༺ The First Letter (17) ༻
For a while, silence lingered in the air. I couldn’t understand Seria’s intentions.
Is she angry? After all, I had just brought her into my personal fight since Seria and Emma had nothing to do with each other.
Or maybe it was just a simple question. Since it was Seria, it was quite plausible. She was indifferent to most things except for the sword, and was even clumsy when it came to human relationships.
There was no obvious answer, so I hesitated for a moment, avoiding her gaze. But in the end, what came out of my mouth were my honest feelings devoid of any pretense.
“…… I don’t know either.”
Those words that I uttered with a sigh were my true thoughts.
I honestly didn’t know. Why did I become so obsessed with that letter from the future?
It could be out of a sense of duty, or it might have been a sense of responsibility. However, emotion did not need a motive for them to exist. Perhaps I myself didn’t realize that I was being controlled by those feelings from the moment I heard the news of Emma almost passing away.
Guilt and even rage.
The only rite of atonement that can wash away this guilt I felt towards Emma was to slay that beast.
Revenge.
Of course, it was a foolish decision. There was no way that Emma would simply wake up if I killed that demonic beast.
It was unknown what would happen if we offered a valuable sacrifice to receive a miracle from Arus. But neither Emma nor Emma’s father, nor myself, could afford that.
I’m aware of that fact. I know it’s meaningless.
But how can I pretend otherwise and look away?
What if I had stopped Emma?
How I couldn’t protect her.
Only if I had taken the contents of the letter a bit more seriously.
If I did, this might not have happened.
The scene of that day is still vivid in my mind.
I remember seeing the weeping old man. Emma’s father howled as if all of his hopes had been ripped out of him. That memory overlapped with the kind smile Emma used to wear all the time.
I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t painful. No, it still really hurts. My chest aches and a heavy sense of guilt seems to be silently choking my lungs.
I slowly bit my lips and took a sip of the water from the bottle. There was now only a little water left inside of it.
“But it’s true that I came all the way to find the beast. If it attacks the students again, there might be casualties.”
“That’s why you chose me?”
She asked another question while looking at me.
It was probably the question Seria really wanted to ask since she was confident and proud of her skills.
Seria was a skilled swordsman. So, she would be a great help when dealing with the beasts. At least, she would be better than Celine, who was on the same level as me.
Since the word ‘friend’ was unfamiliar, she kept doubting me and drawing out possibilities.
It was a virtue of her, who would later rise to an influential position. But as of today, those doubts were in vain.
I smiled bitterly and shook my head. My plan was not to fight them.
“No way, I know my place. It’s dangerous to deal with demonic beasts with my skills right now. Of course, I have no intention of forcing you to take such a risk either.”
If that had been the case, I would have explained my plans to Seria in advance and politely asked for her understanding. No matter how excellent a swordsman she is, when you are confronting demonic beasts, you’re always putting your life on the line.
The opponents were demonic beasts fuelled with hostility towards humanity. It was natural to lose your life if something wrong happened.
However, Seria was still a little hesitant. She opened her with difficulty.
“…… But, you just said something different before.”
“I want to kill the beast.”
I said so and got up. It was time to get up. When I shook off the dust my trousers, the seeds that had been buried in the fluff flew away.
“But what I want to do and what I can do are two different things. A guy like me must be able to distinguish those things well, if he wants to survive in this world.”
Seria put on a puzzled face at my answer. She closed her eyes and pondered for a moment, then asked me.
“Is it because she is your friend?”
I didn’t say anything since it seemed relatively clear who she was talking about.
She must be talking about Emma. Her presence was essential to explain my obsession with the demonic beasts dwelling in the forest.
Seria identified the cause of my feelings as ‘Emma.’ Of course, my situation was a little more complicated.
There was that love letter from the future. Emma was attacked just as it stated in the letter, and the next assault was scheduled to happen in today’s field practice.
I had no intention of feeling regretful ever again. I’m sick of sitting blankly in front of the hospital bed of my friend who was seriously wounded.
I couldn’t explain all these details to Seria. If she listened to me, she might arrive at the conclusion as Leto or Celine, that I had gone insane.
So I just asked Seria.
“How would you feel?”
“…… ?”
At the returned question, Seria stared at me without saying a word, perhaps a little startled.
Her eyes asked what I meant, so I smiled and asked her again.
“How would you feel if I were to be attacked by a demonic beast? And if I was so seriously injured to the point that you wouldn’t know whether I would die today or tomorrow.”
Maybe Seria realized what I meant at that moment, and she was so immersed in this troublesome question that she was stuttering ‘ah.’
She tilted her head here and there with her eyes closed. It was a cute side that she had not shown until now. Perhaps she had never been so deeply troubled in front of me.
It was such a difficult problem. Seria was pensive for a long time, and then.
“…… I think I will get a little angry.”
Her reply made me a little happy. When she opened her eyes again, her pupils were still and cold.
Those eyes soon reverted to their normal state after the answer. Seeing that, I approached her and tapped her on the shoulder.
“Yeah, that means we’re friends.”
“We are friends…….”
Seria looked dazed as if a realization had just dawned upon her. She repeated The words ‘we are friends’ over and over again.
It was the first time that she made a friend, so that feeling might be new.
Of course, she’ll get used to it in the future, because she was a woman who excelled in both appearance and background. If only she developed her social skills, people who wanted to be friends with her would have to stand in a long line.
After watching Seria for a while, I turned my gaze away and scanned the surroundings.
The forest was still quiet. It was still midday, so cries of grasshoppers couldn’t be heard. It was a sight peaceful enough to make me doubt the contents of the letter, where it was stated that demonic beasts would attack.
Will the attack really happen?
Maybe I was overreacting too much. After all, a letter from 7 years from the future from now on, isn’t it too much of a joke?
Emma’s case might have been a mere coincidence.
As the hunting festival approaches, the number of demonic beasts appearing in the forest increases. The possibility that one of them had accidentally attacked Emma could not be ruled out.
Rather, there was a side of me that was cowardly wishing for it to be the case.
At best, I was only the second son of a countryside Viscountcy. My background and skills were not something I could change. Talking about the destruction of the world and my friend getting hurt because I didn’t tell them the contents of the letter in advance was too much of a heavy burden to me.
However, there was another me, waiting for the attack of the demonic beast with heightened vigilance.
It was not in the realm of logic, rationality, or reason. An animalistic instinct was speaking to me. You shouldn’t have ignored the letter. That’s why Emma ended up like that.
It was soon revealed which of the two was right.
Rustling, a faint sound whispered in the air.
In addition to the sharp senses I got after losing the memory, it was a subtle sound that I could feel only because I was on high alert. But the moment I sensed that sound, my heart began beating like crazy.
It sensed us. It was moving like this because it had already noticed our presence. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have crept up so silently.
While she was still muttering the word ‘friend’ with a soft smile hung on her face, I soon stabbed Seria’s side.
Ugh, my fingers dug into her soft skin. Seria looked at me in astonishment, but as soon as I put my index finger to her lips, she shut her mouth.
Her eyes became serious. Closing her eyes, her face grew gradually turned grim.
“There are still no signs of… wait no..one? two? four?”
As her voice continued, word by word, the number she uttered grew more and more. Hearing that, I felt a chill down my spine.
It wasn’t a single beast, rather they were acting in a group.
So, they must have come up with a big plan to attack the academy’s students. There were several of them, and in today’s practice, the students are supposed to move in pairs.
No matter how crazy Seria was, she was still Seria. Even she was confused about their existence at first, so most of the students who participated in today’s practice wouldn’t even notice the presence of the demonic beast.
There was no need to even think about what their end would be.
It would be a bloodshed. Perhaps having arrived at a similar conclusion, Seria’s voice grew serious as she moved her hand toward the sword sheathed around her waist.
“Senior Ian, shall we take the lead?”
It was a very reasonable proposal. Enemies were aware of our presence, but they didn’t know that we knew about their presence as well.
In case a fight occurs, the one who strikes first has an absolute advantage. Even so, the forest was an unfavorable battlefield. I had to do anything to slightly tip the scales of victory in our favor.
Seria had the experience of participating in the subjugation of demonic beasts several times. Her judgment was certainly correct.
However, that was under the premise that the purpose was to subdue the beasts.
I shook my head.
“No, we aren’t going to attack. There are too many enemies, even you might get hurt.”
Seria, who seemed to be about to rush at any moment, stopped. Her curious gaze turned to me.
“But, then what…….”
“We should run away.”
It was an answer without even the slightest hesitation.
So, Seria looked at me with an even more astonished gaze. It was the expression of absurdity that could be made only when you heard an option you hadn’t even considered.
But for me, it was a very reasonable decision.
There was no need to take risks. I immediately persuaded Seria.
“I told you we don’t have to take risks. There’s no reason why we have to deal with those demonic beasts. The beasts are still far away, so we just need to run quickly and report it to Professor Derek.”
Then it’s over. After that, Professor Derek will come forward, and the ‘Legendary Monster Hunter’ will show off his true skills and slay these beats.
The risk was low, and the result was clear. There was no reason not to choose this option.
Seria seemed to be unable to accept my suggestion to heart. She bit her lips, wanting to refuse, then shut them tight.
She muttered with eyes that could not completely shake off her hesitation.
“But…….”
“Seria, this is not the time for your meaningless pride.”
Running away was a shameful thing for a swordsman, regardless of age or place of origin. But what can we do? You can’t trade life for pride. This was also common sense.
Seria could not easily shake off her doubts, but the moment she met my resolute gaze, she had no choice but to nod her head as if she had no choice.
No one will get hurt. That was the only hope I had right now.
“…… All right.”
Hesitation still lingered on her face, but Seria seemed to have decided to follow me for now.
From afar, I could feel the presence of more demonic beasts approaching our way. So, both of us began running while hiding our presence at the same time.
The beasts did not notice our movement for a while. However, when they decided that the distance from us was too wide, they started pursuing us in earnest.
However, we had already established a considerable distance from them. No matter how fast the beasts were, the size of the forest was limited. If we were to run like this, Professor Derek will notice soon.
In the meantime, it was enough for both of us to act as a bait to prevent the beasts from attacking other students. That was the gist of my plan.
No one would get hurt, and soon enough this would just become an incident worthy only of being used as a topic of idle banter.
That’s what should have happened.
“Oh, argh…… !”
However, Seria, who was running beside me, groaned and came to a halt.
She grabbed her ankle. That part was somehow familiar. I immediately recalled a scene I had seen a few days ago.
Seria sprained her ankle and couldn’t even move properly.
My head went cold.
No matter how much healing potion is used, the joint fatigue can’t be completely relieved. So it’s dangerous. I’ve said this so many times.
Immediately I almost let out a swear, but Seria’s condition was more important than that. I ran to her with a desperate look.
Seria was sitting down and groaning. A pain that could not be hidden was evident on her face.
“Seria, are you all right?”
“Ahead, go… go ahead, Senior Ian.”
I was stunned for a moment when I heard that. What are you talking about now?
When she said go ahead, it meant that she could no longer run and didn’t want to become a burden.
The problem, however, was that if the injury was so severe that she couldn’t even run, she would have to give up her mobility in battle.
I didn’t even need to explain how much of a disadvantage it would be to have an impaired mobility. In that state, she wants to deal with multiple demonic beasts instead of just one?
It’s impossible. I’m sure she will die. Thus, I screamed in rage.
“Are you crazy? When you can’t use your legs…….”
“It’s my fault.”
Seria replied calmly. So I shut my mouth.
She looked like she had given up. Even so, her hand was fumbling around the hilt of the sword on her waist, as if she would not allow herself to simply die without putting up a fight.
“I must take responsibility for my decisions. I was the one who didn’t listen to you, Senior Ian.”
It made sense.
I warned that using the healing potion would put a strain on the ankle joint. However, it was Seria who ignored my warning and repeated her excessive training.
She was already a swordsman. Of course, she had to take responsibility for what she had done. She was right, I should leave her.
No, is it really her fault?
After all, wasn’t it me who drew her in?
I felt a headache. The images of Emma and her father flashed before my eyes. Regret and guilt welled up.
Along with revenge.
Like a fire being ignited, the flames of emotion engulfed my memories, stained with remorse.
I was desperate. I said I would never feel regret ever again, so I stepped forward, holding my sword.
My eyes were focused straight ahead.
I felt they were gradually approaching.
There was no time now.
“Seria, can you walk?”
“If I put on a splint, somehow… So don’t worry too much…….”
“Leave.”
Seria was speechless at my calm voice. As if she had heard something wrong, she frowned slightly and asked.
“……Yes?”
“Leave first, I will stay behind and act as the bait.”
But the decision has already been made. There was no shaking in my voice. I held my breath as I sensed the presence of the demonic beasts approaching from afar.
Seria, who had been staring at me blankly for a moment, immediately shook her head. It meant that she couldn’t accept that. Her voice became urgent.
“I can’t. It’s my fault! I will take responsibility…….”
“Seria.”
I got up and stood in the direction in which the beasts were approaching.
If I had to fight, I had to attack first. It was the first time I’m fighting for my life. Still, my heart was strangely calm.
It was strange. Ever since I got the letter, everything has been a mess.
Who the hell did I become when I lost my memories? Why did my senses become so sharp, and why is my heart so calm even though this battle could decide whether I’ll live or die?
Leaving behind all the unsolvable questions, I turned around and looked at Seria.
She even forgot about the pain in her ankle while waiting for my answer. I decided to always remember that cold expression.
“From now on, don’t make such expressions like that on your face while you’re talking with your friends.”
Having said that, I rushed forward. The demonic beasts were approaching. I had to secure a suitable position.
I heard Seria calling me from behind, but I ignored her. She too would soon find out that it would be best to run away and inform Professor Derek of the situation.
Before engaging in battle with the demonic beasts, I rummaged through my pocket.
I felt it. The firm sensation of the potion bottle.
I thought of Emma again and her father, who crumbled down with a pale complexion on his face.
The demonic beasts were approaching.
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