Confined Together with the Horror Game’s Male Lead - Chapter 148

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Chapter 148

Translator: Yonnee

—

The meaningless argument showed no signs of ending.

As I debated whether I should hastily invent a new identity, the heat in my body intensified.

Suddenly, my vision blurred.

Cough—

Ah, not again.

Dark red blood spilled from my lips.

The side effects poured out in small streams.

“Charlotte…”

Dietrich, who had been sitting idly with a detached expression, reacted for the first time.

“Milady!”

“What is going on? Are you alright?”

Ah, I felt dizzy.

In the next moment, my vision blacked out.

Dietrich scooped me up and quickly carried me to the third floor.

Oddly enough, I found myself grateful for the side effects kicking in.

Had they not, I would have had to continue facing that difficult situation.

As I lay in his arms, my consciousness slipped away.

* * *

When I awoke, Dietrich, as always, was firmly seated beside me.

As soon as I opened my eyes, we made eye contact, as if he had been waiting for me to wake up all along.

Dietr…

Ouch.

I tried to call his name, but pain flared in my throat, forcing me to close my mouth.

Great. My throat was completely hoarse.

I couldn’t even make a sound.

“Shh. It’s alright. Your throat doesn’t seem to be in good condition, Charlotte. There’s a remedy for this. I’ll bring it to you shortly.”

He was, as always, gentle.

Everything that had happened before I fainted felt like a distant dream.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said suddenly, without any preamble. “I’ve been thinking about why you collapsed so suddenly. Was it because you healed Tuvio?”

“……”

“There’s no way you’d collapse for no reason. This always happens when you overexert yourself.”

He was right.

Unable to speak, I simply nodded, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

“…I see.”

“……”

“Ah.”

He nodded as if something had dawned on him, his mood suddenly darkening.

What’s wrong?

“Do you remember, Charlotte, when you coughed up blood after helping me, not long after I entered the mansion?”

Of course.

How could I forget? It was the first mission the system had assigned to me.

“That moment was very special to me. I felt immense guilt seeing you collapse because you were trying to protect me, and though this might sound strange…”

Dietrich paused, as if recalling the memory.

“I think I felt a bit of excitement as well.”

…Excitement?

His unexpected words made me blink in confusion.

“You even suffered a severe burn on your back while trying to save me. I didn’t want to admit it at the time, but my heart raced because of the fact that you did it for me.”

“……”

“Back then, I wanted to deny you, so I didn’t fully process those feelings.”

How had Dietrich been at that time?

I remember his face, visibly flustered when I was hurt.

It was clear how his complicated emotions had left him confused.

“You kept helping and supporting me. So, I thought I had become someone special to you, but…”

His voice trailed off.

“It seems I was wrong. You’re just like how I used to be—you can’t leave anyone in danger alone.”

“……”

“When the bandits entered the mansion, you opposed them and stayed by my side. But now that I think about it, you must have known they weren’t good people from the start.”

His voice was calm, but he sounded increasingly wounded.

“You only stayed by my side because they were bad people. And yet, I foolishly convinced myself that I was special.”

“……”

“Since then, we’ve been trapped here together. You’ve had no reason for your feelings to stray.”

“…What are y…ou trying to s…ay?”

I struggled to raise my hoarse voice, trying to grasp the meaning behind his rambling words.

Dietrich smiled faintly.

“I’m saying that I’ve come to appreciate the time we’ve spent together in this mansion.”

…Out of nowhere?

“Let’s continue to get along well, Charlotte. Just the two of us.”

Just the two of us?

Dietrich extended his hand as if offering a handshake, and still unable to fully understand his words, I reached out and took it.