Chapter 58
"Why don't you sit here for a moment?"
I patted the spot beside me as I spoke.
The invitation extended gently.
The girl seemed to hesitate for a moment, then took awkward steps.
She approached and timidly crouched down beside me.
"......"
Regia said nothing.
She simply remained silent.
Above her usually clear green eyes, an undeniable melancholy welled up.
*Perhaps she's in pain.*
I quietly closed my mouth.
It was so as not to disturb her thoughts.
She had seemed plagued by various thoughts all day, and I hoped the girl could find some peace, even if just for a moment.
I waited patiently.
Whoosh-.
A gentle breeze blew.
As I brushed back my disheveled bangs, the vast Night Sky stretching over the Desert suddenly caught my eye.
Countless fragments of the stars glittered in the pitch-black.
"......"
I looked up at the scene, which seemed ready to pour down on us at any moment.
A feeling of beauty naturally arose within me.
Indeed, the grandeur of the brilliant stars has a way of making even the most jaded adults marvel.
I seemed to be no different.
As I continued to gaze.
"Young Master."
Suddenly, a voice reached me.
The girl with pink hair was calling me, her gaze fixed on the ground.
She looked withdrawn.
Her lips mumbled as if hesitating.
Her shoulders trembled faintly.
After hesitating several times, Regia finally murmured softly.
"......I'm sorry."
A sudden apology.
I gently asked the girl.
"What are you sorry for?"
"I-I just... feel like I'm so useless."
"Useless?"
"I always hide behind Young Master's back, trembling and unable to do anything."
"So that's what's been bothering you."
Regia nodded.
Her trembling pupils were filled with nothing but self-reproach.
"I know I'm a mess."
"Miss Regia..."
"I was chosen by a summon everyone envies. B-but when it really matters, I can't control my abilities."
"......"
"I become powerless at crucial moments."
It was the same during the last Midterm Exam.
If she could perfectly control her abilities, she would have easily overwhelmed a monster like that.
But the timid girl ultimately failed to awaken.
Because of that, she was pushed to the brink of death.
Not only she, but her teammates were also almost killed.
"I feel like I ruin everything."
*Perhaps the accumulated pain is overflowing.*
Her voice was calm, yet beyond it lay the lingering traces of deep pain.
"Every time that happens, I get scared. I-I feel like something truly irreversible will happen someday..."
Regia's eyes welled up with tears.
She wasn't like this from the beginning.
Originally, she was a lively and brave child, but she was broken by the ugliness of adults she experienced in her childhood.
The girl grew up enduring abuse.
It is unfortunate to have learned sorrow at such an early age.
A mother who subjected her to daily verbal abuse and physical violence was an abuser.
A father who was never there from the start.
She was truly a paragon of misfortune.
The girl had to grow up having lost her original light.
After her mother died in an accident.
She started traveling with the thought of living a proper life, but by then, it was already too late.
Regia was no longer a child.
Her innocent demeanor had vanished, leaving her only a pathetic coward.
As a result, the girl became a loner.
*It must have left a huge scar.*
That was also why her abilities wavered.
Because the wounds from that time still remained, her focus kept wavering and going astray.
She hadn't overcome it yet.
"I want to do better... but it's just not working out the way I want it to."
I am secretly suffering.
*Perhaps I am.*
"Miss Regia."
*That's why I might feel a particular fondness for you.*
*Your story so closely resembles my past life's.*
*Seeing you, suffering from similar wounds, makes me want to take care of you.*
A kind of kinship.
"Excessive self-reproach isn't good."
At the same time, it was also admiration.
I ultimately couldn't overcome my wounds, but you were destined to overcome yours magnificently.
You were nothing short of hope to me.
"You're doing your best, aren't you?"
"B-but."
"Miss Regia, you call yourself a coward, but I see it differently."
"Huh...?"
Regia had never once run away.
Even if her abilities were uncontrolled and fear made her mind go blank, the girl still took a step forward.
"It was the same when you faced the monster in the laboratory. Even though you could have escaped alone, Miss Regia chose to stay by Lady's side."
"......"
"I know how much courage you summon every time."
Her gaze was now fixed on me.
I smiled gently.
"I have no doubt."
A flower that would surely bloom someday.
"You will definitely do well. Miss Regia, you will become a star shining brighter than anyone else."
It's just that your time hasn't come yet.
I gently held the girl's hand.
I softly covered her cold hand.
"Everything will be alright."
"......"
Regia was silent for a moment.
She was staring blankly, as if she didn't know how to react.
Soon, the girl's lips parted.
"......Young Master always says such kind things."
"Miss Regia is a person who truly deserves it."
"It's the f-first time in my life... that I'm hearing something like this from someone."
"You'll hear it often from now on."
She is always destined to be loved by many.
I knew she was a flower that would bloom beautifully, forming various bonds with friends, comrades, and teachers.
I whispered faintly.
"Of course, until then, I'll be by your side."
*So you won't be lonely.*
*I wanted to stay with you, even if just for a moment.*
"When you're scared, take my hand. I won't let go of Miss Regia, no matter what."
I squeezed the hand I held.
Warmth passed between us.
Regia wiped away the tears from her eyes, then awkwardly nodded.
Her cheeks were already flushed.
"......Thank you."
"Hehe, don't mention it."
The air filled with a fresh, budding atmosphere.
And so, we exchanged a promise beneath the starlight-filled night sky.
Remembering the warmth of each other's touch.
***
Meanwhile,
Though no one noticed, a small spark was igniting within the girl's heart.
The Inner Flame is hinting at an awakening.
*Crack!*
It was a faint, yet undeniably present light.
The girl, who had been trapped within her shell until now, was slowly breaking free into her own world.
The shell was beginning to crack ever so slightly.
What would happen next?
No one could predict.
"Hehe."
Except for one person.
***
The next day.
We continued our trek across the desert without fail.
The peaceful night before felt like a complete lie, as the roars of monsters echoed everywhere since morning.
It was a light Monster Wave.
*Screech!*
Scorpions aggressively charged.
As the stage progressed, the patterns also began to diversify.
Such as a large number pouring out at once, or individuals twice the normal size appearing, or visibility being obscured by sandstorms...
They were becoming increasingly troublesome.
"Hmm."
Of course.
That didn't mean we were struggling yet.
Regia seemed to be slowly adapting to this field, and the Elder's marksmanship was quite good.
The synergy between the three of us was also starting to align.
"Hoo."
Immediately after the battle.
We took a short break to regroup.
I was steadying my ragged breath.
The Elder subtly approached.
"Young man, are you feeling all right?"
"I'm not particularly injured. How about you, Elder?"
"This old man is always the same, isn't he?"
The Elder chuckled.
His wrinkled hands were maintaining his crossbow.
"My body wouldn't be strange if it died soon."
"You speak such heavy words."
"What can I do when it's true?"
"Please remain safe until we reach our destination."
"Does that mean it doesn't matter what happens after that?"
"Oh dear... it's troublesome if you distort my meaning like that."
We exchanged a few lighthearted words.
The Elder lightly brushed off the dust from a bolt.
As we took a brief rest, Regia, who had been lingering nearby, subtly spoke.
"Elder."
"Hmm?"
"Y-you said yesterday, didn't you, that there's someone waiting at the end of the Desert?"
"Indeed, I did."
"You're going to meet that person, aren't you, Elder?"
"You could say that."
"Who might that person be? If you're crossing a desert like this alone, they must be family, right?"
"That's an interesting question."
His hand stroked his beard.
The Elder, who seemed lost in thought for a moment, then spoke in a gentle voice.
"There was someone with whom I shared a precious promise."
"A precious promise...?"
"It's an old man's tale, but would you care to hear it? It might be a good way to pass the time on our journey."
We listened quietly to his story.
***
Once upon a time, in a certain village,
A boy and a girl lived there.
Josh and Rosalyn.
The two had been close since childhood.
They cherished each other so dearly that no one in the Village could be unaware of their relationship.
They were always together, wherever they went.
<Rosalyn! Let's go play outside!>
<No... Let's read a book together in my room this time. Okay, Josh?>
Josh was a mischievous boy, while Rosalyn was an introverted child.
Perhaps it was precisely because they had opposing personalities.
The two had a relationship where they complemented each other's weaknesses.
Rosalyn kept Josh from going astray.
And Josh protected Rosalyn from being bullied by the Village children.
Their bond was truly strong.
<Josh and Rosalyn always play by themselves!>
<They should just get married!>
<It is so boring. Just live together forever, then...!>
Despite the children's complaints, the two always thought only of each other.
Sometimes, lying under the night sky and watching the stars, they would whisper promises to each other.
<What if we get separated...? What will we do then?>
<Silly! We just won't be apart!>
<But there's always 'what if'.>
<Is that so? Then, just in case, let's decide on a place to meet again!>
<Where will we meet?>
The relationship between the two, which seemed like it would last forever, was.
But even that eventually came to an end.
It was the year the boy turned fifteen.
Josh and his entire family had to relocate to a distant foreign land.
Thus came the day of their farewell.
<Go and never come back...!>
<I'm sick of you too! I'll never see you again!>
The boy and the girl fought.
He couldn't remember what they fought about.
A trivial argument escalated greatly, ultimately tearing the two apart in the worst possible way.
The farewell happened without a chance for reconciliation.
Only with time did Josh come to regret it.
He had left behind the person he cherished most in the world.
He tried to write a letter later, but soon even that became impossible.
<War!>
War had broken out between the two nations.
The boy and the girl could not reunite.
Time passed and passed.
A full fifty years had gone by.
The war ended, and the chaos subsided.
Only after peaceful daily life returned did the boy embark on a journey to keep his old promise.
The promise is to meet again at a designated place.
<I'm coming for you, Rosalyn.>
The boy traversed the desert.
His steps were headed towards the person waiting for him, his destiny.
***
"So... you said you were going to meet someone precious."
"That's right."
The Elder, having finished his story, smiled faintly.
His eyes seemed lost in old memories.
We were in the midst of crossing a sandy dune.
He was about to conclude the rest of his story.
"So when I was a child... *Cough, cough!*"
The Elder suddenly coughed.
I thought he might have choked for a moment, but then I realized it was more serious.
It was a sound tinged with pain.
Blood dripped from the hand covering his mouth.
"E-Elder?!"
It was hemoptysis.
A startled Regia checked his condition.
However, the Elder simply shook his head and wiped away the blood, as if accustomed to such a situation.
"Nothing to be surprised about. It's just an old illness I've been suffering from."
"B-but so much blood..."
"Hehe, this Young Lady worries too much. I'm truly fine, so don't mind me."
He mumbled with his wrinkled lips.
"For now, let's just focus on crossing the Desert, because there isn't much time left."
"......"
Regia at that time would not have known.
What meaning was hidden within the Elder's ragged breath.