The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

Chapter 154

The discomfort from the awkwardness of the duel did have its effect.

Sophia Bianchi was originally quite proud.

When she first appeared, she acted as if she enjoyed fighting on the battlefield, and after defeating the main characters, she made a remark about “not controlling her strength” or something similar.

But this time, she started by losing to me.

Even Lena, who was on my side, wasn’t deemed to have died, which was a good sign.

Of course, I fought while using my ability to rewind time multiple times, but that wasn’t the only reason I was able to win.

I had faced Lucas recently.

And not just facing him, but facing Lucas when he was extremely angry at me, and wearing the protective armor and holding an artifact as a weapon.

Sophia Bianchi’s skill didn’t compare to Lucas's.

I remembered something a baseball player once said. He faced a pitcher who threw fastballs with monstrous speed, and when that pitcher was replaced, the next pitch seemed much easier to hit.

That was exactly how I felt.

Although Sophia Bianchi wasn’t a weak opponent and wasn’t someone I could easily defeat without my abilities, I was confident that, at least with my ability to rewind time, I could take on a cathedral knight like her.

It gave me a bit of confidence.

That was the positive effect I gained from the duel.

But there was also a negative effect.

It was—

“Sylvia!”

Sophia Bianchi had become far more clingy than before.

I hadn’t realized it when she’d been sticking to me before, but perhaps back then, she was just evaluating me.

She was a skilled swordswoman, and for someone like her, it would have seemed odd to treat someone like me as ‘important,’ since she would have seen me as someone with no talent.

But after yesterday’s duel, it seemed like she looked at me differently.

Well, it wasn’t like she was physically touching me, so I suppose it was a relief...

“Ah, Sophia. How are you?”

“Yes, of course!”

She was acting so differently from how she was in the original story.

Claire had changed, but this felt even stranger. While Claire had grown up in an entirely different environment, Sophia’s circumstances hadn’t changed so drastically.

...Perhaps this was all an act?@@@@

“You seem in a good mood today.”

Charlotte seemed to feel a sense of familiarity with Sophia Bianchi. It was probably because they came from the same region. There was still quite a big difference in status, though.

“Yes, something wonderful happened yesterday.”

“Something wonderful?” Charlotte asked, tilting her head. Sophia Bianchi’s face turned toward me with a wide smile, and I felt a little uneasy seeing her expression.

“Yesterday, Sylvia and Miss Bianchi had a duel,” she said, before I had a chance to speak.

“That’s right,” Lena added.

For a brief moment, I caught a flash of irritation on Sophia Bianchi’s face as she spoke. Most people probably wouldn’t have noticed, but I did. And, oddly, I felt relieved.

So, she hadn’t completely changed her character.

“Well then... let’s talk. Please, have a seat.”

“Yes.”

Sophia Bianchi sat down, her expression showing no sign of tension.

She looked directly at me.

Her amethyst-like eyes locked onto mine, and it was a little uncomfortable. Despite living in the West for ten years, I hadn’t fully gotten used to this kind of eye contact.

I steeled myself.

There was no reason for me to feel uncomfortable in this situation. In fact, the person who should feel uncomfortable was Sophia Bianchi, who was here on a covert mission.

In that sense, she was doing her job well.

“Sophia Bianchi.”

“Yes?”

“Are you from the Law Country?”

I asked without beating around the bush, and for a moment, she stood there, speechless.

“Pardon?”

“I asked if you’re from the Law Country.”

Sophia Bianchi stared at me blankly, and I poured some tea into her cup.

It seemed strange to think she wouldn’t be discovered, especially with her sword techniques and openly mentioning the goddess.

Though, there might be people in the Empire who casually talk about goddesses. It wasn’t a religion that everyone believed in, but it was still an influential faith, so there must be plenty of followers.

I only realized the truth and figured it out, so maybe other people wouldn’t have noticed. They might have thought, “There’s no way a true knight from the Law Country would be so open about it.”

“You’re not going to answer?”

As I urged her for a response, she blinked and spoke.

“Are you saying... I’ve been hiding my nationality?”

“You may not have been hiding it. If the status itself is real, then you wouldn’t be lying. It could be a ‘real’ status created for a purpose.”

At least, it wasn’t something created just for this mission. In the original story, her name had always been “Sophia Bianchi,” and that hadn’t changed, even in the latest editions.

“Then I’ll change the question.”

I looked directly at Sophia Bianchi, just as she had looked at me earlier.

Sophia Bianchi was flustered but didn’t avert her gaze, so her expression became clearer.

Was she doing this on purpose? Maybe she thought showing her flustered expression would make me believe her?

Well, I would find out soon enough.

“Are you a knight from the Law Country?”

“...”

Eventually, Sophia Bianchi’s expression stiffened.

“...If I ask how you knew, will you tell me?”

“Well...”

I replied as I stared at Sophia Bianchi.

“If the hand you’re showing is useful to me, I don’t see any reason to hide my cards either.”