Chapter 77: Quite Coincidentally, the Number of Tigrova Graduates Around Clara Increases.

Click. Click. Click.

Two girls walked down a shabby hallway.

Clara maintained silence as they walked, trying to get as far away as possible so that the voices of those in the Conference Room couldn’t be heard.

Shion followed, her gaze fixed on the back of Clara’s head.

“…”

Even without knowing where they were going, she had no strength to resist. Fear of the confirmed answer kept her mouth sealed shut.

She was dragged along like a piece of paper in the wind.

Even as she walked, her mind was blank. Nothing was making sense.

Because the Clara in front of her wasn’t saying anything, she felt like she was going crazy with frustration.

Shion’s mind couldn’t process anything beyond the scene she had witnessed.

How could this girl possibly know the whole story?

Thud!

Clara stopped walking.

And looked around. There were no signs of anyone else around, nor any unusual Mana. Everyone was gathered in the Conference Room.

This should be far enough.

Relieved, Clara turned around and raised her head to look at Shion.

Finally, it was time for a proper greeting.

But a greeting? Forget about it.

Clara’s jaw dropped in shock at the sight of Shion’s face.

“Shi, Shion unni!?”

“Ugh…”

Jewel-like tears were streaming down the Elf girl’s cheeks.

Her haggard face, with her lips tightly pressed together as if trying to suppress her emotions, doubled the sense of misery.

Lately, Shion had often felt aggrieved. But even when she felt that way, she only felt a gnawing emptiness inside; tears never came.

The girl had guessed that she had become so numb and worn down inside that she couldn’t even cry.

But that wasn’t the reality.

Now, truly shocked, she couldn’t hold back her tears.

Rohan and Clara.

She had been holding on, remembering the time they spent together, so that her mind wouldn’t break.

But what if she had been played all along? Was that why the Elders were waiting that day?

The mere possibility made her cry uncontrollably.

“Unni…?”

“You can tell me… My life has always been like this… I’m ready to accept it…”

Words delivered through sobs.

Unlike Rohan, Clara, unable to understand Shion’s reaction, anxiously grabbed her hand.

“You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you? I’m sorry I’m late… Don’t cry…”

“…?”

Seeing tears welling up in the eyes of the girl facing her,

Shion suddenly came to her senses.

“Unni, why is your body so cold…? Your face is pale too…”

Clara stepped closer and hugged Shion.

The Elf girl moved her limp arms to wrap around the girl who was comforting and embracing her.

Amidst the confusion,

Shion acutely realized.

A person’s embrace… is this warm.

It felt as if the chill that had permeated her bones instantly vanished.

No lengthy explanations were needed.

A single action instantly revealed that her thoughts were nothing but dark delusions and shameful misunderstandings.

“Shion unni…! Oppa is here now, so don’t worry.”

A delicate hand stroked her back, assuring her that everything was alright.

Shion felt like crying, but for a different reason, touched by Clara’s kindness.

Wasn’t she a truly lovely girl?

“Clara. I missed you… I was lonely…”

“I, I missed you too, unni… Wah!”

Shion hugged Clara even tighter.

The warmth the girl offered was so comforting that she didn’t want to let go. It felt like the warmth was seeping into her heart.

Just being in physical contact with her erased all the hardships she had endured. Her shattered Consciousness was seamlessly mended.

After a long, silent embrace with Clara, pouring out her pent-up emotions, Shion was startled by an unfamiliar noise coming from the distant Conference Room and released her hold.

When her eyes met Shion’s, Clara smiled bashfully, her face flushed. The fact that the gloomy aura had disappeared from Shion’s face was the main reason for her smile.

“Even though we’re both girls, it’s, it’s a little embarrassing…”

“…”

Shion realized those words as well. Unusually, she felt a sense of embarrassment.

A strange feeling, different from the shameful feeling of guilt. It made her keep wondering whether to pull up her mask or not.

“Unni. How are you feeling? Have you been eating well?”

To that, Shion replied that she was fine and took out her water bottle, taking a sip of water for the first time in who knows how long.

After quenching her parched throat,

She asked the most important question.

“Clara. What was that situation earlier about? I still don’t understand…”

“It’s hard for me to explain since I’m just watching what Oppa is doing…”

Clara tapped her protruding lips with her finger, lost in thought.

She couldn’t give a definite answer because she didn’t know much herself.

Still, sitting next to him and watching hadn’t been entirely fruitless.

Clara was certain of one thing.

“It seems like they’re mistaking Oppa for someone else. Oppa is acting like that person.”

“Mistaking him? Acting?”

Clara assured her that if Shion just sat and observed for a while, she’d see that Rohan was acting.

Those words made Shion feel even more lost.

Clara’s explanation continued somehow.

“…That’s how we got here.”

“The end?”

“Yes…! This is the end.”

“What?”

After hearing the condensed explanation, Shion couldn’t grasp the situation.

From beginning to end. Everything was a mystery.

It wasn’t that Clara couldn’t explain; every sentence was beyond her comprehension.

He’s impersonating someone using the information he has? Did he gather it while fighting the boss in the tunnel? What if he makes a mistake and gets caught?

Shion was impressed but also worried about Rohan.

His methods were bold, perhaps too bold.

And his actions were also hard to understand.

Were the Elders’ information-keeping skills outdated?

Or was Rohan just exceptionally skilled at extracting information?

“Shion unni…”

“Hmm?”

As Shion was struggling to process the story, Clara tugged at her sleeve to get her attention.

The girl leaned closer and whispered.

“By, by any chance, are the Elves here your family?”

“…”

“If, if they’re precious to you, unni…”

Shion understood what the girl in front of her was worried about.

If a situation arose where force was necessary, Clara was unsure where to draw the line.

Family? Are the Elders my family?

The time she had spent with them was longer than the time she had spent with her parents.

Since she was of Testarossa blood, they were people she should protect.

…I might have thought that way in the past.

After meeting Rohan and Clara, her horizons had broadened during the string of unsettling days.

Thanks to them, she was able to see and experience more. She realized that the world was vast, and she had been living in a well.

Relationships didn’t become precious just because time had been spent together.

And the bloodline that the Elders had emphasized wasn’t going to feed her.

“Clara.”

“Yes?”

“I like you, Clara.”

A gleam of joy appeared in Clara’s eyes at Shion’s words.

The Elf girl continued, her gaze locked with Clara’s.

“And I like Rohan too.”

“!?!?”

Joy and bewilderment mingled on Clara’s face.

Shion, intoxicated by her emotions, continued to pour out her heart without hesitation.

“I haven’t forgotten the short time we spent together, and I’ve been thinking about it every day. It was truly enjoyable.”

“Unni…”

Clara could empathize with those words on multiple levels.

“If you ask me now if the Elders are my family, I don’t know until I hear their hidden story. Perhaps I’m wrong from the moment I say this.”

“Yes. I understand.”

“Anyway, one thing is for sure… I have no reason to be responsible for them.”

Shion believed she had tried her best, burning through her golden days without having enjoyed anything.

She had nothing to be ashamed of regarding her efforts.

Hearing Shion’s definite answer, Clara nodded in understanding.

She asked one more question to confirm something. This time, it was a completely separate matter.

“Shion unni.”

“Speak.”

“Unni, you… originally held Tigrova nationality, right?”

This was information she had heard from Rohan on the way.

Shion nodded without hesitation, affirming it openly.

Clara’s face became a canvas of mixed emotions.

“If it’s Tigrova, then unni, by any chance, are you also polygamous…”

“Hmm?”

When Shion asked back at her murmuring,

Clara slapped her cheeks. Slap! Slap! Now wasn’t the time for this.

“Ah, never mind… Let’s go back quickly!”

“You’ve returned.”

“…”

The Chief Elder let out a deep breath at the sound of Rohan’s voice.

Clara, who had returned to the Conference Room, quietly sat next to Rohan.

Shion, who followed her in, stood awkwardly among the Elders scattered on the floor.

This kind of thing isn’t really my style.

Seeing Shion’s bewildered state, it seemed like the misunderstanding had been cleared up. Perhaps the story had been relayed to her, as there was no hostility in her eyes.

The problem was that her behavior itself was incredibly awkward, so it seemed like Rohan would have to guide her well.

“Levin Maxwell. How long do you intend to keep me waiting? If you’re trying to provoke me, I commend your audacity.”

“Ahem…! Princess. Please take a seat.”

At Rohan’s threatening urging, the Chief Elder spoke up.

Shion, with her lips tightly sealed, took a seat.

“Princess.”

“What in the world is this mess? Explain yourself.”

The Chief Elder had no intention of explaining the situation.

He would simply proceed quickly with the matter Rohan had taken responsibility for.

“From now on, I will tell you the story you were curious about, Princess.”

“…Suddenly?”

One-sided communication.

The Chief Elder didn’t answer Shion’s question and simply moved his wrinkled lips as if telling her to listen quietly.

“You asked, Princess. Whether the Grand Emperor of Snow truly caused the tragedy within the Testarossa Imperial Family.”

“…”

The very question Shion had been so curious about and had wanted a definite answer to.

For Shion, who had joined midway, it was a topic that started abruptly, but it was a story she couldn’t miss.

“The day the Princess fled Tigrova with us Elders, the Grand Emperor of Snow merely achieved victory; he did not take anyone’s life.”

“Then my father and mother…”

The Chief Elder’s and Shion’s eyes met.

Greed shone through the wrinkles. There was no concealment.

Shion’s face slowly flushed with anger.

The Chief Elder calmly revealed the truth.

A cold silence fell upon the Conference Room, and the atmosphere froze over.