Chapter 24
Early in the morning, my eyes opened of their own accord. My body remembered the time I usually woke up.
Assuming I hadn't overindulged the day before, I would have washed my face and gotten ready to go out by now. The morning routine consisted mainly of training and lectures, and was shared by most students in the swordsmanship department.
The body was like a precision machine. Unless it received a proper oiling every morning, it could not respond to whatever situation arose in time.
That was common knowledge. So although there were few students diligent enough to swing their swords from dawn, many practiced for a while before breakfast to loosen up.
It was a routine shared not only by academy students, but by most swordsmen in general.
Unfortunately, it had already been several days since I had skipped my morning training.
It was not by choice. If anything, I wanted to train. A day or two of rest was fine, but being unable to move my body for several days left me feeling terribly sluggish.
The body that had always felt light had grown heavy. Anyone would have found it unpleasant, but for a swordsman, it was especially disagreeable.
A swordsman had to be a sword in his own right. There could be no excess, whether in body or mind. Yet my body was currently unable to maintain optimal condition.
I desperately wanted to get up and return to my daily routine right away. But I could not bring myself to do so because of the bandages wound tightly around my body.
Whenever I looked at those clean, soft strips of cloth, I was reminded that I was still injured. They were perfectly white now, but the bandages I had seen when I first opened my eyes had been a complete mess.
The sight of them, caked with dried blood and pus, had been burned more deeply into my mind than the throbbing pain I had felt.
When the clergy poured holy power into a wound, its recovery accelerated. The bleeding usually stopped then as well. But the fact that blood and pus had still seeped through by the time I regained consciousness meant that my injuries had been truly severe.
When I realized that I really had nearly died, my determination wilted at once.
It was time to quietly devote myself to recovery. No matter how quickly I wanted to return to my daily life, there was no point if my body had not properly healed. If I hurried, I was the only one who would suffer for it.
So every morning after waking, I would stare blankly out the window or leaf through a few books Leto had given me to pass the time.
They were boring books even judging by their titles. The History of Imperial Thought? An Introduction to Social Theory? Who actually read this garbage? The question I had always harbored whenever I saw them in the library was finally being answered.
Someone like Leto. He knew perfectly well that I hated theoretical books, yet he had left nothing but this sort of trash behind. No matter how I thought about it, it felt malicious.
Unable to bear the boredom, I read about ten pages of The History of Imperial Thought, then finally snapped and closed the book. Sleeping a little longer seemed more beneficial.
It was around then that I sensed a crack in my uneventful routine. I suddenly felt someone outside the door. Then, with a creak, the door opened.
Could it be Leto or Selin? If not, perhaps it was Professor Andrei of the Theology Department, who was overseeing my treatment. But the visitor who soon appeared was neither of them.
Gray hair radiating a noble light. Deep-blue eyes came into view, carrying a profound glow like stars in the night sky painstakingly carved into jewels.
Her expression was stiff. Someone might have mistaken it for displeasure, but I knew better. That was the expression she wore whenever she was nervous.
As proof, even after entering the hospital room, she stood awkwardly for a long while, unsure what to do. She was exactly as usual.
Come to think of it, this must have been her first time visiting a friend in the hospital. With a wry smile, I welcomed her.
“Welcome, Seria.”
“Y-yes, yess. I-I hope you’ve been well… Ugh, h-have you been well?”
Biting her tongue was also typical of Seria. Her face flushed slightly, and I chuckled as though I found the sight cute.
I gestured toward the seat prepared beside the bed. Seria cautiously sat down. A note of warmth entered my voice.
“You came at just the right time, Seria. I was getting bored anyway.”
As I said that, I held up and shook the book I had just closed. I meant for her to look at the cover.
“I asked them to bring me something to read, and those idiots left me this garbage instead.”
“I-I see……”
My complaining voice was as calm as could be, but Seria seemed to find the natural conversation itself awkward, trailing off at the end of her sentence. Her eyes were darting about uncertainly.
It meant that she was nervous because the situation felt unfamiliar. Since I had expected that reaction from Seria, I decided to lead the conversation.
“Have you been doing well? I tried to hear some news about you, but I couldn’t see you anywhere.”
There was an unmistakably teasing note in my voice, but Seria’s response was rather dramatic. She immediately waved both hands and began fidgeting helplessly.
“I-it’s not that… I-I made such a huge mistake, and I was worried that Senior Ian might be angry with me……”
The longer she spoke, the more dejected Seria looked. It seemed that her mistake last time really had wounded her pride.
Guilt must have been tormenting her. Emotional wounds always fester in solitude. With no one around to consult and no courage to speak with me, Seria had spent the entire day worrying in front of the temple.
Whether she should come to see me, and whether I might get angry at her.
I was the first friend she had ever made. It was understandable that she would be afraid. Even now, she was anxiously watching my reactions.
At her clumsy behavior, I burst into another chuckle. Seria, downcast and constantly sneaking glances at me, reminded me of a puppy caught in the rain.
Even a little observation should have told her that I was not angry, but Seria was so socially inept that she still seemed unable to convince herself.
So I offered her a simple reassurance.
“I’m not angry, Seria.”
My words instantly brightened Seria’s complexion. She beamed and asked me in return,
“R-really…! Ah… you really aren’t?!”
She had bitten her tongue again, but I had grown used to it by now and chose not to point it out. Seria still lowered her head and blushed, perhaps embarrassed.
“Why would I be angry in the first place? I was the one who decided to send you ahead, and I was the one who decided to fight. The only thing you did wrong was listen to me.”
“B-but if I had taken Senior Ian’s advice to heart from the beginning……”
“Anyone can make mistakes.”
At my casual tone, Seria’s mouth pressed shut. I continued as though it were nothing important.
“Everyone makes one or two ridiculous mistakes in life. That’s what friends are for. When one of them does something foolish, you curse at each other and fight, but in the end, you clean up the mess together.”
That was why a person needed to have a few friends they could rely on. Sooner or later, everyone encountered problems they simply could not solve alone.
For example, I had friends named Leto and Selin. I was always grateful that the two of them were by my side. Having someone with whom to share one’s joys and sorrows made life richer.
I hoped Seria would find friends like that as well. They did not necessarily have to be me. I simply wanted her to have at least one person who could support her whenever she became anxious.
She seemed unstable at present, after all. It was only natural for me to hope that much for a junior who concerned me as her senior.
“Last time, you just happened to be the one who made a mistake. Next time, it could be me instead. So don’t worry about it. Everything worked out in the end, didn’t it?”
And honestly, I had no reason to be dissatisfied. I had gained quite a lot from facing those magical beasts that day.
Come to think of it, even the huge sum of 70 gold pieces in prize money was merely a side benefit.
That day, when I fought the magical beasts in a battle for my life, I had grown a step further as a swordsman.
The same was true of my use of aura, my employment of my senses, and even my movements.
It was almost like an intuition. I was certain that the Ian before that day and the Ian after it were at entirely different levels as swordsmen.
I would have to take up my sword again to know the details, but even without doing so, the amount of mana flowing through every corner of my veins already proved my growth.
There could hardly have been a better gain among the achievements a swordsman could obtain.
Of course, that still left me below Seria’s level. Even so, there was no doubt that the battle that day had been a valuable opportunity for me.
Therefore, if anything, I had reason to thank Seria. I had not the slightest reason to be angry with her. That was why I could not help treating her gently now.
But Seria, unaware of those circumstances, seemed deeply moved by my attitude.
She stared at me with a dazed look for a long while, then shook her head and barely managed to come to her senses.
Then, as though she had made up her mind, she took a pouch from inside her clothes and held it out to me. It was filled with gold coins.
“S-Senior Ian……”
“Don’t tell me this is another ‘price.’”
Before she could finish whatever she had been about to say, I asked Seria with a suspicious look.
Perhaps flustered by my preemptive attack, Seria shook her head and vehemently denied it.
“N-no! I asked Professor Derek about it and received the reward in advance. For subduing the magical beasts… I heard it was best to receive money one was owed as quickly as possible.”
In that case, then. Without saying anything, I accepted the pouch and roughly counted the coins inside.
The pouch was far too heavy. At a glance, it looked as though it contained well over seventy gold coins.
I let out a deep sigh and handed the pouch back to her.
“Seria, this is too much.”
Seria’s eyes widened at my words. She looked as though she had never expected me to notice.
But why wouldn’t I? The extermination reward might have been pocket change to Seria, but to the second son of a rural baron like me, it was a fortune. There was no way I would fail to recognize the amount.
“The reward is 70 gold, right?”
“B-but……”
At my low voice, Seria lowered her head and began to fidget. I waited patiently for her to speak.
“……You saved my life.”
“Hmm,” I murmured thoughtfully as I stared at Seria. It had been barely more than a whisper, but I had heard her clearly. Her voice had even grown slightly moist.
It was a plaintive tone I could hardly believe had come from the blunt Seria.
“So I wanted to repay you, even if only a little. I don’t think my life is worth so little.”
“All the more reason I can’t accept it.”
I sighed and stated it firmly. Then, before Seria could offer a rebuttal, I forcibly placed the pouch back in her hand.
When her hand touched mine, Seria’s body jerked and trembled. Her gaze grew dazed again.
She seemed particularly absentminded today. I wondered if she was all right, but decided not to dwell on it.
I placed the pouch in her hand, then enclosed her hand with both of mine. I was worried she might let go of the pouch.
Seria’s hand was soft and warm, impossibly so for someone who had spent her entire life honing the sword.
“Your life isn’t cheap, you know. Right?”
“Y-yes, yess.”
Seria nodded as though spellbound by my words. Her response was strangely docile. Her face was gradually turning red.
She seemed embarrassed to have her hand held. But if I let go, she might simply give me the pouch and leave, so I decided to keep holding it for just a little longer.
“So it can’t be converted into money, either. A life cannot be weighed against anything… You’re more precious than you realize, so value yourself.”
“V-valuable……”
Seria repeated my words with a flushed face. She was listening properly, wasn’t she? I had my doubts, but since there was no sign of resistance in her at the moment, I finally let go of her hand.
Seria let out a regretful little sound. But that lasted only a moment; she soon seemed to regain her senses and lowered her head.
Whatever she found so embarrassing, her face had turned bright red all the way to her ears. Her translucent skin made it even more obvious.
She avoided my gaze in silence for a while, then suddenly rose to her feet.
“Th-then, I’ll be going……”
“You’re leaving already?”
We had done little more than talk for a while, yet she was already saying she would leave. I could not help asking, feeling disappointed.
If she left, I would obviously have to spend the boring hours alone. But Seria’s attitude was rather firm.
“Y-yes, yes… I-I haven’t finished my morning training yet……”
I clicked my tongue and expressed my disappointment, but if Seria was determined to go, there was nothing I could do. She had her own schedule, after all.
It was just as I was about to wish her goodbye.
“Ian oppa! Good morning… Ah.”
Along with a lively voice, black hair suddenly popped into view beyond the door. It was Selin, a lovely girl with golden-brown eyes.
She was smiling broadly as she began to greet me, but apparently noticed Seria and froze in place.
Seria was just as flustered. She stiffened with a start, apparently startled by Selin’s sudden appearance.
Silence hung in the air for a moment. Selin stared at Seria without a word, while Seria fidgeted and avoided her gaze. It was an inevitably awkward situation for Seria.
Just as I wondered whether I should intervene,
Seria seemed to gather her courage and tried to move her lips to say something.
“Th-thank you for……”
But before she could finish,
Thud. Selin’s shoulder struck Seria’s body as she walked past.
My eyes flew open at the rudeness of the gesture, which went beyond anything I had imagined—as though Selin refused even to acknowledge Seria’s existence.
Seria immediately wilted. Others might not have noticed, but I could tell that she had been hurt.
Yet Selin did not care in the slightest. Instead, she smiled brightly and greeted me as usual.
“Hi, Ian oppa. How was last night?”
I slightly furrowed my brow. Naturally, I did not feel inclined to return that greeting warmly. Even if they had never met before, I could hardly feel at ease while she blatantly ignored someone I knew.
My voice naturally turned reproachful.
“Selin, what are you doing……”
“Well, I’ll be going.”
But I could not continue. Seria had said goodbye to me first, acting as though nothing had happened.
My eyes turned toward Seria, filled with disbelief. How could she be all right after being treated like that?
Despite my gaze, Seria merely gave me a slight nod and left, as though she were accustomed to it. My mood grew even more unpleasant, as though it had been trampled under shoes that had stomped through mud.
Selin silently cast a chilly sidelong glance at Seria, then, once she had left, snorted and sneered.
“Shameless bitch, and what an attitude……”
Her voice, spat out as though she were chewing on the words, was steeped in thorny hostility and resentment. I could only frown even more deeply.
“Selin, you seriously……”
“C-come on! Ignore that rude bitch, and tell me how yesterday was. Did you lose sleep thinking about Selin, Ian oppa?”
But Selin acted as though nothing had happened, merely poking me repeatedly with her finger while giving me a playful sidelong smile.
It was an unspoken pressure telling me not to ask any more.
In the end, I sighed and played along with her teasing, but from that moment on, I felt as though I had begun to notice the signs.
The subtle rivalry between Selin and Seria—or perhaps a problem even more serious than that.
I recalled the advice Leto had given me not long ago.
‘The world of women is much shadier than you think.’
Those words bothered me in a strangely persistent way.