Chapter 80 : Don’t Go (2/2)

At that moment, Reina suddenly snapped out of her daze, her body jolting as she waved her hands at me frantically, as if to stop me.

“No! I like it! I really like it!”

“Phew… That’s a relief.”

So she accepted it.

I let out a sigh of relief. Contrary to my worries, it seemed she was fine with this much.

“Do you feel a bit better now?”

Nod, nod.

Reina nodded vigorously.

Heh, her emotions were written all over her. I couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

I placed my hand on her head and gently patted it. Then I asked.

“Reina, are you scared that I might leave you behind all of a sudden?”

She nodded again.

I see… So how can I ease that fear of hers?

Ah, I’ve got a good idea.

“Then let’s make a promise from today. No more worrying about that.

I’ll never leave you alone, Reina.”

“Okay…”

Alright. Time to seal the deal.

I stopped patting her head and carefully embraced her. Her small frame fit snugly into my arms.

In a voice just loud enough for her to hear, I said,

“Reina, you know, ever since I became a duchess, I’ve never felt like doing anything.”

“Why?”

Her small voice came from within my arms. At her question, I let out a bitter chuckle and replied,

“Because I had already achieved the goal I devoted my entire life to.

Maybe it was because I poured everything into reaching that goal. Afterward, no matter what I did, I felt nothing.

Even when I accomplished things that others might applaud, I felt nothing but a hollow emptiness.

It was as if I had become a doll without emotions.”

I recalled the past, the memories before I met her. Memories from when I was Hella, not Ruina.

“Back then, I had no will of my own. I just moved and acted according to what others pushed me to do, without a single thought.

Even taking this job was because of that.

If I had desperately opposed it, I probably wouldn’t have taken it. But I didn’t bother to resist.

Because… I had a small glimmer of hope.

I thought that maybe if I went to a place as dangerous as this, where my life would be at risk, something might change.

Because when faced with life-threatening situations, people tend to fight desperately to survive.”

I shared with her what happened before I met her.

“So I came here and started pretending to be a saint.

At first, I thought things felt a little different here. But soon, that feeling faded, and I lost my sense of purpose here as well.

Even though my life was still in danger, I couldn’t feel the same way.

At that time, I think if I had suddenly faced a deadly situation, I might have thought, ‘Well, what’s the big deal if I die?’”

I told her what kind of thoughts I had before meeting her.

“I had no will. No regrets, no desires. Everything had vanished, and I lived without any emotion, merely breathing out of habit.

It was a life like livestock—living just because I couldn’t die.”

These were words I had never shared with anyone before, words I now revealed only to her.

“But one day, you came to find me.

At first, I was truly baffled. After all, the princess who was supposed to lead the demons was here.”

I told her no lies, only the truth.

“Next, I found it annoying. You would disappear somewhere if I took my eyes off you for a moment. When you were in front of me, you clung to me all day, asking to be held. If I tried to have some time alone, you would suddenly appear and latch onto me. If I tried to pull away, you would cry.

Honestly, it was a lot of trouble. There wasn’t just one or two things to take care of, but a whole lot. My daily schedule exploded because of you.”

I told her how I felt about her in my heart.

“But as I kept going, one by one, I got used to it. What was so hard at first became routine later on.

And that’s when it started.

That’s when I began to have the will to do something on my own.”

I told her how my feelings toward her had changed.

“I started searching for you so you wouldn’t get hurt, thinking about how to stop you from crying, wondering what you might like as I prepared meals.

Then one day, I realized something.

I had found a purpose.

It was such a trivial thing, but it was something I genuinely wanted to do.”

I gently lifted her out of my embrace. Then, holding her by the shoulders, I faced her directly.

Her beautiful eyes filled my vision.

Our gazes intertwined.

In that moment, I told her.

“You became my purpose.”

I told her what she meant to me now.

“You gave me a reason to have a will.

You breathed life and motivation back into me.

Reina, when I’m with you, I remember the happiest moments of my life.

When I’m with you, I feel like I’m reliving the brightest days of my past.

For that, I can do anything.

Honestly, without you, I’m nothing but a walking corpse. To me, you’re my life and my reason for living.”

I conveyed everything, leaving nothing out, and said it confidently.

“That’s why you shouldn’t think I’ll leave you. I’ll be with you from now on, at least until we return. So don’t worry.

Just don’t push me away later, okay? When you grow older and hit adolescence, if you suddenly start avoiding me, I might get hurt, you know?!”

“Yes…!”

Reina nodded, her voice trembling as emotions overwhelmed her. Tears began to well up in her eyes again.

“So, take care of me from now on as well.”

I wiped her tears and gave her a gentle smile. Then, I softly called her name.

“Aria.”

At that moment, Reina’s eyes widened as if hearing something entirely unexpected.

Her reaction didn’t last long. Within thirty seconds, her expression crumbled, and she began to sob again.

Unable to hold back any longer, she buried her face in my embrace and started crying uncontrollably.

Whether she did so to hide her tears or simply because she wanted to, I couldn’t tell.

I quietly patted her trembling back, hoping to offer some small comfort for the wounds she must have endured.

I said nothing and simply let her be.

It took quite some time before Reina stopped crying.

Even after her tears dried, she didn’t leave my arms. It seemed she intended to stay like this for a while.

So I lay down beside her carefully, letting time pass together.

As we lay there, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.

“Wait a minute, Reina, come to think of it, your pronunciation seems to have improved. Didn’t you used to speak with a lisp?”

At that moment—

Flinch.

Her body jolted slightly, as if I had caught her hiding something.

Her response came only after a moment had passed.

“Reawy…? (Really?)”

“Ah, it’s back.”

Flinch.

She flinched again.

I looked at her with a playful smile and asked, “Reina, what’s this? Could it be…”

“I… I don’t know,” she said, pretending not to understand.

I chuckled softly and replied, “Alright, I get it.”

I could guess why she was acting this way. I wasn’t certain, but if I was right, her adorableness would only double.

Smiling, I continued stroking her hair gently.

As I kept stroking her head, darkness and silence slowly enveloped us.

“Ruina.”

“Yes?”

“I like you…”

“I like you too, Reina.”

And thus, the curtain fell on our time in Birren.

“Well, that’s what happened.”

In a dark room that looked like some kind of chamber, Wolf spoke toward a glowing crystal orb.

The orb emitted a faint light, and a vague silhouette of a person seemed to be visible inside.

Soon, a voice came from the orb.

“Did you achieve the objective?”

“Yes, just as you said, there was indeed a ‘body.’ I also gathered some magic along the way.”

Wolf replied, his expression alight with excitement, and slammed his hand on the table where the orb rested.

“Honestly, I have no choice but to believe you now. You really must be the messenger of God! At first, I was skeptical, but everything happened exactly as you foretold!

Your prophecy is truly remarkable! Don’t you agree, Saintess?”

Wolf gestured toward the orb as he asked.

“Save your unnecessary comments for when you’re alone.”

The response was cold, but Wolf didn’t seem to mind.

“Haha, so cold. So, what should I do next?”

“Head to the place where everything was lost. There, seek the forgotten city.”

“The place where everything was lost… That’s quite vague. What exactly does that mean…? Well, I’ll think it over later.”

Wolf rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought. Suddenly, his expression brightened as if he had remembered something.

“Oh, by the way, I met someone called a Paladin.”

The orb remained silent.

“He said his name was Artorius. Do you know him?”

At that moment, there was a faint sound, almost like someone swallowing nervously, but Wolf didn’t seem to notice.

The voice from the orb eventually spoke, its tone cold.

“I don’t know him.”

A faint, almost inaudible addition came after: “…not anymore.”

But it seemed Wolf didn’t catch it.

“Alright then, I’ll see you again soon.”