Evan felt a complex emotion as he looked at Aria.
He had heard about the Realm to some extent.
It was said to be a place so similar to hell that an ordinary person would never survive if they entered, existing at the far end of the Empire, referred to as humanity’s last line of defense.
Indeed, if that place were breached, they would have to wage war against countless monsters descending from above, so it wasn’t an incorrect statement.
In the distant past, it was said to be a place that the Empire, responsible for the reckless conquest wars during the Destructive War, had to take responsibility for, given the ecosystem formed as a result.
And it had been said that the grand duke family was in charge of that responsibility.
‘The grand duke’s people… must have seen a lot…’
Aria spoke as if it was nothing, but even hearing rumors, the Realm was an incredibly dangerous place.
Of course, compared to the past when people were dying helplessly, those guarding the Realm had gained some experience now…
Above all, due to the many people who had accumulated survival experiences in the Realm, deaths from ordinary incidents were rare, yet still, many were injured.
The tales of Aria diligently healing each of those individuals and sacrificing her life to save others even in the case of accidents were very famous in the Empire.
It was so notable that a statue of Aria was even made in the imperial capital.
Of course, such actions might also be politically motivated to use Aria, but the citizens of the Empire did indeed have a fondness for the saint of this era.
Especially the people of the grand duke’s family, who had witnessed Aria’s sacrifices firsthand, would feel it even more.
Evan, Aria, Uriel, and Stella came out onto the streets inside the Academy.
They all agreed to go out together as per Aria’s suggestion.
“Heheh… This is the first time we’ve all gone out together like this.”
Uriel said with a cheerful smile.
Aria expressed her curiosity at Uriel’s statement about it being their first outing together.
“[Isn’t it possible for someone like Sister Uriel to make friends?]”
“Um… that’s true, but…”
It was not entirely incomprehensible.
Being the Princess of the Empire, it wouldn’t be surprising if others approached her with the intention of befriending her to gain favor.
Only, if asked whether those advances were due to genuine fondness for Uriel, it would be fair to say they weren’t, which could have negatively affected Uriel’s view.
Moreover, experiencing the advances filled with desire and similar gestures would certainly be off-putting.
“I wanted to befriend the saint, but I declined everyone.”
“[There was no need to go that far…]”
Aria asked Uriel if she was okay with that, showing concern, but Uriel waved her hand, reassuring her not to worry too much.
“Rather than that, let’s try to do various things while having fun!”
“Ah… being in a crowded place is a bit overwhelming…”
Stella muttered with a troubled expression.
Even from the time she was hearing about the events in the Realm earlier, she had looked unwell, and now her complexion was pale to the degree that it wouldn’t be surprising if she were to vomit at any moment.
“[Sister Stella?]”
Noticing Stella’s pale complexion, Aria, who had been walking and talking with Uriel, turned her head and approached Stella.
“Uh, uh?”
Startled, Stella took a step back to avoid Aria, but a faint glow, barely noticeable to others, was already swirling around Aria’s hand.
“[If you’re feeling unwell, you can tell me. I can heal something like this quickly.]”
With no visible injuries, Stella was observed receiving treatment by Uriel and Evan with blank expressions.
The faint glow of divine power that had been swirling around Aria’s hand vanished, and Stella’s pale complexion returned to normal, though she was now sweating as she looked around at her body.
“I—I’m better…”
“[This is just a bit of stamina that gets consumed, so it’s okay.]”
As if she understood what Stella was worried about, Aria smiled brightly.
Stella, feeling awkward at Aria’s demeanor, scratched the back of her head and murmured a quiet thank you.
“Is that the saint’s…?”
“… Now that I think about it, you might not have seen the princess before.”
She had heard of it only in stories, but she hadn’t actually seen that ability in action.
The only time regular students could see Aria use her powers was during practice days when they received treatment…
And even then, it was said that she would cover everything up completely so that no one could see any injuries.
Moreover, after the treatment, the clothes that had been worn would be completely soaked with blood, causing considerable concern among the clergy in the Academy.
“That’s the healing power.”
“…”
She likely still didn’t understand it well.
Stella hadn’t sustained any major injuries; she had simply been feeling a bit unwell, so the treatment had just consumed a little stamina.
“We have to do our best to avoid injuries… That’s for Aria’s sake.”
Receiving treatment was unavoidable.
With Aria’s personality, if someone were gravely injured, she would never ignore it but would sacrifice herself to heal them.
Then, the best thing we could do was to prevent Aria from having to use her powers at all by not getting hurt.
Uriel turned to look at Evan, as if she understood.
“Um… Is it Evan you said?”
“Yes?”
“Please call me just Uriel, I’m fine.”
“… Huh?”
What on earth was that all of a sudden…
Evan turned to Uriel with a confused expression.
However, Uriel looked serious.
“I plan to ask the others to stop addressing me with formalities too.”
“But Princess…”
“I’m already used to this way of speaking.”
Evan was left speechless.
After a while of contemplating while looking at Uriel, he exhaled a sigh.
“Fine. So, I can just call you Uriel, right?”
“You don’t even need to call me princess. I’ve always longed for a friendship like this since staying in the palace!”
What an impressive person.
That meant she approached Aria and spoke to her in such a friendly manner, all while not being accustomed to interacting with others like friends.
Uriel herself said she merely wanted to create a friendship that disregarded social status, but did she really understand?
That the man right next to her was none other than the Hero.
– Evan… something seems fishy.
‘Fishy…?’
Esther chimed in, but Evan ignored her.
He recalled the current situation where he had become friends while hiding his identity as a princess, captured by complex and subtle emotions.
It felt very strange.
But wait a moment.
Hiding my identity as a Hero…?
‘Huh?’
Evan jolted due to a sudden question that popped into his mind.
Something felt off.
‘Have I… ever told Aria that I am the Hero?’
Of course, he later talked to Esther and confessed that he was the Hero, but he did that after a while.
When they had just met, meaning on the day of the entrance ceremony, he had never revealed the fact that he was the Hero to Aria.
Yet Aria had called him ‘Hero’ as if she knew everything.
‘Uh…?’
At that time, the situation had been so chaotic that he had failed to recall this fact; he had never even drawn the Sacred Sword in front of Aria.
At most, he had drawn it to defend himself against the attack of a high-level demon, but if she had realized he was the Hero, she would have noticed then.
But Aria had called out to him as if she was already familiar with him.
And… it had happened long before she approached him.
In the first place, there was no reason Aria would go to the training ground the day before the entrance ceremony if it wasn’t for him.
‘Don’t tell me…?’
While he thought it couldn’t possibly be true, what if it was all part of her plan to take the punishment intended for him after he had sought a fight the day before the entrance ceremony?
What if her plan was to confront the high-level demon on her own as he had yet to awaken his powers as a Hero?
The more he thought about it, the more chills crept down his spine.
Could it be that she had thought that far ahead?
Evan looked back at Aria.
Like any ordinary girl, she was walking animatedly through the streets with Uriel and Stella, even if it felt a bit awkward.
‘No way…’
It couldn’t be.
He wanted to believe it wasn’t true.
The attack of the high-level demon on the day of the entrance ceremony… and the fact that Albert had been reverted back to his original state as a demon.
Even now, thinking about that made his hands tremble.
‘Let’s stop.’
This wasn’t something to ponder on a day like today.
Evan shook his head.
Right now was the time to enjoy and have fun together.
