-- "Taverna", Lute.

　The restaurant, which was preparing for its evening opening, had been in a state of tension until a moment ago.

　That's because the semi-invalid woman who was supposed to be staying with us had suddenly disappeared. The shopkeeper, Anise, who had been so worried and anxious, let out a sigh of relief when Mirabelle returned to the store as if it were a matter of course, and simultaneously shook her fist.

　Apparently, the pasta that came with her had also been hit by a fist, and she shouted, "I've been hit twice! But I don't care.
　I don't care what she said. She was so worried about me that she said she was just wandering around outside because she had a flash of inspiration. At the very least, he should have contacted me, or left a note, or some such consideration for others.
　While Anise was lecturing her, Mirabelle had an idea.

"So there is someone who cares about me too!

　So I hit her again.

　It's been a while since the last time there was such a commotion.
　The reason why Mirabelle and Pasta came to this place was to tell Izuna and Motisuke that she was safe.

　Since Leafy was there as an escort, they didn't have to worry about her on the way.

　As expected, Izuna and the others had promised to come back to the store by this time. Pasta breathed out a sigh of relief.

　Spending time and energy searching for someone you know is out there is barren.

　He didn't want to invite too many people to his house, and in that sense, Pasta was glad to know about this place.

"Just to be clear, Mirabelle, you didn't ask anyone where I live, did you?
Yes!　No, I didn't ask anyone!　I was wandering around when I smelled the familiar sweet smell of cupcakes and flowers!　I thought, "Oh, this is Pasta-chan's house!　And!
"Are you a dog or something?

　Her orange ponytail swayed faintly in the brightly lit store with the same warm colors.

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　Originally, the house was a separate residence of the Orba Trading Company in a prime residential area. One of the mansions used to be used for secret dealings, but now it is his home.

　In other words, it can be said to be the mansion of the late Beatrix M. Orba. The fact that Pasta was living in the house was a fact that she wanted to keep as secret as possible.

　The fact that Pasta lived in the house was a fact to be kept under wraps as much as possible.

"...... could use some new perfume.
Perfume?　It's expensive!
You're no better than a child, Mirabelle!

　You're no better than a child, Mirabelle!

　But when it came to perfume, she was rather serious.
　If you ask me, it's possible that I can smell the flowers. It's a human thing. If they tamed a dog to search for Beatrix, they might find her.
　The risk should be eliminated as much as possible.

　We've just had an unplanned public exposure.

　--Maybe I should ask her what her favorite smell is.

　That's when I was thinking about it.
　That's when the swinging door of the taverna opened with a bang.

"No, I can't find anything over here, old man. ......?
"Master, so Master, I've been getting a reaction from you.

　You can't see much behind the young man as he stops, but the girl's voice seems to have hit him in the back.

　But the problem was that the young man was freezing when he saw Mirabelle.

"Oh, Izuna, hello!
"......, where have you been?
Yes, at Pasta-chan's house!
Oh, I see.

　Mirabelle's innocent smile remained on her face as Izuna strode up to her.
　She couldn't even react and collapsed with her head into a fist that was swung down with such force.

"Geez!　Fourth time!
Don't just walk out of here. You had me worried.
I'm sorry. ....... Here's another drunk who's worried about me. ......
Don't call me a drunk.

　But still, Izuna continued.
　I'm glad you're alright," he said, opening his fist and forcing a pat on the little head he could grab.

I'm glad you're okay.
"Oh my God!　My hair! My hair!
Women don't go bald that easily.
It's a mess!
You've always had a messed-up head.
Oh, my God!

　Izuna, who was mussing up her hair, was apparently no longer angry.
　But then she looked around with a sigh and seemed to notice the presence of Pasta and Leafy.

"Oh, it's Pasta and ...... Leafy. Did you guys capture them for me by any chance?
It's not a capture.　It's not a capture, it's a ......
It's like you've been drawn to the bait and caught in a trap. It's like a mountain fox.
I don't know, but thanks for the .......
No. I've heard from my brother that Izuna is looking for Mirabelle!


"Well, ...... that guy saved your life. ......

　Izuna smiles bitterly.

"But I'm glad you found him, Izuna.
Yeah. I'm glad you found him, Izna.
That's not the point. I'm glad you found him.

　When Prim smiles in response, Izuna puts her fist out lightly and says, "Thanks.

Thanks, man.
No, no, no.

　They bumped into each other with their fists.

　After that, Izuna grabbed Mirabelle's head and started to make a ruckus in the store, telling her to play a song for him as an apology.

　In the midst of all this, Prim was the one who was left alone.
　Even though she had some idea of who Mirabelle was, she had done her business and was ready to go home.

　But then her eyes suddenly caught sight of a girl with red hair that she recognized.

　She glanced over at him, as if she too had been wondering what was going on.
　Then she sat down at a table near Prim.

"You're trying to tell me something, sister.
You're trying to say something, sis. - No one's listening, so why don't you stop talking like that?
You're hedging your risk by ...... suppressing your shame.

　Letting out a sigh of annoyance, she propped her cheek against the table .

　The relationship between Beatrix and Prim has never been a good one.
　They had a falling out after the sale of Corona and have not spoken to each other since.

　That's why I've always wondered about Pasta's pose as a cat in the commentary section.

...... Are you and Futa-kun completely reconciled?
No, not at all.　He's never going to forgive me.
That's true.

　Squinting, Prim leans against the wall.
　His eyes stare silently up and down the pasta.

"...... What?
"No. I think it's only natural that Futa won't forgive you. But for that, a live commentary?　We've been working together for a long time, haven't we?
What does it matter if we're on the same page?
Is that how it works?
............

　Now it was Pasta's turn to look back at Prim.
　She looked up and down and noticed that there was nothing on her back that should be there.

　She looked up and down and realized that there was nothing on her back that should be there.
　But this woman is not so naive as to not touch the wound just because she senses it.
　Rather, she is the type of woman with a twisted personality who would happily gouge it out.

"Sis, what's wrong with your back?
"There's no reason to tell you about .............
Oh, yeah. Well, I can pretty much guess. After I was defeated by Arawn, I didn't know what I was doing, I didn't believe in myself, and I didn't know why I was fighting. That's the extent of it.
"That's the extent of it?

　Prim raised her voice. Fortunately, no one was looking at me, probably because the place was buzzing.

I'm not sure if this is a good idea, but it's a good idea. Are you pretending to be a tragic heroine, trying to find weight in your broken heart?　No one is going to give you any money if you're a woman who can't do anything but wield a spear like an idiot. Thirty-six-garde is still better.
"......!　You have no idea how I feel. ......!
No. You don't know what it's like to be me. You don't know what it's like to be a woman who loses and then just sits back and admits defeat.
Admit defeat?
What's with the surprised look on your face, Zako? If I were you, I'd fight her over and over again until I beat her. --That's what I'm doing. There's no time to lose.

　With a wicked smile, she sneers at Prim.

I don't know how you feel, not one bit.

　She could have grabbed him.
　Knowing this, Beatrix mocked Prim head on.
　If she was killed, she would be disqualified from being Leafy's bodyguard, she thought.

　However, once her fist was clenched, she slowly and forcefully lowered it.

　It's a serious injury, Beatrix said, lowering her eyebrows.

I'm not sure what to say.

　The girl's murmur touched Beatrix's ear.

I'm not sure what you mean by "fight, fight, fight." ...... What's the point of fighting and winning?

　It was close to Prim's true feelings, in a way.

　I fought, and fought, and fought.
　You win, you lose, you win.

　I've been doing that my whole life.

　I've been doing that my whole life.



"So I'm going to show the world that even from the bottom of the heap, you can make it to the top.

　That's a very noble aspiration.
　However, it seemed to Prim that there was something definitely wrong with her.
　Without knowing what it is, she is wandering around like this.

　Win the battle. That's not a wrong attitude.
　I want to say that the way you break the rules is wrong. But she wasn't even interested in sword fighting.

　What if... What if...
　If I challenged her to a fight now and won.

　Would I be able to laugh? Would I feel better?
　I don't even know.


"What?
It's .......
It's the result of an idiot forcing himself to use his brain. It's a good sign of incompetence.
Do you really have to make fun of people to be able to talk to them?
"You're just too stupid to talk without making fun of people. I could use a little more fun in my life.

　He poked the back of his cheek with his tongue in annoyance.
　The regretful look on his face, as if he had said something he shouldn't have, didn't seem to go unnoticed by Prim.
　Putting her drink on the table, Beatrix continued.

You're a gladiator, aren't you?
"...... Yes, I am.
If you don't fight, you're nothing.
".......
I mean...

　I think back to the first round of the finals with my cheek resting on the table.
　I think back to the first game of the finals. Prim and Aylin's match.

　I'm sure she's forgotten something important.
　I know what it's like to forget.
　I can feel it. This annoyed Beatrix so much that she spun an unnecessary phrase.


"Would you have been as depressed if you had beaten Arawn?
"What ......?

　I'm not sure what to make of that.
　If the result of that first game had been different.
　I'm not sure what to make of it.

"...... I don't know.
I'm not worried.

　Unlike Prim, who couldn't think of any "what ifs," Beatrix had an immediate answer.
　I don't know how you can say that," she said with a snort, her eyes narrowing.

The world is simple," she said. I'll give you some good advice. --Whoever wins is righteous.
"It's .......
It doesn't matter what argument you make. Only the winner can say what's right. It's the difference in persuasiveness. Let's say, for example, that pimp says, "The world is money. It's not very convincing. But if I say it, it sounds true. That's all I'm saying.
......

　In the end.

"The only reason Arawn's words sound right is because you lost, little fish. The rules of the world, plain and simple. And by the way, the rules of the bad guys."
"Scoundrels' ...... rules?
I'm sure you've heard of it. But she's just like me. She's lived in the mud, where you have to win to die. To him, losing is like dying. He doesn't get to put down his spear and mope around like you do.

　That's why," she said.

"If you want to deny his words, his logic, you have to win, Zako. --I guarantee it. You'll feel better when you win.
"............

　And then I looked at Prim.
　--I'm sure you've heard of it.

...... What. It's disgusting.
I'm not sure what to say, but I'm going to say it.
Ha!

　That's exactly what Beatrix did, she sneered with all her might.
　And.
　And then she turns up the corners of her mouth and says.



I couldn't help but put my hand on his back. Too bad you don't have the power now. Yay, yay, yay, yay.
"Uggggggg ......

　It's a perfect picture of a bully and a bullied.

　Just. In the teary-eyed Prim, there was a fighting spirit in the anger that had never been there before.

　So Beatrix said again.

No matter what you say now, it won't reach him. As weak-minded as you are, you'll have to honestly challenge him to a fight and fight until you win. If you want to show that you're right, you have to do it. Don't leave it to others to pretend to be a heroine.
"Gosh, ...... ugh.

　She wipes her eyes roughly with her arm.
　Isn't this the first time?
　I've never been made to cry so much just by words.

　Oh, I see, not being able to use the spear is so...

　"It's frustrating.

"Oh, remember that!

　She shouted, and ran out the swinging door.
　Oh no, she's gone. Pasta raises one eyebrow.

　Suddenly, she comes to her senses.
　I don't mind that I slapped Prim's ass.
　It felt good to be able to call someone out for something I haven't done in a while.

　It's just.

If you want to show that you're right, you have to do it. Don't leave it to others to pretend to be a heroine.

　I know I've been talking strangely a lot since a while ago, but...
　But I don't think this is the right line.

　Because.


If I win, you win!　Win ！！！！！！　Hooter！！！！！


　Hmm?

No, no, no, no, no, no. No, no, no, no. I did what I could for him. It's a win-win. I didn't rely on him. Right, me?

　Proof is done.
　Right. I didn't pretend to be a heroine. We did what we could for each other. I'd say we reinforced each other's weaknesses.
　Partners, as it were. We didn't pretend to be heroines--

"............

　I gulped down the sake on the table.
　It's bitter and tasteless.

　You plop down on the table and poke the glass with your finger.

"I envy you. Both of you.

　Prim has to stand up for herself.
　So do I.

　So I was a little jealous of the heroine of the story.