questioned, depending on the description of the person, I could narrow it down and conclude it to be Hunapo in the form of a woman.
'Annoying bastard, if this guy were a reincarnator from earth, he should have just told me!'
"She didn't give me a name, but the lady had long, stark white hair, purple eyes, pale skin, and was wearing a nun's uniform…does that ring a bell for you?" Oryn asked, looking at me with a confused expression, his brows still furrowed with a frown.
"Hmm…no, but I could ask around for a goddess who looks like that. There isn't any other being with the power of resurrection and reincarnation that isn't a god or deity of some sort," I answered, getting back to the point, "though that doesn't answer who you are."
"Ah, hehe, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you, especially with my recent actions," Oryn laughed, his eyes reflecting something distant, something I myself had never felt.
"Tell me anyway, it doesn't matter if I believe you or not. Nothing would change, I'd still be just as angry at you, regardless of your real name," I confirmed, stepping in front of him and looking down.
"Alright, just promise not to kill me, kay?" Oryn looked at me with a worried smile, before sitting up and taking a deep breath, his face straightening, "My name was Keiji, I was in the same troop as you and went to school with you…Then I took a bomb for you."
As Oryn looked at me with a smile so full of love that it would make anyone melt, his figure started to overlap with that of Keiji's. His jet black hair always slicked back, deep blue eyes that only ever looked at me with such affection.
Then it all clicked: the reason why he treated me so casually, why he felt so familiar, why he was so obsessed with keeping me close to him. It was all because he didn't want to be separated from me again. After all, he was afraid of me pushing him away, because I thought of other people as nuisances.
It was to get me to notice him, to acknowledge him. Though it was all absolutely crazy, it worked. I believed him because I knew him; I knew how he worked. It was stupid of me not to notice it earlier; thinking back now, they even shared the same habits.
"You…Why didn't you just tell me?!" I choked, tears welling in my eyes, "Why did you make me think of you as some psycho bastard, huh?! Damnit, now that version of you is stuck in my head and associated with that stupidly handsome face of yours!"
"Saito, I am sorry. I wasn't sure how to approach you, and I know now. Even if it's too late, will you forgive me?" Oryn pleaded, standing up and brushing his fingers against mine.
"Forgive you? I don't know if I can," I admitted, pulling away with a tear falling down my cheek, "When you were drugged, when you regained awareness, you knew that I was begging you to stop, but didn't. I can't forgive something like that so easily." [1]
"Alright…do you think you could even bring yourself to forgive me?" Oryn asked, holding back tears, "To be honest, I don't think I can handle it if you hate me forever."
"Haaaa, maybe someday, but not now," I sighed, being honest with myself for once, "I have too much on my plate right now, and, well, it is you we are talking about. I could never truly hate you, Keiji."
Oryn's face brightened up immediately, joy wheeling in him at the sound of even just the first line. I would be lying if I said it didn't make me feel something, though that something definitely wasn't forgiveness, maybe just slight fondness.
"Well, I should get back to the meeting. I can only imagine the anger His Majesty is feeling…well, if he even is capable of feeling something other than anger," I commented, rolling my eyes and heading for the doors.
"That is true, I don't think I've seen him ever feel something other than joy and pettiness," Oryn laughed, looking at me go to the door.
"I would not be surprised," I added, pausing before turning the handle, "Well, are you coming?"
***
"Hey, Victor," I greeted with a smile. Victor swerved around to see if it was actually me, his face full of worry.
"My Lord!" He exclaimed, rushing over to me and looking me over, "Are you alright?! The way you rushed out made me worried sick! I tried following you but lost you at some point, so I came back to the office. I hope you aren't angry."
"Hehe, no, no, I'm not," I chuckled, feeling a little happy at how Victor fauned over me, "What about His Majesty? Is he angry, happy, laughing, what?"
"Ah, I haven't gone back in yet, though his Majesty and the Minister have resumed discussions, likely what they were talking about before we arrived," Victor replied, his gaze slowly going over to the door as a loud laugh was heard.
"...Okay then. I suppose I should at least give them my response before leaving. Oryn, would you mind knocking and opening the door?" I asked, aiming a smile full of malicious intent at him.
"Huh? Oh, sure," Oryn gave an awkward smile back before knocking on the door and opening it, "Your Majesty, Minister, we are back- ack!"
"Hello, Your Majesty!" I exclaimed, appearing from behind Oryn as I kicked him into the room and waltzed over to the King's desk, "I only have one thing to say, so listen closely!"
"Huh? Uh, okay, hehe," Roman laughed nervously, a nice feeling wheeling up as I saw his expression change.
"I am not going to marry Oryn, and am instead going to conclude things on my own. I do not need your help, and I most definitely do not need the advice of the foreign affairs minister of another Kingdom…no offense, Minister Leondis, you are doing great," I poked, smiling at Klaus before turning back to Roman and his bewildered expression, "So, if you would be of-so-kind, do stay out of my business, kay? Kay. Now have a lovely afternoon!"
And with that, I turned around and left. All three high-ranking men left in the room with bewildered expressions, while Victor followed with proud amusement. It felt quite good to get that out, and especially good to wipe that petty King's smile off his annoying face.
***
It was lunchtime when Victor and I teleported back to the estate. I whisked the doors open with delight at the thought of how I left the palace; it left me very satisfied, 5 stars!
"Ah, home sweet home!" I exclaimed, a bright smile on my face, brightening as I saw Sephtis, "Oh, hello, Sephtis! Did you miss me while I was gone?"
'Blatant flirting never hurt anyone, right? I mean, I did say I'd conclude things on my own.'
"Huh?! Oh, uh, yeah…I did," He mumbled, squirming. I wouldn't usually say something like that, but I was actually in a good mood upon hearing that Keiji was still alive in a way, as well as metaphorically giving the king the middle finger, so I figured I could spare myself and Sephtis at least this.
"...Ugh, you are so cute," I muttered under my breath, just quiet enough for Sephtis to hear, whose face turned into a tomato, "Hehe, I'm glad! Well, if you need anything today, Sephtis, just come and ask me!"
I gave a bright smile, which was quite out of character for me, especially when at the estate. I could tell people were taken aback. Victor had a look of pure shock mixed with terror/disgust; it was hard to distinguish, and Sephtis' eyes just widened as his face was now the color of a red pepper.
"Victor, I am going to head on up to finish the rest of my work for the day. Could you ask the chef to start on Lunch?" I added, looking back and smiling at Victor, who just nodded with the same jumbled up expression, "Great, appreciate it."
Heading up the stairs and down the hall to my office, a few servants I passed stopped in their tracks and stared at my face. I couldn't blame them, especially as I noticed just how big my own smile was when I looked at the mirror at the end of the hall.
'Huh…am I really that happy just because I learned that Keiji was alive….? No, don't let yourself get all happy just for that! Though, maybe, it wouldn't hurt once in a while…'
I decided that I would allow myself at least today to feel a bit of genuine joy and express it, considering that this will probably be the last time for a long time after I leave the estate. Turning and continuing left down the rest of the hall, I saw Praxis standing outside the door to my bedroom, which was by my office in case I wanted to rest while working.
"Praxis, is something the matter?" I asked, stopping behind him. He turned around; he seemed to be in a sort of daze, though I wasn't sure why.
"Ah, hello, Master. You seem to be in a rather good mood today. Did something good happen?" Praxis wondered, tilting his head with a small smile, his tail swaying slowly behind him.
"Hm? Oh, yes, and no, it's sort of complicated. But what about you? You don't look so good, are you feeling unwell?" I asked once more, stepping closer and moving his hair from his face.
His cheeks were a bit flushed, and his skin hot, not hot enough to be a fever, though I could tell at least that. He peered over at my hand before grabbing it and pressing his face to it, closing his eyes with a smile.
"I am fine, just feeling a little energy deficient. But with the happy energy I'm feeling from you now, it should be okay for a while if I maintain closeness or physical contact," Praxis confessed, bringing my hand down and holding it. He knew what he was doing; it was very much on purpose.
"Praxis, I won't be doing any more than this today, it isn't the right moment," I refuted, holding our hands up and squeezing his slightly, "I'll hold your hand till lunch though, will that be sufficient?"
"Yes, that is fine. As long as you are near, I should still be able to feed off of your emotions," Praxis smiled even brighter, now interlocking our fingers, then bent down a bit and whispered in my ear, "I think that you forget I am an incubus, even just being in your presence is enough to arouse me. You are my master after all, so don't forget the things I can do to and for you."
I pulled back, covering my ear with blush, flooding my face. Praxis merely smiled and giggled, and I instantly forgot about the events that had happened just a couple of minutes ago.
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[1]! This was in one of the early chapters and is explained/put more in depth in the rewrite! You can access it on my Patreon, which is in my bio on here, or on my Twitch!