CH 83

It’s already been over a week since I’ve been looking for Dante, who keeps running away.

At first, I chased after Dante to hear what he was hiding, but at this point, I thought I should stop talking and make him not run away.

I started to have a premonition that if I left it in this state, I would live without seeing his face for the rest of my life.

What made it even more unfair in this situation was that I couldn’t see Dante, yet Dante could see me. I should have known how to use magic.

Or, I should have told him beforehand to use the location tracking magic contained in the ring!

But even if I regret it belatedly, Dante has already stopped appearing in front of me for a long time.

One day when I thought this wouldn’t work, I stayed up all night in my bedroom knowing that Dante would come to visit me whenever I fell asleep.

If I pretend to be asleep, I’m really going to fall asleep, so I’ll just sit on the bed and wait. I had piled books next to my bed and promised not to fall asleep until I finished reading them, but a note came in under the door at dawn.

[I was wrong. So don’t stay up all night.]

It was just ridiculous. This is the attitude of a person who’s sorry?

“Stop saying you were wrong and run away!”

I opened the door and shouted, crumpling the note, but there was no answer.

It’s just that from that day on, I felt his presence more often.

The barrage of gifts that seemed to calm down continued more often.

“…”

I don’t know why they give me this… For example, when I received jewelry or accessories, I pushed the box out of the door with a grim face. Meaning I don’t need it, so just take it back.

If you’re going to ignore me, ignore me completely, and if you’re going to run away, run away completely. It was just more frustrating because he, who’s still hiding, paid even more attention.

It can’t go on like this. I confirmed that the box I had pushed in front of the door had disappeared, and I made a promise on the spot. I have to find Dante somehow.

I had to do something before the irritation piled up and turned into anger. Something that could hold Dante back for a second.

Before I even go so far as to think of taking Dante out using a really extreme method.

…Either way, I didn’t want to get there.

***

It was a day when I explored, no. When I was taking a walk inside of the Magic Tower as usual.

It was the point at which Dante began to disappear more thoroughly and even seeing the hem of his clothes became rarer, but something was different that day.

At the end of the hallway on the other side of where I was standing, I saw a figure wandering around and disappearing.

Through my fleeting vision, I seemed to see something white disappearing around the corner of the hallway.

I couldn’t confirm what it was, but after playing hide-and-seek with Dante for the past few days, I immediately followed the hem of the clothes without asking or questioning. I don’t want to catch him anymore, so I thought I should at least look at his face.

However, it wasn’t Dante who was standing around the corner, where there was a large arched window and a small sofa.

Someone much shorter, with blue hair that sways around her waist…

“Lisa?”

A face that hadn’t been seen for days came into view belatedly. I thought if something disappears from my view, it will be Dante, so I was mistaken for a moment.

A breeze came in through the slightly open window, and the white dress the child was wearing gently rustled.

As soon as Lisa saw me, a bright smile appeared on her face. Seeing her arms wide open as if she was about to run towards me, I reflexively lowered my body to embrace the child.

Even though Lisa stopped on the spot before I could fully get into the position.

“…”

In that strange stillness, there was silence for a moment.

I realized almost instinctively the moment Lisa’s eyes, which had been staring at me and looked exactly like Dante’s, turned sideways. It was because I had seen Dante run away too often.

So you’re trying to run away too?

At the same time as that realization, without even realizing it, my body moved first.

“Ah, Sister!”

“Where are you going?”

Lisa, who had just bent over to the left, was held in my arms as if almost entangled, and Lisa let out a short scream. I lifted the child’s body easily just by stretching my back while lightly tightening my arms.

Lisa, who was clinging to me, seemed to be trying to fight, but then she suddenly let go of her body, probably thinking that she might hit me without realizing it.

I sat down on the sofa right under the window and put Lisa on my lap. Lisa, who was leaning on my body like a habit, suddenly tightened her body as if she shouldn’t be like this.

It didn’t change the fact that I wouldn’t let her run away no matter how stiff she became.

“I won’t let you go, Lisa.”

“Hnnggg.”

Although the whining sound was cute, no means no. As I hugged her tight again, I felt Lisa finally relax and sit comfortably.

“Master told me not to get caught by Sister…”

“What, did you run away too?”

I thought I was just busy and couldn’t see her well. When I looked down at Lisa, unable to hide my astonishment, I saw a very teary face.

At this point, I’m bewildered. Of course, about Dante, not Lisa.

He ran away because of his own will. Even so, how could he say that to Lisa?

She’s a child who likes me to the extent she tries to hug me as soon as we run into each other.

Hm, well. It was similar to Dante in that he wanted to hug me every time we saw each other…

“Have you heard the reason why you should avoid me?”

“Yes.”

Lisa glanced at me and answered in a small voice.

“Sister keeps chasing after him to ask something, but since he can never answer, he just tells me not to meet you…”

Ah, to the point where he can ‘never’ answer? It was so absurd that it made me laugh. As I let out a helpless laugh, Lisa, whom I had been quietly holding, carefully raised her head.

I saw the flickering purple eyes that filled me, transparent like a lake.

“Are you mad, Sister?”

“Um, no. I’m not mad at Lisa.”

“Then what about Master?”

“At Dante…”

It’s been a while since I’ve been angry. Rather than adding another word, I chose to just smile.

Lisa glanced at my face and lowered her head with a downcast face.

“You’re angry. Actually, I knew you would. Me and Master too.”

I knew Sister would be angry, so I avoided you. There was a lot of guilt in that muttering voice, and I felt sorry for this little child.

It’s Dante and I who have a problem, so why is she having a hard time between us? When I hugged Lisa for a while, Lisa quietly rubbed her face in my arms.

“Are you upset that I’m only mad at Dante?”

“Hmm… Not much, just a little upset. I know why Master avoids Sister.”

“I see. And you don’t intend to tell me that?”

“…Yes.”

She knew it. I wasn’t disappointed because I didn’t expect it, I just stroked Lisa’s hair for a while.

Both Lisa and Dante are like that. I know they won’t tell me what they’re hiding.

“Lisa.”

“Yes, Sister.”

“Why is Dante avoiding me so hard?”

I don’t know why, of all things, that led him to the idea of running away endlessly.

Now I don’t even want to be honest. I didn’t want Dante to appear before me anymore, saying he was sorry for running away.

Of course, it’s not that I’m not curious about what Dante is hiding, but rather… I wanted to see Dante’s face for a moment.

If he firmly refuses to tell me, I won’t be able to pursue him further. Dante and I know that I’m not the kind of person who will go to extreme lengths just because I’m curious.

However, Dante chose to run away rather than categorically refuse. Even if this situation continues, it will only make it harder for him.

Lisa answered casually before the confusion rose from deep inside my heart.

In an innocent voice, as if I was asking something obvious.

“He knows that if you’re determined to ask him, he will eventually speak up.”

“…”

“And because he’s afraid of being interrogated? Um, and if he says no, Sister will be hurt.”

Lisa, who had been spitting it out, tilted her head once, then shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t know for sure either. Master’s mind is too complicated. He does nothing else and always thinks too much about Sister.”

“Hmm… I see.”

Even if the words like a youngster who behaves like an elder are cute, Lisa, who shares Dante’s feelings to some extent, said it like this, and it made my mind complicated.

But apart from the complicated mind, I can’t miss this opportunity. Before I knew it, I grabbed Lisa, who started playing with her hands on my lap.

I meant for her not to run away, but Lisa hugged me face to face as if she thought it was just a hug.

“Lisa, will you do me one favor?”

“What favor?”

Thinking that Dante might be listening somewhere again, I glanced around and whispered in Lisa’s ear in a very small voice.

The more she listened to me the more I could see Lisa’s face becoming more subtle, so it was a little funny.

“How about it, can you do that?”

“Mmm, it’s not difficult, but it…”

Is it okay to listen to you? Lisa tilted her head with a puzzled face. I tightened my arms around Lisa and spoke in a soothing voice to completely entice her to my side.

“Dante told you to avoid me, he didn’t tell you not to help me.”

“Hmm…”

Although her expression became less strained than before, she still didn’t give a word of acceptance at once. As Dante’s familiar, it must be that she’s reluctant to completely go against her master’s will.

Before Lisa thought further and came to the conclusion that this couldn’t be done, I asked an unanswerable question.

Even though it was in front of a child, I never thought the day would come when I would ask such a naive question. From the bottom of my heart.

“Do you like me better or Dante?”

Lisa answered without hesitation.

“Sister.”

Laughter burst out spontaneously at the resoluteness contained in it. Full of playfulness, I made eye contact with Lisa and talked.

“Then will you do me a favor?”

You like me more than Dante, don’t you. As I whispered, Lisa, who was briefly more conflicted, immediately nodded.

It was a bonus that I felt better because I seemed to have defeated Dante, albeit in a small way.