The memory was hazy.
A man was having a drink with a woman. It was a meager setup of a few pieces of jerky and a glass of cheap liquor, contrasting sharply with the lavish tent.
The two poured their drinks without any words exchanged.
There was no time to even sense the aroma of the liquor. It seemed like a poor quality drink. The man and woman simply continued to fill and empty their glasses.
The man’s eyes, blurred from the alcohol, became dreamy. Only then did sounds emerge in the silence of the tent.
“…Is it alright to drink?”
It was a question that instinctively seemed to come to mind, as if asking now. It had been a while since they started drinking. Yet now, asking if it was okay to drink was strange.
It was unclear who the subject of the question was—whether it was the man or the woman.
As if it didn’t matter either way, the woman shook her head with a vague smile.
“What’s wrong with it? You and I are both human.”
“I feel like it’s the first time I’ve seen you drink.”
The woman let out a soft laugh. Her hand covered her face, and a flush had blossomed on her fair skin.
“…Actually, I learned how to drink not long ago. Really, I couldn’t stand it sober.”
“Now you understand, Sephia?”
“It’s a rule not to mention another woman’s name when drinking with a woman.”
The man silently nodded. A bittersweet smile lingered at the corners of his mouth.
And one more shot, it was strong.
“In the past, I was proud of my strength. It’s a rare talent to be able to help others without harming anyone.”
“I agree.”
The woman’s lament continued. The man occasionally threw in a word of agreement.
The intoxication blurred the vision like steam.
“But now, I don’t know. I feel like I can’t do anything… nothing at all…”
“Everyone feels that way.”
It was a heavy voice. Yet it was an empty response. The man’s golden eyes held a wretched light.
“It’s not just the Eastern Front. The Northern Front and the Western Front… the situation is not good. The Holy Kingdom is preparing to abandon the holy city.”
“Because the Saint has passed away.”
The woman held her face with a sigh. It was a sorrowful smile.
“How did it come to this? If only I had wrapped things up at the orphanage back then…”
“It’s a meaningless assumption.”
It was a resolute voice. The woman looked at the man in silence after hearing that tone.
Her eyes were full of subtle heat. It was difficult to tell whether it was the influence of the liquor or emotional fragments that were evident in her gaze.
It didn’t take long for the lips that had maintained silent to open. A resigned monologue slipped between the woman’s lips.
“…I know. I just have to accept it.”
“Accept it, huh.”
“Yes, accept it.”
The word ‘accept’ felt almost like a code, as the two exchanged words. A sigh escaped the man’s mouth.
“Will anything change by doing so?”
“Nothing will change. You’ll just come to terms with it.”
As she spoke, the woman began to nod off. It seemed like the intoxication had risen to its peak.
“About tomorrow… a bit more…”
With a thud, she let her head drop upon the table and fell asleep. Left alone, the man took a few more drinks before getting up.
He took off his coat and draped it over the woman’s shoulders. He looked at her in silence and then murmured quietly.
“…Even weak in liquor.”
It was a night when the moonlight sliced through the tent and poured in.
With a soft thud, the lamp was extinguished, and the world went dark. That was the end of the memory.
It was then that I regained consciousness.
With a gasp, air rushed into my lungs. Only then did I open my eyes and scan my surroundings. A faint light covered my retina, making my vision blurry.
My head was spinning. As my senses began to return, I felt a stabbing pain in my abdomen.
It hurt. As I let out a groan, I felt a hand gripping and shaking my body.
“I-Ian Oppa! Are you awake?!”
It was an urgent voice. Struggling to shift my blurred vision, I caught sight of amber eyes.
And black hair—a face that was far too familiar to me.
It was Celine Haster. My childhood friend and a second-year student in the Academy’s Swordsmanship Department.
Even in my pain, I opened my mouth to reassure Celine.
“Celine…”
“Yes, yes! It’s me, Ian Oppa! You’re finally awake!”
Celine let out a small sigh of relief. I briefly caught a glimpse of her wiping her brow. The curves of her figure were appealing.
Although not as striking as the Saint, I couldn’t help but think such things as I groaned. Until one thought flickered through my mind.
Come to think of it, Celine?
It suddenly felt like I was regaining my senses. My vision cleared, and the scenery around me flowed into view.
It was an old building. And this musty smell confirmed it—this was definitely Gilford Orphanage.
The questions were still ongoing. As my eyes questioned Celine, I noticed that she was not alone.
A man entered through the creaking door. He had curly brown hair—a notable man, Reto Ainstern.
“Oh, you finally woke up?”
My gaze turned blank again. I alternated staring at Celine and Reto with a puzzled expression.
It was inevitable that questions would spill from my lips.
“Celine, Reto… how did you get here…?”
“I-Ian Senpai!”
Before I could finish my sentence.
A loud noise could be heard from somewhere. My eyes turned back towards the door. There stood a girl who had rushed in, unable to stop herself.
With gray hair and deep blue eyes resembling aquamarine.
The girl, looking as though she were about to cry, was Seria. It wasn’t the cold and haughty expression she always wore.
Her face was one of worry, hardly the image of ‘Yuridina’s brat.’
It seems her emotional expression had become more vivid. As I pondered this, Seria rushed towards me.
She tightly grasped my hand and worriedly asked,
“Ian Senpai, are you okay… uh, are you alright?”
In asking that, Seria seemed so anxious that she almost bit her tongue.
Thinking back, Seria always bit her tongue.
I pressed my temples to force my brain to wake up. It hadn’t been long since I regained consciousness, and my head wasn’t clear yet. I couldn’t understand why these three were before me.
If no hypotheses came to mind, there could only be one answer.
“…Why are you all here?”
Asking directly, Reto nodded as if he expected that.
With a smirk on his face, he replied.
“Because of you, you bastard.”
It was quite a harsh response. As I looked at Reto with a bewildered expression, I soon heard a clearing of throat.
It was Celine. With a proud expression, she said to me.
“It’s because we were worried about you, Ian Oppa! Even if there are two fourth-year seniors, it’s better to have more people, right? So I begged Reto Oppa to arrange the field practice here.”
“I was supposed to substitute it with a theoretical research project…”
Seeing Reto’s distressed look, I could roughly guess how things had gone.
Celine and Seria, having been refused to accompany me, must have approached Reto.
Being a third-year, Reto would have been qualified to go on this field practice, and he couldn’t just leave behind the two pleading juniors.
The result of that was now in front of me. Even though five Academy students were already at Gilford Orphanage, three more familiar faces were added.
It was truly a force that could rival a small knight regiment.
The Saint of the Holy Kingdom, her guard knight, and the heir of the Yuridina Clan, alongside a battle mage from the prestigious Rainelle Clan.
Just based on their existing strength, they could take on quite a sizeable request. And now, given the increased numbers, I had no doubt that even the monkey monsters would stand no chance against us.
The concern, however, lay in the fact that the requests at Gilford Orphanage would likely not just end with monster extermination.
The letter that came from the future had written that I would be in tatters. Furthermore, the term ‘raid’ sent shivers down my spine. It implied that we wouldn’t be the ones to initiate an attack.
There was a real possibility my life could be at stake. My heart was heavy knowing that Reto, a noncombatant mage, as well as Celine and Seria, who were still only in second year, had come to such a dangerous place.
But now that the die was cast, I figured I might as well welcome them cheerfully.
“Good timing, everyone. It’s been tough since we’ve been short-handed at the orphanage.”
This was the one thing I genuinely meant. Even with five of us, we were already struggling to handle the children, various tasks, and exploring the forest.
But now that our numbers had increased, we should have some breathing room. Celine, perhaps aware of the situation, responded with a wry smile.
“I know, the Saint and the seniors are suffering too. But… hey, nerd. Can you loosen up a bit?”
It seemed Celine was bothered by Seria, who was still tightly gripping my hand. Seria, with a face that looked about to cry, immediately hardened her expression upon hearing Celine’s words.
This was her typical look that everyone recognized. ‘Yuridina’s brat’, that cold impression.
“I don’t want to.”
Her firm expression made Celine narrow her eyes slightly. Annoyance was evident in her amber gaze.
“Enough with the fuss, is Ian Oppa going to die or something?”
“But I’m worried. Right?”
“Hey, if you listen to this, it sounds like… do you think no one is worried? Who do you think stayed at the hospital until you got here?!”
“I was there last night. If it hadn’t been for the orphanage stuff, I would have been there all day.”
The atmosphere was gradually heating up.
I sighed and looked at Reto. He merely shrugged, as if to say what could be done.
Eventually, it seemed I had to step in. To the growling Celine and the cold-eyed Seria, I spoke softly.
“Both of you stop… it’s giving me a headache.”
“B-but Oppa!”
“Or you can settle this with a duel instead of a verbal spat. We’re outside the Academy, so it won’t be a mess like last time, and the Saint is here, so it’s all good.”
At my continued words, Celine seemed to lose her confidence. Seria was already timidly avoiding my gaze.
Still, neither of them likely wanted to take it as far as a duel.
As the surroundings quieted down, I had time to organize my thoughts. I began to recall the events just before I collapsed. The monkey-like form of the monster that I had seen.
It was massive—over two meters tall, and what impressed me most was the overwhelming reach from its long arms.
When it stood atop the wall, its claws weren’t visible. However, when it attacked Senior Elsi, it seemed to draw its blades like knives, so it must have been hiding its weapons normally.
Another intriguing point was the shimmer of light that had adorned its claws.
“…Aura?”
“What are you saying?”
At my murmured words, Reto questioned back. I hesitated for a moment before shaking my head with a bitter smile.
It was excessive imagination. How could a monster use aura? Aura was a crystallization of magical power that only entities with both intelligence and sentiment could wield.
Even if a monster had intelligence, it couldn’t possibly train sentiment. This was a realm unique to humans alone.
It seemed there would be opportunities to discuss this gradually. More pressing was the name that suddenly popped into my head.
“By the way, how’s Senior Elsi?”
“…Ah, that woman.”
Celine’s reaction was cold. It was to be expected since I had been injured while protecting Senior Elsi. Celine’s principles of action were more consistent than I would have thought.
If she thought someone hurt me, they must be an enemy. That was likely the reason for her deteriorating relationship with Seria.
Seria cautiously started to speak.
“She was working alongside me. When I heard Lady Haster’s voice, I thought you had woken up, so perhaps Senior Elsi will soon…”
“That’s right.”
I interrupted Seria’s words, implying that no further explanation was necessary.
My gaze was directed toward a door that wasn’t completely closed. There, a hooded hat tilted in sight.
“…Senior Elsi.”
At my softly murmured words, a petite girl of small stature appeared timidly.
With brown hair and blue sapphire-like eyes, and a cute, endearing appearance.
She truly was a woman fitting to be described as ‘like a doll.’
“Ah, hello…”
Fidgeting with the brim of her hat, Senior Elsi glanced at me while avoiding eye contact. Perhaps she genuinely felt sorry for me.
It seemed there were still things left unsaid between us.
