Chapter 231: Orr

Chapter 231: Orr

Kiara had opened the sea path, but Shiron did not rush in immediately.

He was a hero and a good man. He couldn’t leave Johanna, who had collapsed after being used, alone. So, Shiron rented an inn in a nearby village while Seira memorized the coordinates of Orr’s vortex. Besides...

“Are you really Kyrie?”

There were unfinished conversations that needed to be had.

“It’s better to be honest. I’m really angry.”

Shiron moved his gaze from the unconscious Johanna to Seira. As Seira said she was angry, she crossed her arms and legs with a deeply furrowed brow. Shiron’s reaction was only one.

“No.”

“...That’s it?”

“Sorry.”

Shiron bowed his head, not ending with just words. It wasn’t a formal apology. He had impersonated her former colleague Kyrie. No matter how necessary it was, it couldn’t have left Seira’s feelings unhurt.

“Ah... I knew it.”

Knowing this, Seira sighed deeply and ended it with a flick to Shiron’s forehead. Although Seira, a magician, couldn’t harm Shiron physically, Shiron pretended to be hurt to show his regret.

“I had some expectations.”

Seira muttered with a disappointed look.

“Expectations?”

“...A friend who had tragically died suddenly returned. It was a confusing situation, but it’s natural to be happy.”

“...”

“And just as much, the disappointment was great.”

Shiron pushed a chair towards Seira, inviting her to sit. Even though he thought she might refuse due to her disappointment and anger, Seira didn’t reject the offered chair.

However, the conversation did not continue immediately. Both seemed to need time to organize their thoughts. Or perhaps they had nothing to say. Shiron, uncomfortable with the silence, spoke first.

“...I didn’t expect you to trust me.”

“I don’t know, maybe I’m a fool. Or my loneliness reached its peak, and my heart grew weak.”

Seira’s eyes began to redden as if recalling painful memories, and she soon wiped away her tears with her sleeve.

Thinking he should perhaps comfort her, but knowing the consequences of crossing the line between friends, Shiron decided to pretend not to notice her tears instead.

“Sniff. Where are you going?”

Seira grabbed Shiron’s collar as he tried to leave.

“Even as a colleague, you can’t wipe my tears, but you can pat my back, can’t you?”

“...Am I that handsome?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Never mind. Okay, I’ll pat your back.”

“Hmph! You should have done that from the beginning. It’s too late now.”

“...Sigh.”

With a deep sigh, Shiron looked at the unconscious Johanna. Despite the ongoing conversation, she hadn’t opened her eyes.

“Put all the protective spells on this kid.”

“...Sniff. You still feel sorry, huh?”

“I think she was just a child who really hoped for a hero to come.”

“...I understand, it’s easy to confuse her with that kid.”

Seira smiled faintly, raising her staff. Not missing a single word of her muttering, Shiron turned his head with wide eyes.

“I’m telling you again, I’m not Kyrie.”

“What are you talking about?”

Seeing Seira’s brazen reaction, Shiron decided not to address it further.

“Kiara must have experienced Kyrie too. Did she ever meet her? She probably saw me through this kid’s eyes...”

“You and Kyrie have nothing in common except black hair and eyes, and wielding a holy sword.”

Seira glanced at Shiron with a distant look.

“Don’t try to find reason in a mad person’s thoughts.”

“...”

“Like humans can’t understand a demon’s thoughts, a crazy woman did crazy things, that’s all.”

“...Was she always mad?”

“How could she sink a ship with hundreds of people on board with a smile if she wasn’t mad...”

“She was an enemy.”

“...You have the look of wanting to ask why I killed many demons too, but I always shot them from a distance and prayed to the gods every night.”

Seira crossed her legs and reminisced about old memories.

“Of course, later, I didn’t even have the luxury to pray as the enemies grew stronger and more vicious. Kiara was a wretched woman from the start.”

“I see.”



Indeed, it was also in the sea. She remembered the command from high up to subdue Kiara to intentionally calm the sea’s turbulence and support the allied supply ships.

And, naturally, Kiara lost to Kyrie.

Although she couldn’t kill her, Kiara, with her limbs brutally cut off and bleeding profusely, was swept away by the strong currents.

‘And she’s a woman, right? It’s disgusting. Why would she like me, a woman?’

They hadn’t even exchanged a few words. In a situation where it wasn’t enough to sharpen their blades as mortal enemies for hundreds of years, it made no sense to suddenly kiss her and make her... wet!

Then a thought suddenly crossed her mind.

‘Could this be what Yuma was warning about?’

-That’s why you have people who hold such deep grudges! The Queen of the Deep Sea and the Tower Master of Despair are still alive. If they know you’re alive, will they sit still?

Yuma had warned her to hide Kyrie’s identity when she left for Dawn Castle to find her true self. The reason was simple: if the fact that Kyrie was reincarnated spread, there was a risk that those who still remembered her with deep grudges would attack simultaneously.

But Lucia felt it was unfair.

The only one she intentionally spared was Yuma, and the rest she had no choice but to leave behind due to unavoidable circumstances.

Yura’s high fever. Seira’s injury. The retreat of the allied forces. The interruption of supplies.

And Kiara was missed due to an unavoidable accident. She regretted not following through with it, but even in hindsight, it couldn’t be helped at the time.

The sea was not a place for humans to live. No matter how strong Kyrie was, it was tough to fight a life-and-death battle in a place advantageous to the enemy.

‘She used techniques I didn’t know. It’s certainly harder to deal with than before.’

It had been 500 years. Kiara, a demon who casually lived through hundreds and thousands of years.

It’s unclear if she became stronger due to the time it took to recover her severed limbs, but the Kiara Lucia saw was using more advanced techniques than before.

‘...I thought it would end with killing the demon god.’

It wasn’t over. And it wouldn’t end just because Kiara disappeared. Lucia gathered her courage and looked back.

“...Sorry.”

There was Shiron, keeping a somewhat awkward distance.

“Were you very surprised? It was so sudden...”

“...I wasn’t surprised, so come in.”

Shiron scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.

“Really?”

Lucia asked with a hopeful tone. Shiron slowly nodded at her easily readable reaction.

“I’m not a kid who would put much meaning into a kiss.”

“...Right.”

“So when Kiara did that... I didn’t think much of it.”

Seeing Lucia’s gloomy reaction, Shiron added words to cut off any unnecessary misunderstandings.

“So you don’t need to worry, I don’t think you did anything wrong...”

“You didn’t think anything when I did it either?”

Lucia interrupted Shiron’s words. His indirect concern for her feelings was too complex and difficult for her to grasp.

Seeing the anxiety in Lucia’s eyes, Shiron decided to be more straightforward.

“No, it was surprising, but I didn’t feel bad. Instead, I was happy you came to save me...”

“I see...”

Lucia muttered, lowering her head. Her face was so hot she couldn’t look at Shiron properly.

Amidst this, various thoughts crossed her mind. She pondered the cause of all these problems.

The reason Shiron had to impersonate Kyrie. The cause of wielding the holy sword.

Kiara’s unfounded affection for Shiron...

The secret being hidden.

‘I don’t think I can keep this secret... forever.’

With a determined look, Lucia raised her head.

“I have something I want to tell you...”

“Don’t.”

Shiron interrupted her with a serious expression. Lucia, disappointed by his interruption, pouted her lips.

“How can you say that without even listening?”

“Didn’t you hear from Eldrina? Saying ominous things brings bad luck.”

“...That’s not it. That...”

“If you have to say it, do it after killing Kiara.”

“Isn’t that more of an ominous sign?”

“I told you to be quiet, didn’t I?”

Shiron grabbed Lucia’s hand to stop her from talking. Although he didn’t expect her to reveal her identity herself, Shiron thought now was not the time.