Chapter 142
Chapter 142
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 142
Chapter Title: We've Even Held Each Other
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***
"Could it be that you and Glacia aren't... just friends?"
Anastasia's voice was tinged with caution.
As a surprised Cheon-seong carefully chose his words, the answer unexpectedly came from Glacia first.
"Not just friends? Sister, what do you mean by that?"
"Well, I was just wondering if your relationship with Han Cheon-seong is more special than I thought. I know you're close enough to call each other friends without any distance. But Glacia, can you really say you're *just* friends?"
At Anastasia's calm question, Glacia suddenly looked at Han Cheon-seong.
"..."
Their relationship was, undeniably, that of friends.
However, since he was her first friend, Han Cheon-seong felt much more significant to her.
More precious than a common friendship, enough to make her constantly concerned...
But Glacia understood the meaning behind Anastasia's question.
She was asking if they were more than friends.
“……”
That made it difficult for her to answer easily.
She should have just said they were simple friends, but for a moment, Glacia didn't want to say those words.
'More than just simple friends…'
Just a little more. She felt she had a closer relationship with Han Cheon-seong.
Glacia was realizing that herself.
"Lady Anastasia, you know how truly pure Glacia is."
Just then, Cheon-seong finished his thoughts and spoke up.
While Glacia was staring blankly at him, Anastasia also turned to Cheon-seong with a peculiar look.
"She is pure. But what about it?"
Cheon-seong answered Anastasia's question without hesitation.
"Glacia told me herself that I was her first friend, and I, too, care for her a great deal for saying so. That's why, though we are friends, we might seem a bit too casual with each other to outsiders. I understand why you might misunderstand our relationship, Lady Anastasia. But you don't need to worry; Glacia and I can be described as just friends."
As he calmly and composedly explained his relationship with Glacia, Anastasia blinked and looked at her.
Her gaze seemed to ask if it was really true, and Glacia slowly opened her mouth.
"...It's as Han Cheon-seong says. We're just friends."
"In fact, I understand that you must be very surprised to see Glacia holding my hand right now, Lady Anastasia. But for Glacia, it's probably not an action with such a deep meaning. Right, Glacia?"
When Cheon-seong sought confirmation from her, Glacia nodded with an indifferent expression.
"That's right."
And it was true.
When Anastasia had said his body wouldn't be able to handle it, Glacia had simply wanted to check Han Cheon-seong's condition in that instant.
She had been worried, but embarrassed to voice it, so she had just accepted it as it was.
*Slid.*
When Glacia carefully let go of his hand, Cheon-seong immediately withdrew his.
Seeing him pull away without hesitation, Glacia felt a momentary pang of hurt.
But she couldn't show it.
'Friends...'
It was the relationship she and Han Cheon-seong both wanted and had properly acknowledged.
Then that should have been the end of it.
Being friends should have been enough.
In fact, when she first introduced Han Cheon-seong to Anastasia, Glacia had been over the moon.
She had finally made a friend she could proudly call her own. Furthermore, she thought Han Cheon-seong was a friend she could certainly be proud of.
But Han Cheon-seong's words just now felt as if he was drawing a definitive line in their relationship.
That... felt so strange.
'Han Cheon-seong and I are just friends…'
After hesitating for a moment, Glacia looked at Anastasia and saw her gentle smile.
"I'm sorry, I think I made things awkward between you two by pressing so much. If you say you're friends, then you're friends."
Glacia immediately shook her head.
"No, Sister. Han Cheon-seong and I are friends."
"Lady Anastasia, I will be more careful from now on. There are boundaries that should be respected, even between friends."
There are boundaries that should be respected.
Cheon-seong's words echoed strangely in Glacia's ears.
It was as if he was saying he would keep his distance from her from now on, and Glacia furrowed her brow.
And for Anastasia, who was watching Glacia closely, such a change in her was all too apparent.
...
The conversation that followed was stilted, carried on in a somewhat strange atmosphere.
Anastasia was generally the one leading the conversation, and Cheon-seong answered her curious questions in place of the extremely quiet Glacia.
"...I heard the cause of the incident was the Apostle of Sacrifice. You must have a keen interest in the Apostles. It would be difficult for a cadet to identify an Apostle by their title so quickly."
"I was able to identify it as an Apostle because it exhibited characteristics I was already familiar with. And at that time, I was also truly... greatly flustered."
"Still, for a cadet like you, Han Cheon-seong, it was the best possible response. Even those on the front lines are bound to be flustered when facing an Apostle. For a cadet to resist and survive is more than praiseworthy."
"You're too kind, Lady Anastasia. I don't think I would have lasted if I had faced the Apostle alone. I think I was able to endure because there were struggling cadets by my side. I thought that if I was going to die, I should at least try to save one more person."
As the conversation turned to the incident, Cheon-seong continued to speak with a calm demeanor.
Having explained and clarified the situation to various people over the past week until it was second nature, he had no trouble recounting the events.
And this consistent demeanor of Cheon-seong's gave Anastasia a sense of trust.
'There's a reason for his abnormally rapid growth.'
He showed no signs of lying or exaggerating about the Apostle-related incident; instead, he calmly conveyed his perspective.
Hearing that he had pushed his skills to the limit to save another cadet, she understood how he had been able to overcome the crisis.
Strong will could manifest for one's own sake, but sometimes it could emerge even more powerfully for the sake of others.
To Anastasia, Han Cheon-seong seemed to be explained by that reason.
Because, as far as she could tell, he had been speaking sincerely all along.
Having recently encountered many selfish officers and soldiers who only thought of themselves, Anastasia found his uncommonly altruistic values so appealing that she was starting to like him.
There was nothing wrong with looking out for oneself.
It was just that those who knew how to look out for others were superior.
So, the more she spoke with him, the more Anastasia thought Han Cheon-seong was a decent person.
'The only problem is...'
She saw Glacia sipping her drink. She was noticeably calmer compared to when she had first introduced Han Cheon-seong.
And Anastasia had a feeling she knew why Glacia had become so quiet.
"I'm going to use the washroom for a moment. In the meantime, Cadet Han Cheon-seong, please talk with our Glacia."
"Yes, I will."
Watching the calmly responding Cheon-seong, Anastasia rose to her feet and gently stroked the hair of Glacia, who was staring at her.
"I'll be right back, Sister."
"Okay, I understand..."
She gave a faint smile at Glacia's subdued voice and walked away.
*Click.*
*Clack...*
As she left, Anastasia's gaze also began to settle.
'Not bad.'
He wasn't the strange cadet she had worried about, nor was he hanging around Glacia with malicious intent. That much was certain.
So, there was no major problem.
If anything, she was relieved to have confirmed for herself that Glacia had found a good friend.
*Click.*
Entering the washroom, Anastasia let out a soft sigh.
'Haa...'
She had suspected the two might have a relationship deeper than friendship, but it was a relief that wasn't the case.
However.
It seemed possible for things to develop that way at any time.
Above all, she kept seeing signs that Glacia held the cadet named Han Cheon-seong in her heart.
*Swoosh—.*
She organized her thoughts while washing her hands in the water pouring from a mana stone.
"A romantic relationship is still too early for Glacia..."
Glacia was someone who could only now say she had made her first friend. If that first friend were to become something more, would Glacia be able to make a proper judgment and form her own thoughts?
She was a child who was clumsy with people.
That was why it felt dangerous.
The cadet named Han Cheon-seong was certainly a decent person, but for him to become more than a first friend to Glacia...
“……”
Organizing her thoughts, she nodded.
Rather than speaking to Glacia directly, it seemed it would be fine to carefully convey her thoughts to Cadet Han Cheon-seong.
She felt that Cadet Han Cheon-seong would accept what she had to say without misunderstanding.
*Click.*
As Anastasia left the washroom, she was completely unaware of the situation outside.
***
The moment Anastasia left.
"Glacia, are you upset right now?"
Cheon-seong asked Glacia without hesitation.
"No, not particularly."
"Then why are you making such a sullen face? You're with Lady Anastasia. I thought you'd be a little happier."
He spoke calmly, yet he couldn't understand Glacia.
*I don't think I said anything that wrong today.* But Glacia had been looking at me with a strange expression for some time now.
A look that was slightly resentful.
"Of course I love my sister very much. And I'm not having a bad time. Han Cheon-seong, why do you think... I'm upset?"
But right now, for the first time, Glacia was trying to hide her feelings from me.
To me, she looked like she was pouting, but she was trying not to show it.
It was so baffling that I was the one getting flustered.
'Anastasia must know what's going on with Glacia.'
Glacia was suddenly acting strange, but I had to get things back to normal somehow.
"Glacia, can you hold out your hand for a moment?"
"......Okay."
At my words, Glacia held out her hand, and just as she had done to me, I gently took it in mine.
*Slid.*
Then, I carefully caressed her pale white hand.
"You have to tell me exactly what you're upset about for me to understand. Trying to hide your emotions like this isn't like you, Glacia."
I didn't know why she was upset with me, but I spoke gently nonetheless.
Just dealing with Anastasia was enough to make my head explode, but I had to fix this first.
I was trying to find the right timing to bring up Anastasia's future disappearance, so I couldn't have Glacia acting like this toward me.
"...Han Cheon-seong."
When Glacia finally grasped my hand and opened her mouth, I replied as softly as possible.
"Yes, Glacia."
"Am I crossing the line right now?"
"...The line?"
"You said there was a line that should be respected."
Glacia, asking calmly, looked at me with truly impassive eyes.
And her question about crossing the line, I belatedly understood.
"No, it's not that you crossed a line... It's just that our behavior might look a bit strange to Lady Anastasia. That's why I said that."
"Why does it become strange for me to hold your hand just because my sister is here? You're doing it to me right now."
Glacia's nonchalant words made me feel conflicted for a moment.
'It's true that there's nothing strange about it.'
I was doing it right now, too. But there was such a thing as context.
It was definitely strange for me to be like this with Glacia in front of Anastasia.
Moreover, considering Glacia's usual personality, I had wondered if Anastasia might be of a similar type, but since she wasn't, I was being even more cautious.
"What's so strange about friends holding hands? After all, we've even held each other."
"W-Wait, Glacia!?"
Just as I was startled by Glacia's completely unfiltered voice.
"...Ah."
I saw her too late.
Anastasia, looking at me with a completely cold expression...