Volume 7 Chapter 29: Open Up! Water Meter Inspection!
Morning light streamed into the room—it was another new day.
The chains fastened to my wrists were still there. No one forced me to wear them, yet I had no intention of removing them.
More than once, I stood before the mirror, staring at my reflection and pondering a serious question: Who am I now?
In my mind were memories of two individuals who looked identical yet behaved so differently. One of them was named Walson. The other, Herobrine.
Both sets of memories felt incredibly real, as though they were my personal experiences. The result? An overwhelming tangle of conflicting recollections that robbed me of even the most basic sense of self-identity.
It would be so much easier if I could distinguish myself by appearance. That thought came to mind, but I realized I bore traits from both of them.
My right eye, with its brown iris, was Walson's. My left eye, glowing with an eerie white light, came from Herobrine.
A sharp pain stabbed through my head, and I couldn't help but bang it against the wall.
Thud, thud, thud.
A week had passed since that battle. I had been awake for six days, learning the exact timeline only after Grace regained consciousness.
She had slept for two days, meaning I had genuinely hurt her—and the others even more so. Derisha, in particular, hadn't woken up yet.
Was she severely injured? Was it that part of me, the one that possessed the hero, who did it?
I didn't dare check their conditions. No, correction—I was too afraid to face them. Afraid I might hurt them again.
Part of me had reasons to justify such actions. That alone made me deeply uneasy.
Images of the three of them collapsing to the ground replayed in my mind. At that moment, I didn't feel like myself anymore—as if I'd lost all control.
I was terrified of them seeing me like this. I didn't want to become their enemy.
Just then, there was a knock at the door, followed by voices from outside.
"Uh, Master said he wanted some time alone…"
"Yes, but it's been so many days! I'm worried!"
"—Walson. Walson."
The voices belonged to Melon, Barella, and Grace.
Oh no, just as I feared!
"Uh, wait—" I tried to stop them, but the next moment, the door creaked open slightly. The two obsidian chains securing it strained tightly, clattering ominously.
"Hey, why is it locked?"
"Is—is Master kidnapped?"
"Wait, no! That'd be really bad!"
"—Walson, open the door."
Hold on. Things were heading in a very wrong direction! It wasn't supposed to play out like this!
"Wait, you can't open it right now!" I rushed over, pressing my hands against the door.
Wow, their strength was insane! I couldn't hold it shut at all!
"…Why not?" Grace's voice paused for a moment before questioning from the other side.
"Well, uh, because… uh…"
"Oh, now that you mention it, it's been a while since we've seen Miss Zakarina. There's something I wanted to ask her." Melon's seemingly random comment came out of nowhere.
Wait. Why did she sound oddly suspicious? And how did she even arrive at that conclusion?!
The knocking suddenly stopped. So did their efforts to push the door open.
Oh, thank goodness. As long as they stopped—
"Huh?" I let out a surprised sound.
Why? Because the door was glowing.
Whoa, did the manufacturer overdo it with the fluorescent coating? What kind of shady contractor is this—wait, why is it glowing?!
Boom!
What the heck?! The door exploded!!!
The force of the blast sent me flying backward, a rush of air hitting me as I landed ungracefully.
The next thing I saw was the terrifying expressions of three girls encircling me.
Achievement unlocked: Open Up! Water Meter Inspection! I could almost hear the notification ding in my head.
…
…
…
And so, here we were.
Surrounded by the three girls, I knelt on the floor in a pitiful dogeza position, accepting their scolding like an obedient little husband.
"So you locked yourself in here because you didn't want us to see you like this? What are you, a child too scared to own up to their mistakes?" Barella crossed her arms, her tone full of dissatisfaction.
"You could have just told us. We could have figured it out together," Grace puffed out her cheeks. "Walson, you're trying to handle everything alone again."
"Master, you made a promise," Melon said, looking down at me with a sorrowful expression.
"I... I was afraid I might hurt—" I tried to justify myself.
"A mere Walson could never harm someone like me," Barella interrupted, turning her head away with feigned arrogance, flipping her voluminous curls. However, her confident act faltered as a wounded expression crossed her face. "But what truly hurts is knowing that the person most important to me would rather face it all alone than trust me."
"...A mere Walson," Grace muttered, pouting.
"A mere master," Melon added, unusually displeased.
If guilt had weight, it would have crushed me right then and there.
Though being labeled "a mere Walson" stung in a peculiar way, everything my wives said was true. I'd made the same mistake again.
No matter how much I reflected in the past, my instinctive reaction when faced with challenges remained the same—I hadn't grown at all.
"I'm sorry," I finally admitted.
"That's more like it," Grace said as she crouched down, grabbing my cheeks and tilting my head up to scrutinize my glowing left eye.
"Master, have you tried drinking some milk?" Melon asked, bending over slightly, her tail swaying.
"I have, but it didn't help," I replied.
The glowing left eye was Herobrine's trait. Right now, it was like our souls, along with our memories, had completely fused. There was no separating them, and milk wouldn't magically dispel Herobrine.
—Wait. At some point, I'd started identifying myself as Walson.
"Other than the glowing eye, do you feel anything else unusual? Can this eye still see properly?" Barella asked, crouching beside me.
"Ah, yes, it works fine..."
"Then there's no problem! If anything comes up, we'll handle it together," Barella said with a smile. "However..."
She paused for a moment before suddenly lunging at me, pinning me to the ground.
Her arms wrapped tightly around me, squeezing me closer and closer. The soft sensation of her chest against me—oh, whoa, whoa, WHOA!!
"But... you're still Walson. I'm so glad," she murmured, burying her face in my chest.
...
Ah.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
"...D-damn it! She got ahead of me!" Grace's eyes widened.
"Hehehe! I told you, if you're not careful, I'll steal Walson away!" Barella teased, sticking her tongue out at Grace while keeping me pinned.
W-wait! Is this turning into... a love rivalry?!
"...M-mmmph! Hmph!" Just as Grace pouted, preparing to pounce, a noise from outside drew her attention.
Something—no, someone—was rushing toward us.
"Walson!!!! I WAS SO WORRIED!!!"
Tears streaming down her face, Derisha bolted toward me.
Oh, it's just Derisha. I really had made my wives worry.
...
Wait.
Wait, wait, WAIT!
Because it's Derisha, this is REALLY bad!!!!
"WALSON! AHHHH!!"
"W-wait, Derisha—!!!"
"Miss Derisha, oh no!!!!"
"Ack, don't drag me into this! AHHHHHHHH!!!!"
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