Ch.170Hero (2)

“What do you… think of my sister?”

An unexpected question.

Since I didn’t know his intention, I had to respond with a moment of silence.

Perhaps sensing my subtle wariness, Ruska muttered.

As if asking me to lower my guard.

“I don’t mean anything by it.”

“I haven’t particularly suspected anything, but it’s just such a sudden question.”

“Bear with the discomfort. I only came to exchange a few trivial words.”

“……Hearing you say that makes me even more suspicious.”

I tilt my head.

Nevertheless, those blue eyes silently stare at me.

I couldn’t help but feel curious inside.

‘What’s this about?’

Did he eat something bad?

Coming out of nowhere to make small talk.

Since the beginning of school, after I caused that fight between him and Amelia, he was petty enough to not exchange a single word with me.

He even avoided lectures we shared, as if he couldn’t stand to see my face.

What wind had blown to make someone who despised me so much approach me now?

I had some idea… but it probably meant the situation wasn’t good.

While calmly organizing my thoughts, I listened carefully.

After remaining silent for a while, he soon asked again.

“……So, what’s your answer to my question?”

“Well…”

I deliberately paused briefly.

If he had no particular meaning… he probably wanted me to answer honestly about how I felt.

Though I still had questions about the question itself.

My mouth didn’t hesitate to answer.

“She’s someone admired by countless people.”

Amelia was like a star.

A star that draws everyone’s attention.

Though she herself didn’t seem to realize it, she was someone many students looked up to.

In some ways, she received even more fervent admiration than the imperial princesses.

Because the vain beauty’s charm was that genuine.

‘A Renaissance woman, you could say.’

Her unique winter-like atmosphere.

Her youthful yet mature appearance.

Talent counted among the top five of this generation.

The heir who would eventually stand at the center of the ducal family.

To others, she was like a flower on a cliff.

Like a camellia blooming proudly even in a field of white snow.

“At the same time, she’s also a warm person.”

The villainess’s path differed from the original work.

She broke free from her early exit fate and pioneered her own story.

She even became the closest friend with the protagonist she once opposed.

And above all.

-Commoner, run out the door right now.

-I’ll buy some time here… you get out alive.

-I won’t be able to hold out for long.

In that extreme moment, she showed a new choice.

It gave me confidence that this world deserved to change too.

She was essentially the reason I believed I could prevent the thousands of bad endings.

That’s why I smiled faintly.

“Above all, to me… she’s someone I’m grateful for, and precious.”

“……”

My honest impression.

After hearing my words, Ruska fell back into silence.

His deeply sunken gaze seemed troubled by something.

Just then, his blue hair fluttered in the passing spring breeze.

Only then did the boy add another question.

“Then…”

The air seemed to frost over.

A chilling resonance spread out.

“If my sister were to fall into trouble, what would you do?”

Quite a direct question.

But I answered without hesitation.

Because sincerity needs no room for doubt.

“I would stay by her side and support her.”

“Why?”

“Because like many others, I admire her too.”

“……I see.”

An unreadable expression.

Ruska remained silent for quite some time.

As if walking between complex conflicts, his blue pupils kept trembling.

The resolute silence was broken when the boy stood up.

He rose from the bench.

“Yes…”

A whisper brushing past my ear.

The boy’s resonance barely reached me.

“I’m the same.”

The same.

What did he mean by that?

Before I could even ask, the boy was already quietly leaving the park.

I followed his retreating figure reflected in the scattering season.

The blue hair of a lonely, disheveled boy.

***

That somewhat abrupt conversation with Ruska.

It was quite concerning.

I still didn’t understand his anguish.

Since I needed hints for my deduction, I arranged a private meeting with Amelia.

We were sitting side by side in the dormitory, alone together.

The faint presence made us aware of each other.

Clatter-

It had been quite a while since we spent time alone together.

Since she became close with Lezia, they had always been together like a set.

Though somehow recently, I felt like she was keeping her distance.

The blue-hued villainess quietly began.

“……You’re curious about Ruska?”

“Yes.”

Blue eyes blinking as if puzzled.

Then her fine brows furrowed.

“Did Ruska say something to you?”

“Nothing particularly special.”

“Specifically…?”

“He asked how I thought of you, Lady.”

“What? So, what did you answer?”

“I explained that you’re someone I’m grateful for, and also precious to me.”

“P-precious person…”

Her cheeks turning slightly red.

Swallowing my mischievous thoughts, I patted the vain girl’s head.

The girl flinched but quietly accepted my touch.

The villainess calmed her breath with her heated face.

Soon after clearing her throat lightly, she said:

“Ahem…! Ruska is a good child.”

“Just a good person?”

“He tends to become somewhat difficult when family is involved… but his nature is pure.”

“He certainly seemed concerned about you, Lady. Though I’m not sure about the purity…”

“Despite appearances, he has quite an innocent side.”

Soft laughter erupted.

By now, Amelia’s eyes were deeply immersed.

As if reminiscing about the past beyond the scene.

“Ruska really loved heroic tales.”

“By heroic tales, you mean…?”

“Exactly what it sounds like. Wandering knights, magicians from red-light districts, adventurers of the earth… he loved any story about heroes indiscriminately. I even teased him for being childish.”

“That’s quite contrary to his cold demeanor.”

“Perhaps our father’s influence was significant.”

The previous head of the Venatti family who led numerous wars.

Ruska grew up hearing about his father’s valor, constantly nurturing admiration for heroes.

As the child of one of the continent’s few great mages and ice mages, he too aspired to be a hero.

She said she was even worried because he seemed so immature…

Perhaps he was quite the troublemaker when young.

‘But.’

Around the time he turned fifteen, his mood darkened dramatically.

Probably because of the ducal couple’s sudden passing.

They lost their parents in an unfortunate accident.

Four years had passed since then.

The boy had changed as much as time had passed.

“Many things changed.”

The villainess’s complexion darkened.

Her hesitant lips continued the story.

“You… probably already know this, but the recent attack wasn’t simply the work of cultists.”

“So you knew as well, Lady.”

“There’s no concrete evidence to place them under suspicion… but I suspect my family is also connected to the attack.”

“I won’t deny it.”

“That’s why I’m afraid. Afraid that people around me might get hurt because of me.”

“How can you blame yourself? It’s just a tragedy beyond your control.”

“It’s a family I should have led. This happened because I lacked strength.”

“Just because it wasn’t controlled, you don’t need to bear all the responsibility.”

“Lezia, Irene, and you too… everyone almost faced great danger.”

The girl rarely calling the pilot and fox by their names.

Though she didn’t show it, the psychological impact must have been significant.

Perhaps her recent distancing from the group stemmed from this sense of guilt.

The vain girl looked up at the blue sky with complicated eyes.

Emotions surged beyond the blue surface.

I asked quietly:

“May I ask what’s happening in the Venatti family?”

“……”

“Have you considered seeking outside help…”

“It’s impossible. We can’t escape.”

The villainess’s answer was self-deprecating, or perhaps melancholic.

Her delicate voice reflected resignation.

As if struggling was meaningless anyway.

I asked, as if to counter that:

“If it’s all meaningless, why are you telling me?”

“I don’t know… I’m not sure myself.”

Hands fidgeting with the teacup.

Beyond the already cooled surface, only the girl herself was reflected.

The ripples that followed shattered the thin mirror.

The answer that came back was equally faint.

“Just, if it’s you…”

The resonance faintly subsided.

Similarly, the volume converged to almost zero.

“I thought you might be able to save us from this cesspool.”

That was a promise we made once.

The words we sealed with linked fingers, saying I would be on your side.

I stare at her faintly trembling shoulders.

After a blank expression, Amelia soon shook her head as if she had said something unnecessary.

The emptiness flickering in her eyes as she tried to brush off the conversation.

“Forget it. I said something useless.”

“No.”

I hold onto her.

“If that’s what you wish, I’ll gladly step forward.”

Because that was our promise.

To do our best for each other.

To be good supporters.

If so, I said I would protect you.

With a gently extended hand, I hold the villainess’s hand.

“Just… quietly.”

Hands intertwining softly.

The girl had a confused look, but she didn’t push away the entwining warmth.

Rather, she relaxed as if she needed something to lean on.

Before we knew it, we were sitting as if embracing each other.

Our breaths mingled, and the gap between us was so small our scents could melt together.

The touching skin adds vulnerability to that distance.

I deliberately place my lips against her earlobe.

So the whisper dissolves into my breath.

“Just trust me.”

“……”

Focus blurring hazily.

Amelia responded with nothing but a small silence.

As if momentarily enchanted by some whisper.

I smiled at such a girl.

“Don’t worry.”

I’ll stop your misfortune.

The snake’s whisper melting in an instant.

I held the trembling villainess for a long time.