I’m Trapped in a Bloody Reverse Harem Game - Chapter 144

“Ugh!”

The moment my brother pushed me away, I was forcibly ejected from the game. Before I could log out properly, I was thrown back into reality. Holding my throbbing head, I stood up.

Though my head ached, I had no time to waste.

Before logging into the game, I had transferred all my remaining memories to Orias. If I didn’t find him quickly, even here, Orias might decide to sacrifice his holy power to revive my brother.

That idiot—he still didn’t understand that what I wanted wasn’t that, but an apology.

I immediately sprang to my feet. Ardal was standing guard outside the door.

“Ardal!”

The moment I called out loudly, he quickly approached me. Without giving him a chance to ask any questions, I reached for his chest.

“L-Lady Haniel?”

As I hastily searched through his clothes, Ardal, flustered, waved his hands in confusion. He couldn’t bring himself to push my hands away, only flailing his arms awkwardly. The firm chest beneath my palm trembled noticeably.

The clothes he had hurriedly put on were slightly too small, making the shirt around his chest area strain tightly. Unlike when we were at the temple, two buttons of his shirt were left undone. His exposed throat bobbed roughly every time I moved my hand.

Clenching my teeth, I continued searching Ardal’s clothes, feeling him freeze pitifully, until I finally found what I was looking for.

“Ah, here it is.”

“That’s a magic orb for teleportation… Lady Haniel?”

“Sorry, Ardal. I’m heading to the temple first. Follow after me.”

“What? What do you mean—Lady Haniel!”

What I had pulled from Ardal’s clothes was a magic orb for teleportation Lucius had created.

It was originally a one-time-use item, but I figured if I infused it with my holy power, I could use it again.

And I was right. The moment I channeled my holy power, the magic orb glowed once more.

However, the amount of holy power I had available wasn’t much. If I tried to transport Ardal with me, it could be dangerous.

I saw the flush on Ardal’s face drain instantly.

As I gripped the magic orb with both hands and activated my holy power, Ardal quickly reached out.

“Lady Haniel, wait—!”

His hand barely brushed my shoulder before I vanished.

“…Whew.”

When I opened my eyes, I was standing on the hill where I had locked eyes with Orias before.

From the hilltop, I observed the temple for a moment. Something felt off.

The priests scurrying around below seemed busier than usual. It was a familiar sight—priests and holy knights moving urgently.

Since I wasn’t progressing through a playthrough, there was no system window like <The Pope’s Disappearance> this time, but I could guess that Orias had hidden himself just as he had in the game.

Even now, my heart pounded uneasily.

Pressing my hand against my chest to steady my breathing, I gripped the magic orb once more. The unfamiliar use of holy power left me breathless, but I forced myself to lift my head.

With my second attempt at teleportation using the magic orb, I arrived in front of Haniel’s House.

Inside, I could sense a familiar holy power. Without hesitation, I opened the door.

Fortunately, Orias’s golden eyes still gleamed brilliantly. He had been placing a large box onto the bed when he spotted me and widened his eyes.

“Haniel.”

That box… No way.

My gaze snapped to the box Orias had set on the bed, and I immediately rushed toward him.

Just as in the game, it was clear that Orias had brought my brother here in an attempt to revive him.

Inside that box—my brother must be there.

“Who told you to do something like this?”

“Wait, Haniel—”

Orias had been leaning over, about to open the box, but I shoved him aside forcefully and positioned myself between him and the bed.

Orias stumbled backward from the unexpected push.

“I know you don’t like what I’m doing, but… I wanted to give you this, at least, before the end.”

The end?

Who decided that?

I clenched my lips tightly as I looked up at Orias, who still refused to utter a single word of apology. The sheer frustration of it all made tears well up in my eyes.

“Who… decided it was the end?”

When I bit my lips and spoke in a cold, furious tone, Orias looked startled and leaned forward. His posture made it easy for me to grab the collar of his shirt.

“You could have fixed everything with just one apology—why do you always have to make things so complicated? You can’t revive my brother, not for long! Did you think bringing his body back would make me happy?”

“…What?”

“And if anyone gets to decide when this ends, it’s me, not you!”

Shaking his collar, I shouted at him, my voice trembling with rage.

Orias’s expression became utterly bewildered. For a moment, he furrowed his brows, then he grabbed both my wrists and forced me to stop.

“You’re misunderstanding something.”

Panting in frustration, I glared at Orias.

Misunderstanding?

I had seen firsthand what he was doing in the third playthrough—there was no misunderstanding. He was obviously planning to revive my brother and then let himself die. It was clear as day.

Orias turned me around and said, “This is a violin.”

Inside the box he had opened with one hand was a violin I had never seen before, neatly placed inside.

There was no sign of my brother’s body anywhere. Come to think of it, the box was too small for even a child to fit inside.

I blinked blankly.

A violin…?

Orias, still gripping my wrist, let out a quiet sigh.

“I was planning to give you this and apologize.”

“What?”

“I’ll also return the papacy to you.”

As I sat down on the bed, drained by the unexpected situation, Orias also lowered himself.

Kneeling on the floor, he looked up at me and spoke, “I’m sorry, Haniel.”

Even as he stammered, he continued with certainty, “For taking Orias’s name, for stabbing you, for allowing Priest Theodora to die in disgrace, for doing all that and then forgetting you.”

As I stared at Orias’s lips, which slowly formed each word, I felt my vision blur with tears.

“I was wrong. I’m not saying this because I seek forgiveness…”

Seeing Orias’s gaze drop lower and lower as he spoke, I hurriedly pulled him into an embrace. His shoulders, wrapped in my arms, trembled violently.

Holding me carefully as I clung to him with my eyes shut tight, Orias whispered calmly, “I told Ardal to learn how to take care of the violin. Even if you’re not around, he’ll look after it properly. And as for the papacy, I’ve finished making arrangements to pass it on to you. When you return to the temple, the priests will guide you…”

I had buried my face in Orias’s shoulder, but after finally regaining my composure, I lifted my head.

Meeting my gaze, Orias finished speaking.

“You can return to the place where you were meant to be.”

<Character [Orias] has stabilized.>

<The deletion recommendation for Character [Orias] has been removed.>

At last, the moment I had been waiting for arrived.

The system window that had tormented me by lingering at the edge of my vision finally disappeared completely.

***

“I didn’t carry out the plan as expected, but I still apologize.”

Orias bowed his head awkwardly. His stiff posture made it obvious that he had never bowed to anyone before.

The reaction from the others was icy. The room, frozen as if cold water had been poured over it, erupted with anger at his arrogant apology.

“You forgave him and brought him back?”

The first to speak was Dion. He jabbed his finger toward Orias, saying to look at his eyes—could those really be the eyes of someone offering an apology? Before Dion could say more, Dietrich, smiling, grabbed his hand and lowered it.

“If it’s the Saintess’s decision, I have no objections. Forgiving someone who has committed an unforgivable sin is exactly what I would expect of her.”

Dietrich smirked as he muttered sarcastically.

“If the crime is worthy of death, then he should be executed. What’s the point of forgiveness…?”

A rough voice, unbefitting a knight, cut through the tension.

More than Dion’s furious outburst, I was more concerned about Lucius and Adrian, who remained silent. Both seemed deeply lost in thought.

Lucius, who was absentmindedly rolling the magic orb I had returned to him in his hand, neither looked at Orias nor at me. With his expression hidden, I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“…What happened?”

“What?”

“You and the Pope seem different than before. What happened?”

Adrian, who had been carefully observing Orias and me, asked in a low voice. His question made Dion and Dietrich, who had been causing a commotion, fall silent and turn their attention toward us.

Their faces also showed curiosity, as if they had sensed something different.

Under the weight of their gazes, I quietly let go of Orias’s hand, which I had been holding the entire time. I had kept my grip on him out of fear that, like in the game, he might disappear again.

No one had pointed it out, but I was well aware that all of their eyes had been fixed on my hand.

I flexed my now empty fingers and spoke, “I remembered something while using the system again.”

Under Adrian’s piercing gaze, I continued, “Orias and I were like siblings. Even before we entered the temple.”

“You remembered that because of the system?”

“Yes.”

Adrian parted his lips as if about to say something more but ultimately closed them again without speaking. However, his green eyes betrayed an unmistakable hint of jealousy directed at Orias.

As if he found the situation completely displeasing, he chewed his lip, frowning.

Seeing that, I made up my mind—there was no longer any need to maintain my stability.

Since I had started using holy power again, my body had adapted to this world. The instability that had required me to meet with all six of them regularly to maintain balance had disappeared ever since I regained Haniel’s memories.

Adrian, who had believed that my emotions were evenly distributed among them, now seemed convinced that my feelings had tilted toward Orias. He glared at him in frustration.

While Adrian remained silent, Lucius finally raised his head. His gaze, feigning indifference, locked onto me.

“Can you still use the system?”

“Oh, yes. Well, there’s still something I need to do.”

“Something you need to do?”

I nodded at Lucius and reached into my inventory. When the game guidebook materialized in midair, Lucius narrowed his eyes slightly.

“That’s…”

Trailing off as if recalling the book, Lucius gave me a questioning look, urging me to explain.

“I’ll need your help with something from now on.”

Seizing the opportunity to change the mood, I immediately began to explain my situation.

“I need help from all of you inside the system. Will you allow it?”