‘Betray her?’
How did I even betray her?
I wanted to mouth those words, but I found myself unable to look away from those deep black eyes of hers. I could only silently purse my lips before explaining myself.
“She… has something that I need.”
“I can give it to you.”
“No, you can’t.”
“….”
Ah, her gaze feels piercing. My eye twitched and I found myself hurriedly speaking again.
“The entity within me. It’s still not clear. Kiera has a certain item that can help me get rid of it.”
“.…Is that all?”
“Yes.”
“Then you don’t have to worry.”
“Hm? What?”
I don’t have to worry?
I was confused. How exactly did I have to not be worried? I knew that the seal the previous Cleric had placed on me was strong, but I felt it weaken the moment my progression increased once again.
It was like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any second.
I had to tackle this issue now before it was too late.
“We already knew of your problem when the Cleric told us.”
We? Who was we…?
“The Academy has managed to get in contact with a high-class Cleric. They should be able to help you with your problem.”
“Wait, really?”
I found myself blinking rapidly.
This was an unexpected piece of information. It was a pleasant one. However, the joy only lasted for a few seconds before it cooled down considerably.
‘If it’s a high-class Cleric, then they will surely be able to tell that something might be wrong with me. In fact, they might even figure out my secret. That’s…’
“What’s wrong?”
As if noticing my internal struggle, Delilah cocked her head.
“…Are you not happy?”
“I am…”
“But?”
“…After what happened last time, I’m not sure I’m comfortable with people entering my mind.”
“Oh.”
Delilah seemed understanding.
“Even so, you must get rid of it.”
…Or at least, I thought she was but staring at her, whose eyes were squinted directly while facing me, I found myself taking a step back.
“That guy…”
Her face frosted slightly, even displaying hints of disgust.
“No.”
That was all she said before fading and appearing back towards the front as time resumed. Instinctively, I reached out for her but stopped the moment I felt a certain gaze stare at me from my right.
“You…”
It was Leon.
Alternating his gaze between her and me, his expression tightened.
“It’s not what you think.”
“Oh.”
“…I was just stretching my arm.”
“Yes, that makes sense.”
“It’s rather stiff.”
“No, I get it.”
“Forget what you saw.”
“Already have.” Explore stories at My Virtual Library Empire
“Fuck you.”
“Yes.”
*
In spite of Delilah’s words, I still chose to confront Kiera directly about the mirror. I excused myself and walked toward her. She was sitting next to Aoife, both of them quietly staring ahead, lost in their own thoughts.
From the looks of things, the two of them seemed to have fought.
‘Nothing unusual here.’
The two fighting was pretty much a normal occurrence now. In fact, if the two of them didn’t fight, I’d argue that something was wrong.
“What was the argument about this time?”
I started with some small talk.
I wasn’t really sure about how to start the conversation. It wasn’t like I could simply ask Kiera where the mirror was, right?
She’d just look at me weirdly before becoming extremely wary of me.
‘How troublesome.’
Recalling the time when I had asked her about her aunt, and her response, I knew she certainly might be able to piece a few things together if I wasn’t careful enough.
“….Why are you asking?”
Despite my best attempts at not looking suspicious, the moment I approached the two of them, they both became suspicious. I could just tell what they were saying from their gazes.
‘Has this guy lost it?’
‘What does he want from me? Do I owe him money?’
Maybe I was exaggerating, but it certainly felt like something their expression was saying.
“Keum.”
I let out a light cough before sitting down next to Kiera.
“You lost it?”
“….Is the seat taken?”
“No…?”
“Then I’m taking it.”
“….”
Kiera’s eyes squinted, followed by Aoife. The two seemed to be strangely in sync today.
“Shoot. What do you want?” Kiera asked, eyeing me suspiciously.
“That…”
What was up with her?
“…Why are you two acting so weird? I just wanted to sit down and make small talk.”
“That’s the fucking problem.”
Kiera pointed out.
“You are the last person to make small talk.”
“What, that’s…”
I suddenly found myself drifting back to the past, and my mouth went dry. Thinking it over, they had a point. I really wasn’t one for small talk. In fact, I couldn’t stand it.
I licked my lips, trying to shake off the discomfort, but then I noticed Aoife staring at me with an odd expression. Her lips parted as she started to speak.
“The last time I tried making small talk with you, you straight up ignored me.”
“I did?”
“Yes…”
“Ah… I apologiz—”
“No, you did good there.”
Kiera suddenly patted me on the shoulder. Fuck, why does the back of my head suddenly feel hot? I ignored the sensation and pursed my lips.
“Oh.”
“I would too had I been in your scenario. Then again, Aoife is more tolerable than Evelyn.”
“Evelyn? What did she do?”
“What didn’t she do?”
Kiera suddenly made an exaggerated expression.
“What didn’t she do? That girl… she talks way too much. She’s like some sort of close-ranged mage, spitting one spell faster than the other.”
I wanted to refute Kiera’s words, but the argument never quite formed. Evelyn was indeed like a machine gun when she got comfortable. She’d fire off one word after another, each sentence faster than the last, leaving little room for anyone else to speak.
The thought alone gave me a headache.
Seeing how Aoife was also nodding her head, it seemed like she felt the same way.
The three of us then started to chat together.
The conversation quickly veered away from my original goal, drifting into all sorts of nonsense that had nothing to do with the situation. Apparently, the walls in the Kasha were quite thin. According to Kiera, Aoife would occasionally sing, and it scared several cadets, making them believe that ghosts haunted some of the rooms.
That was pretty funny to hear. Especially when I saw Aoife try her best to not be embarrassed while mumbling, ‘It wasn’t that bad. You guys are exaggerating.’
No, it was certainly believable.
There was also some gossip regarding Leon.
That was one that was really interesting. According to Aoife, Leon was nervous before his match. He apparently carried a book of jokes around with him and recited them right before his match in order to calm himself down.
I felt my worldview change upon hearing her words.
Who would’ve thought Leon was like that?
And also, apparent—
“Please get ready. We will be departing now. The portals have been set up so gather your belongings and enter the portal.”
“Uh?”
Flicking my head towards the front, I suddenly noticed a portal had appeared with Delilah and the Professors standing next to me. While taking a peek at Delilah, I noticed she seemed a little different than before.
…What exactly, though?
I rubbed the back of my neck.
For some strange reason, the hair at the back of my neck was standing.
“We’re leaving? Alright, I can’t with this place anymore.”
Kiera was the first one to stand up, looking all excited. She clearly didn’t enjoy her experience here.
However, seeing her like that, I felt myself grow more anxious.
‘No, not yet, I’ve yet to—’
And before I knew it, my hand reached out for hers.
“Wait.”
“Uh?”
Kiera froze on the spot, her eyes widening. That wasn’t the worst part. No, it was the sudden chill that I felt at the back of my neck, threatening to consume me entirely.
Inwardly panicking, I found myself pressing the second leaf.
‘Fuck it, I should’ve done this from the start.’
…And then I saw it.
Kiera’s past.
***
“Have they left?”
Rosanna Astrid asked, peering out the window of her office. Her eyes briefly lingered on the blue sky before drifting down to the city below.
Several long lines stretched out, all waiting for food to be served.
As she watched the lines, she sensed the presence of those from the Empire fading away, one by one, and her expression softened.
“Things are going to get quite busy soon enough. I should start preparing for that.”
Just as she was about to turn away, her gaze paused on a particular line.
“Hm?”
There, she spotted the silhouette of a figure—someone who seemed vaguely familiar, yet not quite. However, right as she was about to get a better look, the figure faded from her view, leaving her at a complete loss.
“How strange…”
She muttered to herself, rubbing her head.
“How very strange.”
*
“Line up, please! If you want food, please line up in a single line!”
Food was slowly being served to the people waiting in line. The workers were efficient, handing out one meal and drink at a time. Despite their speed, the line never seemed to end. From children to adults, the line was filled with people desperately seeking food.
“Meat or veggies?”
“….Hehehe.”
An old man suddenly smiled, rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish grin.
His gaze alternated between the meat and vegetable soup.
‘Em likes both, choose which?’
He was hungry.
“Em want meat.”
“Meat?”
The worker spared the old man a glance before filling the bowl.
“Okay…”
“Thank you.”
The worker quickly handed the food to the old man who quietly left.
It was food.
The old man felt very thankful to the worker. They were very very nice. Even though he was very dumb, they gave him good.
“Hehehe.”
Holding onto the bowl, the old man walked away.
He didn’t really know where he was going, but his steps led him to a place that felt familiar. It was a quiet alleyway, and he sat down in front of a small set of stairs, beginning to eat his food.
Just as he was about to take his first bite, a group of people appeared in front of him. Their clothes were ragged, and their frames were thin. Even though things were slowly getting better, food was still scarce.
“Oy.”
The old man raised his head upon hearing one of them call out for him.
A happy smile surfaced on his face.
“Yes?”
The people didn’t answer and instead eyed his food.
“You, that’s a lot of food.”
“…Ah, yes.”
The old man looked at the food in his bowl and laughed.
“Food, lots!”
He looked silly for his age, causing a small laugh to ripple through the group.
They made fun of him, calling him all sorts of names.
“He’s retarded.”
“…Taking food from him should be easy.”
Listening to the comments, Em found himself smiling.
‘They talk to me. How very nice of them…’
Nobody liked to talk with Em.
Could he maybe become friends with them?
Stepping forward, one of the group pointed at the old man’s food.
“Give it to us.”
“Eh…?”
Em looked surprised. They want his food?
“But…”
“We need food to work. Feed our families. You don’t work, right?”
“Ah.”
That makes sense…
‘Yes, Em is stupid. He doesn’t work and they work. Even though I is stupid, I is kind! He helps people!’
“Okay.”
“…Sweet!”
“Hahaha, this easy?”
As soon as the old man extended his bowl, the group of people moved forward to grab the bowl, but just as they were about to take it, a loud shout echoed.
“Hey!”
“Uh?”
“What sort….!?”
Three people appeared at the corner of the alleyway. They glanced at the old man who was quietly handing his bowl before shifting it towards the group of people. With machetes in hand, they looked intimidating—enough to make the group of people step back in fear.
“Oh shit!”
“Run…!”
“Eh? Wait!”
Seeing them run, the old man tried to stand and chase after them, but he was quickly stopped by the group of three.
“Stop.”
“But—”
“It’s alright.”
One of the three cut him off, scratching the side of his neck.
“You don’t need to give your food like that. Feed yourself first. They have plenty of food.”
The old man blinked his eyes while looking at the three people. They looked sad. Why were they sad?
“Oh, if you say so.”
Even though he said that he didn’t touch his food. When they came back, he give them.
Seeing this, the expression of the three changed again.
“Hey, do you want to be friends?”
Friends? Em’s head flicked to the three, his eyes sparkling. Friends? They want to be friends? …But why do they look so sad?
“You can call me Gig.”
They started introducing their selves.
“Kon for me.”
“…And I’m Min.”
“Gig, Kon, Min?”
“Yes.”
Em suddenly smiled. Why did the names sound so familiar? He can’t remember very well. He is sorry he can’t remember. No, it doesn’t matter! He suddenly found himself bursting with joy. He made friends! Him dumbself make friends!
Reaching out for him, Kon gently spoke,
“Come, let’s go.”
“Yes!”
The old man grabbed Kon’s hand and moved away from the alley. As he did, his eyes fell on the sky above and a happy smile surfaced on his lips.
‘Sky is happy, Em is happy.’
***
End of the Kasha Arc