Meanwhile, The Hero Party

"Hyun-woo? You're Lee Hyun-woo, right!"

Rose grabbed the bars and came up close.

Dragging her body, she looked up at me.

After confirming my face, she suddenly teared up.

"You, you've come to save me…! But how? It hasn't been that long…!"

"...I have my ways."

"Listen to me. That bitch Claire really…ah, can you unlock this first!"

Rose banged on the bars.

She knew all too well how easy it would be for me to break the bars.

But I just looked down at her quietly.

"Lee Hyun…woo?"

Only then did Rose examine my expression.

Realizing something was wrong from my look.

"Wait a minute? You're not holding a grudge against me, are you? It was Leon who kicked you out. I was actually against it! You know that!"

Rose's changed tone was quite amusing.

The usual haughty and proud attitude was gone.

"You don't know how much I felt the void after you disappeared. I kept trying to convince Leon that we needed you!"

Has the hardship she endured changed her inside?

Or did she know how desperate the situation was now?

Either way, it's none of my business.

"Yes, I admit I was wrong too! So, I'll apologize! I planned to repay everything after the demon king subjugation. So, unlock this. I have to repay the debt."

"Unlock it?"

"Huh?"

When I finally spoke, Rose froze like ice.

"If I rescue you from here…you'll go back to Leon, right?"

"Well, that…"

Rose stuttered, unable to respond.

The truth was, she would have to go to Leon no matter what.

Whether fighting with the other women.

Or receiving compensation for her hardships from Leon.

Even if it meant abandoning her pride and demanding to be officially recognized by him.

Rose would inevitably have to go back to Leon.

She had already invested too much.

'She's proud, but she'll give up everything in front of her own interests.'

She should know that I wouldn't accept her if I had any common sense.

It would be too shameful for her to return home after such a failure.

By tomorrow, the entire kingdom will be aware that Rose was abandoned and captured by the demon army.

An elf who was used by the hero and then taken prisoner by the demon army—who knows what they've subjected her to?

Who would want such a person?

It would be a relief if she wasn't seen as a disgrace to her clan.

'Well, those are things she'll have to contemplate as she continues to live.'

That's why Rose was so desperate.

Being ostracized outside was preferable to being a prisoner of the demon army.

There was resentment and anger towards the hero and the saint.

But upon seeing me, the reality of being a prisoner, vulnerable to being killed or tortured at any moment, must have dawned on her.

"Hy, Hyun-woo? No? You, you need to escape too! Then I can be of help! Just give me a bow, and I can support you! Or, I'll even be your shield if you don't have one!"

Seeing Rose cling to me with such desperation, I barely managed to suppress my laughter.

Such a stark contrast to the once arrogant elf.

'Regret is always too late, no matter how swiftly it arrives.'

If she had approached me with this humility from the start, when I warned her.

If she had clung to my legs and apologized when I left the Hero Party, would anything have been different?

'Now, it doesn't matter anymore.'

By now, Rose was shivering, her ears and body trembling.

Tears were brimming in her eyes.

Her gaze was fixed solely on me.

"Please…I beg you…you're all I have left now. Please don't abandon me…"

She had already been abandoned by the hero and the saint once.

She wouldn't want to endure that a second time.

Especially not in her current state as a prisoner; such a reality was too harsh for Rose's mental state to handle.

Should I send a thank you note to the despicable saint who created this wonderful situation?

'I've had my fun. Now it's time for me to get to work.'

I spoke to Rose in the kindest voice I could muster.

"Don't worry, Rose. I'm on your side. I came here to rescue you."

"Re, really?"

Yeah, right, idiot.

I bit back the rising words and said,

"Yes, for real. I've come after making a deal with a demon army officer. I'll give all the magic stones I have. Just let me take care of your sentence."

"All that? Why would you…?"

Rose looked puzzled.

After all, we weren't exactly on good terms, even as a courtesy.

"The truth is…I've had feelings for you."

"...What?"

Rose's eyes widened.

Then her ears turned bright red.

She was embarrassed by the sudden confession, forgetting the situation.

"That's so sudden…I thought you hated me…"

"I pretended to hate you because I was afraid you'd notice my feelings. Honestly, I was quite childish back then. But being away from you, I found myself thinking about you more and more."

"But, is that okay? As you know, I was with Leon and...."

Of course, I have no interest in a woman like you.

But for the sake of my plan, I could easily act.

Didn't a genius with a Death Note also smoothly lie for his ambitions?

"Of course, it's okay. Otherwise, why would I come to the heart of the enemy to save you?"

"Ah…Hyun-woo..."

Rose's eyes filled with emotion.

Tears welled up in her eyes.

In her most desperate and hopeless moment, there's a man who risked his life to find her.

And he had been harboring a long-standing unrequited love for her.

It wouldn't be strange to see him as her savior.

Though the reality was the complete opposite.

"Here, take this."

"What's this?"

I handed Rose a pen.

[Item Window]

Name: Pen of Trust and Happiness.

Description: A woman touched by the ink of this pen will feel a significant increase in trust and comfort towards the owner, naturally feeling affectionate towards them. The pattern drawn on the body can be made invisible to others if desired.

"This is a magic item I've made. If you draw it on your body, it will reduce pain and make it harder for others to harm you."

"Really?"

"Yes, but there's a risk of being discovered… Just draw a line on your thigh. You never know when they might torture you."

At the mention of torture, Rose hurriedly moved.

She drew on her own thigh with the pen designed to brainwash its target.

This would significantly increase Rose's trust in me.

Rose handed me back the pen, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you. Such a magic item must be incredibly expensive."

"I have to invest at least this much for a woman I have unrequited love for."

Rose's face turned slightly red.

I sneered inwardly at her reaction and continued.

"And I have something to tell you about the real nature of this fight."

"The real nature?"

The elf's ears perked up.

I spoke with a truly regretful tone.

"Actually, Leon has already chosen Claire as his partner."

"…What?"

"And this operation was concocted by the church and the hero for that purpose."

"What, what did you say?"

Rose's eyes filled with shock.

At the same time, the line drawn on her thigh glowed pink.

"Is that true? Leon deliberately abandoned me, not just on Claire's whim?"

"Yes, it seems the political situation was shaky, so he needed the church's power. That's why he made a deal with the church to choose Claire."

"How could he… Even until just before the operation, he was holding me and whispering love…"

Rose seemed unable to believe it.

Or rather, she didn't want to believe it.

I drove the final nail into her doubts.

"Doesn't it seem strange? Carrying out such a reckless operation, and conveniently only the two of them escaping safely with a teleport, leaving you to be captured by the demon army?"

Rose nodded vehemently.

"It did seem strange to me too! Claire never said she could use such teleportation!"

"Yes, it's too perfect to be a coincidence. It was a trap to sell you to the demon army from the start."

"Why go to such lengths? Why not just choose Claire?"

"It would have been seen as a rejection of the other elves and beastmen. Better for you be killed and disappear than that."

Of course, it's a lie.

My guess was that Claire simply fled because she wanted to survive.

'That idiot couldn't concoct such a plan. If the church had led it, maybe. But the current High Saintess wouldn't allow such a thing.'

The reason only the hero was taken was likely because Claire's divine power was insufficient; that was the limit.

The reason it wasn't mentioned was to prepare for moments of real danger like this.

But for Rose now, the truth doesn't matter.

"Leon, that bastard… I gave up my pride to treat him well…"

Having a 'believable' reason for being abandoned was enough for her.

Rose clenched her fists.

Her nails dug into her palms, drawing blood.

Her eyes filled with hatred, and her gaze turned vengeful.

"Anyway, you can't just die like this, right?"

"Of course not! I can't die until I've lodged an arrow in those bastards' heads!"

Watching Rose, I could only laugh inwardly.

The usual Rose might have been skeptical even after hearing this.

But the desperate situation had blocked her reasoning.

The Pen of Trust made her strongly believe my words.

'I should give Lilith a reward later.'

Well, normally, no one would expect me to lie right in the middle of the demon army.

"So, I do want to take you with me, but…"

"Why? Why? Is there a problem?"

Rose asked urgently.

"It seems I can't just release a companion of the Hero Party. In fact, I barely managed to talk them out of torturing you."

"Torture? No! I absolutely hate that! I don't want to die!"

"It's okay. Don't worry. That's why I came."

I spoke to Rose with a serious expression.

"Actually, I've negotiated with the demon army about this too. I told them to leave your training to me."

"Negotiation? Training?"

"Yes, the demon army believes I truly despise you. So, they suggested I take charge of training a former companion. Quite a perverted idea, typical of the demon army."

Bang!

Just then, the sound of someone kicking the door echoed through the room.

Rose flinched at the loud noise.

"Anyway, they told me to train you personally."

"So, you're going to torture me? For real?"

Rose started shedding big tears.

Even the proud elf seemed quite afraid of torture after being broken.

"Please…save me…Hyun-woo…you're the only one I can trust…"

"Don't worry. Of course, I have no real intention of doing that. But it would be problematic if the demon army insists…"

I pulled out a recording device from the subspace.

"Let's just pretend you're being trained by me, just act."

"Act?"

"Yes. Just act like you're deeply into sexual torture and pretending to submit. As long as we have evidence, the demon army can't say anything. Of course, I won't really do it. You can do that much, right?"

"Uh, okay…"

Yes, I hope she puts her heart into this method acting.

Soon, an NTL video will arrive at the church where the hero was.

I hope it turned out to be a rather enticing video.