93 – Afterword – Yuna
Black smoke rises from the room. A tingling heat clung to my cheeks. It felt like acrid ash was mixed into the air, blackening the inside of my throat.
But that wasn’t what was important now.
Ellen was in the room where the smoke was leaking.
The moment that fact sunk into my mind, I turned my head towards Guero. But she just twitched her eyebrows and showed no signs of agitation.
“…”
He had a calm expression, like a cow chewing fodder. It was clear that the situation had been consensual, as she was with Ellen until the end and was standing there calmly. If you think about it logically, it was so.
But a fire began to rage so strong that it blew away all such logic.
“Ellen!!!”
At that moment, I lost my temper and ran towards the door. But before I could grab the handle, a large hand grabbed my shoulder.
“Miss Yuna, wait a minute.”
“Huh? Ha…But Eren…”
“I asked you to wait at least 10 minutes no matter what happens. So let’s wait.”
“But…!”
I turned my gaze into the room once again. You asked me to wait like that for 10 minutes? However, the smoke that filled the room was taking away the oxygen in the room, as if taking Ellen’s life in 5 minutes, let alone 10 minutes. It was literally obvious what would happen if things continued like this.
Of course, there was a high possibility that this would not be the case. Eren’s actions were always beyond Yoona and I’s imaginations, and it was unlikely that he would have done something like this without any countermeasures. If it’s the Ellen I know, she definitely has a corner of trust.
Yes. I’m sure it will.
…
But…
But what if that’s not the case…?
What if Ellen couldn’t accept her hopeless reality and decided to commit suicide?
The acrid smoke penetrated not only the lungs but also the brain, disturbing the mind. For the first time, doubts about Ellen’s actions penetrated my entire body like thorns.
It was absolutely not a rational thought. If I was going to commit suicide, I wouldn’t have chosen such a loud method.
But before I could think of that, I was already shaking off Guero’s arm.
“No! Ellen!”
“Miss Yuna!”
A startled voice caught me. I even shook it off and reached for the doorknob. The common sense I had accumulated over the years warned me that if I did that, my palms would burn, but I had no time to think about such things.
I grabbed the burning door handle and slammed my whole body against the door.
“Ugh!”
Heat enveloped my entire body. Even though I knew it was a stupid thing to do, I pushed the door with all my might. I thought I would encounter strong resistance, but the door opened easier than I expected. Soon, I was thrown into a room filled with boiling heat.
“…!”
…
But in the room I entered like that, I couldn’t find any black smoke that washed my eyes.
Only the faint scent of oak permeated the area. A scent similar to the smell of a coffin that I smelled only once at the funeral of an unknown relative. It felt as if the large hand of death was hugging me warmly. The embrace was so deep that I felt like I could suffocate.
“Ugh…”
I desperately raised my head, trying to gather my foggy mind. Then I saw Ellen leaning against the wall across from me.
“Ellen!”
I quickly approached him. The sound of loud footsteps also followed me.
“Ellen. Come to your senses, okay? Ellen. Ellen!”
I held him in my arms and desperately called his name. Guero looked at me like that, scratched his head and muttered.
“It hasn’t even been 10 minutes… I’m sure I wasn’t disturbed…”
From Noble mtl dot com
I suddenly felt scared by her indifferent voice. Could it be that I was disturbing you just now? So what’s wrong?
When the lights suddenly turned off and the room was filled with the scent of oak, it was clear that something surreal had happened. But I didn’t know if it was done properly. If you think about it, there was a high possibility that this wasn’t the case.
“No…Ellen…Please…Please open your eyes. Huh? Ellen!”
I slapped his cheek out of desperation. Then, little by little, his eyebrows twitched and he began to regain consciousness.
Yes. Please Ellen. I know I made a mistake, so just come back unharmed. I don’t mind scolding you, so just come back to me. I called that name again with such earnest heart.
“Ellen!”
“…!”
At that time, Ellen opened her eyes and raised her head. I leaned back in shock, even though what I had wanted so badly had happened. Fortunately, Guero caught my back before I fell.
“…”
“Ellen…”
I looked at Ellen while I was in her arms. He opened his eyes blankly, looked around the room, and then turned to me.
It seemed like there was some anger in his slightly frowning eyebrows. It was then that I began to cringe at the thought that I might be scolded harshly. Ellen looked at me and slowly opened her mouth.
“Sister?”
“…”
“…”
“…Huh?”
I tilted my head at the awkward title. Guero was equally puzzled. She raised an eyebrow and scratched her head.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
“…”
Ellen’s head turned towards her this time. He thought for a moment, then smiled and said.
“Guero!”
“Huh?”
This time it was a fairly accurate title, but the tone was very awkward. It was too bright and deep to have come out of Ellen’s mouth. Even though it’s the same voice, the feeling of immaculate clarity is so strong, what should I say…
…I felt as if Ellen had become younger.
Guero and I looked at each other. She must have had the same impression as me, so she opened her mouth in a daze. After staring into my eyes for a long time, she looked at Ellen and left a brief comment about the situation.
“Why don’t you call me sister?”
Even as time passed, Ellen did not return to normal. Guero and I discussed many hypotheses, but there was only one conclusion we could draw with certainty.
The thing in that body is not Ellen.
With such an ambiguous conclusion, she had no choice but to return to Ethan Leahy. There were still a lot of things I didn’t understand, but neither Guero nor I could just be trapped there. Although I didn’t feel like it, after seeing her off at her academy, I got into her carriage.
A week has passed since I returned home with the unidentified Ellen.
“Whoa…”
I sighed in the now familiar scenery. On my way home from work, exhausted, the prisoner children were waving to me across the red-stained sunset. I naturally smiled and waved at them.
It’s been a week since I came back. Although not a single question was resolved, I had no choice but to continue with my daily life. Something about the school work that Mrs. Sandra introduced me to. There are still some household chores to do. The day would go by without me worrying about other trivial things.
Of course, the thing that bothered me the most was about Ellen.
“Ugh…”
When I thought of that thought, I felt dizzy for no reason. Everything is truly full of questions.
After observing for a few days, there were several characteristics of Ellen that had changed. First of all, her speaking style has become considerably shorter. Ellen, who had changed from the way she used to have a hint of playfulness between her words, gave all her answers in short answers. She definitely felt a difference, although of course she still felt friendly.
And second. The absence of basic common sense has become more severe. Of course, Ellen wasn’t a person with much common sense before either, but now it was even worse. Except for the basics of living, she was illiterate in almost everything.
And the third and final one is…
“Ugh!”
Boom!
…
She was bad at everything. I think this is the biggest difference.
When we got closer to the house, there was a loud noise mixed with screams. It was something I had become accustomed to, so instead of panicking, I immediately opened the door.
And then she made eye contact with Ellen, who had a pile of her clothes on her head.
“Ouch…”
“…”
He fell to the floor and groaned and turned his head this way when he heard the sound of the door. And as soon as he made eye contact with me, he smiled brightly and greeted me brightly.
“Hello!”
“Okay. Hello Ellen.”
I barely suppressed a sigh and greeted him face to face. Then she looked down at Ellen with her arms crossed.
When I look at the dry clothes scattered on the floor, I think they were trying to fold laundry. I guess I was rushing to do my best and ended up falling down the front door. Although it was clearly visible, I still asked a question to confirm.
“You were trying to fold laundry?”
“Yes.”
“Did you fall while trying to carry everything at once?”
“Yes…”
In response to my question, Ellen looked at me and trailed off. His expression was like that of a child who had been caught making a mistake. Only then did Ellen, who had been nervously fiddling with the hem of her clothes, timidly open her mouth.
“Are you angry…?”
“I’m not angry. Is there anything worse than that?”
“Yes…”
“Let’s take a look first. You can do the laundry later. Come here.”
“…Yes!”
When I held his hand, Ellen immediately stood up after me, smiling heartily. When she saw that sight, she couldn’t help but revisit the thoughts she had repeated dozens of times over the course of a week.
Maybe she, Ellen, she really has become a child.
Shorter speaking style. Absence of common sense. Clumsy behavior. All of that was ultimately evidence of immaturity. Although she had not yet started working for a while, Ellen’s current appearance was very similar to that of the children at her school. She was the complete opposite of the real Ellen, who was overly mature for her age.
…No.
Actually, this might be the real Ellen.
I had that thought. In fact, wasn’t she a possessor like Eren and Yoona? So now that Eren’s spirit has returned to the other world, perhaps her body has found its original owner again? Since the country had a precedent, it was a logical inference.
Actually, there was no other way to explain it. There are too many differences to be noticeable for Eren to have changed like this.
Still, the only way to be sure was to ask directly. I rubbed Ellen’s rash knees to strengthen her resolve and asked her a question.
“Hey, Ellen.”
“Huh?”
“Can I ask you one question?”
“Yes!”
“Ugh.”
The corners of my mouth went up without me knowing at the refreshing answer. Nevertheless, I tried to ask earnestly.
“Um…Who are you?”
“Ellen!”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying. You’re not the Eren I knew, are you? You’re the Eren who was originally in this body, right?”
“Huh?”
“So what I’m saying is…”
Was it too difficult? After thinking about it for a while, I asked a very basic question.
“First of all, how old are you now? Do you remember?”
“Um…Are you the same age as your sister?”
“No, that doesn’t make sense in the first place… Well… Then when is the last time you remember it?”
“Huh?”
“The last thing you remember before waking up in that smoking room. When was that?”
“Hmm…”
Is this too difficult…
I couldn’t guess the level and my head was pounding. Even if it seems like you act like a child, there are times when you act like your age. Anyway, after spending so many years in Ellen’s body, I wonder if he has matured to some extent.
“Ugh…”
When I thought about it this way, it was rather difficult. My head, which was already dizzy, felt even more dizzy. As I keep thinking about my tired body, I feel like I’m going to sneeze…
“…Each!”
…?
The moment I thought of that, my nose really started to itch and I sneezed. As I swallowed her flowing nose again, I suddenly felt the faint scent of wild chrysanthemums. As I moved my hand following her scent, my fingertips touched a flowering tree branch next to my ear.
“Huh?”
“hahahaha…”
Ellen shrugged her shoulders shyly as she looked at me tilting her head. Her cheeks twitched and then she smiled brightly.
“Sister.”
“Huh?”
“It’s pretty.”
“Ugh…”
This time it was my turn to blush. In this respect, nothing has changed from before. This Ellen was also amazingly good at penetrating people’s hearts by surprise.
“hehehe…”
When did you start preparing? Ellen shook her head and smiled, as if she was proud. If in the past I felt gentle consideration and warmth in my smile, now it radiated a brightness like warm sunlight. It was so pure and bright that she couldn’t help but smile when she looked at it.
And without realizing it, her heart pounded at the immature charm of hers.
“Ha…That’s okay. Let’s eat first and think about it.”
“Yes. Good.”
“Do you want something to eat, Ellen?”
“Everything my sister likes.”
“Not like that. Just what you like.”
Although she spoke as if scolding, her mouth was smiling. Before she knew it, all the fatigue from her day had disappeared. Eren was a little worried about my words and opened her mouth.
“It’s what I like…”
“Yes. What you like.”
“I…Haam…”
As she was thinking, Ellen suddenly yawned and her eyes twitched for a long time. Then she suddenly nodded and nodded.
“Ugh…”
“Ellen?”
“Huh?”
When I called, Ellen lifted her head slightly, but then she fell forward. She was startled, and as she held her head in her arms, she could hear the sound of her breathing.
I guess he was tired from causing trouble all day. I gently patted his back.
“It’s not a real child.”
Really, compared to the old Eren, he looked extremely immature. I’m clumsy at everything, and no matter what I do, I get tired quickly. He gets anxious when I’m not around for too long. It was a truly tiring opponent.
But what can I say…
…
It might actually feel good to have Ellen rely on me like this…
“I need to eat something.”
I sighed, trying to calm down my heated body temperature. And then I got up to prepare a meal.
“Sister.”
At that time, Ellen called me. The hand that grabbed her collar felt warm for some reason. I looked down and before I knew it, he was looking straight at my face.
From Noble mtl dot com
“Huh?”
“I will love you more.”
“What…?”
I asked back blankly. But Ellen buried her face in my arms again and was breathing comfortably. Judging by the strength leaving her grip, it seemed like she was really asleep now.
“…”
The words from earlier did not leave my ears. There were secrets that I couldn’t tell yet, my cherished sincerity, and my feelings for myself, clumsily clumped together.
I couldn’t force the feeling that was barely buried in the sand. As I was stroking his hair, lost in thought, Eren’s head fell against the hem of my skirt. Her sleeping face looked so innocent.
When I saw that, my lower body felt a little warm.
“Hmm…”
His lips twitching in his sleep suddenly looked so cute. I felt a strange joy of immorality as the person I had trusted and relied on was suddenly placed in the exact opposite position.
And even more so when I think about how mature Ellen has become.
…
It’s probably an illusion. I cleared my throat out of a sense of guilt.
“…Let’s hold on a little longer.”
I said something I didn’t even know what it meant and jumped up from my seat. And then he ran toward the kitchen, leaving Ellen asleep.
But I couldn’t hide my face that was starting to heat up. The wild chrysanthemum in my ear fluttered and waved my hand. The petals that had not yet grown gave off a delicate scent. If you suck on a clove with your lips, bitter honey will come out. That kind of scent.