Chapter 83: A Fool’s Love (2) [Revised]

[83] 13. A Fool’s Love (2) [Revised]

*Clink-*

The sound of a magic stone igniting.

The light from a blue magical lamp drives away the darkness, illuminating a woman’s face.

Rosalia lifted the lamp and looked around.

It was a cave large enough for a carriage to pass. It’s probably a man-made cave.

The floor was too flat to be natural, and torch holders were embedded in the walls. Rosalia could see signs of people coming and going, from the ropes and pieces of wood scattered across the floor.

“Are you… awake…?”

And amidst it all, lying on the ground, was Sheila, her leg broken.

Her leg was bent at an unnatural angle. The cold sweat trickling down her forehead was a testament to her pain.

However, Rosalia didn’t show any sympathy.

“Where are we, and how do I get out of here?”

The last thing she remembered before losing consciousness…

Was the image of Rem left alone among the knights and the barbarian.

That memory hardened Rosalia’s tone.

“…I can’t tell you that.”

But Sheila, despite groaning in pain, shook her head. She looked up at Rosalia with pleading eyes.

“You just have to stay here. The knights above will soon subdue that mage and come down. Then, even you, Captain… Ugh!”

Rosalia’s foot pressed down on her broken leg. A cold voice flowed over Sheila’s pale, pain-twisted face.

“Tell me how to get out, Sheila. If you still want to walk on two legs.”

But some wills burn even brighter in the face of a threat.

“I’m trying to save you…!!”

Sheila grabbed Rosalia’s leg desperately.

“You already know, don’t you! The empire has already fallen into the hands of that bastard! What you’re doing now is pointless!!”

Her voice grew louder as she continued.

“Captain, please, give up! I’ll open a path for you! If you would just give up on this foolish mission…”

“Sheila.”

Rosalia’s cold eyes, for a moment, softened with sadness.

“This mission. It’s all I have left.”

*Thwack-*

Sheila’s eyes rolled back into her head as she was struck on the nape with the scabbard. Then, her arm, which had been struggling to move, went limp.

Only then did Rosalia show a hint of sympathy.

Sheila, her most loyal subordinate,

…and the knight she cherished the most.

It’s always painful to watch someone you care about stray from the right path, especially when you can’t reason with them.

But Rosalia quickly erased that sympathy. It wasn’t the time to indulge in such sentimentality.

First, she searched Sheila’s body, looking for anything that might help her escape from here.

But all she could find were four things:

A medal with a strange woman engraved on it,

a letter from the Prince,

a healing potion,

…and a silver necklace with a blue gem.

Although Rosalia wasn’t an expert when it came to magic tools, but she instinctively knew that this was what had blocked Rem’s teleportation.

Rosalia put the necklace in her pocket and stood up.

And then, after a moment’s hesitation, she returned the healing potion back into Sheila’s pocket.

It was the last trace of her compassion.

A sign that she didn’t want Sheila to never walk again, not even after everything that had happened.

Rosalia, with a hint of lingering regret, adjusted Sheila’s clothes, and then she started walking deeper into the cave.

To rescue Rem, who must be fighting alone by now.

…

…

…

The deeper she went, the wider the cave became.

At first, it had been big enough for a single carriage to pass through at the entrance, but now it was so vast that she couldn’t even illuminate the walls with her magic lamp.

And, proportionally, the traces of human activity became more prominent:

Traces of bonfires, pieces of cloth, scribbles, the arm of a wooden doll, and so on…

They were like signposts, guiding Rosalia deeper into the cave.

To the end of the passage,

to where a giant temple stood.

Rosalia, facing the temple, momentarily forgot about Rem.

Partly due to its size, but more because of its strangeness. Though it was a temple, there were no chairs, no prayer rooms, no altars.

In fact, in the center of the vast space, only a single statue of a woman stood.

There was only one reason why Rosalia thought of it as a temple:

Hundreds of skeletons were bowing to the statue,

and the walls were covered in colorful murals.

As if in a trance, Rosalia walked toward the murals. And then, she frowned as she saw a familiar face.

“…Alain?”

The first tower master,

The Elven Sword Saint,

The Conqueror of the Great Divide,

and Alain, the Hero.

The mural depicted the four heroes who defeated the Demon King.

However, what they were fighting wasn’t the Demon King.

Rosalia took out the medal from her pocket. She then turned to look at the statue being worshiped by countless skeletons.

It was obvious. The enemy depicted in the mural was the very same woman on the medal, and the same woman depicted in the statue. She was being driven away by the four heroes.

More precisely, into a strangely shaped ‘gap’.

“Just what…”

At that moment, Rosalia felt something tickle her nose:

A single, extremely faint breeze.

Rosalia’s eyes widened.

A breeze meant an exit was not far!

Rosalia looked back at the mural again. This was just a small part of it. The mural covered the entire wall of this vast space.

But this wasn’t the time to be studying murals.

Rosalia immediately turned away from the mural and started to run in the direction of the breeze.

…

…

…

“Haah… Haah…”

Sure enough, the exit wasn’t that far.

Rosalia stepped out of the cave and looked around while catching her breath.

A lush forest where summer sunlight seeps through.

It was the place they had passed by on horseback about 20 minutes ago.

In other words, she wasn’t that far from where Rem was.

“But which way…”

*KABOOM-!*

A thunderous roar shook the forest, scattering the birds that had been resting on the branches. Billowing flames engulfed the summer sky.

There was no better signpost than this.

Rosalia immediately started running towards the source of the sound.

And soon after…

“Ah…”

Rosalia stared at the scene before her, her face blank.

The earth was covered with cuts,

shattered tree trunks were scattered everywhere,

blood splattered in every direction like a pointillist painting,

and there, Rem was on his knees with Feya pointing an axe at him.

Feya raises her axe with a weary smile.

“Ah… Seriously…”

Feya’s eyes rolled back into her head.

“You’re so damn strong…”

Feya’s body swayed and then fell.

Rem, despite staggering, stood up.

He brushed back his hair and grinned at Rosalia.

“You are so late, Tin Can.”

“Rem!”

Rosalia, with a huge smile on her face, ran toward him.

At the same time, the knights, who had been observing the situation, felt a surge of crisis. Their swords and spears pointed toward Rem and Feya in alarm.

“Charge!! Stop them, no matter what!!”

[allw]

But a wall suddenly appeared, blocking their path. Rosalia, the obstacle now gone, continued to sprint toward Rem.

And then, she pulled him into a tight embrace.

The result was disastrous.

“Aaargh! You broke it! My bones!!”

“I-I’m s-sorry…!”

Rosalia, startled, hurriedly let go of Rem. He glared at her and snapped bluntly.

“First you get caught in a trap, and now you’re attacking your ally. You’re really something. Really something.”

“N-No, I was just relieved…”

“In your village, do you try to break someone’s bones when you’re relieved?”

Finally, a vein bulged on Rosalia’s forehead.

“Hey, after I came all this way to help, you’re acting like this?”

“All this way to help! Aren’t you acting a little too high and mighty for someone who’s so late?”

“I couldn’t help it! I did my best!”

“Do you even know how much shit I had to go through while you were doing your so-called ‘best’? That crazy barbarian wanted to fight me…”

A sudden argument.

Rem and Rosalia raise their voices in front of swords and spears.

But ironically, their eyes were filled with relief and joy.

*Clang-!*

Eventually, their sudden argument also ended abruptly.

The wall Rem had erected crumbled, and knights came pouring out. They quickly surrounded Rem and Rosalia, their swords and spears pointed at them.

Rem and Rosalia, backs to each other, exchanged glances.

“…The teleportation’s not working, and I’m out of energy. So what now? Want to bite our tongues and die together?”

“This, this is the magic tool that’s blocking the teleportation, right?”

Rem’s eyes turned to the blue necklace that Rosalia held out. Then, a hollow laugh escaped his mouth.

“Just where did you find that?”

“A former colleague.”

Rosalia answered curtly and then crushed the necklace in her hand, tossing its remains into the air. She smirked.

“How long with this?”

“…I’ll have it ready within five minutes.”

Rem grinned back, and then turned to face the enemy.

“Let’s finish this quickly and get something to eat.”

“…Yeah.”

Rosalia nodded her head, feeling a warmth spread through her heart.

Then she charged toward the knights that’s tightening their encirclement.

***

…Needless to say, the remaining knights were no match for Rosalia and Rem.

Every time she swung her sword, blood spurted between armors and knees hit the ground. Few could even withstand a single blow, and no one could withstand a second.

To begin with, they were the ones who would stay back and support Sheila and Feya while they face against the two.

They didn’t even dare to approach Rem.

And then, the appointed time arrived.

Rem, holding up the glowing magic tool, looked at Rosalia.

Then, his joyful heart turned to ice.

A knight, his face hidden behind a helmet, was standing between the trees, aiming a bow at Rosalia.

And it wasn’t an ordinary arrow that was on the bowstring.

It was pure white, from the fletching to the arrowhead.

Even from afar, he could feel the magic power emanating from it, making his skin tingle.

Rem urgently checked at Rosalia. And then he realized.

She didn’t know.

She didn’t know the knight’s presence nor the arrow.

He was too close to warn her.

And she wouldn’t be able to react in time, standing with her back to him.

The bowstring was pulled taut.

In that instant, Rem saw a fork in the road again,

A path he had always encountered at the most crucial moment.

Amy’s life or his wrist.

Clara’s status or his eyes.

Parsley’s safety or his throat.

Until now, he had always chosen the former. His emotions, his heart, had led him there.

And that path was always a thorny one, where kindness had no place.

He was torn, broken, crushed, trampled, and violated. And yet he had no regrets, but the pain remained.

And in the end, he chose to stop walking, to stop struggling for a peaceful life in that small town. He no longer wanted to strive, nor be driven by emotions.

But fate, once again, had led him to a fork in the road. No, it had dragged him there by force.

So, this time…

…Just this once…

Isn’t it okay to choose differently.

Isn’t it okay to avoid adding another tragedy to his life, even if it means creating regrets.

Skuld’s voice echoed in his ears.

[There’s always a price to pay for defying fate. And sometimes that price is paid by someone else.]

[Be careful. And if possible, don’t do anything.]

For a moment, he felt as if he had made eye contact with the knight holding the bow.

The arrow left the bowstring,

and Rem made his choice.

[porttele]

What appeared in Rosalia’s vision:

A crimson spray of blood,

a blue flash of light,

and Rem’s face.

“Rem…?”

Her pupils tremble.

“W-Why… Why did you teleport in front of me…”

“Heh, I guess I was just destined to be an idiot.”

Rem cupped her cheeks in his both his hands and pressed his forehead against hers.

“Well, what can I do? It’s better for me to be hurt than for you to be.”

“What are you talking about…”

Again, blood spewed up to the sky. This time, she could see where it was coming from.

An arrow was embedded in his back,

It was taking root in Rem’s body as if it were alive.

“W-Wait, why…! That…!”

“Rosalia.”

Rem’s hands held her face, forcing her to look at him. He met her eyes and smiled faintly.

“It was actually… kind of fun, being with you.”

“Wait, Rem, this is not the time, your back…!”

“So, goodbye.”

His hands shoved the still-glowing magic tool into her pocket. And at the same time, he chanted,

[porttele]

“Wait, Rem! No…!”

A blue light engulfed her world.

***

And the next day…

Feya thought she was going crazy as she looked at Rem. With a pale complexion, he looked up at Feya with trembling eyes.

“What is… my name?”

Oh, Alain, have mercy…