Chapter 257
Early in the morning, when the mages were just starting to come to work, Franz was exchanging greetings with Hera in the Magic Tower Lord’s Office.
Because she had spent the night at the Magic Tower due to that particular matter, it seemed she was planning to head back a little early today.
“I’ll be heading back then.”
“Alright, see you next time.”
Hera, who was about to leave the Magic Tower Lord’s Office after the brief farewell, stopped in her tracks right in front of the door.
Turning her body around, she met Franz’s eyes.
“Why? Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure if I should call it something wrong…”
Trailing off, she strode over and stood right in front of Franz. As if she were feeling somewhat regretful, her lips were in a slight pout.
“I’m only saying this just in case, but don’t even think about doing anything strange with other women just because I’m not here. Even if you manage to avoid my eyes, you won’t be able to avoid the eyes of the spirits.”
“I won’t do anything like that.”
It wasn’t just lip service; he meant it. Even if he ended up alone with someone else, there was no chance he would do such a thing.
He knew better than anyone the feelings they harbored, especially since they had chosen not to press him for an answer to their confessions. At the very least, he had no intention of betraying those feelings.
“That’s a problem in its own right. You should act a bit more proactively sometimes.”
“Are you telling me to do it or not to do it…”
“Well, that’s up to you, isn’t it? Assuming you can handle the aftermath, that is.”
At words that were practically a threat, Franz offered an awkward smile.
If he actually did something, wouldn’t his body be torn to shreds? It wasn’t just anyone, but those four, after all.
It was then. Hera suddenly stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.
“I won’t be able to see you all day today, so please understand this much.”
With those final words, Hera immediately left the Magic Tower Lord’s Office.
Franz was so flustered that he could only stand there in a daze.
She had just told him not to do anything strange, so what was he supposed to make of her breaking that rule right away? Or did she mean it was fine as long as it was with her?
Before that confusion could even fade, the door to the Magic Tower Lord’s Office opened and someone walked in.
“Your Highness, good morning… I suppose.”
The person who entered the Magic Tower Lord’s Office was none other than Arian. She strode over with her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“I just saw Miss Hera leaving. Did something happen between the two of you by any chance?”
“Not really…?”
“Then why are you standing there in a daze, like someone just kissed you on the cheek?”
Did she actually see it…? Or was she just testing the waters…?
Franz’s brain began to spin at an unprecedented speed, and it didn’t take long for him to reach a conclusion.
“…You saw it, didn’t you?”
There were a total of two options. Feign ignorance and deny it, or tell the truth. Franz had chosen the latter.
It was better to be honest and get scolded than to get caught lying.
Franz waited for Arian’s response with the exact feelings of a condemned prisoner offering up his neck.
But, when he thought about it carefully, wasn’t something strange about it? Getting kissed on the cheek didn’t seem like something he should be scolded for by Arian.
While his thoughts were biting their own tails in an endless loop, a short sigh escaped Arian’s lips.
“At least you didn’t lie?”
“Well, there’s no reason to hide it.”
“True, from Your Highness’s perspective, I suppose that’s the case.”
Did it pass by smoothly…?
Just as that thought bloomed in his mind, Arian suddenly stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.
“I want to do it too, but I’m holding back a lot, you know? If you show me something like that, of course it makes me want to do it.”
“I-I see.”
“Anyway, I just came to say hello. I’ll be going now.”
Acting as if nothing had happened, Arian turned around and left the Magic Tower Lord’s Office. Her ears were dyed red as if they were about to burst, but because they were hidden by her hair, Franz failed to notice.
“Just what in the world is going on this morning…”
Left alone in the Magic Tower Lord’s Office, Franz let out a hollow laugh. It had been a whirlwind of events, so it still didn’t feel real.
But who could have known that this wasn’t the end?
Franz realized this when he noticed that he hadn’t heard the sound of the door closing.
Snapping back to reality and turning his head, he saw Yuna standing there. Wearing a modestly designed dress, she was smiling awkwardly.
“Did I interrupt…?”
“No, absolutely not, so come on in and make yourself comfortable.”
“Mhm…”
Yuna headed toward the sofa, constantly reading the room. It seemed the scene she had just witnessed was bothering her.
Franz wasn’t feeling comfortable either, so an awkward atmosphere naturally filled the Magic Tower Lord’s Office.
Unable to bear the atmosphere, Franz forced himself to speak.
“Yuna, would you like some tea?”
“Ah, yeah. I’d like some.”
Retreating to the Tea Room, Franz immediately prepared some tea and came back out.
Teacups were placed on the table, and tea filled them.
“Thanks, I’ll enjoy it.”
“It’s nothing.”
“But do you usually do that kind of thing often…? Like kissing, or hugging.”
Franz, who was bringing the teacup to his lips, set it back down on the table. It didn’t seem like the time to be leisurely drinking tea.
Yuna wasn’t the type to beat around the bush, so she likely meant exactly what she said, but it still couldn’t help but bother him.
“Today is just weird, to the point where even I’m a bit flustered.”
“I see. That’s a relief.”
Did she feel better? Yuna picked up her teacup with a soft smile on her lips.
Fortunately, Yuna didn’t ask any more about the incident. From Franz’s perspective, having been inwardly anxious, he found it a relief.
After they enjoyed their tea while sharing small talk about their daily lives for a while, the teacups were eventually emptied.
The conversation paused for a moment, and silence flowed before Yuna put on a rather serious expression.
“Franz, can I ask you something?”
“Yeah, what is it?”
“That jewel you gave me yesterday, where did you get it?”
“I brought it from beyond the gate. Did something happen?”
“Yesterday, when you gave it to me, I stumbled for a moment, right? Actually, at that time, memories - or whatever you want to call them - flowed into my head.”
Following that, Yuna calmly explained the memories that had flowed in, from failing to save her family from Duke Ishtar to ultimately despairing and bringing ruin to the world.
It certainly couldn’t have been a pleasant experience. It would have remained in her mind vividly as if she had experienced it herself.
“At the end of those memories, Franz, you appeared. That person was you, right?”
“Yeah, that was me.”
Killing the Yuna from beyond the gate and bringing a complete end to that world had been the act of none other than Franz himself.
Franz forced a smile, but beneath it, there were definitely negative emotions. The experience of that day had been anything but pleasant.
“Honestly, I’m not sure what to say…, but first, I want to say thank you.”
“Thank you?”
“Yeah, thanks to your help, both Mom and Yuri-ah are able to live healthily. And as a result, the fact that I didn’t end up doing those things is all thanks to you.”
He had already heard enough words of gratitude to be sick of them. From Yuna, and from Yuna’s family. But the gratitude he heard just now touched his heart more than anything else.
Perhaps it was because she recognized that the world had almost walked the path of ruin. Until now, she hasn’t been able to tell anyone and has agonized over it alone.
“And thank you for killing me. Thanks to that, I was able to escape from hell. Though I didn’t experience it directly myself, of course.”
Suddenly standing up, Yuna placed her hands on the table and leaned her upper body forward. The distance between them gradually closed until they were completely touching, her warmth transferring to him.
Was this a kiss from her, or a kiss from the other her?
“I’m the first on the lips today, right?”
“Yeah, you’re the first.”
“Then I’m in first place?”
Yuna offered a bright, beaming smile.
Following both cheeks, now the lips - was the world going to end tomorrow or something?
Thinking that, Franz offered an awkward smile.
Time flowed on from there, and it was that night.
When Franz, who had gone to bed, opened his eyes, he found himself in none other than the sacred Temple filled entirely with pure white - the place where the Goddess Luan resided.
Luan was usually drinking tea every time he came, but strangely, his seat was empty today.
Instead, when he shifted his gaze slightly to the side, an object he had never seen before was placed there.
“A bed…?”
It was a pure white bed, just like the Temple. Someone was lying on it, and naturally, it was the Goddess Luan.
Franz slowly shook his head as he looked at her sleeping with an eye mask on.
What in the world would the religious order think if it saw this sight…
Anyway, it would be best to head back for today. It would be rude to wake someone who was sleeping, after all.
Thus, just as Franz was about to turn around
“W-Who is it…? H-Hyaaaak - !”
The Goddess pushed up her eye mask with one hand, then immediately let out a scream.