6. Proof of Existence (17)
Celine’s ensuing statement was as follows:
As usual, Celine left for late-night training. It was to get used to the amount of mana that had increased rapidly recently, and to get used to the battle ax, a weapon he was unfamiliar with.
The only problem was that Celine’s training was accompanied by noise.
Swinging the sword did not generate an annoyingly loud volume. However, the story was different for Battle X, which was of equal length to his height. The noise generated was bound to be as strong as the destructive power.
Celine, in particular, enjoys the side of a fighter who uses her magical energy with all her might. In other words, it meant that the weapon could not be suspended in midair. Anyone can guess what kind of sound the Battle X would make when it was stuck in the ground.
It was the reason she had to step out of the orphanage.
It was then that an unexpected encounter took place.
It was a magical moment. As the moonlight broke through the veil of twilight clouds, the light reflected from the white mask hit Celine’s retinas.
With the wall in front, silence hung between the man and woman.
“Is the atmosphere strange when you say that?”
“Shut up, because now is an important time… And where am I?”
What the hell are you selling your eyes on?
Actually, I was a man who sold too much even if I sold one eye, so I decided to remain silent for now.
“There was no conversation. I instinctively sensed it. There’s something strange about that person… … .”
“Is it strange?”
“The feeling was different from that of a person.”
When did you call ‘that human’, and now it feels different from ‘human’?
I didn’t know which rhythm to match.
Even so, Celine’s eyes were serious.
“Feeling a little more unpleasant? The way he looked at me was also somewhat uneasy.”
“It’s Mine.”
Based on my long experience, I came to a simple conclusion.
Celine’s head tilted. Come to think of it, Celine had never met Mine.
Mr. Guilford had to deal with it alone. And in the North, Celine didn’t follow.
“Usually, demons hide their malevolence. Then when I draw out the power of the devil, I feel such an unpleasant feeling. Because it is something between humans and demons.”
“I see… So, could my fainting have something to do with it?”
Hmmm, and a deep sound comes over the neck.
The possibility could not be ruled out. Because among demons, there were often individuals with special abilities.
A hazy half-word escaped from my mouth, which had been lost in thought for a moment.
“Do you remember anything else?”
“Hmm, because I was about to swing the ax right away? But then… … .”
Flashing, his eyes went white, and he passed out.
There would have been no signs or forebodings. There should have been, but it must have meant that Celine couldn’t even notice it with her skills.
I was puzzled by that.
“I was making eye contact from the front and I was hit? There must have been quite a distance.”
“Ahahahaha… I mean.”
Celine sulked again and smiled awkwardly. An indescribable melancholy emanated from his face.
He seemed to feel depressed at the fact that he could not even use his hands and was defeated. I’ve also been foolishly attacked by enemies many times, so it’s not that I couldn’t fathom the feelings.
However, I couldn’t appease Celine right away. It was because I was worried about the testimony that ‘flash’ in front of my eyes.
I had heard something similar before.
Didn’t Irene leave a testimony that her eyes were ‘flickering’? At the time, I thought Sir Irene was talking nonsense because he was so low-class.
There was no way the coincidence would repeat itself twice. In other words, it meant that somewhere in this testimony there was a clue to identify the culprit.
Well, I couldn’t even guess at this point.
I swallowed a blank laugh, then turned my eyes to Celine again. She still had a sullen complexion.
“Sorry, brother Ian… … .”
“What else are you sorry about?”
A bitter smile appeared on my lips. I knew it because I had known him for a long time.
How hard Celine is.
Helplessness accompanies feelings of inferiority. Due to her indifference, saying she was too busy, she didn’t even know that a deep wound was being engraved in Celine’s heart. It was unfortunate and sad that I couldn’t do it.
I should have recognized him from the time he said he would stay at the academy and train alone.
“Again, nothing helped. If only I was a little stronger… … .”
“Don’t fret too much.”
“Tak,” I said, placing my hand on Celine’s head. Normally, I would have been angry about my hairstyle being ruined, but today I was calm.
Maybe he didn’t even have the energy left to get angry.
“You are already helpful enough. There were many times when we went to battle together… And again, these days, my skills are improving.”
It was an honest impression.
When I met Celine at the academy not long ago, I inadvertently burst into exclamation. It was because Celine’s skills had improved beyond her imagination.
Trying to keep my tone as warm as possible, I stroked Celine’s hair.
“We just have to go like this.”
“… … like this?”
Then Celine’s eyes turned to me. In no time at all, the light in those yellow eyes had disappeared. The pupils, which only cast gloomy shadows, gave off a strange feeling.
My voice got stronger.
“Yeah, like this. You just have to walk at your own pace. Actually, I just happened to get lucky and became strong. Even compared to the enemies I have to deal with, my skills are insignificant.”
“But, I want to help Ian.”
It was a word that felt the will to press back.
I shut my mouth for a moment and stared at Celine.
“I don’t want to be a burden. I don’t like being treated as being enough or not having it. I want to be what Ian oppa needs.”
“Celine… … .”
After sighing, I quietly put my hands on Celine’s shoulders.
As I knelt slightly, Celine and I met eye level. It was the height at which the two minds could communicate best.
“You are already what I need.”
“really?”
“Yes, of course… … .”
“You’ve lived well without me for the past few months.”
Unexpectedly, my words were blocked for an instant at the sharp tone. I never thought Celine would be so angry.
To be precise, I thought you would understand. Weren’t the two of us closer than anyone else?
My duty, my responsibility. I thought he would take the sacrifice that followed.
Was it too selfish?
“right? There are many without me. There’s Jinta, and there’s also Rainella-senpai and Yurdina-senpai. Oh, we can’t leave out the saintess or her highness, can we?”
“Celine, there seems to be a misunderstanding… … .”
“I know.”
Before I could finish my words, Celine declared in a cold voice. It was a tone that was hard yet muffled and watery.
“It’s all my fault… So I’ll take care of it.”
There was no time to ask what.
Celine turned away as if trying to hide her mixed cries. All I could see was a clenched fist.
“More, you can become stronger. somehow… … !”
With the resolve leaking out of her gritted teeth, Celine hurriedly moved on. It seemed that he didn’t want to see me anymore.
“Celine!”
Even after calling her name like that, Celine showed no signs of turning back. It was fortunate that I was heading towards the orphanage. I wondered what would happen if I went missing somewhere again.
I groaned and touched my forehead while moaning.
“What are you saying when you see me… … .”
This is why I hated human relationships. Because there is no clear answer.
It would be great if someone could give me an answer.
My steps, looking up at the sky resentfully, took one step at a time. The plodding footsteps stimulated my anguish in a certain rhythm.
The masked assailant and Celine.
None of them seemed to have the right answer.
**
I returned to the orphanage with a tired expression on my face.
Celine was nowhere to be seen. It might have been locked in a corner of the room. I didn’t have the confidence to convince Celine just because we were going to meet anyway.
Come to think of it, the saintess asked me to come to the bedroom.
Feeling depressed, the desire to be comforted grew stronger. A pouch containing the saintess’ overflowing divine power would be enough to comfort me.
Then, the person who caught my eye was Yuren.
He was watching the children playing with an indifferent face. As if playing soldiers, the form of holding a tree branch and fighting swords was quite skilled.
Even though it was only cute in my eyes.
No, before that, there was no way that the little boys hugging each other wasn’t cute. Before I knew it, a small smile formed on my lips.
Naturally, I stood side by side with Yuren. Yuren was leaning crookedly against the pillar with his arms crossed.
“How do you see the bud that will become the second Yuren?”
At my joke, Yuren sneered. In that dry voice, I could get a glimpse of Yuren’s sullen attitude.
“no? When I was that age, I was already learning the swordsmanship. Even my older brothers who were several years older than me couldn’t touch me.”
“Yes, yes… .you are good Hey. Still, don’t you know?”
It may be true, but the appearance of a genius who boasts of his exceptional talent had a cold side to his eyes. That’s why he must be second in the academy’s swordsmanship department.
That was the reason I inadvertently raised an objection.
“You may discover your talent later. Life is long, and it will be longer for those children.”
“Well… … .”
Despite my reasonable opinion, Yuren was still skeptical.
“Can I live until then? And the path of the sword is as long as life. When I was young, I only thought I was a genius.”
“Are you a genius?”
It was an absurd statement to me.
If the second-in-command of the academy’s swordsmanship department and the master of swordsmanship that Seongguk is proud of is not a genius, then who is a ‘genius’?
However, there was not a hint of humility in Yuren’s voice when he calmly expressed his opinion.
“At first it was. But the sword is not an easy tool. The more you deal with it, the weaker it becomes, and if you keep struggling to fix it, there are times when it becomes a mess.”
“… … It’s a ‘wall’.”
Only then did I mutter softly and express sympathy.
‘Wall’, that was also the biggest obstacle I was facing. Auras are getting stronger and swordsmanship is becoming more sophisticated, but the characteristics of auras are not blooming.
Why? I thought about it countless times, but no answer came.
Should I ask for advice the next time I meet the future ‘me’?
In the meantime, Yuren’s story continued.
“I thought I was going crazy. I’m still, but the person next to me is already far ahead. I have to stand next to him, I have to protect him… … .”
As he muttered that, Yuren’s mouth escaped with a wheezing laugh.
As if he couldn’t understand why he was lamenting his situation.
“Then you fall into ‘Shimma’. Well, it doesn’t matter now… Rather, did you find out any information?”
The intention of Yuren’s question was quite clear. Because there was only one piece of information that our party was paying most attention to right now.
I could only shake my head with a sigh.
“They said it ‘flashed’ in front of their eyes.”
“That’s something I can do too.”
There were no objections to that point. It was just a shrug.
Silence fell between us, and the two troubled men watched the children play in a daze. Then Yuren’s eyes suddenly flashed.
“Then you mean you got hit in an instant? if not… … .”
My bewildered gaze followed Yuren’s eyes. There, against boys playing soldiers, I saw children crushing weeds in broken porcelain as if they were witches.
“Something like magic.”
And static again.
The silence didn’t last long. I immediately started walking again.
“I need to find Elsie-senpai. And could you prepare some crystal balls? I need to contact the academy.”
Fortunately, there were enough magic experts in the party.
She just needs vitamin D