Chapter 56

The Protagonist’s Party is Too Diligent – 56

EP.56 Discovery (5)

No, no, no, no.

What about my “cool beauty” persona?

I didn’t plan to spill the truth right here and now. However, now that I had mentioned I knew something about the truth, I needed to create at least a slight atmosphere that suggested I had no choice but to know about it. That way, Mia Crowfield might find it convincing enough to let it slide.

What kind of expression should I have for this situation?

In that brief moment, I racked my brain intensely.

Would it be better to reset the time after all? Just go back two weeks and start over?

But would I be able to maintain my persona throughout those two weeks?

Was there an alternative? I kept searching my mind for a way to escape this situation without breaking my “cool beauty” image.

And then, I blurted out…

“Also, what you saw… was practice.”

I had spoken words that made no sense. I intended to redirect the conversation, but instead, I had uttered sheer nonsense.

…Seriously? Of all the things to say, “practice”? Not even something like practicing expressions, but yawning or sniffing? It was the kind of story that would sound absurd to anyone listening.

Even if Mia Crowfield had her dim-witted moments—

“…P-practice?”

…Was she really that naive?

After all, she had been meticulous enough to follow me. It wasn’t just a random tailing; she must have put in considerable effort to prepare for it. The fact that she had made those preparations under my bed only reinforced that thought.

But still, she was Mia Crowfield.

She had grown up without friends, instilled with hatred for the Emperor by her mother from a young age.

In some ways, she had a similar upbringing to Claire from the original story. Though the outcomes had been different, the foundation was the same.

She could devise plans and had the magical prowess to oppose the Emperor, yet she struggled to form genuine relationships.

“Yes, it’s practice.”

Recalling the character card of Mia Crowfield from the game, I decided to press forward with this approach. If all else failed, I could just rewind time and start the conversation over from the beginning.

Right, at this moment, the advantage was on my side. At least Mia Crowfield didn’t have a wand in her hand.

“I….”

I slightly furrowed my brow. That alone would significantly alter my expression. I rarely showed any emotion at all, so this change would be noticeable. If anyone had seen this expression before, it would probably be either Jayden or Lucas. Or maybe both.

“I don’t really know how to express my emotions.”

I lied through my teeth without hesitation.

Not being able to express emotions? What a joke. In my room, I rolled around on the bed or made sloppy faces while eating sweets, so I could be considered an extremely emotional person.

Of course, I reset the time to erase those moments.

I tried to maintain a stoic, emotionless facade in front of others, but it seemed I had let my guard down a lot since starting at the academy. After all, I had been caught red-handed like this.

“B-but what I saw…”

“It was practice.”

I hardened my expression like a steel plate.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if she would genuinely buy it. I was merely saying what I believed based on the version of Mia Crowfield I had seen in the game.

“If I suddenly showed emotions on my face, it would confuse those around me.”

In reality, it did cause confusion. Alice could read my expressions, but I never openly smiled. The way others had been startled when I showed any expression while eating parfaits was proof of that.

“Yawning… was… practice?”

Mia Crowfield mumbled, looking dazed.

Crap, I had forgotten about that.

Practicing yawning or sniffing? That sounded ridiculous no matter how I looked at it. If anything, it would make more sense to practice smiling or crying.

The problem was that I had already committed to this line of thinking and reinforced my stance. This meant that, for me, there was no other option but to stick with this story. And I was determined not to reset the time.

“…My practice includes more than just facial expressions.”

“……”

Since Mia Crowfield seemed to be listening to me, I continued to speak slowly.

“Changing just the expression doesn’t make a person appear human. For example, let’s assume I try to smile.”

I lifted the corners of my lips slightly while keeping my eyes as neutral as possible. Mia flinched at my expression, her shoulders twitching.

“How does it look? Natural?”

“…No, not at all.”

Mia Crowfield took two steps back, her shoulders trembling as she bumped into the door.

That was a relief. I had intentionally made my expression as awkward as possible. Not just awkward, but a chilling expression where my mouth was smiling while my eyes were not—that would convey the atmosphere of ‘awkwardness’ more effectively.

…Great, if I ever have the chance, I’ll use this expression on someone else.

“Expressions involve multiple parts of the face moving correctly. A smile isn’t just about the mouth; the eyes are important too. And it’s not just one type of smile; there’s a difference between a grin and a laugh. Especially with laughter, the sound is crucial. I was practicing something; would you like to see?”

“N-no, I think I’m fine without it…”

Mia Crowfield said, looking terrified.

……

Mia Crowfield was, like many female characters in these games, a stunning beauty. In fact, her oddly dazed personality, combined with her melancholic backstory, created a captivating gap that made her a rather popular character.

“…The difficulty of expressions is quite high. So, I decided to learn simpler ‘actions’ first. Actions like sitting in a chair and nodding off or yawning are things I can replicate without altering my expressions.”

“……”

She still seemed skeptical, but as I continued to spout nonsense with each word, her previously furrowed brow gradually relaxed, no longer visible.

“I was practicing to mimic the behavior of an ordinary person at that time. What you saw was part of that practice.”

“……”

Mia Crowfield stared at me for a long time.

And she remained silent for a while.

Would she believe me?

It wouldn’t be strange if she didn’t. From Mia Crowfield’s perspective, I was not someone she could trust. Who would trust the person who killed their father?

However, on the flip side… she found herself in a situation where she had no choice but to believe me.

Mia Crowfield had shown a very confused expression upon seeing my behavior. If she thought that a cold-blooded killer like me had emotions just like any other person… that would be a generous leap of faith. It was akin to an Allied soldier during World War II thinking, “The Nazis are human too.”

…At that time, I had been so consumed by my emotions that I couldn’t even think of Mia Crowfield’s father as human. It wouldn’t be surprising if Mia felt the same way.

Yet, if I were to reveal that “this isn’t my true human self, but a masked facade,” wouldn’t she be more inclined to trust me?

“……”

I looked at Mia Crowfield, who was still frozen, and extended my right hand. Mia jumped back in surprise, her eyes wide as she looked at my hand.

I was handing her the gun I had been holding. Not with the barrel pointing at her, but with the handle facing her.

If she took the gun, she could shoot me right away.

…Not that I expected her to blow my head off in one shot.

Mia Crowfield couldn’t kill Claire in the end because her nature wasn’t suited for killing. She was extremely timid and had grown up without friends, always longing for someone to be close to.

Claire, despite her prickly demeanor and sarcastic remarks, wasn’t inherently a bad person. Her personality had been warped by her circumstances, but at her core, she wasn’t a bad kid.

Because of this, I felt a certain degree of sympathy for Mia Crowfield, who had lost her father because of me, and that emotion sometimes showed in my actions.

By the time Mia Crowfield learned that Claire was her father’s killer, she had already grown very close to Claire. Claire had even said, “Fine, if you feel that way, go ahead and attack me.” It might have sounded sarcastic at the time, but it was sincere.

However, Mia Crowfield couldn’t bring herself to kill Claire in the end. That’s why I handed her the gun, thinking of that situation. Moreover, Mia Crowfield had circumstantial evidence but no concrete proof, and she wasn’t entirely sure about me either.

If she took the gun, she wouldn’t shoot me.

…Well, even if she did, as long as it wasn’t an instant kill, I could reset the time.

Mia Crowfield took the gun with trembling hands and stared at me blankly.

“If you are absolutely certain that you need to kill me right now, then shoot.”

“……”

Mia merely moved her lips, unable to reply.

“One day, you will learn the entire truth about that situation. If, even then, you believe you must kill me, then so be it. If you shoot, I will not dodge that bullet.”

“…Can’t you just… tell me now…?”

“Not right now. You are not ready to accept it.”

“……”

Mia Crowfield bit her lip at my response.

“If, by any chance, you are ready to accept the truth, I will tell you myself. What happened back then.”

“……”

Mia Crowfield lowered her head deeply.

I slowly walked past her, carefully avoiding any sudden movements.

Fortunately, I didn’t get shot in the back as I reached the door. Phew.

“…Oh, and.”

I slightly turned my head to speak.

“Please keep the practice matter a ‘secret’ from others. It’s still not a ‘finished’ performance.”

“…Okay, I will.”

After hearing her weak reply, I turned my head back and opened the door.

My heart was pounding hard.

Honestly, I wanted to cheer—

—but I couldn’t risk being caught again.

I tried to maintain my usual walking pace as I headed back to my room.