Chapter 3: A day in town.

After remembering just who Sarah was, Noir immediately and politely told her to leave to the point of pushing her out by the shoulders or else he would have had to leave the room himself, which was something he didn't want. This room was one of the only places where he could be alone and comfortable after all.

He was perplexed as to why, but he felt an indescribable feeling of guilt when he looked at her face. He didn't know why he felt like that.

Her death was caused by the original Noir, not him. Furthermore, she was still alive and well, not showing any signs of harm done to her yet. Was she appointed as his maid just recently? And in just a year of serving under him, she was driven to the point of suicide?

What a guy, that original Noir was. Noir just felt like socking him in the face and kicking him in the groin right now.

(Wait, calm down. Think this through....)

After Sarah finally left, he sank back into the couch in the study. It wasn't the time to worry about such things.

He had bigger fish to fry. He did feel a bit sorry for her, or rather the Sarah in the novel, but didn't feel anything more than that.

"That person. Avoid."

He feared the possibility of somehow influencing her to kill herself, but still had to deal with her if he wanted to at least live in the residence, so the only solution was to avoid her only as much as possible.

Little did Sarah know, she had become a target of Noir's fear without even doing anything.

●●●●●

[11:07 am - ■11/05/1534■]

Walking through the streets of downtown in the Vournemouth Viscounty, Noir inhaled a huge breath of the fresh air as he took in the fantasy-like feeling of this other world. He also took the fastest bath of his life before he went out into town.

"Hmmm... What was this city called again? Marione, was it?"

The helter-skelter of the Varn kingdom. Located fairly close to the Barun Mountain Range, it boasted a vast population of 100,000 citizens. Although it had virtually zero special attractions, it still recieved many tourists and travellers since it was also considered the "gateway" to the Varn kingdom. If something could be called special about it, it would be that there was a legend of a giant that once lived near it which died and his body became said Barun Mountain Range.

(If I am correct, the library should just be this way...)

The bustling streets livened up with children playing, food carts selling delectable food, carriages... It was hard to think that this was part of a kingdom that would potentially be plunged into war just over a year from now.

"However, it also would be a lot better if people weren't staring at me like that..."

He could also feel the intense stares of all the surrounding people gather on him. Even the youngest of the children directed icy cold glares when he passed by them.

"W-Well, the young master is the young master after all..."

Sarah was walking right behind him. Her maid uniform swayed with every step she took.

She was the reason he took the fastest bath of his life before going out. He wanted to leave before she was able to tag along. He even kept it in his mind to avoid her, keep himself as far away from her as much as possible, but for some reason he didn't, or rather, he wasn't able to.

(...Why is this person here again? And I know she is trying to console me, and she's right with what she said, but I don't feel any better...)

He flashed back to the conversation with his father earlier.

●●●

"So, you're just going to go into town right? You won't cause any trouble right?", Martin asked him. He was sitting at his workdesk in his office, reading and writing important documents. Noir stood just in front of him.

"Yes, father.", Noir's answer was brief.

"I see."

He opened a drawer and took something out.

"Take this with you."

Martin tossed to him a small satchel.

"Hmm?", Noir wondered what was in it as he caught it and gazed into the bag, his expression stiffening.

Gold coins. They shined so lustriously that he had to squint his eyes as they adjusted just to look at them in the considerably bright room.

"There is 5 million Terul in that bag. ....Spend it wisely.", Martin said, seemingly unsure of what Noir would do with the money.

There is no need to mention this, but Terul is the Varn kingdom's currency.

Certainly, since in the past, he would splurge money on the most random and useless things endlessly once he was given some. His value of money was warped in Martin's eyes.

But the Noir right now, had no idea of this.

(....Being filthy rich sure is amazing...), he thought.

These were his genuine feelings. His father just gave him a lifetime's worth of savings that he could use to just live the rest of his days in a small mansion in mild comfort.

To put it into perspective, 30 Terul could get him a full course meal in the most renowned restaurant, in the capital. Therefore, it's value on Earth would be equivalent to around $85. And his father just handed 5 million of said Terul to him almost as if it was nothing to him.

The Vournemouth Viscounty, or rather, his family was just too well-off in life. He always knew this, but only then did it dawn on him.

(What financial strength....), he thought, his eyes glinting in delight.

And just as he was about to turn and leave the room.

"Wait."

"....Yes, father?"

"....Although Frank will be going out with you today, still, be careful alright?"

(I know that.)

He found it odd that Martin pointed that out, but there was more he needed to say.

"Oh, and also, Sarah will be with you, is that fine?"

"....Eh?"

Martin threw a big curveball all of a sudden.

But Noir couldn't refuse either, since it seemed like Martin had a specific purpose in mind for letting Sarah join him.

●●●

Noir heaved a big sigh as he stopped in front of the library. It was a two-storey building resembling something like a city hall.

(And so it led to this, but... I'm not really okay with this you know?)

He protested in his mind to his father who was no longer present. Oh how he would have loved to turn back time and refuse him poltiely!

Glancing back to look at Sarah, he found that she was no longer behind him.

"Ehehehehe~... How adorable...!"

Instead, his gaze landed on the opposite side of the road where an innocent Sarah was petting the head of a stray puppy.

...Did she seriously stray away from her young master whom she was supposed to accompany under direct orders from his father...?

(How did father give this woman the pass to work as a maid...? Look, her maid outfit will get dirty...), thought Noir in exasperation.

'I mean, I get that that puppy is cute and all, but come on....', he thought as he directed a blank gaze to the oblivious Sarah. Although he had the option to just ditch her here and head inside by himself, he couldn't just leave a lone woman outside by herself in the streets. Who knows what could happen if he did. And also, she was gathering a lot of attention.

A small crowd had started to form around Sarah. They were attracted by the sight of Sarah's carefree antics. The sight of a beautiful woman being playful on the side of the road of a fantasy world would tickle any otaku's fancy, but not Noir.

Before it got too crowded, Noir started to reluctantly walk to where she was.

(....Huuuuuu....)

Immediately, like a rock against a river's current, all gazes fell onto him from the crowd, making him wince a little bit.

He didn't like being in crowds. In fact, he didn't like interacting with people in general. Even in his past life, he was a loner. The only exceptions in this life would be members of his family like his father, Martin, who would give him immense amounts of money at the drop of a hat.

He would also sometimes faint from pressure when faced with a huge crowd in his past life.

Clutching the satchel containing his precious 5 million Terul as if it were a lucky charm to drive away demons, he plunged into the crowd.

"Hiihh! I-It's Noir."

"Huh..? Geh, you're right..."

(...Seriously...? What happened to honorifics? Did Noir's reputation fall so low to the point that his own citizens didn't even address him anymore as "young master" and only looked at him like he was a pest?)

He wanted to think that the satchel was what somehow drove them away, but he knew somewhere in his heart that this definitely wasn't true.

And just like that, the crowd magically dispersed into the surroundings, leaving a lone Sarah behind as she continued to play with the puppy.

He would have understood if they were avoiding him because of fear towards him, being the lord's bastard of a son and all, but they were only looking at him like he was a flying insect that just landed on their food. Depression hit him hard as he thought back on it.

"What do you think you're doing...?"

"Ehehe~ ...Eh? Ah, young master...! U-uhmmm, th-this isn't what it looks like...!"

(No no, it's exactly what it looks like....)

Noir retorted only in his mind, not bothering to waste anymore time with words as he glared at Sarah to make her stand up. She looked like a mouse in front of a cat in his eyes. He could only let out a defeated sigh.

"Haaaahhhh..."

Thus, after apologizing with her head down and patting the hem of her skirt a few times, Sarah followed him into the library.

●●●

"Ah~ Bliss.... Just pure bliss...."

"Err, young master?"

There was a cramp in Sarah's smile when she gazed at Noir's ecstatic face. She instinctively drew back a little at the sight of it, feeling slight discomfort.

She may be perhaps the only person in the world to see such a face coming from Noir up close.

The scent of books hit the both of them once they got past the reception desk. The receptionist's face was clearly weird when she saw Noir actually visiting the library, but he didn't mind it anymore. He is oddly getting used to those kinds of stares by now.

And after arriving at the [History Section], Noir's eyes lit up as bright as ever before as he grabbed a book off the shelf and immediately started reading while sitting at a long table.

"Haaaahhh....."

He sighed as his shoulders relaxed themselves. He really felt at ease when he read books. Like a fish that found water.

Sarah awkwardly stood behind him. She still wasn't quite used to serving him, as seen by Noir earlier when they were walking in the streets and she separated from him just to play with a puppy.

"What are you doing? Come sit as well."

He also felt quite awkward feeling her gaze on him from behind. He couldn't read properly like this, so he tried to spit out his discomfort as coolly as possible.

*Plump*

"Err... on the other side?"

Sarah recieved his order splendidly and sat.... right next to him. Their shoulders touched, sending a jolt like lightning across Noir's entire body which stiffened up in return. He still maintained his cool expression, but was screaming like a child on the inside.

(H-Her skin feels soft, even under her maid uniform.... She also smells.... kind of n-nice... Wait, no! Purge evil thoughts... Purge evil thoughts....)

One more piece of trivia about him is that he never had any kind of relationship with a woman in his past life. So even if he had the mind of a grown man, his knowledge and experience regarding "that" might as well be that of a child.

"Ah... Y-Yes.", mutteres Sarah in panic as she hurried over to the chair opposite of him.

It seemed that their shoulders touching also had an effect on Sarah, but it wasn't like Noir's case. Her expression turned extremely apologetic as she assumed she made him very uncomfortable, which wasn't exactly wrong.

"Fuuuhhh... Finally, I can read.", Noir mumbled to no one in particular.

-----------

[14:13 - ■11/05/1534■]

"What the hell... Three whole hours and I couldn''t find anything...."

Closing a thick mythology book with a loud *Thump*, Noir puts a palm on his face as he contemplates his entire life that lead him up to this point. He thought he would find something in this library, a clue to how he could solve his terrible lack of power.

His body right now as the 15 year old Noir couldn't even be compared to his body in his past life.

Granted, he didn't really possess a super muscly, macho, strength-centered body back then, and he also wasn't a good fighter, but he made up for it with his abilities and mana control.

However, in the face of that monster known as 'the protagonist'.....

Forget getting beaten up half to death, he felt like he would die instantly if he recieved a single punch from him in the body of this hilariously weak trash known as Noir. He was just that much of a cheat.

Right now, he couldn't even manifest a fourth of the mana he had when he was in his prime as Noel. And although he had a fairly fit build, it couldn't be called sturdy either. Such a realization made him feel desperation as he laid lifelessly on the table.

"....It's not here either...."

Did he really need to go all the way out of the territory to find it for himself? A special power that he is unsure to obtain? He didn't want to do that. It would be too troublesome.

Also, he only remembered its location, not the methods for obtaining it. There was also the fairly high risk of death at any wrong step he took outside the territory's walls....

"...But I guess it is also necessary to venture out of the territory to explore the world a little bit."

He thought as a small, bright grin crept up on his face. His eyes sparkled from imagining it.

Half of the reason was because of necessity while the other half was for his own interest.

He was a big fan of [A Hero's Second Life]. It was only a matter of course that he wanted to at least see the world for himself, even at the risk of death. Who knows, maybe it'll be fun?

"...I guess that's the first place I'll go, huh..."

Thankfully, there was one location of interest he remembered reading about in the novel that was quite close to Marione. He would have to head there first.

"*Sigh*...."

He looked at the small towers of books he had amassed on the table. Some were the height of a small child, drawing the attention of some people in the library.

Had he been so absorbed in reading that he didn't notice them pile up? The books were interesting regardless of his reason for reading them after all.

And enterring his view in the space between these towers sat Sarah, who wore an absent-minded expression. She looked like she didn't budge an inch since he started reading and only directed her gaze towards him.

Perhaps that was one thing she did right today as his maid. Although he felt that it was quite creepy for someone to stare at him with a blank face...

Why was she like this?

"Hey."

"...."

She didn't even seem to hear him when he called out to her. Had she been like this for three whole hours...? Perhaps she was daydreaming? He wouldn't really have minded if she also grabbed a book or two while waiting for him to finish.

"Haaaaah....."

Noir had to get up and nudge her shoulder a few times before they were able to leave the library. She really needed to work on her obliviousness.

------

"I-I apologize, young master..."

Bowing with her body at a 90° angle, Sarah apologized once again. It would soon become sort of a routine for Noir if they didn't do anything about it.

"....It's fine."

He wore a complicated expression as if to say "What to do with this person?"

(She is way too timid...)

Or so he thought, holding up a skewer to Sarah which he had bought from a food cart earlier. Noir bit into his own skewer while his arm continued to stay up in the air.

They were back in the middle of town, in an area lined with benches and tables. It was a strange sight for passerbys to see him, the trash young master, offer food to his maid. Some sent fleeting gazes at them as they walked by.

Noir also noticed that the owner of the food cart was shaking a little as he made his purchase.

Remembering it only made him frown. So he focused his attention back to the delicious aroma of grilled meat spreading in his mouth.

"I apologize for my behavior earlier.... Young master has to deal with me messing up again...."

(What's with her? Why is she suddenly like this? What's with the sudden mood swings...?), Noir wondered as he watched her take a seat next to him at the edge of a flower bed.

Certainly, the Sarah in the novel sounded like she had a depressing life, but it seemed much worse than he thought. Was something weighing on her mind?

Maybe there was more to this than he knew of...?

*Growl....*

(Ah, her stomach growled.... Awkward...)

Feeling troubled, he tried to keep his voice as monotone as possible.

"Haaaaah... You going to take it yet? My arm's getting tired."

"..."

His arm already started to shake a little after being held outwards for 30 seconds. Seriously, how weak was this body of his....

Perhaps Sarah's self esteem took a hit at his cold words, since her eyes looked rather hollow as she took the skewer from him.

"I don't know if I'm cut out for this. Being a maid...."

Her sudden words stole Noir's attention from his food. He suddenly felt like he was living in a side story of the novel.

"....Is there a problem?"

"N-No no.... Yes, I think so...?"

"What is it?"

Taking a deep breathe as she savored the flavor of meat, Sarah opened her mouth.

"Does young master know about my origins?"

"You mean about you being an orphan who was adopted by two commoners that raised you as their own daughter?"

"Y-Yes... Young master knows a lot, huh... Then I suppose there's no need to explain..."

(No, don't look at me with those eyes... I only read about it in the novel....)

Her mouth formed a little smile as she looked at Noir, but he noticed a hint of sadness her smile. He felt a small, sharp pang of guilt inside him seeing her like that.

"Yes, you're correct. I was an orphan. I... am grateful to mother and father for raising me as one of their own... They even made me get a job as a... maid..."

"Hmm?!"

Small tears started to come out in the corners of her eyes. She hid her face so that Noir couldn't see, but it was already too late for that.

"Hic.... *Sniff*..."

"...."

Noir's face as he looked at the crying figure of Sarah was as cold as stone, but on the inside, he was panicking like he was just set on fire.

(H... Holy sh*t! Sh-she just started crying all of a sudden.... Wh-what should I do?!! Even the people passing by are giving me bad glares! No! It's not like that!!!!!)

He resisted the urge to flail his hands about.

He didn't know how to console someone, most especially if the person was a woman. He was helpless on how to deal with situations like this...

"...."

But he decided to listen. Since it was one of the few things he knew he could do for her.

"They "made" you get a job?"

"...Un... They, They would sometimes tell me whenever I come home from work that I... was a useless daughter since I wasn't able to seduce master Martin or the young master..."

"Wha, what the..."

Sarah's words hit him like a punch to the face.

He was appalled. The entire story clicked inside his head. It made complete sense now.

It actually wasn't just because of the original Noir that Sarah died in the novel. There were definitely some other hidden factors that caused her to resort to suicide, but he never expected one of them to be her own adoptive parents.

Now that he thought about it, there was no shortage of people who would want to gain benefits from being tied to a noble. Such situations were portrayed in the novel. Several methods to ascend to nobility existed even on Earth.

Considering that she was already at the age where she would start exuding some sexual appeal, by making her possibly Martin's or even better, Noir, his heir's mistress, they would gain a reputation as her parents. Becoming the Vournemouth family's retainers also wouldn't be completely impossible if that was the case.

(Human greed is the same in all worlds, huh....)

He also felt a bit disgusted at himself who was able to understand so quickly the ploy of Sarah's parents. They viewed her as a simple ticket to the high life.

(What lowlifes....)

Noir's fist that wasn't holding a skewer clenched painfully. He could feel his fingernails digging into his palms.

He used to be an orphan just like her, albeit in his past life. In fact, if he thought about it, she had it harder than he did.

He felt quite terrible, even though he normally shouldn't, as the focus of her parents' schemes. He didn't know why he felt like that. Even back when he first saw her, he felt guilty even though there really wasn't any reason for it.

It wasn't even his fault that she was put into this situation.

"...Hic... They would sometimes beat me while saying things like "we only raised you because you could help us get rich", "we wouldn't have saved you when you were a baby if we knew how useless you would turn out to be."...."

Even his heart felt like it started bleeding at some point as he continued to listen to Sarah's words laced with painful emotions as tears began gushing out of her eyes. She could hold them in no longer. She didn't even bother covering her face with her hands anymore.

(To think that there was such a side of this character in the novel... and it's only my first day here... Come on, it was supposed to be an action and adventure novel, not one that played with the readers' feelings using hidden stories like this...)

He only planned to go to the town library today to learn more about where he could find some kind of power to make him stronger. He never would have expected there to be an event where someone would suddenly ball their eyes out as they opened up their heart in front of him, of all people.

(Wait, could it be that she felt so cornered to the point that she would confess these things to me? Of all people? Me? Oi, isn't that way to tragic?)

"I, I only want them to praise me, but at the same time, I also want to rid myself of them. There are also moments when I get the urge to hit them back just as hard as they beat me... I'm a terrible person who wishes to hurt her own parents... I-I don't know what to-..."

"No."

Before she was about to continue on with self-deprecation evident in her shaking voice, Noir sternly cut her off. Her eyes widened as they glanced at Noir's face.

She saw that his eyes still looked cold as he continued.

"The hatred you feel towards them... is normal. I even find it questionable that you haven't done that yet."

His eyes weren't looking at her, but they were staring into space, as if looking at something very far off in the distance. He let out a small laugh filled with scorn as he smiled cynically.

"B-But..."

"Don't tell me you believe that just because they saved your life when you were a baby and adopted you or whatever, means that they can do whatever they want with you and ruin it in the process? Che, what nonsense."

"..."

Clicking his tongue, he let his annoyance show evidently on his face. Sarah could only stay silent as he continued with a firm voice.

"...I don't know what's going on inside that head of yours, but why don't yo-"

Or he would have continued in a firm voice as he unconsciously raised his hand and was about to put it on her head, but a certain old man's terrifying voice cut him short. He hid his hand behind him at a speed untracable to the eye.

"Why don't you just run away?"

""?!""

Needless to say, it was Frank the chamberlain. He stood behind them in an empty patch inside the flowerbed, his feet placed in a way that was sure not to step on any of the flowers.

Noir completely forgot about this guy. Looking at him looming over both him and Sarah, he suddenly felt like he was buried deep in the ground, unable to move when he was faced with Frank's gentle smile.