My next stop was Leo's room. Even while Leo and I were gone, Finne and the rest of the group spent the majority of their time operating out of there.
I was standing in the room waiting for Finne when she and Lynphia returned together, apparently having just finished a discussion with some of our supporters.
"Oh! M-Master Silver?!"
"Silver..."
"Hello there, Lady Finne. We need to have a little chat."
"O-okay..."
I turned my gaze to Lynphia next. She naturally assumed she'd be included in our conversation, but that couldn't happen.
"You're the adventurer I met in the Kleinerts' territory. Would you mind waiting outside for a minute?"
"I'm honored that you even remember me. But I'm afraid I cannot comply. I am currently acting as her bodyguard."
"I want to talk to her alone. Please give us a few minutes."
"I don't mean any offense...but I cannot simply agree to let you be alone with her. Please understand."
Lynphia's unyielding stance was very reassuring. I couldn't have left Finne in her care if she'd easily let just anyone steal Finne from her sight. But in that particular instance, it was also a bother.
As I was wondering how to proceed, Sebas stepped in and solved the problem.
"In that case, I will accompany Lady Finne. I can assure you that you'll hardly even know I am there."
"...Fine."
"Miss Lynphia. Would you please wait for us in another room?"
"...If you say so, Sebas," Lynphia finally agreed, and left.
After making sure that she was gone, Sebas retired to the room next door. At last, it was just Finne and I alone.
"Welcome back. I assume you're here because of something that happened during your journey?"
"Well, there are definitely a lot of things that happened. But we'll talk about all that later."
"Huh? Why later?"
Finne cocked her head in apparent confusion. It didn't occur to her that I'd have something other than business from my trip to speak with her about. That, again, was due to how little she valued herself.
"I hear that you met with the representative of Demi-Humans Inc."
"Yes! The negotiations went wonderfully! The leader of the company was such a lovely woman, too," Finne responded with a bright smile. It hurt to look at her, and I knew the reason why. It was because it was like looking at my own warped reflection.
I had no regrets about any of the things I'd done. They had been necessary, and I wasn't about to change the way I lived my life. But at the same time, guilt began to stir inside of me at the realization that I'd made the people around me feel the same way Finne was making me feel at the moment.
"Listen, Finne. I know I'm not one to talk, and you might not like what I have to say, but I want you to hear me out."
"Yes?"
"I want you to treat yourself with more respect."
I knew I was being something of a hypocrite. Who knew how many times Leo had said the same thing to me? But I was exactly where I wanted to be. I wasn't deliberately undervaluing myself like Finne was.
I could easily imagine Finne's reaction to what I was about to say, but even so, it had to be said. Fully recognizing how harsh it would sound, I continued.
"It pains me to see you always putting yourself last. I know you're doing it out of a desire to help, but you don't have to be so extreme."
"B-but...I... I'm so useless to you..." Finne whispered back, her eyes wet with tears. Seeing her like that sowed the first seeds of regret.
I realized I hadn't been considerate enough with her. Instead, I'd assumed she'd been more or less okay since she never fussed or complained.
Finne had never even left her father's territory until she joined us. She had to have felt anxious being out in the capital. Despite that, she'd been desperate to be of service. And all along, I hadn't done anything to make her feel more confident or at ease. How many times had I taken her outside? How many times had I given her the opportunity to relax and have fun?
My mind had been occupied by the battle for the throne. To be honest, I'd been stressed out to my own limit, too.
I recalled something my mother said—that I was always working too hard. Those were her parting words to me when we met recently. At the time, I'd brushed them off, but maybe I had been pushing myself too hard.
I never had any time to rest. And I was beginning to realize, I should have made that time.
If our current, peculiar circumstances had continued indefinitely, I might have lost Finne for good.
"Finne... You're very special," I explained while taking off my silver mask. Finne and Sebas were the only ones I could let see me like that.
Sebas had known about my double identity from the beginning. That made Finne the only other person to have learned it.
"Master Arn..."
"You and Sebas are the only people I can show both sides of myself to. And Sebas is like a guardian to me. Like a parent who's constantly been there for me. That makes you the first non-family member to know about this. And from the moment you learned of my secret, you became like family to me. Just like Leo is my one and only brother, you are my one and only partner in this. You're irreplaceable. As long as you're here with me, I couldn't ask for more. You have no idea how much easier and happier it makes my life just having someone to share this secret with."
It was true. Ever since sharing my secret, the burden had become indescribably lighter. Maybe I'd taken her for granted. That thought increased my feelings of guilt.
"I-I...I'm not that special. I'm certainly not amazing like you and Master Leo. B-but since I know your secret...I need to help you somehow..."
"And you do, all the time. Thank you. And I'm sorry. I should've thanked you a long time ago."
Being needed was a source of joy for humans. And yet, I'd never expressed to Finne how much I needed her.
So that was why she'd been so anxious; knowing my secret had become a source of pressure for her.
That's why she'd steadily given more and more priority to anything that benefited our influence rather than giving it to herself. Because she'd seen that that made me happy. I felt disgusted with myself. Such realizations made me hate my personality.
Tears spilled from Finne's eyes upon hearing my gratitude, and they didn't stop. She covered her face with her hands and started to weep aloud.
She was still a sixteen-year-old girl. Even if it was done by her own will, the fact remained that she'd been taken from her home and involved in a conflict that came with the risk of assassination. I had an obligation to provide the mental and emotional care she needed.
"I hope you can forgive me. I let you down because of my own stress."
Finne choked on her tears as she struggled to reply.
"N-no...! It's not...your fault."
"Then let's say it's both of our faults. Perhaps we can forgive each other."
I gently stroked Finne's hair. She was my one and only partner. There was no reason we couldn't share our forgiveness as well as our joy.
I kept stroking her hair until her tears finally settled and she was able to speak calmly.
"I...I'm okay now."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes... I'm sure," she answered while looking me straight in the eye.