Chapter 104: Are you going to take care of family matters or not?

Eleanor’s words fell softly, but Helos said nothing.

She turned her head to the side, as if pulling her gaze away from the person across from her.

The brim of the girl’s cloak was pressed low, and the metal mask made her breathing a little rushed.

Her fingers tensed slightly under the cloak, but soon relaxed again.

Julius and the other two’s eyes lingered back and forth between the sisters, but no one spoke first.

Or rather, no one dared to speak.

Even a fool could tell that the atmosphere right now was far from normal!

In this silence, even the crackling of the flames sounded jarringly loud.

Eleanor swallowed back the words she wanted to say.

She looked at Helos, her gaze weary, hesitant, but mostly lost in the face of rejection.

She rarely showed this expression.

The young lady took a deep breath, as if trying to press her emotions back into her chest.

After a moment, she turned to Julius and the others, slowing her speech just a little: “You all, be careful…Come back soon.”

That “come back” carried a different weight for each of them.

Yet all three of them nodded in unison.

Eleanor strode away, heading in another direction.

But when she reached Julius’s side, she suddenly stopped, leaned closer to the boy, and spoke in a very low voice:

“You—you actually dared to put my sister in danger… Just wait until we get back.”

Julius’s back stiffened, thoughts flashing through his mind—“She came on her own,” “I already warned her,” and so on.

The boy felt both wronged and helpless, unable to defend himself.

***

In the end, he could only rein in his expression and respond with the smallest nod:

“…Oh.”

Under everyone’s gaze, Eleanor’s figure slowly walked away.

Outside the passage, the footsteps of the personal guards thudded on the ground, followed by the distant clatter of armor.

Before long, the warehouse quieted down once more.

Julius glanced at Helos, trying to find a suitable way to break the silence, but all he saw was that mask that refused to turn his way.

Kyle stood at the side, quietly exhaling as if to blow away the weight pressing on his shoulders.

Selina gathered her cloak, adjusted her position by the door, swept her gaze over the three, and settled once more on Helos.

Helos remained silent.

She didn’t lift her head or even move her toes.

More time passed.

At last, it was Julius who backed down first, speaking cautiously:

“Now that it’s over, should we, uh, clean up and head back?”

“Alright.”

Kyle jumped into action—though he didn’t really know why they needed to clean up the place.

Still, they needed to do something to ease the awkwardness.

He picked up the pieces of rope scattered on the ground, stuffed them into a bag, and righted the wooden crate that had been kicked over, setting it back by the wall.

Selina followed the bloodstains with her eyes, making sure there were no new leaks, then wiped down a few places likely to leave traces with an oilcloth.

Julius checked the corners for any dropped nails or shards, pocketing anything that might catch the light.

Helos did not join in.

She continued to stand where she was, until Julius propped a broken stick against the wall. Only then did she lift her head a little, as if recalling her gaze from the floor, and murmured softly:

“Stop pretending you’re so busy, idiot.”

“Let’s go back.”

Julius opened his mouth, then replied,

“Then… shall we go?”

He looked to Kyle and Selina. Both nodded, signaling they were ready.

No one brought up what had just happened.

Only when they returned to the surface did Julius pause by the door, making sure there was no new movement outside.

Wind crept in through the crack in the door, carrying a chill.

Two brief chirps of insects came from the alley, then silence.

The walk from the warehouse wasn’t far, but to the four of them, it felt as if they’d spent a whole night traveling.

Hardly anyone spoke along the way. The echoing footsteps on the flagstones sounded empty and heavy, as if each of their chests bore a great weight.

Kyle had wanted to say something to ease the tension, but when he thought back on the atmosphere from before, the words stuck in his throat.

It was more terrifying than facing a powerful enemy.

He sneaked a glance at Helos, but only saw the girl’s bowed head in silence, her expression hidden from all, as if she were cut off from the world in shadow.

So, he could only close his mouth sullenly.

Selina was even less likely to speak.

She sensed Helos’s distance and caught Julius’s unease, but as usual, she said nothing unnecessary, focusing all her attention on keeping watch around them.

Julius walked at the front, hand always on his sword hilt.

Compared to possible ambushes outside, he was more afraid of the silence behind him that he couldn’t dispel.

They avoided the patrols, slipped through narrow alleys, steered clear of the busy streets and bright lights.

By the time they finally returned to the Duke of Eisend’s estate, it was already deep night.

The manor’s walls looked especially tall in the dark, the magical lamps at the main gate quietly casting their glow, guards’ shadows stretched long by the firelight.

Several personal guards had been waiting.

When they saw them approaching, the guards gave a small nod, asked no questions, and quickly stepped forward to open the gate, ushering them inside.

Familiar air rushed to meet them.

Compared to the chill of the night outside, the air inside was much warmer, but the tension clinging to them did not fade.

The doors slowly closed behind them, shutting out the night and the wind.

Soft light from wall lamps filled the corridor, making the quiet seem even more pronounced.

“We’re finally back.”

Kyle muttered, his voice low.

No one replied.

Julius stopped and looked back at Helos.

The girl remained silent, but her steps didn’t falter as she headed straight for her workshop.

No one could guess her expression beneath the mask, only reading the icy indifference in her stiff back.

Julius felt his heart tighten even more.

“Helos…?”

He tried calling out, “Are you alright?”

She paused just a moment, nodded, then kept walking without a word.

Not until Helos’s figure disappeared around the corner did Kyle scratch his head and give a sheepish laugh:

“Tch, this mood… is more exhausting than a fight.”

Selina glanced at him.

“When it was your turn to talk, why didn’t you say anything?”

“You’re kidding, right? Who would dare speak up in that atmosphere!”

Kyle waved his hands repeatedly, as if to push the blame away.

Their quiet bickering echoed softly through the corridor, but Julius never joined in.

He only silently clenched his hands, shadows filling the crease between his furrowed brows.

Eleanor’s parting words still echoed in his ears, each word hammering into his heart.

He knew full well that when morning came, the trouble waiting for him would be far more troublesome than tonight’s battle.

Yet what truly weighed on him wasn’t Eleanor’s words.

It was Helos.

That girl who was always stubborn and sharp-tongued, rarely ever showing such silence or avoidance.

He could feel it—her helplessness stung far worse than any anger.