Ch.5656. The Boundary Between Spring and Summer

[Once upon a time, in a deep forest, there lived three bears.

But these bears were no ordinary bears.

Papa Bear—with his large body and eyes stained with blood.

He would quietly follow travelers who entered the forest, making them disappear without a sound.]

“Wait, just a moment.”

“Why?”

Elin looked at Rex with innocent eyes that understood nothing. Momentarily speechless under her gaze, Rex hesitated before shaking his head.

“No. Let’s continue for now.”

“Alright.”

Elin tilted her head curiously before resuming her reading.

[Mama Bear—though she appeared smaller, her claws were long and sharp.

She hunted the forest creatures one by one to feed Baby Bear.

A soup made from their blood was always boiling in the pot…]

“Isn’t this strange?”

“What is?”

Rex let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.

The idea of learning letters through fairy tales was good in principle. For someone who couldn’t even write basic words, fairy tales were truly an appropriate choice for an introduction to writing. They were written with simple terms that even young children could easily understand.

Moreover, the Three Bears was a fairy tale Rex was familiar with. It would be difficult to find someone who didn’t know it.

Wasn’t it roughly about a girl named Goldilocks who accidentally visits the bears’ house, gets startled, and runs away? Yet the story Elin was telling was vastly different from what Rex knew.

[Baby Bear—though cute in appearance, his eyes held no emotion. He slowly ate the red porridge his mother made for him with a spoon.]

“This really is strange.”

“…Is it? Isn’t it normal?”

“How so?”

It seemed a mage’s way of thinking was quite different from ordinary people.

“We’re almost at the end, so listen a bit more. Here comes the conclusion.”

As Rex stared at the book with a sour expression, Elin turned the page.

[One day, a girl named Goldilocks came to the bears’ house. The girl hid under the bed, trembling, but the bears’ sensitive noses could smell her flesh. That evening, red meat and golden hair were served on the table of the three bears.]

“The end.”

Rex couldn’t figure out where to even begin criticizing this. So he just kept his mouth shut. Elin closed the book and shrugged.

“Wasn’t it fun?”

“…Are all the other stories like this too?”

The book was thick. They had finished reading the Three Bears, but there was still much more remaining.

“Yes. This is a collection of folk tales. There are many similar stories. Let’s start with the Three Bears today. If you follow along well, I’ll tell you other fairy tales later.”

Though Rex wasn’t particularly curious about these deranged fairy tales, it would be silly to explicitly deny it. As Rex nodded, Elin brought a quill pen and ink and placed them on the desk.

“I’ll teach you some basic letters first, so try copying them.”

“Understood.”

Regardless of the disturbing content of the fairy tale, Elin’s teaching was excellent. Even when Rex stumbled over the unfamiliar letters, she guided him kindly without showing any sign of annoyance. Thanks to this, after several trials and errors, he was able to memorize a few words.

“Rex is smart.”

Elin even praised him. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Rex awkwardly scratched his cheek.

“Isn’t this normal?”

“No. Rex is smart.”

As they continued writing basic letters for some time, Rex suddenly felt something soft against his elbow. He involuntarily drew in a sharp breath and turned his head stiffly.

Something had touched him. Something terribly dangerous had made contact! His attention, which had been focused on studying, instantly shifted.

“E-Elin.”

“What?”

“Aren’t you too close?”

As they were learning at the same desk, Elin and Rex naturally sat close to each other. Without realizing it, the distance had become so intimate that their shoulders were almost touching.

Rex only then noticed the sweet scent emanating from Elin. It was similar to the fruit pieces she always carried.

“…Hmm.”

Elin made a subtle nasal sound, and instead of moving away, she lifted her hips and pulled her chair even closer. Then she turned her head and stared directly at Rex.

“I don’t mind, though?”

“What?”

Rex responded with a bewildered expression, but Elin’s eccentric behavior didn’t end there. She pushed back the hood of the robe she had been wearing all this time.

Swish.

Moonlight-transparent silver hair cascaded down, revealing white, smooth skin. Rex gaped wordlessly. He had seen Elin’s face before when he first arrived in Lindvale, but her appearance was still unbelievable even upon second viewing.

If Chloe was like a prim cat, Elin gave the impression of a sleeping doll. She exuded a precarious yet seductive aura, as if she might shatter at the slightest touch.

Though it was unfair to Chloe, Elin was the most beautiful woman Rex had ever seen. Seeing Rex’s expression, Elin wore a faint smile.

“How do I look?”

Even a fool would know that Elin was seeking praise right now.

“You’re beautiful.”

An immediate answer without a moment’s hesitation. It wasn’t even a lie. Rex had simply voiced the thought that came to his mind, but strangely, Elin’s cheeks twitched.

When Rex gave her a puzzled look, Elin pulled at her hair with her hand to cover her face. Only her long, elf-like ears, which perked up, couldn’t be hidden.

“…Should I go around like this from now on?”

A delicate tremor was conveyed through her voice, which feigned indifference.

Rex briefly delayed his answer and recalled his memories. Elin always wore her robe because she was concerned about others’ gazes. But now she was reconsidering that choice—had there been some change in her mindset?

“No.”

His deliberation was brief. At his words, Elin’s ears twitched once more.

“…Why?”

Sensing a hint of disappointment, Rex hastily opened his mouth.

In this barbaric world, exceptional beauty could become a poison. Though Elin was a skilled mage, no one knows what the future holds. There’s no need to display her appearance and risk getting involved in trouble.

He was trying to organize these thoughts to express them, but—

“Because I want to be the only one who sees you.”

Rushing to explain due to Elin’s dejected response, his words came out wrong. Strictly speaking, the meaning was conveyed, but the problem was that it was open to misinterpretation.

“Ah, that’s not what I—”

“Pfft.”

As Rex stammered to correct himself, Elin blinked her jewel-like green eyes and smiled brightly.

“I understand.”

The lips that had always maintained an expressionless line curved into a smile.

“But… it’s okay when it’s just the two of us, right?”

Faced with that radiant smile, Rex could only nod blankly.

***

Amidst the peculiar atmosphere, the study session concluded well. Rex finished cleaning Elin’s room neatly and stood up.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to. Don’t feel burdened.”

“…Thank you.”

Elin accompanied Rex all the way outside the magic tower to see him off.

“I’ll be going now.”

“Okay. See you tomorrow.”

By now, the sky was covered in deep darkness, with small stars twinkling in between.

“It’s hot…”

Until just a week ago, though it was warm during the day, the evenings would turn cool. Now that heat had permeated even the night air. Perhaps wearing armor made it feel even hotter.

Seasons are like that. Before you know it, they’re right in front of you. For instance, Lindvale was now half-straddling the boundary between spring and summer.

Rex brushed back his sweat-soaked hair with his hand and headed toward the inn.

Just as he arrived at the inn, he spotted Chloe leaning against the entrance.

Chloe, who had been gazing indifferently at passersby, noticed Rex and called out to him in a welcoming voice.

“Rex!”

“What’s up?”

“I came to get my basket back…”

Chloe fidgeted with her fingers nervously.

When Rex handed over the basket, Chloe peeked inside cautiously and asked carefully.

“Was it edible?”

“Yes. It was delicious.”

“That’s a relief…”

Chloe hugged the basket to her chest and sighed in relief.

“How long have you been waiting?”

“Not long. Maybe about 30 minutes.”

Rex clicked his tongue at her nonchalant response. On such a hot day, she had been standing still for 30 minutes waiting for him?

He already felt bad for receiving such an excessive lunch compared to what he had done, but now he felt as if he had committed a crime.

Rex scratched the back of his head and spoke.

“From now on, I’ll come to your house.”

“Huh? No, really!”

He had suggested it thinking it might be inconvenient for her to always come to the inn, but Chloe’s reaction was more intense than expected.

“It’s dangerous for a girl to walk alone at night.”

“You might have forgotten because you’re so great, but I’m a fairly successful adventurer too! My face is well-known! I have enough strength to protect myself, so don’t worry.”

“Still…”

“It’s fine!”

Chloe cut off Rex’s suggestion sharply, hastily spilling out words and waving her hands. At this point, even Rex had to back down.

“Ahem…”

Chloe cleared her throat and glanced at Rex. Now that she had finished speaking, even she felt her reaction had been quite harsh. She wanted to become closer to Rex. However, there was an unavoidable reason why she couldn’t reveal the location of her home.

‘I can’t.’

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Rex… she was embarrassed. Thinking about her home, negative emotions suddenly welled up. Chloe tried to calm herself and said.

“Harald has returned.”

Even a fool could tell that Chloe wanted to change the subject. It wouldn’t be right to cling to a topic the other person didn’t want to discuss. Rex smiled and responded in a pretend-surprised tone.

“Really? Didn’t he say it would take more than a week? He came back quickly.”

“He said things went better than expected. Anyway, we’re all meeting at the Adventurers’ Guild the day after tomorrow… can you come? You’re busy these days.”

“I can manage for a short while.”

Just because he had become Berger’s disciple didn’t mean he intended to give up being an adventurer. That was the condition under which he had accepted the offer in the first place.

To grow as a Holy Knight, he needed to train in holy magic and holy combat techniques while also consistently gaining experience in dungeons.

“I’ll let you know when a specific time is set.”

“Alright.”

“Then, I’ll see you… tomorrow morning.”

Chloe hesitated for a moment before waving her hand and turning away.

Rex stared at Chloe’s receding back for a long time, and only after her figure had completely disappeared into the darkness of the street did he return to his room.

He immediately sat on the bed, closed his eyes, and recited the mantra of the Heavenly River Formation.

There was still a long way to go.

Tomorrow, Berger would teach him how to enhance the performance of the training orb, so it would be wise to get a good night’s sleep early.

[No matter what you imagine, it will be more terribly difficult than that.]

Berger’s warning that he would wish for death came to mind.

Rex twisted his lips.