Noark did not reject evil spirits, so unlike what happened in the other world, there were many who lived with their identities revealed. Actually, judging from our previous conversation, native Amelia also did not view evil spirits in a hostile manner.
But the moment I admit this, it will become my weakness for the rest of my life.
Bjorn Yandel was an evil spirit. To say it was my Achilles heel was an understatement. It was a bomb that could destroy my entire social life and even threaten my life, and the button on that bomb was in Amelia's hands. Of course, Amelia and I had a friendly relationship now, but no one knew what would happen next. What if things went wrong due to some event? From that day on, not only would I not have a restful night's sleep, but it would surely become an anxiety factor even if there were no particular problems in our friendship. If he ever insisted on manipulating me, he would summon me like a servant and work like a dog.
«Amelia Rainwales, are you insulting me?». I spoke in a low voice, like the growl of an animal. And rightly so. Didn't evil spirits lose their memory? It could have been a made-up story just to probe me. Even if that medicine had that characteristic, it had to pass it off as defective.
«So what if I am?»
«...Eh?» No one had ever responded to me with such confidence.
While I was briefly bewildered, Amelia said: «Are you going to attack me? Without my help, it will be more difficult to get the items kept by the castle lord.»
«...Don't test my patience».
Amelia snorted at my words. «The fact that you say that is proof that you are not very angry. If not, you would have pounced on me a long time ago, as all barbarians do. Come to think of it, you were strange from our first meeting. I told you to beg for your life for the honor of a warrior and you didn't even think twice. But insult? Don't you think it's funny to say that now?».
Ha, was this karma? When he said it like that, I had nothing more to say. I only had one thing left. «You must have a problem in your head to laugh at a barbarian».
It was an ultimatum. Obviously, hesitating further would leave me at an even greater disadvantage here.
As she blew steam into my body with that thought, she replied: «Why, are you really planning to attack me? Just like you did with the evil spirit hunter who came to see you then?».
Hey? Does she know about that too?
«…You, did you investigate me?»
«There are not just one or two suspicious things about you. Most people would have done it, not just me. Surely everyone left their doubts after you received the noble title». Amelia continued speaking without giving me a moment to interrupt her. «But to think that you really are an evil spirit. You have talent. How the hell did you get a title? Even if the Ministry of Security cleared you of charges, the palace would have verified you separately for something like that».
There was none of that. I didn't know how but it worked. I could use that part now. «Don't you think it's because I'm not an evil spirit?»
I spoke confidently with straightened shoulders, but Amelia immediately responded: «As I said before, only evil spirits preserve the memory of that medicine.»
«Defectuoso-»
«That will not be the case».
Was she a ruler? Because it was rigid. His guard was so strong that nothing I said worked. What should I do?
As she contemplated this, Amelia murmured: «Hmm, now that I think about it, it is possible that the palace knowingly fell silent. Since then you were nothing more than a hero in the city».
What was he referring to now? I was curious what he would say after that, but I felt like I was just admitting it, so I suppressed it. But was that visible on my face?
«Looks like you have no idea what I mean».
«Yes, not at all. Why would I be curious about that in the first place?».
Amelia smiled at my denial. «So you're not going to admit it until the end?».
«Of course. Because I am not an evil spirit».
«Well, that's typical of you. Alright. It doesn't hurt». Then Amelia took out a compass-sized disk from subspace. It was an object that I couldn't stop knowing.
Holy shit, why is this coming out here?
When activated, Wrong Trust number 7,234 made it impossible to tell a lie within a ten meter radius. It also turned out to be the object that caused that disaster in the Doppelganger Forest.
«I didn't see it when you unpacked the suitcase at the merchant company before».
«Because I bought it separately when I lived in the city. I thought it would be useful in a city like this. Although I didn't know I would use it on you first».
That's how it was. You already made a simulation of how to cook me by combining all the cards you had.
«Judging by your expression I guess I don't have to explain to you what this is. Well, there's no way an evil spirit wouldn't know».
Clic.
Amelia pressed the home button at the top of Wrong Trust. Then he placed it on the nightstand, between the beds. The seconds hand began to move slowly, ticking.
Amelia asked in that state: «Bjorn Yandel, are you an evil spirit?».
It was checkmate. A suffocating silence followed. In it, I desperately turned the gears in my head.
What should I do?
It was not about whether or not to reveal that it was an evil spirit. That water had already been spilled the moment Wrong Trust came to light.
No es false.
Unfortunately, the Wrong Trust was genuine. I tried it the moment it started working. When I tried to tell the lie: «I am a woman», it did not come out of my mouth.
«Now you have five minutes. Are you going to be silent like this?».
This article meant that silence itself was an answer. The fact that I was an evil spirit had already been proven. And therefore, my concerns were about one thing.
¿La mato?
Since it was my biggest secret, the extreme measures seemed lovely.
...Stop thinking nonsense.
I shook off that thought. To begin with, killing her was impossible. To be honest, it's not that there was no way to win a fight against her, but if Amelia decided to run away, the chase wouldn't be easy. Furthermore, if our partnership went awry at this time, all my future plans would also be in jeopardy.
Furthermore, it is clear that as an enemy she is one of those who bothers a lot.
In that case, there was only one option, although it was not a barbaric solution. Since this woman's thinking was going in black and white, if I didn't want her to be an enemy, I had no choice but to be her friend.
«It would be a shame if this was wasted so I guess I should say something instead. What I said before about evil spirits not losing their memory with medicine is not a made-up statement, it is the truth.»
I put an end to my long worry. «Yes, I am an evil spirit».
It was my second outing after Baekho. Amelia didn't seem particularly surprised. He only took it out so that I could admit it with my own mouth; she would have been convinced a long time ago.
«It's a strange expression».
«...You'll never know how relieved and suffocated I feel right now».
«For some reason...» Amelia suddenly stopped her words. At first, I wondered why it was, but I soon understood the situation. Wrong Trust had recognized a lie and silenced it.
«You weren't going to apologize to me or anything, were you?». How ridiculous. An anger arose inside me for a moment but I managed to push it away.
Yes, we can't become enemies now, right?
Since I had been trapped as an evil spirit, I now had to become this woman's best friend, so I had to check this first. «But are you okay? That I am an evil spirit».
«If you ask me if I have bad feelings like the people in town, the answer is no. I once worked with an evil spirit on a team for over a year».
«...Then why were you so persistent?»
«Because I was curious». This was the second obstacle. Just for a reason like that, did she dig into something someone wanted to hide? Just as the steam was about to rise to my head, she said as she avoided eye contact, «Strangely, I still get involved with you. That's why I was curious. If you had something to hide, and if I can trust you».
Seeing as the Wrong Trust is activated, I don't think he's saying something he doesn't mean... Ha, this makes getting a little angry.
«Oh, of course, I also judged that you wouldn't be able to betray me so easily if I contained your weakness.»
That would have been better not to say out loud. Well, what can you do with a woman like that?
«I have a question.»
«...Question.»
«If you are an evil spirit, why were you so angry about Yandel Jarku's death? Was it because?»
«That is...»
I don't know either, it was what I wanted to answer but the words didn't come out. So I admitted it honestly. «Yeah.»
«Hmm, you were actually a very soft person». Amelia looked at me with amused eyes. «Is your goal to return like the other evil spirits?».
"...No lo sé." ⁇
«For your comrades? I guess you were originally a loving person».
Ugh, why was she so interested in me? I needed to change the subject quickly.
Click.
Then, the Lost Trust needle stopped moving. It meant that the duration of the effect was over.
Much better.
I quickly changed the topic of conversation. Whether I liked it or not, I had already revealed myself as the evil spirit, right? I should start by asking the things I hadn't been able to do until now to hide my identity.
«But Amelia, why were you looking for Auril Gavis in the past?».
«Oh, I guess you would know about him if you're an evil spirit».
«I don't just know. I even met him in person not long ago».
«Did you know him?»
«Let's talk about that later, answer my question first.»
«...Because the day my older sister died, he was there.»
"¿What?"
«I figured I must be involved somehow. That's why I wanted to meet him and know the truth. That's all.»
Hmm, it wasn't really anything special. I thought there would be a bigger secret.
No, the fact that the old man was there that day is not bad information. Maybe you can figure out your goal from this trip.
«Now then. Tell me. Where did you meet him?»
«Do you know Ghostbusters?»
«If you mean the gathering of evil spirits, to some extent.»
Well, then there was less to explain. «I was sure I wouldn't be summoned, since we are twenty years in the past, but I was summoned while I was sleeping. There I met a man who claimed to be Auril Gavis». After continuing to explain that I had been caught as being from the future in our conversation, I said: «The important part starts now, so listen carefully. That old man said that no matter what we do here, the past cannot be changed».
«...Did he say that?»
«Yes, at first I had a hard time believing it so I put it to the test. And the results are what I told you then». Dwalkie and Raven. I tried to change their futures, but even that action was part of the cause and effect. «So I'll ask you again, Amelia. Are you still going to try it?»
Amelia didn't respond. When I told him last time he didn't even flinch, but now that Auril Gavis's additional explanation was added, it seemed like the weight was different. He gathered his emotions in silence for a while before opening his mouth. «I will. It's too late to give up now».
Too late, huh? He sounded like someone who bought shares on the top of a cliff.
«I see. Then I will help you». Instead of interrupting her, I expressed my intention to join her. She was a very compassionate woman, after all. If I continued to accumulate friendship and thus went into debt with her, it would not occur to her to play with my weakness.
«...I'm tired. I'm going to sleep». Amelia ended the conversation there and lay down on the bed. I was a little stunned.
Hey? Sleep? Shouldn't you thank me right now? That he can trust me, or that he's glad to have me?
I didn't expect any of that, but I never thought he would go to bed without responding. That changed my plan. How was I going to earn points with her?
«Amelia, are you sleeping?»
« ... ¿Mm? »
«I only thought about giving you an m-massage if you're tired.»
«…»
«Oh, sure... That's too much, right? Sorry to interrupt your sleep».
I lay on the bed in front of Amelia. Even though I closed my eyes, there was no way I could sleep.
When the silence flowed like this incessantly, a question came flying towards me without blinking. «What was your original name?».
I answered honestly. I didn't know why I was suddenly curious about my real name. «It's Hansu Lee. Lee is my last name». Since I had been discovered, something like my real name wasn't important. I judged that refusing to answer could be a factor in diminishing his kindness. Hmm, yes. That should have been the case.
«Hans? So, your name is Hans? It's a surprisingly common name».
«What the hell did you say?» A curse came out of me accidentally. That crossed the line.