How a Nuisance Character Survives a Horror Game Chapter 47

There were all kinds of flowers.

And I didn’t recognize a single one.

This is bad.

In the end, I’d have to make Extenron open his mouth.

But in the game, that muzzle was like Dilaf’s blindfold.

I had never seen him remove it.

I didn’t even know how to get it off……

Maybe he’d remove it if I raised his affection?

If I tried forcing it off, those gigantic hands would probably personally plant me face-first in the flower bed.

“Ahem. Ahem.”

I cleared my throat and crouched beside him.

Extenron flinched and cautiously watched me.

Looking at him like this, he didn’t seem particularly demonic.

[Extenron thinks, ‘I wish she’d fuck off somewhere else.’]

You fucking bastard.

His inner self was filthy compared with that gentle exterior.

For now—

should I bombard him with questions to become friendly?

Either way, I had to find Holloway and stay beside him within six hours.

Otherwise his Possessiveness might increase to ridiculous levels.

It already had.

But let’s ignore minor details.

And what does it mean that demons will envy me?

Why would demons envy me?

What exactly is Holloway going to do to me that makes demons jealous?!

Nothing about that sounded good.

“Could you tell me the name of this flower?”

I asked him directly.

Extenron shook his head.

[Extenron thinks, ‘I wish a human who doesn’t know anything about flowers would fuck off.’]

You asshole.

Weren’t you the one approaching me earlier to apologize?

Inside that mild expression is something pitch-black.

“You want me to go away, right?”

When I hit the nail directly on the head, Extenron’s eyes merely rolled around.

Look at him.

He isn’t even denying it.

“If you tell me five flower names, I’ll leave.”

I grinned and shaped my hand like a gun.

He looked completely lost.

I really wanted to know what he was thinking.

This time, no inner-thought window appeared.

“Why do you insist on speaking?”

“…….”

“Write it here. Here. If you write it, I’ll read it!”

See?

Easy.

I smiled brightly.

He only stared at me.

“What?”

He abruptly turned his head.

His hands fidgeted.

Then he shook his head.

“Huh? You don’t want to write?”

Nod.

“Why?!”

I couldn’t bring myself to raise my middle finger.

Instead, I timidly raised my index finger threateningly.

“Can’t you read or write?”

Extenron’s round eyes widened.

He shook his head.

“Then what? Why?”

“…….”

He drew a wormlike line on the ground.

Then crossed his two index fingers into an X.

“You don’t want to write because your handwriting is bad?”

“Yes!”

I got it right!

My excitement lasted only a moment.

I comforted him.

“It’s okay. Mine is worse.”

He still refused.

So I deliberately wrote horribly in the dirt.

“See? Isn’t it funny?”

“Yes.”

You bastard……

He really says everything he wants in his own quiet way.

I brushed the dirt from my hand.

Resting my cheek against my knee, I grinned.

“Are you laughing at me?”

“…….”

His expression looked strangely captivated.

Then he shook his head.

“Me neither. My own handwriting is ugly, so how could I criticize someone else’s? I only asked because this place is really beautiful compared with inside the hotel.”

“…….”

“It’s the only place in that frightening hotel that isn’t scary. So I wanted to know the flowers’ names. You seemed like you’d know.”

Unlike the screaming hotel interior, this garden genuinely looked ordinary.

I quietly watched him.

This time, he didn’t avoid my gaze.

Instead, he raised a hand and pressed one finger against my cheek.

Then he suddenly recoiled in surprise and withdrew it.

“You can poke me more. Ah, but don’t actually stab through me or anything.”

I was completely serious.

But he apparently thought I was joking and gave a small laugh.

He poked my cheek a few times.

Then pointed at a white flower in front of us and wrote on the ground.

[Wild Rose.]

“Huh? That’s a wild rose? I know the name, but I never knew it looked like this.”

[For some reason, Extenron cannot take his eyes off you as you become excited.]

Why?

Planning to rip me apart?

That didn’t seem like a particularly positive message.

So I hurried him along.

I didn’t want to spend too much time alone with someone who had tried killing me.

This time, Extenron pointed toward a blue flower.

[Hyacinth.]

“Hyacinth? I know that one too!”

I knew the name.

I just couldn’t recognize the flower.

I wasn’t particularly interested in flowers, so distinguishing them was difficult for me.

Unless it was something everyone knew, like a rose, I couldn’t tell.

Extenron watched me briefly.

Then he hesitantly wrote something.

[Then why can’t you recognize flowers?]

“Because I only know their names.”

At my serious answer, he pointed toward another flower and wrote ‘Peony.’

“One of the people in my group is named Moran. Have you seen her?”

He shook his head.

“You’d be surprised if you did. She’s adorable-looking.”

Her personality being irritating was a separate issue.

That part was true.

Extenron wrote the names ‘Gas Plant’ and finally ‘Violet’ before pointing at me.

Then he pointed again toward the violet.

“You’re saying it looks like me?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes.”

Now I knew five flower names.

Before I could even recite them, Extenron pointed at the hyacinth as though making me review what he had taught me.

He pointed randomly at each flower.

I confidently named them one by one.

“Hyacinth, peony, wild rose, violet, gas plant. Right?”

“Yes.”

Good.

At least my brain works well enough to memorize five flower names.

“But does someone specifically take care of these flowers?”

“…….”

He didn’t answer.

If he said yes, that would practically admit he lived here.

He probably needed to be careful not to reveal his identity.

Considering he already tried killing me, most of the secret had been exposed anyway.

Still, he’s dutifully hiding it.

“Well, it definitely isn’t you. Considering how recklessly you throw the flowers.”

I openly mocked him.

He looked depressed and pointed toward the flowers he had thrown at me.

They were limp, but he had replanted them in the soil.

“If you were going to replant them, why did you throw them at me?”

Were you bored?

“Mm……”

He made a quiet sound.

Then hesitated.

After repeatedly glancing at me—

he lowered his muzzle.

Wasn’t Extenron’s muzzle supposed to be something he never removed, just like Dilaf’s blindfold?

He took it off so easily that I froze.

Extenron parted his lips.

“……To call you.”

I had already noticed when he gave those short answers earlier—

but his voice was extremely pleasant.

Low and deep.

Slow and warm, like a lullaby heard beside a winter campfire.

But having a nice deep voice doesn’t erase what you did to me.

I glared at Extenron and sternly lectured him.

“There’s a saying that you shouldn’t hit women, children, or the elderly even with flowers.”

“……Yeah. Sorry.”

With a dejected expression, he put the muzzle back on.

Come to think of it, the game’s original setting had already shattered the moment I raised Holloway’s affection.

Maybe Extenron’s muzzle wasn’t a sensitive subject like Dilaf’s blindfold after all.

“Well, your skill at replanting flowers is good. They say people who cherish plants can’t be bad people. Maybe you’re like that too.”

If my usual personality didn’t work on Dilaf and Suriel, perhaps I should raise Extenron’s favorability this way.

Maybe one day he’d spare me.

As I’ve said repeatedly—

I was very confident when it came to empty flattery.

Extenron stared at me.

“Come to think of it, your eyes are really pretty.”

“…….”

Did he not hear me?

He didn’t react at all.

I wondered if it had failed.

Then Extenron’s entire face suddenly turned bright red.

The unexpected reaction left me speechless.

Did I just trigger some kind of flag?

[Extenron’s heart flutters slightly.]

He fell for my dirty tactics that easily?

[‘Demon of Sorrow’ Extenron’s feelings toward you ʕ´•ᴥ•`ʔ: She seems like a warm person.]

I am passionate, I suppose.

Detailed numerical values were apparently exclusive to Holloway.

The other demons’ feelings were described like this.

Dilaf’s had originally been:

‘You’re the first woman who ever hit me.’

[Because you have met all demons, the Feelings Status menu has been activated!]

I met them ages ago.

Why are you only activating this now?

I scanned the slow-updating UI.

A new menu had conveniently appeared.

I immediately pressed it.

[Demons’ Feelings Toward You ԅ( ˘ω˘ԅ)

‘Demon of Wrath’ Dilaf’s Feelings ( ´罒`*) : ✧ She’s insane, but funny.]

When did it change to that?

And who are you calling insane?

I’m not insane yet.

[‘Demon of Sorrow’ Extenron’s Feelings ʕ´•ᴥ•`ʔ : She seems like a warm person.

‘Demon of Temptation’ Suriel’s Feelings (✿＞﹏ ⊙〃) : Aren’t you actually the strongest?

‘Demon of Hatred’ Sellir’s Feelings ᕙ ⇀ ↼ ᕗ ( ‸ ‵‵) : She reminds me of that person. It pisses me off. I’ll definitely kill her.]

Someone who looks like me?

How similar are we for her to act like this?

Anyway—

Sellir was the most dangerous of those demons.

I had to avoid encountering her as much as possible.

And because Extenron was always attached to Sellir, he also belonged on my list of people to avoid.

Thank goodness my pathetic little tricks worked on him.

“Then I’ll get going.”

Extenron gestured toward me, then wrote on the ground.

[I haven’t told you all the flower names yet……]

“Tell me more next time we meet. My friends will be worried about me.”

Worried, my ass.

I only worry about myself.

Extenron looked extremely disappointed by how astonishingly kind I was pretending to be.

I turned away without hesitation.

As I approached the door, the quest-clear window appeared.

[12th Story ‘Extenron’s Flower Garden’ Complete!]

[The Blue Ring is directly below you when you open the door.]

I opened it.

Then bent down to find the ring.

But the thing directly before my eyes was—

Holloway.

“……Holloway?”

“Found you.”

Yeah.

You found me incredibly quickly.

The person I wasn’t particularly happy to see grabbed my hand.

[Holloway is considering confining you somewhere no one could ever find you.]

Uh.

Don’t.

Please don’t think like that.

“Why do you keep disappearing, big sis?”

If I knew that, I wouldn’t quietly let myself be teleported either.

It wasn’t my choice.

Holloway held my hand and slipped the blue ring onto my index finger.

Then muttered,

“Maybe I should put shackles on you so you’ll stay still……”

Instead of killing me, Holloway constantly jumped straight to confinement whenever something happened.

[Obtained ‘Blue Ring’!]

[Blue Ring

Feature: Can block any attack exactly 3 times.]

“Holloway, this ring……”

“I thought it would be more convenient if big sis wore it.”

He smiled brightly and pulled me inward by the hand.

Without even checking who might be outside, he asked,

“Were you trying to escape? Was that why you teleported?”

Holloway really was excellent at probing people.