Chapter 110 – Traces

I threw Samaela’s arm, still in my right hand, and let out a deep sigh.

It was over.

Ba-dump, ba-dump, my heart was pounding violently.

I couldn’t tell if it was my heartbeat or Stella’s, who was nestled in my arms.

“…Hh, hee… hic… ngh, heuk…”

Her sweat-soaked breath tickled my neck.

“E-Ellie… Ellit, hu, Elia, Renes…”

“You okay?”

She looked totally dazed, as if she had no idea what was going on. Still, that was better than looking like she was about to die.

“I’m… yeah. I’m okay. But you, you… what you just said… I mean, uh… are you okay?”

“For now.”

“…For now? What does that mea, hngk?!”

I flung Stella, who was still clinging to me, aside and stood up. My entire body ached. I’d lost so much blood from every hole in my body that I felt cold. Dizziness squeezed my head, and my vision was blurry.

Still, my heart was pounding.

The [First Gate] remained open.

Samaela was fleeing, the Labyrinth was gone, but my task was just beginning.

Which meant I couldn’t collapse just yet.

The longer I maintained it, the worse the backlash would be… but I had no choice.

“Haa…”

I rummaged through the clothes I’d taken off and downed every potion I had. Then, smacking the side of my head to get a grip, I staggered toward where Pina had fallen.

“Shadowless.”

She was already there, Shadowless, catching Pina as she fell from midair. I couldn’t see her expression, but her face screamed that she had a million things to say.

“What you saw today… khek, ngh… haa… please keep it a secret.”

As I coughed up a mouthful of blood, Shadowless flinched. Then she tilted her head while staring at me.

“If it’s just you, Pina in your arms, and Stella… pfft. If the three of you keep quiet, we can keep this a secret, right?”

After thinking for a moment, Shadowless carefully laid Pina down and approached me.

[I have a lot to say and ask. But this isn’t the time for that.]

She began scratching letters into the ground with her toe.

[First, come here.]

“…Why?”

[If you won’t come to me, I’ll come to you.]

What’s with her all of a sudden?

Frowning, I slowly shuffled over.

The moment I stood before Shadowless, 

There was no dodging the incoming flick.

“What the, ”

Smack!

“Kyah?! Hrk…!”

Kyah?? KyaaAAh??

What the hell kind of scream just came out of me…?

I glared at Shadowless while rubbing my throbbing forehead and the pathetic mouth that had just let out that cry.

“…Are you insane?”

[How’s your body? Any pain? You’re injured in too many places. The bleeding seems to have stopped, but is there any numbness or nerve damage?]

“The spot you just hit hurts the most, actually.”

[Anywhere else?]

Anywhere else?

My whole body was wrecked.

It’d be faster to list what wasn’t hurt.

Same with injuries.

All sensation was dull. Nerves? All shredded.

And yet I was still moving as if nothing was wrong, thanks to circulating Mana to keep my body going.

Of course, I wasn’t going to say that out loud.

If she started worrying, things would just get more complicated.

So I had to look as okay as possible.

“As you can see, I’m fine. No internal injuries. What you’re seeing on the outside… I just need to sleep it off with some high-quality potions. I already drank them, and you can see for yourself how I’m doing.”

To Shadowless’s eyes, I probably looked extremely lively right now.

It couldn’t be helped.

My Dantian was still wide open.

In fact, I might even look healthier than before.

She might think this battle raised my level or something.

“Anyway, please keep what happened today a secret.”

My swollen forehead… it really did puff up into a bump.

I rubbed it as I spoke.

Shadowless stared at me for a long time, then wrote something new.

[You’re right. No signs of internal injury. You even seem healthier. Strange.]

[Still, I can’t just bury what happened today.]

[That Black Magician just escaped. So to protect you, I have to report this to Eustetia.]

“No need. I can handle most guys like that.”

Shadowless looked up at me.

Even though her mask only had eyeholes, I could somehow feel her expression.

Anger. Worry. Guilt. Confusion. Pain.

I didn’t know why she was feeling all that, but I just shrugged and glanced down at Pina lying on the ground.

“Guess even you didn’t know what kind of Beastkin she was, huh?”

[Stop deflecting and answer me.]

Zzzzt, her sharp glare pierced through me.

[Why are you trying to hide this? Keeping something like this from your parents is a very bad thing.]

“That’s true, but… they’d just worry if they found out. Especially my mother, she can’t leave the house, so it’d only make her worry more. That’s why I’m asking you to keep it a secret.”

Shadowless flinched hard as she was about to write again. Then slowly, with trembling fingers, she began scribbling.

[Why do you call the head of the house ‘Dad,’ but refer to Lady Eustetia as ‘Mother’?]

…?

Me? I called my father ‘Dad’?

I think I did… damn.

“…Why are you suddenly asking that?”

[Answer that, and I won’t tell the Head of House about today.]

Her writing came out rough from the speed.

And that scent of blood, it was back again.

Not as thick as before, more faint.

It had to be [Intent Projection] from Shadowless.

Just as Samaela had reeked of a reptilian stench, Shadowless was giving off the smell of blood.

When someone’s [Intent Projection] is powerful enough to go beyond ordinary perception, it can manifest like that.

Well, once you reach a certain level, even that can be hidden.

Anyway…

“Why are you so interested in someone else’s family matters…?”

Why do you keep trying to meddle?

[Eustetia and I are not strangers.]

[In a way, I’m family too.]

I furrowed my brows and glared at Shadowless.

She stared back without budging an inch.

In the end, I sighed and opened my mouth.

If saying this was the price to bury today’s events, then it was a cheap deal…

“It’s just…”

I stopped mid-sentence and spun around.

Stella, who had crawled over, was standing up and tugging on the hem of my clothes.

“Cover your ears for a sec.”

“…What? Why?”

“Just do it.”

Grumbling, Stella glared at me before sighing and turning away to cover her ears.

“Hey, loudmouth.”

Silence.

“Filthy penniless magician.”

Silence.

“The piss-stained witch who bathes once every fou… ”

“YAAAAAH!! NO! IT’S NOT TRUE!! I DIDN’T PEE MYSELF!!”

“Cover them properly.”

“Ugh…! Why! Why am I the only one who has to do this?!”

“It’s family business. You want in? Stella Eustetia. Hm, doesn’t have the best ring to it.”

“St-Stella Eustetia…? Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa, Fa, Fa, Hieeek… Family?! You, you and I?! A-A-Are you insane?!”

Her face turned beet red as she backed away in a panic and then plopped down.

“You said… I was yours… did that… is that what it meant…?”

She began mumbling incoherently.

“I said cover your ears.”

“Hfft… o-okay…”

Burying her face in her knees, Stella shakily pressed her hands over her ears. Her ears and neck were completely flushed.

Maybe now she was finally blocking sound.

I turned back to Shadowless. She was looking back and forth between Stella and me.

No expression should’ve been visible… and yet, she looked oddly shocked.

Why is everyone acting so weird today?

“Anyway, so, if I tell you this… today stays a secret. You promised.”

[If I report this to the Head of House Eustetia, then I’ll take the consequences along with you.]

“That’s unnecessary… it’s just… if I call them ‘Mom’ or ‘Dad,’ I feel like I’ll start crossing lines.”

[Crossing lines?]

“I mean… I’d start acting in ways that don’t suit my age.”

[What do you mean by that?]

“You know, stuff like… whining, speaking with a nasally voice like a girl… that kind of thing.”

And it actually happened.

The moment I called Father ‘Dad’… I weirdly felt like some emotional barrier crumbled.

And… I felt like I’d start forming bad habits.

Calling him ‘Dad’ made it feel like he’d grant anything I wanted.

It was like… I was turning into some spoiled brat.

The biggest problem?

I didn’t even realize it at the time. Only after going to my room, washing up, lying down… did it hit me.

The things I said while talking with him… the way I acted, my tone… all of it.

So yeah… it’s a bit disturbing.

Me, Ronan Lujarak, who’s supposed to look like a manly man, 

…Damn it.

“Anyway, that’s why… about Mother, well… Shadowless, you’ve met her, right?”

[We’re very close.]

“Then you’d know. My mother is, um… haha, feels weird saying it myself. But she’s elegant and refined, right? That’s why, if I started acting like that around her, I worry she’d hate it. And, well… being liked is nice.”

At that moment, Shadowless suddenly sprang to her feet!

Then, she nodded so vigorously her mask shook and picked up the lying Pina.

“Whoa, wait.”

I reached out to stop her.

Then, with her free hand, Shadowless gently pulled me into a hug.

Uh, wait… this feels… strangely comforting, familiar, and safe…

No, no no no. What kind of crazy situation is this?

“…Wh-What are you doing?!”

I shoved her with all my strength and glared.

“What the hell was that about?!”

Shadowless tilted her head.

“I didn’t mean I wanted a hug, I meant give me Pina.”

She tilted her head even more.

“I need to talk to Pina. You… yeah. Take Stella and go.”

I tapped on Stella, who was still covering her ears. She flinched, then slowly lifted her head.

Her already red face flushed even deeper.

“…Is it over?”

“Go outside with her. I’ll come out after.”

“What about you?”

“I’m going with Pina.”

“Then we can all go together.”

“I said I need to talk to her.”

“What about me?”

“What about you?”

“…Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

“Nope.”

Stella’s jaw dropped open.

“You, you… you, you… Eliaernes, you… you heard what I said.”

“Ah, yeah. I did.”

“You’re not… going to say anything about that?”

…Was I supposed to?

She seemed like she didn’t want to talk about it, so I figured I wouldn’t bring it up.

Still, if she was offering, I wouldn’t stop her.

I took Stella’s hand and pulled her up from the ground. She wobbled, so I firmly supported her waist.

“Let’s talk about that tomorrow night.”

“…To-tomorrow night?”

“Yeah. Come to my room. Make sure you clean up first.”

“C-Clean…? Why…?”

Stella’s eyes began to spin.

Her tightly clenched hands were fidgeting, and I could feel her racing heartbeat despite not even touching her.

Ba-dump, ba-dump.

So that heartbeat from earlier really was Stella’s.

“You’re not gonna wash up? You look like a complete mess.”

“I-I-I will… wash up…”

“Good. Then when I message you tomorrow night, come to my room. Until then, you should… get some rest.”

Pat, pat, while she still trembled, seemingly terrified, I gave Stella a few reassuring pats on the back and handed her off to Shadowless.

And then, Shadowless, 

Swoosh, scratch.

She carved into the ground with her toe again.

[As the leader of Shadowless, I believe we need to talk about what happened today.]

“I was planning on it. Then let’s meet the day after tomorrow, Shadowless.”

[I’ll come to the academy. As quietly as I can.]

“Sounds good.”

With that, Shadowless handed me a glass vial. A top-grade potion.

And not just any top-grade potion.

The cap bore the crest of the Holy Kingdom of Pranecia.

It was a potion blessed by the Patriarch of Pranecia.

Stella’s eyes widened at the sight of it.

And no wonder. It was worth as much as a decent house.

I slipped it into my coat with a chuckle.

Just this one bottle would be enough to completely heal all the wounds covering my body.

“Thanks for the treat.”

* * *

After Shadowless and Stella completely vanished from the area, 

Blink, blink.

Pina finally regained consciousness.

“You awake?”

Blink, blink. With her eyes wide and unfocused, clearly confused about the situation, Pina stared up at me.

I gave her cheek a firm pinch.

“This is what happens when you follow strangers. Got it?”

Tears welled up in her large eyes. Then, with trembling hands, she gently caressed my face.

As her fingers touched my skin, the power of a spirit, Sparkle’s light, flashed and seeped into my body.

Did the pain ease a little? Unfortunately, the wounds didn’t heal. These were injuries her light wasn’t strong enough to fix.

“No time to cry. If you’re awake, get up. We’ve got a lot to do now.”

Pina tilted her head in confusion.

Shadowless, Pina…

Well, Pina’s situation couldn’t be helped, but still.

It felt like I’d been doing a lot of talking today with people who didn’t speak.

And somehow, the conversations flowed just fine. It was kind of funny.

Snickering to myself, I pointed to the massive stone door up ahead.

“Let’s go treasure hunting.”