The Weight of Choices
In the bustling main avenue of Sia Del, a silver-haired knight walked slowly through the crowded streets. A gentle voice drifted from behind her.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
At the elderly woman's words, Asera offered a faint smile and adjusted her grip more securely. The added weight of the shopping basket made it quite heavy, but for a knight's body it was light enough that her breathing didn't even quicken.
“By the way… it’s unusual to see you still in the city at this hour. Haven’t you been busy with missions lately?”
“…Today, I requested a day off from the guild.”
“Ah, no. It’s not that my body is unwell. I just… wanted a little rest.”
Her voice trailed off weakly, as if making an excuse. The old woman nodded gently.
“……Thank you.”
Asera’s eyes trembled. It was the kind of casual advice she would normally have brushed off with a simple thank-you, but right now that comfort tickled warmly at her heart.
The path to their destination wasn’t far. Asera stopped in front of a modest house. As she carefully set the old woman down, the door opened and someone’s presence spilled out.
The two elderly people standing side by side both had snow-white hair. Just looking at each other seemed to fill them with such happiness. Even as they gently scolded one another, the old couple soon bloomed into warm, affectionate conversation.
……
Asera quietly took in the sight. She compared it to herself.
“…Thank you. I’ll be in your care again next time.”
Perhaps there was still something left unsaid. Even after the greeting, her feet refused to turn away.
“Grandmother Solve. May I ask you just one thing…?”
“Are you… happy right now, Grandmother?”
A sudden question. Even after the words left her mouth, Asera flinched at herself. Why was she asking something like this of someone else? Was it because the question had been circling endlessly in her mind since morning?
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, the old couple quietly met each other’s eyes—
They nodded cheerfully, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Asera felt nothing but envy toward the pair. That was why she asked one more trailing question.
“Then… I know this is terribly rude, but if you had lost him… what would you have done, Grandmother Solve…?”
A memory flashed through her mind. The person she had lost in that village. Because of that aching memory, the weight of her following question grew heavier. Yet the smile that spread across the old woman’s lips only deepened.
Asera too had harbored a similar impulse. Honestly, she wanted to leave the capital alone and rush straight to that village. But—
“W-what if something goes wrong because of that…?! What if a hasty decision makes it impossible to turn back afterward…!”
She was afraid. Afraid that her wrong choice might cause everything to come crashing down. The stigma of being the disgrace of the Abelleo family. The knightly duty she had clung to in order to shake off that brand. And the journey with Lien, who had shared the weight of that responsibility with her. Those were the highest values Asera had pursued and tried to achieve until now.
Yet was it truly right to push all those precious things she had built so far into the distant background because of this sudden, uncertain emotion that had pried its way into her heart?
A knight received boundless respect from everyone, but that also meant she was bound by strict rules and control. Whenever she thought her rash actions might harm even Lien, her heart tightened painfully each time.
The growing impatience and anxiety. That was the name of the emotion that had recently been tightening around her throat.
The kind voice pulled her back.
“Pardon…? Well, that is…”
Asera recalled the situation from earlier. Her hesitation was brief. It had been the natural thing for her to do.
“…Because someone was in trouble… and the person who had helped us was struggling, so of course I had to help…”
The old woman gently looked back along the path they had walked together.
……
“…!”
Asera’s shoulders trembled. The old woman nodded at her reaction.
It was something obvious. Yet something she had been missing.
Early that morning, she recalled Lien’s face. How had she reacted while looking at her crumbling self? She had been furious. She had gotten angry because she wanted so badly to help her. She had been angry at herself for being unable to reach out.
Lien had simply wanted to help Asera. That was all she had wished for.
“T-that’s…”
Happy… am I?
The solitary words she had uttered that morning, now scattered on the wind.
Her time with Lien had been happy no matter what anyone said. Just shining a light on their journey together had been enough to fill her with joy and fulfillment. But after the incident in that village, the regret of having missed something important had pierced deeper with each passing day.
Perhaps it was because the time that flowed after she had given up on choosing had felt so heavy.
The old woman, who seemed to understand all her worries, gently comforted Asera. She was grateful. In fact, perhaps she had been the one who received help.
“…Grandmother Solve.”
The turmoil in her eyes had now settled back into clear focus.
“Thank you so much. Thanks to you… I clearly remembered what I need to do.”
Asera bowed deeply and finally turned to leave. The sound of her footsteps echoing down the path was clear and bright.
First, she would find Lien. She had to apologize to her. And then she had to reveal every last bit of the honesty she had been pressing down inside. That would be the most sincere apology she could offer.
How much time had passed?
Asera had been running through the city well past noon.
“Ah…!”
Finally, Asera’s gaze stopped dead in one spot. After circling the plaza that Lien often visited several times, she had spotted her back beyond the crowd.
Strangely enough, Lien also seemed to be searching hard for something.
‘—!’
Perhaps she had sensed the gaze. When she turned her head, their eyes met instantly.
Lien immediately showed a delighted expression and came running over in an instant.
‘…?’
Something felt off. Lien’s voice was far brighter than she had expected. Had she been worrying too much?
“Mm… I-I was looking for you too, Lien.”
She answered with difficulty as Lien approached, but Asera’s gaze slowly dropped downward. The reason was simple.
“Lien…”
“Yeah?”
“There’s… something I want to apologize for, even if it’s late.”
“Apologize…?”
Until she could convey her true feelings honestly, she didn’t have the courage to look straight into those eyes.
“…Lien.”
But there was something she had to do first. Asera took a deep breath and finally opened her lips.
“Asera…?”
She immediately bowed so deeply it seemed excessive. If allowed, she felt like she would slam her head against the stone pavement to apologize.
……
After pouring out her whole heart, she realized that repaying the grace that had painted her life with such brilliant colors wasn’t about hiding difficulties or bearing them alone. It was simply about facing each other like this and sharing their thoughts.
She was scared. Scared that her apology might not be accepted. Calming her heart that felt ready to burst, Asera slowly raised her head.
‘—!’
It was the complete opposite. There stood Lien, desperately swallowing back tears. Her eyes were already red and swollen, as if many things had happened.
“L-Lien…”
It was Asera who became flustered instead.
“Lien… did you cry a lot…?”
“Good meaning…?”
Lien took a step closer and gently pulled Asera into her arms. Just as Asera had done to her that morning.
……
She was grateful for Lien, who whispered such kindness. However, Lien’s voice sounded strangely different. Should she say it had become much more relaxed? It was the face of someone who had completely unraveled the knot that had been lodged deep in her chest.
“Asera, actually I’ve been thinking a lot lately too. About whether the path we’re walking is truly the right one.”
“Lien…”
“S-sorry. If only I had realized this way sooner…”
Asera’s eyes trembled as she didn’t know what to do. Lien gently stroked her hair.
“…?”
At those words, Asera tilted her head in confusion. What did Lien mean? It really wasn’t a misunderstanding. The Lien who had kicked open the guild door and stormed out that morning had changed a little.
Just as she had received advice from Grandmother Solve, had something happened to Lien in the meantime as well?
Lien firmly took Asera’s hand and stepped forward first.
“A coincidence…?”
The next words followed.
“……Noriel?”
A sense of déjà vu brushed past her again. It was definitely a name she had never heard before.