Everything human should shed something.
Blood, sweat, and tears—these are the very things.
The saying “a child who sheds neither blood nor tears” exists for a reason. One must be soft enough to bleed, weak enough to sweat, and mature enough to cry.
Only when these three conditions are met can one truly be reborn as a human.
“Sniff, hhh…”
And that is why the sight of the man crying before Laura, Professor Antorelli, was undeniably human.
He was not the usual cold-blooded, stoic figure but showed his honest and sincere self as ‘Lucio Antorelli.’
Shedding tears, bleeding invisible blood from his right arm that felt the torment, he had matured enough to recognize his misjudgment and forgive others.
“Sniff, hhh…”
It was the same for Laura von Adelheit.
Laura wiped the constantly welling tears from her eyes with her sleeve and took a deep breath. Overcome with emotion, she had cried so hard that her breath came in gasps.
Thus, the two wept silently, looking at each other.
Until their eyelids were puffy, their eyes bloodshot, and they felt an extreme thirst as if all moisture had left their bodies.
Exhausted from crying, Laura lifted her head. No matter how much she squeezed, there were no more tears left to shed, nor the energy to produce them.
It seemed Professor Antorelli was the same, as he put on the glasses he had set aside and turned his head toward Laura.
When their eyes met, Laura felt a strange awkwardness and averted her gaze.
It was a peculiar feeling. Having freed herself from the guilt stemming from Cesar’s death, it was only natural to feel relieved.
“Ugh…”
However, what was this fuzzy feeling that accompanied it?
Laura was confused by the whirlwind of emotions within her. That strangely warm feeling, the cold sweat trickling down, and her heart pounding slowly…
“Adelheit.”
Laura raised her head. Professor Antorelli was looking at her.
Unlike a moment ago when he was crying and repeating phrases like ‘I’m sorry. I forgive you,’ he had returned to his usual stoic expression.
And for some reason, Laura felt a slight discomfort toward Professor Antorelli.
It wasn’t just because of his tousled hair or his flat expression that had returned…
“…Laura.”
“Yes?”
“Please call me by my name. Lucio…”
In some ways, it was childish. To feel discomfort just because he referred to her by her last name.
But Laura was sincere. She looked at Professor Antorelli, who was silent, and parted her lips.
“Is that not possible…?”
“…It’s not that it’s impossible. Uh… Laura.”
“……”
A mysterious feeling. It blew into Laura’s insides once again, wrapping her body in warmth. Laura, with great effort, tried to control the smile that was almost pulling at her lips and lowered her head.
“Laura.”
“…Yes, Professor.”
“Does Cesar appear in your nightmares?”
She had to raise her head soon after Professor Antorelli’s question, which brought a chill to her heart. Laura looked at Professor Antorelli with wide eyes.
“How…?”
Professor Antorelli smiled bitterly at Laura, whose eyes were trembling.
“Because I am the same as you, Laura.”
The same, the same…
While she knew he was talking about having nightmares, just feeling a sense of kinship with Professor Antorelli made her feel better. Laura bit her quivering lips and muttered.
“I see…”
“How long has it been since you’ve had those nightmares?”
“…It continued until three days ago.”
“You haven’t had nightmares for the past three days?”
“Yes.”
As Laura nodded in affirmation, Professor Antorelli began to look flustered this time. It was just a slight twitch of one eyebrow, but Laura didn’t miss it.
“The reason you haven’t had nightmares… No, perhaps…”
Professor Antorelli began to mutter seriously. Laura stared at him, then grinned mischievously.
“Well, for the past three days, I couldn’t sleep properly because I was thinking about you, Professor. It’s only natural that I wouldn’t have nightmares.”
Then, silence.
A truly suffocating silence lingered between Laura and Antorelli, enough to erase the strange atmosphere that had flowed between them.
“…Excuse me?”
Eventually, Professor Antorelli asked back, unusual for him, and looked at Laura.
Laura barely managed to hold back her laughter. Seeing a somewhat dazed Professor Antorelli was, strangely, a refreshing feeling.
“…Pfft.”
As Laura could no longer hold back her laughter, Professor Antorelli’s mouth tightened. His expression remained as stoic as usual, and someone unaware of the situation might think he was angry.
‘He’s embarrassed.’
Laura realized that Professor Antorelli felt embarrassed for acting foolish in front of the students he taught.
As evidence, the tips of Professor Antorelli’s ears had turned slightly red. This too was evidence that would be hard to notice unless one observed him carefully.
Professor Antorelli cleared his throat awkwardly a few times before slowly standing up.
“I’m glad to hear that you’re okay, Laura.”
“Yes, indeed.”
And Laura realized that he was about to end the meeting and leave. She glanced at the wall clock visible over Professor Antorelli’s shoulder.
‘…It’s already five o’clock.’
As they talked, comforting each other and shedding tears, four hours had passed in no time. Laura spoke to Professor Antorelli, who was rummaging through his pockets while standing up.
“…Where are you going?”
“Isn’t it time to head back?”
“But it’s the weekend; can’t you at least have dinner with me…?”
“I appreciate the thought, but it’s okay.”
Ah, does this man really lack awareness? Seeing Professor Antorelli rummaging through his pockets to take something out made Laura’s lips naturally pout.
Could that be why? A question she would never normally ask spilled out of Laura’s mouth.
“What about you, Professor?”
“…Huh?”
Professor Antorelli turned his head to look at Laura. He hadn’t understood what she meant.
“You asked me if I had nightmares, but you’re not saying anything about your own situation. Isn’t that a bit unfair?”
“Isn’t that unreasonable?”
“It’s not unreasonable.”
As Laura mimicked Professor Antorelli’s tone, his expression visibly hardened.
‘Oops…’
Had she been too cheeky? Without realizing it, Laura felt the urge to make an excuse toward Professor Antorelli.
“Upon reflection, I think you’re right, Laura.”
Before Laura could express her surprise at his unexpected response, she stared in shock.
“Uh, yes…?”
“If I explain my condition, it will reassure you, won’t it? I seem to have instilled some anxiety in you.”
“Oh, no…! That’s not….”
“Not at all. I will speak.”
Professor Antorelli, who was heading toward the door, turned around and slowly approached Laura. She stared at him blankly.
Finally, as he reached close to Laura, Professor Antorelli pulled out something from his pocket and handed it to her. Laura’s gaze turned to what he was offering.
“What is this…?”
It was a rosary. A rosary made from smoothly polished wood, strung together to be worn around the neck.
The cross looked somewhat crude, as though hand-carved by someone, but there was an elegance to the craftsmanship that suggested considerable effort had gone into it.
As Laura stared at it in awe, Professor Antorelli held it out a little closer.
“This is a rosary I carved as a hobby in the war.”
“A…”
“It’s a bit awkward to say this, but I put in a lot of effort. If you keep it and sleep, the Lord will protect you.”
Without thinking, Laura accepted the rosary he offered.
The rough texture. The slightly uneven touch of the wood conveyed through her hand. The rosary, with a hint of military varnish, seemed to have dulled over time.
Yet, the wear and tear somehow brought a sense of tranquility to her heart. Laura stared at it for a moment before instinctively gripping it tightly.
“Then, I’ll take my leave now.”
As Professor Antorelli, who had given her the rosary, was finally about to leave her room,
“Wait a moment.”
Again, Laura called him to a halt. Professor Antorelli stopped once more for her.
“What is it, Laura?”
“You didn’t answer my question. Could it be that you’re trying to deceive me with such a bribe…?”
“……”
Professor Antorelli was silent for a while. As thoughts of ‘Did I ask something I shouldn’t have?’ began to fill Laura’s mind,
“I wanted to die.”
Professor Antorelli’s unexpected answer burst forth from his lips.
“Ah…?”
Laura’s expression went blank. Staring at Professor Antorelli, she saw him smile and slightly raise the corners of his mouth.
“Just kidding.”
“…Who makes jokes about wanting to die?”
“Here I am, Laura.”
“What I mean is…!”
“Laura. The important thing is that I have fully acknowledged the emotions I feel.”
Professor Antorelli said earnestly. Laura’s mouth slowly closed.
“If the nightmares I normally have completely disappear due to this incident, wouldn’t that be nothing short of a miracle?”
“If that’s the case…”
Then Professor Antorelli must still not be fully recovered.
“But, Laura.”
“Yes…?”
“Just as I gave you the rosary, I too have something similar.”
Something that will help prevent nightmares, a source of comfort for the heart.
Laura swallowed hard as she looked at Professor Antorelli. Her voice trembled as it flowed from her lips.
“What is that…?”
In response to her question, Professor Antorelli’s next words came as a surprise.
“The freshmen of Class A at Caldera Imperial Academy. That is… Laura.”
It is you.
“……!”
A chill ran down Laura’s spine. Upon hearing those words, she stared blankly at Professor Antorelli, who was truly about to leave the room.
The last words he left behind were, remarkably… a fatal blow.
Something that had been poking at her until the very end had faded away.
However, this time, a new pain began to grip her heart. It was neither the pain of loss nor the hurt stemming from guilt. Instead, this was a pleasant ache.
“Professor…”
For Laura, it was a haunting and difficult to understand…
Such, a dreamlike pain.
