Chapter 139

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“Sorry, I’m late.”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. I just got here too.”

Carlos showed up about 30 minutes after I arrived at the meeting place.

Since I was 10 minutes early, he was 20 minutes late.

Seriously, making a girl wait? That’s so lacking in manners.

Thinking about it as a neglect play got me really excited, but anyway!

“Sorry for being late, big sister Lucia.”

Anna smiled awkwardly as she spoke.

She ran over and held out her hand.

In her small hand were a bunch of lollipops.

“Well, you see, on the way here, there was an elderly lady struggling with a heavy load, so I helped her… Hehe, I got these candies as a thank you. Here, big sister, take some!”

So that’s why she was late.

I smiled and patted Anna’s head.

Helping an elderly person in trouble? What a good kid. Well done, well done.

Is it because I’ve been living with Alice?

I can’t help but smile like a mother whenever I see kids.

Is this maternal love…? But Lucia is a man.

Even though the body is female, the heart is still that of a male’s.

Then it’s more appropriate to call it paternal love.

“Thank you, I’ll take one.”

“Okay! This one’s strawberry flavor! This one’s grape! Oh, this one’s peppermint. Ugh… I don’t like peppermint…”

“Haha, I like it. I’ll enjoy it.”

Actually, I don’t really like it either.

But since Anna doesn’t like it, I’ll eat it.

I unwrapped the candy and popped the peppermint into my mouth.

It’s refreshing. It feels cool in my mouth.

I prefer sweet things, but this isn’t bad once in a while.

“By the way, is it just you, Anna? Where are the other kids?”

I looked around.

I thought for sure he’d bring a bunch of kids from the orphanage.

But the only kid holding Carlos’s hand was Anna.

Puzzled, I looked at Carlos, and he tilted his head.

Ah, I know that expression.

It’s like he’s saying, “Didn’t I already explain this? Why are you asking again?”

But you didn’t explain it.

Well, you probably did.

The problem is that you didn’t say it out loud.

Lucia isn’t a mind reader!

“Didn’t I say Anna wanted to meet you?”

“Yeah, you did.”

Did that really mean just Anna?

While I was dumbfounded, Anna tugged at my sleeve.

She glanced at Carlos and then smiled brightly as she pulled me along.

“Big brother, I’m borrowing big sister for a bit.”

“?”

What’s this? Is there something she doesn’t want Carlos to hear?

Anna pulled me along with her thin, childlike hands.

Her strength was weak, as expected of a child, but I had no reason to refuse, so I followed her lead.

Once we were a bit away from Carlos, Anna asked me to lean in close.

“Big sister, I know everything.”

“Know what?”

“You and big brother are in a ‘some’¹…? relationship, right?”

Huh?

What is this little girl talking about?

“You can’t hide it from me. I saw it all. I clearly saw big brother carrying you in his arms.”

“Ah, that was…”

“But big brother said you two aren’t dating. It looks like you’re dating to anyone who sees it. I asked the director, and she said that’s called ‘some.’ You and big brother want to become lovers, right? Right?”

No.

Not at all.

I wanted to say it firmly, but seeing Anna’s sparkling eyes, I couldn’t get the words out. 

I didn’t want to disappoint her with that hopeful expression.

So I just stammered, unable to say anything.

Anna seemed to take that as confirmation.

She puffed out her chest and spoke confidently.

“I’ll help! I’ll make sure big sister Lucia and big brother can date honestly!”

Yeah, that’s how it is.

I understand the situation now.

Anna, who misunderstood my relationship with Carlos, had orchestrated this.

Using the excuse of wanting to meet me, she arranged for Lucia and Carlos to meet on the weekend.

In other words, she’s playing Cupid.

Shooting arrows of fate left and right.

What I did for Eugene and Alice, Anna is now doing for me and Carlos.

Hehe, it’s a bit embarrassing.

Did Alice feel like this too?

You really can’t fully empathize until you’re in the same position.

Well, Eugene and Alice are fated lovers, so this might be different.

“Big sister is my savior, so this time I’ll help!”

Anna put strength into her shoulders, full of confidence.

I couldn’t hide my bewilderment at the little girl’s misunderstanding.

What ‘some’? Lucia is Eugene’s heroine. Eugene has Alice as his destined lover, so I’m not trying to get with Eugene, but getting involved with another man would be NTR. 

Lucia doesn’t want a bad ending. She’ll stay single forever. She has no intention of getting with any man. She’d rather be Eugene’s pet.

It was embarrassing, but at the same time, the sight of this little girl puffing herself up to help was really cute.

I should clear up the misunderstanding before it gets worse… but, should I play along for a bit?

You shouldn’t crush a child’s dreams so easily.

◈

The Celestial War.

A term referring to the large-scale battle that took place about 70 years ago.

The fifth Demonic Beast, the Colossus Typhon, descended accompanied by thunder and storms.

Violent, howling winds.

Lightning that shook the heavens and earth.

Breath that carried scorching heat.

Every time its wings flapped, the air tore apart and screamed.

Moving its massive body that seemed to reach the ends of the sky, the solid ground crumbled.

A half-human, half-beast monster.

No, even calling it a monster was insufficient.

The Demonic Beast proved why it was in a league above regular monsters.

With overwhelming power that defied comparison.

The embodiment of calamity bringing about the end.

That was the Demonic Beast.

Typhon appeared outside the territory of humanity.

The Celestial Corps, recognizing the presence of the Demonic Beast, immediately mobilized their forces and headed to the border.

Thus began a long yet short war.

The damage the Celestial Corps suffered was indescribable.

Why does the Celestial Corps only span up to seven Divisions?

Because the 8th Division was annihilated in that war.

Afterward, when the Celestial Corps was reorganized, the 8th Division was disbanded.

The survivors of the 8th Division were integrated into other divisions.

The fierce war.

The Celestial War that turned the heavens and earth upside down.

The result was humanity’s victory.

Though it was a victory filled with wounds, humans had defeated Typhon.

The Commander of the Celestial Corps.

Everyone praised and revered him.

The God of War.

To be precise, his title was the God of War and Soldiers.

At any time, in any place.

Humanity’s strongest spear and shield had once again protected the world.

The Colossus met its end at the hands of the God of War.

And to commemorate the victory of that war and the heroes who had fallen in battle.

A square was created in the 6th District, and a statue was erected in their honor.

Decades later, it had become a cultural landmark of the 6th District.

Various festivals and events were held there, and occasionally political gatherings or protests took place.

It was no exaggeration to call it the most famous square in the country.

“Look at him, that mutt. Lucia waited 30 minutes for you.”

A place of deep historical and cultural significance.

But to Frey, it meant nothing.

Hiding behind the statue of the heroes, Frey furrowed her brows, her eyes physically glowing with heat.

Her red eye, shimmering with intense heat, half-opened as she muttered.

“What kind of nonsense is this? How dare you waste my precious friend’s time by 30 minutes? You’ll have to pay for it with the rest of your life.”

It wasn’t a joke or an empty threat.

She was ready to fire a heat ray at any moment.

“Alice! Wait a second!!”

Arin, panicking, tried to stop Frey.

No, why does she act like a runaway train with broken brakes when she’s usually too shy to even speak properly?

She’s way too different!

Does she have two personalities or something?!

If it’s not that, there’s no way to explain it!

“What? I can’t see. Move aside.”

“I get how you feel, but calm down first! Do you want to write another self-reflection?!”

If she really fires a heat ray, it won’t end with just a self-reflection.

Ah, why do all the geniuses in our class have such eccentric personalities?

Arin genuinely thought it was a good thing she had come along.

As the class representative, it was her duty to stop her classmates from going off the rails.

“You said all the kids at the orphanage are like your siblings, so why did you only bring one? Your ulterior motives are obvious. Are you trying to use the kid as an excuse to hit on Lucia?”

“That kid is the one Lucia saved, so that’s probably why. And Lucia was the one who decided to meet. If you interfere, you’re just causing trouble for Lucia!”

“I know. That’s why I held back even though I wanted to stop it. If it’s what Lucia wants, I want to accept and affirm it. So I agonized over it and thought about it a lot… and in the end, I had no choice but to eliminate him…”

“You thought about it way too much! Where’s the usual Alice?! Please come back, shy Alice!”

“Huh?! Are you insulting Alice right now? Do you want a hole in your head?!”

Arin’s head was starting to hurt.

It felt like dealing with Anastasia.

She was also someone whose true intentions were hard to read.

But the current Alice was just as much of a weirdo as Anastasia.

“Eugene, don’t just stand there, try to stop Alice. She’s really going to cause an accident.”

Realizing she couldn’t stop Frey alone, Arin asked Eugene for help.

But she was left speechless when she saw Eugene quietly drawing his sword while staring into the distance.

“I’m glad I brought it. The Scarlet Blade is for this very moment…”

“Hey.”

Why are you like this too?

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
A library date (or so it was.)

Anyway, since they are together, it’s a date.

Lucia’s efforts were not in vain.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Divided by gender, united by (love) interests. Heh.

Oh yeah, the demonic beasts thingy, yeah I’ll take my L on this one… I’ll edit the past chaps and mistakes I made. (If I missed any, please point it out!)