I Don’t Want To Be the Main Character

62. Day One, Eileen Nord (3)

1.

“Yeah, it’s late, but nothing special happened?”

“Anything else?”

“This is the story of when we fought together to subdue the knights.”

“Ah, nothing special happened. At first, I couldn’t control my firepower well, so I got caught up in knights instead of monsters… Ahahahaha, well, I got used to it, so I got used to it.”

After ordering a drink from each other, we sat face to face at an outdoor table and talked for several hours.

At first, it started with trivial personal matters, and the conversation went on unexpectedly for a long time. Come to think of it, even after Rudrick had finished subjugating the monsters, Aileen would still stop by the capital from time to time, but it was because there were no conditions for the two of them to sit down and have a leisurely conversation like this.

Except for the last date, it’s been a long time since we spent such a cozy time alone without anyone interfering.

So I was happy just to spend time having a conversation like this.

“I heard that wizards often make mistakes when they first go into battle. It’s all a matter of experience.”

“But I made a little mistake the first time, but I haven’t made that kind of mistake since the second time. Isn’t Agun Ohsa a bit like that?”

“Rudrick, you should be able to reach a higher level without too much difficulty.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Isn’t that because I saw it myself?”

Eileen shrugged her shoulders and trembled. Her usual appearance was so foreign that people who knew her would be startled by her as soon as they saw her.

It was because it was difficult to imagine that Eileen, the Grand Duke of the Northern Kingdom, would respond with such a gesture.

To be more specific, if she had seen Eileen like this, it would have been obvious that Elena would have looked shocked or pretended to vomit.

And while we were having such a conversation, the number of people walking around decreased little by little, and the sun slowly began to set.

“Then shall we wake up?”

“Let’s go get dinner. It was still a good time because we were talking.”

“……Still, it’s been a while since Myungsaek came out to play outside the imperial palace. Is it really okay to spend time like this?”

“Ah, it’s like that again. It’s really okay? Just going out to get some fresh air is enough.”

“The Ludrick Weiss I know would rather just roll around in bed alone than come out for some fresh air.”

“Oh.”

At Eileen’s words, which simply hit the mark, Rudrick put on an embarrassed expression. Perhaps it was because she had even regressed, Eileen knew too well about Rudrick.

Anyway, it’s time to head out for dinner.

Eileen, who was walking down the street holding her hand like a loving lover, looking around at the buildings around her, struggled and shuddered.

“……Where should I go?”

The capital where all the wealth of the empire is concentrated. Nighttime in the capital city is as bright as daytime, to the extent that it is nicknamed “Nighttime.”

Of course, it can’t be helped that the number of restaurants open compared to daytime was reduced, but Eileen and Rudrick still had quite a few options.

However.

“Let’s go to the place we went last time?”

“……Hmm?”

Aileen made a puzzled expression at Rudrick’s words. Wherever she went the other day, she must have been referring to the inn-tavern that Eileen had patronized during her academy days.

The other day, when Rudrick was drunk, Eileen and Sylphia suddenly broke in after tracking the location, saying that they hadn’t returned even though it was nighttime. In the meantime, drunken Rudrick showed a completely different side than usual, the very place where the three were embarrassed.

It’s a place with bad memories, but it was more convenient for Rudrick to go back to a place he had already been to than wander around aimlessly.

“……It’s not such a tasteful place, but is it really okay?”

“I’ve been there before, what kind of place is it?”

“That’s true, but…”

“The food there tastes pretty good, doesn’t it?”

“Hmm…”

Even though Eileen put on an expression of disapproval, when Rudrick asked her to go, she immediately nodded.

Of course, Rudrick made the choice based on calculations in many ways.

‘Wouldn’t they give you a service if I go again?’

If there is something you can eat, it is best to eat it as much as possible. There are a lot of people who think that it is better to choose a stable option than to bother wandering around and pulling a jackpot.

After passing by an alleyway that is now a bit familiar even though they had been there once, they opened the door of a tavern located in the back of the alleyway, and when they entered, the smell of bubbling stew and the chatter of drunken adventurers greeted the two.

‘…… I should have gone somewhere else after all.’

Strictly speaking, they weren’t lovers, but it was too informal to come with a man who was close to being a lover.

As soon as Eileen opened the door with a faint frown on her face, a middle-aged woman wearing an apron and carrying food around the table pretended to know them.

“You came again? Did you come with your boyfriend again?”

“I think I made it clear the other day that I’m not a boyfriend…”

“hahahaha, it doesn’t make much of a difference whether you have a soon-to-be boyfriend or a boyfriend, right? Should I give you the one you always ate?”

“……Yes.”

The innkeeper, who smiled broadly and patted Eileen on the back, quickly disappeared into the kitchen, just like the last time.

And Eileen, who was sitting at the table hesitantly, looked at Rudrick’s eyes with her sidelong glance. She seemed worried that she might have been offended by the conversation she had just heard.

However, to put those worries to shame, Rudrick looked at Eileen and her kitchen side by side, rather curiously.

“It’s amazing.”

“What do you mean?”

“How would that landlord react if he found out that the man he just patted on the back was the Prince of Norse?”

“……That’s not a very pleasant reaction.”

Eileen muttered shyly as she wiped the table with the provided napkin.

She didn’t have an authoritative personality, so she hid her identity, and since she was pretending to be a commoner adventurer who graduated from the academy, she didn’t feel bad about such casual behavior.

Rather, it was because she was more of a free-spirited person than her authoritative side, which was not befitting her status as the Grand Duke of Nord.

Rudrick giggled.

“Suddenly, I became the Grand Duchess of Norse.”

“……..”

Eileen flinched at her joke-like remark without much meaning, and Rudrick, oblivious to it, added with her polite, vile smile.

“Isn’t it rather good if I’m mistaken? I think I’ll give you more service just because I came with her boyfriend.”

“……Well, there is a saying that misunderstanding is free.”

Recalling the memory of the last time he had served drinks and other things, Rudrick set his fork and knife, and the food came out terribly.

Of course, it was not the finest course meal served in a restaurant mainly used by aristocrats. A simple meal consisting of wheat bread of any taste, warm meat stew, and boiled vegetables and fruits.

However, if there was a problem, the amount was rather large.

“……Master, I think this is too much.”

“Aren’t you old enough to eat? When you’re young, you have to eat a lot to use a lot of energy. It’s a service, so don’t feel pressured to eat it. It’s just nice to see you after a long time.”

At Eileen’s bewildered question, the innkeeper responded with a big smile.

And you know what that means at the end? Eileen closed her mouth as she blinked and disappeared again. And Rudrick also muttered when he saw the amount of food that was too much compared to last time.

“……This is too much. I can’t eat it all.”

“I don’t think I can eat all of this. It’s too much.”

“Would you like an accompaniment?”

“I avoid alcohol.”

“……..”

To Rudrick’s cautious question, Eileen flatly refused.

As she remembered the catastrophe that had happened the other day when she drank a glass of her strong wine, she had no intention of repeating the same mistake. Rather, it was to the extent that Rudrick gave an embarrassing reply to that resolute immediate answer.

Anyway, the meal naturally lasted for a long time as the amount of food was large, and by the time we managed to empty that much food, it was already getting close to bedtime.

“……I’m full.”

Rudrick muttered weakly as he put down his fork.

She didn’t show it, but Aileen also put the fork down silently. Now it was time for her to wash up and get ready for the day.

As evidence of that, most of the adventurers who had been drinking and talking loudly in the hall on the first floor were away, except for a few drinkers.

The innkeeper, who was going around the table and clearing the dishes, came up again to talk to her.

“But I managed to eat almost all of it. Good job, good job. You need to eat a lot to use your strength well.”

“…….”

“……Are you going to work hard tonight?”

“What kind of vulgar words and actions… No, I would have made it clear in the first place that we weren’t together.”

The words he passed while subtly stabbing her side so that Rudrick wouldn’t hear.

Of course, Aileen responded with a straight face, but it was the innkeeper who said as if she was rather puzzled.

“Huh? Neely, weren’t you going to sleep?”

“……Since it’s getting late, I was thinking of going to sleep here.”

“We only have one room right now?”

“……What?”

Eileen opened her eyes wide and asked, and the innkeeper took out the one remaining key from her apron and waved it casually.

“This is the last room we have today. Even if we tried to rent two like last time, we couldn’t. We should sleep together.”

“…….”

I went through a lot of agony today, but the real ordeal still remains.

At the appearance of an unexpected variable that had been lurking until the very end, Eileen stared at her key with her mouth open.

And.

“……Well, it doesn’t really matter to me. I only have one room, so well, as long as Eileen isn’t uncomfortable.”

“…….”

Eileen opened her mouth, she couldn’t find anything to say and only pursed her lips.

Understanding her silence in a different way, Rudrick cautiously added.

“I-I’m really fine…?”