Chapter 30 : Crisis Is Opportunity (2)

After some time, I headed to the lord’s castle in Noiren with Kalian and the others.

Contrary to my worries, Lumia appeared brimming with enthusiasm.

It seemed that hiding my identity and motivating her had helped to some extent.

Inside the castle, there were field desks and various documents instead of carpets or furniture.

“This is more serious than I imagined.”

I looked up at the map of the Noiren region hanging in place of a portrait.

Kalian agreed.

“Right? Good thing. I thought Serena would just take advantage of this place and leave it behind, but she didn’t.”

“Why are you even worried about that? Am I that kind of person?”

“Yep.”

Our task was to eradicate the crime organizations around Noiren as Serena had requested.

Of course, it was impossible to take care of all of them, so we would only handle a portion while Serena took care of the rest.

“I never thought I’d be able to help you all in this way. I’m really grateful.”

Elia, who had come with us, smiled.

Considering Kalian and me, it wasn’t surprising, but this guy wasn’t normal either.

Soon, we’d be hunting criminals, and here he was grinning.

Maybe it was because I’d recently gotten a bit friendlier with him, but he seemed to think I was completely fooled by his act.

The most normal person here was still Lumia.

She was trembling all over.

“Are you okay? Why are you shaking like that?”

“Huh? Oh! This is just because it’s cold!”

“It’s not because you’re scared?”

“No, no! I’m really just cold. I think I’ve been more sensitive to the cold lately. I should’ve eaten more hearty food.”

“I see.”

I nodded and pointed to her waist.

“But where’s your sword? Did you leave it at home?”

“Eek! M-my sword! It’s gone?!”

“No, I was just joking. The sword on your waist right now is yours.”

“Don’t joke about stuff like that! I’m already scared as it is, and I nearly had a heart attack!”

“So, you are scared.”

Even though she was full of enthusiasm, her fear was still evident.

But really, how many people could joke casually when heading into a life-threatening operation?

I couldn’t help but pity the ordinary person caught between a possessor, a protagonist, and a psycho.

Evelyn probably wouldn’t have been scared, though.

When Evelyn heard about this mission, she asked to join, but I refused.

If she were here, it might have been too easy to overcome the crises I had planned to create for Lumia.

My plan to push Lumia to her limits couldn’t allow any interference.

“Are we ready?”

Serena entered the room.

Although she was a merchant and had entered Arcana with a different specialty rather than as a knight, she wore armor given the circumstances.

While a knight from Lucivian would lead the operation, Serena was the overall leader.

“That armor looks expensive.”

“As expected of Wade, you have an eye for quality. This is a product of the artisans in our family, from Ironclad. If you’re interested, let me know.”

“Are you going to buy me one?”

“I’ll give you a discount. Anyway… enough about armor. Before we officially start the operation, have this first.”

Serena’s servant brought in drinks.

It was hot cocoa, with steam rising and a sweet, enticing aroma.

A great idea—warm, sweet drinks help reduce tension.

While it might not matter to others, it would certainly help Lumia.

Sure enough, as Lumia held the cocoa, her trembling stopped.

“How does it taste?”

“This is top-notch. It’s good enough for the royal court.”

“It’s already supplied to the royal court. This is made with cocoa beans from Darkbelt and crafted by Lucivian’s finest artisans. By the way, the cocoa isn’t free. You’ll need to pay later.”

“Haha, wait, we’re paying for this?”

Well… it must’ve been a joke.

Serena was trying to ease the tension before we entered a life-threatening battle, showing her consideration for us.

However, contrary to Serena’s consideration, Lumia’s body started trembling again after hearing the price of the cocoa.

After a brief moment of easing tension, we began reviewing the details of the crime organization eradication mission.

The dedicated knight of the Lucivian family, an experienced commander, explained the criminals scattered across the region using maps and various diagrams.

Noiren had an overwhelming number of organizations roaming around.

There were so many that it was hard to remember them all, but there were reportedly differences in danger levels.

The danger levels were classified into three stages: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3.

The commander left the choice of mission to us.

As we were not only soldiers on this mission but also Serena’s friends, we were given the option to refuse particularly dangerous tasks.

Kalian asked, “What should we do?”

“Judging from what I’ve heard, it shouldn’t be a problem at your level. So, let’s split into teams. Here’s how we’ll do it…”

I whispered the suitable team composition for the plan to him, and Kalian relayed it to the commander.

The reason I didn’t speak directly was that I was still officially considered a bottom-rank student.

Serena, Elia, and Lumia all still thought of me as a lowly student.

If someone like me started dictating team formations, it wouldn’t carry any weight.

In times like these, it was best to leverage Kalian’s impressive reputation.

We divided into three teams:

• Team 1: Kalian.
• Team 2: Elia.
• Team 3: Lumia and me.

Naturally, both Serena and the commander opposed this.

Splitting into three groups in an already dangerous situation was practically inviting death.

However, Kalian patiently persuaded them, and I enthusiastically supported his argument.

“I agree with Kalian,” I said.

Even Elia joined in. For some reason, she seemed to have her own motives and responded positively to splitting into teams.

“Meow… But if that’s the case, doesn’t that mean Lumia and Wade will be on the same team? Wouldn’t it be better to split them between Teams 1 and 2?” Serena asked.

“It’s true that Lumia and I are weaker, but that’s why we’re in the same team. We’ll take on the region with the lowest danger level, so there’s no need to worry too much,” I explained.

“Even Level 1 might be too dangerous for you two,” Serena retorted.

“Oh, so you’re openly looking down on us now? Look at Lumia! Look at how confident she is!” I pointed at Lumia.

She was pale and trembling.

“She has no color in her face, and the way she’s shaking just looks like she’s scared,” Serena pointed out.

“Let’s get the facts straight. That’s not fear. She’s just hungry for blood like a vampire. The trembling is her uncontrollable battle instincts.”

“To joke in a situation like this… Honestly, you claiming to be a vampire would make more sense,” Serena replied with exasperation.

In the end, Serena had no choice but to accept mine and Kalian’s proposal.

Since the participants themselves were insistent, there wasn’t much else she could do.

From the commander’s perspective, handling multiple regions simultaneously was an advantage as well.

Once the teams were finalized, we received our assigned operation areas and tasks.

Lumia and I, as Team 3, were tasked with investigating an organization called the Red Wolves in the southwest of Noiren.

I looked at Lumia, who was fully armed.

“You okay?”

“W-what? What do you mean?”

“If you’re scared, we can just quit and stay here. There’s no need to overdo it.”

“No, I’m not scared…”

“Then why is your helmet on backward if you’re not scared?”

“I’m not falling for that again!”

“This time, it’s real.”

I adjusted her backward helmet properly for her.

She must be truly terrified.

Just watching her from the side is enough to make me tremble, so the fear she’s experiencing right now must be beyond imagination.

It wasn’t my place to say, considering I was the one who created this situation, but she needed to endure it.

She had to grit her teeth and confront that fear.

Otherwise, she would never overcome her trauma, and one day, it might lead to her death in a critical situation.

Unable to watch any longer, I grabbed her hand.

“Wade…?”

“Oddly enough, just holding someone’s hand can make the trembling subside a bit, even if it’s a complete stranger.”

“…”

“But we’re not strangers. We’re friends. When friends stand back-to-back, they can achieve even more. So… don’t worry. No matter what happens, everything will turn out fine.”

“Yeah…”

Lumia’s trembling eased slightly.

I stepped away to give her space to prepare herself.

Before leaving here, there was something else I needed to do.

I approached Elia.

She was sitting quietly, staring at Kalian, but when my presence blocked her view, she slowly looked up.

“What is it, Wade?”

“Just wanted to say thanks before we go. You came all this way because I asked you to. And it’s a dangerous task, too.”

“It’s nothing. I’m more than happy to help with things like this. Besides, I value my life, so I’ll run away if things get too dangerous.”

“Thanks for saying that. We’ve still got some time, so how about a chat?”

“Sure.”

I sat next to her naturally.

This wasn’t just idle chatter; it was preparation to fuel my plan.

I exaggerated my movements as if I were thinking hard about something.

“What should we talk about… Ah, yeah. Since you’re friends with Kalian too, this might be a good question to ask. Or… wait, maybe it’s a bit inappropriate?”

“What is it? Ask me anything.”

“It’s just… about Kalian and Lumia. They’re getting closer, and now that I think about it, they really suit each other.”

“…”

“Elia?”

“Yes, I’m listening.”

I carefully chose my next words, watching her expression.

My goal was to provoke her just enough.

“So, what do you think about setting them up? I mean, getting them into a romantic relationship. Not right away, of course. They could start slow, maybe go on a few dates first.”

“And then?”

“Well, they could hold hands, link arms, maybe even brush shoulders. After that… they’d figure it out themselves. What do you think of my idea?”

What did she think?

She was probably imagining slicing me into pieces a dozen times over in her mind.

However, Elia responded with a warm smile, masking her true feelings.

“Well… if that’s what they both want, I think it’s a wonderful idea!”

Though her smile was slightly strained, it didn’t escape my notice.