A Miraculous Story (3)
Aileen woke safely. I had worried about lingering aftereffects, but she seemed to be recovering beautifully. It was all thanks to her father’s devoted care. With her arrival, Astro gained a new family member.
“Daddy! Today I wanna play with my other friends!”
“Oh, Aileen… leaving your poor father behind to run off with the other kids? Don’t tell me you’ve already grown tired of me?”
“That’s not it!”
“Then why…?”
“Because when I’m with you, you never put me down! You just carry me on your shoulders all day! I want to walk on my own two feet!”
“B-but that’s only because I’m worried you might fall and get hurt…”
“Hmph! I don’t care! Today I’m playing with my friends!”
“A-Aileen…!”
The little girl turned on her heel with a pout and marched away. Kyle fidgeted helplessly as he watched her go. I observed the strangely charming father-daughter duo for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle.
I reached over and gave his drooping back a few gentle pats.
“Heh, looks like fatherhood after so long isn’t easy, huh?”
“…Commander.”
His crimson eyes turned toward me. I swallowed the laughter threatening to burst out and offered what comfort I could.
“Don’t take it too hard.”
“…”
“Actually, isn’t this a blessing? After everything she went through, she can still smile so brightly.”
“You’re right… It truly is a miracle I never thought I’d see again in my lifetime.”
“She really is a lovely child.”
“I know this blessing came from your hand, Commander. I don’t know how I can ever repay such grace…”
“If you keep tearing up like this every time, we’re going to have a problem.”
This had become an issue lately. The man once called the strongest on the continent now got misty-eyed the moment our eyes met. It was as if the overwhelming emotion was simply too much for him to contain.
“Please try to hold it together.”
“Ugh… Understood.”
You’re making the other members act weird too. Someone with your usual lighthearted personality isn’t allowed to get this serious.
“Ahem.”
Anyway. It was a reasonably happy ending. The headquarters might be a bit gloomy for a child to live in, but with her beloved family by her side, she would be fine. Maybe I should invest some money and make the place a little more cheerful and kid-friendly. Children should grow up surrounded by good things. Otherwise, they might end up like me—a rotten adult.
“Aileen! Let’s play together!!”
“I’m playing hide-and-seek with Anne! You have to hide so they don’t find you!”
“Hehehe! Let’s hide near where the teachers are…!”
“Hey! That’s cheating!”
The little foxes welcomed their new friend with open arms. Just as children that age usually do, they accepted her without rejection and blended together naturally. I smiled quietly to myself.
I’m glad I pushed myself.
I had coughed up blood for the first time in a while, but it was worth it to see these small ones smiling. Personally, it felt like the right choice.
“Hehe… Children, remember to be careful not to get hurt, okay?”
“Oh! It’s the Commander!”
“Wow~ Commander! Play with us!”
“Dummy. The Commander is always busy, you know?”
“Irene’s here too! If you play with us, we’ll make her marry you later!”
“Hey! Why are you giving away your sister like that?”
The children bickered among themselves. Their adorable squabbling made me laugh.
“My, my~ Marriage to Miss Irene? Now that’s a tempting offer!”
“Right? I’ll talk to her nicely for you!”
“Excellent! Shall we have some fun then?”
Peaceful days continued. We spent several tranquil days like that.
Irene and I finished preparing to return to the academy. We had already been away from school for a full week, so it was time to head back and restore our attendance records. Of course, Irene was coming with me. We were waiting for the carriage to arrive.
“Are you leaving?”
“Neria.”
As I stood by the stairs for a moment, the vice-commander approached with a downcast expression. Her silver hair hung limply. She seemed disappointed to hear we were departing. I gently stroked her head, as if soothing a child.
“There are things I need to do.”
“Hic… I-I understand.”
“I’ll entrust Astro’s command to you. Thanks to our reliable vice-commander, I can leave with peace of mind.”
“Ehehe… Th-thank you.”
“Hehe.”
Neria melted on the spot, clasping her hands together in embarrassment. Her pale cheeks were already flushed with heat. I enjoyed her adorable reaction for a moment before the voices of the other members reached me.
“We’ll be waiting for you, Commander.”
“Uahaha! Take care of yourself wherever you go!”
“Call for us anytime.”
I accepted each of their farewells one by one. After the lively send-off, just as I was about to leave headquarters upon hearing the carriage had arrived—
“Oppa!”
A girl peeked out from the corner. Her brown eyes blinked up at me. When our gazes met, I smiled softly.
“Anne.”
Tap-tap-tap. Anne approached with her bouncy little steps. She seemed to hesitate for a second, then spread her short arms wide and threw herself into my embrace. Her warm body heat soaked into my chest.
“Well, well… Quite the assertive farewell hug.”
“Hehe.”
Her smile was pure sunshine. After clinging to me for a while, she looked up with earnest eyes.
“Uncle Kyle told me.”
“Told you what?”
“That once you go back to the academy, we won’t be able to see each other for a while, so if I had anything I wanted to say, I should say it now!”
“Our chef explained it well.”
That made sense. She was staying with Astro for now, but she would soon need to return to her family. I had planned to send her back by next week at the latest.
If we part like this… it’ll be hard to meet again.
The Frank Baron family lived in a very remote countryside. It would take at least a month by carriage to travel from the capital. It wasn’t an environment that made frequent visits easy. Such a great distance made it burdensome for either side to visit on a whim.
Of course, that childish reason wasn’t the whole truth. It was merely an excuse to persuade the child. The real reason was different. It was a decision I had made.
I hope we don’t meet again.
I wanted Anne to live an ordinary life. She had just awakened from a terrible nightmare. From now on, I hoped she would find happiness surrounded by her family. I wanted to give her days free from danger.
There’s nothing good about getting involved with us.
Astro was, after all, a criminal organization. It was far too dangerous a world for a fifteen-year-old girl to step into.
“Just as there are meetings, there must also be farewells.”
“I know.”
The girl nodded calmly.
“So… this might be the last time, which is why I really wanted to tell you.”
Anne stared at me for a moment, then broke into a pure, clean smile. Faint starlight seemed to fall around her.
“Thank you. Because of you, oppa, I was able to find hope again.”
“…”
“It was so scary, so hard, and so lonely… Thank you for reaching out to someone like me.”
Her lips curved in a bashful smile. What Anne offered was a thank-you note carefully folded around a warm heart. I thought quietly to myself.
So much has changed.
The girl who, in the original story, had been trampled without mercy had now gained a chance to live anew. Perhaps this time, I had done the right thing.
“Anne.”
I bent down slightly, bringing my eyes level with her brown ones, and playfully poked her cheek with my finger. The soft sensation touched my fingertip.
“Never let go of hope.”
I spoke gently. Adults usually cannot remember their childhood. It is both a disease they suffer from and, at the same time, a blessing only they can enjoy. Children forget their younger selves as they grow older.
“There may be difficult times ahead. Perhaps an unfair misfortune like this one will block your path again. When that happens, you must hold on to belief.”
Originally, the girl had been fated not even to finish that process. She had drawn her last breath before becoming an adult, closing her eyes while still unable to forget her childhood. But this time was different.
“The belief that, because it hurt so much, an even better tomorrow must be waiting.”
She had been given a chance to live. I hoped Anne would experience many things, meet many people, grow old through many years, and gradually forget her childhood. I hoped she would become an adult that way.
“You can do anything, Anne. You can become whatever you want, and you can dream any dream you desire.”
Children are possibility itself. And this was one possibility I was gifting to you—who had failed to become an adult 1,943 times before.
“So please, become a wonderful adult.”
What if one day she came to find me all grown up? While I hoped such a future would never come, a tender excitement still bloomed in one corner of my heart. I whispered faintly, to my beloved little writer.
“Just that alone would make me feel as if I possessed the whole world.”
My voice carried nothing but sincerity. The girl, who had been gazing into my eyes, burst into a radiant smile.
“Yes, oppa…!”
A pure white lantern that illuminated the darkness completely.
“I definitely will! I’ll become a wonderful adult and come find you and sis again!”
“Hehe… I’m already looking forward to it.”
I turned away. As I stepped down the stairs leading outside, I offered a farewell to the silhouette left behind. It was a short, simple goodbye.
“Well then.”
From behind me came a bright voice that stayed cheerful until the very end. I savored the dear background sound as I climbed into the carriage waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
The driver cracked his whip at once. The wheels began to roll slowly. As I watched the scenery outside gradually pick up speed, a belated realization washed over me that it was all truly over.
Now, it was finally time to return to the academy.
After spending a full day in the carriage, the snake and the fox returned to the academy. Perhaps because we arrived in the late night, the campus lay submerged in tranquil silence. The scenery reflected beneath the night sky was so peaceful that the events of the past few days felt like nothing more than a dream.
The sense of dissonance made Irene pause for a moment.
“…”
Inside the spacious dormitory. The fox, who had been gazing out the window, suddenly turned her head and looked somewhere. Her eyes fell on the blond boy sitting there.
Soft, even breathing. The snake was leaning against the sofa. It seemed he had fallen asleep just like that. It was hard to tell because of his usual narrow eyes, but the steady sound of his breathing gave it away.
Irene asked quietly.
“…Are you sleeping?”
There was no answer. Only then did the girl relax her tension and stare at the snake sitting beside her. She studied him carefully.
The boy gave off a mysterious aura. Even though he had dozed off in the chair, there wasn’t the slightest dishevelment in his posture. Not even a wrinkle could be found on his clothes. He simply never lost his dignity.
“What a terrible person.”
A sigh escaped her involuntarily. Irene glanced around. After standing there blankly for a long time, a certain scene suddenly rose in her mind.
The voice that had saved her a few days ago.
—Miss Irene.
—If it means you can be even a little less unhappy, I will gladly lend you my strength.
The lips whispered kindly. The memory was unusually vivid. Without realizing it, the girl had clenched her fists tightly.
What filled her head was none other than the question she had failed to resolve last time.
Why does this person… care about someone like me so much?
Looking back, it had been that way from the beginning. She had received nothing but help. He had rescued her from the slave traders, then provided a safe place for her to stay. He had taken in her homeless younger siblings and cared for them with all his heart. This time, he had even come personally to rescue her after she was kidnapped by dark mages.
What am I to him?
What could he possibly want? What did he hope to gain from pouring such heavy affection onto a worthless beast like her?
Irene bit her lip in confusion.
—I don’t trust humans.
—I know exactly how vile and cruel your kind can be.
That resolution remained unchanged. The fox did not trust. The scars from the flames that had burned her past red still remained as indelible marks. It was distrust toward humans.
However.
I can’t figure out what he’s thinking.
She simply wanted to know. About this blind devotion that kept throwing her heart into chaos.
—Because one must take responsibility for what one has tamed.
—Did that answer your question?
The snake had certainly said that, but it hadn’t been an answer at all. If anything, it only felt more cryptic. The fox still didn’t understand what it meant to be tamed. When one hasn’t grasped the meaning, a sentence is nothing but an empty shell.
Irene was the same.
“Forget it.”
She couldn’t reach a conclusion today either. She was simply putting it off again.
She carefully unfolded a blanket that had been lying nearby. Then, with a touch so gentle it could barely be called a voice, she softly laid the thin fabric over the sleeping boy’s lap on the sofa.
“…Sleep well.”
It was the girl’s own way of saying thank you.