Chapter 83

“I’m back.”

“Welcome back!”

Riana, who had been sitting alone, stood up and warmly greeted Kairon and Abelin.

“Welcome back. It must have been cold outside, and yet it took you quite a while, huh? Oh, but…”

Being as perceptive as ever, Riana quickly picked up on the subtle tension between the two.

“Did you two… fight?”

“…No.”

“Haha, we didn’t fight. Do I look like someone who would fight with someone who’s sick, Riana?”

“But the atmosphere is way too awkward. How does that look like you didn’t fight?”

“We didn’t fight. So, let’s go grab lunch together.”

“…I’ll pass.”

Abelin’s voice was heavy as she said those words.

“Aren’t you hungry? You said you never wanted to eat hospital food again.”

“That’s true. But as you know, I’m not in the mood to eat anything right now. Can you understand? I need some time to think quietly.”

“Alright, got it. Rest well. We’ll be back.”

Kairon didn’t push Abelin further. He knew she needed time to think things through.

But he didn’t plan to leave her completely alone, so he added one more thing.

“Still, it’d be nice if we could have dinner together.”

“…I’ll think about it. I’ll probably have an answer by then.”

“Alright. If you feel like eating anything later, let us know when we get back. Lady Rostia will probably treat us all anyway, so she’ll gladly do that much for you.”

“I get it. Thank you. So don’t worry about me and just go for now.”

Kairon nodded at Abelin, made eye contact, and then left the hospital room.

After stepping outside the hospital, Riana cautiously asked, “Kairon, something’s off. What exactly did you and Abelin talk about outside?”

“Hmm, how should I put it? It wasn’t a light conversation. It ended up being something important.”

“Important? I sent you out to lighten the mood, and you come back with a serious talk? What’s going on?”

“Come on, what ‘lighten the mood’? What kind of mood are you expecting between Abelin and me, Riana?”

“…Never mind. I don’t get you, Kairon. I really don’t. Are you pretending not to know, or do you really not get it? You’re smart, but when it comes to this, it’s like you’re clueless…”

“Who knows. But what’s done is done. I gave Abelin a task, and it’s up to her to accept it or not.”

“A task? You’re just making things more confusing…”

“Let’s not dwell on the headache-inducing stuff. What do you want for lunch? You pick, Riana.”

“Hmm, that’s a tough one. I’ve already tried most of the things I wanted to eat, so nothing’s really coming to mind.”

“How about this? Let’s go to the area with all the restaurants and eat at the fourth place we see.”

“Ehh? No way! What if we pick a bad one? We’ve had plenty of bad meals from random choices before.”

“You said nothing’s coming to mind, but you don’t like random rules either. So what do you want to do? We’ll just have to keep thinking.”

“Hmm, but I still can’t think of anything. What should we do? Kairon, don’t you have any other ideas?”

“Seriously…”

Kairon could only scratch his head.

“Women are so hard to figure out… huh?”

Kairon and Riana both turned around at the same time.

“Did you feel that too, Riana?”

“Yeah. Others might not have noticed, but it’s a very familiar energy to me. Should we go back?”

“…No need. Let’s just go eat. It seems like someone has something in mind. It’s better not to interfere at times like this. Both Abelin and… that person.”

***

“…What should I do? Should I tell her?”

Left alone, Abelin buried her face in her pillow, lost in thought.

The things Kairon had told her lingered deep in her mind, throbbing like a headache.

A complete mess.

That was the perfect way to describe the current state of the Vanguard.

The endless waves of attacks, with no end in sight, and no certainty or future in this tedious defensive mission.

The kind and respected commander had a shady side, and demons were hiding everywhere, each plotting their own schemes.

In less than a month, they had already dealt with three hidden demons, and there was no telling how many more they’d have to uncover and eliminate.

And then there was that matter.

“Kairon. You really…”

Kairon, the only one who could do it.

When you thought about it, finding the demons, planning, tracking them down, and finally defeating them—it was all Kairon’s doing.

All Abelin had done was babble on the side, helping to flesh out the plans, and comforting Kairon when he was down.

If it weren’t for this time, where she had bought time even as her body was falling apart, Abelin’s contribution would have been more like an assistant than a comrade.

“…Ugh.”

And that was the kind of powerless situation Abelin hated the most.

For someone like Abelin, who had always taken the lead and handled everything herself before joining the Vanguard, it was a situation that made her feel disillusioned with herself.

And it was always Kairon who comforted her during those times.

As much as she hated to admit it, everyone, including herself, relied on Kairon.

“If you keep shining like that, the reason I came here will become more and more…”

“More and more what?”

“More and more… completely ruined…”

Abelin muttered to herself and then turned her head to the side.

Lady Rostia had entered the room without a sound, smiling and waving her hand gently.

“You’re not surprised?”

“I don’t have the energy to be surprised, Lady Rostia. So, what brings you here? Kairon just got back and left with Riana to grab lunch.”

“Oh, I see. I sent them off early. But why didn’t you go with them? You need to eat well to recover, especially in your condition.”

“You sound just like Kairon. But forcing myself to eat isn’t good for my mental health either, so I’m just resting.”

“Has all the good food in this city run out? Should I fly to another city to get you something?”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just not in the mood to eat, so I’m like this. I’ll be fine after some time.”

Abelin said that and buried her face in the pillow again.

“Hmm… I know exactly what state you’re in right now. You’re frustrated with your own helplessness, and you don’t know what to do about it, right?”

“How do you…?”

Abelin’s head shot up.

“How do you just glance at me and immediately know how I’m feeling?”

“Isn’t it strange if I didn’t know? I heard that you and Kairon used to be rivals, but now it doesn’t seem that way, does it?”

“…That’s true. At some point, Kairon’s skills suddenly improved. He even gained strange abilities. It’s like he’s a completely different person now.”

“Ugh…”

As Abelin spoke, Lady Rostia suddenly started trembling.

“Ugh, ugh…!”

“W-What’s wrong? Is something the matter…?”

“It’s hard, my mouth is itching so much I can’t stand it!”

“Your mouth is itching? Ah!”

Abelin remembered the story of Lady Rostia willingly using Oath Magic on Kairon.

That meant Lady Rostia knew something Abelin didn’t.

Not Abelin, who had known Kairon for a long time and fought demons alongside him, but Lady Rostia, who had only known him for a short time, despite being an Archmage.

“Tsk tsk, don’t make such a gloomy face. I don’t think Kairon would have tried to hide it from you, would he?”

“He is hiding it. But it’s my fault. Kairon told me his secret, but I’ve been hiding everything from him. So it makes sense that he doesn’t want to tell me more.”

“Honestly, you two are so frustrating. Especially you. If Kairon knew what you were thinking, he’d be shocked. Why are you hiding it so much?”

“…I don’t know. I don’t know, but I don’t want him to know. He’ll see me as completely different from before.”

“But you still want to help him, right?”

Instead of answering, Abelin silently nodded.

“Then let me make a proposal.”

“What kind of proposal?”

“The helplessness you feel is because you’re so much weaker than Kairon, isn’t it?”

“……”

Abelin bit her lip and nodded again.

“Then how about this—why don’t you try to gain the power you’ve been longing for?”

“The power… I’ve been longing for…?”

Lady Rostia’s eyes, making the proposal, and Abelin’s eyes, receiving it, both sparkled at the same time.

“I can tell just by looking. The education you’ve received is all top-notch. And you’ve absorbed it all impressively. But it seems you haven’t had systematic training in magic, have you?”

“Yes. Magic can only be learned at the Magic Tower. Once you belong to it, you’re essentially tied to it forever.”

“Hmm, I see. But how about this? I have a good idea.”

“What is it? Please, tell me. I really want to hear it.”

“Where did the patient who was in pain go? You’ve got a spark in your eyes now.”

“Don’t change the subject, just tell me, please.”

“Hehe, don’t be surprised. The plan I’ve prepared for you is…”