"I wish to be by your side as long as I can…."
Those words were followed by a hand that wrapped tightly around his own, but then it suddenly trembled and her grip loosened.
Emery was genuinely surprised when he felt this. He was always bad at handling these kinds of things, but at the very least, he knew her gestures were a very emotional and serious matter.
Moments later, it seemed the girl regained control of herself, as she let go of his arm and took a step back. In her turbulent state, she gathered what courage she had and stared at him from behind for just a moment before saying.
"Will you… at least say something…"
Emery turned around in response and their eyes immediately met each other. Their emotions appeared clear from their gazes alone. Despite her usual bravery, the courageous facade she usually put on crumbled within seconds.
She turned her head away, hiding her embarrassed face under the shadow of her hair.
Emery hadn't said anything yet, but she acted as if she already knew the answer he would give.
Subconsciously, she tightened her fist so tight the tips of her fingers turned white. Left at a loss of what to do, she once again resorted to her usual anger.
"If you don't like me, just say so! Then I… I… could…"
When he heard that, Emery knew this was his cue to say his thoughts. So, he took a step forward and spoke as sincerely as he could.
"Silva, I like you… truly, I like you a lot." With a smile, he continued, "I think you are the bravest and kindest person I know. You are a very important person to me. But… what you are asking… it is really not something I can give."
The girl looked away, trying so hard not to show her true feelings. However, even the dark couldn't hide the rush of emotions that came to her. Anger, shame, disappointment and even regret… No, she couldn't stay like this and let this chain her.
Silva took a deep breath, braved herself once more and opened her mouth to speak. However, what came out next was something she had never expected to say in her lifetime.
"It's her, isn't it?" A hint of bitterness in her voice. "The girl from your home… I… I thought, if only we spent some more time together, maybe… you would choose me over her…"
Silva pushed away her precious pride and almost sounded like she was pleading when she said those words, catching Emery off guard and making him unable to say anything.
He couldn't deny the girl in front of him did occupy a portion of his mind, and in a way, he did like her. However, he knew this could not be. He obviously did not want to hurt her, but his previous experiences clearly told him it would be more harmful and cruel to her if he didn't make it clear now.
In the end, Emery made up his decision and finally said in conviction. "Silva, I am sorry… I really can't, I am committed to her… I am sorry."
As the words left his lips, a few moments of silence reigned between them. Only the relaxing sounds of fire crackling could be heard, but it could do nothing to alleviate the atmosphere between the two.
Silva raised her head, even though she tried to hide it, there were traces of tears at the corners of her eyes. Even so, she presented a resolute front as she looked at him in the eyes.
"Apparently, it wasn't you… it's me who was the fool all along…"
"I am sorry."
The girl calmly turned around and walked towards the darkness of the forest, before disappearing into the all-encompassing black shadows.
He only watched, as her figure slowly disappeared from his vision. His heart wanted to chase and stop her, but his rational thoughts told him not to do so.
Emery closed his eyes as he took a deep sigh, this was truly something he dreaded to face. If he could choose, he would rather fight against multiple elves or beholders than face such a problem again.
He glanced at the night sky, he was searching for the answer from up above. The silver, serene light of the moon and his current dilemma suddenly reminded him of his parents. If he could, he would really like to ask how they had done it. He didn't have many happy memories with them, but as he remembered them, he couldn't help but give a bitter smile.
As if the world itself knew how he felt, within minutes a sea of dark clouds covered the moon. Bit by bit, a light rain came to shower the forest.
For a moment, he once again thought about chasing after Silva and taking her back to the stone house, but within moments, he hesitated and stopped himself.
Instead, he opened up a spatial gate and returned to the place where the ship was docked.
When Emery returned to the shore, he proceeded to walk through the sandy beach approaching the stone house. His footsteps quickly alerted Annara of his arrival, who approached him. The red haired girl's expression told him she had something to talk about.
However, Emery was in no mood to talk with her or do anything. Still this didn't seem to faze her as she spoke anyway. He totally didn't expect the first sentence from her, making him suddenly stop.
"You did the right thing, you know… it's better to be honest about your feelings."
Emery was surprised. It appearsed that once again, Annara had sent her familiar to follow either him or Silva. Usually, he wouldn't be this enraged, but his irritation leaked from his expression. It has been a while since he could be this angry to someone.
In response, the girl took a step back and quickly apologized.
"I am sorry, really, I didn't mean to pry. I sent them to check where you are, there is something important going on."
Emery took a deep breath and calmed himself down. It was not the time to drown in his own problems
"What is it?"
"It's the wolf magus, something has changed with his condition."
When he heard that, Emery immediately dashed towards the house and went to the room where the wolf magus was kept.
As he opened the door, the first thing he saw was a mess of inky black liquid everywhere, even on the floor and walls. On the bed, root-like extensions made of the same black liquid covered his whole body, making him look like a twisted cocoon.
"What happened?"