I Can’t Run Away From the Girl Who Saved Me

121 – Persuasion (5)

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It was clear that it would not be long before daybreak, but there was no need to spend time out in the cold, so Sylvia, Alice, and I came into the cabin.

Of course, that didn’t mean we went to bed or anything.

I was trying hard to keep my eyes open so I could see off my older sister Alice who was leaving soon.

Alice, who was sure that she would have to walk quite a distance herself, even if she had to get a horse or carriage along the way, was tapping out her dented iron boots.

And Sylvia was helping her sister Alice by pressing down on her boots and gauntlets.

When I saw the two women really spreading that thick lump of iron, I realized once again how bold my statement was.

Going to the Demon King’s castle was something that even those two people who could easily bend and straighten a lump of iron with their hands were reluctant to do and afraid of.

In the eyes of those two, my statement that I was going to kill the Demon King must have sounded like nothing more than childish nonsense.

But in the end, they decided to follow my opinion, or rather my stubbornness.

In fact, the two of them were constantly talking, their hands moving busily, and the topic was all about my training.

What are the minimum standards, how much change is possible in a month, how much physical enhancement using magic should be allowed, what is the intensity and content of the training, etc.

The sight of the two women seriously discussing their opinions was so calm that it felt like a lie that they had been growling just a moment ago.

“That training method is definitely effective, but Ash won’t be able to endure it.”

“I told you to take responsibility for what I said. You have to control the intensity yourself so that no one gets killed.”

“I know, but I don’t know how to do that.”

“…Well, since your time at the Academy, there have been rumors going around that you don’t know how to do things properly.”

“I won’t die, because I can heal you with my divine powers, although not as much as you.”

“Don’t let me see you. You might become weak-hearted…”

“…”

“Ha, what am I saying? There’s no way Sylvia, holding a sword, would notice.”

I don’t know for sure, but just hearing it made my spine tingle.

Of course, since it was something I suggested, I had no intention of avoiding the training just because it was hard and painful, but still, listening to that kind of conversation going on, it was hard to predict what would happen in the next month.

I broke out in a cold sweat and quickly looked away.

And then I decided not to focus on their conversation anymore.

However, contrary to my will, scary and fearful words kept whispering into my ears, which had become very sensitive from fear.

“You can’t let me vomit.”

“I know, if it doesn’t make you throw up, what kind of training is that?”

“Yeah, I knew you’d say that.”

Oh, Layla.

I think my brother is fucked.

＊

Finally, a faint blue light began to appear in the forest sky.

Although the air outside was still a deep blue, Sister Alice was already almost ready to go out.

She was finally sitting in front of the campfire inside the cabin, warming herself by the fire and making a simple torch.

I opened my mouth quietly as I watched my sister tying a cloth around a thick branch she had brought from outside.

“Sister.”

“why.”

“…Are you angry?”

“…”

My sister didn’t answer.

Anyone who saw it could tell that it was unpleasant.

I opened my mouth carefully again.

“I know I’m not pretty… but,”

“I was surprised by your loud voice telling me to go catch the Demon King, but I wasn’t angry at you because of that.”

“… uh?”

“Anyway, Ash, the fact that you’re alive is nothing short of a miracle. I don’t think anything would be that surprising.”

“…”

My sister tied the cloth tightly, took some rosin powder out of her pocket, and began to apply it to the cloth.

My older sister, who moved her hands so familiarly as if she had done it several times before, felt very unfamiliar to me for some reason.

As I talked to her, I could clearly feel that she was truly my older sister Alice, who had been with me during my childhood, but at the same time, I also felt how much time had passed without us sharing it.

Even the sight of her skillfully making a makeshift torch made me realize once again the days she lived in that I didn’t know about.

As I was staring at my sister, she asked me in a low voice.

“…Do I look angry?”

“uh?”

“Do you think I’m angry?”

“…huh”

My sister pursed her lips tightly.

It seemed like she was trying to hold back a sigh, but the sigh she let out was a long exhale from her nose.

Slowly putting the completed torch aside, my sister looked at me.

“I’m not angry.”

“okay?”

“Why would I be angry?”

I bowed my head to my sister’s question.

“…I said let’s go catch the Demon King without even knowing the topic, right?”

“I was worried about you, not angry. I was so happy to meet you in the first place, so there’s no way I could be angry at you.”

“… Then is it because of Sylvia? Because you don’t like having to move together?”

Sister Alice shook her head and muttered, ‘I told you I’m not angry.’

Then he looked straight at me and said.

“To be clear, I hate that woman Sylvia.”

“Yeah… I know. I understand why you don’t like it… and I wouldn’t be able to forgive someone who hurt me that easily either.”

“no,”

My sister continued speaking with a slight snort.

“You don’t know. You don’t understand. Much more than you think. I hate Sylvia.”

There was a clear hatred and deep contempt in my sister’s eyes.

I said, slightly embarrassed.

“Still… we were having a nice conversation until just a little while ago.”

“Because I had something to do.”

Sylvia had gone out a few minutes ago to cut down trees, saying she needed a large open space within the lakeside.

Sister Alice muttered, looking at the door of the cabin through which Sylvia had left.

“Sylvia probably hates me too,”

“Reconciliation…”

“That won’t happen.”

“…”

I kept my mouth shut at Sister Alice’s resolute response.

It was as if the sharp rejection was telling me not to even dream, and I could feel it vividly on my skin.

But I think that reconciliation between the two was absolutely necessary.

How can we entrust our lives to each other if we don’t trust each other?

I mustered up my courage and opened my mouth again.

“The journey to catch the Demon King… You said it would be dangerous, that I could die… How could I trust my back to someone I hate? My sister… And Sylvia…”

“I can leave it to you.”

“uh?”

Sister Alice insisted firmly again.

“Of course I hate Sylvia. But I can leave it to you.”

“how…?”

Only then did Sister Alice let out a sigh.

“…Ash, do you know why I wanted to join the warrior party?”

“Well…? I can’t just stand by and watch the citizens living in fear…”

“It was because of Maria.”

I nodded when Sister Maria’s name was mentioned.

Certainly, she had strongly rebuked Sylvia several times for her sister Maria’s death.

“I thought Maria’s great talent would definitely make her a key member of the warrior party. I thought I had to join the warrior party to stay by Maria’s side… Of course, it was impossible with my meager strength…”

A moist voice with a hint of sadness, in contrast to the calm expression.

I had a feeling that the reason she hated Sylvia might have more to do with the fact that she couldn’t protect her sister Maria than with the fact that she had destroyed her own body.

And of course, her self-reproach for not being able to join the warrior party and protect Sister Maria was also probably making it difficult for her to easily reconcile with Sylvia.

Sister Alice said, closing her eyes tightly.

“But… that’s why I can leave it to you. Because I know how strong you are. Strong enough to be by Maria’s side, no, strong enough to have Maria by your side.”

“Sister…”

It seemed to me a truly bizarre trust.

Even though I resent that I couldn’t protect Sister Maria, I trust the person who was able to protect Sister Maria.

No, what Sister Alice trusted was not the person named Sylvia, but rather her power and role.

She evaluates Sylvia not as a trustworthy person, but as a trustworthy person with trustworthy skills.

And of course, the same would be true of Sylvia’s gaze towards her older sister Alice.

Certainly, when Sister Alice brought up the subject of training me.

Sylvia understood what Alice was saying without her having to explain it in detail.

This means that even though these two people hate each other so much, they have something in common even without saying a word.

A world of the strong, where I cannot even smell a fragment of its scent.

But I really felt sorry about the relationship between these two.

It must be because they are both precious people to me, and there are not many of them left in this world.

“I understand, but… why did Sylvia… do that to you…”

“…what?”

“Of course, it’s hard to be kind to someone who hates you, but Sylvia must be the one who feels sorry for her sister… Why does she treat her sister so badly…”

“Hey, look at this.”

“…?”

Sister Alice shrugged her shoulders as if she found it ridiculous.

“It’s obvious it’s because of you.”

“huh?”

I looked at Sister Alice, slightly surprised by the sudden nomination.

My older sister looked at my face like that and laughed in vain.

“You don’t like me being your fiancé.”

Yeah, Sylvia definitely said that too.

But now that I’ve received a proposal, isn’t it a little different?

“And I also, because of you, Sylvia…”

“huh?”

“…No, that’s fine.”

Sister Alice shook her head, picked up the torch she had made, and slowly got up from her seat.

“Are you going to go now?”

“huh.”

My sister answered briefly, brought a torch to the campfire, and lit it.

As soon as she left these forests, a very busy month would begin.

I’m probably pretty busy with training, but the one who has to move the busiest among us is my older sister Alice.

I need to get armor, a sword, and other supplies for the adventure, and I’ll also look up information about the Demon King once again.

And you’ll probably also be looking for information on spirit magicians.

It’s obvious that there won’t be much to gain by digging into the truth of a story that is practically a fairy tale…

“…for a moment,”

At that moment, a thought flashed through my mind.

“Ash? What’s wrong?”

“Sister, this might be a waste of time, but… I just thought of something that might give me a clue.”

“… say it.”

I pressed my temples, which were starting to hurt from the complicated thoughts, and said a name.

“…Malis.”

“Malis? Are you talking about the wise Malis? The wizard from the history books?”

I nodded and continued.

“That guy. He was actually a spirit wizard. His feats like building a castle in one night and such weren’t magic.”

“This is a fact that would make magicians faint if they knew.”

“I don’t know if it will help, but it might be quicker to look into Malice than to search the bare ground for spirit sorcerers… although it might be a waste of time…”

“…hmm,”

Sister Alice rested her chin on her empty hand and pondered, but soon nodded.

“No, thanks for the heads up. It’s better than having no clues at all. I’ll check out Malice’s side too.”

“Won’t you run out of time?”

“It’s okay. There’s someone who can help you.”

“… Anyone want to help?”

“Yeah, you know… Oh, right.”

Sister Alice opened her mouth as if she remembered something.

“Ash, by the way, there was something I wanted to ask you. I never thought I’d actually meet you, so I forgot about it until now…”

“Huh? What is it?”

Sister Alice looked back at me with a very serious expression and asked slowly.

“What happened to Mr. Hardy?”

A familiar name that had been buried in a corner of my mind came out.

Mr. Hardy.

The coachman who drove my carriage and Laila’s.

“ah…”

I couldn’t bring myself to answer and could only manage a short sigh.

Sister Alice decided that was enough and turned her head away without asking me any more questions.

“I’ll tell Eric.”

“…Brother Eric?”

“how are you.”

Sister Alice answered before I could ask.

It seemed like he had decided that if he continued to prolong the conversation, it would never end.

My sister opened the door to the cabin and went out.

Before I knew it, the world that had been a deep blue had brightened to a light blue.

“Phew, then. I’ll go and come back.”

I said as I followed after Sister Alice.

“Take care.”

“You should be careful. It’s probably so hard that you’ll want to die.”

Sister Alice smiled mischievously and ruffled my hair with her hand.

There was something so good about the rough yet gentle feel of her fingers running through my hair.

It was a strange feeling.

It’s like you didn’t know you wanted it, but after doing it you realize you had wanted it for a long time.

I had no idea that I was missing that touch, but when my sister’s hand stroked my head, an old nostalgia began to bloom and a mysterious sense of satisfaction spread through my chest.

I quietly enjoyed that touch.

Maybe Sister Alice is feeling the same way as I am right now.

Her hands ran through my hair for quite some time.

After a while, my older sister slowly removed her hand and spoke slowly.

“I’m really going now.”

“… I was so happy to see you again, sister. Really.”

“me too,”

Sister Alice’s bright smile was reflected in the light of the flickering torch.

My sister slowly turned around and walked forward.

And then, without even looking back, he slowly disappeared into the bushes.

“…”

“Have you finished talking?”

“Eww, that’s a surprise!”

Startled by the sudden voice, I turned around and saw Sylvia right in front of me.

“I was surprised!”

“uh?”

“why?”

“This time you’re using formal language again.”

“…”

Sylvia smiled faintly.

It was a smile that looked very ominous for some reason.

“Just decide whether you will use formal or informal speech.”

“…What do you like better…?”

Sylvia answered immediately.

“Both are good, but I still like informal speech a little better.”

“Okay, then…”

“But not now.”

“…?”

Sylvia was holding a thin, twig-like branch in her hand.

She slowly pointed at me with the branch and said.

“For the next month, at least while I’m training, please be polite to me.”

It was a reasonable request.

For the next month, she will be my teacher and instructor.

I nodded and said.

“I will. Oh, by the way, when did you start training…”

“Huh huh,”

Sylvia stretched out her arm so quickly that it was almost invisible, and stabbed me in the chest with the tip of a branch.

“That’s right,”

Before I could even finish my words, I was blown backwards.

It definitely felt like my chest was being pierced by a large stake.

Sylvia spoke to me as I fell to the floor and rolled around.

“From now on.”

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