I boarded the train once again.
Clunk clunk went the bumpy ride, with a strong wind hitting my face. Toot toot says the whistle.
The scenery outside transforms from fields to lines. I can feel the speed increasing.
‘Pantoze Shrine.’
The place where the emotion god who summoned the Magic Hat lies asleep.
In the game, it was about escaping a maze-like area.
They say it was inspired by the saying that while you may understand the waters, you can’t understand people’s hearts.
Thanks to writing down as many settings as I could in my notebook right after my possession, I remembered.
‘…This method is the best.’
Dennis and I put our heads together and came up with one clever solution.
Taking a route through Pantoze Shrine on our way back to the Academy.
This way, we could delay the Hero Church’s pursuit and ensure the students’ safety.
The train we are on moves with mana. All the tracks and fuel run on it.
Mana gives properties that ignore reality in this world.
So, we could even create tracks toward the sky to operate the train.
Pantoze Shrine’s true identity is a floating island.
A masterpiece created in the Land of Fire, it floated in the air, making it unreachable by ordinary methods.
“Licht. Are you really unhurt…?”
“…Yes, I’m fine. Mardol.”
As I wore an unusually troubled expression, Pina began to worry. Since she sat right next to me, there was no escaping it.
Even after the fierce battle with the Demon King was over, she carefully checked if I had any injuries. Her small hands explored my body, confirming that I was hiding any pain.
“That can’t be true… you went through a lot…”
A warm heart hidden beneath sharp, sturdy glass armor.
“….”
My head was throbbing. Is it really right to take Pina Grancia to Pantoze Shrine and awaken her as a hero?
Kainel and Ariel grew by facing hardships together in the shrine. But is it okay for me to impose such a burden on her?
To keep Magic Hat from dying, fighting the Demon King as a hero is the right choice. But what then?
Will it end with a fairy tale saying, “And they all lived happily ever after”?
‘I must tell the truth. Lee Soo-hyun.’
Currently, my affection level with Pina Grancia is 39 percent.
We’re too close to be just friends, yet too far to be lovers.
A moment will come when I must talk about the Nameless Saintess too.
Someday, I want to show her my true self, not as the lying shepherd but as the wolf.
“Pina, if you were the chosen hero by the gods… would you follow it?”
I need to make an effort too.
In the train, making big clunk clunk noises, the only sound I hear is the breathing of exhausted students.
I asked Pina about her own will. A quiet whisper shared between us.
Secretly, I intertwined our hands and used a soundproofing magic. Then, like me, Pina Grancia started to ponder, resting her chin on her hand.
“You said I was a beloved hero… What does that mean? Do you know, Licht?”
“…Beloved means to love someone intimately.”
I honestly told her the truth.
In the past, I might have lied or beat around the bush.
Pina gazed at my face thoughtfully, then quickly turned her head. Is she in need of time to think?
“….”
“You don’t have to be tied down by words. It’s all determined by the gods anyway.”
She looked up at the mana lamps on the ceiling, then back at me.
I squeezed her hand, making sure we were tightly intertwined.
“If I catch all the Demon Kings… you won’t get hurt, right?”
Her answer was a statement worrying about me, not herself.
Pina Grancia sighed heavily as she spoke.
Who’s worrying about whom here? I couldn’t help but smile at her unexpected reply.
I thought she’d be thrilled to call me the hero from the prophecy or say, ‘You can become stronger.’
Has she changed just like I have?
No, this might be Pina’s true nature.
“Honestly, I still can’t believe that I’m the hero from the prophecy. It wasn’t a lie, but…”
“The Demon King of the Hero Church said so.”
She nodded, her head bowed low. I could see her little feet fidgeting.
It’s probably a big shock.
The moment she was attacked by Magic Hat, having someone she saw like a sister kidnapped, and everything else that has tormented her until now…
All of it was due to the events surrounding the hero from the prophecy.
“..Licht always gets hurt. Because I’m weak.”
She slowly began to speak. Her remaining hand rested on her chest.
Like someone taking an oath in front of a judge.
“So if I could be your strength…”
Pina raised her head again and spoke confidently. Her golden eyes glimmered with determination.
“…Hero or not, it’s all fine.”
She straightened her shoulders and puffed her chest out.
I expected her to scoff at her fate, but Pina’s bold decision sounded rather daring.
“I will also be your strength, Pina.”
“….I’m already doing that. Licht.”
I responded to her determination and gently rested my head on her shoulder.
Immediately, she flinched and began to hiccup.
It seems we’re still far from truly supporting each other.
*
Next to me, I can hear the soft sound of breathing.
The familiar scent of someone I recognize well.
Just glancing to the side reveals black hair like the night sky and long eyelashes.
‘Licht… is that you?’
Pina Grancia was carefully examining the face of the Black Knight, who was asleep leaning on her shoulder.
Thanks to the potion from the Demon God, he didn’t appear to be significantly injured on the outside.
But her keen eyes knew that Licht had struggled in the void.
His face, usually troubled, was covered in cold sweat; surely something happened.
“…Puppy.”
Pina looked at Licht with closed eyes and felt a smile creep onto her face. He looked so cute when asleep.
But when he wakes up to fight enemies, he’s like a beast.
Going from puppy to wolf, he resembled his spirit perfectly.
She slowly brushed his man’s hair to the side. Her fingers brushed over the uneven burn scars, but it didn’t bother her.
The Black Knight, capturing the Demon Kings of the Hero Church one by one.
A hero of conviction, fighting not for himself but for others.
How wonderful it would be if she could become something similar to him.
Once again, Licht disappeared into the darkness to fight the Demon King. Although it was good that he subdued Infinity with Kainel, what if he didn’t return?
If the last memory of Licht she had was of failing to help him because of her weakness…
“….”
Just imagining that made Pina’s heart feel heavy like a lead weight. The man who leaned on her to sleep seemed unconcerned about others.
When he disappeared with Kainel, Pina and Ariel had cried and worried so much. If he knew it, he wouldn’t even be able to say he was sorry.
“I hate this.”
Pouting her lips, she poked Licht’s nose. Did he sense his slumber being disturbed? His expression scrunched up.
That was Pina’s way of expressing herself. If there were wrongs, it was right to scold him.
If he were awake, she would’ve pinched his nose.
‘The Demon King of Might called me the beloved hero…’
Feeling the heavy burden on her shoulders, she got lost in thought. She only thought the hero from the prophecy was Licht.
But it made sense; he already dealt with two Demon Kings from the Hero Church.
The Demon King of All Knowledge, created from the corrupted hero chosen by the God of Wisdom.
And the Black Knight, who defeated the Demon King of Might, chosen by the God of Will.
Clumsy with lies, sometimes showing a cheeky side, he was actually the kindest and gentlest person.
While he might have a horrible cluelessness, that only made her like him more.
‘…You’ve become more than just someone precious to me, Soo-hyun.’
The position of this man within Pina Grancia’s heart was expanding.
Jumping into a carriage to save a child, risking his life to rescue her from the valley;
How could she manage this fool, who cared more for others than himself?
Now, she wanted to be the one to give help rather than receive it. The sunlight streamed in through the window onto his face.
She pulled the curtains to prevent him from waking up.
He looked so puppy-like in his sleep. His lips moved, as if he was dreaming of eating something. She wished she could see this treasured moment anytime.
“Please don’t disappear.”
Anxiety continued to grow. Like the train soaring through the air towards Pantoze Shrine, Pina’s heart was also in motion.
She didn’t want to lose him.
A strange rival consciousness emerged against the Nameless Saintess.
What if she learns about the aspects of Licht that she hadn’t known and they create many shared memories?
She constructed glass walls around them so no one could see, then opened the visor of her helmet.
At a distance close enough for their breaths to mingle, she caught sight of his remarkably glimmering lips, unable to resist.
Pina briefly placed her lips on Lee Soo-hyun’s forehead before quickly retracting.
‘…What have I done.’
An impulsive act, like a wolf marking its territory, she felt like she had secretly snuck a strawberry off of a cake.
It was almost too light to call a kiss, but a soft, ticklish sensation blossomed at the edge of her lips.
She placed her hand on her heart to calm her racing pulse, breathing deeply.
This is Licht’s fault.
He should have just asked for a kiss when he had the chance.
He’s the one sleeping against the shoulder of a princess, so it’s his fault.
As she rationalized inside her head, the train moved towards Pantoze Shrine.
