Ch.157157. Who Are Your Comrades?

“Have you been coming here often lately?”

This was the Parsece estate.

Kasia Spier smiled gently at Elina Parsece sitting across from her.

“I just stopped by on my way home.”

“Home? You still haven’t gone home yet?”

“…Actually, I visited Lake territory.”

“W-what?!”

“I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of person Elina likes so much.”

Elina Parsece twitched her eyebrows before speaking.

“I thought we agreed not to make any bets?”

Kasia Spier found Elina Parsece remarkably different these days.

Since childhood, she had never shown even the slightest irritation toward her, but now she was always sensitive about anything related to Selden Alphonse.

Kasia Spier opened her palm, gesturing for calm.

“Don’t misunderstand. I didn’t go there to make a bet.”

“Then why did you go to Lake territory?”

“I told you. I was simply curious about this ‘Selden Alphonse’ person.”

“But why would you care?”

Elina Parsece continued to respond tersely.

Kasia Spier placed her teacup on the table with a ‘clack’ and tilted her head.

“Am I not allowed to be curious?”

“Why are you concerned about the person I like?”

At that, Kasia Spier’s mouth fell open.

“Wow… Elina, you’ve really changed.”

“This is your fault to begin with.”

“Yes, you’re right. It was wrong of me to visit Lake territory simply because I was curious about Lord Selden Alphonse.”

Elina continued with anxious eyes.

“You didn’t mention me to Selden Alphonse, did you?”

“When I met him, there wasn’t much to talk about, so I happened to mention that I’m your friend.”

“Kasia…”

“I’ll apologize for that too. I just wanted to quietly see his face, but it turns out Lord Dernis and Lord Selden Alphonse know each other.”

Elina Parsece covered her mouth in surprise.

“Lord Dernis? The one who served as a mercenary in our territory?”

“Yes, Lord Selden Alphonse apparently had experience as a wandering mercenary and met him then.”

“Lord Selden Alphonse couldn’t have been a wandering mercenary?”

“What do you mean?”

“Someone who hasn’t even had their coming-of-age ceremony rarely lives in other territories.”

Hearing Elina Parsece’s words, Kasia Spier pondered for a moment before shrugging her shoulders.

“Who knows, maybe the Alphonse family trained him harshly from childhood… Is that why he’s so strong?”

“Strong? What are you talking about now?”

Kasia Spier smiled faintly.

The reason was simple.

She felt like she knew a secret about Selden Alphonse that even Elina Parsece didn’t know.

“You know about the Dark Corps, right?”

“Of course, your father created the Dark Corps to protect you.”

“When Selden Alphonse and I were alone outside in Lake territory, the Dark Corps came to take me home.”

Elina Parsece’s cheeks trembled momentarily.

The word ‘Dark Corps’ didn’t even register in her ears.

Only the fact that Kasia Spier and Selden Alphonse were ‘alone’ together made her extremely uneasy.

Kasia Spier.

Having been her only friend since childhood, Elina knew her personality well.

She was someone who would do whatever it took to get what she wanted.

That was Kasia Spier.

Therefore.

It was only natural that the timid Elina Parsece, who hadn’t even properly confessed to Selden Alphonse yet, would feel anxious.

“…And then?”

“That’s when Lord Selden Alphonse, like a prince on a white horse, knocked down all the Dark Corps members with his bare fists, not even using a sword.”

“So Lord Selden Alphonse isn’t just intelligent…”

“Ha, he was so cool… After defeating all the Dark Corps members, he came to me and said, ‘I’ve helped you as promised. Shall we go now?'”

Kasia Spier clutched her chest with an excited expression as she recalled the moment, but then looked up with a start, sensing an uncomfortable atmosphere.

She found Elina Parsece glaring at her with an icy expression.

“Didn’t you say you liked Levan?”

“…Did I?”

“If our bet had been valid, which of us would have won?”

Though indirect, her question was straightforward.

The original bet was about ‘who was better between Levan and Selden Alphonse.’

Kasia Spier had planned to meet Selden Alphonse to test his heart, but it was called off due to Elina Parsece’s refusal.

In other words.

Elina Parsece was asking the question.

Who was better between Levan and Selden Alphonse?

Kasia Spier immediately understood the intent behind the question.

And she had no desire to hide her feelings.

“I admit I lost that bet.”

“So I can interpret that as you also having feelings for Lord Selden Alphonse?”

Sparks seemed to fly between their eyes.

The atmosphere was so tense it felt like the reception room might burst into flames at any moment.

Kasia Spier rose to her feet and smiled casually.

“I came here to be honest with you as a friend. I believe you understand what I mean.”

“…Only a fool wouldn’t understand this.”

In the midst of escalating emotions, Kasia Spier extended her hand toward Elina Parsece.

“Let’s compete fairly.”

A fierce, cold wind blew through the reception room window.

Elina Parsece refused the handshake.

Kasia Spier looked at her own palm awkwardly, then silently left the reception room.

Creeeeak-! Clunk-!

Elina Parsece stared intently at the door through which Kasia Spier had left, grinding her molars.

“I will… never let him go.”

*

“You want to go to the Forest of Death?”

Serion Lykus asked with wide, rabbit-like eyes in surprise.

This guy would sneak in anyway even if I told him not to, yet he’s pretending to be shocked…

I continued with a smile tinged with pretense.

“The monster wave occurred in the Forest of Death. I’m planning to investigate it, and I thought you might want to join if you’re curious.”

“You haven’t investigated it yet?”

“It took quite some time to rebuild the damaged defensive formation. Recovery had to come first…”

“Ah… I see. But would it be okay for me to enter? It seems dangerous…”

Now that I think about it, Serion Lykus’s acting skills were quite impressive.

He had already completed his isolated training and wouldn’t fall behind anyone.

Still.

I wanted to check his condition with ‘Eye of Insight,’ but his protagonist’s heightened ‘perception’ ability made it difficult to do so discreetly.

I clicked my tongue in disappointment.

“It’s fine. Since the monster wave has already occurred once, there shouldn’t be many monsters left in the Forest of Death.”

Serion Lykus gave me a suspicious look at my enthusiastic attitude.

I quickly continued.

“The Forest of Death will soon be under stricter control, so if you want to go, it’s better to come with me. Of course, you can refuse if you’re uncomfortable.”

“…The control will become stricter?”

Looking around cautiously, I whispered to Serion Lykus.

“The Imperial family is planning to send knights soon.”

“T-the Imperial family?”

“It’s a site where a monster wave occurred, so the Imperial family wants to investigate too.”

It was a lie to create urgency.

Fortunately, it seemed to work as Serion Lykus fidgeted in his seat.

“T-then when can we go to the Forest of Death?”

“Anytime is possible.”

“Will it just be me and Lord Selden Alphonse going to the Forest of Death?”

Once again, Serion Lykus asked the question I was expecting.

Suppressing a smile, I continued.

“It would be dangerous with just the two of us, so we’ll need reliable companions.”

“So the Alphonse family’s knights and mercenaries will join us?”

“Since there aren’t many monsters in the Forest of Death right now, I’m thinking of bringing just a few people. I’ll station knights and mercenaries at the entrance to the forest in case of emergencies.”

Serion Lykus pretended to contemplate for a while.

Since there was only one answer he would choose anyway, I waited for his response with my arms crossed.

After a moment, he slapped the table and spoke.

“Alright! When are we going to the Forest of Death?”

“How about two days from now? We need some time to prepare.”

“The day after tomorrow works for me. I’ll be staying here anyway, so if there are any changes, you can find me at the inn.”

I thought all that remained was to go back to the estate to prepare Luna and Rio to accompany me to the Forest of Death in two days.

However, Serion Lykus seemed to hesitate, as if he had something more to say.

Then, with a determined expression, he continued.

“By the way, I have a companion. Would it be alright if they joined us?”

What nonsense is this?

When Serion Lykus visited Lake territory, the only person who could be called his companion was Rinadiel.

Moreover, in the original story, he meets Rinadiel in Silverwood territory and temporarily leaves her with an acquaintance.

In other words, Rio and Luna were supposed to be his first companions on his journey.

Could the story already be distorted because of me?

Hiding my bewildered expression, I cleared my throat.

“Ahem! Who is this companion?”