No to Being the Suffering Heroine!

“…That’s unfortunate. I thought we could become good friends.”

Yuron’s eyes blazed with betrayal and anger as he realized I’d spread the news of Haval’s death all over town.

Well, I suppose if I was going to get screwed over while trying to give him a job, it was going to be a proper screw.

“Good friends indeed. Sharing each other’s hardships.”

But that’s life, isn’t it? For me, this is the best I can do. As Ashel said, if I didn’t do it this way, you’d stab us in the back.

If someone’s going to get backstabbed, shouldn’t it be someone else’s back, not mine?

So I took a swing at Yuron’s back first. Whack!

“……Huff.”

Yuron closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and let out a deep sigh. His clenched fist trembled, looking like it couldn’t decide whether to hit me or just shake in rage.

“Let’s think positively. Positively.”

Of course, that’s impossible without going insane.

“Haval’s dead, so the only remaining threats are Lakan and Cornelo. If we win just two more times… Good heavens, the Guild will control the entire city?”

So, I casually tapped my fingers on Haval’s remains, keeping it light-hearted.

“It’s truly a joyous occasion, isn’t it? You don’t need to thank me. It’s just a natural favor between friends.”

“Ah, damn….”

Yuron let slip some curses before he could fully suppress them.

I’ve made this guy mad! I can control the emotions of the Guild leader!

His tone, which typically gave off a noble air, was now stained with raw expletives.

If I pushed him any further, he might really lose it and come at me swinging.

…Maybe it’s time to ease up on the teasing?

Alright, let’s get serious for a bit. I’ve come this far not to just brawl with Yuron.

“Take a seat. We have plenty left to talk about, don’t we?”

I gestured to the sofa across from me and smiled warmly at Yuron.

“N-no… huh.”

He looked completely flabbergasted, mouth opening and closing a few times before he finally let out a heavy sigh and plopped down onto the sofa.

Yeah, you know it well enough. You have no other way out now.

With things tangled this way—no, with me tangling things this way—Yuron’s only choice is to suppress his complaints and cooperate with me.

Otherwise, he’d end up trying to cut ties with me and go down in flames along with me.

“…It ought to be a story beneficial to both of us, I suppose. Just to convince the other members.”

Of course, as expected, Yuron chose the former.

◆◆

The first principle of negotiation:

Never relinquish the initiative.

“The term ‘fate community’ might be a bit misused here. To be honest, our organization has no real attachment to Pesengwigel.”

The first thing I said when things got serious was to tear down the very expression ‘fate community’ from the ground up.

“This whole affair is merely a trial run since we had the resources to spare. The higher-ups aren’t particularly hopeful, you see. So they sent only me.”

“…What are you trying to say?”

Yuron responded, his tone a bit lower.

Yeah, this guy’s sharp enough to catch the hidden meaning behind my words.

“If things get tricky, we can pull out without hesitation. Sure, I might get scolded a bit, but that’s something I could easily smooth over.”

If the situation gets complicated and both of us are in danger, you can’t escape since this is your base, but as for me? I can just skip town!

‘You’re buying this, right? You’ll believe this? This guy knows nothing. About me or the hawk.’

The truth was, every word of that was a blatant lie…

“…So you’re saying the blade is in your hand?”

“Of course not. It just means our side won’t lose sleep if things go awry.”

To Yuron, who wasn’t aware of the underlying details, that was probably a fact he’d have to accept.

“Ugh….”

As expected, Yuron twitched at his temples, taking another deep sigh to signal his acceptance of my deceptive words.

“Ah, don’t get me wrong. I don’t wish for things to go wrong either. You’ve lent me a favor, so why would I want that?”

“…Does someone who remembers favors do this kind of stuff?”

“I took care of Haval without asking for a single penny, didn’t I? It’s my way of repaying you. After all, you wouldn’t be standing up to Lakan for my sake.”

While Yuron did save my life, if we’re being honest, I owe him nothing—it’s all about perspective.

Yuron didn’t stand against Lakan just for my sake.

Initially, when he gathered members to step into the Slums, he probably wasn’t even aware I was fighting Lakan.

Whether I was there or not, Yuron would have shown himself to Lakan, fully utilizing whatever means necessary to persuade him.

In other words, while I’m grateful for the rescue, there’s no need to dwell too deeply on it.

It was purely a result of time and interest colliding together, not just kindness from him.

Since he likely saw potential in me, he decided to help, but had he believed that killing me would benefit the Guild, he’d have left me for dead.

“Of course, I have my own standing and reputation, so working for free will end with this one time.”

That’s why I could spill these shameless words without hesitation, turning a blind eye to the nagging voice of conscience in my heart.

“You get what I mean, right?”

What I really wanted was a proposal that would entice me, so if the Guild didn’t fancy getting wiped out, they’d better offer me something good.

Yuron, fully understanding the implications of my statement, gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes at me, his voice dripping with contempt as he spat out:

“…What do you want?”

It was the answer and question I had been waiting for. I crossed my legs and leaned deep into the back of the sofa, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

“Well, as for what I want…”

The moment had come where I could finally reveal the reason for all my brazen chatter.

“Ah, speaking of which, something amusing happened yesterday.”

“…Amusing?”

Yuron shot me a glare, clearly annoyed.

Stop with the sarcasm and get on with the point, already! He wasn’t hiding his impatience at all.

I was in no rush, trust me, we were getting to the point.

“Well, you see, a cheeky little puppy snuck into my house.”

“A puppy…?”

“It was so wild and dirty, I first thought it was a stray wandering the Slums… but then I noticed it had a collar on.”

“That is…!”

Yuron’s face hardened as he pieced together whom I was talking about.

“You’re connecting the dots, huh?”

Surprisingly emotional. His true feelings were visibly showing on his face.

I thought he was good at hiding them last time we met, but maybe with Haval’s issue weighing on him, he didn’t have the mental space this time?

Well, good for me. If emotions are flaring, there’s no room to disguise his true sentiments.

“I found it honestly impressive that someone who wanted to be friends kept a watchdog on the side. I was almost tempted to learn from that meticulousness.”

Truth is, Yuron’s request to Ashel for surveillance happened before the Slums disaster kicked off.

So technically, he wasn’t backstabbing me; it was a routine investigation he felt necessary as the Guild leader.

“That’s a misunderstanding. Ashel is, strictly speaking—”

“Enough. I don’t wish to delve into who’s right or wrong.”

If Ashel had not been captured by me, it might have been a different story, but with her now in my hands, any proof to establish that ‘misunderstanding’ was as absent as a ghost.

What’s he gonna do? Bitterly accept what is undoubtedly a huge mess for him.

“However, that watchdog seems pretty tempting to me. While still rough around the edges, I caught a glimpse of the talents fitting our organization… in fragments.”

“You want me to hand over Ashel?”

“Seeing such a gem rotting in a sewer, it’s only human to want to help it shine, even if it requires some effort.”

My demand, too, was something he’d need to acknowledge if he didn’t want the Guild to meet its end.

“I fear there’s been a misunderstanding… strict definitions apply, but she’s not really part of our Guild. If you wish to enlist her, you’ll need to talk to her directly.”

Having caught wind of my intentions for recruiting Ashel, Yuron subtly pulled back, attempting to shift the onus onto her.

While he might not want her to refuse, the dynamics of the situation wouldn’t allow an easy rejection, so he hoped—no, was probably convinced she’d decline on his behalf.

Since he believed her “kids” were in his hands, he’d assume Ashel wouldn’t cut ties with the Guild or Yuron himself.

“Don’t worry about that. It took some time to ‘persuade’ her, but I already have her agreement.”

But here’s the kicker: Ashel had already decided to join our party.

As a precondition, she wanted guarantees on the safety of those kids she got assigned to the Guild.

“…She accepted that proposal?!”

“That’s correct. However, there’s one lingering element of uncertainty.”

“Element of uncertainty… what does that entail?”

“Don’t act oblivious. I’m talking about the orphans she picked up. While capable, the way they live is questionable—her focus seems consumed with looking after them.”

In hindsight, everything that occurred—from the elimination of Haval to this very conversation—stemmed from that one uncertainty.

“If I remember right, she’s currently staying at the orphanage run by the Guild? To think the Guildmaster would train a bunch of strays to tame rabid beasts in the sewer… you really have a lot to teach me.”

To cleanly eliminate that uncertainty, I’d need to corner Yuron into an unreasonable situation, forcing him to accept a deal that only delivers disadvantages.

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