‘It’s such a tense atmosphere…’
Bang! Bang!
Loud, rough sounds echoed from inside the room.
Charlotte clicked her tongue as she stood with her arms behind her, by the door.
A chilling crackling sound echoed.
It was definitely the sound of a person’s neck being squeezed.
But there was no scream, no agonizing groan.
It was more like the sound of patting the head of a large beast, calming it, faintly echoing through the room.
‘I thought they had a terrible relationship…’
Every time she saw Irene and Mister, there was always a fierce atmosphere, so Charlotte had assumed they hated each other.
But looking at the two of them recently, it didn’t seem that way…
Even if they despised each other, was it because they were family?
Since Charlotte had never experienced family, she found it hard to understand.
‘Should I imagine Yuri or Julia?’
She didn’t have a real family, but Yuri and Julia were as close to family as it got for her.
If Yuri or Julia suddenly lost it and came charging at her like mad, would she…?
Ah, maybe she’d let herself get overwhelmed like Mister, without fighting back…
As soon as Charlotte changed her perspective, she immediately understood, exclaiming, “Ah~.”
‘If I become Mister’s family, no matter the reason, I’ll protect them.’
Charlotte found herself a bit jealous of Irene.
Of course, she wasn’t unaware that Mister treated her very fondly.
But it felt… different?
Anyway, she couldn’t shake this inexplicable jealousy growing inside her.
‘Oh!? They’re coming out!’
Just then, the door creaked, and Charlotte quickly hid in the shadows, covering her mouth.
Aslan and Irene walked toward the laboratory.
They were probably going to continue the experiment they hadn’t finished the day before.
Charlotte noticed that Aslan’s back was covered in wounds.
Seeing those injuries made her feel strangely melancholic, almost to the point of tears.
“I hate it when Mister gets hurt…”
She didn’t like seeing Mister in pain.
Even though she didn’t like Irene much, seeing Mister protecting her made it hard to fully hate her.
What was this feeling?
This feeling of both resentment and jealousy…
Charlotte pouted and decided to go search for a first-aid kit.
She couldn’t stand seeing his wounds, so once the experiment was over, she planned to wrap them up with bandages.
When Irene left the laboratory with swollen eyelids, Charlotte saw it from a distance and quickly ran to grab the first-aid kit, wrapping Aslan’s injuries with bandages.
He had so many wounds, so she wrapped as many as she could…!
‘One step too late…’
Charlotte had thought she was the fastest, since she moved immediately after Irene left.
But when she found a small bandage on the floor in front of the door, she sulked.
Julia had beat her to it.
The scene unfolding inside was obvious.
Julia had probably gathered all the bandages she had collected from magazines and was sticking them all over Mister.
She’d probably say something like, “I knew something like this would happen, so I carried these bandages around,” as a lie.
Charlotte knew Julia only carried one or two bandages around, but when she found Mister’s injuries, she must have stuffed all the bandages from the drawer into her pockets and rushed to him.
Julia was always quick when it came to things like this…
‘Huh. Wouldn’t it be better to just leave them be?’
Annoyed, Charlotte was about to open the door, but suddenly froze, her hand stiffening.
Come to think of it, wasn’t it a bad idea to barge in now?
Julia was alone with Mister…
It was a romantic situation, with Julia applying bandages to his wounds…
Wouldn’t just leaving them alone help support their relationship?
She had decided to help Julia.
To make sure Julia’s affectionate feelings would come to fruition.
So, it was clear she shouldn’t interfere at this point…
But for some reason, Charlotte felt an urge to open the door, her heels twitching.
‘What is this feeling…?’
Nothing flowed out through the crack in the lab door, which was completely blocked from noise and light.
Nothing leaked through the laboratory door, where the noise and light were completely blocked off.
Nothing could be heard or seen, but to Charlotte, it felt like the door was transparent, showing Julia smiling and playfully talking to Mister.
She should be happy about this.
Her friend’s love was going smoothly, and she should feel proud.
So why did her chest ache, and why did she feel so hurt?
Charlotte couldn’t understand this inexplicable feeling.
She was left confused, unsure of how to react.
“Charlotte, what are you doing there? All wrapped up in bandages…”
“Ah!?”
“You’re really surprised, huh…”
Charlotte jumped in surprise when she felt a hand on her shoulder from behind.
It was Yuri.
Indeed, as Yuri said, it had been a long time since she was surprised like this.
Ever since she started wielding the Super Super Strong Sword, she could sense any moving object within 100 meters, so she usually noticed things before they happened.
But now, she had been so preoccupied that she didn’t notice Yuri approaching from behind.
“What’s going on?”
“Uh, well… I don’t really know what to do… I know I should stay put, but… that’s the situation I wanted, and yet… something feels wrong. My chest feels tight, and my body’s restless. What should I do?”
“…?”
Yuri tilted her head in confusion at Charlotte’s ambiguous question.
It was strange to see Charlotte, who usually acted without thinking, so deep in thought.
Was this the Charlotte she knew?
Was Charlotte someone who thought before acting?
Yuri was confused.
It wasn’t the kind of dilemma Charlotte usually faced.
So, Yuri didn’t want to answer playfully.
If Charlotte was this troubled, it was probably something important.
“Hmm. Isn’t it just about going with how you feel?”
“What? How can you just act based on your feelings?”
“…Isn’t that exactly how you usually act?”
How can someone act based only on their feelings…
But that’s exactly how Yuri is…
Yuri almost let out a laugh in disbelief.
“Well, right now it’s an important situation, so I don’t think I should just act on my feelings.”
“What’s the basis for deciding that staying still is the right thing?”
“Huh? Basis? The basis is…”
“Isn’t that also based on your feelings? Your feelings from the past. And now those feelings have changed.”
“Ah! You’re right! That makes sense!”
“So, if we just stick to acting based on our feelings, wouldn’t that be fine? If your feelings change, just act accordingly.”
“Ahhh…!”
Only then did Charlotte’s face brighten.
Of course, how could people’s actions always be consistent!
They could change and be unpredictable!
And resisting it isn’t about sticking to principles, it’s just stubbornness!
“Thank you, Yuri! Now I feel so much better! No more need to agonize!”
“Ugh…”
After her sudden realization(?), Charlotte quickly hugged Yuri.
Yuri’s face turned bright red from the unexpected physical contact.
This… this kind of thing, she wanted Julia to do with her…
She preferred watching, not participating directly…
“Ugh…”
“Alright! Shall we go in?”
Just as Yuri was about to melt from exhaustion, Charlotte let go of her and opened the door wide.
“Ah, what should I do…?!”
“I knew this would happen! Here I come!”
As soon as the door opened, what Charlotte saw was Julia, who was anxiously looking for more bandages, and Aslan, whose wounds were half-covered in bandages.
Hmph! I knew I’d be needed!
Charlotte thought to herself as she wiped her nose, feeling glad that she had opened the door.
Yuri was right.
Sometimes, you just have to act on your feelings first.
It’s better than feeling that tightness in your chest without knowing why.
Sitting quietly and suffering in confusion was the kind of foolish thing Julia would do.
Helping Julia was one thing, but putting herself first was the priority.
Charlotte felt a sense of relief as she started wrapping bandages around Aslan’s arm.
‘But why did my chest feel tight when I left Julia and Mister alone…?’
As Charlotte carefully wrapped Aslan’s thick arm, she suddenly had a thought.
When she looked up, her eyes met Aslan’s.
For a moment, she froze, and Aslan’s other hand reached out.
“Huh? How do I tie this? I don’t know, I’ve never been injured…”
“Give it here. Hold the other end tightly.”
“Ah, okay!”
As Charlotte tightened the bandage, she naturally got closer to Aslan.
It felt almost like they were hugging.
And then, over Mister’s shoulder, she saw Julia, looking at her with a forlorn expression.
Every time Charlotte’s body brushed against Aslan, Julia seemed like she was on the verge of tears.
Watching that, Charlotte felt an inexplicable thrill, making her confused.
She had definitely decided to help Julia…
So why was she enjoying this so much while interfering?
Thinking back, this wasn’t the first time.
She had been interfering like this the whole time.
She had denied it consciously, but unconsciously, she couldn’t help but interfere.
Why was that?
‘Ah… now I get it…’
For a moment, Charlotte struggled with the unexplained joy, but soon she realized the truth and gave a bitter smile.
She was so bad.
It wasn’t just that she liked Mister—it was clear now.
The pain in her chest wasn’t just pain; it was jealousy.
Now, everything that had felt like a mystery, all her conflicting feelings, made sense.
“…!?”
Just then, Charlotte felt a chill run down her spine.
She sensed a presence, an intense energy, and looked behind her.
She felt a sharp gaze from the crack in the door.
‘No way, Yuri too…?’
Could Yuri also be after Mister…?
Charlotte was left in shock, speechless for a moment.
When had Yuri even started courting him?!
