“Regardless, we see-no-evil, we hear-no-evil.”

“You may continue.”

Are you referees on the field?

Moreover, they were absolutely unreliable!

I didn’t think they would listen to me. At this point, I had no choice but to do something about it myself. I glared at Alfred.

I refused to be underestimated. I wasn’t going to let him think I was helpless to only smelling that leafy fragrance of his.

“Oh, I recognize that sly look in your eyes.”

A smile spread across his face as his cheeks turned red.

Just where in the world has His Highness Alfred’s mind wandered, and for how long?

I kept glaring at him, hoping that he’d wake up soon, but his thick shoulders only shook as he laughed.

The servants behind us were whispering, not caring about us.

“I guess he just couldn’t stand it anymore.”

“That’s what happens when you neglect sleep for too long. In a way, it’s like being drunk.”

“Even though his eyes are wide open, he has lost touch of reality.”

“It’s been a while since I last seen His Highness Alfred laugh so openly, though? All’s well that ends well?”

What ends well, exactly?

I sighed inwardly.

The strength of Alfred’s arms around my back were far beyond the level of a gentle embrace.

I twisted my body in a desperate attempt to get free from him. I even smacked his chest with a fist.

Thump, thump!

I hit him pretty hard, yet he was still smiling broadly.

I suddenly realized that this was it. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t escape.

…I see, he’s drunk. Now that I think about it, it seems that being humiliated in public isn’t as bad as I thought.

I didn’t hear everything the servants were saying, but I savored the few words that reached me and forced myself to accept them.

I didn’t know if getting drunk from lack of sleep was a thing. Anyway, I had to get out of this situation somehow.

“Argh, I don’t care if you use me as a body pillow or whatever. Just go to sleep. Go to sleep as soon as possible.”

Alfred narrowed his eyes, tears welling up from laughing too much.

“Come on, insult me more. That’s not like you.”

“I’m not that Juliane or whatever. I’m just a poorly conceived hallucination, so it’s only natural that I’m unlike her.”

“What a foolish thing to say.”

“It seems that Juliane is the type that ends up acting all haughty. A woman like that is scary—or perhaps, impossible. Anyway, that’s not important right now. You seem to have a fever.”

I let out a long, long sigh at the man who refused to let go of me. I could also tell that his physical condition was poor.

What is this turn of events?

I wanted to scratch my head, but the restraints were so tight that I couldn’t raise my hands above my chest.

“Even if you tell me to sleep…”

Alfred spoke in a playful tone.

“I’m so hungry I can’t sleep. I didn’t feel it until just now, but I’m starving.”

“Why don’t you just eat then? I left the food right there, didn’t I?”

“Unfortunately, my hands are full. Feed me.”

Huh?

I gave him a tense smile.

…It seemed that I had started to hear auditory hallucinations as well. Must be because of the unexpected turn of events.

Yes, that must be it.

“Feed me.”

The room was mostly quiet. The servants were also quiet. There was a rather long pause that felt like, “…”

The servants stared at each other. They nodded slowly and shallowly, perhaps because they couldn’t believe the words their stern master had just said.

When I swallowed, it sounded awfully loud in my ears.

“You’re joking, right?”

I asked, my cheeks twitching.

Alfred, still holding me, leaned back against the chair. He shook his head, saying, “You still don’t understand.”

He went on.

“I’m hallucinating right now. Like you said, I probably have a fever—a really high fever. My head is boiling, I feel as if I’m floating. I don’t feel like myself right now. It’s so pathetic that I want to retch. I hope it’s all a dream. Well, it probably is, so it doesn’t matter what I do.”

As if! I really don’t understand!

Ignoring my confusion, Alfred suddenly said in a defiant tone.

“Listen, you’re my hallucination. In other words, you belong to me. Do as I say. I want you to do all sorts of things that the real you wouldn’t do.”

I was too scared to ask him what those things were. I couldn’t imagine anything more than an “aah” coming out of my mouth.

The eyes of Alfred, who was in a daze, were just terrifying. They shone brightly—too brightly!

At the same time, my brain also refused to work. If I did the “aah” thing, we’d seem like an intimate couple. But it seemed like he was just tired and wanted me to feed him.

In other words, he was treating me like a convenient tool.

“Uhm, well, uh, I know I’m just a hallucination, but I wish you’d respect my personal opinion as well.”

“Even though you’re just a hallucination, you’re so selfish. Typical of Juliane.”

Alfred chuckled wryly.

His cheeks, which had been red just a moment ago, were now pale. No, I’d even say that they were blue. He seemed to be having a bit of trouble breathing.

No matter how one looked at him, he had the face of a sick person. And yet, his gaze was strangely intense and piercing.

I’ve gotten used to feeling pretty lost since the memories of my previous life returned, but this is the most confused I’ve ever been.

What on earth happened to Alfred?

However, since he was under the assumption that he was hallucinating, maybe I should just go along with it.

I sighed softly. I felt as if someone was whispering for me to prepare myself into my ear. I felt my bottom clench.

If I prolonged this anymore, it’d be bad for him. I just wanted him to eat and go to sleep.

“Lady Juliane! We didn’t see, speak, or hear anything!”

“We’re covering our eye with our hands! We see nothing!”

—or so the servants who were covering their faces with their hands seemed to say. Even though they were obviously peeking…

At this point, it seemed that they were ready to communicate with their eyes. After all, to them, the will of their master, Alfred, was absolute. No wonder they weren’t going to help me.

It was just an “aah.” It wasn’t a big deal…

I forced out a voice from the pit of my stomach.

“—That’s what it means to be the hallucination of Juliane.”

Alfred grinned, letting out an inaudible voice. It sounded like he was humming. He seemed to be in a good mood.

“Why don’t we start with the soup?”

The arms that had been holding me loosened. I could’ve used the opportunity to escape, but I decided against it. No matter how sick he was, there was no way I could escape from someone trained by the Prime Minister.

Forcing my body and mind to work, I mustered the courage to reach for the spoon on the tray.

What was keeping me going was the desire to “help those in need.” I didn’t feel the slightest bit happy feeding him.

I’d do my best to help Alfred and get him to bed quickly. That way, I’d also be putting his servants out of their predicament.

That’s all there to it, I told myself.

“Hurry.”

“W-wait a moment. I’m trying to concentrate.”

---

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***T/N: Woah, these servants are shockingly lax? Usually, aren’t they overprotective toward their master?

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