episode_0255

“Coolook…! What did you put in it…?”

“… My blood… ”

Sareh coughed loudly. I asked again just in case, but the answer I got was the same. It turns out my ears weren’t wrong.

“Ugh… I wasn’t going to say anything… ”

Yena was mumbling something softly with her face red and sunken.

“Why did the conversation suddenly turn to this… Howeuh… ”

Somehow I feel like I’m the one who did something wrong.

“… ”

I took a deep breath and pondered Yena’s intentions for a moment. It was a shock that shook the faith I had in her.

No matter how much I think about it, it’s not an assassination attempt.

“Coolook… You know.”

I couldn’t possibly come up with an answer on my own.

“Can I ask why you put that in your cookies?”

“Ugh… My blood tastes sweet.”

“… From blood? Why on earth… ”

“Huh… Maybe my body composition is a bit different…? Anyway, it’s definitely really sweet… Hehe… ”

“… ”

And the answer I heard was enough to make me even more dumbfounded.

“But they don’t usually put that in cookies?”

“While I was making it, I ran out of sugar… But time was running out… So I had no choice… ”

Yena smiled awkwardly and trailed off. I was speechless and lowered my gaze.

And what you see is… a cookie bag with the bottom already exposed.

“… ”

Yena just has a slightly different sense of common sense than I do. And if we’re friends, we should be able to understand that much.

Anyway, the cookies were sweet and delicious. That’s the only thing that’s certain. That’s all that matters.

then…

As I was gathering my thoughts for a moment, a loud alarm suddenly rang out from the amplifiers installed throughout the cradle grounds. It was a preliminary sound that announced 15 minutes before the general assembly.

When I heard the sound, I instinctively felt that it was time to start cleaning up. I turned to Yena and greeted her.

“I think I should go now.”

“Already? What a pity… ”

There was a look of regret on Yena’s face. I felt the same way a little bit. Even though it was only for a moment, I felt a little bit more at ease while talking to Yena.

There was a brief ‘minor’ commotion at the end… but it was literally nothing more than a minor thing.

Suddenly, a question arose in my mind. Now that I think about it, why did the principal send me here? In her words, she clearly said it was ‘work’.

Maybe he was being considerate and gave me a final rest, since all I did was sit on the bench and munched on a sweet blood cookie.

Still, I’m glad I was able to resolve the past with Yena before I left… Wait a minute.

“Oh, you know… ”

As soon as I realized Yena’s identity, a thought that I had forgotten for a moment came to mind. I asked, just in case.

“… Is this a story about your lifespan?”

And the brown-haired girl opened her mouth before I could finish speaking. As if she had seen right through my mind.

“… Did you know?”

“Yeah.”

Yena nodded slightly at the following question. A bitter taste lingered at the corner of her mouth. I could tell that she had been deliberately avoiding this topic.

“I couldn’t help but know. Well… I was watching it up close too… ”

Actually, if you think about it, it’s not that surprising. Witches are creatures that can sense particle flow much more sensitively than we can. Regulus, who took over her body, was able to see right through my condition with just one glance.

And since he said that he was conscious the whole time while being controlled, Yena must have been able to recognize my condition as well.

“Then maybe… ”

I continued asking questions cautiously.

“I’m sorry.”

But Yena just shook her head with a lonely voice. It was the moment when even the last remaining thread of hope disappeared like fog. In her eyes filled with sadness, only one meaning could be read.

Well… I guess it can’t be helped…

“Okay? Okay.”

It was clear that none of this was Jena’s fault. She had no need to blame herself.

“I asked just in case. Don’t worry too much about it.”

“Hyun, you… aren’t you scared?”

Before I knew it, I could hear a faint moisture in Yena’s voice again. After thinking for a moment, I lightly shook my shoulder and answered as casually as possible.

“I’d be lying if I said there was nothing like that…but what can I do?”

“… ”

“Thanks to this power, I was able to save the people I loved. That’s all I need.”

“I see… ”

Yena, with her head bowed, clutched her chest as if squeezing it. It was very uncomfortable to look at her with such a clear expression of pain.

“Then I’ll go now.”

“Sleep, wait a minute… !”

“Why?”

“Well, I have something to ask you… ”

And as I was about to say goodbye and turn around, Yena stopped me in a hurry. Yena was watching my expression and wiggling her fingers. It seemed like she still had something to say.

“Over there… ”

Yena, who had been hesitating, finally opened her mouth. Then she asked a question that felt so trivial compared to her grand preparations.

“Cookies… You said they were delicious?”

“That’s what I wanted to ask… ?”

I stood there blankly for a moment, mulling over my answer. In fact, there wasn’t much to worry about.

It definitely tasted good. Whatever the ingredients were, that was for sure.

“It was really delicious.”

All I had to do was be honest with him. I nodded and answered.

“The best cookie or sweet I’ve ever had.”

“Ugh… ”

And then, with a blush on her face, Yena opened her mouth again.

“Then, by any chance… can I receive a thank you gift for the delicious meal…?”

“Thank you?”

“Yeah. To be exact, Sowon… ”

“A wish? Okay. What is it?”

“After we get back from the expedition… Would you like to go on a picnic with me?”

“Picnic?”

“Yeah.”

The brown-haired girl nodded.

“Bring some snacks too… Lay down on a quiet lawn and look at the clouds… ”

“… ”

“I’ve always wanted to go there. But I don’t have any friends to go with… ”

“… You saw my physical condition? There are less than two months left. If I don’t come back, I’ll die there… ”

“But, still…!”

And then Jenna shouted again, drowning out my voice.

“Still… I believe… Hyun, you will definitely come back… ”

“… ”

It’s a voice that carries a strange sense of hope. It almost sounds like half-confidence.

Yena opened her eyes wide and waited eagerly for my answer.

Maybe she’s trying to give me hope on purpose, to comfort me and fool me of my own sadness?

If that’s the case, then there’s no reason not to accept it. No matter how groundless the sound, hope is so sweet and addictive.

Just like the cookies I ate earlier.

“I promise.”

I was able to finish my thoughts without much difficulty. I nodded while looking at Yena.

“If you come back… Let’s definitely go on a picnic together.”

“… Yeah!”

Only then did Yena nod her head cheerfully, as if she had finally found relief. Now it was really time to go. Before I left, I asked her one last question.

“But is it really okay?”

“What?”

“This expedition. You know where we’re going… ”

Anyway, I am on my way to kill those who are either Yena’s blood relatives or sisters. We are already in a situation where we cannot live under the same sky. In the end, only one of the two will remain. Either we die or the witches die.

Even though she chose to live as a human… wouldn’t Yena also be miserable in her current situation?

“… It’s okay. It can’t be helped.”

And Yena smiled faintly and shook her head weakly.

She slowly opened her mouth after taking a look around the academy from a distance.

“I don’t want to lose this view.”

There was one more thing we had in common. I nodded to Yena’s last words.

“… Me too.”

***

The back of the boy, who seemed to be moving away like a dot, soon disappeared from sight. The brown-haired girl stood blankly in the spot where he had left for a while.

“I did everything I could.”

Every word the girl muttered was filled with obvious sadness.

The person she had just spoken to was a fading ember.

All through the night, the girl had been agonizing. But the conclusion always came down to the same thing.

Now the matter was out of the girl’s hands. Although she was in pain, she could not say anything and could only mumble. When the time came, he would have to make a decision with his own full will.

“… Even if I get resented, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

The girl smiled sadly. If only she could save him, she would gladly endure the resentment of everyone in the world.

The girl, with her eyes closed, reminisced about the past days and muttered softly.

“You must…come back.”

***

Right after breaking up with Yena.

I headed in the direction of Hwayanggwan and walked quickly.

He said there would be a simple ceremony there for those who volunteered. He was a little late, so he was in a hurry, but his steps were strangely light. Maybe it was because he had wrapped up the matter with Yena, which had been on his mind all along.

I was just about to exit the garden path and enter the schoolyard.

“Hey!!”

I heard a voice clearly calling me and turned around.

Then, I immediately saw a blonde schoolgirl running towards me, waving her hand. She had been running for a while and looked very out of breath.

… was another assignment given to me.