Slowly, Little by Little (1)

After the long, long night passed.

As dawn was breaking again, I returned to the capital with an exhausted Línea on my back.

Naturally, there were soldiers in an emergency state at the city wall who asked me to explain the situation, but I brushed them off using Línea’s status.

What else could I do? My position was still somewhat ambiguous.

Since there hadn’t been an official announcement about me yet, even if I suddenly claimed to be an apostle of the gods – a saint – no one would blindly believe it.

So all I could prove was that I belonged to the Pantheon Temple as a priest.

That alone wasn’t enough to gloss over everything that had happened last night.

They had already implicitly agreed to let me pass on the city wall once before, so I had an obligation to report the incident’s conclusion.

“Phew……”

Like that, from the hunter’s guild qualification verification to rescuing Línea, we spent a full day without rest.

In that state, I carried Línea on my back all the way to the Pantheon Temple.

Physical fatigue and mental fatigue.

Both were substantial. If I hadn’t been someone who regressed after experiencing war, I would have collapsed from exhaustion midway.

All that experience proved useful.

Of course…

“Can you enter the Pantheon Temple too? Shade.”

There was still work left to do.

The one who had taken over the potentially long battle with Viera in my place. But I wasn’t the one who should thank him.

“No reason I can’t. Though it’s only this easy because that old man turned a blind eye.”

“His Holiness is quite quick-witted.”

“A monster is a monster. Seems the talk about royal blood being noble wasn’t a lie.”

“I’m not so sure about that. Isn’t Creden G Eden quite ordinary?”

“Ordinary? He may fall short for his position, but he’s not lacking.”

Well, that’s not wrong.

Even Creden was a monster who reached the master level in his early twenties.

If Another Hope hadn’t appeared, he would still hold the title of youngest human sword master.

However, even such clear martial might falls short for the position of imperial ruler.

This is a country that could become a unified nation right now if they wanted.

The reason they don’t is simply because the downsides outweigh the benefits.

“Anyway, thanks to you things were resolved smoothly. Ah, want this if you need it?”

“…I don’t need it.”

Shade offers me the bag he’s holding in his one remaining hand with a sly smile.

I don’t even want to check what’s inside that bag.

Viera’s head must be in there, I suppose.

“You lost an arm.”

“Rather than a mistake… the opponent was just bad. I was lacking.”

“Was it Wallace Hope?”

“So you knew after all?”

“Of course, considering how many times I bought information about him.”

If we had continued fighting Viera beyond that point, it would have become quite troublesome. From the start, I took the approach of carving away flesh with the intention of finishing it in one strike.

Yet she escaped.

In that state, a rematch with Viera who would have raised her guard against me would inevitably become a drawn-out battle.

The opponent would have held her breath while hiding to find my openings, and ignoring that would leave my back exposed.

It surely would have dragged on, and in that case there would have been no real winner, just wounds left behind.

“Yet you overwhelmed Viera in that state.”

And the same would have been true for Shade. Though he’s clearly at a much higher level as an assassin, the situation was equally bad for both sides.

“Right? How about it, feeling a surge of respect?”

He lost an arm fighting Belial. His complexion was pale and his visible fatigue substantial.

He had probably been watching Margaret for several days and nights without rest.

In such physical condition, he encountered Belial yet returned alive.

It was close to a miracle.

Even before my regression, only the Saintess had managed to encounter him directly and return alive.

“Well, rather than surviving through my own merit, he simply let me live.”

“Given that bastard’s personality, he was probably targeting Mar from then. Of course, if killing you had been easy, he would have done that.”

“Oh? Are you praising me? An old cripple who lost an arm?”

“Someone who killed the capital branch’s assassin even after losing an arm.”

Compared to when I encountered Shade in the forest, nothing had changed.

In other words, he must not have struggled much to kill Viera even with one arm missing.

“If you had such ability, couldn’t you have joined in sooner?”

“Telling an assassin to reveal themselves? That’s no fun.”

Shade had likely been following us from the start.

Thinking about the timing, probably after we saw the crime scene.

If it had been before that, he would have headed straight to Mar’s location.

“It takes courage to jump into an obvious trap. Thanks to you stirring things up, cleanup was easy. Much appreciated.”

Thud.

Shade casually tosses the bag he was holding into a corner.

For some reason, a squelching sound comes from the bag as I turn my gaze away to face Shade directly.

“Thank you for saving Mar, and for avenging my wife.”

Shade bowed his head.

It was a sincere greeting.

The fact that he showed such courtesy despite me having received help from him as well seemed to reveal what kind of person he was.

Perhaps that’s why?

-You know what? I used to have quite bad habits when I was young. I just wanted to be praised for being great.

-So I caused a lot of trouble. Picking pockets of trading partners or backstabbing them, things like that.

Suddenly, Mar’s words from before my regression came to mind.

The reason I came to evaluate Shade, whose face I didn’t even know, who still held a place deep in my memories.

-But even then, Dad never got angry with me. He cleaned up after me and bowed his head. Isn’t it funny? My dad isn’t the kind of person who should have to bow his head like that anywhere.

Her final confession before taking the battlefield. It wasn’t coincidence that those words came to mind now.

As she said, Shade was someone who possessed such humanity.

Being able to see that directly through actions rather than words was fortunate.

“I should thank the Spirin lady too. Mar wouldn’t have survived without her.”

House Spirin’s medicine that destroyed my taste buds in Rubia.

Without that, Mar would have died unable to shake off the poison.

Of course, even with that, it would have been the same if Margaret hadn’t been killed.

Whether buying time or taking down Margaret, it was all thanks to Línea so there’s no difference.

“That gratitude would be better expressed to her directly later.”

So it’s not good for me to relay such things on her behalf.

Having been trapped in frames others put on her all her life, such sincere gratitude would be her greatest reward above all else.

“Right, that’s true. So for now, my thanks are solely for you.”

“From the situation, seems you’ll stay like that until I tell you to raise your head. Go ahead and lift it. It’s not a sight I want to see for long.”

“Shall I do that then?”

Shade raises his head with a sly smile.

He was probably waiting for me to say such words.

The funny thing is that he wouldn’t have lifted his head until I said them.

Though he acts as if leading things along, genuine sincerity underlies that behavior.

“Well then, it wouldn’t be polite to keep a busy person from resting. Come to the Shade capital branch when you want. I’ll return the favor then.”

“I’ll do that.”

The moment those words ended, Shade vanished from before my eyes.

“…Wait, but what am I supposed to do with that thing he left behind?”

Leaving behind the bag containing Viera’s head tossed in the corner.

*     *      *

As noon approached.

Línea, who had fought and defeated Margaret through the night, came to her senses and thought.

‘What should I do?’

It wasn’t that any problems had arisen.

Rather, the issue she thought she’d have to carry for life was resolved.

She no longer viewed her ability as purely negative.

The red lines visible to her eyes weren’t just clear targets for killing and eliminating opponents, but pointed to what she valued most preciously.

What she absolutely must protect.

For enemies, there couldn’t be a more terrifying ability, but for allies, there couldn’t be more certain prevention.

“Ehehe.”

Línea squirmed in bed without opening her eyes.

She caressed her cheek with the blanket pulled up to her head. As if warmth still remained there.

Though the red line Lost had drawn on her cheek had long since disappeared, the mark engraved in Línea’s heart would surely be eternal.

At that thought, Línea writhed.

“Aww.”

Uncontrollable emotion.

Though she was flailing alone with the blanket pulled over her, her tail betrayed her overflowing emotions by sticking out from under the covers and waving frantically.

“Heuk!”

Like that, as Línea was flailing while savoring the lingering feelings of the past day, she suddenly threw off the blanket and sat up.

Belatedly checking the bandages wrapped around her arms and her clothes. The unmistakable appearance of a patient had Línea crawling down from the bed.

“……”

Silently beginning to search through her belongings, Línea soon found a mirror.

Though it was a hand mirror that any noble lady would carry, she had rarely used it herself. From the start, she had used it more for medical purposes than adorning herself.

“Hmm.”

Perhaps because of that?

When Línea checked her appearance in the mirror, the emotion she felt was close to devastating.

“What is this….. I look just like a patient.”

The gauze attached to her face and complexion so pale it was almost bloodless.

Not a particularly good sight to show others.

Having failed to recognize the clear truth that she was a patient, Línea began grooming herself.

“…Alright.”

When Línea, having finally achieved an appearance with even more care than usual, opened the door to leave.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Claire exclaimed in shock seeing Línea’s appearance.

When Línea had just returned, she was in such a terrible state it caused an uproar even within the Pantheon Temple. It was fortunate Lost had performed emergency treatment, otherwise she wouldn’t have regained consciousness for days.

Claire was devastated to find a patient who should be resting for at least a week up and walking around after just half a day.

“Ah, Claire.”

“Lie down! Unnie.”

“Um… but I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not fine. Do you know what state you were in yesterday!”

“……”

Only then did Línea come to her senses.

“What state was I in?”

“Your whole body was covered in blood and bruises. Parts of your skin were burned too, and some areas were nearly necrotic from the poison’s effects.”

“No way……”

Was she in such a horrible state? Línea had been in a daze from losing so much blood fighting Margaret, and in that state she had encountered Lost and resolved her issues.

She thought it had been like a dream, but she had truly been in a half-dreaming hazy state.

‘How embarrassing…..’

Yet Línea couldn’t view herself objectively.

Though she had sustained injuries that shocked even Claire who had spent over half her life bedridden, all the patient herself could think about was the horrible appearance Claire had described.

“…Should have put on makeup.”

As Línea thought she should have put on makeup before Lost came, Claire suddenly asked with a serious expression.

“Funeral arrangements?”

Claire too knew what had happened last night from what she’d heard.

Línea’s issues and mental state.

That’s why she had come to personally care for Línea despite needing to be in bed herself.

“You really need to rest, Unnie.”

Seeing Línea’s mental state where she must have been thinking about her own funeral arrangements, Claire pushed on her back with a more solemn expression than ever.

“Ah, but I’m really fine……”

“All patients say that.”

Claire was firm.

Having spent over 2/3 of her life being sick, Claire knew. About 1/3 of that time was spent insisting she was fine.

A professional patient who knew about patients better than doctors.

That was Claire Ryan.

Having successfully subdued Línea’s rampage early and gotten her into bed like that.

And Claire too collapsed having exhausted her strength in the process.

“Unnie, don’t overdo it.”

“…You too, Claire.”

Seeing Claire who had ended up in such a state just from pushing her back to her room, Línea finally had to abandon her plan of grooming herself to go find Lost.

Línea wasn’t ruthless enough to maintain her stubbornness after witnessing someone else’s self-sacrifice.