How the Regressor Loves the Reincarnated

11. The regressor who became a girl again hates girlish emotions

1.

“Aha.”

“…Aha?”

After the story, which could have been said to be shocking in its own way, Luke, who had heard my insipid reaction, asked back as if he was dumbfounded.

Luke’s bewildered face, not even knowing what to say, was so cute that his brain stopped functioning for a moment. No, it was to the point where I was sorry to express it with cute words.

In fact, more than anything else, seeing Luke like that made me feel quite new. It was also the first time that he was speechless because of my prank.

Until now, in all the encounters between the two of us, it had always been Luke’s side that had the upper hand.

If I persecute him with force, I can forcibly take the initiative at any time, and Luke was also aware of that because of my accidental killing spree during his first meeting. It was neither the aristocrat’s way nor mine.

Above all, if I did that, it was certain that a war between Ludmeyer and Isvant would begin immediately. And the war between the two ducal families of the empire has the possibility of turning into a civil war that engulfs the entire empire at any time.

I, who suffered a miserable failure in the last episode, couldn’t possibly be able to package the world of this episode in a way that would make the Zodiac rampage and push it into their demons.

Of course, at the banquet where I met Luke for the first time, I was definitely the one who took the initiative, but it didn’t last long. Because my hasty action went beyond just handing over the initiative, I put a leash around my neck and put it in his hand.

So this situation was a new and pleasant change for me. It gave me the feeling that it was developing into a realm of friendship rather than a simple cooperative relationship. It was a concept that had been forgotten for a while because it was trapped in the bridle of time.

I don’t know if friendship is all I want.

“It must have been difficult.”

Hiding my inner feelings, I gave him words of comfort. He sees Luke make a strange expression on his face as he takes back what he said.

“Did you believe that?”

“Sure. I don’t think the story you brought out with such weight is a lie, and it was strangely detailed.”

You won’t gain anything by tricking me with such elaborate lies.

No matter how much the relationship between the two of us moves toward the realm of friendship beyond cooperation, it hasn’t changed the fact that I still don’t fully trust him.

It was not the realm of reason.

When Luke swore that there was not even a single lie in his promise to me, I could see through that his words were his true intentions and truth. So not doubting him, trusting him is the judgment of my reason.

But something deeper, not my reason, encouraged him to doubt endlessly, saying that such a belief would only lead to failure.

‘A target without certain information is, after all, just an unreliable variable. So don’t trust him lightly. I keep doubting it.’

‘If he’s really someone you can trust.’

‘If it’s someone who deserves your trust.’

Oh that’s noisy, really. I’m going to trust that person once, but why do you keep saying this?

“Hmm…”

Even in the midst of that, Luke’s slightly cold eyes continued to stare at me. I wondered if he could see through the fact that I was still doubting myself to some extent because I was unnecessarily quick-witted.

“And above all, it’s a bit of a strange story, but I don’t think it’s too hard to believe because of my situation.”

It was true. A return to the past, a miracle far beyond the realm of ordinary magic. It was not that difficult to accept the story of reincarnation and another world as someone who had experienced it not once, but twice.

However, the story about science in the world where Luke lived in his previous life was a little hard to believe. Just listening to the story makes the science of that world feel more like magic than magic. Has science advanced as much as magic does not exist?

Aside from that, the concept of democracy was interesting, but it didn’t feel very realistic. Wouldn’t it be a bit difficult concept to realize in a world where superhumans such as knights and wizards exist, beyond the simple caste system?

“Well, it’s not that I don’t understand. Right away, I started to question myself, ‘I remember my previous life, isn’t there anything like going back to the past that can’t be done?’. If it hadn’t been for that… well, maybe Adele would have taken it as a mere low-key joke when she brought up the subject of the future.”

Luke nodded and said. Hearing his words, he clearly understood the direction of the meeting that day.

“That’s definitely a fortunate story for me.”

While answering that question, a question that had plagued me from time to time was resolved. The reason why Luke Isvant in this episode was so different from him in previous episodes was simple. Because he was a completely different person from the very beginning.

Is it possible that the person who cared about the people around me in my previous life, even in the face of my death, turned into the idiot I knew? There can be no such thing. Even if people change, they cannot change like that.

“I’m glad. Really.”

I felt relieved for nothing, so I dared to add it.

“Rather than that, I have a question from my side.”

I can see a light smile forming on Luke’s lips. He had an ominous feeling for nothing, but he tried to ignore it and answered awkwardly.

“Which one?”

“It’s not a big deal, so there’s no need to be so nervous.”

What’s so funny, Luke asked, laughing at me.

“Are you going to keep talking like before or not? We are now sharing each other’s biggest secret… Can’t we just let go of words?”

With a smile that is not playful and even feels remorseful.

…To be honest, I was a little excited. If you have a face like that, you can make people flutter even if you act mean.

From the beginning, there was an impression that he was handsome. Needless to say, if she had been an ordinary aristocratic girl who had not suffered a regression, she might have fallen in love with her.

Due to the influence of my younger body, my head rolls very hard in this direction. The need for mental training was felt desperately.

But suddenly, I had an idea. If you feel reluctant to consider a person of the same age as you as a dating target, and you hate more people. After all, Luke is the best I can find…

I hurriedly erased the thought from my head. No, I didn’t delete it, but I postponed that priority. Worry about dating later when you are alone. Decided to do so

“I think this would be more comfortable. Forever and ever.”

Anyway, if I wanted to let go, I would just go there and let go like before. It didn’t seem like Luke particularly hated it.

“Yes, you can. Didn’t you say that it doesn’t matter if you speak comfortably?”

“…Did I say I would make it easy for you?”

“Like before, I have the feeling that if you want to leave something, you will just let it go. What or not?”

While that was true, seeing Luke smiling wickedly made me sick. Am I the easy-to-read person at the point of just returning to the past, or is Luke just good at reading me? I couldn’t quite figure out which one.

“What about Luke?”

“Hmm? Hey, how can I let go of my words? Still, you’re quite an elder.”

For a moment, I wondered if I had heard the wrong words. It was only after I blinked my eyes and chewed on Luke’s words in my head for a while that I could understand what he meant by those words. Because it was me who threw the joke about age first in the first place.

“That, no. You…!”

But contrary to my thoughts, I was speechless. I felt shame enough that my hands were shaking at the words that were really insignificant. Even if it’s nothing, it must have been enough to laugh and move on.

“Oh, that… wait a minute. Calm down, calm down. Yes?”

Recognizing that the situation was going in a completely different direction than he thought, Luke urgently tried to deal with it, but unfortunately, he did not calm down at all.

I wonder if this f*cking emotional body has broken down after hearing such words from someone I had a crush on, who I thought of as a potential love target in my own way.

The moment I felt tears running down my cheeks, I hurriedly got up from my seat and turned away from Luke. It was because I didn’t want to let people know that I had even seen tears after hearing his words.

“Let’s end today’s meeting here.”

“Adele… That, because I did something wrong…”

“Luke. Of course, you’re wrong, but you’re not such a narrow-minded woman just because of that one thing. Really. I will tell Loggia to show you the way out, so please wait a moment.”

I hated not being able to control my emotions the way I wanted. No matter how much I say that it’s kind of taboo to throw age-related jokes at women, it’s never to the extent that they react to this extent.

I wonder how big of a share Luke has in my heart, that my body and mind ignore even the cries of reason and feel so sad just because I heard a joke like that from him.

“I’m sorry I ended up kicking people out of my own way. It’s a substitute, but next time I’ll greet you with a smile. Sure.”

Leaving only those words behind, I set foot inside her mansion. In order not to look ugly in the future, I had to build more mental training.

2.

It didn’t take long for the misunderstanding of the day to be resolved. It was possible because Adele wasn’t really upset or offended by Luke’s actions in the first place.

Luke himself would refrain from such pranks for a while because he was aware, but Adele, to be honest, didn’t have that much in mind.

‘Hmm… But it’s a mess.’

That was that and this was this.

“So, one of the five Holy Lands that the Zodiac is targeting is… in the Isvant domain?”

“I’m sure. Zodiac was the one who did the trick to make Isvant collapse miserably in the first playthrough. Of course, the role of any idiot was great, but…”

On the contrary, even if Adele teased him lightly, it was a situation where she would just laugh bitterly and move on, and she was enjoying this moment, which probably wouldn’t last very long.

As I was well aware that Adele had a greater affinity for the other person than Luke right now, it was my intention to enjoy it to the fullest before the situation reversed. There was also an intention to narrow the distance between the two.

“Anyway, there are a total of 3 apostles who are aiming for the Holy Land in Isvant right now. Second Apostle Taurus, Seventh Apostle Libra, and Eleventh Apostle Aquarius.”

“Tauros has the power to bestow the patterns he symbolizes on other living beings. The target who is endowed with this glyph will have a stronger overall physical ability, but their reason will be blurred.”

After hearing the explanation, Luke frowned. A side effect of strengthening the physical abilities of the target engraved with the pattern, as well as mineralization.

“…Isn’t that the seal of release of latent powers designated as forbidden magic?”

“You know what? However, that is only a backward compatibility that reproduces the authority of Taurus. The power of Tauros is a vicious ability that squeezes the target’s life force to the limit, and until the target’s life force runs out, it causes an increase in physical abilities that cannot be compared with the Seal of Potential Release.”

“However, Tauros is one of the easiest apostles to deal with, so you don’t have to worry too much about him. Because that is my area of expertise.”

Adele’s words may sound arrogant at first glance, but her identity as a regressor gave Luke unparalleled confidence.

“The real problem is Libra, the 7th Apostle.”

The more she explained about Libra, the more Luke’s face hardened as he realized the danger of the apostles of the zodiac.