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The extra hastily got to his feet and knocked over the chair.
A loud noise rang out, but he didn't even glance at the fallen chair.
He was too busy apologizing to me to afford such luxuries.
"I-I'm sorry, Young Master! I misspoke, please forgive me!"
Did he decide that a bleeding forehead was preferable to being whipped bloody until he passed out?
The extra prostrated himself, slamming his forehead against the floor as if performing a ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ formal bow.
Hard enough for a loud thud to echo out.
To think I would witness a scene usually seen only in historical dramas from this close.
The words, 'While you're at it, why don't you also say, "Please spare my life!"' rose to my throat.
But I couldn't bring myself to say them aloud.
Because I knew it wouldn't sound like a joke to him.
'I really don't understand. What kind of satisfaction do people get from looking down on others, that they're this desperate to crush someone?'
Suddenly, I heard murmuring.
It wasn't the group of extras who had been talking about Yor's appearance earlier.
Those people were too busy staying silent in fear, realizing they could have been the ones bowing on the floor if things had gone slightly differently.
Then who was talking?
The source of the murmuring was the newly arrived spectators.
They were observing the situation from afar with openly interested gazes.
My already gloomy mood became even heavier.
But now was the time to willingly become their spectacle.
If only to ensure today's incident would never happen again.
"Did you just call me 'Young Master'? Earlier, you were calling me 'that guy' and 'that kind of brat,' so why is it suddenly 'Young Master' now?"
"I-I was wrong...!"
"Did I say I would accept your apology? If you hear a question, you should answer it." ƒrēewebnovel.com
"Th-that, I mean..."
"So what exactly do you mean? Calm down and explain it slowly."
I urged him to stay calm.
I also maintained a calm and composed tone.
Acting this way would maximize the fear the extra before me felt far more effectively than displaying anger.
'The angrier I become, the more ridiculous I'll look to the people watching from a distance.'
An arrogant character who never loses their composure is often portrayed as someone of noble birth.
That was why I wanted to project the image of someone infinitely arrogant, yet elegant and lofty.
I straightened my back, kept my head raised, and lowered my gaze to look down at the extra bowing at my feet.
"Wh-when I addressed you like that, Young Master, it felt as if I had become someone superior to you..."
"That was nothing more than a delusion."
"Y-yes, you're right. It was just a delusion. I was foolish and got carried away without knowing my place! I'm sorry! I was wrong! I'll never do it again!!"
"That wasn't your only mistake, was it?"
"I apologize for my other remarks as well...!"
As if trying to say, 'I'm apologizing this sincerely, so please forgive me,' the extra raised his voice and slammed his forehead against the floor once more.
Then he cautiously lifted his head to look up at me, and I could see blood flowing from his forehead.
Others would see that blood too, and some of them might feel sympathy for him.
'Or maybe not? To those who arrived late and don't know the context, do I already look like an innocent victim tormenting someone for no reason?'
I couldn't allow public opinion to shift in that direction.
"What other remarks are you referring to? The one where you said it was absurd for me, a direct descendant of the Austri Ducal Family, to receive a familiar egg? Or the one where you claimed that familiar eggs should now be distributed according to standards that you personally decide? Or perhaps the one where you presumed to speak on behalf of the Four Great Ducal Families and the Imperial Family?"
A sharp gasp rang out from among the spectators.
When I subtly glanced around, they were already whispering amongst themselves.
They were probably asking those who had been present from the beginning whether what I said was true.
"I-I did say those things..."
"Are you planning to deny your words and refuse to admit your mistake?"
"N-no...! I did say them, but I didn't mean them like that..."
"But you phrased them in a way that could only be interpreted that way. You're not some child anymore, so you should think about how your words will sound before speaking."
"I-I'm sorry..."
"Why are you apologizing to me?"
"......"
Since the extra had admitted with his own mouth that my words were true, no one could defend or sympathize with him anymore.
In truth, I could have gone even further and incited everyone here to hate him.
What if people had believed his careless remarks and spread them everywhere?
Wouldn't they themselves have nearly committed a terrible mistake?
Just hinting at that possibility would have been enough.
'But if I say that, I might be criticized for speaking on behalf of the Imperial Family myself... Besides, they say a cornered rat will bite a cat. Let's keep this moderate. Moderate.'
This should be enough pressure.
By forcing the person who carelessly insulted my possessed body to kneel in front of a crowd, I had shown that I was not someone who could be mocked lightly.
Now it was time to end this.
"I will not whip you. This is not because I have forgiven you. It is because the weight of your careless words is too great to be repaid with only a few lashes. And because if I were seen striking you, some people might sympathize with you. And above all... it does not seem to be my role to punish you for your mistake."
I could see the extra's pupils trembling violently as he looked up at me.
He must have realized that being whipped by me here and now would have been the lightest possible punishment.
But even so...
"P-please, just hit me!!"
Wasn't it a bit excessive to shout something like that in the middle of the dormitory lobby?
As the one receiving the request, I felt nothing but discomfort and disgust.
"Not only are you short-sighted and loose-lipped, but you also seem to lack any pride."
I deeply furrowed my brow, turned sharply, and headed toward the male dormitory building.
A month later, I heard a rumor that the extra in question had taken responsibility for his remarks by withdrawing from school and shutting himself away at home.
At the time, my impression was simply, 'He found a way to avoid direct punishment while keeping his family from being implicated.'
But in any case, that is a story for later.
At this point in time, I didn't care about that extra at all.
Which was only natural, since he was merely a disposable character who would appear briefly and then disappear.
On the other hand, Yor was a being who would remain with me for the rest of my life.
"Haaak...!"
While climbing the stairs toward my room on the fifth floor...
...for some reason, my baby dragon suddenly started hissing angrily.
Fortunately, no one was around the stair landing where we stood, so I immediately lowered my voice and asked what was bothering Yor.
"Why are you suddenly angry?"
"Myaong, myao, myaoo, myamyat, nyaooong...!"
Even though I already knew this would happen if I asked a subjective question, why did I keep making the same mistake?
Reflecting on my actions, I changed the question.
"Do you think I let him off too easily?"
"Myo."
"I wasn't lenient at all. In fact, I did something extremely severe. That nobody from earlier will probably be completely ostracized socially from now on."
In a sense, you could say I committed something even crueler than what the original Karvaldr would have done.
If that extra hadn't brought up the Imperial Family, I wouldn't have pushed him this far.
...If I tried to excuse myself that way, would that make me too terrible of a person?
"Myo! Myo! Myoo!"
I quickly shook away the thoughts rising in my mind.
Yor was meowing angrily, clearly indicating that I had completely missed the point.
"Ah, right. 'Myo' was the response for complicated matters that couldn't be answered with yes or no, wasn't it?"
"Yaong~."
"In that case, since this conversation seems like it'll take a while, let's return to the room first and..."
"Kyaooo...!!"
"Yes, I understand. You want to talk here right now..."
This was troublesome.
Although no one was around at the moment, this was still a place where any male student at Valhalla Academy could pass through at any time.
That meant someone could appear at any moment.
This was not an appropriate place for a deep conversation meant to soothe a familiar's feelings.
Especially for me, since I had to continue acting as "the ill-tempered and self-centered Karvaldr."
'Yor should know that too, right?'
If I simply started walking back to the room, Yor would have no choice but to follow me.
But I didn't want to do that.
How could I ignore the wishes of this gentle baby dragon who had comforted me so kindly and simply act as I pleased?
Think.
If Yor insisted on talking here, then there had to be a reason.
I considered what that reason might be and eventually came up with a plausible hypothesis.
"Could it be... after thinking about it, you realized it wasn't only that nobody who deserved punishment was punished, but also the other students who joined the conversation? Did that suddenly occur to you? So you want to go back to the lobby right now and scold them too?"
"Nyang!"
"That might be difficult. By now, they've probably already dispersed somewhere else, or mixed into groups of other students, making them impossible to identify. If I had memorized their faces, maybe, but I didn't bother looking closely because I thought they were just extras..."
"Myah...?!"
As I spoke with a troubled expression, Yor made a shocked face.
She must have been extremely angry at those students to react like that.
"I'm sorry. Even if they weren't directly criticizing you, what they said was still enough to hurt your feelings, and I failed to consider that. Their conversation shocked me in many ways too."
"Nyan nyat, nyang, nyaah...! Myamya myak!!"
I reflected on my mistake and sincerely apologized to Yor.
At that, Yor flew back and forth around me as though she didn't know what to do, then suddenly began fuming angrily.
It didn't seem like she was angry at me.
"Because I said I was shocked, are you even angrier at them now?"
"Myoo, myah!"
"Ah... don't tell me, from the very beginning, what bothered you was the fact that I was shocked by their words? Is that why you wanted to go back?"
"Nyaoong~!"
How can she possibly be this lovable!
I was helplessly swept away by emotion.
I shouldn't have been. No, from the very beginning, I should have stayed on guard and maintained my act as the possessed body.
"Thank you so much, Yor. I don't even know how to express how I feel right now. Thanks to you, I feel much better now, so you don't have to worry about me anymore. In the first place, the reason I was shocked was..."
"Huh."
As I spoke with a gentle smile on my face, I heard a sound that absolutely should not have been heard at this moment.
"...Yor, was that sound just now you?"
"Myah, myah..."
Even though I already knew it wasn't her, I still asked Yor in a desperate attempt to escape reality.
At that, Yor shook her head with a troubled expression.
I squeezed my eyes shut, took a deep breath, then slowly opened them and turned toward the source of the sound.
"Um, I mean... I wasn't trying to eavesdrop on your conversation. I was just a little worried, so I followed you... S-sorry...?"
Could it be that my earlier thought — 'it wouldn't be strange for someone to appear at any moment' — had been foreshadowing?
The person speaking to me with an awkward expression was none other than Reisir.
Out of all the students, it had to be the original novel's protagonist who caught me in the middle of breaking character.
Cold sweat ran down my spine.
