85 – 37. A Life Unworthy of Congratulations (1)
“Please open! Just open, damn it!”
Since entering the bunker, Ariel continued to pound on the door.
The tightly sealed door showed no sign of budging. However, that didn’t mean she could give up.
“Now that I finally know the truth… I’ve reached a point where I can empathize with the sacrifice!”
She had to apologize.
Even if it meant lowering her head to Ian, who had to wrap his head around the foolish actions of his arrogant younger sibling.
“I haven’t even been able to say I’m sorry.”
That’s why she couldn’t give up. She tried pushing down on the seemingly immovable handle, pulling with all her might.
Her body, exhausted from the previous battles, couldn’t muster much strength. Yet, the more she struggled, the more she succumbed to the forces of evil.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Without a moment’s pause, she pulled on the handle. How much time had passed? It was a moment when she was about to gather strength again.
“It’s useless. It won’t open no matter how hard you try.”
“B-Bianca, sister?”
The moment Bianca, who had barely regained consciousness thanks to Reyna’s treatment, opened her mouth.
Supported by Reyna, she struggled to open her mouth.
“If my memory serves me right… this is an emergency shelter bunker. It’s designed for when accidents occur inside the building. It’s created for the survivors who couldn’t escape in time. It’s a device made in anticipation of accidents like explosions or building collapses. Pulling on it won’t make it open.”
“How can you be so sure? Your knowledge might be different from what my sister knows.”
Ariel stared with trembling pupils. Seeing the despair filling her face, even if it meant telling a well-intentioned lie.
In a situation like this, it’s best to tell the truth.
Bianca reached out her arm with great effort and pointed to the sentence engraved on the ceiling of the bunker.
“The symbol here belongs to the Magic Engineering Society of the Mage Union. The devices they created are still used in each tower.”
The Dark Mage had often been rejected by the mages, but Bianca’s father, their leader, was an undeniable presence.
He would occasionally participate in meetings held by the high-ranking mages in the towers.
Bianca, who had followed her father on those occasions, spent her time exploring the towers as she couldn’t enter the meeting room.
She still remembered the proud presentation of the bunker by the mages of the towers.
“This bunker is also one of the things they created. It can protect the interior safely for 12 hours, no matter what external impact is applied.”
“What? Then…”
“What you’re thinking is correct. You can receive protection for 12 hours, but you have to stay inside without moving. That’s how the barrier operates from the outside.”
What those words meant was simple.
“That’s why I told you not to do it. Since we have to be here for 12 hours anyway.”
“I have to stay still. What is this…”
In exchange for guaranteeing safety, it meant that Ariel couldn’t provide any help to Ian, who would be fighting outside.
For Ariel, it was as bad as it could get.
“It can’t be… I didn’t even apologize.”
Of course, Ariel didn’t think Ian would easily fall to the monsters.
After all, who was Ian Volkanov?
Wasn’t he the person who not only dealt with the four Demon Kings in a short time, but also did all sorts of wicked things when he was active as a member of the Hero Party?
He fought desperately to protect all party members, regardless of their rank, so even if he encountered those forces, he wouldn’t easily give up his life.
However, if you think differently, even if you win, you might end up with tremendous scars.
“But the current Ian is struggling against multiple enemies!”
Unless using a sword, approaching enemies with just fists is inevitably unavoidable.
Even if you defeat monsters with one attack, the remaining ones will surely thrust sharp claws afterward.
Thinking about getting injured by them.
Even knowing how the battle will unfold, tears were flowing incessantly as he thought of his helpless self.
“No! It can’t be!”
A figure close to despair. How much had he been crying like that?
“Ah… aaah….”
Thud!
Ariel, who had been screaming until her voice gave out, finally slammed her head against the wall and lost consciousness.
“Ah, Ariel! Are you okay?”
Reyna, surprised, tried to approach Ariel to check her condition.
Thump!
“Hey, why?”
Bianca’s hand was faster. Although Reyna looked at her as if asking why she was blocking, Bianca just shook her head.
“Leave her alone for now. Even if we wake her up, there’s nothing we can do.”
No doubt about the fact that she couldn’t leave this place for 12 hours, no matter what she did.
For Ariel now, one minute probably felt like a year, wouldn’t it?
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“If it’s going to be like this anyway…”
Taking a moment to cool her head was much better for her.
“Because after sleeping, my stamina will recover. It won’t be too late to help Ian then.”
With that thought in mind, she tried to prepare for the days ahead.
“Why… Why is my arm…”
Her body trembled like a bamboo tree.
Even though she pulled her into her arms, she was taken aback by the trembling arm. Reyna moved and held Bianca’s arm.
“You pretended to be okay, but I was worried, too, you know?”
“Huh? Me, me?”
“You were worried that something might go wrong with Senior Ian, right?”
“That’s…”
Because her thoughts were read, embarrassment rushed in like a flood.
Maybe Reyna didn’t know that Bianca had feelings for Ian, considering she knew that Bianca had been spending more time with him lately, she tried to hide her emotions to not hurt her.
“I shouldn’t… say that.”
Why would I worry about Ian? Absolutely not, whether he lives or dies is none of my concern.
She wanted to spit out lies like that out of shame. But strangely, the words didn’t come out easily.
“Uh…”
Bianca couldn’t continue her words and stammered. Despite that, Reyna only showed a faint smile.
“Don’t worry too much. Senior Ian won’t collapse in a place like this.”
“…Aren’t you worried? You never know.”
“It’s possible…. Why wouldn’t it be? I know how strong those guys are because I’ve fought them myself.”
“But how can you be so sure? You can’t be certain that Ian won’t fall.”
Reyna only raised the corner of her mouth in response to Bianca’s pitiful cry.
“My master, who was an elf and a member of the Hero Party, once said something like this. After living for hundreds of years, he felt it. He believed that there were only six people on this continent who were stronger than him.”
“Six….”
“Among those people, even if he is currently the weakest, he judged that he would eventually rise to become the strongest.”
Ilian Sigurd.
He, who was called the Heretic of Dae Surim, had dominated the entire continent for hundreds of years, living up to his prodigious lineage.
Unlike the elves who loved nature and avoided fighting, he was aggressive and enjoyed revelry. Whenever he visited a village, he would challenge the seemingly powerful humans to a duel, showcasing his honed skills and trampling his opponents.
But even he couldn’t be certain of victory against certain humans.
Five of them were masters who existed on the continent, and the last one was a young human man.
Although he achieved victory at the end of the battle, if the young man had been given a little more time, the outcome would have been different, he was certain of that.
Furthermore, when he reached his prime, he believed that there would be no one in this continent who could rival him.
Impressed, Ilian doted on him and often told his martial arts stories to his disciples after the disbandment of the party.
Reyna also remembered the protagonist of those stories, as she had heard them countless times and had grown tired of them.
“That’s Ian, our senior. Our master was certain that if he was given time, he would become the strongest human on the continent.”
“Then….”
“Our master said that several years ago…. Now that I’ve become stronger, don’t you think it’s worth believing? The senior I know is not someone who would kneel before monsters.”
As Reyna continued speaking with conviction, her cheeks flushed for a moment, causing her to hesitate.
“And there’s still so much I want to do with my senior; we can’t break up already, can we? Senior, don’t you think so too?”
“Hmm… Now that I think about it.”
Bianca could finally breathe a sigh of relief after seeing Reyna’s gloomy smile.
She, too, had received quite a bit of help from Ian. Even in the Brookes Territory, overrun by zombies, Ian had resolved everything without a hint of crisis. And that wasn’t all.
Considering his past, seen through the eyes of the specters, it was filled with trials.
‘In that case.’
If Ian, who had stood up in the face of hardships and adversities, wasn’t a helpless human who would crumble before those monsters.
With that determination, Bianca decided to prepare for the future.
She would rest as quickly as possible, replenish her strength, and assist Ian the moment the bunker opened.
As she entertained that thought, she closed her eyes.
And when she opened them after a while…
Roar!
“The barrier….”
Bianca shifted her gaze towards the door as the magical power of the barrier protecting the bunker began to disperse.
She watched the disappearing barrier, as if melting away.