Ariel was quick-witted, unlike anyone else, easily noticing the black knight’s change.
Bing!
‘That helmet has been weird since a while ago.’
He kept swinging his sword, slicing through the monsters that appeared. His movements showed signs of anxiety.
Swish!
It was as if he were putting all his nerves into something else.
“Kainel.”
“Licht. You want me to use Shine Strike? Over there?”
“Yeah. I’ll take the other side.”
Suddenly, a group project happened. While Licht claimed to be capturing strong monsters, his behavior was strange.
Whoosh!
With every Void Slash he used, the bold strategy of sweeping up the surrounding monsters was reckless and uncharacteristic of him.
Normally, he’d suggest, “Let’s think! Let’s gather and hunt easy but strong monsters.”
Ehem!
“…”
Something was off. She couldn’t shake the chilly feeling.
“Watch where you’re walking! Licht! You’re gonna get hurt!”
“Uh, sorry.”
Even now, it looked like his hands and feet weren’t coordinating well while walking. The blonde-haired hero probably hadn’t even realized until she intervened.
“So, how long are you going to keep this up?”
“Until a strong one shows up, I guess?”
“I trust what you say, really.”
She thought Kainel would sprinkle some humor into their usual backhug moments, but instead, he seemed lost in thought.
‘He sighed while watching Mardol…’
Now he looked like a soulless person. He suddenly changed like this; it wasn’t like he ate something weird.
“Hey, Kain.”
“Yeah? Ariel.”
“Did Mardol and the helmet have a fight?”
The sharpest red-haired mage formed an almost accurate deduction, but…
“I don’t think so? Why do you ask?”
“He seems like something’s bothering him. He doesn’t even use honorifics at times.”
“…I don’t know? Maybe it was something that happened a few days ago?”
Her childhood friend, the hero, always operated like this. Despite being chosen by the holy sword, his awareness was bizarre in strange parts.
“Then something must have happened back then…?”
“Probably nothing major. Honestly, I don’t really know. If it were something troubling, he would have told us.”
Seeing Kainel nonchalantly shrugging it off frustrated her. How did she end up liking such an indecisive guy?
“Ugh… Kain, this is your problem.”
“It makes sense not to ask if he doesn’t bring it up himself, right? Ariel.”
“But why is he suddenly acting that way towards Mardol?!”
This was what bothered Ariel. Though the glass knight was awkwardly silent, when he hugged a Fox Slime or adored Licht’s spirit, he didn’t seem like a bad person.
Her complaints grew. Of course, she liked Kainel’s gentle side too, but right now, things seemed serious.
“This can’t go on….”
Talking to herself, she approached Licht.
The only human capable of helping her childhood friend making progress was the helmet guy.
“Hey, helmet guy.”
“What can I do for you, Miss Ariel?”
She felt ecstatic when he seemed to intentionally make room for her in the carriage. Only Kainel would be oblivious to such a thing.
“Are you not going to spend time with me and Kain today?”
“You don’t seem to have much energy… I’m sorry.”
Her difficulty in expressing emotions contributed to the current situation.
‘I’ve been enjoying getting closer to Kain again lately…’
After falling for the hero at first sight, how could she directly express her feelings?
Besides, Ariel was a born shy girl.
She always thought Kainel should confess first.
‘I’ve felt more awkward as we grew up…’
The reason she grew up in the countryside was that she had only thought of Kainel as a boy.
The neighbor’s girl had achingly liked only beautiful women.
‘I will never confess…’
She still held onto the things he said about liking the older sister from next door when they were little.
“Why, why is your energy low?”
The red-haired mage fidgeted as she asked the helmet knight about his condition.
“…It looks like it might rain?”
He was saying something ridiculous, staring at the clear sky with no clouds. Whether he felt strange, Licht quietly observed.
“It’s clear up there right now…?”
“Yeah.”
Things were really serious. It was downright creepy.
Eek!
The brown eyes visible from the helmet looked distant. What on earth happened with the glass knight?
“Mardol… what the heck is going on?”
“…I don’t know.”
When she tried to talk to the shining armored knight, it was futile.
If any change happened, it could be right after she talked to Mardol or so after learning the combination move.
‘I only suggested going to [Gransia Bakery] again later…’
The man with the helmet seemed lost in some memories, but the missed conversation didn’t seem significant at all.
“…Mardol, you didn’t get into a fight with the helmet guy, right?”
“Why would I…?”
The glass helmet shook left and right, expressing refusal.
He only mentioned that a cute parfait had come out as a limited edition, exchanged dessert preferences. That was all.
No way!
‘This isn’t how it should be…’
She stomped her foot in frustration.
Her romantic endeavor with the blond hero.
Licht actively lent support. He subtly stepped away when they first arrived at the empire, letting her walk alongside Kainel as if it were a date. The memory was still vivid.
“Ariel, why don’t you take a break for a moment?”
“Wrong address! Helmet guy…”
The sweet snacks they ate as street food still lingered in her mouth.
Stop it!
‘Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? Come back!!!’
Seeing him ramble mindlessly, she screamed internally.
This was her chance to definitely win Kainel’s heart at the academy. After graduation, she should have lived happily ever after in her hometown with him.
But that plan had been carefully laid out and collapsed overnight.
‘If the helmet guy acts like this, my future is ruined!’
Last time when she cast magic, she’d had the thought from her beloved romance novel where accessories matched their eye and hair colors, causing the fireworks to turn into gold and blue.
‘What the heck is the problem?!’
She thought of sharing every detail with Kainel and found it quite unique.
She grabbed Licht’s shoulder to snap him into reality.
“I’m dizzy. Please stop…”
It was honestly embarrassing, but it helped prevent other girls from fawning over her childhood friend.
“Helmet guy, are you hurt?”
“No? I’m perfectly fine…”
Not only that, but after the ‘piggyback incident,’ he seemed to give a strong nod, showing support for their relationship, no matter how oblivious he was.
“…Liar.”
The glass knight mumbled towards Licht. He agreed with Mardol’s opinion strongly.
The current helmet guy was not okay. He was broken.
She hadn’t even managed to receive a proper confession from Kainel.
“Kain, can you fix helmet guy…?”
“I’m also a little…”
Seeing Licht drink while wearing the black helm made her want to cry.
*
She couldn’t shake the feeling of her heart being squeezed.
‘Her happy face, the beloved Fox Slime, candies made of sugar and honey. The sound of muffled laughter…’
Thinking of them all happening with someone else made her dizzy.
“Next, Kainel. 11 o’clock.”
“Huh? Yeah.”
How foolish. The opponent doesn’t even know me. Swinging the sword harder, the frustration grew. Unlike Kainel and Ariel, not a childhood friend nor a companion like Dennis.
I was unqualified.
There was never a connection like in games. In the beta tester email, the saintess was labeled as someone to “save.” The protagonist of the wedding dress illustration didn’t necessarily have to be me.
Damn it!
My entire body was like a rock. Tension built up as my strength surged. Now the saintess should date and marry Rufus, right?
I should stop. I took a deep breath, trying to focus.
“Licht, one is coming!”
Thud!
It was time to pull back.
“Licht, you were too tense just now…! Hey! Be careful with your sword!”
I have to stop.
“I… shouldn’t have spoken. Licht.”
Just the BSS. It was too ugly and miserable. I had already failed numerous times at controlling my strength, making a mess.
Crash!
The broken wood and dirt piles seemed to echo my feelings.
But if I think about it, it’s unfair to me. I’ll crawl like a dog if I see our saintess.
Confessing is something you regret after you do it.
Do you think I’ll care about pride and all? The intensity of love incapacitates reality, which I fully felt through the saintess.
Such pure, fervent feelings cannot be hidden, no matter how hard one tries.
“…Licht, you okay?”
“Maybe.”
Mardol asked about me while looking. The truth was, I wasn’t okay. Flailing my arms, I threw desperate gestures; noises clanked in the glass armor.
‘The one who can be happiest is not by my side.’
I had lived clumsily due to imperfections in my face. Imagining that person getting pointed at because of me…
Ugh!
Thinking about it was horrifying. I was fortunate to wear the black knight’s helmet in these times. I touched the visor part of the helmet.
Thanks, special effect. In times like this, I wondered if customizing it might’ve been a problem. I thanked the unremovable item again.
Being next to Rufus was a hundred times right. If it were wealth, skill, even his solemn personality, he had no flaws.
…Plus, he was considered really handsome. There was plenty of plausibility. I’m sure the Nameless Saintess would like a good-looking man. Who would like an ugly one?
‘This is right. Lee Soo-hyun.’
I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them. I contemplated what I could do for the saintess.
“Mr. Mardol! Could you come this way for a moment?”
“Huh, why…?”
I called one of the party members, who was a distance away, just in case my Void Slash would hurt them. The large man moved, and the knight in full armor approached me.
“I’d like to ask something. Do you know ‘Nameless Saintess’?”
“..Who is that?”
The answer turned out to be unexpectedly different. You don’t even know? Not even as the main character do you have a connection yet? Soon there will be, though. I felt a hint of comfort.
‘Anyway, that Nameless Saintess? We were already dating? Such different developments.’
I was a narrow-minded person. Having always been unhappy in two games, I had only trashy thoughts. I felt pathetic, scratching the ground with my foot.
Alright, let’s make a decision.
To make amends for mistakes, I swallowed hard, steeling myself.
“If it’s not too much trouble, can I ask for a favor?”
“…Suddenly?”
“I’ll make any requests later. Except for the ones I can’t fulfill.”
Clink!
I sheathed my sword. He was the Emperor’s only son. This method should work. At least if I were from the royal family, demon kings would find it hard to touch us.
“…Could you find and look after that person called ‘Nameless Saintess’?”
“Someone you know…? Licht?”
The glass helmet tilted, showing curiosity. This might be the first time I directly brought up something like this to them, even if it wasn’t a proper name.
“She is someone precious to me. That person doesn’t know me, though…”
“Second generation saintess. No…”
For the safety of our blue rose, the Hero Church needed to come first. I had to think of the sharpest plan I could.
“She’ll probably be the next saintess. She’s incredibly cute and kind.”
All the demon kings were male. Four of them, initially, I thought they wouldn’t target our white wolf.
But since the Nameless Saintess isn’t in Grand Hertz Academy, I had been too simply relieved.
‘…Something’s up. Their goal doesn’t seem to be restoring their authority.’
However, seeing that Schartines, the second-generation saintess, was kidnapped a few days ago, it was clear that she wouldn’t be safe.
It was lamentable that I couldn’t do anything.
At least, if I had become a hero, I would’ve rampaged with the holy sword. Exhaling deeply, the glass helmet suddenly came close to my face.
Whoa!
I was startled my heart almost dropped.
“Really, anything?”
“Probably. If it comes to it, I could teach you all about Drake Style swordsmanship, but only if you protect our saintess.”
“…Got it. Licht.”
He showed an incredibly interested reaction. Luckily, it seems like it succeeded.
“Thank you, Mr. Mardol. I promise I will keep my word.”
This method should be effective. The royal family likely had artifacts or equivalent master pieces, enabling them to respond somewhat against the demon king.
“Wow.”
“Is that so delightful?”
“Yeah. Licht.”
Seeing the not-so-usual behavior of raising his arms to cheer, I slowly began to feel assured.
“…Strong person. Techniques.”
“I’m not that strong, really.”
“Liar. Licht. Bad.”
This guy, unlike Nex, was kind of cute looking for his size.
“Haha, I’m not lying. I told you I’m weak!”
As one concern faded away, I felt more at ease, causing a little laugh to escape.
“…Deceiver.”
I wished time wouldn’t flow like this.
Still, seeing the saintess with Rufus, I felt like I wouldn’t be able to hold it together.
