episode_0020

Yerena Frost was feeling confused lately because of a girl named Sian who kept coming to mind.

She had given up on everything upon hearing the fact that she was a time-limited being. Since she could only live for a few more years anyway, things like friends or love must all be meaningless.

So, seeking revenge to settle the score with her parents’ enemies seemed like the most efficient thing to do.

An indescribable emotion kept bubbling up in Yerena’s heart. Unable to define this feeling due to having lost touch with her emotions, Yerena was reluctant to face her own feelings properly.

“…”

Humans naturally dislike what they cannot comprehend. Yerena was no exception to this.

The only difference was that Yerena seemed to have given up on understanding the incomprehensible rather than trying to understand it, unlike others.

For various reasons, Yerena had one conviction in her heart.

Sian, as a bearer of the mark, would live much longer than herself, who was time-limited. Therefore, Sian would not leave her.

Since Sian would be there to spend the rest of her life with her, delaying such unnecessary worries seemed fine to Yerena.

That was until Regina Strellachia, a girl, appeared next to Sian.

“Still, now that I’m in the academy and have two friends, I don’t feel as lonely anymore.”

“Does Sian like cute friends?”

“Well… something like that?”

Yerena vividly remembered the expression on Sian’s face when talking about Regina.

The pure gaze of a girl looking at something adorable. Did Sian look at her with such an expression?

Suddenly, she felt anxious.

If this girl took Sian’s attention away from her, wouldn’t Sian gradually lose interest in her, just like those who left her behind when her parents died and her succession ranking dropped?

Would she be alone again?

As always, swinging her sword alone, eating alone, attending classes alone, spending the remaining time in loneliness…

“…I don’t want that.”

Yerena muttered softly, making sure no one could hear her.

She had lived well alone for the past 8 years. Having met someone who understood her broken heart, a friend who could empathize and spar with her, she could never go back.

Thus, abandoning even her usual Ice Princess demeanor, Yerena smiled and put her arm around Sian.

“Hello. I’m Yerena Frost.”

“Huh?!”

At Yerena’s sudden display of affection, Sian flinched. She trembled. Sian, who had rarely held hands with a girl before, felt her crimson eyes quiver at the intimacy of linking arms.

Feeling Yerena’s soft skin through the thin school uniform, strange thoughts kept popping into her mind.

Therefore, Sian suddenly couldn’t understand why Yerena was acting this way. No, she didn’t have the capacity to understand. How could she stay composed when her favorite character was embracing her in reality, with no one around to keep her sane?

“Y-Yerena, Miss…?”

“Yeah?”

For some reason, Yerena’s voice was softer than usual. Shedding the mask of the Ice Princess, Yerena drew closer.

Yet, Sian, slightly taken aback by this different side of Yerena, simply smiled warmly, not displeased.

“…”

And Regina Strellachia felt an instinctual unease at the sight of the two.

Why hadn’t she thought of this before? Even if Sian meant everything to her, Sian could have other friends. While Sian was the sole hope that had come through hundreds of regressions for her, maybe she was just a friend who needed a little attention to Sian.

Regina’s hand, hidden under the blanket, began to tremble slightly. That spot is mine. Why, why is Yerena Frost…!

Regina knew Yerena Frost well. After 999 regressions, she was a girl who couldn’t be avoided, no matter how much one tried to avoid her.

Always wearing an icy expression. Yerena, who seemed devoid of attachment to the world, why was she sticking around with Cyan, making such expressions?

“Um, but why suddenly link arms…?”

“Well, friends sometimes link arms like this, right?”

“Oh, I guess so…?”

“That’s all it was. Why, don’t you like it?”

“Oh… it’s not that, but…”

Yerena Frost’s proactive behavior was something Regina had never seen before in her past lives.

Perhaps that was why. The seed of unease planted in Regina’s heart began to grow little by little.

Yerena Frost is a charming girl that anyone would acknowledge. If Cyan falls for such a girl, then eventually she would be pushed aside. Then there would be no one left in this world who could understand her…

“I don’t like that…!”

Yerena muttered softly. Closing her eyes tightly, she embraced Cyan’s waist, deliberately speaking in a cute voice.

“Eh?!”

“I-I was actually a bit… lonely. Mr. Cyan…”

As Regina’s small body nestled against hers, Cyan let out a foolish whimper, trembling.

Yerena and Regina both belonged to the category of beautiful girls, even without personal bias. Moreover, they were incomparable to most idols from past lives.

For a situation where both girls clung to her, it was too harsh for Cyan, who had no experience of love or even female friends in this life or the last.

That might be why Cyan failed to notice the strange currents flowing between Yerena and Regina.

“W-Wait a minute, okay? Both of you. No, both of you…? Can you please calm down…”

Is this what they call “flowers in both hands”?

With such pointless thoughts in mind, Cyan cursed her unnecessarily keen senses.

The intuition of a Gold-tier adventurer is generally exceptional.

The reason was simpler than expected. Adventurers with poor intuition mostly got injured or died before reaching the Gold tier.

Therefore, Cyan had good intuition. If she got close to someone, she could predict what lay beyond their thin school uniform.

“Cyan.”

“Y-Yes?!”

Like a ripe persimmon, Yerena’s voice reached my ears, turning my face crimson. It was a much softer voice than usual.

More like a mature older sister than an Ice Princess. Thinking that Yerena looked good even in that state, I fidgeted with my fingers.

“Just call me comfortably too. If it’s hard to address us separately.”

“Well, I… I don’t want to seem like those old-fashioned people who judge based on status, do I?”

“It’s not that… Ah, never mind. Yerena.”

As Yerena finished speaking, Regina, who had been quietly nestled in my arms, timidly asked.

“Um… can you stay with me a little longer…? The nurse said my body hasn’t fully recovered yet. I think I pushed myself too hard when catching the Lich…”

“Oh, sure. That’s why I came here in the first place.”

“Hehe…”

Regina’s wide smile was so adorable it could harm one’s heart. So, unknowingly, I started stroking Regina’s head.

And Regina, as if enjoying my touch, seemed to relish it. Why is that? Despite looking like a magpie’s nest, her hair felt as soft as Yerena’s well-groomed locks when touched.

Feeling Regina’s presence beside me, I hear Yerena’s voice from the side.

“Sian.”

“Ah, um… Sian…”

Ignoring that, even Regina’s voice can be heard from within my arms. Two girls sticking so closely together that a hint of competitiveness could be felt.

“Ugh, wait…!”

Caught between the two girls, I gently push them apart and recall the reason I called them here.

I simply wanted them to get along well. But for some reason, they only cling to me strangely, not speaking to each other.

Pondering the reason with an awkward expression, I soon roughly deduce it. Perhaps it’s because they find each other awkward.

Both Yerena and Regina were girls unfamiliar with dealing with people. Meeting someone new through me, are they trying to become friends?

While still far from the correct answer, I sit next to Regina. Naturally, Yerena sits beside me. Caught between the two girls, I make an effort to compose myself and introduce Yerena and Regina to each other.

“This is Yerena Frost. Regina, you know her too, right?”

“Yes, I’ve heard a lot about her…!”

“And this is Regina Strellachia.”

“Hello. I’m Yerena.”

As expected, as I introduce them, the atmosphere seems to lighten a bit.

“I was called by the health teacher to step out for a moment. You two have a lot to talk about.”

So, leaving them to converse, I rise to my feet. The health teacher mentioned there were some final checks to be done if I had time to spare.

Well, both Regina and Yerena are good friends. Nothing untoward should happen in my absence.