I’m Telling You, I’m Not a Boss Monster!

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“Boss. Please, I’m begging you.”

Isabella bowed her head and left the Boss Room.

For two days now, starting with Selina, then Estizel, Balutak, and finally Isabella, everyone had been making the same request.

To somehow coax and comfort Charlotte.

Two days had passed since the Magic Overrun, and worries among the executives, including myself, were sky-high.

I heard that even Cecilia and Selina had stepped forward, but she remained holed up in her room.

“Everyone seems quite worried.”

The Hermit sighed as he spoke.

I could relate, as my own feelings were no different.

Charlotte had nearly killed me during the Magic Overrun.

The shock was naturally significant, but I just wanted to shake it off quickly.

“I’m so sorry. It’s because of me…”

Did she think the cause of the Magic Overrun was Mental Interference? The Hermit seemed to be feeling guilty.

Of course, she was in no way responsible.

The Mental Interference was my orders, and it was Cecilia’s sudden spike that led to it.

“It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault.”

“But, Boss… Isn’t the Lieutenant going to collapse?!”

For the past two days, Charlotte had refused to eat or drink anything.

She hadn’t even eaten and hadn’t taken a sip of water, so the Hermit’s worries weren’t unfounded.

They say a person can’t survive more than three days without water.

For someone like Charlotte, a superhuman, it might be different, but health deterioration was obvious.

Without another moment’s thought, I stood up.

Leaving her alone any longer would be akin to neglect, not consideration.

“Oh? Where are you going?”

“I’m going to see Charlotte.”

I regretted not visiting her right away that day.

In my attempt to be considerate, I’d left her alone for two days, which was a foolish act.

Charlotte’s level color was a deep black.

Since that day, Charlotte had been afraid of me.

It was a fear far removed from the mundane kind.

She feared what thoughts I might have had after being pushed to the brink of death by her.

With the color change, the previously existing ‘MAX’ also disappeared.

It probably meant she had a maximum favorability, which naturally faded as fear grew greater.

“Special measures are definitely needed.”

The holy relic I received from Roxanne was carefully tucked inside my pocket.

If worst comes to worst, this is all I have left to use.

Just as I steeled myself and stepped out of the Boss Room, someone stood in my way.

“Master.”

Cecilia’s expressionless face looked up at me.

For some unknown reason, she seemed visibly anxious.

“Can I change my wish?”

“…A wish?”

It sprang to my mind. It was when Charlotte and I went to visit the Hermit alone.

She had said she would grant a wish in exchange for her being patient.

“What did you say?”

“….”

For some reason, Cecilia kept glancing nervously.

I silently coaxed her to speak with my gaze.

After a while of silence, Cecilia finally parted her lips with great difficulty.

“About the Lieutenant Witch. Can you comfort her, Master?”

It was such an unexpected answer that I wondered if I had heard it wrong.

I knew she felt responsible for her, but I didn’t expect her to ask this much.

“I’m worried something big might happen. You know she’s only relying on you, Master.”

“When has she ever tried to kill me?”

When she was trying to kill me, she was full of rage.

Cecilia flinched a bit and awkwardly scratched the back of her neck.

“I thought about it alone. In the end, she’s someone whose life you saved twice. How could I possibly wish her dead? I can’t kill her, even for your sake, Master.”

“Is that so?”

“I’ll call it a mistake back then. I should’ve interrogated her first, but I got too excited.”

Since she had just suddenly lunged at me with a knife, I can understand why she’d feel guilty.

I heard that Cecilia had once dropped by the Lieutenant’s Room to try and soothe Charlotte.

That seemed to leave a lot of room for reconciliation.

“Don’t you think you should try to get along with Charlotte?”

“…I still dislike that witch.”

So she feels guilt, but her hatred hasn’t changed?

How can someone be so honest in such a matter?

“I hope you both can get along. I don’t even expect a romance. I’m satisfied if you can just greet each other when you meet.”

“That witch probably hates me too.”

“Then that means you should reach out first. Someone has to take the plunge, right?”

It’s not like I was trying to reconcile children; my fate is something else.

For the sake of my pride, I didn’t say, “Please get along.”

If I force them to reconcile, it would be obvious they wouldn’t last long.

If they can evolve on their own will, that’s all the better.

Looking up at me, Cecilia pursed her lips.

After a brief moment of gauging, she took a deep sigh as if to prove a point.

“I’ll think about it for now. …Just thinking.”

Since it’s a request, please get along.

If you two fight again, there won’t be a Dungeon left standing.

***

Thoughts of Mental Interference kept swirling in my mind.

Deep within the dense darkness, Charlotte had plunged herself deeply.

She felt far more hatred for herself than for the Humanity that had wiped out her clan.

Do I have the right to live after killing that noble person?

I should deserve to die, but paradoxically, it was a life she had saved twice.

Had I died from the Magic Overrun instead…

That was a thought an irresponsible person would have, avoiding a grim future.

“…I’m sorry for my admiration.”

She held onto feelings she shouldn’t possess without knowing the reason behind her actions.

Did the boss know that the cause of her nearly dying was herself?

If he finds out, what would he think of her? Would he hate her, despise her, and look down on her?

She wasn’t trying to save you, you were left to die…

Charlotte was overwhelmed with dread about the uncertain future ahead.

Knock, knock. A knock echoed through the air.

She quickly lifted her head to see a silhouette already visible through the slightly opened door.

Charlotte’s pupils trembled nervously as she beheld him.

‘This is serious.’

Barugore couldn’t hide his bewilderment either.

Charlotte’s condition was dire.

Her hair was dry and unkempt. Her chapped lips had of dried blood on them.

After two days of not eating, she had emaciated terribly, and her tear ducts had dried out, leaving deep streaks from crying.

While Roxanne came to mind, this was far worse.

“…Boss.”

A short voice escaped from her tightly held throat.

She felt terrified, wondering what had brought him here, whether he knew the truth.

Her head was a whirlwind of fears, and Barugore sat down beside her with a thump.

Without her realizing it, she kept her eyes fixed on him.

She wanted to know what emotions his face held, but reading the expression of an Undead was close to impossible.

“Charlotte.”

He called her name, and her shoulders flinched slightly.

Reflexively, she reacted with a nervous jerk. Her emotional turmoil had manifested in her actions.

“Everyone is worried about you. It’s time to get up.”

His tone was laced with genuine concern.

Charlotte felt relief but also an undefined fear.

The Boss still didn’t know about the past.

But that ‘still’ was only fleeting.

“Boss, are you really okay?”

She was so scared that her already suppressed voice trembled.

“Weren’t you almost killed because of me?”

“I’m already a dead soul.”

Trying to lighten the bleak atmosphere with humor, but Charlotte’s reaction was lukewarm.

Cough. Barugore cleared his throat, hiding any further awkwardness.

“Saving you was solely my choice. How could I possibly blame you? Even if I had died, my feelings would have been the same.”

“….”

“Charlotte. You and I are fated to be linked. Our connection transcends bonds, it’s a bond of souls.”

He openly stated that theirs was a relationship more special than any other.

As long as she stood up, it didn’t matter how Charlotte interpreted that.

“Barugore.”

For some reason, the way she referred to him suddenly changed.

“Do you long for life as well, Barugore?”

The Undead who possessed intellect craved life.

Kalandas had too; outwardly, Barugore longed for life.

He had transformed into an Undead overnight.

With vivid memories from his days as a human, how could he feel otherwise?

“Did you become Undead out of hatred for Humanity?”

“…I suppose so.”

“Yet you still love Humanity? Can hatred and love truly coexist? Do you have a love-hate relationship with Humanity?”

Barugore pondered briefly before nodding.

The remnants of the hero Lucas lingered in him, thus he loved Humanity.

If that were the case, maybe Charlotte could be forgiven too.

Such a vain hope. A selfish desire.

Guilt washed over her for daring to even think that way.

Charlotte met his gaze.

Her heart ached with an endless sense of remorse. Even now, staring into his eyes, her guilt tightened around her throat.

Swallowing hard, she finally managed to speak.

“I’m so sorry, Lucas.”

The future where he would know everything filled her with an overwhelming fear.

She wanted to hide it her entire life. Even if he found out someday, she thought she wouldn’t confess.

But she couldn’t keep deceiving him forever.

Her guilt swelled like a snowball, crushing her heart, making her feel icy.

“You should… blame me.”

Charlotte had nothing to blame upon except for herself.

For Lucas, the one he should blame wasn’t Humanity but Charlotte herself.

The one who took away his life wasn’t Humanity, but Charlotte.

“You saved me… ten years ago… back then too.”

As she thought of Lucas’s face, her lips trembled.

Charlotte bit her lips until they bled.

Tears welled up, blurring her vision. Even the tone of her voice became pitifully soaked.

With a trembling voice, Charlotte began to confess her sins.

The magic she had thrust into Lucas’s neck. The chaotic magic that had caused his sacrifice.

Barugore silently listened to her confessions.

Endless tears trickled down, collecting at her chin. Her shoulders sagged, mirroring her heart’s turmoil.

Charlotte’s demeanor was more pitiful than a sinner confessing.

As she uttered her last words, her voice grew close to a wail.

“I… killed you. It was me. I… didn’t know that I was… harboring feelings I shouldn’t have near you… I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry, Lucas. I… I killed you….”

How would he look at her? What would he say? How much would he blame her, hate her?

She was frightened to tell him to leave the Mausoleum of Faith. It wasn’t about saving her.

What words would come from his mouth, she felt only fear.

“What’s the big deal? So what?”

“……Huh?”

 

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