The Main Heroines are Trying to Kill Me
Chapter 341: The Second Phase

- Ssk...

After staring at Ruby for a while, Frey eventually handed her something.

"What is this...?"

"It's potato soup and rye bread. It's your favorite, isn't it?"

"..."

What he pulled out was dried soup and rye bread.

Judging by the fact that it was preserved with magic, it seemed he had prepared it before coming here.

"You've been walking without a break, so you should rest a bit."

"You're the one who made me suffer..."

"Enough, summon a pot or something."

Saying that, Frey scrutinized Ruby.

"A-alright."

Normally, Ruby would have retorted that she was not a genie that he could order as he wished.

However, at this moment, she was entirely focused on what Frey had just said, and that left her mind dazed.

- Clatter, clatter...

"Well, it's a bit old, but it's usable."

Therefore, she summoned the pot she occasionally used and placed it in front of Frey. He then put it on the fire and began cooking with a quite familiar posture.

...What kind of trick is he playing this time?

Ruby quietly muttered to herself as she glared at Frey.

Why are you doing this to me, Frey?

Even though she could see through him so clearly.

All the lines he said were just cringe without substance behind it.

It was just a soulless listing of words saying, ‘I love you’.

This was not a cheap romance novel, and no woman in the world would be thrilled to hear such words.

Of course, Frey's appearance was fatal enough to cover even those lines.

But she was the Demon King who would destroy the world.

No temptation would work on her.

- Thump, thump...

"Ugh."

However, for some reason, strange things had been occurring for the past few days.

Every time Frey whispered those worthless words, her heart would skip a beat.

"Huh? Why are you acting like that, Ruby?"

"..."

At first, she thought it was one of Frey's tricks.

However, there were too many strange points to attribute it solely to Frey's trickery.

From what Ruby saw, the ‘Stellar Mana' controlled by Frey was a force specialized in explosions.

So, precise manipulation to make her heart pound using the stellar mana embedded in her heart would be impossible.

And Frey was not lying.

When she used her mind-reading skill to check his feelings, there was no trace of 'lies' or ‘nervousness.'

All she could see on him was his infinite love for her.

"Hmm..."

Of course, if she checked Frey's status window, she would be able to judge the ‘purchase of skills’.

However, for some reason, Frey's status window had been disabled since he went crazy.

It looked like the letters were garbled, and she couldn't confirm what was written on them at all.

"..."

"So, have you remembered it now?"

After being lost in thought for a while, Ruby, who had been quietly closing her eyes, opened them when Frey asked.

The smell of her favorite potato soup was spreading everywhere.

"...It's vegetable soup, isn't it?"

"It's based on potato soup. I deliberately added big chunks, just the way you like it."

"Hmm..."

That was true.

Although she hadn't eaten it for a while due to being busy recently, vegetable soup based on potato soup was a dish she used to eat every day with rye bread.

By the way, when was the last time she had potato soup?

Probably... hmm.

Ruby, who had unconsciously drooled, soon frowned.

It was the first time I received a penalty.

She still remembered how her soup was stained with fresh blood because she was caught by that cheeky little brat named Glare.

That was the first pain she had ever felt in her life.

"By the way, how do you know that?"

"Well, how do you think I know?"

As Ruby forcefully tried to push away the memories by asking a question, Frey, sweating profusely, answered with a big grin.

"I've never met you in the past. That damn orphanage... Keugh!"

"What did you say?"

"I mean, the first time we met was at the orphanage.”

Ruby, who received a correction punch to the stomach from Frey, answered while holding her pounding chest.

It was really strange.

It seemed that now, just experiencing violence from him made her heart flutter.

Why did her heart flutter? If it were not because of Frey, could it be that she caught some illness?

Whatever it was, it was definitely not some foolish reason like feeling touched or falling in love.

It was not like she was a child; of course, she could distinguish emotions of that level.

There must be a reason for her heart to beat like this...

"You told me before. It seems like you really can't remember."

"Did I really tell you that?"

“Yeah, that’s why I know that.”

Upon Frey's words, Ruby immediately stopped her thoughts and stared ahead with piercing eyes.

There was still no sign of false information in the system window that appeared before her eyes due to her mind-reading skills.

"Did I really tell you about that in the past? Such trivial information?"

However, no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't believe it.

How could she tell Frey such trivial and somewhat embarrassing information with her own mouth?

"Stop talking nonsense, Frey."

It would be more reasonable to think that he put surveillance on her.

"Do you perhaps put surveillance on me? Did you use magic or something?"

"If it were magic, you would have noticed."

"Is it the system?"

"My system is the same as yours. There's no eavesdropping skill or anything like that."

"Then, that cheeky little... Keugh!"

"Glare still doesn't know my identity. There’s no way she can tell me."

For that slip of tongue, Ruby was rewarded with another fist in the stomach.

Then... Did we really meet in the past?

"Yes, judging by your reaction, it seems you really have forgotten."

Frey suddenly wore a gloomy expression and lowered his head.

"I thought, of course, you would remember too..."

"...?"

"In the end, only I remember those times that seemed like a dream."

The expression on Frey’s face was somewhat wistful.

A lonely feeling, as if he had lost something precious, permeated the air.

"What are you talking abo–"

"Forget it, don't worry about it."

Without realizing it, Ruby found herself asking a question. Frey interrupted her and flashed a bright smile.

"It's nothing."

"..."

"Oh, by the way, the potato soup is ready."

Then he handed a bowl of potato soup to Ruby, who, for some reason, had a slightly uncomfortable expression on her face.

"Here, eat."

"Hmm."

At first glance, it seemed edible.

The smell was quite pleasant, perhaps it was because she was hungry, or the ingredients were good.

"I have no choice then."

However, Ruby's taste was very picky.

If the chunks were even slightly tough or the consistency was a bit watery, she would rather not eat it.

Although she didn't know how he found out that she liked potato soup, she couldn't be satisfied with soup hastily prepared in this environment…

"...!?"

"How is it? Delicious, right?"

Ruby’s pupils widened as the taste exploded in her taste bud.

I-it's delicious.

The smooth soup that filled her mouth was melting away the hardships and pain she had experienced so far.

Even though she liked potato soup, has she ever tasted any soup this good?

Honestly, it seemed like this would be the most memorable soup she had ever eaten.

"I made it according to your preferences."

"A-according to my preferences?"

"Yeah, I used to get scolded by you a lot to replace the best way to make it for you. But..."

Looking at her like, Frey spoke excitedly, but soon lowered his gaze and his voice trailed off.

"What is it?"

"No, it's nothing."

"Hmm?”

"It probably doesn't matter now."

Frey was looking at her with his chin propped on his hands.

"Slurp, slurp."

Ruby, who had a strange expression for a while, continued to eat the soup.

"...You cut the rye bread into small pieces."

"Because you like to eat it in small pieces."

"Huh."

Ruby, who was dipping bread into the soup, scoffed upon hearing that and eventually pondered.

Did I really ever meet Frey in the past?

She didn’t plan to believe everything that came out of his mouth. Frey was a very intelligent guy. This could also be a planned trap.

But, what if it's true?

The reason her heart beat so irregularly.

Frey's strangely obsessive behavior.

And the fact that he knew even trivial details about her.

Did I really forget about it?

As there were indeed strange points, Ruby, who had been searching her memories for a while, suddenly narrowed her eyes.

Or, there might be a reason why only he has such memories.

What could that reason be?

For that to be valid, it must be quite a specific situation.

It was unlikely to happen in most cases, but there are a few special situations where it could.

For example...

Regression?

That thought suddenly crossed her mind, but Ruby soon shook her head with a smirk.

Nonsense

There was no magic that could manipulate time.

Even though she could control space freely, time was something she couldn’t even touch.

Above all, there were firmly established laws of this world. The absolute truth that could never be defied.

Even her “Path of Pretender System,” which was almost like an authority, and her partner, the Demon God, couldn't touch it; it was nearly impossible.

Knowing that no one could travel to the past or the future, Ruby, too, was at ease, committing such acts.

He’s indeed quite an exceptional fellow. Even if it's just for a moment, he managed to make me imagine such unrelated things.

Thinking she had deciphered Frey's intentions, Ruby stared at him quietly with a smile.

How dare you try to deceive me.

If there was even a slight opening, she would overturn this situation.

She would bring Frey back to his senses, isolate him as planned, and break him.

Yes, that would do.

"If you've finished eating, let's rest, Ruby.”

"Alright, it's getting late."

Putting down the soup bowl, Ruby nodded at Frey's words and mumbled.

"Well then... hiiik?"

As she was about to prepare for bed, she widened her eyes and lay down on her side.

“Let's sleep together.”

- Squeeze...

It was because Frey embraced her tightly and toppled her onto the sandy ground.

“You–”

"Let's sleep like this today.”

"Heub.”

After whispering that, she suddenly kissed her and gently pressed their foreheads together.

“Ruby, how did you like the vegetable potato soup today?”

"Well, um... um…”

- Thump, thump...!

Ruby's heart started to beat uncontrollably at that moment.

"K-Keuheokkk–”

"Good night, Ruby.”

Before she could even reply, Ruby felt a familiar pain exploding in her stomach. Not content with that, Frey even triggered the stellar mana in her heart, making her close her eyes tightly.

"Your soup... was the worst.”

Ruby glared intensely at Frey just before as her consciousness wavered.

“I really felt like I was going to throw up.....”

It was half-truth and half lie.

It was true that she felt like vomiting due to the blow to her stomach, but she was holding it back.

"See you tomorrow, Ruby.”

“...”

Despite her reluctance to admit it, Frey's potato soup was undeniably delicious.

"I love you.”

- Thump, thump, thump…!

So much so that she wanted to eat more and not throw up any of it.

.

.

.

.

.

A few hours later, at dawn.

"Hm."

As I cuddled Ruby and tried to sleep, I opened one eye to check the surroundings.

"Alright."

The girl I had knocked out was still lying there, and Ruby was still asleep in my arms.

"..."

No, she was pretending to sleep.

No matter how much she acted, she couldn’t deceive me.

To deceive someone like me, who had lived a life full of deception, you need someone on the level of Ferloche.

- Ssk, ssk...

"Sigh."

As I gently stroked her hair while she pretended to be sound asleep, I let out a brief sigh and started muttering.

"Is it too late to change you now?"

I had given her enough bait.

It was time to move on to the next plan.

"Will I ever see that sight again?"

"...!"

As I muttered those words with the most sincere tone that I could muster, Ruby's expression began to twitch slightly.

Her ears perked up.

She looked like she wanted to hear more of what I was saying.

- Ssk...

However, I ignored it and stood up.

"Hmm."

Giving too much information at once was counterproductive. It was better to leave some to her imagination and make her imaginations run wild.

And.

- Shaaa...

"How long do you plan to just watch?"

It was because it was time to face the uninvited guest and the core of this plan.

- Swoosh, swoosh!

As soon as I finished casting the concealment spell on Ruby, human figures began to appear from the darkness.

Among the twelve executives of the Church, this one was known to be quite powerful.

"... Alone?"

As I was greeting them with my sword in hand, I heard a deep voice coming from afar.

"Yes, alone."

- Rustle, rustle...

As I responded to that voice, Ruby started rustling even more violently behind me.

"I know you have companions."

"Well, as you can see, I'm alone."

It was time to start the second stage of the plan to crush her.

***

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