Chapter 165: ……Huh? (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 165: ……Huh? (4)
The discussion regarding gifts for the Great Moon lasted only a short while.
Soon, the meeting resumed its normal course.
Of course, the flow was interrupted occasionally—Deus would suddenly bring up the Great Moon again, or Seolrang would blurt out, "I'll be the gift!"—but things proceeded.
Regardless, the meeting went more smoothly than usual, and as dawn approached, the end was finally in sight.
Just as everyone was about to offer their parting greetings—
[Seolrang.]
[Huh?]
Deus suddenly called out to her.
[By the way, why are you doing that with your ears?]
Seolrang was currently pressing both of her ears down firmly with her hands.
It wasn't just a one-time thing, either. Throughout the meeting, she had been pressing them down whenever she had a spare moment. Deus had been wondering about this strange new habit the entire time.
As everyone’s gaze shifted toward her, Seolrang let out an "Ah—" and a bright smile spread across her face.
[Mentor did this for me!]
[……The Great Moon did that?]
[Yeah! Like this, he did it just like this!]
Though no one had asked, Seolrang began to recount everything that had happened at the Colony, piece by piece.
[And that’s how it happened!]
As soon as her story ended, the Moons let out various exclamations of their own.
[……To think the Great Moon wore an expression of genuine worry.]
[That is… surprising.]
Deus and Ladan looked on with envious expressions. They knew Alon’s usual expressionless face all too well.
The fact that the Great Moon had shown even a flicker of such emotion toward Seolrang held great significance for them.
[…….]
Line, who had already spent a few days with him at the Colony, also stared at Seolrang with a strangely envious, pouting face.
However.
[It’s only natural, Seolrang. He cares for 'us.' If one of us is in danger, of course he would be worried, wouldn't he?]
Only Yutia maintained her usual smile. It was a faint, serene smile that showed no hint of emotional turbulence.
Seolrang stared intently at Yutia for a moment, then, as if realizing something, she suddenly puffed out her chest triumphantly.
[But I even saw Mentor smile!]
[……The Great Moon… smiled?]
[Yeah!]
When Deus finally managed to ask, Seolrang nodded vigorously.
Yutia’s lips twitched ever so slightly.
[……He probably smiled because he was worried about you?]
Yutia had not lost her smile yet, but—
[No? He just smiled while we were talking!]
Snap.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
[…….]
Yutia’s mouth clamped shut.
Emboldened by this, Seolrang shrugged her shoulders even higher.
[You’ve never seen it, have you, Yutia? Mentor’s smiling face.]
Seolrang made a 'V' sign with her fingers as if to say, I won!
Hidan, who had been silently observing the situation until now, wore a complicated expression. Of course, the Moons generally acted a bit like children whenever the Great Moon was mentioned, but even considering that, Seolrang’s provocation was… honestly, a bit childish.
‘……The Red Moon wouldn't get indignant over something like this—’
Hidan looked toward Yutia with certainty, but he couldn't help but gape a moment later.
Yutia’s smile, which had been unwavering until just a moment ago…
[…….]
“…….”
…was now visibly distorted.
In other words, it was undeniably obvious that Seolrang’s words had struck a nerve.
Hidan carefully lowered his gaze.
[Right!? I knew it! Then I’m the first one to see Mentor’s smiling face, aren't I?]
Perhaps because she thought she had finally defeated Yutia, Seolrang threw all situational awareness to the wind and continued to chatter away while shrugging her shoulders.
But that didn't last long.
[Ahem! Anyway, Mentor pressed my ears down like this and….]
After bragging excitedly for a few minutes, Seolrang’s voice trailed off as she began to read the room.
[…….]
Because Yutia was no longer smiling at all.
The moment Seolrang realized she had been a bit too intoxicated by her "victory"—
[Ahem, I have some business to attend to, so I should be going. Since the meeting seems to be over, I’ll take my leave first.]
Ladan, sensing the situation with impeccable timing, vanished from the screen after mentioning "business" that couldn't possibly exist at this hour of the morning.
[……I am the same. I have a meeting with the knights after this.]
Deus likewise escaped the meeting immediately.
Just as Hidan was thinking that Deus could have come up with a better excuse than a meeting in the dead of night—
[……I’ll be going too. I have work.]
[……Huh?]
Line, after glaring at Seolrang with a slightly dissatisfied expression, also made her escape.
Only then did Seolrang realize something was wrong.
And then.
[Hiek…….]
Discovering the cold sneer that had crept onto Yutia’s lips, Seolrang reflexively let go of her ears. Her freed ears instinctively folded back.
Her eyes darted around as she began to back away slowly.
[I-I’ll be going now too—!]
She bolted.
And so, only two people remained in the meeting.
Hidan and… a very angry Yutia.
Hidan carefully raised his head and realized he had missed his timing to leave.
‘What do I do?’
Hidan felt suffocated. The other Moons must have run away because they knew. They knew how terrifying the Red Moon became the moment she got even slightly angry.
Of course, she wouldn't ruthlessly dispose of an ally, but the anger itself was frightening. Fearing that her displaced wrath might focus on him, Hidan moved slightly out of the screen's view and held his breath.
In the next moment.
[Sigh—]
What reached his ears was not a voice full of rage, but a small sigh from Yutia.
Hidan, having successfully moved out of the camera's range, took a peek at the screen that was still on.
There, he saw Yutia with her cheeks slightly puffed out.
‘Puffed… cheeks?’
With a pouting expression and a slight blush on her face, she—
[I’m the one who thinks about him the most…….]
She muttered quietly as if complaining to herself, then terminated the communication.
“……???”
Hidan stood dazed by this fresh side of the Red Moon he had never seen before.
Soon, he realized that because he had moved out of the frame, the Red Moon had let her guard down, thinking all communications had ended.
It didn't suit the Red Moon, yet paradoxically, it felt as though he had finally seen the unique individual that was "her."
Staring into the air as if he had seen a mirage, Hidan—
‘I must forget this.’
He quickly assessed the situation and broke into a cold sweat. If, by any chance, the Red Moon found out about this…
……He would be a dead man that very day.
Therefore.
‘I have to erase all of this from my head.’
He made a firm vow to himself.
* * *
About two months had passed since Alon met the Azure Forest Merchant Guild.
As the ball approached, news of the original story's progression began to reach Alon’s ears.
“……With this, it’s practically complete.”
“I see.”
Facing Penia, Alon deactivated the new magic they had just successfully tuned to perfection.
“Thank you. It would have taken much longer without your help.”
“Ahem—it was nothing.”
Her answer was humble, but Penia’s shoulders were held high with pride.
Alon, seeing her whole body radiating a vibe of ‘See? This is what I’m capable of!!’, let out a small chuckle behind his indifferent expression and asked.
“When is the next Magic Society meeting?”
“Ah, well… it should be about three months from now, right?”
“Then we shall go to the society together then. Since you kept your promise, I will keep mine.”
“Thank you!”
Penia bowed deeply, looking as happy as if she had acquired the world's greatest treasure.
Alon sat down, looking at his hands for a moment.
“By the way, it would be pointless to try any more combinations now, wouldn't it?”
“Hmm—based on our research so far, I think we’d need to conduct a lot more experiments to create a better Hand Seal than this…….”
Penia’s expression became anxious, her thoughts practically transparent: ‘Is this guy seriously planning to do more?’
Alon shook his head lightly.
“Well, don't worry. I’m not so heartless as to push you that far.”
“Ah, yes…….”
Aren't you already heartless?
Penia didn't dare voice the thought that briefly crossed her mind.
“But, Marquis, your magic is a bit peculiar.”
“In what way?”
“……Well, regarding its power. The way the magic is established and the molecular arrangement are clearly the same, but strangely, the power keeps increasing.”
“……Is it that noticeable?”
Penia thought for a moment before answering.
“Well, if you look at it day by day, the difference is negligible, but comparing two months ago to now, there’s definitely a clear difference.”
“……I see.”
Alon nodded to himself.
Of course, it wasn't as if Alon had been training at night behind Penia’s back or trying out new arrays. His agonizingly small Mana Hole didn't allow him such luxuries.
The reason his power was steadily increasing was most likely due to his Divinity.
‘……Though I have no idea how it’s actually increasing.’
Just as Alon was thinking that—
“Um—”
“What is it?”
“If it’s alright, could you give me… even a hint as to why?”
Penia asked cautiously, her eyes darting around. She clearly seemed afraid of something, yet her inquisitiveness seemed to be overcoming that fear. Alon pondered for a moment.
He couldn't exactly reveal that the increase in power was due to Divinity.
After racking his brain, he said—
“……I’ll tell you next time.”
“R-really? Thank you!”
After brushing her off with a vague answer, he stepped out of the 2nd Office—which had essentially become Penia’s laboratory.
‘Now then, since my mana is fully charged, shall I move out?’
Alon pulled the 'Feet Running Through the Past' from his coat and checked it.
The artifact, which had been pitch black at first, had now turned blue. This meant it was now in a usable state, unlike before.
‘……I went through quite a bit of trouble to pump mana into this……. Well, it’s not time to use it just yet, though.’
While conducting his magic experiments, he had consistently funneled mana into the artifact to make it ready for use.
Recalling the difficult process, he organized his schedule in his head.
‘……First, I’ll go to the ball. After that, I’ll stop by Lartania, use the Feet Running Through the Past to meet Kailas, and then go to the ruins to retrieve the item.’
Without any rest, Alon immediately left the Marquis’s estate as planned.
A few weeks later, around the time Alon’s group arrived in Teria, where the ball was to be held—
In the Holy Kingdom Rosario.
“Hello, Cardinal Yutia.”
“Yes, it’s been a while, Chosen One.”
Cardinal Yutia and the Chosen One, Elivan, were greeting each other.
Both wore deep smiles that seemed to hide something beneath the surface.