Chapter: 357
I was always plagued by worry.
Having seen the end of this world brought about by the Witch of Gluttony.
I wanted to somehow change that terrible ending.
So, I was happy that I managed to achieve my goal by defeating the Witch of Gluttony.
Even if the result was that my body ended up like this.
“…It’s okay.”
Haven’t I been thinking this all along?
As long as I could save everyone, it didn’t matter what happened to my body.
So.
“──────….”
I could feel the subtle tremors of air through my skin, and I knew someone was speaking in front of me, but I couldn’t hear anything.
Other places were bright, and while I could sense someone in front of me, I couldn’t tell who they were.
…The world had become too dark and quiet, and even though I felt a bit scared and worried about how to go on from here.
“I’m fine…”
I was fine.
I decided to stay positive and think that way.
“…So stop crying, Yoon Si-woo.”
Otherwise, it was obvious that many people, including the one who was now dampening my shoulder with tears, would be much sadder and more tormented than I was.
I repeated this to myself and comforted the weeping Yoon Si-woo.
And at that moment, when I was smiling wryly because of Yoon Si-woo, who couldn’t stop crying.
Suddenly, Yoon Si-woo, who had been sobbing, pushed me away and jumped up.
It felt like a frantic reaction as if startled by something.
I soon realized what had startled Yoon Si-woo.
Even though most of my senses were damaged, I still had some left intact.
“This is…!”
It was felt up close.
The aura of another witch, not mine.
*
“…You!!”
Yoon Si-woo, who had been crying, stood up and drew his sword.
It was because of the woman in a hood that had appeared behind them at some point.
Yoon Si-woo knew that woman.
A wicked witch who had a history of kidnapping Scarlet in the Northern Border Area.
What was she trying to do this time?
Everyone was exhausted after pouring all their strength into the battle against the Witch of Gluttony.
If she came to attack while they were weakened, it would be a situation where they could do nothing but fall victim.
…If necessary, I will protect everyone even by risking my own life.
Yoon Si-woo thought this as he aimed his sword at the woman.
But the woman seemed uninterested in Yoon Si-woo and muttered while looking somewhere.
“…I can’t believe you actually fell.”
The place she was looking at was where the corpse of the Witch of Gluttony lay.
She walked to the spot where the corpse was and crouched down in front of it, speaking.
“…I thought that if there was a being still alive at the end of this world, it would be you. I didn’t think you could die as well.”
Perhaps because she was the one who released the Witch of Gluttony into this world.
The voice of the woman sounded mournful, as if she had lost something precious.
But contrary to the voice she spoke, the woman had a beaming smile on her face.
It was a smile that looked like she didn’t know what to do with her joy, as if something wonderful had happened.
With a smile, the woman reached out her hand toward the dead Witch of Gluttony.
As soon as her hand touched the charred remains of the witch, it turned to ashes and scattered.
Including the heart that witches usually leave behind even in death, completely.
“Aah, turning to ashes like this means I can’t use you anymore.”
It felt like the woman was desperately saying that she didn’t want to be used even in death, and she chuckled softly.
“Well, I have enough already, so I don’t mind.”
Saying that there would be no regrets, she brushed off the ashes from her hands and stood up, only then seemingly noticing Yoon Si-woo, who was still pointing his sword at her, and said playfully.
“Oh my, what a surprise. Now I see you, hehe.”
The woman, who uttered mockingly, raised her hands as if to show she had no intention of fighting.
“Ah haha, why are you glaring at me like that? Don’t worry too much. Thanks to you, something I was halfway ready to give up on has now come true, and I’m feeling really good. So today, I’ll let you off without doing anything. Just today.”
“…Today, what do you mean by that?”
“Hehe, that… I don’t think I need to tell you. You’ll find out soon enough.”
With those cryptic words, the woman vanished as quickly as she appeared.
“…What do you mean we’ll find out soon?”
Feeling a strange unease, Yoon Si-woo pondered over the woman’s words.
But soon he realized that it was pointless to dwell on it and decided to stop.
“…W-What? Didn’t a witch just appear and disappear? What’s going on?”
…Right now, it was more important to calm Scarlet, who was trembling in anxiety without being able to exactly grasp what had happened.
“…It’s okay. It was nothing.”
Yoon Si-woo said this while gripping Scarlet’s hand tightly.
Although she couldn’t hear the words, perhaps holding hands made her feel reassured.
Scarlet finally stopped trembling and became calm.
“…Sigh.”
Yoon Si-woo let out a bitter sigh at the unfortunate sight of the girl who had become so anxious over the slightest things.
“…For now, let’s rest.”
They were all too exhausted to think about anything else.
*
Days passed since then.
“Oh, Sylvia, you’re here?”
Due to my increasingly inconvenient body, I ultimately came to rely on Sylvia’s mansion.
I mean, I was already staying at Astra Mansion before this, but I felt like I was creating a bigger burden.
Since I couldn’t do anything alone anymore, I had no choice but to depend on others.
In that sense, I felt truly sorry for Sylvia, as I was receiving an immense amount of help.
Sylvia, despite being busy herself, almost stayed by my side for more than half the day.
I thought it would be annoying even for her, and I tried to say she didn’t have to, but instead, Sylvia scolded me.
She told me to not worry because she would handle it herself.
Honestly, I couldn’t not feel burdensome, but every time I brought it up, Sylvia would cry sadly, so I had no choice but to stay quietly dependent on her.
Oh, and I’ve also found my own way of communication to share such conversations.
‘How. Was. Last. Night?’
“Oh, you mean if I was well last night? Well, I was well.”
In this way, I communicated by writing one character at a time on my palm.
It was a bit hard at first, but I quickly got used to it.
Although it does take a long time, from my perspective, that wasn’t really a downside.
Because I had plenty of time anyway.
Since my body was in this state, having time didn’t mean I could do much either.
‘You. Didn’t. Cry. Like. Last. Time?’
“If you’re asking if I cried like last time… Why do you keep bringing that up from a few days ago? I haven’t done that since then!”
And besides, I didn’t even cry! I just sniffled a bit!
…Let me explain what happened back then. It was the first day after my body became like this.
After being surrounded by people who were worried about my condition, night came, and I told them all to go to bed as they must be tired, and that was when I realized.
When I couldn’t see or hear, being alone felt incredibly long.
Do you know how it feels to be left in utter darkness, where you can neither see nor hear?
It’s scary and lonely; it’s embarrassing to describe in detail, but that’s roughly it.
Being alone in that state made one minute feel like an hour.
I hadn’t felt time dragging like that even while on duty at the base.
Anyway, as time passed, it felt like a long time had passed by my perception, but no one came for what felt like an eternity…
I kept waiting, and finally, unable to hold back, I started to sniffle uncontrollably.
“S-Sylvia… Where are you? Why aren’t you here…? You didn’t leave me, did you?” Damn.
And just when I was having a moment, Sylvia happened to return and caught me.
Thanks to that, there was a side effect where Sylvia wouldn’t leave my room even at night for a while, and even though I said I was okay by now, she wouldn’t believe me for a long time.
It was only recently that I finally resolved that side effect.
‘Scarlet. Is. A. Crybaby.’
“…Yeah. I’m the crybaby. Is that enough?”
Since the side effect was resolved, I’ve been teased about that all the time, just like now.
…This must be my karma, damn it. Why didn’t I just hold on and keep it together?
Thinking about that one incident makes me sigh repeatedly, and just as I internally groan, Sylvia, who had been teasing me, suddenly went quiet.
To put it precisely, it meant I could no longer feel her fingers writing on my palm.
For me, that was silence and stillness.
And I knew exactly why that sudden silence occurred, which made me smile bitterly.
Have you ever heard the saying that a person who can’t see has a keen sense of hearing?
That those who lack one sense develop others beyond normal for survival.
To be honest, I always thought that was nonsense, but now I realize it’s true.
With four of my five senses damaged and only touch left, it has become so much more sensitive.
So sensitive that I could tell whether the person in front of me was crying or not just from the subtle vibrations in the air.
“…I think the crybaby is actually you, Sylvia.”
I said to the now-silent Sylvia.
Then, she wrote vigorously on my palm, denying it.
‘No, It’s Not.’
If you want to deny it, at least dry the moisture on your fingers first.
…Seriously, why is it that whenever I talk to her, she keeps crying?
I wish people would laugh more, but it seems like lately, I’ve been making them cry a lot.
My body is fine and all, but that one thing makes me a little sad.
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