A Gentle Farewell at Dusk
The sun was already beginning to set as I followed behind the two women, who had linked arms and were chatting away without letting go. The closer we got to the office, the slower Dora's steps became, and Harpy matched her pace perfectly. Before I knew it, President and I—who had been walking a fair distance behind—found ourselves right on their heels, close enough to hear their laughter. It was clear they wanted to stretch out every last moment together, to share even a little more of the conversations they had missed over the years.
"...No, honestly, it's still not enough."
Harpy nodded along earnestly. She clearly didn't want to make things difficult for me, yet she was also desperate to keep talking with Dora. Watching her try so hard made me feel strangely relieved. Bringing Harpy here to meet her today had been the right choice after all.
"It's better to leave with some longing. It makes the next meeting something to look forward to. Of course, seeing each other in person like this won't be easy for a while."
Finally, it was President's turn.
"Here. Take this."
"This is..."
What President handed Dora looked like an ordinary smartphone. Once Dora accepted it, President raised her hand to head height and flashed an OK sign toward someone unseen.
Then, with a rustling sound, armed figures began emerging from the tall reeds of the wetland—members of the field team, by the looks of them. Their bodies were caked in mud, and clumps of wet earth fell from them with every step, yet they paid it no mind as they moved into a formation surrounding us. I had faintly heard other voices earlier and suspected Luke had dispatched a team, but I hadn't expected so many.
"Um, what is this...?"
"Ah, as you can see, this lovely fairy needs protection."
President had clearly brought them out in front of Dora to apply a bit of pressure.
"We won't hurt Dora, so don't worry too much. This is only if our relationship stays as it is now—mutually non-harmful."
"...I understand."
"Oh?"
Dora turned out to be stronger than expected. Aside from a brief moment of surprise at the beginning, she showed no sign of panic despite the intimidating situation.
"For example, not carelessly revealing to others that I met the fairy today. Or anything about you all."
"Mm-hmm, you catch on quick. I like that."
"And this... is it something I can use to contact the fairy?"
"That's right. Think of it as a gift. You can only receive calls from our side, but that's already quite the concession, don't you think?"
When had she prepared something like this? President liked to act like she was slacking off, but when it came to work, she was more sincere than anyone.
"Once things calm down a bit on our end, we'll allow our fairy to come visit you. Of course, we'll cover the plane tickets and all necessary expenses. Since you mentioned having a boyfriend, we'll make it for two."
"...Thank you for your consideration."
"It was nice meeting you, Dora."
The words felt genuine, not just polite formality. President had been watching from behind the whole time, clearly pleased by how kindly Dora treated Harpy.
"Well then, Harpy. Shall we head back?"
Because one sleeve of her sweater had been torn off, one of Harpy's wings was completely exposed. I slipped off my coat and draped it over her shoulders, gently guiding her along. She hesitated, but the knowledge that they could meet again seemed to give her the strength to walk away.
"...Dora. We'll see each other again, right?"
"Yes. I'll definitely come visit you, Fairy."
The beautiful scene made even my own heart flutter. The lingering aftereffects of stepping into Harpy's emotions made me empathize with their situation even more deeply.
"And you."
"...Yes?"
Just as I was leading Harpy away by the shoulder, Dora suddenly grabbed my arm and stopped me. Thinking she had something to say, I turned around with a puzzled look—only to meet her blazing eyes.
Did I do something wrong? I didn't think so.
"If you make our fairy cry... I'll feed you to the crocodiles. Be prepared."
She must have thought I was trying to steal Harpy away from her. While I was busy overthinking, a gentle yet worry-filled threat flew my way.
"..."
Even after more than ten years, the two of them were still truly friends. Their bond was so warm that I found myself wishing I had a friend like that too. To reassure them both, I answered sincerely.
"I'll do my best to make sure that doesn't happen."
On the way back, Harpy and I sat side by side in the back seat of the car President was driving. Even without using my ability to hear her inner voice, the longing on Harpy's face was obvious. I tried to think of a way to lift her spirits, but nothing came to mind. She had been staring out at the wetland scenery for a while now, and I felt awkward being the first to speak.
"...Mm."
Still, sitting in silence felt wrong. Today's meeting had gone surprisingly well—almost as if the heavens had helped. Well, there had been that plane crash earlier, so maybe "heavens" wasn't quite right, but at least things hadn't gone the way we feared. The ride home should be filled with smiles.
"...How was it, meeting Dora after so long? Was she the same Dora you remembered?"
"Ah...? Ung-ssi..."
Harpy, who had been spacing out, finally snapped back to reality. Cute.
"Yes. Dora was still the same lively, kind girl. She hadn't changed at all."
"That's good to hear."
As she spoke, Harpy smiled softly, her eyes gentle as she recalled their past together. In the golden light of the setting sun, her profile looked so beautiful that my heart skipped a beat without warning.
"Whose heartbeat is that, pounding so loudly?"
"...!"
She could hear it even while driving?
"...Ung-ssi."
"Huh, uh... Y-yes?"
Completely ignoring President's playful interruption, Harpy looked at me with the most serious expression I had ever seen from her.
I knew this wasn't the time for such thoughts, but... she really was beautiful. Her small face, those large pumpkin-colored eyes that gave her a cute impression, her gentle gaze that revealed her kind nature, and those adorable lips that always seemed moist—looking at them made me feel guilty for the impure thoughts that crept in.
"Um... uuu..."
Despite having boldly spoken to me first, her courage quickly faded and she began to fluster. Even that was endearing.
She must have been born to be loved dearly her entire life.
Just as Harpy's trembling lips parted to speak, President cut in again with a teasing voice.
"How about saving the sweet whispers for when we arrive?"
"....Uuu... uuu..."
Harpy's face turned bright red in real time, unable to handle the embarrassment now that the moment was broken. It was fascinating and amusing, but I couldn't forgive this interruption.
...However, my firm resolve to never forgive her snapped like a reed the moment I heard what President said next.
"I'll give you two some alone time tonight. I've got other things to take care of, so I'll be busy."
"...!"
This... surely she didn't mean...
"There's also the fire chicken incident, so I need to get back to Korea as soon as possible. I'll wrap up my business here quickly. Will this be enough as a reward?"
It was more than enough! More than enough! I barely managed to hold myself back from shouting it out loud with my recently snapped dignity.
"I considered giving it to you myself, but I decided to yield to our cute Harpy today. She didn't throw a tantrum about not wanting to part ways... How admirable."
My heart was already pounding. I had just barely suppressed the desire that had started to swell when I saw Harpy's beautiful face in the sunset earlier, but President's words made it impossible to hold back any longer.
"...Gulp."
"Ung-ssi...?"
Tonight... she really said tonight.