Chapter 52 – Ursphere (6)

I spent the entire day curled up in bed, not moving an inch. The only times I stirred were when Rubia brought food up from the dining room downstairs. I even held off going to the bathroom as long as I could.

As the excruciating hours dragged on, the scent of Rubia on the pillow I clutched began to fade.

“I’m back,” Hephaestus announced, her voice heavy with exhaustion.

“H-Hephaestus!” I shot up, turning toward the sound of her voice.

“Hey, Noah,” she replied wearily.

“Did you… have something to eat?” I asked.

“Yeah, I ate. How about you?”

“I-I did too…” Well, Rubia had gently fed me, but the atmosphere between us had been so strange… it still felt like the food was stuck in my throat.

I could hear Hephaestus dragging her feet as she walked closer. “Oh, and… I tried to finish it today, but it was impossible. The equipment I’m using isn’t familiar, and the shard is incredibly tough… Sorry, Noah.”

“Uh… it’s okay. You don’t need to apologize.” I wasn’t really expecting it, but… I guess I did hope, just a little.

“And Rubia? Is she asleep?” Hephaestus asked.

“Rubia’s… asleep?”

“Yeah, she’s slumped over the desk. Should I wake her?”

Wasn’t she supposed to have slept with us last night…? Could something have been on her mind that kept her up? Could it have been… because I got mad at her?

No, that can’t be it. There’s no way I’m important enough to worry her to the point she can’t sleep.

“N-No, let her sleep for now—” I started, then paused. Wait. If she’s slumped over like that, she’ll hurt her back when she wakes up. “Actually, maybe you should wake her. It’d be better if she lies down to rest.”

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” Hephaestus agreed, her footsteps growing distant as she went to wake Rubia.

“Hey, Rubia!”

I heard Rubia stir as she groaned, “Oh, Hephaestus, you’re back… Ugh…” Her voice was drenched in fatigue.

I pulled the blanket over my head and curled up again. I was still mad at Rubia. I didn’t even want to show her my face…

“Ugh… I must have dozed off. Did you finish everything?” Rubia asked.

“Well, almost. I think it’ll be done by tomorrow. It’s tough to work with Carpeng’s shard—it’s insanely hard.”

“I figured as much. But Noah… oh.”

Rubia’s footsteps drew nearer. I held the blanket tighter.

“Noah, are you awake?” she asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I-I’m not sleeping,” I muttered, curling up even more.

“Can you show me your face?”

“I don’t want to…”

“I’m sorry for falling asleep…”

“I-It’s fine…” Honestly. Rubia didn’t need to apologize. And I had no reason to act so upset with her. Being unable to see when my greatsword was gone was entirely my problem. There was no reason for Rubia to worry about it.

But still… I was upset. She calls herself my friend. My closest friend. Last time, she stayed by my side all day. But today… If she was going to act like this, why did she bother being so close before? Why make me expect anything?

I felt a sharp sting at the tip of my nose, and my eyes started to burn. I held my breath to stop the sobs from slipping out. I didn’t even want her to hear me cry.

I heard Rubia sigh, and the soft sound of Hephaestus shifting in the background.

And then…

“Hey, do you guys want some late-night snacks?” Hephaestus’s sudden question shattered the silence.

“Late-night snacks?” Rubia asked.

“Yeah. Rubia, you didn’t eat anything, right?”

“Me…? No, I ate—”

“You didn’t eat, did you? There’s only enough here for one person.”

Huh? Rubia didn’t eat? She said she would eat something earlier…

“Ahem, ahem… So what were you thinking for the late-night snack? Got something in mind?” Rubia replied awkwardly.

She really didn’t eat.

“Hehe… I’ve got a place in mind from when I came back. I’ll go grab it, so don’t fall asleep, okay?”

“Oh… sure. Be careful.”

I peeked my head out from under the blanket. “B-Be careful.”

“I’ll be right back!” Hephaestus called as she left.

“Noah. I’m really sorry,” Rubia said softly, her hand brushing against my shoulder.

“I-It’s fine…” But I couldn’t hold back anymore. With Hephaestus gone, I…

I threw off the blanket and sat up. Then, I carefully got up and stretched my hands out in front of me as I slowly started walking forward.

“Noah…?” Rubia called.

I ignored her and kept walking. After a few steps, I touched the wall. “Oh… made it.”

Now I just have to follow along it…

My hand slid across the wall, making a weird but oddly pleasant sound. Just keep going… There’s the table.

And then…

“If you had to use the bathroom, you could have just said so,” Rubia said as her hand gently wrapped around my waist.

“I-I can go by myself… I don’t need you.” I pushed her hand away and turned the doorknob.

With a loud creak, the bathroom door opened.

“I’m the one who should be sorry,” she said quietly.

“You don’t need to apologize… This is… my problem.” I stepped into the bathroom and shut the door behind me.

From the other side, I heard Rubia let out another heavy sigh. Hearing her like that made me feel… sad, too. No. Enough. I can handle this myself now.

I braced myself, finally taking care of the task I’d been holding off on. I felt a lot better afterward. As I washed my hands, I forced my scrunched-up expression into something more neutral.

Then, feeling my way along the wall, I opened the bathroom door again. Rubia was still standing nearby, her breathing shallow and uneven.

“Noah…”

“I’m going to lie down before Hephaestus gets back.”

I tried to keep my face stoic as I reached out to the wall again and slowly made my way back toward the bed. I had only gotten halfway there when my foot caught on something hard, and I stumbled forward.

“Ugh…!”

But I didn’t fall.

“Noah, even if you don’t like it, I’m going to help you right now.” Rubia’s trembling hand caught me by the waist and steadied me.

“Ugh…”

“I’ll help you get back to bed.”

She gently guided me, carefully walking beside me until we reached the bed again.

“T-Thank… you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Rubia stood there for a moment before sitting down on the edge of the bed. Was she looking at me? Or was she looking somewhere else? Not being able to see anything made me feel so frustrated… so irritated…

At this point, pulling the blanket back over my head would just feel embarrassing, so I hugged my knees and buried my head.

And after a little while…

“Ta-da!” The door burst open as Hephaestus returned, slightly out of breath.

I lifted my head quickly and looked toward where her voice had come from. “You’re back…?”

“Yep!”

“What did you get… are those skewers? And… is that alcohol?”

“Yep!”

“Hephaestus… aren’t you underage?”

“Of course, I’m not going to drink it!”

“Wait, no. It’s not about drinking or not—how did you even buy it?”

“They gave it to me when I said I was running an errand for my mom.”

Huh…? Is it really that easy to buy alcohol? Well, back when I was a kid, if you said it was for your parents, people would sell you alcohol or cigarettes without question…

“Anyway, forget that. Let’s eat! I’m starving!” Hephaestus said as she walked over, the sound of a bag crinkling with each step.

Eating sounds nice, but… If I try to eat, they might notice I can’t see without the greatsword. It’s not like it’d be a big deal if Hephaestus found out, but… I didn’t want to say it out loud. It was something between Rubia and me. If I told someone else, Rubia might feel hurt. Even though I’m mad at her right now… I won’t be mad forever. Whatever. If they find out, they find out. It’s not like Hephaestus would use it against me or anything.

I started to shift, but before I could fully sit up, someone gently tapped my arm. Then they carefully took my hand and helped me up. That familiar touch. Rubia’s hand.

“Come on, sit down,” Hephaestus said.

Rubia led me over and sat me beside Hephaestus.

“Noah, here,” she said, holding out a skewer for me to take.

“T-Thank you…” I took it cautiously.

I felt my heart soften, and the tension in my face slowly melted away. But that’s just because the skewers smell so good. Not because Rubia is taking care of me.

“Thanks for the food, Hephaestus. But, by the way… why do you seem more relaxed than you did back in Roholon?” Rubia asked.

Huh, now that I think about it… She did seem pretty desperate back then. But now, she seems… more at ease?

“Oh, well… this might sound a bit silly, but…” Hephaestus fidgeted with something for a moment before continuing. “It’s because of this.”

What’s this? I can’t see!

“…A glowing stone?” Rubia said.

Thank you, Rubia! But wait, a glowing stone?

“This isn’t just any stone. It’s something my master gave me…” Hephaestus paused to collect her thoughts before continuing. “Once, I had a really close call on an important mission. After that, my master gave me this stone. To put it simply, it lights up when the other person is alive and goes out if they die. So this… this means my master is alive… Hehe…”

Ah… It’s like the Bondstone from the game. The one you give to your partner when you get married, a cash item that basically acted like a wedding ring… Not that I ever got one or gave one away… And honestly, you could just check if the other person was online through your friends list, so it felt pretty useless. I never cared for it. And I definitely don’t need it now. I can’t even see light, so it’s meaningless to me. Completely pointless. I’m not jealous. Not at all. Really.

“Then why were you in such a hurry back in Roholon?” Rubia asked.

“Well… the stone kept flickering on and off while I was there. But ever since we got here, it’s been steady again.”

Flickering? Can it… break down or something?

“That’s good to hear. Are you still going to look for her, though?”

“Yeah. I still feel anxious, so I can’t just sit still. But I’m going to make sure I finish fixing your equipment first. If anything, this is when I need to be the most thorough.”

So in this world, the Bondstone doesn’t hold the same meaning? In the game, it was a sign that you wanted to get married. But I guess that’s just a custom made up by players. It doesn’t mean anything here. Still, I’m glad to hear that Yuria’s safe.

And as the room buzzed with conversation, I started to feel a little better. The corners of my mouth twitched upward despite myself, so I bit into the skewer to hide it.

But then.

“Hot! Oh no, it’s so spicy!”

It felt like someone had slapped me across the tongue. It was so spicy. Way, way, way too spicy!

“W-Water… Rubia… Hephaestus…! Someone… please… water… It’s too hot… Hah… Ssss… It hurts… so spicy…!”

“Oh! Sorry, here, drink this!” Hephaestus quickly brought a cup to my lips.

I took it and gulped it down without thinking.

“Bleh… W-Wait, is this… alcohol?!”

It’s bitter! Bitter and spicy! It’s even hotter! It feels like the carbonation is ripping my tongue apart…!!

“Ugh, ssss… It’s spicy… it hurts… Please… someone… help me… Ssss… It’s so spicy…”

“Oh no, sorry! I grabbed the wrong cup. This one’s real water!”

Hephaestus placed the cup beside me with a clink. I fumbled for it and quickly poured the water into my mouth.

“Ugh… It tastes awful…” My tongue was still tingling… It’s still spicy… So bitter… and so spicy… Ugh…

“Are you okay, Noah? Here, have this.” Rubia pressed something soft into my mouth.

A jelly? Is it jelly? I opened my mouth and ate it quickly. It was jelly!

“Mm…”

After swallowing the jelly, Rubia gave me another. I quickly ate that one, too. This one’s grape-flavored.

The jelly was delicious, but… My stomach felt hot. Is it from the spiciness? Or from the alcohol? It’s getting hotter and hotter…

“Noah…? Are you… drunk?” Rubia asked, concern in her voice.

Ever since I came to this world, no one had ever given me alcohol, so I’d never tried it. But there’s no way I’d get drunk from just one sip, right? Come on, I’m not that weak…

“Hmmm…? Do I look drunk? I am sooo not drunk… Hehehe…”

See? I’m totally fine.

Hiccup

Hehehe…