Night had finally given way to morning, and the sun was slowly rising.
After the attack on the fortress, Meila had been busy with military affairs, and so had Arturia.
I hadn’t seen either of them since I regained consciousness.
For now, I was simply standing on top of the defensive wall, which was still filthy from the remnants of the battle.
I had come here to watch the sunrise.
“Val?” I heard someone from beside me.
Arturia was standing there, slowly approaching me.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“I thought you were dead.
So it really was you who saved me from the Nullifer back then.” I still remembered when she had been unable to move in front of that lizard.
I had arrived and diverted its attention.
“Yeah, that was me.
Are you doing all right?” “…I’m fine.” Even though she said that, her face told me otherwise.
She looked as if she were carrying a heavy burden in her mind.
“That’s good.
The Captain of Division 13 really is impressive.” I tried to encourage her.
She lowered her head slightly and looked toward the rising sun.
“…No.
I’m not that impressive.” It seemed like her morale had taken a serious hit.
I could understand.
So many people had died, and I was sure she probably recognized some of the victims.
“Would you like to hear my story?” “If I may ask, why do you want me to be the one to listen?” “….I don’t know.
Maybe because you’re a stranger who doesn’t really know me.” She had a point.
Did she want to tell me about her life?
Maybe there were things about herself that she didn’t want to tell the people closest to her, so she chose me instead.
I understood.
Sometimes, I used to tell an AI I could talk to about my old life on Earth.
The reason was simple.
The AI didn’t know me or understand anything about my life.
“All right.
I’ll listen.” “Thank you.” She smiled at me.
“Actually, I’m a mage.” I hadn’t expected it, but when I found out that Meila was a mage, I had briefly wondered if Arturia might be one as well.
Apparently, I was right.
“Or perhaps it’s more accurate to say that I’m a defective mage.” “Hm?
Why do you say that?” “Sometimes, mages are born without the ability to use their powers at all.
It’s usually accompanied by unusual physical characteristics, but they have no abilities to go along with them.
Because of that, they’re sometimes called defective mages.
I’m one of them.” “I was born into a noble family.
At first, my family was happy that I had been born a mage.
But when they realized that I couldn’t use my abilities, they treated me as if I didn’t exist.” This was the first time I’d heard about something like this.
Apparently, there really was such a thing as a defective mage.
“You said they were born with unusual physical characteristics.
Do you have one?” “Yes.
I have black cracks across my body.
I’m sorry, but I can’t show them to you.” “All right.
I understand.” “Because of that, I was often treated like a cripple.
Even so, I kept trying to make them see me as a normal person.
I tried everything.
I trained my body until I became a soldier.
But whenever people found out that I was defective, they immediately looked down on me.” “Even after I became a division captain because of my achievements, my family still acted as if I didn’t exist.” “What about Meila?” “I never told her.
I always tried to be strict and maintain my image as a leader around other people.” “I’ve always thought that I wasn’t good enough as a captain.
I feel guilty whenever one of my subordinates dies under my command.” “I never became a division captain because I wanted to achieve something.
I only wanted my family to notice me.” “They wanted to use me in a political marriage from the moment I was born.
But after they discovered that I was defective, they stopped considering me altogether.” She leaned against the railing of the defensive wall.
“Actually, I just want to live peacefully.
I never intended to join the military in the first place.” “I’m a coward.
I’m terrified of death.” “Whenever I see corpses, all I can think about is going home, even though I know that no one would be waiting for me when I got there.” I needed to say something.
There were several things I wanted to correct in what she had said.
“Wanting to be acknowledged by others is a strong desire.
Everyone has different reasons for climbing the ladder—money, status, or even a partner.” “You don’t need to belittle your own desire.” I leaned against the railing as well.
“As a human being, it’s perfectly normal to be a coward.
Fear is part of being human.” “Anyone who decides to become a soldier already understands the risk of death.
And I’m sure they’re afraid too.” Arturia looked at me.
“You’re afraid too?” “Yes.
Sometimes, I’m afraid too.” “I’m not convinced.” She continued staring at my face.
“I don’t show much emotion, but I can still feel fear inside.” “I see.” Arturia continued observing me.
“I also want to live peacefully, but circumstances forced me into this place.
All I can do is fight for my own interests.” I looked at Arturia with a faint smile.
“And you don’t need to worry about finding a partner either.
You’re beautiful.
I’m sure someone will fall in love with you someday.” She fell silent for a moment.
Her face slowly turned red, and she looked away.
“Ahem.
I only wanted you to listen to my story, not flirt with me.” “I’m not flirting.
I’m just telling you the truth and saying what I think you need to hear.” I hadn’t said anything wrong.
I was simply correcting some of the things she’d said to me.
And honestly, Arturia really was a beautiful woman.
For some reason, though, she looked embarrassed and flustered.
“Well, well.
You’re quite the bold man, aren’t you?” Meila appeared from behind Arturia with her usual smile.
There were bandages wrapped around various parts of her body.
I could see them despite being partially covered by her clothes.
“M-Meila?” Arturia clearly hadn’t expected her to appear.
“What Val said is true.
Arturia, you don’t need to put yourself down that much.
I’ve known about your condition for a long time, and it never really bothered me.” “But because of it, I’m not strong enough.
And because of that, so many people died.” Arturia hugged herself.
Meila placed both hands on Arturia’s cheeks.
“Listen.
Don’t focus on what’s wrong with you.
Focus on what’s important to you.” “Thinking about your problems and shortcomings won’t make you happy.” Arturia sighed.
“All right, Meila.
Thank you.” “And besides, you’re beautiful.
Even Val said so, so you don’t need to worry about finding a partner.” “All right.
I understand.” Arturia removed Meila’s hands from her cheeks.
Meila chuckled softly.
“Arturia, go get some rest.
The transportation from the capital will be arriving soon.
You’ll be going to the capital to report what happened.” “I understand.” Arturia left, leaving Meila and me alone.
“All right, Val.
Now it’s just the two of us.
I want to talk about yesterday.” I had a bad feeling about this.
Did she want an explanation about my abilities?
I didn’t even understand my own abilities, so there was no point in asking me about them.
More importantly, if word about my abilities spread, wouldn’t that cause a lot of problems?
I didn’t want to get involved with mages or the government any further.
I just wanted to live without getting caught up in problems like I had originally planned.
Meila remained silent for a while, making me a little nervous.
“You’re human, right?” She asked me a simple question.
“Isn’t that obvious?” “Can I confirm it myself?” Confirm it?
Did she want to see whether my blood was still red?
Or perhaps she wanted to examine the inside of my body?
“How?” Meila suddenly stepped closer and hugged me from the front, pressing her head against my chest for quite some time.
I had no idea why she suddenly did that.
Eventually, Meila released me.
“What are you doing?” “Checking whether your heart is beating.
I’ve got my answer.
You’re human.” “Couldn’t you have done that another way?” She could have simply checked the pulse in my neck or wrist.
“I also wanted to repay you for yesterday.
You helped us and saved Arturia.” Meila smiled and stepped backward.
“As for what happened yesterday, I’ll keep your abilities out of my report.
So don’t worry.” Meila touched her lips with her index finger while smiling.
“This will be our little secret.” She’s incredible.
She figured out that I wanted to keep my abilities hidden without me even saying it.
She really was a terrifying woman hiding behind that sweet smile.