Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: 9. Sylvia (1)
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"You said you fell for me!"
"I see..."
Ian shook off the eerie atmosphere somehow and grabbed Helena's wrist, pulling her along.
He judged that he couldn't leave her in such a crowded place any longer.
"Just stay quiet and still."
"Yes...!"
Everyone simply stared blankly as Ian slipped away.
There was no manager here who could stop him.
Once they reached a spot free of crowds, Ian let go of her hand.
"Now it's a bit bett... Huh?"
Helena had been holding Rachel's hand, so she had come along too.
Rachel looked flustered, glancing back and forth between Ian and Helena.
"Rachel? Right?"
"Yes..."
Helena also gazed at Rachel with a complicated expression.
Her eyes had finally regained focus.
Both wore expressions saying they had much to discuss with each other.
Ian didn't know the details of their relationship.
But the fact remained that Helena, of all people, had desperately tried to save Rachel.
'Whatever it is, they need some time alone.'
He could wait a day.
It was a small price to deepen Helena's trust in him.
'Two people...'
"Helena."
"Yes?"
"It'll be hard to leave right away today. You probably have things to sort out. I'll come pick you up tomorrow morning."
"...Ah. Yes!"
Helena quickly grasped Ian's intent.
"Thank you!"
"Thank you..."
The two girls bowed deeply together and cautiously walked away.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Separating from the others, I descended alone into the abbey basement.
It was filled with solitary cells.
Originally meant for self-reflection and penance, they had now become Razri's temporary interrogation rooms.
Razri's captain and Miriam were already waiting for me.
"Apostle."
"Miriam. I'm sorry I couldn't inform you in advance."
"No need. You must have seen a greater future. And in truth, this..."
Miriam glanced at Salome and sighed, shaking her head.
"As someone tasked with managing this place rigorously, I am deeply ashamed."
I wondered just who this Salome girl was to act so brazenly.
And what her connection to Helena was.
Salome, bound to a chair, lay unconscious.
The floor was littered with hard, red-tipped crescent shapes.
Fingernails.
Yet Salome's hands were pristine.
That was the result of superb healing miracles combined with torture.
"Captain. Have you learned anything?"
"Salome is the diocese head's daughter."
"Diocese head?"
"Bertolt Schultz, diocese head of the southeast region. Baptized as Salome, real name Erica Schultz—she's his daughter."
Schultz...
"Miriam, did you know?"
"Yes... But I tried to avoid any discrimination based on background when dealing with the nuns..."
"Lydia was different."
The captain opened the door to the cell opposite Salome's.
There stood Lydia, half-naked and bound upright.
A foul stench wafted from within.
She seemed to have suffered worse than Salome.
"Lydia feared the diocese head and catered to his daughter Salome's whims."
"......"
Miriam bowed her head silently.
"And..."
The captain paused briefly and glanced at Miriam.
She nodded silently and left the basement.
"Lydia mentioned the Holy Unified Nation."
"...I see."
The Pontiff had once harbored ambitions to topple the Empire, nationalize the Holy Flame Church, and rule the continent.
That was the Holy Unified Nation plan.
It was one of the leverage cards I used to secure the Church's cooperation.
In this round, I aimed to preserve the Empire, so I confronted the Pontiff and warned him to abandon the plan before I reported it to the Emperor.
Fortunately, he complied swiftly.
And Schultz was a key pillar of that Holy Unified Nation plan.
"As you know, Captain, I handled that matter personally in advance."
The captain knew I was Philip and that I had blackmailed the Pontiff over the Holy Unified Nation.
Razri had been part of the plan too, but its members had simply followed orders without knowing the details.
Even now, only the captain in Razri knew the truth of the plan and the Pontiff's intentions.
Thus, the captain was unconditionally on my side.
"Yes. You thwarted it beforehand, Apostle."
"Does she not know if the Pontiff is involved?"
"Not yet."
"What was Lydia's goal?"
"Catering to Salome and interfering in the public trials as she pleased."
"To sabotage the Pontiff's preparations here and undermine his influence?"
"High likelihood."
So there were remnants pushing the Holy Unified Nation plan behind the Pontiff's back...
Why had things escalated like this?
"But your appearance forced Lydia to change her mind."
"Because of me?"
"Yes. She decided she couldn't afford to displease the Apostle, so she forcibly placed Helena, whom you favored, in first place. Rachel, your second choice, in second."
"...Ha. She got scared on her own and went overboard. But first place in the public trials doesn't come with any great privileges."
"Exactly. She lost her mind fearing her sins would be exposed."
"Sending such a sloppy agent suggests Bertolt's foundation isn't as solid as it seems."
"High likelihood."
A brief silence.
"Will you report this to the Pontiff, Captain?"
"Yes."
"Understood. I won't tell the Emperor for now. If more comes to light later, inform me first."
"Yes. I will."
If the Emperor learned of this, he might crack down on the Church immediately.
I wanted no civil war at this juncture.
Above all, the Church's role post-war was crucial.
...I hoped it would pass without incident.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Helen..."
It had been so long since they'd properly spoken that even the old nickname felt out of place.
Yet Rachel called Helena by that cherished pet name from their past.
Her attitude, however, wasn't exactly warm.
"Ra, Rachel..."
The moment they were alone, Rachel dropped to her knees without warning.
"I'm sorry. I, I really... Sob, ugh..."
Startled by the sudden tears, Helena still understood Rachel's heart.
Rachel wasn't cruel or wicked.
She was just an ordinary girl.
Watching Helena suffer had wounded her deeply too.
She had despised herself for being unable to turn away from it all.
She seemed overly calm on the surface, but that was from detachment from the world, not coldness.
"Helen... I, of all people, shouldn't have done that to you... I shouldn't have... I'm truly, truly sorry..."
Though Helena had pushed Rachel away first.
It had hurt a little when even Rachel eventually distanced herself.
'I'm selfish too, aren't I.'
Helena silently pulled Rachel into a hug and soothed her.
She had never hated Rachel anyway.
For some reason, her heart felt lighter today.
"It's okay, Rachel. Everything's okay."
Rachel's reaction was abrupt, but Helena had a vague sense this time was needed.
"Helen..."
"I know you didn't want to do it. So, I'm fine."
Even after enduring such harsh trials, Helena smiled gently at Rachel.
Her boundless kindness.
Seeing Helena like that, Rachel felt as if she were beholding the Saintess Incarnate herself.
Embracing the quietly sobbing Rachel, Helena thought of Ian.
He had taken her hand.
Just that brought her peace.
'Like Aria. I've met someone to lead me too.'
Helena recalled a passage from scripture.
[The source of guiding light lies within, so rely not on the outside but on truth within yourself...]
Until now, Helena had lived swayed by external forces.
Even grasping Ian's hand had been like being entranced.
But now, with newfound realization.
The light blooming in her heart pointed to Ian.
Her faith had eroded during abbey training, leaving her adrift without anchor.
Now she had found her place to lean.
'But why is Ian here? What about the 1st Party...?'
The question arose belatedly, but she had no answer.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Vivian drifted to sleep with trivial thoughts.
What did it mean that he fell for Helena?
He hadn't said that to me.
I wonder how much I can pet Kati next time.
Ah, sleeping Marie looks like such an angelic baby, unlike usual.
I wonder what Ian's sleeping face looks like...
Crackle, crackle. With the sound of the campfire, everyone except Kati and Ian fell asleep.
"Kati."
"......"
"What happened earlier was a misunderstanding. It's not like that."
"Grrr..."
"I said that just to persuade Helena."
"Hiss-!"
"You know that. To bring her along, I had to say something like... Wait, why am I explaining this...? Ow! You actually bit me?"
Kati quickly licked the bite mark.
It stung, but there was no blood.
She never bit Ian that hard anyway.
"Satisfied with one bite?"
"Nyaa~."
A pet after the bite, and she mellowed right away.
"Whew."
Even after soothing and resettling Kati, Ian stayed up late.
He needed to organize how to guide Vivian and Helena back to Superbia.
'Refine Vivian's basic projectile magic, teach her ally support spells... Maybe buy her a few books. For Helena, start with diet, build foundational stamina step by step. But I'm worried about revealing Kati's true nature to her...'
Now it was two, not one.
He'd have to foster their teamwork too, so more things to manage.
'...Two of them.'
Not referring to Vivian and Helena just now.
A powerful presence emanated from afar.
He'd sensed it since daytime, actually.
Even when Helena and Rachel were with him.
He didn't want to know, but it was impossible not to recognize such a clear, overwhelming presence.
Just feeling it chilled his nape.
A presence only four people in this world could emit—one that crushed the surrounding air merely by existing.
The owners of that presence soon sat before Ian.
Just their hostility and proximity made his fingertips tingle and shoulders heavy.
But no killing intent.
Restrained aggression.
The two before him removed their hoods.
A mage with indigo hair and blue eyes.
A nun with platinum blonde hair and gray eyes.
"Ian."
A voice long unheard, familiar yet now estranged.
"Long time no see."
Sylvia and Aria.
The 1st Party's mage and priestess had come to see Ian.
"......"
He didn't know their reasons or purpose.
Nor how they found him.
But Ian didn't flee.
If they had tracked him down, running was pointless from the start.
So he waited calmly, pondering his response.
He couldn't provoke them recklessly, nor let them run wild.
"You seem to be doing well."
Sylvia muttered in a forlorn tone.
She felt pathetic about herself.
She had hated him so much earlier.
But seeing Ian now, long-suppressed longing surged forth.
Still, resentment lingered.
She hated how well he was faring without her.
"...Ian?"
Sylvia and Aria were taken aback by Ian's lack of reaction.
He didn't immediately set aside what he was doing.
"......"
He used to drop everything the moment they appeared.
When they'd ask if he was busy, he'd say no.
So they'd believed it was true.
But not this time.
The awkward silence stretched seconds into hours.
When Ian finally looked up, they were shocked again.
The man who always smiled faintly was expressionless.
Sylvia knew that look well.
'He's not angry. It's true blankness, devoid of any emotion...'
The face he wore when dealing with matters strictly professionally.
'No feelings for me at all...'
Sylvia had expected a warm welcome.
Deep down, she believed Ian had been waiting for her.
Just as her banishing him had been a mere tantrum.
She thought his departure was the same.
Ian spoke indifferently.
"What is it."
They were shocked anew.
The formal speech carried clear distance.
Not the casual tone he used with the 1st Party.
"Aria."
And not the nickname, but her full name.
Aria had originally been called "Ria."
Aria swallowed hard.
A stone dropped into Sylvia's heart.
Surely not her too...
"Sylvia."
The stone plummeted with her heart.
'Sylvia...?'
Her own name from Ian's lips sounded like a stranger's.
The way he looked at her felt the same.
'He called me Sylvia...'
The simple address stabbed like a stake into her heart.
"...Ah?"
Tears suddenly spilled from Sylvia's eyes.
Reality felt unreal, so she let them flow.
The longing she'd ignored.
The loneliness she'd denied.
The delusion and arrogance that she'd be fine without Ian.
All crashed together in this moment.
Even as Sylvia wept, Ian spared her only a single glance.
A cold gaze acknowledging a mere presence.
Pure observation, devoid of emotion.
The unease and discomfort since Ian left.
The vague, faint sensations sharpened the instant she saw him.
'...I missed you.'
Ian clearly hadn't.
'I can't do without you...'
Her desperation felt laughable now.
Having sent him away herself, now grasping at lost time.
Whether his decision stemmed from cold calculation.
Or impulsive emotion.
It no longer mattered.
The time to clear misunderstandings had passed.
'What have I, what have I done...'
Like all regrets.
Realization came too late.
Of what banishing Ian meant.
Of what severing ties entailed.
'I have to face an Ian like this...'
Sylvia couldn't bring herself to meet his eyes.
She clutched her forehead, swallowing sobs.
More than any words or actions, that inanimate gaze terrified her most.
'You said you loved me, so why look at me like that...?'
Sylvia's mind kept drifting back to the past.
Past the day she drove him away, to the alley floor where their meetings began.
Sylvia couldn't even utter "I'm sorry."
"If you have no business, please leave."
To the end, Ian showed no interest in the near-sobbing Sylvia.
Watching him, Aria swallowed dryly.
Ian's face filled Sylvia's eyes.
Cold and frightening, yet glad to see it.
Another face overlapped it.
The old Ian who smiled at her.
And the Ian who came for her begging self that day.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Hungry?"
Four years ago, at Ian's words, Sylvia boldly shot back.
"Who are you?"
Ian awkwardly smiled, trying to look kind despite his demeanor.
Street-wandering Sylvia had no choice but to suspect him.
Ian with his awkward smile, Sylvia gazing up with distrustful eyes.
That was their first meeting.