I Became a Raid Boss-Chapter 169: Love’s Match (6)

“...Really, you came after hearing that?”

“That’s what I’m saying. Have you been living a lie all this time?”

“Hmm...”

It’s not that I’ve only been deceived, but I’ve definitely been tricked a lot.

I’ve heard things from the nobility and believed them, only to be left in disappointment more than once.

Back in my immature days, I didn’t know their methods and got caught up badly, and later, I just let it happen.

“Aren’t they the same?”

“No, it’s different. Later, I gained some power.”

The nobility’s fights are dirty yet meticulous, grand but quiet.

There was once an opportunity to hear about their power struggles, and after hearing it, I realized how right I was to vow not to get involved.

What seemed like a random set of events was actually part of a very calculated background move, and what I thought was a clear tactic turned out to be a mere distraction or bait.

Then, all those things are gathered, and boom! They explode all at once onto the silence.

The way to avoid falling victim is simple.

Either disrupt the flow so they can’t create it, or build your strength enough to avoid being swept by it... or, at the very least, make sure they can never even try to create that flow in the first place.

Like the Duke who controlled the noble faction.

The reason why the nobility hosts banquets and participates in parties so frequently isn’t without cause.

That’s why I also built my own strength.

In a direction different from theirs.

“...What kind of strength?”

“This.”

I tapped the Crimson Aegis I brought from Silia.

After building that power, I gained confidence and became more generous in responding to their words.

‘It’s a bit uncomfortable, but it’s too much effort to think about, so I’ll listen for now.’ That was the feeling I had.

If they were to reveal their true intentions and try to deceive me, I’d just turn things around.

“Did Grasis have no sense of law?”

“Can a country exist without law?”

“...It’s a reasonable point. It is a reasonable point, though.”

Da-eun, hesitating, finally spoke up.

“A person who says they’ll turn everything upside down if things go wrong shouldn’t be saying things like that, right?”

“....”

Using sophistry to argue against reason is one way, but the most effective weapon against reason is reason itself.

It’s such a petty way of winning, using facts.

I puffed up my cheeks.

“Let’s fight fair and square with agitation and fabrication.”

“Kana, what are you talking about?”

“Law, in the end, needs force to back it up.”

Why do people follow the law?

Isn’t it because of the coercive power behind it?

“That’s why I’ve developed the most primal form of strength.”

“That doesn’t sound like something a civilized person would say... But, anyway.”

It seemed Da-eun felt like this conversation was going nowhere, so she changed the subject.

“Forget what I said about being deceived! I’ll change that to ‘Have I ever deceived you?’”

“Hasn’t it been more than once?”

“...Anyway! Just trust me. Yuki will definitely come.”

“...Alright.”

Though she spoke confidently as if she knew well, despite having said that they didn’t see each other often, I wasn’t entirely convinced. But I nodded willingly.

‘I highly doubt she’ll come.’

But well...

Her previously confident face slowly shifted into a pout.

I thought it might be fun to mock that face later, so I casually ate a piece of chocolate, anticipating what would come next...

...anticipating, but—

Before my eyes.

The familiar couch I always sit or lie on was now occupied by someone who, if familiar, would be familiar, and if unfamiliar, would be unfamiliar.

The black eyes staring at me.

From the moment the door opened until now, except for the brief moment of greeting Da-eun, those black eyes never left me.

“This is really happening?”

“See? I told you.”

That’s what experience brings.

I couldn’t say a word to Da-eun, who smiled triumphantly.

We were given the same test.

She got the right answer, while my answer was the wrong one.

“Sometimes, a single word sparks more curiosity than long-winded explanations.”

“Got it.”

“Explaining everything from A to Z can actually decrease interest. It’s the beauty of leaving things out.”

“I get it, I said.”

If she’s talking about the beauty of leaving things out, she should have stopped right there.

By saying all that, her argument actually lost some of its strength.

“...Really, Master?”

I wondered if this was going to break through.

That thought crossed my mind as Yuki, who had been giving me a piercing gaze, finally spoke and broke the silence.

“Yeah. Want me to show you proof?”

The moment I drew the Crimson Aegis, the room was lit with a burning red light.

“Ugh! Why did you pull that out?”

“There’s no one watching, so what’s the issue?”

“But still! If you keep pulling it out like that unexpectedly, it’s dangerous. What if you pull it out while walking down the street?”

“If you’re already walking down the street with a sword, things are already pretty messed up, right?”

Talking casually in front of guests, Yuki suddenly cut in.

“From the way you’re talking, you really are his master.”

“...Is that what you’re concluding?”

Da-eun challenged me, but Yuki didn’t seem to care at all about her remark.

As if she had gotten the confirmation she needed, the tension in Yuki’s gaze melted away.

She returned to the familiar eyes I knew her to have.

Her eyes, sparkling with curiosity, yet carrying a deep sense of indifference within.

Since I was observing Yuki just as she was watching me, I could feel the subtle changes in her.

“The image is a bit different.”

First, her hair.

Both in Silia and now, her silver hair remained the same, but if I looked deeper, I could see several differences.

Her hair in Silia looked more natural, smoother, shinier... and well, all of those things.

Next, if I shifted my gaze slightly downward, I could see her eyes, filled with a hint of boredom.

Her usual red eyes were now replaced with typical black ones from a Korean person.

The eyes, though still striking, felt a bit flat, not just because of the color.

There were many other things I could point out: her clothing, muscle mass...

I could list a lot, but I stopped observing Yuki at that point.

“Did you dye your hair?”

“Yeah. I wanted to feel a sense of unity.”

“A sense of unity?”

“When I’m moving in the game, I sometimes see my hair flying in front of my face. Since it doesn’t match the real world’s color, I didn’t like the dissonance.”

“...Wow.”

Da-eun expressed her admiration.

Her tone mixed with both awe and something that couldn’t be put into words.

Without saying anything, I too felt something similar to Da-eun.

“Why not just start with black hair?”

“That’d be boring.”

“Oh, so you’re that kind of person.”

“Aren’t you supposed to say that without letting anyone hear it?”

“You don’t really care, do you?”

“True.”

“So, how about it?”

Da-eun grinned slyly.

“You weren’t lying, right?”

“Looks like it.”

Yuki’s eyes shifted slightly at Da-eun’s question.

Now, her gaze had a little more interest than before as she stared at me.

“I can’t believe you’re here. Really surprised.”

“Aren’t you going to ask how this happened?”

“I’m curious, but...”

Yuki got up from the sofa where she had been sitting.

Although she was already taller than me, when she stood up straight, I felt like I was looking down from a much higher place.

Not liking that feeling, I frowned slightly, and I saw Yuki’s lips curl into a smile as if someone had pulled them upwards.

“Let’s fight first.”

When I heard that, I found myself saying something before I even realized it.

“Oh, so you’re that kind of person.”

“Kana, you felt that too?”

“Yeah.”

Even though her appearance had changed, Yuki was still Yuki.

Just like she said, her behavior hadn’t changed at all from how she was back in Silia.

After losing my father, when I was told to snap out of it by Aaron, I don’t think I ever acted like that.

What exactly made Yuki this way?

I had questions, but there was something more urgent to address.

I had to calm down the little wild horse in front of me.

“Calm down.”

The wild horse that had been hopping around immediately quieted down.

In fact, it wasn’t just quieted down—it fell to the ground and couldn’t get up.

“?”

She was still blinking, probably unable to understand what had happened, but it wasn’t like I had done something extraordinary.

I simply used a little force since she wasn’t going to listen to words.

Yuki’s face was pressed against the cold marble floor as she lay there.

And with her lying like that, I turned to Da-eun.

“See? There’s no power like force.”

“...Well, I guess that’s not something a civilized person should say.”

What’s wrong with that?

Plus, why is this chair so wobbly?

Since there was only so much weight I could apply with my body, I had to use my mana to press down a bit, and only then did the chair stop moving.

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Yeah, now it’s much more comfortable.