Nightmares That Won't Fade
There are scenes from dreams that refuse to fade even after you wake up and time passes. Memories you can absolutely never forget, moments seared into your mind that won't leave. Those moments come every night as nightmares. The memories you don't want to remember visit all the more frequently.
In the dream, Noel gripped a sword—the one she'd wielded during the Demon King's subjugation. She was running with it, dashing urgently somewhere. Parting thick underbrush, she cleaved through monsters and Demon King's soldiers blocking her path as she pressed on. And when she arrived...
Everything in sight was engulfed in flames. Houses and warehouses burned, people fled in panic. The guards put up a fight, but there were so few of them. An entire city had been raided by the Demon King's army. It was an unexpected ambush.
Guilt welled up inside her. But it wasn't because she hadn't saved them. It was because she hadn't been in that village—so it hadn't been targeted. It wasn't her who'd died today. Fortunately.
The fact that she saw it as fortunate... that was what filled her with guilt. She hated herself for genuinely thinking it was a relief.
Noel bolted upright in bed. Cold sweat trickled down her back. She quickly examined her hands. Small hands, without a single callus. Hands that could never hold a weapon. Not a sword, not even something as simple as heavy luggage. Only then did she realize it had been a dream. A vicious nightmare—one that occasionally reared up and stole her sleep.
Usually, after a dream like that, she'd just pull an all-nighter. The nightmare was too frightening to let her drift off again.
"Haa..."
She let out a deep sigh, calming her pounding heart. Placing a hand on her chest, she felt the soft texture of her slightly damp nightgown. Beneath it, her small chest rose and fell with erratic beats. She stayed still like that for a moment, holding her breath.
Just as she started to settle, a rustling came from beside her.
"Mm..."
Yuria murmured softly in her sleep, shifting. Did I wake her? Noel wondered. If so, sorry, but...
She peered closely at Yuria's face. It was peaceful. She looked like she could sleep through the end of the world.
"Ahaha..."
A hollow laugh escaped her. Her own energy drained away in tandem. She glanced at the small window on the wall. No sunlight peeked through the cracks. The sun hadn't risen yet.
Noel lay back down and burrowed into Yuria's embrace. Yuria stirred, tilting her body slightly to press close. The soft, warm touch of her skin came through clearly. Before she knew it, Noel's eyes began to close.
Normally, after waking from a nightmare, she'd have to stay up the rest of the night. But today was different. Yuria's body heat enveloped her. If she fell asleep like this, no nightmares would come. She might even have a pleasant dream.
Yuria flung open the shop door, welcoming the morning sunlight. The chirp of some nameless bird filled the air. It was a leisurely morning scene.
She was in a good mood today. Noel had woken up unusually early.
Looking at Noel sweeping the front yard with a broom in silence. If only she did this every day. Waking early to help with the shop, handling chores around the house. There was a reason Noel was up so early today: they'd slept together in her room. Yuria had held her tight all night to keep her from doing anything strange or running off. When she woke, Noel had been sleeping peacefully in her arms. Her sleeping face was a little cute. If you ignore her behavior... Maybe they should keep sleeping together. It might get her up early every time.
Yuria called out loudly to Noel in the yard.
"Noel! That's enough—come inside!"
Noel entered with the broom, propped it in a corner, and approached her.
"Finished sweeping the yard."
"Good job."
"Can I rest now?"
"No? You've got more to do. We're not done yet."
Mornings were always the busiest. Preparing for customers, checking potion ingredients, confirming stock levels. Noel probably had no idea. She'd hardly ever helped with the shop before.
"Now tidy up the shop goods. Clean too."
"..."
Noel shot her a glare full of dissatisfaction.
"What?"
"Aren't you working me too hard?"
It might be a bit much. Yuria had been so happy to see Noel up early that she'd piled on tasks in her excitement. Noel couldn't handle too much at once—she'd never adapt and would quit right away. She was a high-maintenance little girl who needed constant attention.
But if Noel didn't do it, Yuria had to. To lighten her own load, Noel needed to handle as much as possible.
"Fine, take it slow then."
Slow and steady, for a long time. That would be most efficient.
Hearing that, Noel began tidying the shop at a leisurely pace. She filled empty shelves, fetched ingredients from the storeroom. Yuria answered whenever Noel asked questions. She picked things up quickly enough. If she keeps this up, it'll be great.
The shop was mostly sorted now. Time to wait for customers.
Yuria sat Noel at the counter and took the seat beside her. She pulled out ingredients to prep. She never let Noel touch potion-making. Especially not recovery potions. No choice there.
Instead, she assigned Noel to greet customers—fetch whatever stock they wanted. She could relax until one showed up. Perfect light work for her.
A little time passed, and the door burst open. The first customer arrived.
"Yuria. I'm here."
A familiar voice. Someone from yesterday. Ilene had come to the shop, not in her guild receptionist uniform.
"Ilene, we meet again?"
"Ugh... it's her again?"
Noel recoiled at the sight of Ilene's face. Ilene, meanwhile, brightened upon seeing Noel.
"Noel's here too?"
Ilene approached step by step. Noel's expression twisted further with each one. She was desperately trying to stay composed, but failing.
In a trembling voice, Noel asked Ilene, "Wh-what are you here for?"
Even with someone she clearly disliked, she was holding it in and trying to serve. Yuria hadn't expected this level of effort. ...Though I didn't expect her to hate it this much either. Is that really necessary?
Their relationship was a bit delicate.
Noel soldiered on with customer service, swallowing her dislike.
"Oh. I need potions urgently."
"Urgently?"
"Yeah. Super urgent."
"What's going on?"
Ilene rummaged in her bag and pulled out a small note, handing it over. Noel took it and passed it straight to Yuria.
Yuria read the note. A list of needed potions—quite a lot.
"Take those to the church."
"The church? Why are you ordering them?"
"Huh? Well..."
Ilene trailed off. Fair enough—it was hard to explain to an outsider. The person at the church couldn't come this far. Even leaving would be tough.
Yuria answered for her, sparing Ilene the awkwardness.
"It's a long story. But yeah."
"Oh?"
Perfect timing. Yuria had planned to introduce them soon anyway.
"Hang on a sec..."
She fetched a small box from the corner and packed it carefully with the potions one by one. She handed the box to Noel.
"Here, take this."
Noel accepted it. Not too heavy—she could manage easily.
"Deliver it to the church. You can do that, right?"
"I don't even know where the church is."
"I do. I'll take you."
If Ilene went along, Yuria could send her worry-free. Noel might hate going with Ilene, but...
"Sounds good. Go with Ilene."
"Ugh..."
Noel's face darkened further. Her pent-up dislike was leaking out.
But no helping it. Deliveries were part of the potion shop business.
"Go and come back. Do that, and you're free for the rest of the day."
"Really?"
Plenty more to do, but Yuria could handle it alone. The delivery would help a ton. Plus, there was a friend at the church she wanted Noel to meet.
"Ilene, take good care of Noel?"
"You got it. I'll get her there safe."
Ilene led the way out of the shop. Noel followed with a reluctant expression but without a word.
Once they were gone, Yuria refocused on work. She finished prepping the ingredients—lotus flowers sliced, ground to powder, and stored.
Working alone was more focused without Noel around. But something felt empty. Like a vital piece was missing. Tending the shop by herself felt a little lonely.
I should wrap this up quick and head over there.