NOVEL WEB Chapter 13- Friends
[Day Six]
[9.30 PM]
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[Blake's POV:]
Since yesterday I haven't had much of a conversation with Catherine due to some reasons.
I never intended to tell her about Blake's backstory and how he became what he was.
Why does Blake behave like that and why some of his life decisions have affected some people adversely? I never intended to let her know about it.
There was no particular reason for me to hide it but narrating such a depressing past couldn't have felt good. However, yesterday when I saw the picture of Blake's mother, emotions just began to boil up. It felt like there was some part of the original Blake's soul that became alive and in that moment I lost control over my emotions.
Thankfully, Catherine didn't ask me about it anymore and we spent the whole day practicing magic. I pushed myself beyond what I could handle and without a single complaint yesterday, she healed me every time.
It felt like she pitied me and wanted me to get prepared to face Carlson. I couldn't think of any other reason for her silence. And those concerned eyes she randomly directed at me, further solidified my theory.
Well, it helped that the forgiveness meter has reached eighty but things have become a little awkward between us.
[During dinner]
Since the dining space no longer exists I and Catherine have been eating in bedrooms.
Today I was called into her room as she placed the food that she prepared with the last remaining ingredients. The supplies are now empty and that's why I could mostly see rice and soup on the table.
Regardless, I could never be displeased with the food if someone had put effort into making it.
We both sat down facing each other before I picked up the rice bowl and my chopsticks.
Just as I started to eat, Catherine spoke up, "Tomorrow is the day, no?"
I didn't show any surprise at her question and knew that she was aware of it as well. Regardless, I answered,
"Yep. Tomorrow the barrier would be lifted and you would be freed." Hearing my response, her shoulders tensed up, for unknown reasons.
I was not sure what could be making her anxious now...I mean surely she must be thinking that after exiting the place I would die at the hands of Carlson. However, there wasn't anything she could do about it.
The moment I chose to kidnap her, my destiny was sealed to fall into ruins. I can surely escape death but my situation afterwards would be nothing less than hell.
I didn't think much about it and continued eating.
"Blake...can I confess something?" My movements halted upon hearing her words before I nodded thoughtlessly.
She hadn't started to eat at all as he interlaced her fingers while resting her hands on the table and spoke after a long sigh,
"Until the second day after I started living with you, I had a very bad impression of you...or to be precise, I hated you more than anyone in this world. Not only did you take advantage of my vulnerability but also tried to put your hands on me."
Well, that much was in the known but that didn't stop me from feeling a little guilty.
I didn't utter a word and allowed her to continue, "Then later, I found out that you are not that bad...and actually have a caring side. A side which no one in the school knows and a side that greatly surprised me."
She slumped back, and while looking at me she said, "Slowly I found out that you have so many different sides that I couldn't have ever imagined before living with you."
She leaned forward, and asked with a hesitant smile, "Although we have been through many phases, I have got to know a lot about you....and because of that I want to ask...c-can you be my friend?"
"Oh...." I finally exhaled the breath which I had been holding since earlier.
She raised the bar of anticipation so much that her end proposal felt anticlimatic.
"What's with the lackluster response?! Just so you know, this is the first time I am asking someone to be my friend."
I barely held myself from chuckling seeing those red cheeks and the way she suddenly got excited.
With my brows elevated I asked her, "Isn't Carlson your friend?"
Catherine blinked while her brows remained knitted as she said, "He's more like a little brother to me."
....oh. That must have hurt Carlson if he would have heard this.
Regardless, I couldn't let the lady wait anymore since those cheeks could no longer seem to inflate.
I extended my right hand to her, and asked, "Will you grant me the honor to become your friend?"
Catherine sat down and looked at my hand.
She coughed and corrected her posture before offering her hand, "I will be glad to be your friend. Please take care of me from now on."
"Likewise."
******
That night I didn't practice magic much since I knew the importance of saving energy and reenergizing myself with a proper eight hours of sleep.
Truth be told I was nervous since I have to face numerous challenges from here on as Blake and after facing so many hurdles in my previous life, I didn't want to burden myself with someone else's problems.
But did I have a choice? I died somehow in my previous life and was reincarnated as this mid-rank boss.
Canonically Blake would die tomorrow after getting tortured by Carlson and it would somehow be beneficial for Carlson's development as a character.
After all, I would be the first 'person' he would be killing consciously.
But things have to change now since I don't plan on dying tomorrow. I have devised a plan that would help me escape those sharp claws of the Dragon of Ragnarok and safeguard my future.
I need to graduate from this Academy to pursue the dream I have thought of. And because of the contract I have formed with the Headmaster, I know I wouldn't be kicked out.
Everything was planned and sorted. Now it's just the wait for tomorrow.
******
[Outside the barrier]
Under the starry sky, several individuals were stationed around the barrier, their identical uniforms marking them unmistakably as soldiers.
Amidst the crowd, the center of the formation which was facing the entrance of the mansion, stood two individuals wearing different outfits than the others.
The brown-haired girl named Charlotte stood beside her friend as she asked him, "Are you ready for tomorrow?"
Carlson, who has been standing here nonstop for the past seven days, clenched his jaw and replied in a heavy tone, "More than I have ever been."
Charlotte narrowed her eyes a little and asked, "What if Catherine still shows protest against killing Blake...after all, she is a nun?"
Charlotte isn't too familiar with the Saintess but she got the feeling that the blond nun can do something like saving that criminal.
Carlson scoffed, "I won't give her or anyone the time to show any protest." With grey smoke releasing from the side of his lips and his eyes burning red with anger, he added, "Tomorrow...nothing can stop me from tearing that creature apart."
Charlotte didn't show any reaction to that....but inwardly she felt slightly content.
Blake's past is marred by actions that are widely considered unforgivab
le.
And destroying Charlotte's family is one of them.
*******
A/N: The next chapter would be interesting.