I’m In Trouble Because The Darkened Heroes Are Obsessed With Me

On her way home, Elsez stopped by a confectionery shop.“Strawberry flavor! Let’s get ten strawberry ones too!”Reti, poking his head out of her inner pocket, excitedly pointed at the strawberry-flavored candies.It was the most enthusiastic she’d ever seen him.“At moments like this, he’s just like a little kid.”Chuckling, Elsez obediently picked out the strawberry candies as instructed.Next, she moved on to cookies, filling a bag with enough for herself, Lenny, and Mrs. Mas before heading to the counter to pay and leaving the store.As soon as she got into the waiting carriage, Reti popped out of her pocket and began munching noisily on the cookies in the paper bag.Then, without warning, he crawled right into the bag.“Don’t touch Lenny’s and Mrs. Mas’ share,” Elsez warned.Reti mumbled something in response, his voice muffled, as Elsez pulled back the curtain on the carriage window.Raising her arm, she caught sight of her pale wrist peeking out from her sleeve.At first glance, it appeared bare, but when the light hit, a faint transparent glow shimmered.Staring at the clear bracelet on her wrist, Elsez recalled her earlier conversation with Tracia at the Roby estate.“Take it. I’m giving it to you in your friend’s place.”Tracia had handed Elsez a silver bracelet.“I made it for her, but I can’t give it to her anymore.”“For me?”“Your friend wasn’t the type to share things lightly, but if she spoke of my grandfather, then she must have trusted you deeply. So it’s yours now.”The bracelet, which Tracia had developed a year ago, was an expensive magic tool that absorbed a certain amount of potion. If the wearer got injured or ran out of mana, it would automatically inject the potion into their body.It was undoubtedly a useful item for Elsez, who often found herself battling monsters.“I developed it myself a year ago,” Tracia had explained, not missing the chance to boast as she detailed its usage.Elsez’s lips curled into a faint smile as she gently touched the transparent bracelet.Ruel had died three years ago, and this bracelet had been created two years after that.In other words, even two years after Ruel’s death, Tracia had still been unable to let her go.Perhaps even until today, when she had asked Elsez about Ruel’s death.Knowing this, Elsez felt both gratitude and guilt for not being able to reveal her true identity.“I hope that once this matter is resolved, I can tell Tracia the truth.”As she entertained the thought, the carriage arrived at the Rohen estate.“Welcome back, my lady.”Elsez pulled Reti, still inside the paper bag of cookies, out of her pocket and handed the bag to Lenny.Lenny accepted it hesitantly, looking puzzled.“What’s this, lady?”“Share it with Mrs. Mas. They’re cookies.”“C-Cookies? But they’re so expensive!”Lenny always worried about the household’s finances as if it were her own. Elsez found it both endearing and saddening.Patting Lenny’s head, Elsez reassured her.“I bought them because things are going well, so you don’t need to worry.”Lenny’s eyes immediately brimmed with tears.Startled, Elsez pulled her hand back.“W-What? Why are you crying?”“I… I haven’t had cookies in ages. Thank you so much, miss.”Cookies might have been a common snack in Elsez’s modern world, but in this era, they were a luxury item.To Lenny, it was likely a precious gift.“Wash up and come downstairs! I’ll get everything ready so we can enjoy them together!”Elsez smiled as she watched Lenny dash off to the kitchen with newfound energy, then headed upstairs.Halfway up, Lenny called out to her as if suddenly remembering something.“Oh, right, lady! An invitation arrived earlier. I left it on the table for you to check.”When Elsez entered her room, she found the invitation on the table, just as Lenny had said.Picking it up, she read the sender’s name aloud.“Count Lort’s estate?”The Count Lort family crest was stamped on the invitation. ****  As the sun dipped below the horizon, the coachman standing outside the temple looked toward the carriage with a puzzled expression.“Um, lady, we’ve arrived…”It had been ten minutes since the carriage had reached the temple, but the passenger still hadn’t stepped out.If it had been a male passenger, the coachman might have opened the door, but since it was a lady, he hesitated.Unable to wait any longer, he knocked on the small window connecting the driver’s seat to the inside of the carriage.“Lady, I—”Before he could finish, the carriage suddenly rattled, and the sound of raised voices arguing came from within.“H-Huh?”The coachman froze, staring at the carriage in fear.The passenger was a lone woman. So who could she be arguing with?“Could it be… a ghost?”Unaware of the coachman’s growing fear, Elsez and Reti were having a heated squabble inside the carriage.Reti darted around the small space, evading Elsez’s grasp as she tried to catch him.“I don’t like that guy!”The “guy” Reti was referring to was Astaire.When Reti realized they were heading to the temple, he had squirmed and complained the entire time. Now, he was outright throwing a tantrum, insisting they go back home.Even Elsez’s usual remedies—candies and cookies—were useless this time.“Why does this feel like I’m raising a child?”With a sigh, Elsez thought back to her first playthrough, when she had to take care of young heroes.The first step was to figure out why Reti was so upset.“Why don’t you want to go?”“Humans like him with that kind of aura are bad! He gives me the creeps, and he hates me! That building is creepy too!”“Well, that’s just because you’re different by nature—”“And what if he tries to hurt me?”“I’ll stop him, okay? Have I ever lied to you?”Reti hesitated, then slowly hopped down onto the seat.“Well… no, you haven’t.”Elsez was right—she had never lied to him. She’d even kept her promise to buy him plenty of candy and cookies.Satisfied, Elsez opened her jacket. Reti reluctantly climbed into her inner pocket, grumbling the whole time.“If he tries to hurt me, you have to side with me. Got it?”“Yeah, yeah. We’re stuck together, aren’t we?”Finally, Elsez stepped out of the carriage, passed through the temple’s security, and entered the building. She made her way toward the temple library.The day before, she had described the boy holding the dimensional shard to Astaire and asked to use the library until he found out more about the boy’s affiliation.Walking toward the library, Elsez spoke to Reti.“Honestly, I don’t feel comfortable around Astaire either. I actually find him unsettling.”Still, she couldn’t avoid working with him. If Astaire was actively tracking the group trying to resurrect the demon, she had no choice but to use the situation to her advantage.Her plan was to help him locate the group and stop their plans while ensuring her own powers didn’t grow out of control.“Why? Isn’t he your friend?”“He was, but now I’m in a different body. Besides…”Elsez trailed off, recalling the cold, ruthless way Astaire had slain his enemies.It was hard to believe that man was the same person she once knew as a friend.“Astaire has changed a lot in three years. It’s… scary. If he finds out I have the demon’s power…”As Elsez reached the library’s hallway, a familiar voice spoke behind her.“Who are you talking to?”Startled, she turned around to see soft golden hair fluttering lightly in the evening breeze and a pair of clear blue eyes, as bright as the spring sky.Her heart racing, Elsez forced herself to calm down and greeted him with feigned composure.“Oh, hello, Your Grace.”“Hello, Lady Elsez,” Astaire replied with a polite smile.Elsez’s gaze flickered as she studied his expression, swallowing hard before cautiously asking,“It was just… some mumbling. Did you happen to hear anything?”The last thing she had been talking about was her possession of the demon’s power.If Astaire had overheard, it could be catastrophic.Perhaps, right here and now, her main quest could end in failure.