Accidentally Formed a Reverse Harem in the Apocalypse Chapter 37 - The Melancholy of Benedict Fairman

Benedict Fairman had not been feeling well lately.

Sienna is getting married…

The woman he loved and cherished, Sienna, was going to marry the crown prince of the Caladia Empire.

It hadn’t been unexpected news. He knew Sienna and Crown Prince Louis had mutual feelings, and she often talked about her romantic worries under the excuse of discussing “a friend.”

So Benedict had vaguely expected they would marry someday… yet when Sienna handed him the wedding invitation with a shy blush, his mind went completely blank.

〈Uh… c-congratulations, Sienna.〉

〈Really? Thank you, Ben. I knew you’d congratulate me.〉

Stammering like an idiot, he immediately regretted it.

His flustered expression was reflected perfectly in Sienna’s summer-green eyes.

He had told himself over and over that if his unrequited love ever told him she was getting married, he’d smile and congratulate her. But reality was different.

His heart ached so badly that he couldn’t offer sincere congratulations.

Maybe that’s why Michael and Ruth—fellow members of the unrequited love club—hadn’t shown themselves either.

Sienna must have sent them invitations too, but neither had made a peep.

‘…I’ll go, at least.’

Even if he couldn’t genuinely celebrate, Benedict still wanted to wish Sienna happiness.

I’ll just show my face for a moment on the wedding day… then I’ll go back home.

He pushed down the pain and prepared to head to the imperial palace for the ceremony.

“Are you Benedict Fairman?”

“I am, but wh—”

Thud.

A noble lady claiming to be acting on Sienna’s behalf brought several strong men, knocked him out instantly, and kidnapped him.

They even confiscated his beloved bow and arrows, and used a magical device to temporarily seal his spirit magic.

Only after regaining consciousness did Benedict realize he had been kidnapped and imprisoned while completely defenseless.

“You ***** sons of *****es.”

The curses he had refrained from using ever since meeting Sienna burst out at machine-gun speed. Tears came too.

Sienna must be waiting…

By the time he woke up, the sun had already set. The wedding was surely over.

His plan to see Sienna one last time before returning to his hometown, El-Seka, was now ruined. Benedict was on the verge of exploding.

As a half-fairy, he had been targeted by slave traders countless times since childhood. This situation triggered his deepest trauma.

So when Nadia Rutley—the culprit behind his kidnapping—came to check on him:

“Are you awake? Do you know where—kyaa!”

“What the hell are you, you *****.”

He grabbed her by the collar and glared at her with murderous eyes.

“W-wait! Please just hear me—”

“Hear you? People need to act like humans to talk. You’re treating me like a ****ing object.”

Iron bars. A basement cell meant for confinement.

I’ve seen scum like this before.

Having been hunted by greedy humans who lusted after the rarity of his fairy blood, Benedict wanted to kill Nadia on the spot.

Sienna had always calmed him before, insisting not all humans were like that…

But I’ll never see Sienna again.

He could not bear the thought of facing her with such a broken heart.

His sadness, despair, anger, and disgust all turned toward Nadia.

“A filthy, lust-driven human wench… I’ll kill you and get out.”

Pure-blooded fairies despised killing, but half of Benedict’s blood belonged to the humans he hated.

There’s no one left to stop me anyway.

He wanted to rip apart the human who had triggered his trauma and return to his homeland, never to step foot in human society again.

The killing intent radiating from the usually refreshing, sprout-like man crushed Nadia’s spirit.

“H-hiiik…”

“Did you think sealing my spirit magic and taking my bow meant I couldn’t do anything? I can end this with brute force.”

When Benedict raised his hand, his fingernails grew long and sharp—more beast than human.

H-he really means to kill me…!

Realizing the gentle-looking Benedict was actually a beast hiding claws, Nadia shrieked and called for her servants.

Right before the capital fell to zombies, the Rutley estate still had several strong male servants.

“Young lady!”

“R-restrain him! Now!”

“Understood!”

They used the same shock-type magical device they had used before, knocking Benedict unconscious again.

“Aaaaagh…!”

He tried desperately to stay awake, but eventually he passed out.

When he awoke, he was bound in a restrictive suit. They had even placed a light-blocking blindfold over him, draining his strength completely.

Are they planning to keep me here forever?

“Heh… heheh…”

They said sometimes people laugh when they’re too angry—Benedict was exactly that.

Bound by foul magical tools, imprisoned in the basement like an insect in a cocoon, all he could do was sleep.

The audacious noblewoman who had kidnapped him seemed afraid of him—she never showed her face, and only peeked at him occasionally while he slept, leaving faint traces.

I’m so irritated.

He ground his teeth. If he ever found a chance to escape, he planned to burn the arrogant human’s mansion to the ground.

He just needed an opportunity.

That chance came sooner than expected.

“…Ben.”

Who?

The voice was familiar.

“…It’s me. I came to save you.”

Someone came for me?

Even among fairies, Benedict had always been an outsider.

Could it be Sienna?

As his hazy consciousness returned, he felt hands lifting him. The restraints fell away, and slowly, his senses returned.

The moment he opened his eyes…

“Hiiik.”

…it was the wretched human woman who had imprisoned him.

Seeing her, Benedict’s killing intent flared up again.

“You ****ing **** of a human, you dare lock me up? You ********!”

“Hiiieeek! P-please don’t kill me!”

The girl—worse than a beast—hid behind another human.

What?

Only then did Benedict realize there were other humans in the basement besides him and the wretched culprit.

“…Michael? Ruth?”

“Yeah.”

“Long time no see, Ben.”

How did these humans even get here?

While he was still confused, the face of the human who had shielded the wretched woman from him slowly came into focus.

“Are you fully awake now?”

“…You.”

Hair as neat as if spun from pure silver. Violet eyes shining sharply under the light.

An unforgettable bad connection.

“…Elizabeth Keaton!”

Startled, Benedict scooted backward on his butt.

What? Is she working with the woman who kidnapped me?

“…What are you doing here?”

Even though he asked with disgust and horror thick in his voice, Elizabeth Keaton only blinked her violet eyes.

Benedict, whose mind was spinning with every terrible possibility, glared at her warily—only to hear something completely unexpected.

“I came to rescue you.”

“…What?”

Elizabeth Keaton came for me?

If she had said she came as an accomplice to that crazy woman Nadia Rutley, he would’ve understood and immediately attacked.

“I think you misheard, so I’ll say it again. I came to rescue you, Benedict Fairman.”

He hadn’t misheard.

Elizabeth Keaton really had come to save him.

“…Why?”

As Benedict, who sensed no malice or desire from her, relaxed slightly, Elizabeth answered plainly:

“To scout you.”

“…Huh?”

“Benedict Fairman, would you consider joining forces with us to save the empire that’s fallen into ruin?”

What in the world was she talking about?

Having been kidnapped and locked up by Nadia Rutley, Benedict had no idea what was happening outside.

What. What is going on!?

Unable to grasp the situation, he turned to Michael and Ruth.

“Hey, Michael, Ruth… This woman is weird. She’s talking nonsense at me. Stop her.”

Despite having hurled every curse imaginable at the kidnapper Nadia earlier, he now curled up and asked for help like a scared lamb. Michael and Ruth both let out faint laughs.

“Ben.”

Ruth spoke first.

“It’s not nonsense. The Duke of Keaton is serious… and she really does want to recruit you.”

“What?”

“And don’t call the Duke ‘this woman.’ She’s my master now, and an ally to us mages.”

“I don’t understand anything you’re saying…”

Michael and Ruth, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time, seemed somehow different.

Relieved yet burdened—as if wearing a fresh new collar.

What is going on?

While Benedict felt like tearing his hair out, the seal on his spirit magic broke. Pale green spirits appeared in the air once again.

【Ben!】

【Are you safe?】

【We missed you, our Ben!】

“…Me too.”

The moment they appeared, the spirits burst into endless chatter.

【Ben! The outside is strange!】

【Many humans died or changed.】

【The place where the humans’ leader lives became a nest of monsters!】

【The imperial capital—almost wiped out. Not many humans left alive.】

【This place is dangerous.】

【Let’s go home. Let’s return to the land where our kin await.】

“One at a time, slowly. I’ll listen.”

【So #%##%!$^##!……】

Dozens of spirits all talking at once gave him a splitting headache.

My head hurts…

As Benedict frowned, Elizabeth spoke to him.

“Would you like an explanation to understand the situation?”

“No thanks. You hated Sienna. I can’t stand humans like you.”

“Ben!”

“Benedict Fairman!”

Michael and Ruth bristled instantly. Benedict grew angry too.

“What did I do wrong? You two are the weird ones!”

Shouting, Benedict thought of Sienna first.

If the spirits are right and something is wrong outside—what about Sienna?

Was she safe?

“Sienna—where’s Sienna? Ruth?”

Like a lost kitten searching for its mother, Benedict desperately looked for her. Elizabeth walked over and gently sat him down.

“This might take a while, but calm down and listen to me, Benedict Fairman.”

Ignoring people like that isn’t polite.