No to Being the Suffering Heroine!

Two naked women sprawled on the floor. Now, I could finally recognize their identities.

The happiness circuit notorious priestess Imelia Elsine Lawrence and the patrol officer Irina Winter, who makes me want to teach her a lesson every time she opens her mouth.

Both are early members of the original protagonist Friet’s party, characters who suffered endlessly in the novel for the price of betraying Friet.

Just like the original owner of this body, Brunhilde Eisenstein.

“Hmmm… this feeling… first… in life… such a loss…”

“Ouch… half-blood… not bad…”

…It seems the two women had already fallen completely to Gunther. Just look at them babbling nonsense.

It was true in the original game settings and in the novels, and it seems it was the same here.

“If you don’t have anything to say, why waste time? Why not strip? Or are you asking me to strip you myself?”

And now, is it my turn?

Gunther’s green eyes were filled with undisguised lust, superiority, victory, and craving as he looked at me with a probing gaze.

His face was like a college senior who just got a pretty freshman drunk and laid her on a hotel bed.

The message in his gaze was clear enough for anyone to understand at a glance.

Just like the other two women, he wanted me to strip everything off and lie down on the bed.

Just as the Brunhilde of the original story submitted her body to his threats for the sake of the Eisenstein family.

…I’m really going to lose it.

To think I was not only possessed by a character in a sleazy story but was also on the brink of moaning beneath some trash of a man at this very moment.

It was truly the worst timing for possession.

…….

No, maybe it’s not that bad?

Thinking about it, I don’t know who summoned me to this ridiculous place, but at least they seem to have a minimum of conscience.

What am I babbling about?

No, really.

If they had delayed the possession by about ten minutes, I would be in a complete mess, sprawled in bed with Gunther on top of me.

…Ugh.

Maybe it’s the graphic image that popped into my head. A wave of nausea hit me, and my mind momentarily swirled.

Seriously, thank goodness. Really. If it had been ten minutes later, I wouldn’t have had a single option to deal with it.

Unlike now.

“Haah…”

I clenched my teeth, tensed my whole body, and slightly bent my knees.

My muscles bulged with power, and the armor I wore made a squeak as it rubbed against itself.

“Don’t worry. Once you try it, I’m sure you’ll be satisfied, just like the others. So, why not just give in—”

Satisfaction, my foot. That’s for you, not me.

“Eat shit.”

I raised my hand in a stop gesture as I grasped the hilt at my waist with my other hand.

“Huh? What the hell are you doing… No, wait, are you crazy?!”

Surprised by my sudden move to draw the sword, he shouted.

“Ugh…! This crazy bitch, now of all times!”

Gunther’s face twisted like a parasite, and he lunged for his holy sword, which was leaning against the corner of the bed.

It was the perfect opportunity.

What opportunity?

Well, it was obvious.

Of course, it was the chance to escape!

Bang!

I kicked off the marble floor with all my might, propelling my tensed body like an arrow.

Crash!

Straight towards the window hidden behind the velvet curtain.

“Is that a window?!”

Yeah, this is my escape route!

Shocking impact ensued as a person clad in armor crashed through the large glass window that was taller than me, shattering it into a million pieces that screamed as they fell.

“What the hell…!”

Gunther’s astonishment faded in the background as I plummeted.

Beyond the shattered window frame, his dumbstruck face looking down at me was anything but funny.

Did he really not expect me to run away?

I fell towards the ground, tracing a parabola, letting out a relieved laugh.

I succeeded. At least in starting.

◆◆

Contrary to Gunther’s assumption that I would swing my sword, I only had thoughts of escaping from the start.

Isn’t that obvious? Although his character is trashy, at this point, Gunther is a competent hero whose fame is on the rise, unlike Friet.

What chance does an average person, who has only lived off novels, have against someone like him? It’s absurd.

He was naked and bare-handed, while I was in heavy armor with a sword, but the thought of winning simply never crossed my mind.

If I swung that sword, I would have undoubtedly been overpowered in an instant and buried under him.

And if that happened, it would have been the end. In every sense.

That’s why I chose to run.

Trying to win against a monster-slaying expert while swinging a sword I couldn’t even wield would be infinitely worse than simply fleeing with all my strength.

That was my best and only option as someone who had never even learned swordsmanship.

And so.

◆◆

Thud!

As I landed with a heavy thud, I threw aside the curtain clinging to my body and truly ran with all my might.

As quick as a deer with its tail on fire.

My body felt light as if it could fly, and despite jumping from a three-story height and crashing through the glass, I felt not a hint of pain.

It must’ve been thanks to the curtains and armor. If I had been naked, the shattered glass would have sliced me open, painting my body red with blood.

Even after jumping from the third floor, I was intact, and my beast-like speed was all thanks to Brunhilde’s body.

Maybe it’s because I’m a knight belonging to a hero party? Although the story was still in its early stages, my physical specs were on a completely different level from ordinary people.

With each step I took, I shot forward, zooming past shocked pedestrians who blinked in surprise.

It felt like I was zooming down the road with the throttle of a scooter fully opened.

This speed was beyond my expectations. It was exhilarating.

◆◆

And so I ran. Even when breath caught in my throat, I didn’t stop. I kept going until I reached the edge of the city, near an empty forest road.

“Hah… Hah…”

Is this enough?

I plopped down beside a massive tree, gasping for breath as I rubbed my sore thighs with both hands.

There was no pursuit. Or so it seemed.

Since I had barreled through the gate guards and knocked them aside, I worried they might see me as a criminal and come after me…

But my fears were unfounded.

Listening carefully, focused on the path I escaped from, all I could hear were the sounds of forest animals, not the hoofbeats of horses or the swear words of people.

What a relief.

I sighed in relief.

I didn’t know if they gave up the chase or if they never intended to pursue me in the first place, but at least I seemed safe from being caught and dragged off by the soldiers.

Gunther?

I never worried about his pursuit from the beginning.

Despite the chump act he put on in front of me, the Gunther from the novel was excessively concerned about his reputation.

He couldn’t just chase after me, openly running through the streets.

That would cause chaos, not just in that city, but throughout the nation, with all sorts of rumors flying around.

It was one thing to be allowed to snatch a party member from another hero’s party without consequence.

As long as he didn’t get caught using underhanded methods to do it, he could explain it as the party members voluntarily switching sides due to disappointment with their hero.

It wouldn’t be entirely wrong.

Imelia, Irina, and Brunhilde abandoning Friet for Gunther’s party was indeed not due to threats or coercion; it was their own choice.

The reasons varied, but… That’s not something I need to think about right now.

What’s important is just one thing.

For Gunther to maintain his image as a beloved hero, he had to give the impression that the members of Friet’s party switched voluntarily.

That was why he couldn’t chase after me.

At least not in front of others.

If he were to engage in a pursuit in public, the doubts would arise that Friet’s party members were actually dragged here against their will.

Hero parties are supposed to represent the best forces of their respective countries.

Right now, it was just a matter of insulting the three women who betrayed the Kingdom of Rhine, but if rumors spread that Gunther forcibly dragged them along…

Wouldn’t that lead to war? Maybe.

If things escalated to that extent, it would damage the image Gunther had worked so hard to maintain.

So he couldn’t come after me. Not at least where others could see.

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