A Mob Character Who Just Wants to Get Banished and Escape This Death Game vs. The Party Members Driven Mad by the Radiance of His Brilliance - Chapter 2

Something was off.

And I’ve nearly died more times than I can count fighting the fae, so trust me—this version of Isfana was scarier than a greater fae.

Instinctively, I decided to laugh it off and pretend the entire conversation had been a joke.

“O-Of course I was joking. Me? Running from the battlefield? As if I’d ever think such a thing.”

“Hahaha… Is that so? A lie, then. To think that a genius like myself would be shaken by the nonsense of a mere commoner…”

Isfana gave a hollow laugh and reached for a pawn on the board.

But her trembling fingers crushed the piece instead, shattering it with a brittle snap.

“…Strange.”

Tilting her head, she looked for all the world like a malfunctioning automaton, and I—shaking with fear—immediately decided to retreat.
As the saying goes: Of the thirty-six stratagems, the best is to flee.

“Well then! Time really does fly when I’m talking to you, doesn’t it? Sadly, I’ve got a report to finish, so I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Perhaps I made it simple enough for even a fool to enjoy.”

She had already crushed every single pawn on the board.

Wearing a forced smile, I started backing out of the lounge as quickly as I could.

“…Enough with the mockery.”

The voice behind me was cold enough to send a shiver down my spine.

Before I could react, she grabbed my arm and slammed me to the floor.

Gone was her usual smug expression—Isfana straddled me, devoid of her usual sneer.

Her hand cupped my cheek as she forcefully locked eyes with me, her bl00d-red irises burning inches from mine.

“……”

She stared in silence.

I was frozen beneath her, confused and more than a little terrified, trying to figure out why she was so furious.

Hadn’t she always said she hated me? That she wanted me dead?

“……”

Isfana remained completely still, like she’d turned to stone.

“H-Hey. Get off me, now.”

I finally managed to squeak out a shaky command, trying to sound like a superior officer.
But whether she was even hearing me was highly questionable.

“I won’t allow it.”

“…What was that?”

She muttered something, but her voice was too soft to catch.

“I said I won’t allow it! You’re not going to abandon me! You’ll stay here and fight by my side until the end! I don’t care if you try to run or die—I’ll follow you no matter what!”

Oh no.
This was bad. Really bad.

Her voice rose into a furious scream, teeth clenched tight, and I realized there was no way I could talk my way out of this.

“Hey, commoner! Are you even listening to me?!”

Yeah, no. There’s no reasoning with her like this.
Time to handle things like a proper soldier: with brute force.

“Pardon me.”

“…W-What? Huh?”

I wrapped my arms around her neck—pulling her into what looked like a hug.
Her face turned red, likely from sheer fury.

And with her guard down, I brought the edge of my hand down on her neck.
A textbook sleeper chop.

“Nngh…”

Thank god this was a game. No way that kind of technique would work in the real world.
After she passed out, I propped her up gently on the lounge sofa—and ran like hell.

◆◆◆◆◆

I spent some time hiding out in the locker room.
Once the lights in the hall dimmed, I finally crept back toward my bed.

What a damn day.

As I trudged down the corridor, I thought back to the chaos in the lounge.
All I’d done was try a little ploy to make my dream of banishment come true—and it blew up in my face.

I shuddered as I remembered the burning fury in Isfana’s crimson eyes.

Seriously, what the hell was her problem?
So I asked to be banished—big deal. No need to lose her mind over it.

Well, she’d probably have calmed down by tomorrow.

She’d go back to her usual self, sneering and mocking me with that arrogant smirk.
At least, that’s what I told myself as I optimistically opened the door to my room—

“…You certainly took your time. Where exactly have you been dawdling?”

The golden-haired genius was sitting calmly on my bed.

As the bl00d drained from my face, I struggled to form words.

“…Why are you here…?”

“Have you already forgotten your own words, you fool? You were the one who said you wanted to talk in the lounge. This conversation isn’t over.”

Isfana’s crimson eyes glowed in the darkness as she slowly walked toward me.
Overwhelmed with fear, I blurted out whatever desperate excuse came to mind.

“Fine! I won’t try to leave the army anymore, and I won’t ask you to get me banished either. So can we just end this here?”

But she didn’t stop walking.

She came right up to me—so close I could feel her breath—and I instinctively averted my gaze out of fear.

“I’m sorry.”

What?

That… wasn’t something I ever expected to hear from Isfana—the girl whose pride could tower over Mount Everest.
I looked up in disbelief.

“After that incident, I took some time to cool off. Losing myself in emotion and letting rage cloud my judgment… It was unbecoming of me. I’m ashamed of my immaturity.”

Wait.
Was this… a happy ending?

This was the first time I’d seen Isfana look so reserved and apologetic, her gaze downcast.
Feeling strangely moved, I bowed my head as well.

“No, I’m the one who should apologize. Even if it was a joke, I shouldn’t have said something like that. I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Thank god.
It looks like things will go back to normal tomorrow.

Relieved, I exhaled deeply. Isfana’s a smart one—once she calmed down, of course she’d realize it wasn’t worth getting that angry over.

Clank.

“Huh?”

A heavy, metallic sound rang out of nowhere.

Dread rising, I slowly looked down at my wrist.

Attached to it was a shackle so massive, I doubted even the worst traitor would be forced to wear something like it.
And the chain connecting it… led straight to Isfana’s wrist.

“Isfana… what is this?”

“I thought about it. Maybe I’ve been far too lenient with you until now. But this way, you’ll never be able to entertain the foolish idea of quitting the army again.”

…

She laughed darkly, still shackled to me, her eyes devoid of light since the start of this conversation.

My brain, short-circuiting from the shock, finally sputtered into action, and I stammered:

“B-But you said earlier that you wouldn’t stop me from leaving!”

“And you believed that? How foolish. From now on, I’ll keep watch over you at all times—to make sure you never escape. You should be honored.”

There’s no way I could just nod along to that.

I grabbed her shoulder as she tried to crawl into my bed like this was completely normal.

“Y-You can’t be serious! Being chained like this, I won’t even be able to swing my sword properly in battle!”

“Ugh, how typical. This is why dealing with commoners is such a hassle. I’ll take the chain off when we’re fighting fae. That’s reasonable, isn’t it?”

She yawned, brushing off my desperate protests as if they were nothing more than background noise.

But that wasn’t the only issue.

“B-But there are things neither of us wants to deal with, right?! What about sleeping? Or, I don’t know, going to the bathroom?! Taking a shower?!”

“We’ll just share the bed. As for seeing your pitiful excuse of a manhood—don’t worry, I couldn’t care less.”

I was speechless.

So I was just… never going to have personal time again?

“But still—”

“Silence. Get in bed.”

The look in her eyes as she cut me off was cold and absolute—she had no interest in anyone else’s opinions.

“……”

Reluctantly, I crawled into bed.
When I looked up, her bl00d-red eyes were staring at me—unblinking.

Yeah.
There’s no way I’m getting any sleep tonight.