I’m Trapped in a Bloody Reverse Harem Game - Chapter 85

“I see. So that’s how it is.”

I responded calmly after listening to the Second Prince’s words.

I had already known that the Second Prince was keeping Lucius in check for the sake of succession to the throne, but I hadn’t realized just how twisted he was.

Whatever Gillian had whispered into the Second Prince’s ear, it had clearly sown a deep-seated hatred toward Lucius. The Second Prince was convinced that if Lucius became Emperor, both he and the Third Prince would be killed.

It seemed clear that Gillian was this game’s ultimate villain. Wherever he went, chaos followed.

As I roughly organized the information I had collected in my head, a system window popped up.

<Information collection is complete.>

• Providing the information to the capture target ‘Lucius’ will unlock the outcome ‘Perfect Ally.’

The Second Prince, having handed over all his information, sat on the bed where he had earlier invited me to sit, lost in thought. Watching him for a moment, I subtly moved my body without him noticing.

Since the Second Prince wasn’t wary of me, I took a moment to check how much time remained until the event concluded.

About one minute left. Lucius would arrive soon, so I decided to prepare.

As I moved along the wall, I reached back to feel for the switch. Pressing the protruding stone, I heard a mechanical sound fill the room as the stone slid smoothly into place.

The moment the mechanism activated, the Second Prince jumped up from the bed—but it was too late. Iron bars swiftly descended, enclosing the area around the bed.

“An accident, right?”

Gripping the bars surrounding the bed, the Second Prince muttered blankly. Staring at me in confusion, he reached out a hand and said, “Saintess, it seems you’ve accidentally touched something…”

He pointed at the wall as if intending to explain how to disable the bars.

Smiling warmly, I returned his gaze. Seeing my smile, the Second Prince let out a sigh of relief, even returning a faint smile of his own.

The moment he smiled, I spoke calmly, “Thank you, Your Highness. Thanks to you, I’ve gathered some valuable information.”

“…What did you say?”

The Second Prince’s lips moved soundlessly, unable to comprehend my words. Ignoring him, I turned my gaze toward the door.

<Event: ‘The Second Prince’s Abduction’ has concluded.>

• Rewards have been obtained.

<Lucius’s affection has increased.>

<Lucius’s affection has risen to a viewable level.>

“Saintess, are you all right?”

“You’re late. I’ve been waiting for you, Sir Lucius.”

As the closed door swung open, a system window appeared, signaling the end of the event. Through the open door, I saw Lucius and Adrian entering together.

Adrian, glancing at the Second Prince gripping the bars, exhaled in disbelief. “Who was really abducted here, the Saintess or the Second Prince?”

Shrugging at Adrian’s question, I passed the Second Prince, who was reaching through the bars, and approached Lucius.

Just as I was about to share what I had learned with Lucius, Adrian walked up to me. Carefully inspecting me for injuries, Adrian spoke calmly, “It doesn’t seem like you’ve been seriously hurt.”

“Yes, I pretended to faint as soon as I was captured.”

I replied with a smile. My wrists and ankles bore marks from being tied, but as Adrian said, they weren’t severe.

Adrian nodded slightly as if approving of my quick thinking and stepped back.

“You deceived me, Saintess!”

Having grasped the situation, the Second Prince roared furiously. A string of curses spilled from his mouth, his enraged voice filling the room.

The Second Prince’s vitriol was unpleasant even to my ears, so I could only imagine how much worse it was for Adrian, whose face twitched slightly every time the prince shouted.

“Sir Adrian, are you all right?”

Noticing Adrian’s furrowed brows tighten with each shout, I asked him in concern.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“But you flinch every time the Second Prince yells. Should I gag him?”

“…That won’t be necessary.”

<Adrian Capture Event (Special): ‘Suspicion’ progress updated.>

• Current progress: Certainty 70%, Disappointment 30%

Thanks to the medicine I gave him and the attention I paid to Adrian, the progress of the special capture event had tilted in a positive direction.

Adrian wore a sorrowful expression as he touched his ear with one hand and stepped back behind Lucius. With a calm demeanor, he lowered his gaze and kept his mouth shut. Although the special capture event was moving in a good direction, Adrian’s hands were still covered in scars, suggesting he wasn’t properly using the medicine I had given him.

“How dare you deceive me!”

Knowing Adrian’s past of being abused in the herb chamber, his gesture of covering his ear felt especially pitiful. As I watched him with sympathy, the Second Prince suddenly shouted angrily from behind.

I sighed at the sight of the Second Prince yelling without a moment’s pause. As much as I wanted to punch him in the mouth, Lucius was staring blankly at me.

Suppressing my urge, I turned to Lucius and said, “Do you at least know what’s going on before barging in?”

“The Third Prince said you were missing. Considering the circumstances, it was predictable that something like this would happen once we discovered the Second Prince was behind the Emperor’s illness.”

“Right. Since the Second Prince poisoned His Majesty, it wasn’t surprising he’d show up if he felt cornered.”

“As expected, then,” Lucius responded to my question. He shot a look of pure disdain at the Second Prince before turning his gaze back to me.

“If you’ve learned anything new, share it.”

I had plenty to say when it came to new information. Smirking at the Second Prince, I grabbed Lucius’s arm and began to lead him away.

***

<Information Provided!>

• The outcome ‘Perfect Ally’ has been collected.

<Lucius’s affection has slightly increased.>

<Adrian’s affection has slightly increased.>

<Adrian Capture Event (Special): ‘Suspicion’ progress updated.>

• Current progress: Certainty 80%, Disappointment 20%

After sharing the information I had extracted from the Second Prince with Lucius and Adrian, they managed the situation appropriately. The Second Prince was imprisoned, and they extracted information from him about the medicines needed to treat the Emperor. Then they began crafting the cure.

The entire sequence of events was reported to the Emperor, including the Second Prince’s schemes. Surprisingly, even after learning the full truth, the Emperor continued to trust the Second Prince.

The Emperor ordered that the Second Prince not be executed, and Lucius complied with the decree. It was an unsatisfying resolution.

I asked in a dissatisfied tone, “Is it really okay to end things like this?”

“The Emperor wants it this way.”

Lucius answered in a somewhat lethargic tone. He seemed more drained than he had been while working tirelessly to uncover the cause of the Emperor’s illness.

I observed Lucius’s behavior. He appeared indifferent to the outcome, but I couldn’t tell what he truly felt.

Lucius, who had been reading through a pile of documents Adrian had brought him, gathered magic in his fingers and burned the papers.

The blue flames were mesmerizing. Watching the papers burn on the table, I asked, “What did they say?”

“They instructed me not to interfere further.”

His answer was curt as he propped his chin on his hand and blinked slowly.

Watching the half-burned papers, Lucius murmured as if to himself, “Saintess, you no longer need to craft any more medicine. The herb chamber will handle the research from now on.”

Ending his words in a flat tone, Lucius leaned forward, as if about to rise from his seat. But before he could stand, I quickly reached across the table and grabbed his hand.

Lucius stopped mid-motion, frowning.

“Are you sure this is really the right way to end things?”

I tightened my grip as I repeated the question. Could he really leave things in such an unsatisfying state?

Though we had uncovered the cause of the illness, nothing had been truly resolved.

“What if we don’t end it?”

“At the very least, you should see to it that the Emperor is fully cured before stepping back. If you leave things like this, the Second Prince might stir up more trouble.”

Lucius listened silently to my words. Then he leaned back against his chair, tossing his head back roughly.

Running a hand through his hair, he replied in a sharp voice, “That’s not what the Emperor wants. If I interfere any further, nothing good will come of it.”

“What about Gillian? We’ve uncovered that he’s the one who manipulated the Second Prince.”

“That’s not my concern either.”

Lucius’s tone was biting. Hearing his words, I slowly let go of his hand. As the contact broke, Lucius squinted at me, his golden eyes watching me intently.

His hand, now resting alone on the table, twitched roughly. When he slammed his hand against the table, a dull thud echoed through the room.

Watching Lucius, whose nerves were visibly frayed, I sighed deeply.

I could understand why Lucius was so lethargic and defensive. His past mirrored mine in many ways, so I couldn’t help but empathize with him deeply.

And yet, I felt disappointed.

I admired people who didn’t give up, even in tough circumstances. Though I wasn’t that kind of person myself, I found hope in seeing such people—even in a game.

But now…

With a long sigh, I looked into Lucius’s golden eyes.

Unlike the other capture targets, Lucius gave up too easily and seemed willing to abandon everything. Despite his dazzling appearance, his attitude was so disappointing that I couldn’t feel any affection for him anymore.

As I shifted my gaze from his face to the ashes on the table, I stood for the first time before Lucius did.

“If that’s what you’ve decided, so be it. I’ll head to the herb chamber and continue crafting the medicine.”

Though my plan was to capture all the characters and proceed toward the reverse harem route, at this moment, I felt no desire to pursue Lucius’s route further.

“Saintess.”

Lucius called out to me in a strained voice.

“I’ll avoid encountering Gillian. Don’t worry about the binding seal.”

Speaking quickly, I turned and left Lucius’s room. There was nothing more to say to him.