Chapter 81.1

He put Yurina’s foot on top of his own and laughed. Yurina smiled after him and put her hand around his neck. His body was so warm against her, that her body, that had been chilled by the cold night air, seemed to heat up as well.

“What happened all of a sudden in the middle of the night?”

“Let’s go for a walk. The stars are pretty.”

“Yes. The sea you see at night will be different.”

“Then let’s go.”

Raynard was about to put Yurina on the floor, but froze when he saw Yurina’s bare feet.

“And why are you without shoes?”

“Oh, I didn’t think we’d go this far… It’s a sandy beach, so you can walk barefoot. Let’s just go.”

“Wait a minute.”

Raynard hugged Yurina tightly and cautiously moved forward. Like a baby learning to walk by standing on her father’s feet, she had no choice but to follow his feet as they walked.

Raynard then carefully seated Yurina on the terrace railing and took off his shoes. He then knelt down in front of her and gently touched Yurina’s foot.

Every time he touched her fingers, Yurina twitched them as if she were being tickled all over her body.

He carefully placed his shoes on Yurina’s feet. Since the difference in size between them was obvious, the shoe size of the two was also very different. Every time Yurina took a step, those shoes rattled and kept falling off.

Yurina swung her legs from side to side.

“I told you I don’t need them. ‘Cause we’re going to a beach full of sand.”

“What will you do if you step on something sharp?”

“But the shoes are so big for me that I would rather fall in them.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll hold you tight.”

Reynard, who boasted, held Yurina by the waist and lowered her to the floor.

“And you?”

Yurina looked at Reynard’s feet. Socks aren’t much better than barefoot, but that doesn’t mean the socks will protect him from debris and rocks on the beach. He was worried that Yurina would cut his leg, but there was no guarantee that he himself would avoid the same.

Ignoring Yurina’s worries, he just shrugged his shoulders.

“Everything is fine. I have magic. What are you worrying about?”

That’s the same for me too. Before Yurina could get the words that popped into her mind out of her mouth, she muttered as if he had read her thoughts.

“I hate to see you get hurt, even if it can be healed.”

Suddenly, a sphere of light, created by Reynard, appeared in the air.

Instead of continuing to insist, Yurina slowly trudged along behind him. The boots were loose, so she had to step carefully. But it wasn’t as uncomfortable as she’d thought before.

In the darkness of the night, only Reynard and Yurina were now here. Perhaps it was the time of low tide, and the sea moved further than during the day.

In the sky, as dark as the sea itself, one could see a month that had not yet reached the full moon, and countless stars shining endlessly, like sand under the sun.

“Don’t go far, let’s take a look here.”

As usual, Raynard took a handkerchief from his pocket and laid it on the sand. He sat Yurina on in, put his hands on the back of his head, and lay down too.

“You can see so many stars here, unlike the capital.”

“It’s dark all around. The darker it gets, the better you can see the stars.”

“That’s why you can see the stars well from home.”

“Home?”

When Yurina looked back and asked, Raynard smiled and closed his eyes.

Yurina wanted to ask again, wondering if he had heard, but stopped.

‘There’s no way he couldn’t hear it.’

It was a little strange to think that, but Reynard usually had a tendency to listen to Yurina without missing a word. In particular, after Yurina confessed her feelings first, there were times when he could understand even therhe smallest self-talk. So, this time she hears and pretends to not.

‘His hometown.’

He would have wished to avoid such a topic, even if this story surfaced by accident. His mother ran the hangout, drunken harassing patrons, and his peers who see him as a monster because of his unusual appearance.

Well, of course, the word ‘home’ gave him bad memories.

Yurina recalled Karion’s backstory from the original story. Raynard, who was lying with his eyes closed, sensed concern from Yurina, quickly reaching out and supporting the back of her head.

His hand, which wielded a sword, was as strong as if carved from stone. However, it is strange that it wasn’t rough.

Instead of removing his hand, Yurina moved little by little to find a comfortable position. Raynard played along with her, then turned to her with a question:

“Are you uncomfortable?”

“A little harsh, but it’s all right.”

“Then I’m glad.”

In fact, they were lying on the sand. Fine grains of sand clung to her hair.

“It will be difficult for you to wash off. The head is full of sand.”

“I think you will suffer more than me.”

Raynard stroked Yurina’s head with the hand that had previously served as a pillow. The back of her head didn’t touch the sand, but her wavy hair, stretching in all directions, was now all covered with grains of sand, like Reynard’s.