29 – Why are you

The wagon carrying Alan’s party leaves the station,

Raiden, Ariel, and Rachel are the only remaining stops.

“……”

The commotion was settled, and only heavy silence lingered at the bus stop.

Raiden was silent, only staring in the direction the wagon had disappeared.

Seeing that, Ariel hesitated and spoke to him.

“Here, brother…”

“yes?”

Raiden looks back at Ariel’s call.

He had a soft smile on his lips, as he usually did when he saw Ariel.

But Ariel couldn’t help but laugh at Raiden.

Even though he was smiling, his face looked infinitely sad.

Because those black eyes, like the night sky, were mixed with melted sadness.

Ariel unknowingly bit her lip.

Then he spoke in a voice like an ant crawling.

“I’m sorry… I suddenly stepped out…”

Ariel said that while lowering her head.

Raiden looked at Ariel for a moment, then smiled and stroked her hair.

“Suddenly, what an apology, whenever you protect your brother in a cool way.”

Saying that, Raiden tousled her red hair.

Raiden carved the soft texture of those red threads into his hand and said.

“Thank you, Ariel. for standing up for me.”

“……”

Ariel opened her mouth, closed it tightly, and nodded quietly.

Raiden petted Ariel a few more times as if she was cute.

“Still, don’t curse.”

Saying that, Raiden pulled Ariel’s slightly pouting cheek.

Following Raiden’s hand, Ariel’s cheeks grew longer.

“Byeee…”

“You should only say good things, will you get scolded if you say such bad things in the future?”

“uuu…”

Because her cheeks were being pulled, Ariel answered while slurring her pronunciation.

Raiden felt that Ariel was fun, so he stretched out the ball he was holding in his hand.

“uuu…”

“No, I’ll do a little more.”

“Aww…”

So when Raiden was fiddling with Ariel’s cheeks,

Students started snooping around the bus stop.

The raucous sound of the sword of grief drew attention.

“What, what? What’s up?”

“There is a loud noise here…”

“Isn’t something like yesterday…?”

Students buzzing around looking for the source of the sound.

The eyes of the students looked around this place and soon reached a boy standing at the carriage stop.

A boy with jet-black hair and eyes.

At the time of the banquet hall terror attack yesterday, it was the boy who was drenched in blood and smiling eerily.

“Hee-ik…!”

“Hey, hey, hurry up! Hurry up…!!”

“Don’t make eye contact…!”

When the children make eye contact with Raiden standing at the station,

Frightened, he hurriedly left the place.

“……”

Raiden stopped pulling Ariel’s cheeks and stared blankly at him.

Moving as if running away, the eyes looking at him,

For some reason, along with the thought that it resembles the blue eyes that were staring at her while riding in the carriage just before.

.

.

.

“Mmm…”

Inside the moving carriage, Lucy, who was looking out the window, quietly drooled.

Even in the rattling carriage, the figure of her sitting quietly without disturbing the slightest bit,

It seemed to show her dignity as the first princess of the empire.

“So sister, how did it go…”

“Yes……”

Lucy reacts roughly to her younger brother who is talking next to her.

I looked out the window at the scenery passing by.

It’s a pity for the younger brother who was talking happily, but now no sound came into Lucy’s ears.

It was because the thoughts in my head were cluttered and it was difficult to think of anything else.

And, of course, that messy mess of thoughts,

Her thoughts were about Raiden Lisitt, her former best friend and knight.

“……”

Lucy calmly organized the messy thoughts in her head.

But the thoughts scattered in my head,

Like pieces of a puzzle that don’t fit together, they don’t fit together.

Lucy’s thoughts are not organized and her mind is becoming more complicated.

As she sighed several times, a scene came to her mind.

It was a scene from the raid on the banquet hall yesterday.

.

.

A boy wearing a mask suddenly appeared in front of her while she was talking with her brother in the center of the banquet hall.

The boy pushed him and his brother over, and instead hit them with an arrow that was flying towards them.

ㅡf*ck! Bububuk!

Arrows pierced the boy’s belly with a groaning sound.

The boy frowned at him, coughing up blood from his mouth.

While Lucy was so shocked that she couldn’t even scream,

The boy took out something like a potion from his clothes, swallowed it, and approached her.

The boy said in a soft voice, examining her and her brother.

“It doesn’t look like you’re hurt. Fortunately, the.”

Lucy looks up at the boy in a daze while lying on her face, due to her lack of understanding of the situation.

The white mask covering the boy’s face was half peeled off, probably because he moved violently.

Lucy, who was confused by the sudden terror,

Looking at the face revealed through the mask, I felt my head go blank even more.

The boy’s face revealed through the peeling mask,

Because it was a familiar, very familiar face.

“Raiden?”

As she blankly muttered the name of the boy in front of her eyes,

A little taken aback, the boy soon realizes that his mask has been removed.

He smiled awkwardly and threw the mask to the floor.

“It’s dangerous, so keep quiet, Princess.”

After saying that, the boy turned his back and stopped the assailants.

.

.

He saved himself and his brother.

He hit the flying arrows instead.

Using expensive protection magic, he protected himself.

Against as many as 10 assailants, he fought against them to protect himself.

He fought until his whole body was covered in rags and blood.

……

…why?

Why did you do that for me…?

why…?

Wasn’t it already wrong between me and him?

ㅡA promise? Oh, you mean that childhood prank. I hope you remember that. It’s been a long time since I completely forgot all about it.

Since I heard that, my relationship with him has become worse than others.

why did you save me?

Lucy recalled Raiden smiling softly, saying she was glad she wasn’t hurt.

That smile that pops up in my head makes my heart complicated, heavy,

Also, it made me sick.

she quietly muttered to herself.

Raiden, why did you protect me?

Our relationship was torn and split without mercy.

And it was none other than you who made our relationship like that.

ㅡA knight’s oath? Ha ha ha! Did you take it seriously?

Saying that, mocking me, laughing at me,

—-I’m glad you weren’t hurt.

Why did you come to protect me?

—-Raiden… I’m scared…

—-Raiden… I miss you…

when i need you,

When I call your name alone in the room.

—-Where are you… Raiden…

The time when I couldn’t erase your existence even after hearing those words from you, so I covered myself with a blanket and shed tears.

You suddenly disappeared, never appearing in front of me,

why did you fight for me

The question existed, but the answer did not exist.

Lucy, who was repeating meaningless questions, bit her lips tightly and lowered her head.

My heart was numb.

If he has no other purpose,

If you threw your body purely to save yourself,

What reaction should he show?

What kind of expression should I make when I see him, and how should I act?

She hasn’t made up her mind yet.

That’s why, when her eyes met him while riding in the carriage earlier, Lucy just averted her eyes.

Lucy muttered to herself as she recalled that time.

‘But… I should have said thank you…’

Lucy pressed down her frustrated heart and moved her gaze out the window again.

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.

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Inside the carriage with Raiden, Ariel and Rachel.

-Rumble, squeak…

With a slight shaking, the running carriage stopped.

The coachman who was driving the wagon got off his seat and opened the wagon door.

Then he lowered his head slightly and said.

“I have arrived at the boys’ dormitory.”

“Ah yes…”

At those words, Raiden, who had been putting on a dazed expression until just now, stood up.

After tidying up his clothes, he got off the carriage and greeted Ariel.

“I’ll go first, Ariel.”

“Yeah… see you tomorrow, oppa…”

When Raiden got off the carriage, Rachel, who was sitting next to Ariel, also stood up.

“Well then, see you later, lady.”

“Wait… Rachel.”

Ariel gently grabbed Rachel’s hand as she tried to follow Raiden out of the carriage.

Then, as if he had something to say, he opened his mouth.

Realizing what she was about to say, Rachel smiled and said.

“Don’t worry, Bocchan, I’m here.”

“yes……”

Ariel seemed to be worried about Raiden, who had a bad expression, ever since the incident.

Rachel stroked Ariel’s hair as if she was proud of her.

“You’ve grown up so beautifully, my lady…”

“What is it… You’re only a year older than me…”

While saying that, Ariel receives Rachel’s touch.

“You’ll be fine, Bocchan, don’t worry.”

Rachel gave Ariel a pat on the shoulder and left the carriage.

ㅡKikkiik, Tak!

Rachel gets out, the door closes, and the carriage starts running again.

Ariel thought of Raiden in the rattling carriage.

‘Brother… is it okay…?’

The expression Raiden was making in the carriage back to the dormitory after the incident.

it’s clear

‘—-He looked hurt…but…’

Ariel quietly turned her head and looked at the boys’ dormitory, which was moving away.

Worried feelings crept up, but Ariel struggled to suppress them.

‘Because I have Rachel…’

Ariel thought so, and prayed that Rachel would ease Raiden’s heart.