Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka - Volume 16 - Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 

THE WISH’S COST 

I can tell I’m waking from a deep sleep. 

Opening my eyes, an unfamiliar wooden wall and a window covered by cheap curtains greet me. The unfamiliar scent of the building is a vivid reminder of where I spent the night. 

“It’s morning…Guh?” 

And also who I spent it with. 

“Syr?” 

Only then do I finally realize that I am alone in bed. 

The person who was supposed to have been there beside me is gone. Sitting up to look around, I see that her clothes that had been set out on the chair are gone as well. She isn’t in the shower, either. Did she leave on her own? Even if I was exhausted, how out of it was I to have not even noticed? 

And why? 

Does she actually hate me after everything that happened? 

The other possibility that comes to mind…is that Freya Familia has taken her away. 

I shudder at the thought. It’s incredibly unlikely, since I’m obviously still alive and well. But maybe she had protected me…? 

Even I can tell my imagination is just running wild at this point, and I can’t stand around thinking about it forever. I quickly get dressed, grimacing at the unpleasant dampness of the half-dried clothes. 

“…!” 

I pause for a moment in my hurried rush to leave. 

There is a single item on top of the table. A silver accessory with blue decorations—one half of the matching pair. I stare at it for a moment before slipping it into my pocket and running out of the room. 

“Syr! Where are you…?” 

I ask the dwarf on the first floor, but he doesn’t know where she went, either. And she didn’t leave a message for me. 

I exit the inn. 

Ashen clouds form a solid wall above. Unfortunately, the weather changed, and the second day of the festival will be happening under overcast skies. 

Those are heavy clouds. What a troublesome color. It might rain later. 

I start sprinting, quickly speeding up. I look everywhere as I retrace our path from last night in my head. 

The Bridge of Heroes, coming ashore, the waterway cruise. It has been through some rough sailing, but I spot Spoon Aqua safely docked at its pier. After we left, Freya Familia and everyone else had no more reason to continue fighting, so the night had ended without too major an incident, I guess. I find an employee who had been there last night and try asking if he had seen Syr, but he doesn’t know anything, either. He does hand me the trunk I had forgotten last night, though. The magic items inside are all safe and sound. I thank him before continuing my search. 

Unsurprisingly, I make very little headway running around aimlessly. 

“Did she go back to The Benevolent Mistress…?” 

I cling to that possibility as I angle toward West Main Street, even though I don’t really believe it. 

It’s early morning, but the taverns are still packed with patrons who have been partying through the night, and there are noticeably more people out on the street than usual. The festive mood has not faded at all even with the dawn of a new day. 

Coming out on West Main Street, I see Welf dressed as a waiter, looking exhausted as he heads toward The Benevolent Mistress. 

“Welf!” 

“Hmm?” He turns around. “Wait, Bell?! Where the hell did you go yesterday?!” 

He looks around frantically before running over to me. 

“We were worried when you didn’t make it back…So did you spend the night with her last night? It was a pain in the ass to stop Li’l E from dashing out once she started shouting. And then I had to look after our fox, who just straight-up fainted…” 

He seems almost scared of what might happen if Lilly finds out I’m here, but I cut him off. 

“I’m really sorry! But did Syr come back here?! She disappeared, and I can’t find her!” 

He blinks several times, and seeing how flustered I am, his expression turns serious. 

“Just calm down. Let’s head over there, and I’ll listen to what happened.” 

In the narrow alley next to The Benevolent Mistress, Welf leans against the wall as I outline what had happened last night and this morning. 

“You were chased by Freya Familia, and when you woke up, she was gone. Huh…” 

“Mm-hmm. I’m worried that they might have taken her away somewhere…” I can’t shake my unease. 

Welf unfolds his arms. 

“Sorry, Bell, but I need to ask something first.” 

“Eh?” 

He looks me straight in the eyes. 

“What are you going to do if you find her?” 

At first, I don’t know what he means. 

“What do you…?” 

“It’s not like I’m a genius when it comes to the finer points of understanding women…but there’s no mistaking that that girl likes you.” 

“…!” 

“And not as a friend. As a man.” 

I gulp as Welf’s expression hardens and his tone grows fierce. 

“So tell me now, what are you going to do after you find her? Are you going to play dumb and just try to make everything go back to normal? Even I know it’s cruel to not respond to her feelings.” 

“…H-how could…someone like me…?” 

“How could she fall in love with someone like you? Are you really going to give me that?” 

Welf refuses to let me run away from reality. His eyes are clearly saying, “You’ve already realized it yourself, haven’t you?” 

“If you’re going to play dumb about it after everything that’s happened, then you’re definitely not the man I thought you were.” 

My eyes flicker. I’m not blaming him, but it does feel like he’s pummeling my heart with a battering ram. 

…Of course I noticed. 

I kept telling myself to not be conceited…that it would be unbearably embarrassing if it was all just a misunderstanding on my part. I did my best to convince myself and to lie to myself about it. But I had been hazily aware of it during the date yesterday, and then unmistakably later that night. I had learned how she truly felt. I heard her say that she loves me. 

There’s no way to let it stay vague and ambiguous anymore. 

I have nothing to say as I look down. 

“It’s not a bad thing to be humble. And I can understand stopping dead in the water because you aren’t sure of yourself. But…don’t lie to yourself. And don’t leave her hanging like that.” 

“…” 

“The most obvious reason for her being gone in the morning is that she’s given up on you.” 

It’s pathetic, but I can’t even respond. And having said that much, Welf slowly sighs. 

“…If you’re like this now, it’s gonna be rough for all the people who fall for you.” 

“Eh?!” 

I look up suddenly to see Welf covering his mouth as if he had let something slip. 

“Ah, no, I just meant with you being a top-tier adventurer now, there will be a lot of people who will be interested in you, is all. Don’t overthink it.” 

He grins awkwardly, trying to backpedal. 

“Now listen, I’m not saying you should get full of yourself instead. And if anything, I think it’s more arrogant to expect someone to notice your feelings without ever trying to tell them how you feel yourself. As a guy, I definitely think there’s some responsibility on the woman’s side, too.” 

“…” 

“But once someone has come out and confessed their feelings…don’t you dare even think about running away. Besides, I want my partner to do things right. That’s just my selfish opinion, though.” 

Welf grins. Shame wells up inside me. The advice from our familia’s older-brother figure echoes loudly in my heart. 

“I…” 

If. If a time comes when I have to give my answer, it will be— 

“…Made up your mind?” 

“…Yep. I won’t run away.” 

“Then I won’t say any more. Sorry for bringing it up.” 

“No…I’m sorry, Welf. And thank you…” I respond weakly. 

He just smiles. Welf really does feel like an older brother. 

Then he quickly changes tack, saying, “Back to the original topic. 

“I don’t know where she went, but you’re sure she’s got some connection with Freya Familia, right? In that case, there’s nothing to do but contact them, right?” 

“You mean go straight to Freya Familia…?” 

“Yeah, I doubt a single girl all on her own could really avoid a swarm of upper-tier adventurers who are intent on finding her.” 

Welf is thinking along the same lines I had been. It’s weird to call it protection under these circumstances, but odds are high that they have already caught Syr. If so, then asking them directly would probably be the fastest way to find out. 

“You don’t have to worry about causing problems for us by carelessly approaching them. Even in the worst case, I’m sure it won’t spill over into a full-on conflict…Probably.” 

“Y-yeah. Probably…” 

“I’d love to help you, but…sorry, I don’t think any of us are going to be able to get away today. We’ve got forced labor to deal with here…” 

“F-forced labor?” 

“We got the rough end of the stick because that merry band ditched their shifts. And there’s no escaping that dwarf’s eyes…Seriously…” 

Apparently, Welf and the others had been forced to keep working at the tavern. Mia had said they would be taking the place of the girls who had run away. 

Which explains why he looks so absolutely worn out. 

Oh right, Lyu and the girls were on Spoon Aqua…Had they been tailing us? 

“Did they not come back?” 

“Nope. And our goddess didn’t, either,” Welf says with a shrug. 

I nod. 

In any case, my options are limited, so I have no choice but to try everything I can. I leave my trunk with Welf and get ready to go. But after a step, I turn around. 

“Thank you, Welf! I’ll be back soon!” 

“Yeah, go get ’em.” 

I say my thanks one last time and dash out of the alley. 

“Just when I thought he had grown as an adventurer, he’s still just a kid when it comes to this stuff, huh…?” 

His partner had started to look different after the incident with the Xenos, but when it came to things other than adventuring, he still acted very much his age. If anything, he was too pure. 

“But that’s not so bad,” Welf murmured with a laugh. Then his expression darkened. 

“An employee of hers being guarded by Freya Familia…Does that dwarf maybe know?” 

He even began to wonder if this tavern was under the patronage of the goddess of beauty…? 

Staring up at The Benevolent Mistress’s signage out front, Welf was quickly closing in on the truth. 

I run through West Main Street, weaving my way through the crowd. 

There are lots of people from the Guild lining the festively decorated street. Most of them are busy refilling the wooden crates that had been emptied the previous day with more food and flowers from the harvest, and the lines of stands are similarly getting ready for business. 

While taking stock of the morning preparations going on out of the corner of my eye, I think about how I should make contact with Freya Familia. That’s when suddenly I notice something. 

“No one’s watching me…?” 

I can’t sense any of the vigilant eyes that had been boring holes in me all throughout my date with Syr yesterday. Had they simply lost track of us after we stayed the night at the inn, or are they keeping track of me using a different method now? 

Is it possible they’ve stopped following me entirely? 

Making contact with Master…with Hedin would be ideal, but— 

—No, there is someone. 

Just one person. Whoever it is, they’re still keeping an eye on me while hiding their presence frighteningly well. Unfortunately for them, I’m especially sensitive to other people’s gazes. 

I stop for a moment—and the next instant start sprinting at full speed. I turn down an alleyway and head for the building where I know my watcher is standing. 

Sprinting to not give them any time to hide, I leap up, kicking off the wall opposite it, and land on the building’s roof. 

“…!” 

The watcher makes no effort to run or hide. It’s a single dark elf, his jet-black cloak swaying in the wind. 

One of Freya Familia’s first-tier adventurers. Someone who stands on the same level as Hedin. Realizing that, I gulp. 

…But…huh? 

It feels like he’s intentionally not facing me for some strange reason…? 

“A white brute has come calling beneath the ashen heavens? The winds raise their lamentations.” 

Huh…? 

“Why do you tarry here, O unwelcome visitor? This morn’s heavens are in a foul mood. If you wish not to be drawn into the mad frenzy, then begone posthaste.” 

I seriously can’t understand what he’s saying at all, but…? 

The way the wind rustles his cloak makes him look aloof and proud. From behind, he looks incredibly cool. But for some reason—I can’t say why exactly—he has this distinct smell… 

Is he…? 

“Umm…Are you the one the deities call the, uh, Sick Edge Lord?” 

The moment that title crosses my lips, the dark elf—Freya Familia’s first-tier adventurer Hegni Ragnar—whirls around to face me. 

“Bite thy tongue! Address me not by that abhorrent title!” 

He has an almost painfully well-proportioned face, though his green eyes are already filling with tears. 

“Mine form is haunted by no affliction! Nor have I been afflicted by a divine plague…!” 

“I-I’m so sorry!” 

“—Uuugggghhhh, just quit it, please! Don’t look at me like that. And don’t call me that name! I don’t know what it means, but it feels like everyone’s making fun of me when they call me thaaaaaaat…” 

“……M-my apologies…” 

“I can’t deal with people I’ve never met before! I just can’t! It’s so embarrassing, I want to die……Ghhhh, my pitch-black persona just crumbles away…!” 

Uhhh, yeah…I feel like I understand what the deities mean when they talk about revealing your true character now. 

Hegni is even more socially awkward than Aiz, and he seems to be incredibly nervous by nature. The way he talks and acts just exacerbates the problem… 

Oh yeah, when I had asked Hedin about the other first-tier adventurers in his familia out of curiosity, he wouldn’t tell me anything about anyone, but he did say something like “Hegni is just a fool”… 

“…U-ummm…Do you by any chance know where Syr went?” I ask, feeling guilty as I watch him wipe his eyes. 

His face hardens, and the imposing presence from earlier returns. 

“…We art in search of the sacred princess ourselves.” 

“Y-you are?” 

“The multitude of followers have unfettered thee from thy prison and are earnestly pursuing more joyful tidings. In this great capital, verily like a whirlwind. Mine fate is to become the eternal chains punishing the hare should the worst come to pass…for mine name is Alv.” 

I—I still can’t really understand what he is actually saying, but I think I got the gist. Gramps used to run his mouth sort of like that sometimes way back when, too! 

It sounds like almost everyone else in Freya Familia has decided to leave me alone and is now frantically searching for Syr, who has disappeared somewhere. And Hegni is continuing to track me just in case he needs to know where to find me. Or something along those lines. 

Which means Freya Familia has lost track of Syr, too… 

Where could she have gone? 

Something almost like an impatient unease starts to well up inside me. And, as if he can sense that, Hegni, who had been watching me blankly, all of a sudden focuses his gaze directly on me. 

“Did you gain resplendent, eternal memories…reminiscences that will never fade?” 

“Huh?” 

“There will be no time for a sorrowful parting. Therefore I am asking if you have completed your farewells.” 

For a moment I actually have no idea what he’s saying. It doesn’t make any sense at all, but I start reacting to the words echoing in my ears. 

“Reminiscences…? Parting? What does that all mean?!” 

“The girl has called upon you—not the goddess. No matter thy decision, the fate that awaits shall remain unaltered. My foresight has revealed as much to me…At the very least, that is how I see it.” 

Like every other time, I can’t really grasp what he’s trying to tell me. Interpreting or even guessing is impossible here. It just doesn’t make any sense. 

But I am badly shaken by the fact that it almost sounded like he said “she will disappear.” 

“What happened to Syr?! Is something going to happen to her?!” In my alarm, I unconsciously approach Hegni. 

“Eeeep?! D-d-d-d-don’t get any closer!! If you get that close…the eyes! Ah! I can’t do it! Run away!” 

Hegni recoils in fear and leaps down from the roof. 

“Hnn?! W-wait!” 

I run to the railing and hop down into the back alley I saw his fluttering black cape slip past. 

Syr is going to disappear? Farewell? What does that mean?! What are you talking about?! 

I desperately chase after him the moment I hit the ground. Following the cloak flickering in and out of view at the edge of my vision, I barrel through the web of complex intersections, at times asking passersby if they’ve seen a dark elf. 

But he is unmistakably a first-tier adventurer. He has no trouble throwing me off his trail, and I quickly lose sight of him. 

“Haaah, haaah…! Where’d he…?!” 

I find myself at Central Park. The center of the city is already filled to the brim with people. Unaware of what’s transpiring, the revelers are simply preparing to enjoy the second day of the festival. 

Did he blend into the crowd? Or is he not even in the plaza at all? 

My unease grows as I frantically scan my surroundings—and then I see the altars. The towers of plenty. The four stone stages constructed to honor the goddesses who symbolize this festival and the harvest season. 

Without even thinking about it, I look to the pillar in the north where I had seen Freya yesterday. 

“?” 

My gaze is met by a lone boaz. The warrior with a form that seems like it was chiseled from a boulder. The city’s strongest adventurer. 

He stares down at me with his silent gaze, and right when I start to feel like he might have been waiting for me, he slowly lifts his enormous arm. His finger pointing to the city’s northeast. 

“Ghh…?!” 

I don’t know his intent or the real meaning behind the gesture. But it feels like he’s telling me to go there. 

I stand in shock for a moment before looking in that direction. Not long after, I turn on my heels. Like a ship guided by a lighthouse in the distance—or more like a boat that had no choice but to cling to the hope the lighthouse will guide me to safety. 

I’m not sure this is the right choice at all. I am uneasy. But even so, I have no choice but to trust my instincts. 

Slipping through the crowds, I leave Central Park, following my new lead. 

The city’s northeast is the industrial district, where much of the magic-stone-item manufacturing takes place. It is a place where craftsmen and workers fill the streets, but a festive mood has taken root here, too. 

After changing direction several times because of all the turns, I approach the center of the industrial area. And then… 

“—Syr!” 

I spot her. 

She’s at an abandoned stagecoach stop. Sitting on a bench in the small, dilapidated gazebo. The waiting area is desolate and dirty, hidden behind dead angles from the buildings around it. If you aren’t looking for it, it would be an easy place to miss, which is probably why it has been forgotten and unmaintained. 

“…! Bell!” 

She starts in surprise when she hears my voice and jumps to her feet. She seems almost overcome with emotion, as if her wish has finally come true. 

“—?” 

Her damp, blue-gray eyes. The way she presses her hand against her chest. The weak smile that seems like it might shatter into countless shards at any moment. 

Seeing her like this makes me nervous. She looks like she might break into tears, but the emotion in her eyes is— 

“…I’m so happy that we could meet again. That you found me.” 

“…What do you mean?” 

“…I’m sorry, please just pretend you didn’t hear that.” 

There’s no way I can do that. 

I still don’t understand what’s going on. As I start walking over, she suddenly starts looking around. 

I can’t explain why, but when I see her face from the side like this, it feels like I am getting a glimpse of the determination to break an oath. 

She focuses on a point in the distance and purses her lips, as if resolving herself. 

“Please come with me, Bell.” 

“Eh? U-um?!” 

“I want to get away from here…or rather, there’s a place I would like to go to.” 

She takes my hand and tugs. She doesn’t let me say anything or even seem to be listening to me. Her blue-gray hair flutters, and she brings her eyes around to meet mine as she flashes a smile. 

“Since you so kindly brought me to the places you wanted to go yesterday, could we please go someplace I want today? 

“—Please, Bell.” 

The way she asks makes it seem like this is a once-in-a-lifetime request. 

When the various people living in Orario looked up and saw the ashen clouds blotting out the sky above, they all had the same thought: It looked like it might rain. 

Some were disappointed, some lamented the weather, and some resolved themselves to enjoy the festival as much as possible before the rain started. The reactions were as varied as the people making them. 

“…Syr and Bell…couldn’t find them anywhere…didn’t return…Did they spend the night together?…All night long?…That can’t be…They aren’t even married yet…” 

And amid those people, there was one person who had fallen into despair—Lyu. 

She was on North Main Street. Unable to find Bell or Syr after the incident on the boat, she greeted the new day with an unbelievably pale face. She had spent the entire night searching everywhere for the two of them. 

She murmured hollowly, driven by elven nature that was dedicated to propriety and a sense of virtue. 

“Lyu! Don’t break down in the middle of the street! Everyone’s staring at us!” 

Chloe dragged Lyu away from where she had been standing still in the center of a crowd trying to pass by, looking like she had seen the end of the world. As she desperately tried to revive the elf, she muttered to herself, “Runoa’s the one who’s supposed to handle this kind of stuff, meow!” 

“Heeey! We found them! Ahnya caught the kiddo’s scent!” Runoa’s voice boomed, completely unconcerned about drawing even more attention. 

“Really?! Great job, you two!” Chloe rejoiced. “Did mew hear that, Lyu? Let’s hurry up and follow them!” 

“They haven’t even exchanged vows in the forest…or even before a deity, if not the forest…” 

“This stupid elf’s totally busted!!” Chloe shouted. 

“Quit screwing around!” Runoa broke in between them and grabbed the elf by the collar. “Lyu! Snap out of it already!” 

“—Guh?!” 

Runoa slapped Lyu back and forth across the cheeks. Her long ears flinched from the sudden pain and she finally returned to her senses. 

“Runoa, Chloe…What was I…?” 

“Listen, we found them!” 

“!!! R-really?!” 

“How many times do we have to say it?! Let’s hurry up and go! We also need to make sure the kid’s butt is still safe!” 

““Syr’s not you!”” 

Lyu and Runoa hit Chloe with an openhanded chop and a backhanded fist as she started breathing heavily. 

“What are mew guys doing?! Hurry up already!” 

The three of them were still bickering as they rushed over to Ahnya, who was waving in the distance. 

“I’m begging youuuuuu! Hermeeeeeeeees! Please help meeeeee!” 

“I said stop that! Don’t tug at my clothes, Hestia!!” 

Around the same time the girls from the tavern were on the move, a pair of deities’ shouts rang out on East Main Street. 

“It’s Bell! My sweet Bell didn’t come home last night!!!!! That Syrwhosit might have gobbled him up!!! I’m begging you, help me find him!!!” 

“I already sent Asfi out looking for them! So let me go already!” 

Hestia was sobbing as she clung to Hermes’s waist with both hands, while he was desperately fighting to keep his pants from getting pulled down. 

Hestia and Aiz had been looking for Bell since early in the morning only to run into Hermes instead a couple minutes ago. The vestal goddess was in an ashen-faced panic at least as severe as a certain elf and had pounced on Hermes the moment she saw him, letting all of her emotions explosively spill out. 

Given how much she and Aiz had already searched without finding any trace of Bell, she had concluded that there was no choice but to rely on Hermes Familia’s vast information network. 

The moment she heard that Asfi was already working on it, Hestia slumped to the stone pavement. Hermes breathed a heavy sigh of relief as Aiz, who had been watching from the sidelines, apologetically spoke up, 

“I’m sorry, Lord Hermes…We couldn’t find Bell at all…” 

“Ah, Aiz…it’s no problem. Seeing how Hestia is willing to cooperate with you, this must be quite serious. Besides, I’m a bit curious about the two of them myself.” 

Aiz patted Hestia’s back as she lay collapsed against the ground, moaning, “Beeeeeeelllllll!” until she heard what Hermes said. 

“You are…?” she asked, cocking her head in surprise. 

“Well, more precisely I’m curious about Syr.” 

Aiz looked even more confused as the god’s orange eyes narrowed. But Hermes simply looked toward Babel and did not explain himself further. 

A little while later, there was a momentary breeze as Asfi suddenly appeared out of thin air. 

“Lord Hermes, I’ve found Bell Cranell. He and the girl are currently cutting through the second district in the northeast of the city.” 

“Amazing work, Asfi!” 

By using the magic items Talaria and Hades Head, she had been invisible to most people while conducting the search from the sky. 

“—The northeast’s second district! That’s where my Bell is?!” 

“Yes. He’s currently on the move together with Leon’s coworker, Syr Flover.” 

“We’ve finally found them! Let’s go, Wallenwhatsyourface!” 

“R-right.” 

Hestia leaped from the ground, dragging Aiz with her as she charged ahead with wild abandon. 

Asfi sighed as she watched them go. 

“This was supposed to be my break…so how did I get saddled with new hassles, sir?” 

“I’m sorry!” 

“Please let me punch you in the face later…” 

Asfi clenched her fist as her patron god had little response except flashing a big smile. Then she sighed one more time as they began following after Hestia and Aiz. 

We turn off the main road, jogging through a spiderweb of crisscrossing back alleys. 

By this point, we’re deep in the second district, far away from Main Street. Even now, we just keep going, as if running away from something. I’m still being led along by the hand. 

“U-ummm, can you please explain what’s going on…?!” 

“I’m sorry! For now, let’s just keep going…! As far away as we can get…!” 

Her dress flutters. 

It is the same one as yesterday. Her small handbag rattles. Her breathing is getting ragged, and then finally, her pumps stop moving, as if she’s reached her limits. 

“Haah, haaah…!” 

A wide set of stairs leading up, the arch of a bridge overhead, a nearby iron fence gate, wooden boxes and barrels strewn around, sooty billboards that seem indistinguishable from the other ones we’ve run past on the way here. We’ve ventured deep into this district’s backstreets. It might as well be a labyrinth if you aren’t familiar with the area. We stand alone in the alley with only the sounds of her panting breaking the silence. I can’t hide my consternation as I watch her. 

I touch my pocket quietly. After going back and forth on whether I should bring it up, I finally make up my mind… 

“Umm, here.” 

“Ah…!” 

I hold out the silver accessory I’ve brought from the inn. Seeing that—one half of the paired set—she freezes. She looks at it resting in my hand. It’s like she’s been confronted by something she had parted ways with once already. Finally, she slowly picks it up. 

“I’m sorry…I must have forgotten it when I left the room.” 

“…How awful. After asking me to buy it and all.” 

“Hee-hee!…I really am sorry.” 

She slips it into her hair. It really does look just as stunning in her hair as yesterday. But her smile is still faint, fragile. 

And I could swear I heard the words “I thought it would be pointless to keep it” slip from her lips. Moments after, she leaps into my chest. 

“Wha…?!” 

“Please, Bell. This is my last request.” 

I reflexively catch her as she looks down, her voice sounding weak and wrung out. I gulp as she stares up at me. 

Her cheeks are pink, as if she has a fever. And her eyes are glistening and damp. Few would doubt that this is what a young girl in love looks like, or perhaps a puppet in the thrall of an irresistible urge. 

Her blue-gray eyes are entirely focused on me. 

“All I have is this moment right now. If I let it slip away, my wish will never be fulfilled.” 

“…What…what are you…?” 

“I struck a deal—a contract. And because of that, I will surely be pulled away from you.” 

Her voice is heartbreakingly frail. She keeps looking up at me as she struggles to speak. She stands on her toes, bringing her face ever closer. 

I shudder in surprise, trying to hold her back a bit by pressing against her shoulders— 

“Please…don’t reject me.” 

This is different from last night. Syr had not been this desperate then. 

It feels like an inescapable deadline is closing in. As if she’s trying to escape whatever looming fate awaits her. She might even be crying. 

Finally, her lips slowly draw near— 

“Slaughter all until the feast is finished.” 

Just then, a chant echoes in the deserted alley. 

“—” 

It happens in the space of an instant. 

Immediately after I sense the coming spell, time seems to slow down as I kick the ground on pure instinct. 

“Dáinsleif.” 

An intense flash appears. A jet-black slash that cuts down everything in its path. It’s a miracle that I managed to react to the overhead attack at all. 

A split second after I grabbed her and leaped wildly away, the stone pavement explodes. 

“?Ngh?!” 

The aftershock batters us, throwing us across the ground before we finally come to a rolling stop. I raise my head. 

The spot where we had been standing a second ago is demolished. I break into a sweat seeing what looks like a dragon’s claw marks etched into the ground. As I stare in shock, a single person is standing there in the swirling debris…a single dark elf. 

“…H…Hegni…?” 

His fluttering black cloak, the sinister black sword, the intense presence he naturally gives off. 

Had he kept shadowing me after giving me the slip, without ever turning his actual gaze on me? A person who’s obviously powerful enough to be a first-tier adventurer of Freya Familia has just appeared where we should have been alone. 

—Who? What? 

But his appearance is strange. Is he really the same dark elf I met before? 

The air about him is so different, I can’t help wondering. I don’t know what is going on. But either way, there is no mistaking the fact that a first-tier adventurer has turned his blade on me. 

No, wait, not me, that was— 

His attack hadn’t been aimed at me at all. It had been aimed at her?! 

“—State thy intentions.” 

His chilly voice hangs in the alley. It is a sharp command. The voice of someone obeying only their rage. He is glaring daggers right at the girl turning paler by the second in my arms. 

“The white hare is an offering for the goddess. There is no right by which you may violate him, girl.” 

Hare? Me? Goddess’s offering? 

What are you talking about, Hegni?! 

But I don’t register in his eyes at all. The malice coming from him is overwhelming. 

“I shall dispose of you.” 

The blood drains from my face. My fingertips almost spasm. I frantically try to stand up as the girl beside me trembles. 

“H-Hegni…I…!” 

“I have no ears for thy prattle. I’ve borne witness to a reality that can brook no forgiveness. There is naught else to consider.” 

Faced with an enraged first-tier adventurer, I reflexively draw the Hestia Knife at my waist. The dark elf’s gaze is just as harsh when he turns his eyes on me. 

“Begone, hare. That girl hath broken her contract with the goddess in her spate of foolishness. There is naught but to cut her down.” 

“Wh…what are you saying?!” 

“I said I’m going to bury the being behind you.” 

He’s not bluffing. He’s serious! 

“Everything is for the sake of the goddess. Die, woman.” 

His cloak flutters as he charges toward us, blade at the ready. 

He accelerates faster than my enhanced vision can track. I’m far too slow to react, so all I can do is put myself between her and his ultrafast attack. 

“Out of my way!” 

“Guh?!” 

Even after placing myself directly in the path of his slash, the dark elf easily knocks me aside. A tremendous shock shoots through my body when his black blade collides with my black knife. The bones in my hand creak, coming close to breaking. As the aftershocks shake my field of vision, I immediately grab the shoulder of her dress as I’m knocked aside. 

“Ahhh?!” 

I somehow pull her into my arms as we are both sent flying. I clumsily roll across the ground, but I manage to use the momentum of his attack to regain some distance. 

We’re still far from safe. As I get back up, a cold sweat pours down my back. A single clash was all I needed to confirm just how different our strengths are. 

Forget counterattacking. Even if I focus my all on defense, he could easily kill us both in an instant. 

It’s different from my bouts with Aiz, who always held back some for me during training and during the incident with the Xenos. This is a first-tier adventurer…a Level 6’s true strength! A level of power I can’t hope to overcome! 

“Begone!” 

He blurs again, kicking off the ground and leaping overhead to swoop down from the sky like a bat. The movement is too quick to follow, and again the only thing I can do is put myself in front of the attack. There is a tremendous impact as sparks fly from my knife. My stance collapses miserably, but I desperately put all my strength into my back leg to at least hold on. At this point, he transitions into a raging stream of attacks. 

“Ghhhhhhhhh?!” 

Right, left, overhead, from below. I keep defending against the intense series of attacks. I am parrying them, but it’s draining my stamina at a terrifying rate! 

“Withdraw! Do you wish to fall by my blade?!” 

“Guh…!” 

“Do not vex me further! It disrupts my control and makes it difficult to hold back! You’ll have only yourself to blame when your head comes clean off your shoulders!” 

His words are as relentless and intense as his sword. There isn’t any trace of the dark elf who had been on the verge of tears and terrified of interacting with others. Just a sharp, menacing gaze and a harsh tone with no hint of timidity. 

He’s clearly enraged, but there should be limits to that. 

It’s like he’s an entirely different person! 

I definitely heard a chant before he attacked us, and the words of a spell as well. Has he activated some kind of magic? It wasn’t attack magic or an enchantment, though. Something different…! 

“…Guh?” 

As my stamina burns away, I suddenly realize something. 

Can he not attack me? 

He could easily and precisely slice just a single leaf up in a tree, so between that and the sheer density of attacks, I can tell. He is only aiming for the girl behind me and nothing else. For whatever reason, maybe due to someone’s strict instructions, he isn’t allowed to hurt me. 

Realizing that, I start using my body as a shield more aggressively. 

“Tch!” 

Confirming my suspicions, Hegni sounds frustrated as I forcefully throw myself into the path of his sword strikes. 

Ordinarily, there would be no way for me to endure a first-tier adventurer’s attacks. The fight would be over as soon as it began. It’s insane to thrust my body out right where it’s most likely to be sliced open, but right now, that’s the only way I have of resisting him. 

I keep jumping in his way to throw off his attack range. After I carefully watch his longsword lose momentum and manage to deflect it just barely with my knife a few times, he leaps backward, his cloak billowing in the wind. 

“Haah, haah, haah…!” 

“Impudent little…You bring shame to the title of Level Four by clinging to the shackles that bind me.” 

“Guh…!” 

“You are one who must live up to the favor of the sublime goddess. You best not disappoint her—or else I really will kill you.” 

My breathing is already a mess, but he hasn’t even broken a sweat as he pierces me with a chilling gaze. 

I tremble. Not because I feel overwhelmed by his scorn. It’s because his narrowed eyes are, even now, directing all his murderous rage at the girl cowering behind me. 

But Freya Familia was protecting Syr until yesterday…! 

I’m sure Hegni was no exception. So why has he suddenly started attacking? A broken contract? Some transgression? I don’t understand what he’s talking about at all! 

When I left, Welf had said there was no reason we would end up in a conflict with Freya Familia! And he was right! But they are going after her instead now! What’s going on?! 

“The vexing brothers and the enraged cat will be here soon. Compared to being torn apart by them, a single strike from me would be a mercy. Do not run. Stop. Accept this fate. The moment of thy death shalt grant an eternal repose—I do not have time to prance about.” 

I have to secure our escape in order to keep her from being killed. But whatever I want, I can’t find an opening. As I desperately search for some way out, Hegni’s arms hang limply, and his body…sinks. 

“I shan’t allow you to do anything more.” 

I totally lose track of him. 

“?” 

It’s a swift first step, a movement fast enough to disappear from my field of view entirely. As time freezes, all that remains is the afterimage of his cloak. The moment I realize what I’m looking at, he’s already kicked off the wall of the building beside me. 

Even though he had been right in front of me, he’s now launching a powerful attack that lands from the side. An impossible surprise attack like a ricocheting missile. Time starts moving again as I turn and reach out my hand, but I won’t make it. His black blade is going to run her through. 

“—Haaaaaaah!” 

But a split second before it lands, a whirlwind suddenly appears, blocking his sword just in the nick of time. 

“What?!” 

An elf wielding twin shortswords stands in front of us. 

His attack deflected, Hegni’s redirected slash tears through the ground as he immediately backs away. 

The resulting gust causes the waitress’s uniform to flutter. 

“Wha…? Lyu!” 

“Bell…! What in the world is going on?!” 

Having emerged gallantly at the last possible moment, her expression is twisted in acute unease. She doesn’t take her eyes off the elf in front of her even as she calls out to me. 

“Why is Freya Familia after you?!” 

Even Gale Wind can’t hide her agitation as three more shadows appear from overhead. 

“Hey! What’s going on here?!” 

“I thought I was hearing some crazy fighting. Did Syr and the kiddo stumble into a battlefield?!” 

“…gh!” 

Runoa, Chloe, and Ahnya land around us to shield us from attack. But Ahnya seems to be at a loss for words when she sees Hegni. 

“Begone, girls. My blade shall lay that woman low. Nothing more and nothing less.” 

“What?! If that’s what you think, you’ve got another think coming!” 

“Such a crazy-strong adventurer hitting a normal person with the full bloodlust treatment? You should control yourself better. Why don’t you hit the showers to cool your head? In fact, please do! I’m begging you!” 

Runoa explodes at his statement, and Chloe is cracking jokes, but it‘s clear they’re both terrified, too. Lyu stays quiet, but she hasn’t let her guard down at all. 

Three versus one. No, four if we include me. But even so, we’re all outpowered by just a single adventurer. 

““““What are you doing, Hegni?”””” 

But things just went from bad to worse. 

Four voices call out at once as we all catch our breaths. 

“We don’t need her anymore.” 

“She infringed on the goddess’s divine will.” 

“She’s nothing more than a criminal. There is no need to ask milady for permission.” 

“It’s a festival of blood. If you’re going to take your sweet time, we’ll just finish it ourselves.” 

If you close your eyes, they sound like a single person. 

Matching sand-colored armor and helmets. They’re armed with a long spear, a great hammer, a great ax, and a greatsword—all weapons that look out of proportion with their size. 

The four prums stand atop the surrounding buildings, looking down at us with cold glares. 

“The Bringar…the Gulliver brothers.” The color drains from Runoa’s face. 

She’s always so bright and cheerful, but right now, she’s showing a fear that I have never seen before. Runoa bites her lip, fighting to control the tremors building in her arms and legs. 

“Kiddo, take Syr and run.” 

“Eh?!” 

“One minute. That’s all we can hold out for.” 

I’m at a loss. She doesn’t even glance at me, but the look on her face makes it clear this isn’t a discussion. 

It’s as if she’s silently screaming, “Just run. Hurry up and go. Run as far and as fast as you can. If you don’t, we’ll be totally destroyed in the blink of an eye.” 

That is what it means to be surrounded by first-tier adventurers. 

“Go!!!” 

Thrust into motion by that cry, I can’t do anything but start running. 

I can’t afford even a moment of hesitation if I want to save her from that execution ground. Without any time to waste, I grab her hand. The moment I turn my back, I feel an overwhelming presence approach. 

Hegni’s black cape flutters as he turns, and the four shadows drop down from above. 

Lyu and the others launch themselves forward as the curtain rises on a one-sided rampage. 

A maelstrom of blows. 

Ordinarily Lyu would have retreated from that place of assured death no matter what it took, but she had to remain. Because Runoa, Chloe, and Ahnya were holding back the four terrifying prum warriors behind her. She had no choice but to face off against the dark elf standing before her. 

“Hinder me not, fellow elf. Or do you wish to have your ears trimmed for your pride?” 

“Dáinsleif Hegni Ragnar! A Level Six adventurer!” 

In other words, a being overwhelmingly more powerful than Gale Wind. 

Holding the twin shortswords, Futaba, in her hands, the wind screeched as she wielded them at high speed. There was a metallic clash every time they met Hegni’s black longsword, and she had no way to dampen the impacts that ran through her entire body. 

He’s too fast! Too strong! 

Even with all the quick thinking, experience, insight, and every bit of strength she could muster, it took all she had just to maintain her defense. There was nothing to do besides focus on evasion and parry the heavy slashes that would cut her in half if she tried to block them head-on. She was being deprived of even the faintest hope of a counterattack. 

It was exactly the same as Bell before. Though Lyu far surpassed him when it came to techniques and tactics, she was still little more than a child before Hegni. In fact, were it not for her wealth of experience, she would have reached her end almost immediately. 

Every second she extended the conflict was evidence of the unreasonable and absurd battles she had survived to date. 

But an absolute difference in status separated Lyu and Hegni. She could not help shuddering at the gap that sat between the two of them. But at the same time, her spirit was bolstered by the belief that she needed to keep him from getting past her no matter what. 

“—I see. So you are one of her favorites, too,” Hegni said, his eyes narrowing as if realizing something. 

“What?” 

“Just like that hare. One my blade may not fell of my own discretion. Truly a vexing task.” 

Hegni did not answer her question as he pressed the attack with even more force. 

The first strike was enough to numb Lyu’s hands when she deflected it, getting pushed back in the process as she used both her blades to keep her opponent from chasing after Bell. Her uniform was cut in a dozen places, and blood was welling up across her white skin as she continued to dance through the swirl of slashes. 

I can’t grasp his real intent! But he’s started aiming for my limbs! He won’t kill me! It’s galling that he’s holding back, but if that’s the case, I might have a chance! 

Recognizing the shift in Hegni’s swordsmanship, Lyu was hoping for a more equal match after noticing his apparent limitations. If she could fix him in place just a little longer without falling, then Bell and Syr would be able to get away. 

But that didn’t hold for long. 

Attacking up from the right—backstep, then dodge! 

Her plan was— 

“—The better their eyes, the more easily they fall prey to the abyss.” 

—mercilessly shattered by Hegni’s knockout blow. 

“?!” 

His sinister black longsword’s blade leaped forward. The tip that Lyu had calculated would just graze her clothes easily tore into her chest. 

His sword grew longer—no… 

As time slowed to a crawl and the decisive blow landed, Lyu realized what had happened. 

The reach extended! 

The sword itself had not changed. Instead, the reach of the blade had grown, as if a razor-sharp vacuum had been created beyond the tip of the sword. 

A spray of blood spewed from her body as the true nature of the attack dawned on her. 

“A curse sword—!” 

A roundhouse kick immediately crashed into Lyu as she shuddered from the slash to her chest. Hegni finished his sharp spin as the air around him settled down and a single elf slammed against the wall. 

“Gah-aghhh…?!” 

“My beloved blade, Victim Abyss, is a sword specialized in destroying vanguards. It has slain countless swordfighters like you.” 

Lyu was filled with anguish as the impact knocked the air out of her lungs. Hegni swung once, removing her blood from the blade with a flick of his wrist. 

Victim Abyss—a superior weapon, a first-tier blade with a keen edge that a certain hexer had been involved in creating. 

As Lyu guessed, it was a curse sword that was specifically designed for defeating warriors who specialized in swordfighting. 

Having demonstrated the overwhelming difference in strength between the two of them, Hegni calmly took his leave. 

Lyu could do nothing but soak in her own regret, unable to do anything about it as she lay there on the ground. 

““““We’ve seen you before.”””” 

Runoa’s faced twisted as the four prums’ voices resounded. 

“How many years ago was it?” 

“The dark ages when those Evils assholes were still around.” 

“There was a bounty hunter who didn’t know her place and came after us.” 

“Never bothered remembering her face, but I do remember the way she fought with her fists.” 

The voices sounded like they were laughing at her. And there was no doubt they were mocking her. 

Despite the fact that the battle had already begun, Runoa’s fists had hit nothing but air. The knuckle-dusters on her fists were just whistling emptily as they tore through nothing. 

She couldn’t land a single hit. Even with four targets, every swing was coming up empty. They were not moving particularly fast, and they were obviously holding back, too. It was like their four simultaneous movements were messing up Runoa’s focus, her aim—everything. 

It was the same as back then. During the days when she had lost herself in the bloody work of being a bounty hunter, before she had been taken in by a benevolent tavern owner. 

She had accepted a bounty to take out the four prum brothers only to be defeated laughably easily. 

They looked the same, their eyes were the same, everywhere she looked it was the same. Like a scene from a nightmare. 

The four sets of eyes watching her from behind those visors made her remember her past disgrace and terror. 

“Damn it aaaaaaaaaall!” 

She roared, as if desperately fighting to not be consumed by despair. 

“Don’t rush in! They’re messing with your head!” 

“No, Runoa! Those four are…!” 

Chloe’s and Ahnya’s words of caution fell on deaf ears. They tried to provide support, but their attacks were easily neutralized. 

Neither Chloe’s agile assassin’s blade nor the knife Ahnya had borrowed from Chloe were able to hit the prums. Not even a scratch. 

In short order, the four prums’ weapons rang out. 

“That’s enough,” the elder brother, Alfrik, declared. 

“““Stay your asses down.””” 

It was over in just the blink of an eye. 

Alfrik swung his spear, knocking back Runoa’s fists, Chloe’s blade, and Ahnya’s knife all at once. As time slowed to a crawl for the three of them, Grer’s greatsword tore into Runoa’s chest, Dvalinn’s hammer slammed into Chloe’s stomach, and Berling’s ax swung down at Ahnya. 

The sounds of flesh tearing, bones breaking, and blood spraying echoed in the alley. 

Runoa’s eyes shot wide open, blood dripped from Chloe’s mouth, and Ahnya was in complete shock as they were all sent flying in different directions. The human flew up into the air before slamming into the ground while the two catgirls were hurtled into a storage area containing stacks of empty barrels and boxes, sending up a cloud of dust. 

Synchronized interception, advance, and then attack. The three girls had only been granted five seconds of combat. 

“Dammit…!” 

Runoa trembled, barely raising just her head as she groaned in pain and regret as blood pooled around her on the pavement. 

The Gulliver brothers. Despite being only Level 5, many considered them collectively to be the equals of any Level 6 adventurer. The secret of their strength was their ability to act in unison without words or even glances—an instantaneous four-pronged attack. Their unparalleled coordination was hailed as the greatest teamwork in the city. 

Runoa slipped into unconsciousness before the four prum warriors who refused to let their race’s handicap stand in their way. 

“Argh…!” 

Her hand trembling, Ahnya managed to stand back up. She held her bleeding shoulder and staggered forward as the empty wooden crates and barrels collapsed around her. 

““The hell are you doing, Berling?”” 

“You didn’t finish her off.” 

“Ah, what a blunder…Oh yeah, you’ve seen our move plenty of times before, haven’t you? Since you used to be in the familia.” 

Of the four brothers’ voices, Berling’s actually addressed Ahnya. 

Her breathing ragged, Ahnya stared around in shock. 

“Runoa, Chloe…Lyu…” 

Her friends had been ruthlessly put down. She was all alone. Five on one. And her enemies were all first-tier adventurers. 

Despair ate away at her, and her knees were on the verge of giving out completely. 

“You dare turn your fangs on us again, Vana Alfi?” Alfrik asked. 

“Guh…!” Ahnya’s ears twitched agitatedly. 

“A loser who dropped out of the familia’s contest.” 

“That stray cat?” 

“The mongrel abandoned by Lady Freya.” 

“Sh…Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! I’m not Vana Alfi, meow! I’m The Benevolent Mistress’s Ahnya!” 

The younger prum brothers mercilessly prodded old wounds as Ahnya closed her eyes, shook her head, and howled. 

That was the final fortress protecting her heart. The last crutch for the girl who had been cast aside. It was the very core of Ahnya Fromel’s being. 

By happenstance, she was standing with her back to the alley Bell had fled down as she glared at the dark elf and prums. 

“I’ll protect them meow…! Protect Syr…Protect my family…!” 

Unarmed, she flexed her fingers like a cat readying its claws. Fighting against the fear welling up inside her, she steeled herself with thoughts of her family. 

But— 

“The hell are you doing, scum?” 

Her resolve crumbled the moment she heard that chilly voice. 

“?” 

Ahnya froze as she turned. A single cat person who was harder for her to face than five first-tier adventurers. 

“B-Big Brother…” 

Ahnya Fromel’s one and only blood relation. Her brother, Allen Fromel, the one with the alias Vana Freya. 

“…Wh-why are you…?!” 

On close inspection, they resembled each other quite a lot—the shape of their eyes, the faint golden irises, the lay of their fur, even if the color itself was different. They had too many similarities. 

“I’m the one asking questions here.” 

“I-I’m sorry, meow! I’m sorry, Big Brother!” 

The bright, cheerful, easygoing girl from the tavern was nowhere to be found. Her voice and body trembled as she desperately tried not to further draw her brother’s ire. She seemed little more than a pitiful, love-starved stray. 

“W-we just wanted to protect Syr, meow…! I didn’t want my precious family to die, meow! So, so—” 

“—Quit with that dumb cat routine!” 

“Eep!” 

Ahnya’s frantic explanation was interrupted by an irate shout. Allen’s rage was rising. 

“How many times do I have to repeat myself?” Allen spit out. “Can your stupid, empty head not understand a single word I say?…Pissing me off.” 

“I-I’m sorry! I—I…!” 

Ahnya’s teeth chattered as the memories of old wounds to her body and mind welled up, evoking a swirl of grief and terror. Her brother’s disappointed glare, his disparaging words—they all tore into Ahnya’s heart. 

“You’re in the way. Get gone before my spear sends your head flying.” 

“W-wait…Wait, Big Brother! Whatever happens to me, please leave Syr—” 

“Shut up.” 

Ahnya was desperately pleading with him, but those two words crushed her will to resist. 

“Goddamned fool. Talking to you is just a waste of my time. Get outta my way.” 

Allen drew near, looking down on her from right in her face. 

“I…I just…Syr…My family…” 

Tears welled up in her eyes as she murmured incoherently. 

She tried to at least guard the path behind her by keeping her body in the way, but— 

“Move.” 

She could not resist with her brother’s scornful glare directly over her head. 

“…Yes, Brother.” 

Tears fell from her eyes as the strength drained from her body. 

She hated herself for yielding as she collapsed to her knees. Her will to fight totally gone, she fell like a limp rag doll. 

Allen did not even spare her a glance as he walked past. Hegni and the Gulliver brothers followed as she wept silently. The tears wouldn’t stop. The cheerful cat of the tavern was nowhere to be found. Alone at last, she seemed like nothing more than an abandoned stray kitten who had lost everything. 

It was like Aiz’s adventurer’s instinct was calling out to her. 

Hestia noticed her reaction. 

“Wh-what is it?” 

“…Someone is fighting in that direction…” 

“Eh?!” 

Beneath the clouded sky, they were in the middle of chasing after Bell. 

They had gone straight north from East Main Street and were approaching the area where Asfi had spotted Bell. 

“You sure it’s not just a little festival brawl?” 

“I’m sure…This isn’t that sort of play fighting.” 

“…Asfi. Going invisible like that, are you planning to go scouting or something?” 

“My apologies. But even I’m getting a bad feeling about this…It feels like some unimaginable monsters are on a rampage.” 

Aiz’s sharp gaze and Asfi’s cold sweat caused Hestia to catch her breath. 

Listening closely, she could hear it. The sound and faint tremor of something slamming against the ground or a wall. And to someone not paying attention, what might sound like a music instrument but was actually the high-pitched whine of blade meeting blade. 

They came to a stop, as if a barrier had been erected before them in the middle of an otherwise utterly normal alley. 

“Haah, haah…!…Eh? Goddess? And Aiz? And Hermes and Asfi?!” 

Just then, the boy they had been searching for appeared, completely out of breath. 

And that was when it leaped into Hestia’s view. 

“?” 

Time stopped for Hestia. She was at a loss for what to say. 

Her gaze was met by a pair of blue-gray eyes. 

Sensing Hestia’s gaze, the girl looked down, as if the situation she had dreaded and had been avoiding for a long time finally occurred. 

She slipped behind Bell, as if to hide herself even just a little. 

“Bell, what happened?” 

“…Freya Familia…we were attacked by their first-tier adventurers. Lyu and the others held them off, but…” 

“Leon did what?!” 

What should normally have been something so dangerous it couldn’t be ignored did not even draw a reaction from Hestia. 

What is she? No, what is that? 

Noticing Hestia’s shock, Hermes stepped forward. 

“…Would it be correct to assume that you are the one they’re after, Syr?” 

The girl was hugging herself, and then, as if steeling her will, she leaned in. 

“Please, Lord Hermes! Please help me!” 

“…” 

“Just this once is enough, so please give me time! Even if I’ve defied her divine will, I’ve not broken my agreement with the goddess!” 

“…Very well. Then you may rely on me.” Hermes’s expression was mysterious as he acceded to her request. “Aiz, could you lend me your strength? Just holding off the first-tier adventurers is enough. I swear on my name I won’t allow it to devolve into a conflict between Loki and Freya.” 

“…Understood.” 

“Asfi, you support Aiz.” 

“W-wait a minute, Lord Hermes! Don’t go dragging me into a fight between first-tier adventurers!” 

“You’re worried about Lyu, too, aren’t you?” 

“…Ngh! Aaaarghhh!” 

Hermes patted Asfi’s head apologetically as she conceded. She glared at him as she brushed his hand away and ran off after Aiz. After watching them go, Hermes turned to face Bell, who was obviously confused by what had just transpired. 

“Even if they are outnumbered, Aiz and Asfi should be able to hold them off a little while. Go, Bell…Protect her.” 

“…Yes, sir.” 

He nodded and then took her hand as they started running away. 

“Ah—W-wait! Bell!” 

Hestia finally returned to her senses, but it was too late. The pair had disappeared from sight before she could say anything. 

“…Hermes…” 

“Yes, Hestia?” 

As Hestia struggled to wrap her head around what was going on, Hermes turned to face her with a revoltingly calm expression. 

“What is she…?” 

“…” 

“What was that…? What the heck was that?!” Her trembling voice turned to a shout. 

The sound of violent sword clashes rang out, as if to further throw her off balance. It was a furious melody composed by Aiz, Asfi, and Freya Familia’s first-tier adventurers. But at that moment, she paid them no heed. 

As she pressed Hermes, still in the grips of her shock, he finally displayed a bit of emotion for the first time. He looked exhausted, his face like that of an old man. 

“In truth, I can’t be absolutely certain. I have made observations of little importance, but my eyes can’t pierce her. What is she? Who is she? It’s the same for the other deities. That’s part of what makes spending time with her so appealing…and so frightening. Loki’s maybe the only one who’s seen through her entirely.” 

Hestia shook her head violently. “That’s not what I was asking!” 

She simply didn’t understand. An empty space that did not exist within her memories. A supra-rational logic far removed from the natural order. An Irregular, the unknown of the mortal realm… 

“Is that actually a goddess?!” 

The dark clouds were rent, as if moving in time with a goddess’s madness. 

We’re running. 

We head south, using narrow back alleys as we cut through the cluttered industrial district. All to keep the girl beside me from dying. 

“I’m sorry, Bell…! It’s all my fault…!” 

Her voice is weak and frail, filled with guilt. Glancing back, her blue-gray eyes are looking down pitifully. I don’t want to hear Syr sound like that, to see Syr look like that, so I raise my voice. 

“Please don’t act like that! I don’t want to see that look on your face!” 

“Bell…” 

“Please don’t say it’s your fault! Everyone is lending you their strength! So don’t give up!” 

“…!” 

“We have a lot of apologizing to do when this is over! To Lyu, and Aiz, and everyone else!” 

I squeeze her hand as the words that come to mind fly from my mouth. 

I don’t even really know what I am saying. But even so, I can sense her looking up behind me and I feel her squeeze my hand back. 

Think. Think hard. 

Freya Familia is serious. They are absolutely intent on killing her. What’s happening? And what’s going on with Syr? I needed to find out. If I don’t understand the situation, nothing will change! 

“If there was just some place we could hide…!” 

Both of us are breathing heavily. Even if he had been holding back, I was still on the receiving end of a first-tier adventurer’s powerful attacks, and my body is spent. I need to stop and rest for at least a short while. 

“I—I know a, haah, place to hide…!” 

“Really?!” 

“Yes! Just up ahead…!” 

This isn’t a time where I can be picky, so I jump at her suggestion. 

“Please lead the way!” 

“Okay!” I said in reply. 

I nodded deeply at his smile, at his gaze. 

I ran into the goddess of the hearth. 

A chance encounter with his patron goddess. 

Even though I had been warned again and again that I must never meet her. 

I was a criminal at this point. There was no excuse. The charges were already etched into my body. 

The crime of disobeying the goddess’s command. 

The crime of plotting under the cover of my contract with the goddess. 

The crime of acting on that plot and attempting to steal away the one the goddess favored. 

It was understandable that they would fly into a rage over those transgressions. Entirely reasonable that they would try to kill me, even. 

I was attempting to snatch away something reserved for the goddess. There was no hope for salvation left. 

But still. Even though I had hardened my resolve, his blinding sentiment still set me afire. 

He shared a small piece of his pure, clear heart with me. 

My breathing was ragged. My chest was hot. A flush was rising in my cheeks. 

I finally understood the true reason the goddess had fallen for him. He had driven my heart wild. His slender but powerful hand pulled mine along. That was the hand the goddess loved. And at this moment, that hand and those fingers that should have belonged to the goddess were mine, and mine alone. 

 I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. 

I apologized over and over in my heart both to the goddess and to the followers who had sworn their loyalty to her. 

I won’t ask for forgiveness, but please just let me finish this—my dream…my greatest sin— 

She guides us to an abandoned building on the outskirts of the industrial district. 

It looks like it had been some kind of factory or something, but the yawning boxlike building is engulfed by green vines now. The doors have all been sealed shut, but there is one point where the wall has collapsed, hidden behind a waterfall of overgrowth. 

Yeah, once we’re inside, there would be no way for people to notice us. 

I crouch down and slip through the small hole, which leads into a short passage, and then the passage opens out into the interior of the building. 

“So big…” 

This space could hold thousands of people easily. On the far side, the floor and walls are charred, as if there had been a fire here in the past. Metal pillars are bent, folding all the way back down to the ground. The trolley rails that had once crisscrossed the ground are almost entirely gone. Most of the equipment has been removed, and all that is left, shoved into corners, is trash that couldn’t be reused. 

Looking up, the gray sky is visible. There are several holes in the ceiling. 

“I found it one time when the children from the orphanage were begging to explore outside Daedalus Street. It was dangerous, though, so I only came that one time…” 

I can believe that. It definitely has the feeling of a secret base, and I can see the children playing excitedly—but I shake my head. 

I turn to meet her gaze. 

“…Could you tell me why Freya Familia is after you?” 

“…The reason is because the goddess—Lady Freya—has taken a liking to you.” 

“…Me?” 

“Yes. That is why they are so mad. Despite knowing that you are the object of Lady Freya’s affections…I attempted to steal you away.” 

Cold air surrounds us. 

I am more than a little shaken by what she has said. But at the same time, I can’t immediately deny it as impossible, either. 

 “I love you.” 

Because I still remember what the silver-haired goddess had whispered. 

“There are several things I haven’t told you yet. I’ve told you little more than lies. But it was the truth when I said I was going to be separated from you.” 

“…” 

“I…” She pauses for a moment. “…I don’t have anything beyond this moment. 

“If I’m to achieve my wish…” 

Her voice trails off, so faint it might disappear at the slightest touch. Her blue-gray eyes look up at me. She draws closer, as if not wanting to lose even a second of the moment we are in. She stops right in front of me before continuing, 

“I don’t mind if it is just out of compassion or pity, but if you could please just accept me—” 

She is pleading with me. There is no mistaking it. This is her ardent, heartfelt wish. Realizing that, I quietly close my eyes. 

She closes the remaining distance between us. There is a thud as her handbag falls to the ground. She reaches her arms around my back, and I— 

His eyes opened. 

My heart ached whenever I saw his red eyes. 

I remembered something the goddess had said long ago. That his red eyes and his pure, translucent soul were like beautiful jewels. It was all true. That was what attracted both the goddess and me. That was what drove both of us mad. 

As if being drawn in by his eyes, I closed the distance. Our lips drew near. My trembling chest drew close to his. I dropped my handbag that had served its purpose, and slowly raised my arms. 

Why did the goddess have to meet you? 

If I had met you first…If I had known what would happen…It might have turned out so differently… 

The single wish burning away at my heart. The emotions welling up. I desperately tried to hold it in, murmuring to myself not to let it burst out. Aaaaah, but I can’t deny it. I’ve been enchanted by the boy before me, since long ago. As if I was linked with the goddess, a reflection of the goddess. But that was exactly why. That was why I couldn’t control this urge. I know it is a taboo that must never be embraced. It is nothing less than a betrayal of the goddess who saved me. But I don’t know how to contain these feelings. Yes, you are— 

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—I will never forgive you!!! 

Because she met you, the goddess became corrupted! Because of you, the goddess is attempting to degrade herself! 

I know! I’m the only one who knows! I can understand the depths of her heart that even she can’t know! 

That is why! I Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! You! 

You—YOU—the one who changed the sublime empress! 

Why did the goddess have to meet you first?! 

If I had met you first! 

If I had known what would come! 

I would have killed you before you ever met her! 

Nothing comes of grief. Anger never appeases anything. And hatred can never reclaim anything. I know. I am fully aware. I understand. 

That’s why… 

That’s why I betrayed the goddess. 

I hid my true intent when I approached her with my proposition. I broke my contract. I committed the greatest taboo. Out of love for the goddess, I trampled upon her ( ). 

That is my wish. That is my entreaty. That is my loyalty. And that is my bloody graveside offering to this man as well! 

The other followers can’t get in the way now! The symbol of my sin is right before my eyes! The feelings I imagined whenever I thought of you can’t stop my blade now! 

Even if the goddess curses me! Even if I’m branded a criminal! Even if I’m battered and broken and cast aside! I will shatter the nightmare haunting her! 

The goddess has no need for an Odr to seduce her. For a partner who steals her heart. She doesn’t need any of that! 

She closes the last gap. There is a thud as her handbag falls to the ground. She reaches her arms around my back, and I—grab her slender arm. 

“So then who are you?” 

There is a long moment of silence that pierces our ears. 

Her eyes open wide. 

Her arm cannot move. The knife she’s holding in her right hand cannot reach me. 

Time starts moving again as she pours strength into her arm. But it is hopeless. I have a grip on the inside of her elbow. The cold knife can’t find its way to my heart. 

Here in this sealed off, abandoned factory, no one would find us. In other words, there’s no chance of interference. No one to save me. This abandoned factory is the grave she had prepared for me. 

“…What are…what are you saying?” Her lips and voice are trembling. 

“I’m saying that you aren’t Syr.” 

This time, I put more force into my hands. Her face twists in pain as the knife drops to the ground with a loud clatter. 

When I release her, she clutches her arms and backs away from me. Her pumps knock aside the fallen handbag—where she had been hiding her knife—covering it in dust. 

“…How could you say that, Bell…? I-I’m me. You’ve been protecting me all day, haven’t you?!” She desperately tries to paper it over with a smile. 

“Yes, even though I didn’t know what was going on, I did protect you. Because I didn’t want anyone to die. Even if you aren’t Syr.” 

As she gasps, I point out, “I haven’t once called you Syr today.” 

I had noticed it from the very start. From the moment I found her while I was searching for Syr. I knew something was off ever since I caught my breath after seeing her eyes. And her face. 

She wasn’t the girl who was always working at The Benevolent Mistress. She wasn’t the one who always made lunches for me. Her smile wasn’t the same as the one Syr always showed me. When we met, for just a single instant, her murderous intent showed itself. 

My suspicion turned to certainty when she refused to let go of her handbag throughout everything that happened. My enhanced hearing let me hear the metallic sound of something with a blade—probably a knife—hitting another piece of metal inside the bag. 

Because of the tenuous situation, Lyu and the others from the tavern who came to help hadn’t noticed. No, even without that, they might not have noticed. That was just how perfectly her figure, voice, gestures, and everything else matched Syr. 

That was why I had said, “Please don’t act like that! I don’t want to see that look on your face!” 

Because even if her voice and face were the same, she wasn’t Syr. 

“You intended to kill me from the start.” 

“…Ngh!” 

She recoils when I say it so calmly. 

She had surely known that I was being followed by Hegni. So she took a gamble. She had intentionally enraged them, drawing them all to us, and then attempted to break their surveillance in the process of escaping. All so that we could end up here. Just the two of us. 

The knife lying on the floor is proof of her true intent. Though that alone isn’t proof enough that she isn’t Syr. 

“It is possible that Syr came to hate me enough to want to kill me. And if that were true, I would be sad, and of course, there’s no way for me to know what lies in someone else’s heart.—But you’re different. Because you aren’t Syr.” 

“H…how? How can you be so sure that I’m not Syr?!” 

“The accessory in your hair.” 

“Eh?” 

“That accessory I gave you today—the one you are still wearing right now—wasn’t Syr’s.” 

The blue-and-silver accessory in her hair trembles. 

She’s speechless. 

“That was mine.” 

A paired set. 

When I had left the inn, there was just one half of the set on the table: mine. The real Syr had taken her half with her when she left. That could only mean one thing. 

“I thought that you might be a fake, so I tested it by giving that to you. And you believed me.” 

“…!” 

“You were tricked by something that the real Syr would never have fallen for.” 

Her hands are trembling as she takes the accessory out of her hair. On the reverse, it has the word “Knight” written in Koine. 

 “Can I have the spirit one? You should take the knight’s side!” 

Syr had chosen the spirit half. 

The fact that this person had taken my half without thinking was undeniable proof. 

“You probably know almost everything about Syr. But your knowledge must not be perfect, either. You never suspected that the accessory was mine.” 

Shared memories, or maybe seeing events through her eyes. 

It’s almost too extraordinary to believe, but it isn’t out of the question that some kind of spell or magic item could make it possible. Particularly if the magic had the limitation of only being able to share the memories or vision of a single target. 

The girl in front of me had probably not noticed the hair ornament because of whatever limitation there was on her magic. 

“Therefore, you aren’t Syr,” I conclude. 

Her eyes go wide as her head slumps. The accessory slips to the ground from her hand. As it clatters across the ground, I lean over and pick it up. 

There is a long silence. 

We stand across from each other in the middle of the abandoned factory as she finally, slowly begins to speak. 

“Seeing through me from the very start…how unbearably shameful.” 

I recoil. Her voice is still Syr’s, but now it’s painfully cold. 

She looks up. There is a somber gleam to her blue-gray eyes. A dull, deep shadow the likes of which would never darken Syr’s eyes. 

“If you had simply not noticed, I would have embraced you gently, killing you in my arms…” 

Her words are chillingly inhuman. There is no mistaking her hostility and desire to kill me. It’s enough to make Freya Familia’s rage seem almost cute. It feels like a frozen hand is gripping my heart. 

“Who…are you…? Why do you look the same as Syr?” 

“You have no need to know, since I lost my bet with her,” she says. Then, with a sense of resignation, she continues, “Lady Syr awaits you in a place only the two of you know. A location from a memory even I can’t access. Please go to her.” 

A place from a memory that only the two of us shared…? 

Hearing that, a certain scene suddenly springs to mind. A memory that belongs only to Syr and me. I stand there frozen as I look back at the mirror image of Syr standing before me. 

“…Are you not going to leave? At this rate, Freya Familia will…!” 

“…Still worrying about me even knowing I’m a fake? How much more must you shame me before you will be satisfied? You truly are a horrid hypocrite.” 

“Guh…” 

“If you aren’t here, they won’t kill me. Though I betrayed the goddess, so long as I let you go, I will be punished but won’t lose my life.” 

“…Really?” 

“Yes, unfortunately.—So please just go already.” 

I can’t sense any more willpower from her. No hostility, no rage. It’s as if all that just slipped away. 

I can’t do anything other than trust her. I twist up my face as I look at her emotionless expression one last time and then turn to leave the ruins. 

The boy left. 

His presence faded into the distance. 

As the girl in the form of Syr sensed that, the next instant, she was struck in the head with a spear shaft. 

She was sent flying. The blow took her through a pillar and slammed her into the far wall with the force of a river breaking free from a dam. 

There was a deafening boom as a cloud of dirt and dust burst into the air. Then the owner of the silver spear, Allen, spoke. 

“You started this farce on your own authority…You even abandoned your post for it. So what the hell was it you wanted to do so badly?” 

She collapsed to the floor, her hand spasming, barely breathing. But despite sustaining an attack that would have killed a normal person in any number of ways, she was still largely intact. 

Her head was bleeding badly, her limbs were covered in wounds, and she had been seriously hurt, but she was still alive. 

“Answer me before you die, Hörn.” 

As if triggered by hearing that name, a shroud of light surrounded Syr and then melted away, scattering into fragments like a mirror shattering. 

The magic had been dispelled after the caster had taken too much damage. 

And what lay there in Syr’s place once the light faded was a beautiful girl with faded ashen hair and a pitch-black left eye that seemed consumed by the dark of night. 

The Gulliver brothers and Hegni came down from a hole in the roof just like Allen had. 

“And you’re the so-called head chamberlain?” 

“Turning your back on our goddess’s divine will. What kind of attendant are you?“ 

Hörn’s lip quivered as she responded to Dvalinn’s and Grer’s scorn. 

“I…have no excuse…What I perpetrated was undoubtedly nothing less than turning my back on the goddess…It was something unforgivable…” 

She acknowledged her sin as if gasping for breath, her long hair swaying as it covered half her face. 

Hegni’s eyes narrowed. 

“Your schemes proceeded far too readily for one such as yourself…Did you join hands with Ottar and my fated foe, Hedin?” Hegni spat venomously. 

Indeed. Or more precisely, the girl called Hörn had deceived Hedin and Ottar to assist in her attempt to kill the boy. 

The first day of the festival had been spent with the real Syr. The second day had been the fake. 

That was why they were so enraged. They were furious with Hörn, who had attempted to do something to the boy who was, by every right, the property of their goddess. 

If she had reached out to them for help in her plot, the plan would have failed then and there. The extremists would not have hesitated to eliminate anything that went against the goddess’s will. 

All for the sake of the goddess. 

“You were planning to have us kill you all along,” Allen said furiously, seeing through the fact that her plan had been formed from the start under the assumption that she would have to sacrifice herself. 

“…I betrayed the goddess whom I love and swore loyalty to. Whether my ambition was fulfilled or not, this life that the goddess saved would be returned to her…” 

Hörn placed her trembling hand on the floor, raising her upper body as she answered falteringly. 

There was no pain or fear. With her face adorned in a bloody mask, she was the very image of a martyr. 

“Don’t go foisting your grubby life onto her, you trash.” 

But Allen rejected her sentiment. 

Hörn looked down for a moment before raising her head and shouting: 

“Yes, I hated the boy who stole the goddess’s heart! I was jealous of him even!…But it was not merely that! I feared for the goddess! Feared that she would change! Feared that at this rate, our one and only queen would become corrupted and fall!” 

“…” 

“You cannot understand! But I, I alone can! That’s why! That’s the reason! I had no other choice! Even if she did not desire it! Even if I was hated for all eternity! I had no choice but to commit this sin for her sake! Because she must always remain the goddess!” 

The others watched silently as a gruesome grin crossed her face. 

“Yes—there’s no way it could be right for her to lower herself to the level of a mere girl! 

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha…” 

A raucous, broken laugh welled up from her throat, spewing out to the sky beyond the broken ceiling above. 

Her laughter revealed her absolute faith that resided in her loyalty to the goddess. Her black eye was shining, dreaming of her mistress’s eternal glory even at this very moment. 

Every bit of her had been offered up to the goddess whom she worshipped. 

“You’re not the goddess’s attendant,” Allen finally spat out. “You’re just a mad cultist.” 

She neither denied nor acknowledged his accusation. She just laughed as her eyes narrowed and a single drop of blood ran down her cheek. 

It was snowing that day. 

Beautiful, cruel white fragments fell from the sky that night. 

The goddess who found me asked: 

“I was thinking of helping you, but…is there anything you desire?” 

And I had answered: 

I want to become you. I want to stop being me and become clean, warm. I want to become you. 

“You want to become me? How ravenous can you be?! There has never been a child who asked for that before!” 

She smiled at my arrogant craving. And then she said: 

“Then I shall give you a name. In exchange, you will give me your name, yes?” 

It was a trading of fates—an exchange of true names. 

A contract, a holy ritual allowing my body and spirit to cease being that lonely, filthy little girl. 

I offered up the name Syr and received the divine name Hörn. 

And the moment I became one of her followers, the moment my longing became reality thanks to her blessing, I was overjoyed. 

Vana Sei?r—divine sorcery—a transformation spell. 

It was a secret technique that allowed me to become the one and only goddess. 

When it was active, I shared in all of her senses, and I also experienced her emotions in a one-sided connection. 

I was able to feel everything she felt, to be a part of everything connected to her! 

Other than being unable to use Arcanum, I had become the goddess through and through! 

An honor undeserved. A climax welling inside me. The girl who had been nothing more than garbage strewn on the side of the road was basking in the blessings of the heavens. 

Ahhh! 

I was the goddess’s daughter Hörn! 

I offered up the simple girl Syr and became a daughter of the divine! 

I would become her arms and legs, her nose, ears, and eyes! My fate would be shared as a small piece of her for all eternity! 

But! But! But! 

Then that boy appeared! 

A being who bewitched my sublime goddess! The goddess fairer than all! 

When my technique was active, when I became the goddess, I could sense her feelings! I knew! It was something only I could know! 

The goddess was trying to cease being a goddess! 

That supreme, noble, heavenly ruler whom mortal ken could not even begin to comprehend was attempting to lower herself, to become a mere stain upon the land! 

The goddess was attempting to degrade herself, to become a mere girl—and that could never be allowed to happen! 

That’s why! 

That’s why!!! 

I had no choice but to resolve myself! 

No choice but to give in to my basest impulses! Because I knew! 

I had no choice but to plot his assassination, even if it went against the goddess’s divine will! 

It was impossible to kill him during the mundane everyday encounters. He was still continuing to grow even as I agonized over what was happening, and he had already grown too strong. As I was now, even if I waited for a moment when he was alone, I would not be able to strangle him in his sleep. And I didn’t have any conspirators to help me. Even if the rest of the familia were jealous of him, they had never truly considered a plot to murder him. I was alone. 

That day, when she told me to deliver the invitation to him for the Goddess Festival, no one could understand the emotions swirling inside me. 

That was the final straw. My barely contained emotions forced me to act. 

That day, the first time I met him face-to-face, when I was standing in front of his home… 

No one could understand how unstable I was, desperately restraining my immense urge to kill him while simultaneously feeling an intense love for the being before my eyes because of how deeply I shared in the goddess’s emotions! 

I had no choice but to use this festival! 

It was my one chance to change places with her! My chance to get close to him! My one and only opportunity to slip within his reach! 

My body and spirit were ravaged by the feelings of affection for him, but my loyalty was unwavering. My faith overcame all meaningless emotions, weeding them out and scorching my very being with hellfire to accomplish my duty. 

The goddess needed to be freed of the spell binding her no matter what the cost. 

My life would be offered up for the act of purification that would cleanse her of her corruption. 

Yes. 

The goddess must always remain the goddess! 

The goddess is…the goddess is—! 

However, my desire could no longer be fulfilled. 

Intense rage, cold grief, and tranquil happiness—when the goddess experienced emotions that were too powerful, it would sometimes cause a swell and her ego would subsume my trifling consciousness. The fact that I could only grasp a fragmentary picture of what happened at the cathedral was my downfall—no, I cannot make excuses. 

I lost to him. 

He saw through my identity. 

I was unable to kill him. And unable to stop him. 

I lost at a game of my own making. 

The rules that she established at the start… 

 If your deception is ever discovered, that will count as your loss. 

 From that point on, you will be barred from being involved with him in any way. 

 You will never be allowed to meet him ever again. 

Thinking back on it now, she had probably seen through my intentions even then. Recognized that I was using my feelings toward him as a cover for the murderous intent buried underneath. But at the same time, she had accepted the game for her own purpose, in order to test him. 

In the end, I had been dancing in the palm of her hand only to be finished off by him. 

What a pitiful, foolish ending. 

I did not even rise to the level of a clown. In the end, I had not become anyone, just like she said. 

But that’s fine. 

It was galling. Maddening. Grievous. 

But there was still a way to wake her from her nightmare. 

I had taken my uncompromising path because I had not wanted her to be hurt. I had intended to bear my crimes and atone with my life. I had attempted that because I had not wanted that sublime goddess to experience even a single wound, but? 

Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! 

But that won’t change the result! 

Do you know who his eyes are on?! 

Do you know how steadfast and unwavering his unclouded feelings are?! 

No matter how much she might desire it, no matter how maddening he is, the results will never change! 

With this, she’ll finally be freed from the spell binding her! 

And by none other than the boy’s own hand! 

Because of his purity, that boy will shatter the goddess’s wish! 

I am satisfied even if I’m the only one who knows! 

Yes. 

I’m the only one who may know the true meaning of the tears running down my cheek. 

I don’t stop. 

I’m trusting my memory, not really sure if it’s right but somehow still sure of myself, I keep running to the place that links just the two of us. 

As if to confirm my memories, the closer I get, the fewer people there are around. The hustle and bustle of the festival fades. The silence deepens. 

Racing through the maze of roads, over a hilly rise, and down a walled-in valley. The ashen sky roils as the thick clouds begin to move when I finally reach a familiar little park. 

It is in the labyrinthine Daedalus Street neighborhood. 

She’s sitting there on a brick bench, eyes closed, trusting that the one she is waiting for will come. 

“Syr…” 

This is the place where she had first said that she liked me. Where she had rescued me when I had been starting to crack, when so much had happened and I didn’t know what to do. 

 “I…I like how you always keep running.” 

The cradle of our memories, a place only the two of us know. A place where our hearts had nestled close together. 

“!” 

I pause at the entrance of the park and look up in surprise. Master—Hedin is standing there atop the stone building. In position guarding Syr, he says nothing. He isn’t forcing me to do anything. No orders. I can’t begin to know what he is thinking as his coral-red eyes look at me. And then he turns away elegantly, as if to say his role in this is done. 

I watch him leave and then turn back to her. There is a gentle breeze. As if urged on by that, I set foot in the park. The small white flowers growing among the greenery rustle softly in the wind. 

She slowly opens her eyes and, seeing me, her lips curve into a gentle smile. 

“You found me, Bell.” 

“…Someone who looks just like you let me know.” 

“Argh. At times like this, you’re supposed to say, ‘I just had a feeling you would be here.’” 

Her voice is kind, like she is chiding a child, and not really serious at all. 

She stands up, and we face each other, as if drawn to the center of the park. 

She is wearing the same dress as yesterday. She is wearing the accessory I had given her in her blue-gray hair. The matching accessories symbolizing the fate of the knight and spirit. 

“Why?” I ask. “Why did you do something like this?” 

Even though there are so many other things I want to ask, that’s the first thing that came out. 

“I said it last night,” Syr says with a smile. “I wanted to convey my feelings. And I wanted to confirm my feelings.” 

She reaches up and touches the accessory in her hair. 

“Even if there are other people who like you, if you still came to find me, I thought maybe I could afford to be a little conceited.” 

“…” 

“Also, because I wanted to make the most of the here and now. Because I hated the idea of time passing without doing anything.” 

“…” 

“And more than anything, because I was scared. Scared that I, who despised boredom, found myself wishing for the current standstill to continue.” 

It isn’t an excuse or an explanation, nor a request for empathy. 

“But I couldn’t really understand it.” 

It looks like she’s searching for the real her in a sea of words. 

“Right now, more than anything, I don’t understand myself at all.” 

She’s wearing her familiar smile, and yet for some reason it feels like she’s crying. 

Like a child frozen in place, not knowing what to do. Like she’s caught between being one who loves and one who evokes love from others. 

“But I finally realized that, most likely, no matter what I tried…the only way to escape this anguish was to confess everything.” 

Now that’s it come to this, I finally realize it. 

Her voice is trembling. She’s putting on a brave front, summoning her courage even though she’s afraid of what lays before her. 

For some reason, my knees start to tremble. My hands feel like they might start twitching at any moment. My teeth are on the verge of chattering. 

I’ve come to an inescapable fork in the road. There is no choice that will allow our relationship to simply continue like it has up until now. 

“I love you, Bell.” 

She holds both of her hands to her chest as she leans forward. 

“I love you. I want to be with you forever. Please choose me.” Her eyes are glistening. “It’s so painful. I want you to hold me. I don’t want to have to worry about tomorrow coming anymore.” 

She doesn’t even know herself why tears are gathering in her eyes. 

“Even though I never wanted to know this feeling right now, I still can’t help wanting to know what lies beyond it!” 

Her earnestness tears at my heart, and my whole body trembles. 

“I love you, Bell…” 

My heart quivers. 

I can’t hear anything. 

I can’t see anything but her. 

The rest of the world falls away, leaving just the two of us. 

The stillness is earsplitting, and the moment’s silence feels like it will last an eternity. 

The things she had wanted to hide. The things she had wanted to avoid. The things that scared her. She’s laid them all bare before me. 

Trying to run away would be unforgivable. I have to respond in kind. I have to lay everything bare, too. 

My heart groans. I furrow my brow. I want to wrap my hand around my pounding heart and squeeze. 

I desperately want to just take the easy way out, to end the pain and just accept her feelings. 

But. 

But. 

But… 

Remember. 

Remember what Welf said. 

Check. 

Check what actually lies in my heart. 

Ask. 

Ask who it is that I look up to, what I want, what I swore to chase after. 

Answer. 

Bell Cranell, natural-born fool, cannot tell a lie. 

A droplet hits my shoulder. The sky is on the verge of crying. 

I look at her, and she looks back at me. 

And that tiny gap left between us represents an ending. 

I didn’t know. 

I truly didn’t know. 

I didn’t know it was so painful to turn down someone’s love. 

“I’m sorry…” 

The sky quietly begins to weep.