Of course, I wasn’t planning on going alone. I intended to assemble a decent team to guard the fortress and split into squads to follow Cluna and Clara. I thought it was a perfect plan.
But what the heck is this? It ended up being just Clara and me chasing after them. The other members refused to come along. There must be some reason behind this.
So, the members agreed that it made sense for as few people as possible to go. But what happens in a crisis then? The answer to that question was…
“That’s what the Commander is for!”
“Y-Yes! If the Commander comes along, it will definitely help!”
“I’ll step in as Commander.”
“… If the teacher wants that… I have no choice but to endure it…”
Isn’t the trust level too high? Damn it! Of course, Clara isn’t weak, but she is relatively among the weaker ones in our group. Right?
And the one weaker than Clara is me!! Damn!!!! But I couldn’t just say that outright. How could I say it right next to the person involved?
Moreover, Clara was exuding an unusually serious atmosphere. It was so serious that Ruby even encouraged her. But how could I oppose that?
That would be like pouring gallons of oil into a burning house. In the end, I had no choice but to follow Clara, chasing after Cluna. This is such a damn mess.
“I found my mother’s trace. Let’s hurry.”
“Let’s hurry.”
The hopeful observation was that tracking would take some time. I hoped that would prevent Clara from boiling over in anger. But naturally, that didn’t happen.
Clara learned a lot from Cluna. Not as much as her mother, but Clara also had considerable skill up her sleeve, including the tracking technique.
Also, it seemed Cluna was kind of in a hurry and erased her traces, but Clara was able to find and track them easily. Me? I wouldn’t have been able to tell.
Clara kept moving almost without rest. Thanks to that, the only one suffering behind her was me. Ultimately, I barely managed to catch up using Time Stop.
“Wait…”
“Even now… my mother is… No, no! I can’t think like that.”
“Huh…”
“What’s wrong? Commander.”
“Let’s go as fast as we can.”
I wanted to rest because it was too difficult, but how could I bring up the idea of resting in such a tense situation? This is about my mother’s safety after all.
Thanks to that, Clara and I managed to arrive at Lamiart Forest in just three days. The Lamiart Forest is a gigantic forest located just before entering the Alex Mountain Range in the central region.
Considering it took over two weeks to ride from Lionheart Fortress to Lamiart Forest, Clara and I were moving at an incredible speed.
Of course, it was possible thanks to the shortcut Clara knew, going straight without detours. But soon night fell, and Clara and I sat down to light a campfire.
“This is simple food I brought.”
“Sorry, I have no appetite.”
“Eat a little. You need your strength for tomorrow.”
“… Thanks.”
Clara curled her legs into her arms. She looked like a child unable to bear her anxiety. For a while, we both sat in silence.
“I didn’t know there were tribes that could follow Elves in the forest.”
Maybe because I couldn’t stand the long silence, Clara slowly opened her mouth while munching on the food. I thought it was incredible. I seriously thought I was going to die back there, damn it.
It was a good thing I had trained hard in between using the Time Stop ability. If not, I wouldn’t have even been able to catch up to Clara. It was that tough.
“Am I really lacking compared to other Elves?”
“?”
W-Wait a second. Is this self-reproach time? I looked at Clara in surprise, but she had her head bowed low. My instincts sensed something was off.
“I always had so much confidence, but looking back, I’ve only experienced failures.”
“Wait.”
“If it were another Elf, would the Commander have been able to keep up? Maybe it was because of me that I was left behind?”
“Clara.”
“I’m just hopeless. That’s why my mother left me behind.”
“Clara!!”
“…!!!”
Before she fell deeper into self-reproach, I grabbed Clara’s shoulders and shook her. Only then did she manage to regain her senses. Her eyes were glistening with tears.
I managed to stop her, but what more should I say here? I couldn’t just throw out random comforting words. If I messed it up, I might touch a sore spot or give hollow comfort.
In the worst case, our relationship could worsen. But I couldn’t think too long. In that short time, I wracked my brain and spoke the most plausible words I could muster.
“Nothing is certain yet.”
“Then why did my mother leave me? Was it because I was untrustworthy?”
“Then let me ask you in return. How can you be so sure of that?”
“Don’t dodge the question. I don’t need that pathetic comfort!”
Her reaction was more intense than I expected. Damn, I didn’t aim for this. I desperately racked my brains. Right now, my priority was to calm Clara down somehow. So…
Instead of answering, I hugged Clara. I was worried she might push me away, but thankfully, she didn’t. Surprised by the sudden situation, Clara seemed flustered.
“I’m sure of it. Your mother isn’t ignoring you. She loves you.”
“That’s…”
“Think back to when she first joined the Royal Knights. How was it then?”
“…”
“What I’m saying is that she came out of the forest all this way for you because she was worried and loved you.”
What mattered now wasn’t stating facts. It was vital to help Clara shake off her negative thoughts. So, I had to share the best stories possible.
Even if those words might not have any relevance to the current situation. Clara silently wrapped her arms around my back, and I was shocked by how tight the embrace was.
The gentle touch of an Elf’s arms… No, it was so tight that I almost screamed. Wait, hold on. If you hug me this tightly, I can’t breathe…!
“I became a Knight because I wanted to be recognized by my mother.”
“Oh?”
“Because of that, I can never show any weakness.”
“Um, your hands… can we…?”
“So, let’s stay like this for a while. Please.”
Damn it.
As a result, I barely managed to calm Clara down by sacrificing my waist. After some time, when her emotions settled down and she came back to her senses, Clara’s face was flushed with embarrassment.
I clutched my aching waist and finally stood up. The night had passed, and morning was approaching, but my strained back was still hurting. Would I be able to keep up with Clara today?
While I was already worrying about that, Clara, who had cleaned up the campfire, stood up. I hid my pain and forced myself to rise. Looking at me, Clara slowly spoke.
“Let’s hurry and chase after them.”
“Do we have to rush like before?”
“Yeah, we still have time.”
“Then that’s good.”
If we rushed like yesterday, I felt like my back would actually break, so that was some good news. At that moment, Clara, who was making eye contact with me, suddenly looked startled and averted her gaze.
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s nothing! I’ll go wash my face for a moment!”
“Take your time and come back.”
Please.
I’m in so much pain here.
*
At first, I could only think of how impressive she was.
After all, she easily defeated the coordinated attack from Ruby and me. I even felt a sense of resentment. Was it inferiority… something like that? But it didn’t feel bad.
How strange. While I was in the Royal Knights, Ruby and I were rivals, constantly clashing. Yet, even being overshadowed by a human, I strangely felt a sense of recognition.
Even when my mother visited or when I faced the demons again, I bizarrely felt no fear. I had faith that as long as the Commander was with me, we could win no matter what.
Before I knew it, I was following behind the Commander. Looking at that unshakable figure, I overcame my past fears and made it this far. I still felt the same now.
The cold water cooled my face. The heat that had flared up earlier was somewhat calmed. However, it was just temporary. The moment I thought of facing the Commander again,
My face flushed red without me realizing. I didn’t know why I was feeling this way. Could it be… no, no way. There was no way. I quickly erased the brief thought that had crossed my mind.
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