Chapter 86
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 86
Translation: godsn
She was there. It was the first time he'd seen her wield a sword properly with his own eyes. Concise, powerful, beautiful. It was such exceptional mana control that any Master would have no choice but to admire it. Yet even more striking than that dazzling sight was the way her voice calling his name had pierced his ears.
She had called him by his name. For the first time. Since that moment in Langiosa's memories when she had murmured while looking at the holy sword.
A shiver ran from the crown of his head to the tips of his toes. A thrill so intense it was chilling, just from having his name called. The image of her sobbing before the holy sword flashed through his mind, leaving him dizzy. Had he not possessed exceptional self-control, he might have grabbed her and begged her to say it just once more.
The few remaining mud giants were closing in on them, but Echinacea didn't so much as twitch. Yurien raised the holy sword and dealt with them.
'Rather than going mad, I'm already mad.'
As he swung his sword, he calmly acknowledged his own state. He had hoped she might call him by name, but he hadn't expected to be shaken this profoundly. He realized once again how irreversibly far gone he already was.
Echinacea remained perfectly still until he returned from dispatching the giants. Now that he thought about it, she had just used mana right in front of him. He'd been so distracted by his name on her lips that he'd momentarily forgotten. Yurien cautiously opened his mouth, studying her complexion.
"Echinacea."
Echinacea flinched violently, then staggered backward.
"Echinacea? Are you alright?"
Her reaction was deeply unsettling. When Yurien called her name again, her face turned deathly pale. Then she turned away. She was turning away, about to run. Trying to leave him. His heart creaked as if about to stop.
"Wait...!"
Yurien seized her arm. She pulled back further. If he let go now, he might never see her again. That was the premonition gripping him.
Without a moment's thought, acting purely on instinct, he grasped her shoulders. The slender frame caught in his hands thrashed wildly. Her movements were erratic, as if she'd lost all composure, just jerking about uncontrollably. Her whole body trembled like the strings of an instrument. He couldn't meet her eyes.
Echinacea hadn't made this face even when monster acid melted her skin. She was terrified to a degree that made his own chest constrict just watching.
'Because she was caught using mana?'
That alone couldn't explain this level of terror. Perhaps she feared he might deduce her connection to the magic sword based on that. The thought alone would make malice toward herself surge up, fill her with dread, make her want to flee. That's why she'd erased it all. To her, the past where she was the Demon of the Magic Sword carried this meaning.
It was a wound he'd known about, but seeing it laid so bare made it appear even more precarious than he'd imagined. His breath caught in his throat.
"I already knew."
At his words, Echinacea's thrashing stopped. Her soul, visible through True Sight, flickered like a submerged light. Yurien added more to reassure her.
"Since I already knew, don't worry."
You weren't caught. I've known everything from the start, but I have no intention of digging into your wounds. If you want to bury that past completely, then I'll bury it too.
"Y-you knew... How... Since when..."
Echinacea stammered out the words, then grew even paler before burying her face in both hands. As she swayed precariously like she might collapse, Yurien hurriedly supported her body.
He was at a loss. His words were meant to reassure her—had he made some mistake? Was her fear not about being discovered? He tried to peer at her face between her concealing fingers, but couldn't see. Instead, he felt her shoulders shaking within his grasp.
'Is she crying?'
It felt like a heavy blow had struck his solar plexus. She wasn't the type to cry easily. She hadn't shed a tear even in the Roaz family mansion—the place where she'd killed all her family with her own hands. Yet now, that same woman was crying.
He'd wanted her to smile. He'd wished for her happiness. And yet, simply because he might know about the past she'd erased, she was reduced to tears. Yurien pressed his trembling lips together. Then he bent down to meet her eye level.
"Echinacea, look at me. If you wish to hide it, I'll help you conceal it. If you desire, I'll even strive to forget it myself. So look at me."
The 'it' he referred to encompassed her entire past, but she would likely interpret it as just the fact that she was a Master. That was how it had to be. Yurien waited anxiously for her to lower her hands and look at him. When she did, her revealed violet eyes were brimming with tears. Her eyelids were red, and her parted lips trembled faintly.
Please. Feeling his insides twist, he continued.
"I wished to spar with you precisely because I knew you were a Master. The answers I promised to give after our duel—I'll tell you now."
If he confessed everything here, she wouldn't be able to endure it. So Yurien fabricated a lie she could accept.
"Earlier, I mentioned remembering you from the imperial birthday banquet. That was when I recognized your talent. That's why I took personal interest and accepted you as my squire the moment you became an officer cadet."
"You... recognized my talent? How?"
Could he really call that ember he'd seen in her mere 'talent'? It had been nothing more than a possibility. Though he'd already begun lying, he didn't want to falsify everything. He wove truth into the lies, crafting something she might believe.
As Echinacea listened to his entire explanation, she stared at him in dazed confusion. The terror had subsided, replaced by bewilderment. Noticing this, Yurien felt inner relief. Somehow, she seemed to have accepted it.
The tears pooled in her eyes hadn't fully disappeared—one trickled down. He followed that single droplet with his gaze, remembering the first tear he'd ever seen from her. A single drop of miracle welling from a body corrupted by the Magic Sword. It had been invisible proof of her suffering.
'Does this tear carry the same meaning now? Even if she appears calm, is she still...?'
As he stood lost in thought, she asked him:
"If you already knew... why did you act so surprised earlier?"
Why was he surprised? Because hearing her say his name sent shivers through him, and through those shivers, he realized anew how utterly mad he was for her—
He couldn't answer that.
Suddenly, the sensation of her shoulder in his grasp became vividly real—how her delicate frame fit within one hand, the slender collarbone beneath his fingertips, the flushed face visible through her disheveled hair as she sobbed.
Horrified, Yurien released her and stepped back. Even if her fear had subsided, how could he feel desire at such a moment? Was he an animal? No, worse than a beast. Echinacea was looking at him with those clear eyes—
'I have to... answer her...'
"You..."
He opened his mouth reflexively but couldn't continue. His mind blanked, then flooded with heat, leaving him dizzy. She was waiting for an answer. He'd already told so many lies. He didn't want to lie about his feelings too. The words spilled out unfiltered.
"It was... the first time... I heard you say my name."
"...What?"
His ears burned after the stammered confession. Unable to meet her gaze, Yurien lowered his eyes. After a prolonged silence, she finally asked in a hushed voice:
"Earlier, you said you'd help me hide being a Master if I wanted. My Lord... do you know why I would want to hide it?"
"...If you would tell me."
I know, but I will pretend not to until you choose to tell me. That was the meaning behind his answer. Her expression grew strangely complex as she interpreted his deliberately ambiguous response. Then she abruptly stepped toward him.
Yurien was startled enough to nearly faint, though his shock only manifested as a slight flinch. She came close, staring intently up at him. His heart began pounding so loudly he worried she might hear it.
"So... you're saying you'd help me hide it without even knowing why I want to conceal it?"
'Though I know the reason now, I would have done the same even if I hadn't. I trust your judgment and your choices.'
"Moreover, it sounds like you won't even ask about the reason until I disclose it—is my understanding correct?"
'How could I dare pry open your wounds when you don't wish it?'
"...Why do you show me such consideration?"
'You are someone who deserves respect from everyone. And besides, I—'
Because I love you.
They were all answers he couldn't voice aloud. Yurien felt his face grow burning hot. He could guess it had turned embarrassingly red. This—this is too obvious. What should I do?
There was no way he could be skilled in such matters. He simply floundered, unable to meet her gaze. The Holy Sword emitted a sound resembling an exasperated groan, but Yurien had no mental capacity to spare for it.
"Lord... by any chance—"
Then Echinacea, who had been silent, dropped a bombshell.
"Do you... like me?"
His mind went utterly blank. Yurien lost all awareness of what expression he was making or how he was behaving.
"That—"
Do I like you? Of course. So much that merely saying "like" feels insufficient. Enough that it's changed me. To the point where words fail before you, where my emotions spiral uncontrollably at your slightest word or expression, where desires I never knew awaken, where something monstrous—whether beast or demon—stirs within me.
Fearing he might pour out all these unrestrained words, he covered his mouth. He couldn't possibly say no. But if he affirmed it here—what then? His rationality was paralyzed, making predictions impossible.
Strangely, amidst this turmoil, he felt both pleased that she'd noticed his feelings and anxious about how he must appear to her. Unable to deny it, he had to answer, yet he had no idea what to say. He felt like a complete fool.
"L-Lord, I've asked an impudent ques—"
"I do like you."
In his confusion, Yurien reflexively cut off Echinacea's words. Once the beginning escaped, the rest followed naturally.
"No—more than simply liking you. I cherish you."
Surprisingly, once he started speaking, the words flowed easily. Of course, such words felt woefully inadequate, but at least he'd revealed his heart to her. Now all that remained was waiting for her reaction. Yurien, devoid of any coherent thoughts, simply watched her.
Echinacea stood dumbfounded, mouth slightly agape. Her eyes blinked slowly, and her cheeks began flushing red. But the momentary warmth rapidly froze over. She hunched her shoulders as if short of breath, then stepped backward, her face turning deathly pale.
It was unmistakable rejection. Recognizing this made his vision swim. Not wanting her to see his crumbling expression, Yurien turned away from her. Fearing his voice might crack, he drew a shaky breath and swallowed past the lump in his throat. Before she could voice her refusal, he spoke first.
"There's no need to answer, Echinacea. This is simply how I feel."