Ch.91Chapter 91 – Something’s Changed Quite a Bit?

# Black Feather Belsalem Branch.

I met the person who would accompany me on this journey at a place I had visited once before departing for the Beventus March.

“It’s been a while, Pathos.”

Serin Ekatos greeted me.

Her blue hair had darkened slightly, and her green eyes had become a bit lighter in color.

Her demeanor had also changed significantly… Before, rather than being energetic, she had seemed somewhat worn down and tired from life’s burdens.

But looking at the Serin standing before me now, she appeared more lively than before.

Was it because she was covering her cleavage, or because she was wearing black clothes that revealed her figure?

Either way, she seemed much more mature compared to before.

When I saw her last time, she had given off a somewhat youthful impression.

“Serin Ekatos. Mind your language. The person before you is Count Severio.”

“Oh my, I forgot about that. I’m sorry, Count Severio. My old habits just slipped out.”

Serin had a playful demeanor.

She apologized for addressing me informally, but even so, she couldn’t hide her lightheartedness.

‘What’s this? Something about her atmosphere really seems different.’

I couldn’t understand why Serin had changed.

If I had to guess, the various events that occurred due to my interference in this world must have had some impact on her.

Hmm. Come to think of it, quite a few major events have happened.

I entered the Academy, destroyed a magic sword, cured His Majesty the Emperor’s baldness, saved a noble lady from an incurable disease, introduced a gacha system, and became a count.

I’ve done quite a lot.

Among those, destroying the magic sword, saving the noble lady from an incurable disease, and becoming a count became widely known throughout this world.

That means these three events didn’t appear in the original story.

These events must have created a synergistic effect with each other.

“It’s quite alright, Lady Ekatos.”

I accepted Serin’s apology.

There was no reason to make an issue of it, and Serin and I had agreed to speak informally with each other.

We could speak comfortably when it was just the two of us, but right now, we weren’t alone—Eterna and Justin were also present.

“I believe you’re aware of why I’ve requested your company on this journey to the Grendillet Mountains.”

“Yes. Branch Director Justin told me. You need an escort for the long journey, but don’t have anyone you can trust with the task?”

What came from Serin’s mouth was indeed about hiring her as an escort.

In truth, I didn’t really have anyone else I could entrust with this.

Hiring a mercenary group wouldn’t be appropriate, and asking His Majesty the Emperor to send knights would be somewhat difficult.

‘Who knows. There might be a secret agent sent by His Majesty escorting me.’

Well, if such a person really exists, it would definitely reduce the burden on Serin and Eterna.

But… if such an impressive person had been sent to escort me, wouldn’t they have told me about it by now?

“That’s correct. Since we’re moving at the request of the Grendillet Mountains, I can only take people I can trust with this task.”

“Hmm…”

Serin heard my words and closed her eyes, seeming to contemplate for a moment.

But soon she opened her eyes and expressed her decision.

“I accept your request to be your escort, Count.”

“Really?”

Though she seemed to hesitate briefly, Serin readily accepted my proposal.

I approached Serin, extended my hand, and shook hers.

“Ah, ouch!”

“Thank you. To be honest, I was worried about who to ask if Lady Ekatos refused. With your swordsmanship that can cut through golems, I believe you’ll be a great help on this journey.”

“I-I appreciate the compliment, but could you please let go of my hand?”

Oh dear, in my gratitude, it seems I was gripping Serin’s hand too tightly.

I hastily released her hand from my grip.

After I let go, Serin was gently rubbing her hand with her other hand.

Had I really gripped it that hard?

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine. I was just startled when you suddenly took my hand.”

“Is that so?”

As Serin was rubbing her hand, Eterna suddenly stepped forward.

“With your merciful touch, soothe the pain of the afflicted. [Heal].”

Eterna approached Serin and cast a healing spell.

The redness on Serin’s hand disappeared, returning it to its fair and delicate state.

“Please tell me if you’re in pain. I can heal you anytime.”

Eterna smiled and took Serin’s hand.

Wow, both Eterna and Serin have such clean hands without a single callus, despite wielding weapons.

Have they reached such a level of mastery?

“…Thank you, Lady Eterna.”

“It’s nothing. We’re going to be companions all the way to the Grendillet Mountains, so this much is no trouble.”

Seeing Eterna approach Serin first, I don’t think I need to worry.

The fact that she referred to her as a companion suggests that Eterna has accepted Serin as one of us.

I hope the two of them get along well without fighting.

“Lady Eterna is right. We don’t know what might happen in the Grendillet Mountains, so I hope we can all get along well as companions.”

“I will, Count Severio.”

“As a priestess of the Solar Order, I’ll also try to get along well with this sister.”

Fortunately, both Serin and Eterna said they would get along and smiled at each other.

But… those are smiles, right? They’re not engaging in some kind of psychological warfare, are they?

Please, I hope nothing happens during our journey…

◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈

Eterna Lumio Sol and Serin Ekatos were staring intently at each other.

One was the Chief Inquisitor of the Solar Order.

The other was a lady from a noble family of the Gelebrio Empire.

Though they had grown up in different environments and had different experiences, they now shared a common goal.

‘Pathos Severio’.

A count of the Gelebrio Empire, destroyer of magic swords, and a man with the power to cure incurable diseases.

According to rumors, his abilities could cure baldness and restore any object to its original state.

Eterna had come into contact with him through a revelation from the Sun God and had several truly amazing experiences.

Among them, what surprised her the most was his curing of the incurable disease afflicting the daughter of the Beventus March.

The Prezmerine disease.

An incurable illness that no one had been able to cure until now, and even Eterna herself, a saint, thought it impossible to heal.

Yet Pathos demonstrated the remarkable feat of curing that disease with his ability.

‘Ability’ is fundamentally a gift from the gods.

The diversity of abilities depends on the power possessed by the god who bestowed the gift.

What does this mean?

It meant that Pathos’s ability certainly came from a god, and that power came from a being far greater than any that had appeared so far.

In other words, the power he received came from a being higher than the Sun God.

The only conclusion was that it came from the Great Goddess Epitrina.

Being someone who received abilities directly from the Great Goddess meant he was chosen by her.

For Eterna, bound by the rules of the Solar Order, Pathos was the only person who could free her from those constraints.

Moreover, Pathos’s personality wasn’t particularly rough; his tendency to handle most situations gently and his reluctance to become famous appealed positively to Eterna.

Since he was essentially the only man permitted to her, it was natural for Eterna to develop an interest in Pathos.

Conversely, for Serin Ekatos, Pathos was someone who could fulfill her family’s long-standing wish.

The Ekatos family’s divine sword, ‘Storm Guide,’ currently existed in a broken state.

They had commissioned the dwarves of the Grendillet Mountains to repair it, but instead, the Heart of Extreme Flame broke down.

The Ekatos family was anxious that they might be blamed for the malfunction of the Heart of Extreme Flame, but Ironbeard insisted it was their fault as craftsmen for failing to repair the item and suggested forgetting about the incident.

And Serin Ekatos believed that only Pathos could repair her family’s divine sword.

Although he hadn’t told her why he was going to the Grendillet Mountains, Serin had a general idea of his purpose.

To repair the Heart of Extreme Flame that was damaged because of her family.

That was Serin’s guess about Pathos’s purpose for heading to the Grendillet Mountains.

In any case, Pathos had unintentionally ended up cleaning up after an accident caused by the Ekatos family.

Naturally, Serin Ekatos’s respect for Pathos began to grow rapidly, and now, meeting him again, she was beginning to develop another kind of interest in him.

‘If he’s risen to the position of count, he’s certainly qualified to be connected to our family.’

Thus, with their different thoughts, the two women began a full-fledged psychological battle over Pathos.