Ch.161160. Journey? (2)

# 160. A Trip? (2)

Words I couldn’t understand within my common sense.

But unfortunately, it seemed those words were true.

‘Is she worried our relationship will deteriorate if I refuse here?’

Certainly, a talent like Luna is someone you shouldn’t let slip away.

Of course, I wondered if it was really necessary to go that far.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing…”

I held back for now, not knowing what might happen if I shared those thoughts with Raicle.

I’d find out everything later anyway.

“Looks like we’ve arrived… Let’s get off.”

The train stopped with perfect timing, allowing me to naturally change the subject.

I slung my bag over my shoulder and asked them:

“How long do people usually stay in places like this?”

“Just today, and then we’re going somewhere nicer next.”

Since I hadn’t checked the itinerary, I didn’t know how long we’d be staying here or where we’d go next.

However, I wasn’t worried since someone who was the complete opposite of me was right beside me.

“Where?”

“You know, that famous thing here.”

Besides ruins and museums, there was only one famous thing I could think of in this place.

“Hot springs?”

“You know it well. The schedule says we’re going to the hot springs in the evening.”

“The hot springs here are good…”

Of course, I’d only heard they were good but had never visited myself.

Unlike me, Chris seemed to have been to the hot springs here before.

“I wouldn’t know.”

“Have you been?”

“Just briefly with my family.”

“Really?”

“Don’t get your hopes up too high.”

We continued discussing our next destination as we got off the train.

As we disembarked, I spotted our classmates who had already gotten off.

Gloria quickly checked the headcount, then we headed to our first destination, the Lester Museum.

As we walked in line toward the museum, Reina, who had somehow approached me, said:

“Hey, I heard we’re going to hot springs next?”

“I already heard about that.”

“And then an amusement park after that?”

“Really? Sounds fun.”

“What’s with that soulless reaction?”

For some reason, Reina, who had silently approached me, was telling me about our upcoming schedule.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Just because.”

“But you seem kind of… how should I put it… uninterested? Anyway, that’s your state right now.”

Despite being on a school trip, Reina wasn’t excited like the other kids.

Rather, she gave off the impression that she already wanted to go home.

“This is boring… Not fun at all, don’t you think?”

“Still, it’s an opportunity, and we don’t get many of these.”

“I kind of wish that, you know, this museum was actually a dungeon.”

At some point, she had changed to become like me.

Originally, Reina disliked dungeons like Aelin, but now things seemed different.

“Write a novel, seriously.”

“I’m just saying it would be nice. We won’t be able to train together during the break anyway.”

“I’m planning to stay in the dormitory though.”

Hearing this, Reina’s expression suddenly brightened.

Then, with a face like a child who had just received a birthday present, she asked me:

“Really? For real?”

“Yeah, last time I had something to do, but this time I’m just planning to stay at the dormitory.”

“Then I’ll stay too.”

From Reina’s response, it seemed she didn’t necessarily need to return home either.

“Do as you please.”

“You’d be bored alone too, you should be more grateful.”

“I don’t really care either way?”

“Would it hurt to pretend you care a little?”

Reina was disappointed by my lukewarm reaction.

She was truly a young lady who required a lot of attention.

“Fine, thank you. Thanks.”

“If only you’d said that from the beginning…”

As I looked at Reina, who was trying not to show her feelings but failing, I thought:

‘Who did she end up with again…?’

To be honest, I couldn’t remember.

I knew she became the leader of a top-tier party, but I didn’t know who she ended up with.

‘Or… did she not get married?’

It was possible, given how hard-working she was.

As I was trying to recall my past memories, Gloria’s voice reached us.

“We’ve arrived. This museum houses artifacts from the well-known Lester War.”

Starting with those words, Gloria continued her explanation using her knowledge.

Indeed, as a teacher, she seemed to shine the most when sharing her professional knowledge with us.

“But Ms. Gloria knows so much despite being an elf…”

“That’s because she worked hard.”

“Have you ever thought about becoming a professor? You’re good at studying.”

“I’m not entirely against it, but it seems troublesome.”

Having experienced teaching others, I knew it wasn’t something just anyone could do.

“And I don’t really like that kind of thing.”

“Really? That’s unexpected. I thought you’d enjoy it since you explain things so well to us.”

“That’s because you all do well, especially you.”

“Ah…!? Well… I’m just… doing it normally…”

Whether it was genuine modesty or just pretense, Reina’s growth rate was far from normal.

After all, if you excluded me and her from the academy, Reina would be the strongest.

“What are you planning to do?”

“Me? Well… I haven’t really thought about it.”

To be honest, I hoped Reina would join the Special Forces.

She was the person I worked best with, and she was also an assassin like me.

And someone of Reina’s caliber had a higher chance of being accepted than Chris.

‘Looking at it this way, it seems like anyone can join the Special Forces…’

Of course, even saying that, it would probably just be me, Reina, and maybe Chris at most.

I spoke to Reina, who seemed to have fallen into deep contemplation after hearing my question:

“Think about it seriously later. If you’re not sure, ask the others too.”

“I’ll ask you.”

“Do as you please… I’m going ahead.”

I wanted to escape this noisy situation, and it seemed there wouldn’t be any problems.

So I left the crowd and headed elsewhere.

“Huh? Where are you going?”

“Aren’t you staying there?”

“I’m bored too, you know?”

Contrary to my intention, Reina had also separated from the group.

“If you’re gone too, they might notice…”

“It’s fine. But really, where are you going?”

“I just want to be alone for a bit…”

As Reina and I were wandering around the museum together, I sensed someone’s presence behind us.

Reina seemed to have noticed it too, and we both turned around simultaneously to confirm who it was.

“Oh…”

“Ah…”

I already knew who it was from their presence, but seeing them in person made it even more anticlimactic.

“What kind of reaction is that? I’m the hero, you know?”

“You’re here again this time?”

For some reason, it felt like I was seeing Amelia’s face quite frequently.

At the very least, I seemed to see her at least once every two months without fail.

“The academy asked me to come again.”

“That must be tough for you.”

“Not really? I didn’t come just for this anyway.”

Amelia seemed like she had something to say to me.

I asked her:

“Is it… something related to me?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?”

When I asked, Amelia looked at Reina and questioned:

“Is it okay if she’s here?”

“That’s for you to decide. I don’t even know what this is about.”

“Do you know… a demon named Lilith?”

That name suddenly came up.

I hadn’t seen her separately recently, so I was a bit glad to hear it.

Of course, I couldn’t let Amelia know that fact.

“I don’t know?”

“You… you’re quite good at lying. I saw everything.”

“Pardon?”

“I saw you talking with that demon at the academy before.”

Given that she mentioned the academy as the location, she must have really seen it.

“That’s a bit creepy.”

“Everyone says that. I just have good eyesight, that’s all. But I’m not here to arrest you or anything, just something’s been bothering me.”

Saying that, Amelia showed me a video.

In the video, Lilith was pretending to attack while subtly helping humans evacuate.

“Karina also said that demon told her to run away immediately.”

“I see…”

Even in the chaotic battlefield, she had been helping humans.

Of course, Amelia was questioning Lilith’s actions.

“Why is she doing this?”

“Not all citizens follow their king, right? It’s something like that.”

“Can that demon… be trusted?”

“Yes.”

“I see… Well, I guess so, considering how much she helped.”

“But why didn’t you do anything after seeing that?”

It wasn’t even something she had seen recently.

She must have seen it at least a semester ago, yet Amelia hadn’t taken any action.

“I didn’t do nothing. I followed her around a bit, but she didn’t seem to be a traitor or anything.”

“Ah…”

My assumption that she hadn’t done anything was mistaken.

“What if she was really a spy or something?”

“She would have been dead long ago.”

Hearing that, I understood why there weren’t any traitors in this country.

‘They’ve all been killed already…’

As I was relieved that I hadn’t met such a fate, Amelia’s second question came:

“Then does she know? That girl who tried to kill the princess before.”