Pallides knew this was akin to a child throwing a tantrum, but unfortunately, she knew no other way.
“…….”
Anelli looked down quietly at the sniffling Pallides, her expression subtle. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking.
Anelli, who had been silently holding the helmet, spoke in a calm tone.
“You won’t last long.”
Pallides flinched.
Because Anelli was right. It had only been a short while since she had regained her head, all her long-forgotten memories, and her power.
Having recovered her complete soul, Pallides felt herself deteriorating rapidly.
There was a reason why both Dasha and Ganik had to find rest immediately.
If she hesitated even slightly, she felt she would lose her reason and become a true Monster, rendering the recovery of her head meaningless.
But Pallides did not readily acknowledge her condition.
“I can endure. I can stay by your side until you finish everything you wish to do, Captain!”
“I can see your soul is completely ruined from waiting too long.”
Struck speechless by Anelli’s matter-of-fact words, Pallides closed her mouth without realizing it. Anelli offered her a faint smile.
As if to soothe Pallides, Anelli cradled the helmet with one hand and gently brushed back Pallides’s wet bangs with the other.
“The rest you desire will be granted, Pallides.”
“……Really?”
“Yes.”
A warm sensation transmitted from Anelli’s fingers touching Pallides’s forehead. It felt particularly intense to Pallides, who was drenched from head to toe by the rain.
Focusing on that warmth, Pallides asked in a choked voice.
“This time… can we not lose you, Captain?”
Anelli frowned as if troubled and gave an awkward smile.
Even Pallides knew her question was one to which Anelli could not possibly give an answer.
After a moment’s thought, instead of answering Pallides’s question, Anelli lightly brushed her cheek.
Her hand was soon wet from the moisture on Pallides’s cheek.
“I’ve always wondered how to comfort a crying Dullahan. I’m glad I can at least wipe away tears now.”
Pallides paused. Come to think of it, she had wept uncontrollably from her very first meeting with Anelli.
There had been other occasions to cry since, and each time, Anelli had soothed her with an awkward voice.
Even though comforting and coaxing someone didn’t seem to come naturally to her at all.
“…….”
The anger that had been boiling over Samuel gradually subsided. Pallides bit her lip hard.
*He* could not possibly defy the Captain. If Anelli wished to grant her rest, she would ultimately accept it.
Not for her own sake, but for Anelli’s.
“You remember we promised to go boating, right?”
“Yes.”
“It will be truly enjoyable. I am very skilled at rowing. I will show you. So you must come with me?”
Knowing there was no guarantee, Pallides pressed for the promise. Anelli hesitated briefly, then slowly nodded.
“Alright, let’s go when it’s all over.”
A somewhat uncertain, yet clear answer. Pallides smiled brightly.
“I am the knight who guards your tears, and all you wish to protect.”
Then she released the sword she had been clutching, without a trace of reluctance.
Not sparing a single glance for the sword lying in the sticky mud, Pallides raised her arms and pulled Anelli into a tight embrace.
Anelli, with a startled expression as she was hugged by Pallides, cautiously raised her arms.
Pallides felt Anelli’s hand carefully patting her back. The thick armor was no hindrance at all to feeling that touch.
“I will gladly follow whatever you decree.”
She felt a warm energy seeping into her body.
The turbulent anger had completely vanished. In its place was a vitality that filled her entire being.
It was so comfortable that the tension that had filled her entire body relaxed of its own accord.
Pallides surrendered herself to it without resistance.
It was a peace she simply could not refuse.
* * *
The body that had been holding me scattered into a handful.
The tears that remained on my hand were the last trace Pallides left behind. Neither the helmet I had been holding, nor Pallides, who had been looking at me so pitifully, remained any longer.
‘More than I thought…’
More than I thought, her face was youthful. She looked even younger than me. With that face, she had been pouring out a terrifying aura in her rage.
For me… I could not leave Pallides as she was, seeming on the verge of being consumed by the dark energy at any moment.
So I used my power, and she readily accepted her rest.
‘Pallides’s rest.’
I looked down at the hand with which I had just exercised my authority. It was the hand stained with Pallides’s tears.
I had told her she would obtain the rest she desired, but in truth, I was not certain. I only said it because Dearis had told me so.
Did Pallides obtain the rest she desired?
…If I had known she wanted to go boating so much, I should have found a way sooner. Perhaps I only gave her futile, false hope.
“Lady Anelli.”
Xenon’s voice from behind finally brought me to my senses.
Clenching my fist tightly seemed to bring a bit of reason back. Belatedly, the strong smell of water and a faint scent of blood stabbed at my nose.
Turning my gaze, I met Samuel’s eyes. He was standing quietly, holding his shoulder.
Though he was clearly trying to suppress the sound, the rough, heaving breaths were distinctly audible to my ears.
“Is the injury severe?”
“It’s fine.”
Samuel answered flatly. For something not severe, blood seemed to be flowing steadily…
I chose not to point it out. Instead, I subtly surveyed the surroundings.
[We’ve returned.]
[Finally.]
[Our home.]
A flock of crows cawed as they crossed the sky.
Stray dogs were also seen prowling among the ruined buildings.
This had been a ruin where no life could be found, but now creatures had appeared, holding their breath in the darkness, their eyes gleaming.
Pallides’s rest must have summoned them.
“Being in the mountains, there seem to be many wild animals. It would be better to return to the building for now.”
Xenon cautiously suggested. To Xenon, who could not understand the whispers of beasts, those wild cries must seem threatening.
As I nodded, Xenon, who had been watching for a moment, approached Samuel.
It seemed some camaraderie had formed during their journey, despite fighting like sworn enemies the whole time. Seeing him try to look after Samuel because he was injured.
‘Well, Xenon is kind-hearted.’
Even someone like Samuel must have seemed pitiful in Xenon’s eyes.
“…….”
The Dullahans in animal form said nothing.
They only stared fixedly at the spot where Pallides had stood—now empty—before turning away.
“Don’t be stubborn and take the help when it’s offered. Sir Paladin.”
“My leg is not injured. Mage.”
“With that attitude of yours, it’s no wonder you get stabbed.”
“This was merely my will.”
Leaving Samuel and Xenon to their hushed squabble, I took the first step.
Glancing up, the sky had already stopped raining.
* * *
“Are you awake?”
Phrygian could not answer the urgent question poured upon her immediately.
Blinking her eyes with difficulty, she stared for a long while at the person looking down at her before finally managing to part her lips.
“……Mother.”
“Oh, heavens. Thank the Goddess.”
The Duchess of Roam, who had been clutching Phrygian’s hands desperately with both of hers, uttered what sounded like a sigh.
The Duchess’s rough skin and bloodless lips spoke of the mental anguish she had endured.
Phrygian, staring at the Duchess of Roam with a listless face, slowly rolled her eyes.
It was an unfamiliar space. Not the Roam residence she remembered, nor the Kendal barony she had only just begun to recognize—somewhere else.
Only a few essential pieces of furniture were placed, and not a single proper painting hung on the walls. It was a shabby room devoid of any aesthetic element.
“I was worried you might never wake up.”
Phrygian’s gaze returned to the Duchess of Roam. Her mother was looking at her with affectionate eyes.
Strangely enough.
“Phrygian, speak now. What on earth happened?”
The Duchess of Roam asked in a gentle voice.
“You met Anelli, didn’t you? What conversation did you have with Anelli?”
“……Mother.”
“Yes, Phrygian.”
The anxiety hidden beneath the Duchess of Roam’s haggard complexion was all too easily discerned by Phrygian.
To the extent that Phrygian, who had just awakened from the brink of death, could so easily perceive it, the current Duchess of Roam was unable to conceal her expression.
As Phrygian simply stared silently at the Duchess of Roam, the Duchess laboriously pulled up the corners of her trembling mouth.
“Phrygian?”
“……What is it… you wish to hear?”
“Why, of course, I wish to hear about what happened to you. There must be circumstances behind this terrible ordeal you suffered.”
The Duchess of Roam continued in a deliberately gentle tone.
“Without someone plotting against you, my brilliant daughter would not have ended up like this.”
“Plotting… you say.”
“Yes. Or perhaps something somewhat… extraordinary occurred.”
Phrygian’s lips twisted strangely. It resembled a sneer, though it was unclear at whom it was directed.
“……Is Roam… in peril?”
At that moment, the Duchess of Roam’s smile stiffened rigidly. She replied to Phrygian’s question without hiding her displeasure.
“Roam does not waver. It is merely that there are many who, ignorant of their place, harbor envy, so we must always remain vigilant.”
Phrygian’s lips grew even more crooked. Her voice, forced out with difficulty, was utterly cold.
“Mother, Roam is……”
Her throat felt parched and cracked. Swallowing dryly, Phrygian struggled to finish her words.
“It’s over.”
Perhaps forever, it will never rise again.
At Phrygian’s words, tinged with cynicism and resignation, the Duchess of Roam now completely erased her smile. A terrifyingly furious gaze stared at Phrygian.
But Phrygian was not afraid at all. It was merely ludicrous.
“We must acknowledge it now.”
That Roam’s choice was wrong. That everything was headed in the wrong direction.
They had to admit they had failed.
“You seem to have grown weak from your brush with danger.”
Muttering coldly, the Duchess of Roam abruptly rose to her feet.
“You’ve just awakened and seem out of sorts. Pull yourself together and recover your health first.”
Phrygian stared fixedly at the Duchess of Roam’s retreating back, then closed her eyes. A heavy fatigue pressed down on her entire body.
Perhaps because she had not recovered, nightmares swarmed in. Phrygian willingly accepted the onslaught of nightmares.
It was an escape bordering on resignation.