I Reincarnated as the Villain in an Eroge, But Before I Realized, I Became a Capture Target
Translator: Reo
Editor: PalenMisha
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Luca POV 16 (Part 1)
I went to the guild the day after we finished dog-sitting as well.
I asked Zagan about it the day before, and he said that he basically only visited the guild in the afternoon. He’d go to the guild, check out the requests, and, if there was something that caught his eye, he’d take it, returning to the guild the afternoon of the following day. He’d then hand in the request completion report and convert any materials acquired into money. At night, he’d take it easy, then he’d do it all over again the next day. That was his routine.
He mentioned that he also sometimes went to the guild in the mornings if he felt like it, but today should be ok because he’d promised me yesterday that we’d do something together.
When I got to the Adventurer’s Guild, Zagan was already waiting for me.
Yesterday he got to play with dogs all day, so he was probably looking forward to today as well. I could tell he was happy despite his emotionless face.
Though he was standing next to a wall in an effort to not be in anyone’s way, he was letting out intimidation, probably to avoid getting tangled up with the people around him. That fierce look of his was something I’d grown familiar with over the past thirty years.
“Sorry for making you wait.”
However, as I called out to him and stepped closer, Zagan stopped his intimidation and turned to look at me with his red, sparkling eyes, and my heart started racing. Also, his habit of nodding wordlessly instead of replying was adorable.
“Let’s quickly choose a request to take.”
He gave me another nod. Really, how cute could he be? Trotting right up to me was super cute as well.
I was relieved to see that there was another dog-sitting request on the bulletin board and brought it with me over to the front desk. And, once it was confirmed that we were going to do it together, we quickly headed out to the daycare.
Today, we chatted while taking the dogs out on a walk, and Zagan’s softened atmosphere, so different from yesterday, as he gazed at the new dogs’ faces, made me fall for him even more.
We could at least be considered friends at this point, right? Or was it too early…? In the meantime, to get closer to him, I should increase the time we spend together.
Which was why, three hours later, when our work came to an end, I invited Zagan out.
“Say, Zagan, it’ll be dinnertime soon. How about we have dinner together?”
Zagan, who was about to leave, stopped in his tracks and stared up at me. He was so cute I wanted to squeeze him, but no, I shouldn’t.
“…You can’t?”
“You have friends… no? Aren’t they waiting for you?”
“Actually, I’d planned to invite you out from the start, so I told them I wouldn’t be needing any dinner. So if you reject me, I’ll be all by myself.”
“There are only a limited number of places I can go to. I’m not sure if taking you, a prince, to a place like any of those is going to be a problem or not.”
“If it means having a meal with you, even a food stall would be fine.”
“I see, so you yourself don’t care what kind of restaurant it is. Then, let’s go to a place I know and if we’re rejected, we can go to a food stall.”
Thank god he said yes. When he mentioned the others, I felt sad thinking he was looking for an excuse to turn me down, but it seemed he was just being considerate. What a sweet person.
The place Zagan took us to was a back alley tavern. It was about five minutes away from the Adventurer’s Guild and seemed to cater to adventurers. But since it was pricey, there weren’t as many rude people around, or so Zagan said. Apparently, the owner would send anyone who acted out flying on their asses.
The owners of such establishments were usually former adventurers themselves.
As we passed through the entrance, happy chatter could be heard from inside. The two of us were hiding our presence, so we weren’t attracting any attention either.
“Welcome! A table for two?”
“That’s right. By the way, is the owner here? I wanted to ask if it’s ok that I brought a prince to eat here.”
“Uh…? Ah, y-yes. Please wait just a moment.”
Struck by the unexpected question, the flustered hostess disappeared inside the restaurant. Soon after, a rugged-looking man appeared. Perhaps he’d been in the middle of cooking because he still had a spatula in his hand.
“Whoa. How about that? It really is Prince Luca.”
“Thank you. I didn’t expect to be recognized.”
“Well, I’ve always seen your photo in the newspaper, and I was there yesterday too when your party came in through the gate. What an honor to have you here. But you’re a prince – would the food in this tavern really be ok?”
“Quite the opposite. I’ve been craving something casual. Besides, my friend here is a genuine adventurer. We even talked about going to a food stall if you turned us down.”
“Yeah? In that case, you have to come in. I’m confident I can make anything.”
Like that, we were easily let inside, and the owner led us to our seats. As soon as we sat down, Zagan opened the menu and set it down on the table in front of us, as if to make sure I could see it as well.
Incidentally, I’d casually called Zagan a friend earlier, but it looked like that had gone over his head. Had it made him uncomfortable, I was sure he would have stared me down. In other words, we were already friends, right?
The fact that our relationship was progressing so smoothly made me happy.
Perhaps because I was smiling at him, Zagan, who’d been flipping through the menu, stopped and tilted his head in question.
“Luca, does anything look good? Is there something you’d like to eat?”
“They all look good. I don’t really know how these dishes would taste though. If you could choose something for me instead, you’d really be helping me out.”
“Then let’s choose things you’ve never had before.”
Zagan, who must have noticed that I hadn’t really looked at the menu, didn’t point it out.
Yesterday, and today as well, as we were talking, I noticed that even if I said something that was ambiguous or could be misinterpreted, he didn’t really ask about it.
For example, if I’d stare at Zagan, he’d notice and tilt his head in confusion, but when I’d tell him it was nothing, he’d just reply with a “That so?”
No matter how casually I’d treat him due to my impatience, he just let it slide. Which was honestly a relief for me at this stage, as I couldn’t confess to him yet.
If I got the timing wrong and confessed to him, only to be rejected, I was certain it would be like having my body ripped apart. Which was why I didn’t plan on confessing until I was sure he’d accept me. Not that I knew when that would happen.
Sigh… Getting the person you love to look at you was hard. I couldn’t rush it though. I knew from past experience with the noble ladies how annoying it was when someone forcefully tried to get close to you, so I understood the importance of closing the distance little by little.
Furthermore, Zagan was a man, and heterosexual no matter how you looked at it. Half of him consisted of a man who played that game, my Akashic record, and the other half was someone who’d assaulted his own sister. He was definitely attracted to women.
Of course, the majority of the population was heterosexual. I too was originally only attracted to women. In the end, I became a misanthrope though. It pained me to be looked at that way by others. And yet I selfishly wished for Zagan to look at me in such a way. But this was love and it couldn’t be helped, right?
Anyway, for now, I needed to make him recognize me as a potential partner… but I had no clue how to do that.
If we kept meeting up like this, would Zagan eventually develop romantic feelings for me? No, that’s impossible. No matter how far we’d go, it would just be affection for a friend, no?
Incidentally, among nobles, romance started with a series of dates meant to deepen the interaction between two individuals. Then, if they were ready for a relationship, the next step would be a mana compatibility check. In other words, sex. This was because, though rarely, there were times when mana compatibility was bad, making physical relations painful.
If they weren’t compatible there was also no hope that a child would be conceived, which was why nobles, who needed heirs, were required to check their compatibility before starting a relationship. Afterward, if there were no problems, they’d confess to each other and start a proper courtship.
On the other hand, if the compatibility was good, it was possible to fall for the other party through physicality alone, bypassing matters of the heart. This was probably why there were so many assertive noble ladies, and why they flocked around me, the second prince – a high-quality product in their eyes.
If I wanted Zagan to be aware of me, did I need to have at least that much resolve…? But if I tried to force him, wouldn’t he just draw his sword? He’d definitely hate me.
If he were gay, he might have fallen for my looks, but he wasn’t like that. In that case, it might be better for me to confess first. The question was when.
Even as I contemplated that, I was listening and nodding along to Zagan’s explanation about the monster ingredients used in the food. Soon our table was covered in dishes and Zagan distributed them onto small plates.
“Mm, delicious. It’s really good, Luca.”
“You’re right. This tastes great.”
It was a flavor I wasn’t that familiar with, but it was delicious. Teriyaki, was it? That scallion pancake was great too.
Since we were sharing, I felt like everything would be delicious if I ate it with Zagan, and it made me happy.
Speaking of which, there were a lot of meat dishes overall. Did Zagan like meat? He wasn’t drinking much of the alcohol, but his fork was diligently moving towards his mouth. Zagan chewing with stuffed cheeks was so cute.
