Chapter Eighteen #3
Frolin smiled and nodded, taking my nearest hand between his own hands.
“It does. I think that’s a good thing, too.
A life without regrets is a good life. You know, back in the day, I was pretty shy.
I was a wee lad who was afraid of making a fool of myself.
Sure, I was as popular with the ladies as any other guy, but I had no real confidence myself.
Then I saw some girls picking on my Ailsa.
Most people in this world have poor taste and don’t appreciate just how beautiful she is.
Even though I was shaking from nerves, I stepped forward and defended her.
If I hadn’t done that… we probably wouldn’t be here having this conversation. ”
“You’ve got a lucky wife.”
“Hah! I’m the lucky one if anything. Anyways, point is, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with how you’re operating right now. Just keep on doing what you’ve been doing and don’t get lost in your head. It’s better to be bold than a coward.”
“You’re right. Thanks, Frolin.”
“Anytime, son.”
“Also, going by what you said, I’m guessing Jeanne came back here?”
“That’s a good question.” Frolin looked past me toward the other side of the room. “You came here, right?”
I slowly turned my head toward where he was looking.
Yep.
There she was.
“Good—good morning,” Jeanne said, looking just as flustered as me now. “My apologies. I meant to say something, but once the conversation picked up… it was hard to find a point to make my presence known.”
“Don’t you worry about that!” Frolin said, sounding far too amused by our expressions. “Now then, I’ll leave you two be.”
“Hang on,” I said. “I thought you said the girls went shopping?”
“Rosie and Lupa, yes. It’d be rude to send our newest guest out on an errand right after getting here.”
Jeanne bowed from her seat. “Th-thank you… once again for allowing me to stay here.”
“Like I said, don’t you worry about that. Friends of Rosie are always welcome here!” Frolin then stood up, gave my knee a slap, and walked out of the room, even making sure to close the door behind him.
Just looking at Jeanne again reminded me of that pleasure.
I wanted to feel it again.
“That… bite was something else,” I said. “I remember hearing about how good the bites felt, but actually experiencing it is… yeah.”
“Did you read about it in that game?” Jeanne asked me, coming closer to take the seat that Frolin was using now that he was gone.
“Yeah. I guess they told you everything already?”
“Rosie did, yes. She said, ‘I know he plans on telling you as soon as possible, and he’s already had to tell this story multiple times, so I’ll get it out of the way for him.’”
“That sounds like her. Well, I do appreciate it.”
“Then… you really are from another world?”
“Yep. I might not have a big head or green skin, but I still think I make a pretty good alien.” I held up a peace sign.
“I feel like you just made a joke, but I have no idea what it could be. My apologies.”
That was a little embarrassing, admittedly. “It’s fine. Anyways, did you have any questions? I feel like most people would have questions after hearing about that.”
“In that other world—in that game… did we kill that man? Dracula?”
“Oh yeah. Hundreds of times. He was a tough fight at first, but then I learned his moves and could probably beat him with my eyes closed now. He’s actually one of the easiest bosses to master because of how telegraphed all his attacks are.
” Though, maybe that would change thanks to the Goliath Hunter skill.
“Only an insane man or a foreigner from another world would consider that man an easy fight. He annihilated armies singlehandedly at his prime.”
“And I beat him with a meme build using a character covered in muscles who only wore tight underwear. I still needed you to deliver the final blow, but I did 99% of the work. Oh, I also did a run where I built you to perfectly counter him so that you could solo him. Using you to solo him always felt extra satisfying from how appropriate it was.”
Jeanne leaned forward and grabbed my hands, her face right in front of my own. “I—I was able to do that?! If this world truly is based on that game… does that mean I could defeat him on my own?!”
“By using the right build, I’m sure of it.”
“Please… tell me. Tell me what I must do to grow strong enough to defeat him. If I could spare others from facing him, then—”
“I’m not letting you fight him alone. At the very least, I’ll be there waiting on standby in case things get bad. That being said… if you want help with theorycrafting a build in order to defeat him, there’s nothing I’m better at.”
“Ah… how blessed I am to have found you. Please, teach me. I will do whatever is needed of me!”
“You know, the build I’m about to teach you about is actually one I came up with myself. I don’t have that many claims to fame in the community, but I did invent the build for you to solo him. I call it the ‘Rose Judge’ build.”
“The Rose Judge? What a beautiful name.”
“I thought it sounded pretty nice when I came up with it, so I’m glad you like it.
The ‘Rose’ part comes from, you know, you starting with the Vampire class.
The Vampire class loves its rose theme and aesthetics.
As for the ‘Judge’ bit, that’s thanks to the Justicar class.
” I knew from the game that Jeanne liked explaining things and had a natural curiosity that led to her always inquiring about the intent behind things, so I was happy to satisfy the curiosity I suspected she still had.
“Justicar… a class all about judging those who are evil for their sins. I see why you believe it is appropriate.”
“I also think it’s nice because—well, you.
To speak on how you were in the game for a moment, you were a girl who was tormented by your blood.
You hated that you were a vampire and planned on letting yourself burn in the sun after killing Dracula, because you believed you were evil without repent.
So, I thought the most respectful thing I could do for you as a character was to show you that you have goodness within you—that even you, who believe that you’re too evil to ever do good, could become a paragon of justice and goodness.
Someone even drew really nice fanart of you as a Rose Judge after that build got popular. ”
Jeanne looked down, her bangs hiding her face again. “Why would you… care so much about me? Even then, I was but a character—a virtual being whose existence was meaningless. I—”
“Your existence was never meaningless to me. I doubt that Rosie’s explanation got just how much I care about that game across, but this world, even as a game, saved my life.
You were all important to me even before you were real.
Besides, I was able to relate to you. To get tossed aside and hated by your own family who wished you were dead—to disavow them, get revenge, and to find a new family…
I loved your story. I related to it and it gave me a happy ending to live vicariously through since I never believed I would experience anything like it.
Now, the girl of that tragic, relatable story is right in front of me.
If anything, I should feel ashamed for not rushing to meet you even sooner—to spare you from spending even one more second feeling alone. ”
“This is too unfair.”
“What is?”
Jeanne lifted her head to look into my eyes.
I could tell she was trying not to cry again.
“This one-sided kindness. I am not the girl you cherished, yet you are willing to go to such far extents for me. I do not know what I could ever do to repay you. How could I ever return your kindness? Even should I live for a thousand lifetimes, I fear I would not be able repay you for the hope you have granted me.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’d be happy just to have you at my side to have fun exploring dungeons with.”
“Do you truly mean that?”
“I truly do.”
Jeanne took a deep breath before standing up, pushing the chair back, and kneeling next to the side while holding onto my nearest hand.
“I forsook the name of my lineage long ago. Even this name, Jeanne, is not the name I was given.” I knew that much.
Instead, it was the name of her mother—the woman murdered by her own husband, Dracula.
“I cannot—I will not forget the sins of my blood. But just as you have chosen to live anew and find a new family, I wish to follow in your wake. I understand if this is a responsibility you wish no part of, so I will only ask you once. Please… grant me a family name that I may belong to.”
“It’s not that I’m not willing to do that, but I don’t even have a family name for myself. I’m just Sev.”
“I see…”
“But sharing a family name sounds nice. How about… feel free to call it stupid, but… Rosehearth?”
“Rosehearth…?”
“Well, ‘Rose’ because we’re both—well, we will both be vampires.
I think roses are beautiful and it’s wrong to let people associate them with evil.
I want to reclaim it. Then there’s the ‘hearth’ part because, ever since I’ve arrived here and met so many people…
I’ve felt this unending warmth that I didn’t know existed.
So, Rosehearth. Plus it sounds kind of fantasy, right? ”
Jeanne smiled and repeated the name. “Rosehearth. A warm flower—no, a better meaning would be, ‘A beautiful, loving home.’ If you would allow me, then I would love to share such a name with you.”
As if the system read my mind, a window popped up asking me:
[Change name from ‘Sev’ to ‘Sev Rosehearth’?]
[Yes] [No]
“Let’s go for it,” I said, pressing yes.
Jeanne nodded and received the same prompt to accept.
“Sev Rosehearth and Jeanne Rosehearth,” I said. “I like the sound of that.”
“It is… a little embarrassing hearing them together like that,” Jeanne said.
“It’s too late to get embarrassed now. We’re family from here on out.”
“Family… yes. I would like that very much.”