episode_0026

A tremendous roar erupted.

Kwaddeuk— Kkang!

Wajangchang… Ssuk, Seu-k—

Hwal-rreureu—

It was because of the work to restore the vacant lot that Eve had turned into an ice age.

“Your hand stopped there.”

Narias flinched at the cold voice.

Watching her, who always acted as she pleased, be unable to move at a single word from her beloved younger sister…

Eve, who was blasting hot air from the side, also burst into laughter.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Ah, no… just…”

“Is this funny right now?”

Of course it’s funny, isn’t it?

The academy’s specialized student and the top freshman cleaning up a frozen vacant lot at the word of a small girl.

Because she had drawn up a lot of fire mana, a warm and positive energy swirled around Eve’s body.

Thanks to that, fresh emotions she had forgotten resurfaced.

Bickering with someone emotionally close, exchanging silly jokes.

Even while spending the hardest time of the day, able to laugh just by looking at each other’s faces.

Eve felt like she had made a ‘friend’ for the first time in a very long time.

“Puhut-”

That’s why the current situation was so funny, interesting, and joyful.

“Hüt- Huhu, huhuhüt…”

On the other hand, she felt a little sad.

Why did she only meet these people now?

Couldn’t she have met them a little earlier?

She felt that she shouldn’t keep dwelling on such thoughts.

Therefore, she wanted to cherish the bond she had just formed even more.

“Hey, Eve… You need to melt it quickly if I’m going to clean it up, you know.”

“You can use fire magic too.”

“No, there’s something called a division of labor—”

Even for such a small cleanup, Narias was calculating her plans.

What a strange person.

But… watching her made her heart warm.

Eve momentarily put aside the old memories welling up in her heart, and concentrated the intense heat only to her fingertips.

Soon the surroundings were cleaned up, and the vacant lot, which was about to become a wasteland, had somewhat regained its previous appearance.

Sweat poured down from Narias’ forehead like rain.

“Whew, I think this is enough?”

“You did well.”

She wrapped her face with the towel offered by Yurias, and Eve quietly wiped her face watching her.

Then, Yurias came near her and offered her a towel as well.

“Ista-yang, you worked hard too.”

“…Call me Eve.”

Seeing Eve wiping her sweat, Yurias smiled slightly.

“Then I’ll call you Yuri.”

“I’m Nari-daong~”

Unable to contain the warm atmosphere, Narias also affectionately hugged her sister and laughed.

A flush bloomed on Eve’s face as she watched them.

“Right. Nari, Yuri.”

… … …

As the sun set, the three of them went to a nearby restaurant again.

And, there was a welcome change for Eve.

“…Delicious.”

She tasted the food.

Eve, who always picked at her food, depressing even those around her with her bad eating habits, had begun to enjoy eating and the true taste of the food.

Ugok, Ugok-

Eve picked up her bowl and devoured the stir-fried meat as if she were drinking it.

“Hey, hey. Eat slowly. You’ll get indigestion.”

“Drink some water too.”

Eve, who was frantically devouring the food, felt tears welling up.

Was it because she was out of breath… No.

It was because the rich meat juice and flavor filling her mouth brought back cherished memories.

‘…Mother.’

Someone she could no longer meet.

A time she could not return to, a flavor she could no longer feel.

So she thought.

With just one dish, Eve was returned to the little girl who would whine to her mother at the dinner table.

“What… are you crying?”

“It was so delicious…”

Eve put down her bowl and quickly wiped the tears from her eyes.

“Ah, no. Sorry, just a moment-”

To hide her embarrassment, she quickly ran out to the terrace outside the restaurant.

“Heuk, Heuk…”

Unlike the heated atmosphere inside the restaurant, the outside air on the terrace was slightly cool.

Always chased by time, chased by requests, chased by debts, and chased by people.

The anxiety of constantly running away from something suffocated Eve.

But standing here now, looking at the warm, light-filled night of the royal capital…

A refreshing breeze caressed her cheeks, and the burden that had weighed on her shoulders seemed to fly away.

She didn’t know before.

That the city at night was so lively.

That people’s faces were so full of color.

‘…It doesn’t seem to be just that.’

When she thought about it, this street was a little different from the dull, dark royal capital in Eve’s memory.

Certainly, in the Knife Franz Kingdom, there were problems such as robbery, drugs, and human trafficking.

They didn’t occur openly like in the Empire, but they were rampant in the outlying territories, so there was never a day when the people’s faces were free from worry and anxiety.

But in the royal capital she had revisited, there was an unprecedented liveliness.

People all walked forward, even with their shadows stretching out behind them.

‘Did the ruler even change?’

Even if it wasn’t that, there had definitely been some kind of change.

And it was for the better.

And Eve loved it.

She had simply changed her perspective slightly, and now this place had become a place for her to return to.

Suddenly, the inside of the restaurant caught her eye.

“…Nari?”

Something seemed to have happened.

She seemed to have gotten into an argument with a large man at the next table, and there was a brief shouting match.

Then, they suddenly filled their large glasses with beer, and drank it together as if it were a contest.

One drink, two drinks…

In the end, the man collapsed before Nari could, and she raised her glass high above her head and shouted loudly.

Everyone in the restaurant cheered at her.

‘…There is non-stop laughter around her.’

She hadn’t known her for long, but she was definitely not a villain.

Eve, who had faced countless villains, sensed it.

Ddeolkeung-

The terrace door opened and Nari came outside.

“Euek— Uh, Eve! What are you doing here?”

“…Wipe the foam off your face.”

“Eet, where—”

“Goodness.”

She’s really clumsy when it comes to this.

Eve pulled her arm and brought her face close, wiping the beer foam from her mouth with her hand.

And, unconsciously, she licked the foam off her fingertips.

Ah!

“…Ah, th-this isn’t, that’s not what…!!”

“Hehet, thanks.”

“Uh, uh… Yeah…”

Whether she was drunk, or only Eve found the situation strange. She had thought it was cool just a moment ago, but for some reason her face was burning up.

She fanned her cheeks with her hands until they burned.

Nari leaned against the terrace railing, seeming not to care.

“Euh-yaa… Feels good.”

Eve was the only one who had an embarrassing experience.

Trying to forget it, she quickly fanned away the heated air around her.

“So… how was it, today?”

“How was what?”

“I said I would see your skill.”

At first, it was a duel that was accepted to read Nari’s mind, but now she had begun to want to be recognized by her.

Kkol-kkak-

Eve gulped.

“It’s not over yet.”

“What?”

“Tomorrow, round two. We’ll do it, right?”

Puhut-

An answer that made her anxious heart feel unnecessary.

Eve laughed heartily.

“Yes!”

* * *

“Are you ready, Eve.”

“…Just as I hoped!”

Though not even a day had passed, I had been waiting only for this moment.

Eve, standing opposite me, also had an excited expression on her face, so I drew up a lot of mana without adjusting my strength.

Hwa-aat-

The other person didn’t seem to be planning to hold back either.

The cadet who was the judge announced the start of the duel with a terrified look.

We both reached out our hands at the same time.

“Haa-at!!”

[Hell Flare]!

[Freezing Storm]!

My raging fire, combining fire and earth mana.

Eve’s chilling frost, combining water and wind mana.

Two intense energies met in the middle of the training ground, causing a terrifying explosion that completely engulfed the entire area.

Puka-aaaaang—!!!

“Kwaa-at—”

The shockwave spread throughout the academy.

The cadets who had been standing nearby were unable to escape in time, rolling on the ground and collapsing, and all the windows of nearby buildings were shattered.

The duel was stopped…

“Our great Mother, who embraces the mountain range and watches over the earth, please heal those who are wounded here…”

[Recovery]!

It was utter chaos.

Not only the instructors who used healing magic, but also the priests nearby gathered to treat the injured.

Fortunately, there were no deaths, and we were fine, but it was hard staying in that place. We ran around putting out the fires that had spread to the trees and cleaning up the mess, and then we were called to the principal’s office.

Kkul-kkeok-

“Haaa…”

Principal Nataliya’s sighs continued, wrinkles beginning to form on her smooth face.

“I… I’m sorry.”

“Ah, no… it’s not your fault. I didn’t properly assess the cadets’ skills, and on top of that, I couldn’t handle the situation and caused such a disaster…”

Surprisingly, not much blame came our way.

Perhaps because it was a place in the kingdom that valued freedom and skill fairly highly, the entire mistake of failing to control our power, due to our carelessness, was blamed on the instructors.

The conversation naturally turned to the subject of the usual classes.

“So… there was a problem with the lesson content?”

“It wasn’t that the content was wrong, but rather, the level, I would say. Even during the other cadets’ earlier duels today, I felt like they were getting bored.”

“I can understand why you acted out this way…”

Being understood wasn’t wrong but it didn’t feel good.

As the principal said, even if Instructor Lulu’s lessons were lacking, it was our fault that things turned out how they did, and it felt strange that we were being covered for.

“It is our fault for lacking practice…”

“What? You practiced? Where?”

“In the vacant lot behind the royal capital…”

She looked dumbfounded upon hearing my words.

“You’re a specialized student, aren’t you… you should then have the right to use the special training grounds…”

“…I’ve never heard of that.”

“That Valentine instructor seems to have failed to communicate properly again…”

Ah.

Suddenly, the discomfort went away, replaced by anger.

The principal stated her intention to review everything related to this incident and handed over a key.

[Special Training Ground Key] – Rank: Rare – A key that allows free use of the Knife Franz Academy’s special training ground. – Can only be used by those who possess the title, [Knife Franz Academy Specialized Student].

She added some explanations of the training grounds’ functions, but in short, it was a place where we could rampage to our heart’s content.

Leaving the principal behind with a mountain of work, we made our way to the training ground together, as if we had already planned something. We only collapsed from exhaustion after our final, third battle.

“Haat, Haa…”

“Ssuut… Huaa…”

The surroundings were enclosed by a special barrier, but ceiling was open to the sky.

The blue sky was gradually mixed with red colors as the day ended, and I pointed to the setting sun beyond the barrier.

“Ah, just like…”

“…Beautiful.”

We were looking up at the sky for a moment.

“How about me?”

Eve suddenly asked me. Lying flat on her back, she only turned her head toward me.

I smiled quietly.

“You’re pretty too, Eve.”

“…….”

“Sorry, I know. You asked about my skills, right?”

She, who had been teasing me then been teased herself, quickly hid the red in her cheek that could have been due to the sunset.

“It feels really refreshing for the first time in a while.”

“…Me too.”

That’s right.

I think that this being the case, there will be no problem tackling the adventurer’s job or the maze with this key together.

As the sun completely disappeared over the horizon, Eve asked again.

“…Want a drink?”

“Sure, let’s bring Yuri too—”

“—No.”

Thump.

She grabbed my hand.

“Just the two of us…”