"No Marriage, Please! vs. Marry Me or Die: The Ultimate Love Showdown" - Episode 16

Her name was—Eve Fiaris. And my full name is Yuri Fiaris.

In other words, she’s my younger sister.

Of course, I have memories of spending time with her in the past—but the Fiaris family is… complicated.
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“Brother. It’s been a while.”

“Ah, yeah. Eve, are you… working as an adventurer?”

“Yes, I am.”

“…”

Awkward…

The truth is, she’s my half-sister. The Fiaris family is a count’s house, a noble family with considerable standing. The three of us siblings make up the household—my older brother is the heir to the family, and since

I’m the second son, I was free to choose a life as an adventurer.

I knew from the original story that Eve was working as an adventurer in the kingdom, but I didn’t expect her to be the first person I’d run into.

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“Are you also an adventurer now, brother?”

“Yeah, though I just started—I’m still F-rank.”

“I see. Is that so.”

“What about you?”

“I’m A-rank.”

“T-That’s amazing…!”

“Yes.”

“…”

This is so awkward… Eve’s responses are so cold and matter-of-fact, with barely any emotion.

We only lived together in the family estate for about a year. Even though we share some bl00d, we’re practically strangers.

Still, just as I originally planned, I’d like to support her growth if possible…

Well, I might as well try asking.

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“If you’d like, would you be interested in forming a party with me?”

“No thank you. I’m fine on my own. Now then, I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Ah, yeah…”

Eve turned on her heel and walked off briskly without hesitation.

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“Hey, Yuri.”

Someone tapped me on the shoulder from behind.

“That was your sister just now, right?”

“Ah… yeah. It’s a bit of a complicated relationship.”

“I see. Got it.”

“Well then, let’s get your adventurer registration taken care of.”

“Okay! Thanks as always, Yuri.”

After that, Ria successfully completed her adventurer registration.

Since we were tired from traveling, we decided to find a place to eat. As we were looking for a place, I decided to ask her something.

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“Hey, Ria.”

“What is it?”

“You held back during the magic power test, didn’t you?”

“Yeah… I knew you’d notice, Yuri…!”

“Well, that was pretty obvious.”

Ria has a significant amount of magical power—enough that she probably could have started as a D-rank adventurer.

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“You see… I don’t have much combat experience yet, so I thought it would be a bad idea to start too high.

Yuri, you’re actually strong too, but you still started from the lowest F-rank, right? I think that shows how important it is to stay humble and remember your beginnings. You’re amazing, Yuri—you have real strength, but you never show it off.

I want to be like you. I want to walk the same path.”

“…”

U-Uh… I didn’t expect her to read that deeply into it, but… well, it’s fine.

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We then went into a local tavern. The place was lively, packed with adventurers active in the kingdom.

We were shown to a seat in the corner, and ordered some food and drinks.

The skewers were said to be their specialty, so we went with that.

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“Mm, this is really good.”

It had a generous helping of spices, giving it a bold, flavorful taste.

Probably tailored to the tastes of rough-and-tumble adventurers.

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“I think your cooking is better, Yuri.”

“Yeah? Well, I’m happy to hear that.”

“It’d be nice if we could live together again someday.”

“Huh? Oh—yeah. Maybe if the opportunity comes.”

“Mm. Hehe.”

N-Not implying anything, right…? Ria looks completely calm…

Then I decided to tell her something.

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“Ria.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“I think it’s time I told you… why I came to the kingdom.”

“Okay.”

Ria’s expression grew serious as she listened intently.

I cast a soundproofing barrier around us and began to explain.

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“In the near future, the Kingdom and the Empire will go to war.”

“What… war?”

“Yeah. A large-scale one.

I’m trying to stop it—that’s why I’m here.”

“I see… So, you’re working behind the scenes to prevent it.”

“That’s right.”

…Huh? That went smoother than I expected.

I thought she’d ask things like “How do you know that?” or want a detailed explanation.

But Ria didn’t question anything. She just accepted it with shining eyes.

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“Ah, I get it. That’s why you’re hiding your true strength—so you don’t draw the Empire’s attention.”

“Y-Yeah… exactly.”

“And that Cedwyn incident probably had the Empire’s involvement, right? That magic tool was clearly suspicious.

I’ve heard rumors about the Empire rising in power recently, even inside the church. Supposedly, they’re developing powerful magical weapons.

So Yuri, you’re carrying a big responsibility. That makes sense now.”

“…”

What’s with this rapid comprehension?

Well… I’m grateful for it, to be honest.

Even though I was a little caught off guard, I continued explaining.

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“It’s possible that the Empire’s agents are already infiltrating the Kingdom. I came to the capital to identify them and stop them before it’s too late.”

“Got it. So, you’re investigating that group.

But acting too openly would be risky…

So for now, we’ll operate as adventurers to gather information. That makes sense—adventurers can pick up all kinds of rumors and intel.

But if that’s the case, to help hide your identity… I should—”

The last part was more of a murmur to herself.

But it was clear she was already thinking ahead.

Honestly… she’s incredibly dependable.

Still, I’m not getting complacent.

I know just how overwhelming the Empire’s strength becomes later in the original story.

That’s exactly why I won’t let my guard down.

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“Well, first we both need to improve our skills. You and me.”

“Right.

So while we steadily build strength in the dungeons, we also keep an eye on the Empire’s movements?”

“Yeah.”

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After we finished eating and went to pay the bill, I accidentally bumped into a large adventurer on the way out.

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“Oops, sorry about that.”

“Hah!? You bump into me and think a half-assed apology’s enough!?”

“…”

He was clearly drunk.

I really didn’t want to cause a scene here.

But before I could say anything, Ria stepped in front of me.

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“I apologize. But you appear to be heavily intoxicated.

If anything, I believe you were the one who bumped into us.”

“What’d you say!? You picking a fight, brat!?”

“…Heh.”

Her voice turned cold.

And for some reason, the man’s expression began to pale.

Ria wasn’t using any visible skills.

I couldn’t even see her face from where I stood behind her.

Just what did she do…?

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“A-Ah… I was in the wrong.”

“As long as you understand. Now if you’ll excuse us.”

“Y-Yeah…”

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And with that, we left the tavern.

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On the way back, I decided to ask her about it.

“Hey… what did you do to him? You didn’t use a skill, right?”

“Hmm. I just glared at him.

Maybe he just… understood.”

“…”

I seriously doubt that, but I decided to let it go.

Thanks to Ria’s support, things are going smoother than I expected.

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And so, we returned to the inn.

Ria’s help has been a huge relief.

Now, if I can just do something about Eve…

The only way is to try and slowly close the distance between us.

Though, judging by how she acted…

I’m probably already on her bad side.

Still, with that uneasy thought in mind,

I resolved to talk to Eve again tomorrow.