NOVEL WEB Chapter 62
Volcanoes and storms.
Or in other words, Inferblaino and Stormblade.
“Rui, what do you want me to buy? Or where do you want to play?”
“Lati, Rui has to work with her mother on causal restoration…”
“Shut up! I know El’s orders too. But we should take a break!”
“Uhmm…”
And while the powers of the two clans were nearly equal, the relationship between Lati and Kunder was an exception.
Here, Inferblaino was overwhelmingly superior.
“Come on, let’s ditch that guy trying to play big brother and just have fun together!”
“Uhmm…”
To be honest, I couldn’t understand why Lati cared for me so much.
The basic perception dragons have of humans can be defined by the word ‘insignificant’.
And if we break it down here, dragons friendly to humans and those who aren’t can be classified, and Stormblade belonged to the former.
However, the Inferblaino clan was famously known for hating humans since ancient times.
It was close to common sense, not only in the original work but in this world as well.
But since she treated me so kindly, frankly, I had no idea why.
“Huh? Rui.”
“…I’m supposed to go research with my mentor.”
“Well, I guess Rui has no choice but to say that~.”
Lati’s red eyes narrowed slightly.
With a look of disappointment, Lati waved goodbye and vanished engulfed in flames.
Kunder too was pushed out of the castle by Lati’s insistence.
I turned back towards my mentor’s research lab.
“Looks like Lati came by.”
“Yes.”
“Then, shall we continue? Today we’ll inject the mana of the stars into the specified phrase…”
So, I focused again on my causal restoration research with my mentor.
For a moment, Lati’s appearance lightened my heart, but the instant I thought of something else, I felt a suffocating weight.
So, I was thinking of this research as an escape.
It was something I had to do anyway, and if I didn’t focus on this, I wouldn’t be able to withstand the countless feelings of guilt and longing welling up inside me.
Maybe my mentor read my thoughts, as he kept giving me more work.
“Call for the master key. Let’s redo this part.”
“Yes.”
And thus, another day passed.
*
“……..”
Two weeks passed.
It had been two weeks since I last saw the hero party.
I had definitely tried to ignore it, but as the days went by, my thoughts only grew deeper.
Clang!
“Ah.”
I only realized I was working with my mentor after breaking a glass tool.
“Rui.”
Then my mentor took off his glasses and said.
“…… Yes.”
“Let’s call it a day here for research.”
“I can do more.”
“No, you can’t. No more talking, just rest. Go back to your room and check your appearance.”
What’s wrong with my appearance?
What does it matter what my appearance is?
I stood in front of a mirror made of ice, facing myself.
There was a girl.
A girl with pure white hair.
But she looked really bad.
Her once shiny hair was now dry and tangled, and dark circles were heavily under her eyes.
It was serious enough that I couldn’t even use “I’ve been researching all day” as an excuse.
‘…Why is this happening?’
In the end, I couldn’t do anything that day.
So I hated my mentor.
If I had at least been working on research, I could have not thought about anything.
With free time, all sorts of emotions burst forth like a dam breaking.
“…”
The only thing I could do was curl up in my room and cover myself with a blanket.
How much time passed?
The door opened, and someone came in.
“Rui.”
“…Lati unnie.”
Her hair flowed in the air like an active volcano as she approached my bed.
“Look at you, all messy.”
Lati’s warm hands gently caressed my face.
Normally, I would have tried to resist her touch, but for some reason, I didn’t want to.
“Rui, what’s wrong? Is something the matter?”
Something the matter.
If there is something, I guess there is.
Let’s say one day, I learned the truth that everything I did so far almost killed others and made them suffer.
I wonder how many people would take that lightly or easily overcome it.
At least, I couldn’t.
Back in Alpares, I was relieved that many people weren’t hurt or killed unlike in the original story.
But I almost brought about a greater danger.
Because of dozens of fortresses, Alpares could have faced extinction, and even the empire itself could have been in danger.
In Lakr, I sought cooperation from people to eliminate victims caused by the plague and devised city purification devices.
But when I participated in the hero party, instead of Lastok, Mercadia descended.
If it weren’t for the unique magic restoring it, and if the party members hadn’t tried hard, the city would have been half-destroyed, and the awakened Mercadia would have led the world to destruction.
All because of me.
That’s what happened.
“…”
“Rui.”
As I remained silent, Lati called out to me again.
And then she made a totally unexpected proposal.
“Rui, should I take you back to the hero party?”
“…Huh?”
Returning to the hero party.
If I got Lati’s help like Kunder did, I could return to the party in no time.
If that were to happen…
“I’ve already heard everything from El. I know what you’re worried about and what you miss. If it were me, I could take you there. Why? Because I’m ultimately a member of Infeurblaino’s clan.”
“What do you miss? If it were me, I could take you there. Why? Because I’m ultimately of the Inferblaino clan.”
Her blood belongs to Inferblaino.
Officially, there’s no need to follow Duke Stormblast’s orders.
Perhaps it was the hope of encountering them for a moment that gave me strength throughout my body.
But soon, I realized.
‘…If I’m there, things will only get worse.’
Due to the law of causality in this world, I can no longer be with them.
In the end, I had no choice but to decline Lati’s suggestion.
“I’m sorry, it’s fine.”
With her proposal, I resolved to no longer hold on to my feelings.
Not for Ariya, Serelin, Rapirie, Niabella, or even Aswel.
Let’s bury the joys of the past deep in our hearts.
Someday, once they defeat the Demon King, there will be a chance to see them, so let’s wait, thinking of that time.
After all that effort to promise myself.
“Really? But it doesn’t matter. Soon, the Hero party will arrive at Stormblast.”
“…Yes?”
Hearing Lati’s next words, my resolution quickly crumbled.
*
Two days after she vanished into Duke Stormblast’s embrace.
Naturally, the atmosphere of the party sank in an instant.
“Rui…”
Even Ariya, who never lost her smile, sat blankly murmuring her name.
Serelin, feeling she hadn’t been of any help, kept training tirelessly.
Niabella, particularly following Ariya, was even more engulfed in gloom.
“…”
And Aswel was regretting it.
‘I shouldn’t have avoided her.’
Trying to hide his feelings, he drifted away from the city where she was, burying himself in requests.
‘I should have left sooner.’
If only he had taken on just one less request, perhaps things wouldn’t have happened this way.
‘…Instead, I should have confessed my feelings beforehand.’
If he had thrown everything away and confessed his heart to her early on.
[What do you think of Rui?]
In the past, Ariya had asked Aswel, who was fidgeting on her lap.
Aswel had tried to brush off her question by simply replying ‘comrade.’
[No, I’m asking about the Hero’s true feelings.]
But he couldn’t escape the gaze of the Saint.
Though he said nothing, it felt like his heart was laid bare.
Still, as Aswel couldn’t say anything, eventually Ariya spoke to him.
[If you still don’t know, try to realize those feelings on your own.]
With that, the two rose and returned to the mansion.
Keeping a slight distance, Ariya led him slowly along the way.
On the return to the mansion, Aswel was in constant torment over Ariya’s question.
What does the Hero think of the Mage?
The answer was simple.
Unlike himself, the Hero—was truly a remarkable Mage.
A great Mage.
A person with power that is incomparably stronger than himself.
A person with a noble spirit, willing to sacrifice himself when the party and city are in crisis.
At some point, the Hero’s feelings for the Mage became ‘respect’.
But…
“……..”
Could that respect really be said to be pure with confidence?
The Hero could not answer.
In the moment of realization, the Hero became Aswel, and the Mage became Rui.
The Hero respects the Mage.
But at the same time,
Aswel loved Rui.
If these feelings had been directly conveyed, would this frustrating heart have found resolution?
From the moment she disappeared, Aswel felt as if he were lost.
He wanted to chase after her and bring her back, but his mind and reality denied such thoughts.
Because he is the Hero.
Many people hope for his help.
But at the same time, he didn’t want to let go, so he couldn’t leave Lakr, where her last traces remained.
Ahaha!
Kyaaruk………..
Laughter from children could be heard beyond the inn.
And above them, a shining device illuminated the children’s night path.
Her creation brought joy to others.
He wanted to share this fact.
“What should I… do…?”
Kwang!
“Aswel!”
At that moment, the inn door swung open as if it would break, and Rapirie entered.
When she returned from wherever she had gone after her disappearance, the party members, who had lost their vigor, looked at her.
“Ariya! Serelin! Niabella! What are you all doing here!! Looking so down! Is it because Rui is gone?!”
“………”
“………”
When no one answered, Rapirie let out a big sigh.
Then, she slammed something onto the table and said,
“Ugh!! I really didn’t want to do this!! Put on warm clothes and get ready to set out!”
“Rapirie? What is this…?”
What she placed was a piece of paper.
[Royal Letter from Yggdrasil]
[Requesting an official audience with the Stormblast clan regarding the trade of a branch of the World Tree, and the representative to be sent is the Hero party……]
“Uh…?”
“I seriously never planned to go back when the party disbanded, but what’s with this because of that guy!”
And below that paper was an additional short note.
[In exchange for this document, Rapirie is deemed to have officially accepted the royal succession of Yggdrasil……]
“Rapirie…?”
“I don’t know what’s bothering you, but now we have the legitimate authority to visit Stormblast! Let’s go!”
Saying this, Rapirie lifted her four companions, like a blue whirlwind.