65
“Let me try.”
“…Lady Leriana.”
“Let me do at least this much.”
Casia couldn’t bring herself to stop Leriana after hearing her desperate words. Arpel and Rohan felt the same way.
The more they moved together, the more Leriana unknowingly accumulated anxiety in a corner of her heart. The sparring matches she had with Rohan in the past kept replaying in her mind.
She knew well that she was weaker compared to Rohan. But she didn’t know the difference would be so severe. No matter how hard she tried, Leriana’s sword couldn’t reach Rohan, and she keenly felt the wide gap between them.
‘Then find the reason first.’
‘The reason?’
‘The reason you want to become stronger.’
Rohan had clearly said that. After that, she pondered several times a day, but she couldn’t find any reason. She tried thinking that her reason was “to protect Casia,” just as Rohan said his reason was “to protect Arpel,” but nothing changed.
In the end, all those worries continued until now. In the battle that unfolded again, Leriana once more felt self-reproach deep in her heart.
Every time she panted, catching her breath that kept rising, she saw Rohan’s back moving forward without care. At that moment, Leriana felt the emotion of ‘inferiority’ for the first time. And as soon as she realized it, she was startled.
‘This isn’t right.’
She knew better than anyone that Rohan had worked incredibly hard. She remembered how he had put in effort for a long time, to the point where it couldn’t be dismissed as mere talent, bleeding from his sword-gripping hands.
I need to find what I can do.
The more anxious she became, the more Leriana was consumed by this thought, and her sudden step forward was an extension of this thinking.
Leriana, who entered the cage they had first seen, took a deep breath while looking down at the hideous thing. Even if its appearance was terrible, this was a ‘person’ she needed to help. After repeating this thought several times, the nausea seemed to subside a bit.
“…Excuse me.”
She knelt politely in front of it and placed her hands on it. Her brow twitched at the squishy sensation felt under her palms, but that was all. Soon, bright holy power began to overflow from her fingertips.
-Kyeeeeek!
“Lady Leriana!”
“It’s okay.”
The problem occurred the moment the holy power touched the body of the test subject. It began to writhe, screaming as if its ears would tear. Surprised, Casia tried to approach Leriana, but the response was a gentle refusal.
The sudden seizure was caused by the repulsion between the spirit power dwelling inside the test subject and Leriana’s holy power. That’s why Leriana didn’t stop pouring out holy power and divine authority.
‘It’s working…!’
It’s decreasing. Slowly, but surely.
Leriana’s eyes sparkled. The divine authority was gradually removing the spirit power and slowly restoring their bodies. What didn’t look human before was returning to a somewhat human form.
“Huff, hah…”
“…Lady Leriana. You can stop now.”
“No, no… I can continue. I can do it…”
This went on for several minutes.
Endless divine authority was bursting from Leriana’s fingertips, but the recovery speed of the subject was too slow. Even before completely restoring one person, sweat was dripping from her face.
Her fingertips were shaking greatly, and her breathing became increasingly rough. Unable to watch any longer, Casia tried to stop her, but she just shook her head stubbornly.
“Leriana.”
“I’ll keep going, I’ll keep going.”
“Leriana!”
Rohan, who had been watching silently, finally spoke up. He roughly grabbed Leriana’s shoulder, who wasn’t listening. Only after her body shook greatly did focus return to her dazed pink eyes.
“They’re dead already.”
“Ah…”
The divine authority responding to Leriana’s will was cut off abruptly. Examining the person she had been touching carefully, she had to admit it.
This person had stopped breathing.
“Why…”
Clearly, they were recovering, albeit slowly.
Water dripped onto her palm. Tears that had gathered at the corners of her eyes mixed with sweat drops and fell from the tip of her chin. Casia quietly approached and held Leriana’s hand.
Arpel and Rohan stepped away. They knew that Casia was the person who could help Leriana the most right now. Casia gave a brief nod to the two as they stepped back, then turned her attention back to Leriana.
“It’s not your fault, Lady Leriana.”
A sincere statement was murmured softly. Even while shedding tears, Leriana held tightly onto Casia’s hand. Somehow, Casia’s words seemed distant to her.
She didn’t want to see anyone else die. As her feelings became distant, she recalled a day from the past, that is, the day she first set foot in the temple.
Although she escaped her hard life in the slums thanks to God’s blessing, she didn’t know why she had been chosen. All she had done was wish, “Please don’t let the people I care about die in front of me,” after witnessing the death of the grandmother who had taken her in instead of her parents.
The promise she made when she was just a child came to mind.
She really didn’t want kind and pitiful people, and her precious ones, to die in front of her. Even if it meant killing others to protect them.
“Casia, I…”
Want to become stronger.
It was a statement still tinged with tears. A bitter smile played on Casia’s face. She intuitively sensed that Leriana had finally found the ‘conviction’ she had been longing for.
But she couldn’t be entirely happy about it. Because she knew that this incident had left an indelible scar on Leriana’s heart.
“Yes. I will help you.”
All Casia could do was to sincerely support her from behind to help her achieve what she wanted. She firmly grasped the two hands that still had a faint tremor.
***
When they came out, it was early dawn, so they decided to leave the village when morning fully broke.
It was when they were looking for a suitable carriage to ride before heading to the next destination Lexia had told them about. Leriana cautiously opened her mouth.
“You know…”
Perhaps because she hadn’t said much all morning, attention quickly focused on her. After hesitating for a moment, moving her lips without speaking, the rest of her words finally flowed out.
“I’m going to return to the temple now.”
“…The temple?”
Rohan stared at her intently. Although it was sudden, it seemed he hadn’t been completely unaware of the signs, as he just quietly waited for Leriana to continue.
Casia, standing behind Leriana, looked nonchalant, as if she had already discussed this with her.
“I realized it this time. How lacking I am compared to you.”
“…”
“In the end, I didn’t do much. Just following behind you. Just running after you as you dash forward was too much for me, I couldn’t do anything properly… It seems I was really just relying on divine authority and blessings.”
I’m going to work hard at the temple for a while.
Traces of anguish had not yet disappeared from her face, and her eyes were swollen from crying just hours ago. Even without explanation, those present would easily understand why she had such concerns.
But a fresh smile was pooled on Leriana’s face as she spoke. She seemed relieved, as if she had solved a problem that had been bothering her. Rohan, who had been blinking silently, smiled playfully on purpose.
“You still won’t be able to beat me though.”
“Ah, you’re so annoying.”
What passed between them weren’t embarrassing words like “do your best” or “let’s meet again.” Rather, Leriana’s voice was clear, accompanied by a bright smile, as if reassured by Rohan’s usual mischievous tone.
Belatedly, her gaze turned to Arpel standing next to Rohan.
“Arpel, aren’t you going to say goodbye to me?”
“I’ll be waiting, Leriana.”
“…Hehe.”
Although she pouted at his still blunt response, Arpel slowly reached out and patted Leriana’s head. He also made an effort to speak in a somewhat affectionate voice. For a moment, Leriana just blinked blankly, then belatedly touched her patted head. Somehow it felt like a dream.
Eventually, a broad smile bloomed on her face. Having spent a long time together, there seemed to be some lingering attachment at having to part, but she still looked happy.
Rohan didn’t stop Arpel from patting Leriana. It might have been his own way of being considerate.
“See you later!”
The farewell greeting was brief. They believed they would meet again soon with the same faces as usual. Rohan waved his hand cheerfully, returning the greeting to his only friend who was moving away.
“Now it’s just the two of us.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Just a little bit, it seemed they were satisfied with being left alone.
Most of Rohan’s emotions flowing in were relief and regret, but the subtle satisfaction asserting its presence between them couldn’t be ignored. A small smile played on Arpel’s lips.
