Chapter: 346
“…Hehe, looks like everyone is tired.”
“…Yeah.”
Having defeated the Witch of Sloth Beatrice and successfully obtained the Sacred Remnants from the buried Dwarf Kingdom beneath the earth, we were finally on our way back to the city.
Even Yoon Si-woo, who had engaged in a fierce battle with the witch,
and the exploration squad members who had spent a long time digging through rocks and dirt,
were all exhausted, as Sylvia’s starry formation soon had everyone falling asleep quickly.
Only Sylvia and I remained awake, watching the sleeping forms of our companions as we soared through the darkening night sky.
After a moment of smiling at the sleeping faces, I sensed Sylvia questioned my waking state with a small voice.
“…By the way, is it okay for Lady Scarlet not to sleep? She must be tired too.”
“…I’m fine. I’m not that sleepy.”
To be honest, I was indeed tired, but I shook my head and replied to Sylvia.
There wasn’t really a special reason for it.
I mean, isn’t it a bit awkward for the passenger in the front seat to fall asleep while the friend drives?
Moreover, witches don’t necessarily need sleep if they really don’t want to, no matter how tired they are.
So I thought I’d just stay awake to keep Sylvia company.
But perhaps she sensed something in my response.
“…Hmm, is that so?”
“…What?!”
With a peculiar smile, Sylvia suddenly pulled me toward her.
Caught off guard, I was naturally turned onto my side by her hand.
With my head resting on Sylvia’s knee.
It was what you’d call a knee pillow.
The warmth and soft sensation were felt against my cheek.
The pleasant sensation made my mind feel a bit hazy for a moment.
Was it because of that?
Without knowing why, I suddenly thought that it might smell nice there.
So I absentmindedly buried my nose into Sylvia’s snowy thigh…
‘…Huh! What am I doing…!’
I came to my senses just after that.
Thinking back, I realized I couldn’t smell anything.
…That could have been a disaster.
If my sense of smell hadn’t been impaired, I might have briefly lost my rationality.
“Si-Sylvia? Why all of a sudden…?”
Anyway, coming back to reality, I asked Sylvia, exposing my flustered feelings.
Then Sylvia lowered her head.
Her face drew near, and I instinctively shut my eyes tightly.
“…Why do you think?”
With her lips close to my ear, Sylvia whispered in a small voice.
Her voice tickled my ear, sending chills down my spine as I blushed profoundly.
“…I-I don’t know.”
“Why do you think? It’s because Lady Scarlet lied.”
“…I-I didn’t lie!”
When I denied her claim that I had lied, Sylvia whispered back, as if she knew everything, with a teasing tone.
“I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been watching for a while, but I think I can somewhat grasp what Lady Scarlet is feeling. For example, just now, you said you couldn’t sleep because you didn’t want to bother me, right? You don’t have to worry about things like that…”
Whispering, Sylvia muttered with a bittersweet expression on her face.
“Even this time, when Yoon Si-woo and Lady Scarlet were fighting the witch, I wasn’t able to help at all… All I can do is lend my knee like this to a tired Lady Scarlet.”
As she murmured that, she smiled brightly, as if she hadn’t just been bitter.
“Well, just take it easy and borrow my knee if you’re tired. Okay?”
“…That’s not it. I’m really not sleepy. So, please let me get up.”
Even though my lies had been thoroughly exposed, I kept pretending with Sylvia.
If I admitted I had lied, I’d have to sleep with my head on her knee.
That seemed too embarrassing, so I desperately tried to sit up.
But my defiance was thwarted by Sylvia’s gentle press on my head.
With a knowing smirk toward my resistance, Sylvia whispered softly.
“Well, if that’s how Lady Scarlet feels, let’s go with that. But you might as well lie down. It’s more comfortable than sitting up, right? And if you get sleepy, you can just fall asleep.”
I attempted to get up several times, but eventually, I couldn’t resist Sylvia’s insistence and had no choice but to use her legs as a pillow.
Even though I tried to maintain my last shred of dignity and not sleep,
“It’s okay… you don’t have to worry, everything will be fine…”
was her voice whispering, as if she understood my heart,
and the gentle, warm hand stroking my hair made me forget the worries I had tucked away.
Before I knew it, I fell asleep.
And when I opened my eyes,
“Lady Scarlet, we’ve arrived.”
We had already reached the city above.
“…Everyone has returned safely. Now I can finally breathe easy.”
“…Luckily, it seems like no one was badly hurt. What a relief.”
Exhausted, we arrived in the city.
Upon hearing the news of our arrival, Ms. Martina and Dwight rushed out to greet us.
Their appearance left us speechless.
“…It seems that the one needing care is you two, not us.”
The two looked more worn out than we were after our journey.
What on earth had they been through for the past few nights? Dwight looked even more fatigued than usual, and Ms. Martina had dark circles under her eyes.
“What on earth happened while I was out?”
When I asked about their haggard state, they both wore expressions like they had lost their minds.
“…Didn’t you hear? The mages in the city have been preparing for the resurrection of the Witch of Gluttony.”
“…They’ve been pulling all-nighters, digging through ancient texts to research magic, while also gathering magical energy and setting up large magic circles. Everyone’s been incredibly busy.”
Now that I thought about it, I might have heard something about it vaguely.
I must have overlooked it since my mind was solely occupied with defeating Beatrice.
Anyway, it appears that the lack of mages during our exploration also stemmed from those preparations.
While I was reflecting on how everyone was diligently working behind the scenes, Ms. Martina looked at me and asked.
“…So, you secured the Sacred Remnants properly?”
“Ah, yes. Here…”
When she inquired about the Sacred Remnants, I showed her the small flame that was flickering gently near my shoulder.
After confirming it was indeed the Sacred Remnants, Ms. Martina nodded, her expression turning serious.
“…Right. With this, we’re prepared to face the Witch of Gluttony.”
At her words, I felt the weight of reality hit me again.
Defeating Beatrice and securing the Sacred Remnants were indeed achievements worth celebrating,
but it also marked just a step in the process.
The reason we had struggled to gather the remnants was ultimately to confront the Witch of Gluttony.
So we couldn’t let our guards down just yet.
This world was still on the brink of destruction.
Nevertheless, we were now fully equipped to prevent the world’s expected demise.
All that remained was the final battle that would determine the fate of the world.
“Everyone has worked hard, so make sure to rest well. When the time comes, I’ll call for you.”
After Ms. Martina concluded that, we dispersed.
*
Perhaps it was due to the looming big fight ahead.
The following days felt tense and silent, akin to the calm before a storm.
During that time, I had both the mental preparation and the adjustment period to my dulled senses.
Whatever else, having my right eye not functioning was a serious issue in combat.
“Huff… huff…”
That was the reason I was out in the cleared area outside the Boundary Area, sparring with Fury Beasts.
The problem was that, despite their fearsome appearance, their fighting abilities were surprisingly weak.
Perhaps because their bodies were made of flame and they had never experienced a real fight, they all felt quite clumsy.
Would this prepare me at all for the battle against the Witch of Gluttony?
…Ari would have made a good opponent.
Unfortunately, Ari was currently recuperating, making that impossible.
As I trained with the Fury Beasts, hoping for some better training, a guest arrived.
“…What are you doing?”
“…Yoon Si-woo?”
The guest was none other than Yoon Si-woo.
I halted the sparring with the Fury Beasts and tousled my hair forward slightly before asking him.
“What brings you here?”
“…Oh, it’s just that I happened to be in the area, and I saw you.”
Yoon Si-woo said that with a peculiar expression.
Hearing those words, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
…This guy can’t lie to save his life.
Given the circumstances, what business could this guy, who is typically busy, have to come out here?
So, I looked at him with eyes as if to say “don’t bother lying,” and moments later, he sighed and confessed.
“…Sorry, that was a lie. The truth is, I came to see you, Scarlet.”
“What? Really? Why?”
When I asked, Yoon Si-woo hesitated for a moment before saying.
“…Is it wrong for me to come see you?”
…I was at a loss for words at his brazen statement.
‘This guy, did he just trap himself again…?’
I realized he was lying again.
So I wondered what was going on, and soon, I noticed the reason behind his deception.
His glancing gaze was directed toward my right eye.
I flinched and checked the hair that I had deliberately messed up earlier.
…If this were the case, he wouldn’t be able to see my right eye properly.
Confirming he couldn’t see it, I sighed internally and muttered to myself.
…This annoyingly persistent guy.
He must have come to check on my eye again, realizing his previous inquiry without the Holy Sword of Truth couldn’t let him go on without worry.
But didn’t he think to ask directly?
Seeing through him was simple enough, but for his convenience, I chose to play dumb.
“…It doesn’t really matter.”
“…Oh. I see.”
As I pretended to fall for his act, Yoon Si-woo exhibited a pleased expression, as if he were happy that his little deception had worked.
What an easygoing guy.
Regardless, it seemed my little ruse had shifted Yoon Si-woo’s attention away from my eye, so I wanted to get him on his way quickly.
“So, is that all you wanted?”
“Hmm? Ah, pretty much…”
“Then could you go now that you’ve seen me? I’m kind of in the middle of training and sweating a lot, and honestly, I feel like it’d be a bit embarrassing if you keep watching.”
This was genuinely how I felt.
I mean, isn’t it a little embarrassing when someone who is better at something than you just stands there watching you?
So I said that since I didn’t want him lingering around unless he was going to help with training, but Yoon Si-woo seemed to take it quite apologetically.
“…Ugh… S-sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude. Well, I’ll leave, so train hard.”
Just like that, Yoon Si-woo turned to leave.
Watching him, I suddenly felt guilty.
Upon reflection, he had just come to check on me.
Because of that, he had to tell lies he didn’t want to, and regardless of his intention, I had made him deceive me as well.
I gently pressed my right eye hidden beneath my hair.
…Right, eventually, I couldn’t keep doing this without confessing.
“Yoon Si-woo, wait a moment!”
“…Scarlet?”
Having made my resolve, I grabbed onto Yoon Si-woo’s wrist and stopped him.
“Uh… Well, you see…”
And as he turned to me, wondering what was going on, I swallowed hard.
“…I have something to confess to you.”
With that great declaration, I held on tightly.
Yoon Si-woo’s expression turned blank upon hearing my words.
“To me…?”
“…Yeah. I’ll tell you after this battle is over.”
I couldn’t hide it forever.
Therefore, after this battle, I intended to be completely honest about my abilities.
If only I could defeat the Witch of Gluttony, the world would be safe.
With that in mind, I told Yoon Si-woo, and seeing his frozen expression, I unintentionally bolted in the opposite direction.
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