Ch.33Chapter 33. Call Me Lin, Ravin

Just before leaving Valtercrua, Ravin took Lin aside.

“Are you okay?”

Their voices overlapped.

The words of concern resonated sweetly in the depths of Ravin’s heart.

“Here.”

Lin took out a potion from the porter’s bag and handed it over.

Ravin pushed the potion away with her hand.

“Damn it, use it for yourself.”

“I’m giving it to you because I want to do something for you. It’ll put my mind at ease.”

She hesitantly accepted it.

Feeling the warmth of his touch still on the glass bottle, Ravin asked Lin, “You’re leaving right away, aren’t you?”

“Yes, we’re being tracked by the Hero’s party, so we need to move quickly.”

“And it seems the Mage-Hero’s party is after you too.”

“I don’t know why they’re targeting me.”

“Maybe you’re just too popular?”

“Me? Haha.”

His dry laughter, expressed without a change in expression, was heartbreaking.

The Lin she knew was someone with a warm heart who could express himself richly.

“I have a favor to ask, Ravin.”

“Anything, just say it.”

“Some of the Hero’s party will come to Valtercrua today. I don’t know about the others, but the Saint will definitely be among them.”

“That guy always moves at the forefront, so that makes sense.”

“Please tell them we’re going to the Zramun Archipelago.”

“…You want me to tell those guys your destination?”

It was necessary.

The Mage-Hero in the Zramun Archipelago was absolutely not something Lucy could handle alone.

More precisely, facing them with the handicap of Lin was nearly impossible.

Originally, they could have obtained various items or enhancements at Valtercrua’s black market, but unfortunately, their rival, the illusionist Adora, had appeared.

She must have infiltrated Valtercrua for a long time because the entire black market area was under Adora’s illusion, meaning all stat enhancement events were effectively nullified.

“You have a plan, don’t you?”

“That’s right.”

“And there’s not enough time to explain and convince me.”

“That’s right.”

“Alright. Is that all I need to relay?”

“There’s one more thing.”

“What is it?”

“Please identify devout and knowledgeable priests and believers in the Church and the religious order.”

This was a request only she, the head of the Thieves’ Guild, could fulfill.

And this was also related to Arsil’s wish.

“Leave it to me.”

“Thank you, Ravin.”

All messages and requests had been conveyed.

There was no time to delay now.

Lin turned to go where Lucy was waiting.

He was moving away.

The back of the man she had waited for five whole years was gradually distancing from her.

I can’t be childish anymore, she told herself.

But she couldn’t calm her heart that sank with each step he took.

“Hey!”

Finally, she called out to him and ran.

She threw herself into his arms as he turned around.

Lin was surprised as he reflexively embraced her.

“Ravin?”

“Don’t go…”

She desperately pleaded with him.

“Can’t you just stay with me? I would never hurt you. I never have. I’m confident I can treat you more preciously than anyone else. No, from the moment I first met you, I’ve…!”

“Ravin.”

The kind Lin took out a soft cloth and wiped Ravin’s mouth.

Blood from the side effects of the potion had stained it.

“This is something I must do.”

“But why? Why do you have to go this far? There are other members of the Hero’s party!”

“Everyone has their own role. My role is just that of an insignificant porter compared to them.”

“Burdens aren’t meant to be carried alone. They can be shared. I’d be happy to become a porter with you and leave together.”

“You have your own role too. Like ruling this Valtercrua.”

“I prepared this city for you. It was meant to be a place where we could be together!”

“It can’t be helped if we want to save the world.”

“The world? I only need you.”

“Ravin.”

Lin gave a bitter smile out of guilt.

“The world I want to save includes you too. It’s the world you live in.”

What woman could remain stubborn in the face of such words?

Though disappointed, she was also reassured.

He was still the Lin she knew.

Not some doll, but Lin with a warm heart.

Lin, who didn’t want Ravin to cry, decided to give her a gift of sorts.

Even someone as insensitive as Lin couldn’t fail to notice Ravin’s feelings.

“From now on, call me Lin.”

“Ah…”

Ravin’s eyes widened.

“Is that really okay?”

“Yes, please call me that.”

“…Lin.”

“Yes, Ravin.”

“Lin, Lin…!”

Fortunately, Lin’s gift seemed to please her.

As Ravin cherished the name, repeating it, she suddenly became curious.

“Why did you go by ‘Mr. Lee’ back in Sewage Alley?”

“I didn’t have a name then. I was really just ‘Mr. Lee.'”

“When did you get a name?”

“After Arsil left.”

Should I tell her this much?

After contemplating, Lin decided.

“I got my name shortly before our alley disappeared.”

“Who gave it to you?”

“That’s right.”

“Who?”

Lin answered with silence.

But the clever Ravin thought quickly and found the answer.

Lin, Lee Lin.

Surname Lee, first name Lin.

Lin, why specifically Lin?

Was it taken from someone’s name?

Was there a historical figure named Lin?

Lin, Lin, Lin, Lin.

Who could it be…

“Ah.”

There was one.

A woman whose name was similar to his.

“Could it be Lina?”

Lin gave another bitter smile.

It was a reason she didn’t want to know, and an affirmation she didn’t want to see.

“She shortened her name to make yours?”

“…That’s right.”

“That’s…!”

That fox-like girl was trying to make you subordinate to her through your name!

She questioned in her heart, not with her lips.

The name she had hoped to be allowed to use had been given by the woman she disliked the most.

“She tried to erase us from the world.”

“Lina did give me the name, but she was also the one who called me by it the least.”

It hadn’t been used more than ten times.

“After the alley disappeared, it became a name that was truly mine, that stayed with me.”

“Don’t you want to change it?”

“I’ve used it for so long that it feels wrong to change it so easily.”

If he were to change it, he wanted to do so after appearing before her as an equal man, hearing it from her lips one last time, showing himself proudly, and completely letting go of his lingering feelings.

“Do you still like Lina?”

“No, not at all.”

Although for three years after leaving the alley, he had worked aimlessly and volunteered as a porter for the Hero’s party for advancement because of her, his heart had died when he set out on the journey to defeat the Demon King.

At that time, his feelings for her had died too.

It was an emotion that had already been wearing away.

He had no lingering attachment to her, but he did have lingering attachment to the words he had spoken to her.

“Then it’s fine.”

Ravin didn’t say anything more.

She wasn’t a narrow-minded woman like some others.

Ravin was a thief who had secured what she needed through plunder and theft.

Now it was time to steal the heart of the one she loved.

No matter how long it took, she was confident she could wait.

However, she couldn’t just let Lin go.

Stepping back slightly, Ravin drew her dagger.

*Slash*

“Ravin!”

Surprisingly, the thief cut off her ponytail in one swift motion.

She put the bundle of hair tied with a thin rubber band into a small pouch and held it out to him with both hands demurely.

“Will you keep it as a charm? So I can protect you wherever you are.”

And so I can be with you wherever you are.

Women naturally want to leave a trace of themselves with the one they love.

It was both a symbol of always being with him and a warning to other women that this person already had an owner.

For example, the red-ponytailed hero who had his eye on Lin despite having no right.

Lin, who had been staring at the pouch, accepted it with a smile rather than a bitter one.

“Thank you, Ravin.”

“It’s nothing.”

She suddenly felt shy.

It was very unfamiliar to see the usually rough Ravin lowering her gaze and fidgeting.

“When everything is over, come find me with that. You must come. Otherwise, I might come find you first.”

“It’s still a bit of a shame. I liked your ponytail.”

Lin’s sudden comment caught her off guard.

Ravin was truly grateful that Lin didn’t have a handsome face.

Even now the competition was fierce; if he had been even more handsome, several women would have been cut down by her dagger.

“Then! When I can have a ponytail again… can I come see you then?”

“Of course. Provided we’re not both in dangerous places.”

“Yes, yes!”

The conversation with its strange undercurrent came to an end.

The two stood awkwardly.

Lin, who was in a hurry, said goodbye first.

“Well then, Ravin, farewell.”

“Goodbye, Lin. Let’s meet again in good health.”

“And don’t drink that potion again. Understood?”

“I understand.”

He was moving away.

Unlike before, she could now send him off with a sense of relief.

When he became a dot barely visible in the distance, Ravin finally collapsed.

“Uu… uuuuuu…!”

She covered her mouth lest he might hear.

She had let him go.

The man she had waited five years for, so feebly.

“Lin…! Lin…!”

She already missed him and wanted to see him.

When would she see him again after letting him go now?

The joy and emotion of Lin taking the pouch containing her hair was overshadowed by the sorrow of his departure.

“If I had confessed to you first back in Sewage Alley, would it be me by your side now?”

She soon shook her head.

The past had its own meaning.

Even if it was painful and difficult, the present self exists through past days.

The current Ravin had succeeded in securing a future promise from Lin.

Whether that future held a life as companions together was uncertain, but Ravin would never give up.

“Haaah.”

She took a deep breath.

Breathing in, she held the sweet warmth of the moment just past in her heart.

“Haaah.”

When she exhaled, her eyes had returned to those of Ravin the Thief, head of the Thieves’ Guild and ruler of Valtercrua.