Ch.100Chapter 100. No, That’s Not a Wrong Done to Me

What should I do?

Ever since saving Lucy, whose limbs had been severed, Lin seemed to have lived with this thought constantly on his mind.

Though he had somehow managed to push through, each time he hit this threshold, his chest tightened with frustration.

If only Ravin were here.

But the thief had left for the Sewage Alley with the Saint.

He would return eventually, but there was no telling how long it would take.

The migration of the Church’s citizens to Valter Crua would also be in full swing, so he might stop by there as well.

“Lin… my Lin…”

The subject of this latest “what should I do” was, as usual, Lucy.

Setting aside her worsening obsession, whenever she tried to enter Lowellina, she would have seizures, making it impossible to do anything.

Just when she seemed to be getting better and trying to move forward on her own, her past kept holding her back and interfering.

Until now, Lin had comforted her because Lucy was unstable and struggling with her guilt, but after returning from Gilesman, Lin felt something different.

Her obsession with Lin had intensified, and it felt as if some sticky, black substance had filled Lucy, causing her to either dismiss everything else or become intensely jealous of it all.

Even here in the city of romance, she feared popular songs and her exposed wrongdoings, crying about them, but soon she would be clinging to Lin’s embrace, acting spoiled.

Whenever he exchanged a few words with Tigria, Lucy would immediately whine and tug at Lin’s clothes.

What should he do?

Lin made his decision.

“Tigria, stoke the fire a bit more. I need to prepare dinner.”

“Got it.”

Eager to help when addressed, Tigria built up a magnificent fire.

Lucy, startled, burrowed into Lin, but he maintained a firm attitude.

“We need to eat, right? I’ll make it quickly.”

“B-but I’m not hungry…”

“I am hungry. And Tigria probably is too.”

What could she say when he stated he was hungry?

Lucy crouched quietly, watching Lin happily cook.

“Tigria.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while—would a steak topped with a soft-boiled egg taste good?”

Tigria considered this very seriously.

“I can’t believe it.”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s definitely something that should have been tried at least once, but even I never considered it.”

“So you think it would taste good?”

“Incredibly.”

That’s because you were literally a doll, so things like fine cuisine weren’t even on your radar.

Lucy disliked seeing Tigria’s smile as she answered Lin.

“If we add mashed potatoes and a salad with a tangy dressing, I think the flavors would balance well.”

“I completely agree, Lin.”

Hiiing.

She deliberately made a whimpering sound, but Lin didn’t react.

As he melted butter in the heated pan and cooked the thick sirloin, Lin sent Tigria on errands whenever he needed something.

Tigria did as she was told without showing any sign of annoyance.

In fact, her expression became more animated the more Lin spoke to her.

“Could you keep stirring the mashed potatoes?”

“Like this?”

“More, more. If it flows like water, it won’t taste good. Let’s not add any more cream.”

“Okay, got it!”

It didn’t feel good.

The two of them looked like a married couple.

Lin calmly and kindly giving instructions, and Tigria eagerly following them—it was truly heartwarming.

That was the scene Lucy had wanted more than anyone.

It was her wish to build a home and live with Lin, through thick and thin.

“There, it’s done!”

Lucy received the steaming dish but had no appetite.

Still, refusing the meal Lin had prepared for her wasn’t an option.

As Lucy quietly cut into the steak topped with two soft-boiled eggs, Tigria, who had also received a plate from Lin, showed a different reaction than before.

“Thank you, Lin.”

“For what?”

“Thank you for cooking. It looks delicious.”

“That’s sudden. It’s my job, after all.”

“I should have said it from the beginning. I’m sorry for saying it so late.”

Lucy looked up in great surprise.

Thank you.

That was what she had resolved to say to Lin after Ravin had confronted her at the Imperial Palace.

But somehow she had forgotten, and now Tigria was saying it instead.

“Thank you, Lin.”

“Don’t mention it.”

When Lucy followed suit, Lin just smiled slightly and moved on.

What was this feeling of having lost?

Her appetite diminished further, but she diligently cut her food and put it in her mouth.

It was delicious.

Delicious, but depressing.

Even though Lin was sitting right beside her, he felt so distant.

“I’d like to discuss what we should do from now on.”

Lin mumbled while scooping up mashed potatoes.

“We need to get an operation permit to prevent the demon army from setting foot here.”

“About that.”

Tigria, who had been waiting for this cue, quickly pulled out an operation permit from her chest.

“I contacted the Duke and obtained it.”

“Really? When?”

“I informed him of our situation this morning, and in the afternoon, I went to Viscon and negotiated.”

So that’s why she was gone for a while.

Though the outcome was good, this was Tigria acting on her own.

It might not be noticeable now with only three members in the hero’s party, but if she acted this way when everyone was gathered, it could cause discord.

Sometimes, such independent actions could lead to situations where the entire hero’s party was misled.

But seeing the magician’s eyes shining with expectation of praise, Lin found it difficult to point this out.

“Well done, Tigria! That’s a weight off our shoulders.”

“It was just what needed to be done.”

“Next time, let’s discuss together before taking action. When we all put our heads together, we’re more likely to achieve better results.”

“Understood, I’ll definitely do that!”

Whether it was because she was still emotionally childlike or because it was Lin who said it, Tigria accepted only the fact that Lin had praised her, without attaching any deeper meaning.

Lin felt a bit bitter but thought it was okay to let it go since it wasn’t an action driven by selfishness like during her doll days.

That wasn’t the important issue right now.

Meanwhile, Lucy was trying to hide her jealousy-filled heart as she stuffed the soft-boiled egg into her mouth.

“The plan going forward. My plan is to complete my revenge.”

Both Lucy and Tigria stopped moving their hands.

The magician quickly cast a silent soundproofing spell as soon as she heard Lin’s words.

“The Sewage Alley was destroyed by both the Church and the Empire.”

Meaning Lin and Ravin had only achieved half of their revenge.

“The culprits who destroyed the alley from the Empire’s side are Rainford and Rinasien.”

Pok, the fork pierced the soft-boiled egg yolk, bursting it.

“They’re big shots. One is a Shield Knight, the other is the Imperial Princess. But I really want to do it—take revenge.”

Lin swallowed the dripping soft-boiled egg in one bite.

“Can you help me?”

“Yes, absolutely. Just trust me, Lin. I’m going to kill the Shield Knight with my own hands anyway.”

“Please let me help too.”

Both of them quickly nodded to Lin, eagerly agreeing, but Lin just continued chewing his meat.

Finally, after finishing his meal, Lin wiped his mouth and casually said:

“Thanks, but right now, you two are of no help at all.”

“…!!”

Lucy’s eyes widened.

No help?

She had never heard such words from anyone.

It was the same for Tigria.

She never expected Lin to be the first person to say this.

“Could you… tell us why?”

When Tigria stammered the question, Lin answered nonchalantly:

“You both keep saying you’ve done wrong, but when it’s time to work together, you’re so trapped in the past that you can’t do anything.”

Tigria, who had obtained the operation permit, might feel wronged, but the original cause of Lin being treated this way by the world was the attitude of the hero’s party.

“It’s the same here. Did you follow me without knowing this would happen? When you said you were sorry, I thought you came prepared for at least this much.”

The atmosphere grew heavy.

Lin wasn’t angry.

But he was scolding them.

“Why is it that the victim of the bullying is trying to move on, while you two are sitting there, paralyzed by your own guilt? Why do I always have to comfort you and drag you forward? And even then, we’re barely making progress.”

“…”

“Hmm? What should we do?”

It was completely different from Ravin, who would scold them angrily.

He was calmly pointing out their shameful behavior, gently telling them they were useless.

Not pushing, not raising his voice, just admonishing.

You two are of no help at all.

You seem unnecessary.

I end up doing all the work anyway.

What are you going to do about it?

Lucy froze, while Tigria desperately racked her brain.

She kept thinking and thinking about how to respond and act in a way that would please him.

“…I’ll face my past.”

“What does that mean?”

She wasn’t sure if this was the right answer.

Tigria swallowed hard and barely managed to speak.

“Instead of just saying I’m sorry… I’ll clearly state… what I did wrong… acknowledge it, and stop letting it hold me back…”

“What did you do wrong?”

His casual questioning was frightening.

It felt like one wrong word here, and he might just leave.

“I… I… treated my teammates impersonally… and lacked teamwork…”

“No, no, I mean what you did wrong to me. Weren’t you apologizing for what you did to me? Or maybe not.”

“No, no! That’s right, I’m apologizing for what I did to Lin.”

“So what did you do wrong?”

It was hard to breathe.

This pressure was something she had never felt before.

Taking several deep breaths, Tigria listed her sins.

“I abandoned Lin when other party members were bullying him… didn’t treat him as a person… left him injured… and despite apologizing, nothing has changed…”

Lin was honestly dumbfounded.

The one who was trying the hardest was confessing that she felt she hadn’t done anything.

In truth, she had hardly done anything wrong to Lin except for her indifference, yet she was earnestly listing her faults.

“I… I want to apologize to Lin… may I?”

“No. If you apologize, I’d have to forgive you, right? But I understand your sincerity.”

Lin cut her off firmly.

Instead, he turned his gaze to Lucy.

“I… I…”

“Don’t cry. If you cry, I’ll get angry, and there won’t be any chance of forgiveness.”

“Hic…! Kk…!”

She struggled desperately to hold back her tears.

She tilted her tear-filled eyes toward the sky, trying to stop them.

The starlight looked dimmer than ever.

“I… I told Lin to wear a mask because he was ug… ly… I looked down on him as a non-combatant and made others do the same… hic… huk…!”

“I said don’t cry.”

“Even though Lin made food for us, I never thanked him and ate it all with the other party members, never helped with Lin’s work… when Lin saved me, I just got angry and said terrible things… and when he tried to do something, I kept interfering, saying it wouldn’t work…”

There were many.

Many and long.

Even Lin was inwardly surprised at how many there were, hearing them from her own mouth.

As the list of sins continued, Lucy’s expression grew more distorted.

She was speaking slowly with her teeth clenched, but tears were already flowing.

Lin chose not to point that out.

“And… lastly… fawning over someone like Rainford… and getting engaged…”

Huh?

“Why is that a wrong against me? That has nothing to do with me.”

“…What?”

Lucy shook her head.

“No…? I shouldn’t have done that because I only have Lin…?”

“No, that was your love life. I have nothing to say about that.”

“No-o! It was wrong of me!”

Just mentioning Rainford’s name was horrifying.

Nevertheless, she had finally mentioned it to apologize to Lin after putting it off, but Lin treated it as if it were nothing.

“I only have Lin! So, that past was wrong! I shouldn’t have done it. It was my fault for not recognizing you from the beginning and doing foolish things. I’m sorry for making you hear about my terrible past here too… I won’t, I won’t do it again. Never… I-I won’t just say it, I’ll show you. I’ll show you through my actions. I, I really can’t live without Lin…!”

Lin,

very indifferently,

nodded his head.

“Well, if Lucy says so…. Let’s leave it at that for now.”

He looked around.

Tigria was completely frozen, and Lucy was biting her lip hard to suppress her crying sounds while tears still flowed.

“Crying doesn’t solve anything. Look at me. If I had collapsed in tears back then, saying how hard it was, would you have ever looked back at me?”

They flinched.

“I just worked hard. That’s all it was.”

Both of them lowered their heads.

“It took a long time.”

Lin sighed.

“It will take a long time.”

And he opened his arms.

“But if there’s something you want.”

He approached and embraced both of them at once.

“Don’t give up.”

Lucy and Tigria embraced him back.

They hugged him tightly, not wanting to let go.

“Let’s do well, okay?”

There was no verbal response, just the feeling of their heads nodding vigorously against his neck.

Sigh, did it really have to be like this?

Neither the scolded nor the scolder felt at ease.

From this day on, Lucy’s whining stopped as if by magic.

She became able to express her intentions more clearly.

But that’s a story for tomorrow.

Unfortunately, Lin didn’t notice that Lucy and Tigria were engaged in a fierce physical struggle, pushing each other away while still clinging to him.

And here’s one more person.

Someone else was scolding in the Sewage Alley style.

“So what exactly did you do wrong?”

At Ravin’s quiet question, Arsil burst into tears.

“I became arrogant and only saw what I wanted to see, heard what I wanted to hear…! I committed great sins against everyone, not just Lin….”

Now we’re getting somewhere.

Ravin just left Arsil to cry her heart out until she was done.