Moving Forward

After setting up the tent, we all looked around the island together. When I say explore, I just mean walking around the island.

Contrary to Aria’s expectations, there were no special places like dungeons or caves on the island. It wasn’t that big of an island, and it was more like a small uninhabited island for vacation, so I didn’t have high expectations in the first place.

However, Aria kept looking around with fire in her eyes, saying that Headmaster Nelson would be different, but in the end, she muttered to herself in disappointment.

,My treasure chest….”

Leaving Aria behind, we returned to the tent and decided to have lunch. We planned to light a fire and grill meat in the evening, so we took out the food we had packed from the cafeteria from the space warehouse, shared it, and jumped into the sea.

I didn’t notice it when she was wearing her school uniform, but seeing Luna in her swimsuit made me steal glances at her feminine figure.

While we were playing in the water, Kane, who had been invisible in the forest for a long time, brought a wooden spear he had made himself.

Kane and Lacar dove into the sea and used the spear to catch fish and shellfish, while I used magic with Luna and Aria to play on tubes.

As a joke, I used space magic to make Aria dive from a high place. Aria was so surprised that she burst into tears, and Luna and Aria scolded me for a long time….

We had a really fun time, playing until we were exhausted and returning to the tent.

Maybe it was because it was an island, or maybe it was because it was so much fun that time flew by. The sun was setting so quickly that it was getting dark in an instant.

Kane, who had been waiting for the sun to set, lit a campfire he had made in advance. In the meantime, the remaining members took the pork that the maids had prepared and skewered it on the wooden skewers that Lacar and I had made, fixing them with stones around the campfire so they wouldn’t fall over.

The meat, dripping with oil and browning in the heat, smelled delicious, and I took out the chilled honey beer I had prepared in advance and handed it to the members.

A blazing fire, delicious grilled meat, fish and shellfish caught by Kane and Lacar during the day. And even chilled honey beer.

No one in the Messiah club doubted that it was a truly perfect evening.

After dinner and cleanup, we sat around the campfire, mesmerized by the silence of the night, the stars densely packed in the sky, and the blue moonlight, and indulged in sentimentality while watching the fire.

Just as everyone was deeply immersed in their own thoughts, Aria, who couldn’t stand boredom, suddenly opened her mouth.

,I thought Luna and Ross were something at first.”

Luna was flustered and embarrassed by Aria’s sudden words, and I, who even spat out the honey beer I was drinking, gave Aria a look that said, ,What strange things are you saying again?”

Aria waved her hands, saying it was a misunderstanding, at our reactions.

,No! That’s not what I meant. I thought you were distant relatives or something because you both have blonde hair and blue eyes!”

Luna let out a sigh of relief at Aria’s explanation, and I saw her glancing at me, but I pretended not to notice and wiped the honey beer from my chin with my sleeve.

,I thought so too at first. You two look so alike.” Aria smiled and shrugged her shoulders at Kane’s unexpected support fire.

,There’s no way we’re relatives, as you know, I’m a commoner.”

Aria nodded, making an ,ah-” sound at my words.

,Come to think of it, I didn’t even know where everyone lived? But we’re in the same club! How about we take this opportunity to talk about ourselves!”

Seeing Aria’s eyes shining as she looked at me, I thought it wasn’t a bad suggestion, so I nodded and looked at the members. Everyone nodded in agreement.

,Okay, I’ll go first.”

Kane stepped forward, throwing the firewood piled up next to him into the fire.

,I’m Kane Van Yousef. I’m the youngest of the seven siblings of the Yousef Duke family in the south of the capital.”

I was inwardly surprised at Kane’s words. It was amazing that he was from a Duke family, unlike his sickly-looking thin body.

Could it be that Duke families don’t give their children enough to eat? Seeing him eat pork and fish today, it doesn’t seem like he dislikes eating.

,Well, even if I’m from a Duke family, I’m actually a bastard. A child that the family has disowned. I’m the only one in the family who does alchemy. The people in my family don’t understand why I do alchemy, so we don’t get along very well.”

Maybe it was because of the atmosphere created by the moonlight and the campfire. Kane poked the burning branches with firewood, frankly revealing his family history as if he didn’t care.

,I’ve always wanted to be independent from home. No matter how well my family treats me, bastards are always outsiders, right? That’s why academy life is fun. Well, it might be more fun because I met you guys.”

Seeing Kane smile awkwardly as he said that, I understood a little why Kane was so interested in camping.

Kane must have finished talking, as he turned his gaze to Lacar, who was sitting next to him.

Lacar, who received that gaze, put down the glass filled with honey beer next to him and opened his mouth with a serious expression.

,I’m Lacar Strain Jr. The second son of the Strain family. I have an older sister named Lamine in the 3rd grade combat department. I have a younger sister who is younger than me. Um, our family is located not far from the west of the capital, so you can easily get there by using the portal about twice.”

Lacar, who looked up at the sky for a moment as if thinking about what to say, turned his gaze to me and said.

,Since I was young, my dream was to be a knight. A loyal knight who is loyal to his lord and willing to give his life.”

I avoided Lacar’s gaze, which was somehow burdensome to me, pretending to take out cookies from the space warehouse.

I took out a cookie and offered it to Luna, who was sitting next to me. Luna smiled and picked up a chocolate cookie.

As soon as Lacar finished speaking, the turn naturally passed to Aria, who was sitting next to him.

,I’m Aria Baldwin! The only heir to the Baldwin baronetcy! Everyone has heard of the famous resort in the north, Mount Bold, right? Our family is under that mountain! You can get there by using about 4 portals!”

Aria raised both arms and gave the members a lovely smile.

,If anyone has a chance to come to the north, be sure to stop by Mount Bold! If you come to our family, I’ll show you the delicious food and scenery of the north!” Aria said, then hesitated a little and added with a smile.

,I don’t have any big goals. Maybe a great wizard like Headmaster Nelson?”

Everyone smiled at Aria, who was dreaming bigger than anyone else.

Aria turned her head, saying it was Luna’s turn. Luna cleared her throat and opened her mouth.

,I’m Luna Grace…. The fifth youngest of the Grace count family. I entered the academy because I wanted to research treatments for people who are sick in the magic engineering department.”

As soon as Luna finished speaking, Aria made a fuss as if she had been waiting for it.

,Wait!!! If it’s the Grace family, isn’t that one of the three major nobles in the east?”

,Yes…. That’s right.”

Aria looked at me with surprised eyes at Luna’s answer and shouted.

,Oh my god! Luna is one of the three major families guarding the eastern border!!! That’s amazing!!!”

Even with Aria’s fuss, I couldn’t say anything like a mute who had eaten honey. The three major nobles….

They were forces that had appeared in the novel. I hadn’t set up detailed settings for the three major nobles. I had only written that they were annihilated by the Demon King’s army….

The eastern border is breached by the clergy, and the Demon King’s army appears on the continent. In order to inform the continent of this fact and prepare for it, the three major nobles of the east did not run away and fulfilled their duty in that place.

All the nobles of the east gathered in one place and fiercely confronted the Demon King’s army…. In the end, they are all annihilated.

Emperor ,Bella-, who gained time thanks to their sacrifice, recruited an army and formed Roel’s hero party.

The fact that the three major nobles were wiped out was a device to let even the corrupt officials know how serious the situation was.

Like Ross, I created the consumable item called the three major nobles for the sake of plausibility.

While I was pressing my eyelids with my palms in an unexpected situation. Luna carefully tapped my shoulder.

I inadvertently raised my head and met Luna’s eyes. I stared blankly until Luna, embarrassed by my gaze, struggled to turn her gaze away.

I took a deep breath and turned my gaze to the members who were looking at me.

,Um, I don’t have a last name because I’m a commoner. Just Ross. I live in a small village a day away from the capital. I was able to enter as a special admission student thanks to my older brother Roel, who is the top student in the second grade…. I’m also the inadequate president of the Messiah club.”

After sweeping my face once with my complicated head. Aria asked with shining eyes.

,Then, what’s your dream?”

Those words were like a question that pierced through the chaos in my heart. Ironically, that question from Aria erased the confusion I had felt until now, and only one determination remained.

I slowly turned my gaze to Luna and answered Aria’s question.

,To protect what’s precious.”

There was a complacent thought in one corner of my heart. The complacency that even if I did nothing, Roel would solve everything as it flowed.

Many people will die and be injured in that flow. Roel will also suffer many losses…. But I had the expectation that Roel would eventually kill the Demon King and reach a happy ending.

So there was always hesitation in my heart. I wanted to ask Bella for her sins, but I endured it for the ending. I hesitated for a long time to save the people of Destin village, who were scheduled to lose their lives in the mutated orc attack.

But the flow I knew had already changed. Ross, who was a lump of inferiority complex, had family-like members and met a teacher who believed in him.

Just as the Ross inside me chose to move forward, not resent or take revenge on me, who made him a lump of inferiority complex.

I also decided to choose to move forward to protect what’s precious.

,What! Did you get drunk from drinking honey beer?!”

,Ew, it’s so cheesy!”

Kane and Aria curled their hands and joked. Unlike the two, Lacar and Luna were smiling as they looked at me.

I erased the remnants of anxiety and complacency that remained in my heart and said to the members as if making a pledge.

,I’m going to make everyone happy.”

The members who supported me when I was falling apart, Roel and Headmaster Nelson who always send me their trust.

And even Ross, who is watching the story we will write from inside me.

I chose to move forward for their happiness.

,Definitely.”

Even if it is the path of hegemony.