Chapter 194
After everyone returned to Rikeion.
Bargan, who had lost his hearing, was gradually adapting to being a Protector.
In the laboratory, Team 1 had gathered. They each had to tackle piles of assignments given by the professors.
“Liam, Liam.”
Emily, sitting next to Liam, tapped his shoulder and whispered.
“Hey… doesn’t Bargan seem a bit off lately?”
“Off how?”
“I don’t know, maybe a bit sluggish or something… just a little weird.”
Emily’s observation seemed valid.
Indeed. It was strange enough that even Liam, a team member, could feel that Bargan had been somewhat insensitive to sound lately.
‘Is he already undergoing the trial for his Unique Spell?’
Liam realized that a trial process for Bargan’s Unique Spell was necessary.
While it felt a bit early, considering his always-thirsty-for-achievement nature, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say he moved up the timing.
“Well… I’m not sure.”
So Liam decided to play dumb.
After all, Bargan hadn’t revealed anything to others, and he knew making a fuss would certainly not yield good reports.
“Really? Hmm. It’s definitely strange.”
“Maybe his condition is just off. Why are you so worried?”
“Worried? It just looks a little off, so…”
“—You’re noisy. Hurry up and finish the assignment instead of chit-chatting.”
Bargan cut off Emily’s words with precision.
Since they’d have to jump straight into the group assignment after finishing their individual tasks, he snapped at them because time was ticking.
Emily looked startled, like a student caught goofing off during class, and then quickly forced a smile.
“I thought you were super focused, but here you are talking like a ghost. I guess I was completely mistaken.”
Of course.
Emily muttered to herself, glancing at Liam.
It should have been loud enough for him to hear, but when there was no response, her head turned automatically.
“…….”
“…Liam?”
“……”
“Liam? What’s up, Liam?”
“……Uh?”
Liam, spaced out for a moment, regained focus and looked at Emily.
He forced a feigned casual smile.
“Oh, I just zoned out for a sec.”
“Again? You’ve been doing that a lot lately. Is there something wrong? It feels like the training intensity might be too high. Anyway.”
“It’s nothing. Don’t worry.”
“Still… if you’re not feeling well, make sure to tell me, okay?”
“Yeah, got it.”
Separated, Bargan quietly observed Liam’s expression.
Then, as if it was no big deal, he withdrew his interest and focused back on the spell before him.
‘Of all assignments, it requires hearing, but at the same time, it helps develop the Protector.’
The appearance of a spider web with legs reaching out in many directions. Every time he touched a thread of mana, a clear musical sound resonated.
There was a sound.
Barghan was adjusting the pitch while shaping it with mana.
Whenever an incomprehensible note appeared, he would tweak it multiple times to verify.
To produce the correct sound, a delicate balance of mana’s intensity was required.
It was a kind of instrument that varied its sound depending on the strength of the mana.
“Just a moment.”
Sometimes while continuing his assignment like this, Erica would chime in.
She, who stuck closely beside him, corrected the slight discrepancies in the notes produced by the threads of mana.
Erica, the noble lady of the Portlet Family, had received thorough early education in music, making her a great help.
With her precise manipulation of mana, she produced a perfect sound from the thread and smiled gently.
A rare relaxed expression.
The fact that she was being helpful and could work on this together seemed to bring her joy.
“… Done.”
As a satisfying sound came from the thread, Erica beamed and turned to face Barghan.
The moment suddenly felt intimate, every breath felt tangible.
Their gazes were solely captured by each other’s eyes.
Suddenly feeling bashful about this fact, Erica shifted her gaze down, though she only pulled back her head slightly, her body remained close.
As Barghan looked at that somewhat unfamiliar yet nostalgic sight, the laboratory door suddenly opened.
It was Diphelia and Bantlo.
“What brings you here?”
Barghan asked the duo, and Diphelia replied.
“I’d like to have a word with Erica for a moment.”
At those words, Erica, already recoiling, completely hid behind Barghan.
Diphelia and Bantlo felt a mix of sadness and sympathy at Erica’s reaction.
Diphelia approached slowly, trying not to scare Erica and said in a gentle tone.
“Even for just a moment, could we have a conversation, Erica?”
“……”
Erica’s grip tightened unconsciously on the hem of Barghan’s clothing.
She could manage being in the same room as others, but anything beyond that was still difficult for her.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Barghan wrapped his palm around Erica’s clenched fist.
As she lifted her face and their eyes met to understand the meaning, Barghan asked,
“Are you okay with this?”
Barghan would leave the choice to Erica.
Feeling Barghan’s warmth envelop her trembling hand, Erica thought to herself…
Perhaps it would be okay now.
That sense of reassurance prompted her to nod.
“Yeah… I’m okay.”
*
Finally, Diphelia managed to secure a moment alone with Erica.
In a dark private room set up in a corner of the laboratory, she nervously began her first sentence.
“I’m sorry to drop by so suddenly. I’m a bit flustered too, Erica. I felt like if I didn’t do this, I wouldn’t get another chance… So I took the liberty of speaking up.”
“…….”
Even though Barghan was in the next room, the current space was just Erica, Diphelia, and Bantlo.
That fact made Erica tremble, wanting to flee, yet she held on and listened to Diphelia’s words.
She didn’t want to live as a coward forever.
“I don’t know how frightening your experiences have been… Sadly, I can only guess that it’s terrifying enough just to think about.”
Diphelia’s voice was soaked in sorrow.
She was genuinely pained thinking about whatever Erica had gone through.
What the essence of that experience was, whether it was a hallucination or something else, she had no idea, but as a saint, Diphelia felt her heart ache with concern for her friend Erica.
“If only… just if only, if it were a physical wound instead of one of the heart… I could heal it with my power…”
Diphelia mourned the fact that she couldn’t help the deep wounds in Erica’s heart even with her saintly power.
She who is sad.
Using the power of the Saint, even if it has a great adverse effect on her own body, Diphelia was willing to sacrifice herself if it meant she could return Erica to her original state.
“……”
Bantlo, who shared a longer bond with Erica than Diphelia, stood nearby and couldn’t say a word.
He could only silently watch the anxious Erica and the pitying Diphelia.
There were many questions he wanted to ask and many things he wanted to say, but no words could easily escape his lips.
He couldn’t know if any sentence or word he spoke would strike her like a dagger.
“Erica, do you know? You were my support.”
Diphelia reminisced about her memories with Erica.
In a short period of time, such a thick layer of memories.
Longing for the stacked short history, she opened her lips.
“Because you were on the election committee, I was able to become the Student Council President.”
It was a student council election she had stumbled into thanks to Vargan, but as the election progressed, Diphelia realized her true intentions that were not covered in dust.
—I want to become the Student Council President. I want to lead Academia in a more desirable direction.
That’s why Diphelia didn’t pull out halfway and didn’t try to get by with a half-hearted effort.
Research on divine bugs, studying magic, the work of the student council… She divided her nonexistent time and devoted herself passionately to the election for Student Council President.
Her biggest competitor was Clemens, the daughter of the top-ranked hero.
It seemed impossible to keep up by just standing still.
She tightened herself further, never letting her guard down.
“It was a little… no, actually quite a lot challenging. There were times I thought about giving up and wondered if this was enough… But… I didn’t. I was able to endure it because you were there, Erica.”
Erica, a solid ally both mentally and physically.
With her by her side, Diphelia could become the next Student Council President.
Diphelia expressed her gratitude for everything they had shared.
“During the Class Battle, Erica reached out her hand to me first. If I hadn’t doubted Erica in the end, I definitely would have achieved better results, and I wouldn’t have hurt her… I can’t even count how many times I blamed myself for that.”
Under Frieda’s tongue, Diphelia had doubted and attacked Erica.
She didn’t know how many times she regretted and reproached herself for that.
It took several days before she could finally speak to Erica again, using an assignment as an excuse.
“During the first semester’s assignment period, we analyzed spells together… dressed up familiars… it was so much fun…”
As she spoke of the past, tears welled up in her eyes.
Though it wasn’t a tale from long ago, it felt so distant that she feared she couldn’t return to it.
Diphelia bowed her head and quietly wiped away her tears.
Since Erica returned from Seiman Dungeon, the Saint’s eyes had never been dry.
Diphelia forced herself to make her eyes strong.
She thought that showing a weak side would only make Erica more anxious, so she sharpened her gaze and continued her words.
“I want to help Erica too.”
“……”
“It’s okay if it takes a long time. You came to me before, so this time I will slowly approach you.”
Slowly, to a pace that Erica could accept.
No matter how much time it takes, patiently.
“I’ll walk so slowly that Erica won’t be surprised… and someday we’ll be able to talk and laugh like we used to.”
Diphelia pours out her sincerity.
Even if it feels like she might burst into tears, she holds it back and puts on the brightest smile she can muster.
“Don’t worry, Erica. No matter how hard it gets, I won’t give up. …We’re friends, right?”
“…We’re friends, right?”
“……”
From a somewhat distant space.
Erica facing Diphelia.
Although it was a dark room, the small glimmer of Diphelia’s tears reflected in Erica’s eyes.
Maybe that’s why.
Erica, who had been curled up tightly, slowly began to relax.
Like the snow melting gradually as if welcoming early spring after a harsh winter.
“I’m sorry.”
“Erica…?”
A delicate word from Erica.
A flower bud gently raising its head.
“I’m sorry for being scared… and avoiding you.”
Hope seemed to shine down from that fragile statement.
Erica also felt guilt towards Diphelia and Bantlo.
It wasn’t her will to avoid them.
However, even if she wanted to be close or have a deep conversation, the thick layer of fear kept tormenting her…
—You know, Laila. What does this mean?
“…!”
The conversation she had with Laila.
Her voice full of affection, and the warmth.
—That’s a metaphor for saying I love you. It seems Lord Vargan loves you a lot.
—Really?! Is that true? So… he loves me as much as Laila loves me?
—Yes, just as I love you, Lady Erica loves me. Lord Vargan also loves you.
Memories of her childhood, accumulated over time with Laila, the happiness.
It tormented her.
It wouldn’t let go.
The deeper that happiness was, the bigger the pit it left behind.
“I hate it…”
Erica’s breath quickened.
The figure of Laila began to overlap with Diphelia, right in front of her.
The one who said she loved her, loved her more than anyone else, or so she claimed.
—Here, this is a letter for Laila! I always wrote to Lord Vargan but today, I’m writing for Laila!
—Laila, look! I’ve finally learned Warp Magic!
—How… Laila… It seems Lord Vargan has started to hate me now.
“I hate it… I hate it. I hate it, hate it…!”
Laila, who had been with her since birth.
Sometimes a friend, sometimes a mother.
The one who comforted her when her father scolded her.
Laila, Laila.
The one she loved so much, the one who gave her love.
—May the goddess’s blessing be eternal…!
Laila, the follower of the Goddess Church.
“I’m scared.”
I’m scared of getting hurt again.
“Erica!”
Crack—!
Ice burst forth with an unusually low chill, centered around Erica.
Mana gone rampant due to extreme anxiety.
The deathly cold, pressed under fear, filled the room in an instant as if to explode from Erica.
Diphelia reflexively tried to cast divine magic to stabilize Erica’s mind, but it was too much.
The deathly chill emanating from Erica spread, as if it would consume everything—
“…Maybe it’s still too much.”
A voice sounded in Erica’s ear as she was on the verge of losing consciousness.
The only sanctuary she had, Lord Vargan’s voice.
He had been there from some point, embracing Erica and gently patting her back. The ripples of mana from Vargan’s touch.
Suddenly, the rampaging mana of Erica normalized in an instant, allowing her to stabilize.
The extreme cold that could have easily killed everyone here ceased, merely due to his presence and a little bit of Curse Magic.
In her fading vision, Erica saw Vargan.
The one who rushed to her side whenever she was in trouble, solving everything while she slept.
Truly sorry… and so sorry, that she wished to throw herself away out of guilt.
A man she loved that much.
With Vargan’s intervention, the spark that could have led to a major incident was extinguished.
