Chapter 635
Simon, still basking in the sweet aftertaste of victory, returned to the arena.
But then—
“…Lete?”
Lete was gone.
He hastily scanned the stands, but there was no sign of her anywhere.
“Excuse me! Pardon me!”
Simon shoved through the crowd at a brisk pace. If anything happened, there was a place where they had agreed to meet, the seat right beside the mana screen of the arena.
Yet when he arrived—
“……”
Only a neatly folded note was left there. Simon rushed forward and unfolded it.
[Congratulations on your victory.]
The message was brief.
[And from now on, I’ll move on my own. Don’t look for me.]
“That fool…!”
Muttering under his breath, Simon sprinted out of the arena.
The cacophony of countless spectators, the cheers of victorious students, and the chatter debating the matches all clashed and roared together.
Bzzzz—
The sounds tangled until he couldn’t distinguish one from another.
His head spun.
And amidst it all, there was no trace of Lete’s voice.
“Haa, haa…”
Bursting outside the arena, Simon darted his eyes around frantically.
Where had she gone?
Why had she disappeared?
His pace quickened, legs carrying him blindly until he found himself at a crowded park.
“Ah!”
Nearby, Kajan was conducting field inquiries.
“Kajan!”
“?”
Holding a notebook, Kajan spotted him as well.
Simon ran straight to him, panting hard with his hands on his knees. Kajan wrapped up his conversation with someone and approached.
“What’s the matter, Simon? Why are you alone?”
“Lete…!”
Simon nearly blurted it out, but caught himself with a jolt and quickly corrected.
“No, the Saint has disappeared! This note…!”
Rustle—
Kajan skimmed the note, then sighed softly.
“Even after what happened to her senior, she still acts on her own whim.”
“Do you know where she might be?”
“At the very least, she hasn’t returned to Professor Grerion’s cave.”
With that, Kajan handed the note back.
“Then! Isn’t there someone monitoring her from afar? Can’t you at least tell me her approximate location…!”
“Simon.”
Kajan shook his head and pointed at the note.
“From the looks of it, she doesn’t want you to come after her.”
Thud!
Simon felt his heart sink.
“She told you not to look for her. Why are you trying to?”
“T-that’s…”
“Other agents are still tracking her position from a distance. If something happens, there will be a report.”
According to Kajan, even before Simon arrived, Lete had already issued a warning at dawn.
She had said she would never trust a necromancer. If they tried to monitor her again, she would abandon the mission and return to the Holy Federation with the Saint of Harvest.
Of course, the agents couldn’t simply leave her unwatched after hearing that, but out of respect for her will, they had reduced their surveillance somewhat.
“I’ll also look for the Saint on my own. But—”
Kajan turned and strode into the forest path.
“If she wants to patrol alone, I think respecting her choice is the right thing to do.”
“……”
Simon, lost in thought, clenched his fist tightly.
* * *
Simon did not give up and persisted in searching for Lete.
He wandered places where she might be, where she might enjoy, and among busy crowds, yet he could not find her.
Still—
—A girl with ashen hair and a black robe? Oh yeah, I saw her. She was heading toward that building in the back.
It wasn’t without progress.
Following the tip, Simon headed to the building.
It turned out to be the dormitory of the Department of Darkness Dynamics.
‘…If I get caught, it’ll be a disaster.’
During the Dark Emperor period, inter-department relations were extremely hostile. Sneaking into another dorm was dangerous.
‘Just borrowing this for a bit! I’ll put it back soon!’
Simon grabbed a servant’s vest hanging nearby and disguised himself as one to slip inside.
As expected of the wealthy Department of Darkness Dynamics, every facility was luxurious and dazzling.
While he marveled, the dorm supervisor inspecting the bulletin board in the lobby caught his eye.
Simon struck up a conversation with her. Unlike the stern summoning department supervisor, she was warmhearted, and though she recognized Simon was from another department, she pretended not to notice.
“Ah, the girl with ashen hair? Not today, but she was here yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Yes. It’s funny.”
She smiled softly.
“Yesterday that girl was looking for a boy with blue hair. And today, the boy with blue hair comes looking for her.”
“……”
Hearing this, Simon left for the next spot, following the trail of clues Lete had left behind. Eventually, the trail led him back to the Summoning Department dormitory.
It was quiet, with most students not yet returned. Simon entered his own room.
‘Come to think of it, how did Lete find my room so precisely?’
He opened the window she had used the night before. Dust had gathered there, faintly revealing the footprints she had left.
Pushing the window wide open, Simon looked outside.
“Ah.”
Nearly every window of the building bore her footprints.
She must have discovered the Summoning Department’s location, then searched room by room.
Simon couldn’t help but smirk bitterly.
‘That fool.’
The day was already darkening. Simon raised his head.
‘Stargazing.’
In the daytime, she would patrol Roke Island. But at night, she would climb a mountain to stargaze. If he searched stargazing spots, he might meet her.
With his mind made up, Simon leapt out the window.
* * *
The sun sank, and night rose. Stars twinkled in the sky.
And—
“……”
On a high mountain hill, a girl sat in the grass, hugging her knees as she stared blankly at the night view of Roke Island.
—Simon! Simon! Simon!
—You’re incredible!
—I couldn’t take my eyes off you the whole match! Well done, President!
Here, Simon was different.
He was a hero, surrounded by countless people.
They cherished Simon, and Simon cherished them in return.
‘But I…’
She was always on the outside.
Unless she was reborn, she could never belong to that culture, that world, or those people.
She was someone who shouldn’t even be here, only present because of the special circumstance of a zealot intruding.
—I doubt I’ll ever meet this “Gafen”, but I figured you would be in a similar situation to mine.
Yes.
This world was divided in two.
Coexistence was impossible.
The current truce existed only because neither side was fully certain it could annihilate the other. It was an unstable peace.
‘But…’
That strange boy had suddenly poked his head into her realm, and because of that, she had let herself be deluded.
He adapted well. He earned the recognition of the Inquisitors. He even made friends here.
He could probably live as a priest without issue.
Though it was childish selfishness, she had even imagined what it might be like if he stayed in her world.
But she must not be deceived.
Simon was happy here.
His joy and happiness existed in this place.
He would raise his sword for these people, and he would gladly lay down his life for them.
They were her enemies.
And Simon was her enemy too.
‘Haa.’
It felt like sinking into a swamp of emotions.
Her trembling fingertips, lost without direction, clenched the empty air.
‘Just endure until tomorrow, then return. Don’t see Simon’s face again.’
For my own sake.
And for our sake.
This was the right decision.
Lete slowly closed her eyes.
Rustle—
Then came the sound of footsteps.
The sound of grass being stepped on. Lete turned her head.
‘…!’
Her pupils widened.
Emotions that had flickered like embers flared back to life, and her heart raced.
“……”
A boy was walking toward her, leaves messily stuck in his hair, his clothes dirt-stained all over. The signs of hardship were obvious, yet he approached without a word, as if it were nothing.
She had left without saying anything, he had every right to be angry.
But Simon said nothing.
He didn’t shout. He didn’t scold.
He simply walked over calmly and plopped down beside her. Then, with his palm on the grass, he lifted his head to gaze at the night sky.
“……”
“……”
Silence settled between them.
This was not the place where she had stargazed before.
She truly hadn’t wanted Simon to find her.
But he had. No doubt he had scoured every high place on Roke Island until he did.
The two of them sat for a long while, staring silently up at the night sky.
“…Why did you come?”
At last, Lete spoke. Simon turned to her with a weary smile.
“Because I was worried.”
In that single word, his sincerity showed. She bit her lip lightly, her cold heart melting away like spring snow.
She fumbled for words, then lowered her gaze and murmured quietly,
“I told you… not to look for me.”
“Being alone is dangerous.”
Lete averted her eyes and muttered, her voice barely audible.
“…I’m sorry.”
It was the first time she had ever apologized so honestly. Simon’s eyes widened in surprise before a faint smile touched his lips.
“As long as you’re safe, that’s enough.”
Silence returned once more.
But it was gentler than before.
“……”
Then Lete let out a small sigh and narrowed her eyes, glaring at him.
“W-what?”
“Lie down. Now.”
She shoved Simon in the chest with a thump, knocking him flat on his back. He gasped as she grumbled in a sulky tone.
“How can you be so careless? You’re bleeding and scraped all over.”
Simon blinked in confusion before noticing the state of his body: scratches from branches, skinned knees, bruises from tumbling down a slope.
Lete sat down at his side, brushed back his messy hair, and placed her hands gently over his wounds.
“Return to your priest side for a moment.”
Simon nodded and retracted the Darkness. Then she invoked white magic.
<Great Healing>
Woooong—!
With a soft glow of white light, his wounds began to close. She then pulled a first-aid kit from subspace, disinfected his injuries, and wrapped them in bandages.
Her swift, precise treatment was a reminder—she truly was a priest.
“All done.”
With a little “hmph”, Lete smacked Simon’s back with a sharp slap. He quickly sat up straight, and Lete adjusted herself to sit properly beside him.
“T-thanks.”
“Mm.”
“……”
“……”
“Simon.”
“Yeah.”
Her golden eyes gleamed as she looked straight at him.
“We’re enemies, aren’t we?”
Simon closed his eyes.
“Do enemies heal each other?”
“I’m serious.”
Lete pouted.
“We’re destined to fight. For now, as students, things like this can be overlooked. But once we graduate, once I become a full-fledged Saint and it’s revealed that you’re a Legion Commander…”
“……”
“…we’ll have no choice but to kill each other. Or get dragged into incidents where we kill each other’s friends and loved ones.”
She gazed quietly at Simon.
“That’s fate. So we should—”
“That’s not fate. That’s just what you think.”
Simon said it lightly, with a smile.
“Even after we’re grown, I believe we can still meet like this. Meet each other’s friends, share stories, laugh together, heal each other’s wounds. I believe such a day can come.”
He looked at her with a serious expression.
“Instead of worrying about the future, let’s focus on the present. And let’s work harder so that kind of future never comes.”
“……”
“I think we’re doing well enough already. Just like we’re trying to stop this war now.”
Lete stayed quiet for a moment, then smiled softly as she rose to her feet.
Dusting off her robe, she looked him straight in the eye.
“I’ll begin the stargazing. I leave the rear to you.”
Simon stood as well.
“Leave it to me.”
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters