“And that’s why you had no choice but to continue going to that shop.” Even though it was obvious he was only interested in her body, he was the only one who would give her a job. Still, thanks to the warning I’d given him, she’d be able to continue selling her mana there.
“I’m just afraid a tragic separation will befall Cuphea and Linum in their pursuit to become saints to help their family.”
“A tragedy, huh?” Hmm... What should I say? She had a point, but still...
“Sir Albert?”
“Edel, may I ask you a question as a holy knight?” All right. I’m just gonna speak my mind.
“G-Go ahead.”
“On the day you lost your partner, were you injured at all?”
Edel gave an apologetic look. “No... I alone returned unharmed.”
I knew it. She’s looking at this the wrong way. “That’s a wonderful thing.” She must have thought I was mocking her, as her usual gentle expression turned angry. “Your holy knight protected their holy woman. Is that correct?”
“Ah...” Her eyes went wide, and then she froze up.
“If I allowed my partner to escape unharmed, I could go into the afterlife with my head held high.” They had allowed a beautiful woman to escape the battlefield without a single injury. There was no greater deed as a holy knight. “I’d be upset if my partner felt guilty about being the only one to survive. I’d rather she be grateful that I saved her.”
It was perfectly understandable why what happened would be considered a tragedy. Someone had died. That was a sad thing. As the one who had survived, I could understand her sorrow. Nobody would rejoice after losing their partner. However, they had accomplished something they could take pride in as a holy knight. In this era, holy knights existed to protect their holy women, and Edel’s partner had done just that.
“Is that so?” Edel finally squeezed out a few words.
“I think you have a better idea than I do what your holy knight would say.” I was just giving my perspective as a holy knight. From the holy woman’s perspective, she surely wanted her partner to live. However, there were some situations where the only options were dying together or one person surviving on their own. No partner would want the one who lived on to drown in their depression for the rest of their life.
Edel remained silent for a while before finally laughing quietly. She had probably imagined what her partner would say—something that she couldn’t help but laugh at.
“Did you say something?”
Edel gave me an impish smile. “It’s a secret.”
“You’re gonna make me jealous.”
Edel giggled. “Again with your jokes.” I wasn’t joking. Sorry to her former partner, but I wanted to get closer to her. “You’re a strange man, Sir Albert.”
“Not a handsome one?”
Edel giggled again, brushing my comment off like an adult would. To her, I was still just a teenager. “I don’t think I would have gotten this emotional if anyone else had told me the same thing,” she said.
Normally you’d get angry when someone you didn’t know very well tried to tell you about your trauma, but there were exceptions. If the other person had been through the same thing, it was easier to open up to them. You might find their words strangely persuasive. I might have looked like an eighteen-year-old kid, but I’d lived over three centuries. She’d also just found out that I’d lost my father, and I’d experienced battle during the hands-on training. She had probably perceived what I’d said as the words of a young man who’d experienced loss, rather than the words of a kid who didn’t know anything about the world.
“I’m glad you don’t just see me as some brat lecturing you.”
“I’ve been punishing myself deep in my heart for so long. I never thought about what that person would have wanted. Maybe I could have imagined it, but I dismissed it as just being self-serving.” Immediately turning around after your partner’s death and deciding to enjoy the life they had saved was probably a little too positive. Everyone needed time to mourn, and everyone was different in how long it took for them to come to terms with a death. “You’re right. I should be grateful for the life I still have.”
This conversation wouldn’t suddenly make her overcome her past, but I hoped it would at least lighten her heart a little. A beautiful woman was a beautiful woman, melancholy or not, but a smile should be bright and cheerful.
“If it were me, I’d be happy to hear that.” A certain girl suddenly popped into my head—the holy woman Nemophila of Blizzard. What I’d just said to Edel also applied to her. When Edel had lost her partner, her grief had stripped her of her magic. When Nemophila had lost her partner, her desire for revenge had led her to free one of the Twelve Corpses. What they had done was different, but the cause was the same.
If she could confront the feelings of the partner who had sacrificed their life to protect her, maybe there was still a chance for her to change. The question was whether my words would reach her or not. I’d only managed to reach Edel because the circumstances had aligned favorably.
“Sir Albert?” Edel looked at me curiously as I was lost in thought.
“Oh, sorry. About what you said earlier. It’s natural for you to be worried about Cuphea and Linum as their mother figure, but you might consider telling them that yourself.”
“Maybe you’re right. They never asked about my past out of consideration, but maybe it’s because we care about each other that I should tell them my experience. That way we can support each other. This conversation has changed my perspective on things.” Of course, both of them coming home safely was still the optimal outcome.
“They have Lady Astrantia and me with them as well. We even have some new allies.”
“Your squad, right? I hope you’ll continue to take care of them, Sir Albert.” Edel bowed deeply.
“Of course.”
“And also...” Edel fidgeted nervously when I looked at her.
“What is it?”
“Um... Would you be willing to listen to me again sometime?” Her cheeks were flushed, and there was a hint of moisture in her eyes.
“If you’ll have me, I’ll be happy to.” In the end, it seemed like I’d managed to close the distance between us a little. It wasn’t what I’d planned, but days like this certainly weren’t bad.