...?
Did this an that I had beco soone precious to Cruello?
For a mont, my words caught in my throat, but I forced my lips to move.
There was sothing more important to address first.
“I’m not dead. You can see for yourself—it was just a aningless illusion.”
“...You’re right. I can hear your heartbeat, you’re warm, and you’re talking to .”
His state didn’t seem quite right.
Siora. He called my na again.
Gone was his usual playful way of addressing . Instead, my na sounded strangely unfamiliar coming from him.
“Have you ever lost soone important to you?”
“...What?”
“Probably not. You once said that even when you lost your parents, you weren’t that sad. And before you went to the Bonetti family, it didn’t seem like you had anyone close to you.”
“...”
“I’ve lost people. Many tis.”
So this was where the conversation was going.
I kept silent as Cruello let out a long breath.
The warmth of his shoulder against mine made flinch slightly.
“You can probably guess how that feels. Rember how anxious you were about Gavotte Bonetti possibly dying? But when it actually happens... it’s not what you’d expect. It’s much... worse.”
“I—”
“And when it happens repeatedly, it becos unbearable. Death starts to feel heavier than life itself.”
His voice was calm, but there was a suffocating weight to it that dragged at my emotions.
The death of a loved one.
The death of parents.
I knew that feeling. I knew it too well.
Maybe it was the lingering effect of the mist, or maybe it was the way his words resonated with , but—
mories I had buried began to surface.
The gears in my mind, rusted from disuse, started to turn.
"Hey, kid, you might not be the youngest anymore. I’m pregnant. I’m carrying Chase’s child."
"Lina? Chase! What—what happened? Mother, sothing’s wrong with everyone! The blood... what is that black—"
"It’s just you now."
"Pebula, please. Bring back the senior devotees. I can’t survive alone."
"Pebula, please. Bring back those who were unjustly taken."
"Pebula, Pebula."
"..."
"Have you been praying uselessly again?"
"You took up the sword again... Do you still have people left to kill?"
"It was necessary—to ensure you are the last true devotee."
"You don’t cry anymore."
"You’ll be excommunicated. Taking your own lives is against doctrine."
"That doesn’t matter. If it ans you—"
I don’t want to rember. My head hurts.
I squeezed my eyes shut and lowered my head.
Taking a deep, steadying breath, I forced down the emotions rising inside .
Cruello continued speaking.
“You once told you didn’t want to revive Pebula’s faith. That you preferred to let it fade naturally. Back then, I thought those words were admirable. But now, I’m jealous. I... don’t have that choice.”
“What are you trying to say?”
Siora.
Finally, he released from his embrace.
Holding my shoulders, he gently pushed back to look in the eyes.
His gaze was dark, heavy with unspoken emotions.
“Do you value your life so little?”
“...What?”
“You risked yourself during the Harvest Festival to save a divine beast that had nothing to do with you. At first, I thought it was just the stubborn altruism of a priest.”
That was only because I had received a revelation.
But before I could refute him, he continued.
“You didn’t even flinch when I told you to act as bait. You arrived just before falling off Qudil’s carriage, and yet you weren’t the least bit anxious. When you beca Ares’s target, when Count Bonetti tried to kill you—you acted like none of it mattered.”
“I—”
“You risked your life for a younger brother you only t a few months ago. You knew overusing divine energy was dangerous, yet you kept spending it recklessly for the sake of strangers.”
“...”
“When I was caught in that illusion and nearly killed you, you brushed it off with a few clever words. It’s happened so many tis I’ve lost count.”
Ah.
“One day, I realized sothing.”
Cruello’s voice dropped lower.
“Siora Bonetti’s life is lighter than anyone else’s. Sotis, it’s even an afterthought compared to my own curiosity.”
“Cruello.”
“That’s not altruism—it’s selfishness.”
A small, dry laugh escaped .
Of course.
I wasn’t really Siora Bonetti.
Even if she died, that wouldn’t an my death.
There were tis—like during the fight against Elin—when I thought otherwise. But in most cases, I had been safer than anyone else.
From his perspective, though... I must have seed recklessly naive.
It wasn’t a pleasant thought.
Still, I couldn’t get angry at him for worrying about .
Taking a mont to compose myself, I decided to change the subject.
I placed the key I had picked up into his hand and said,
“Let’s not get so serious. We’re almost done collecting the keys anyway, so what’s the big deal?”
“...You talk as if collecting keys is your life’s purpose.”
“Co on, Cruello.”
“You make it sound like everything ends once Morion is dealt with.”
“I’m just saying there won’t be any more dangers after that. It’s not like everything will be over. I still haven’t spent all the money I’ve saved.”
“Your real goal is to destroy Morion, isn’t it? That will require more divine energy than anything you’ve used so far. There’s a real chance you could die.”
My body tensed involuntarily.
It wasn’t sothing I could deny.
Even against Elin, I had pushed myself to the brink of death. If luck hadn’t been on my side, I wouldn’t have won.
Elin had lived for 200 years, and she had been difficult enough.
What about Morion—an entity ford from centuries upon centuries of accumulated energy?
Cruello had struck at a weakness I hadn’t voiced aloud.
For once, my normally sharp tongue failed .
While I remained silent, his gaze grew heavier.
So, in an attempt to lighten the mood, I blurted out,
“...So what? Does that put you at a disadvantage sohow?”
“...”
“As a partner with the sa goal, if I’m that committed, you should be grateful.”
Siora.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
“What I an is... Cruello, you’re overly concerned about my life. We’ve only known each other for a few months. Is there really a reason for you to care this much?”
“I like you.”
“...Wha—what?”
That single sentence turned my entire argunt, my thoughts, and my emotions into a complete blank slate.
“I like you, Siora.”
The words ca again, even clearer this ti, before I could even begin to process them.
Wait.
What—what?
My brain felt like it had completely shut down.
Cruello... likes ?
Was he serious?
Why?
What did I do?
Questions swirled endlessly in my head, spinning around without an answer.
“I’m not asking you to accept it, so don’t worry about it.”
“How can I not worry about this?!”
“Exactly, how could I not care?”
Cruello smiled faintly.
The tension had lifted slightly compared to before, but I couldn’t welco it.
“I’m afraid of losing soone I care about. If it happens one more ti, I think I’ll completely lose myself.”
“...Ah.”
“But just saying that out loud won’t change anything. You’re not going to abandon your goal of destroying Morion either.”
Well, of course not.
I hadn’t ant for that thought to show on my face, but from the way he gave a wry smile, I must have.
I quickly tried to school my expression, but it was too late.
“That’s why you don’t have to accept anything. I’ll take care of my feelings myself.”
Cruello had seen die in that illusion.
And because of that, I couldn’t find the words to respond.
He must have noticed, because he gave so ti to think in silence.
Alright, okay.
Let’s confirm sothing first.
“...When you say you like , you an romantically? Not as a partner or a friend?”
“Does the distinction matter?”
“Of course it does! The way you’re saying it, it doesn’t sound like you ant it that way. Are you ssing with right now?”
“I’m not.”
Like hell you’re not!
How could he drop a bomb like that and expect to just—!
Just as I was about to explode, he grabbed my face and pulled closer.
Uh—
Before I could react, I felt sothing press against the area just below my nose.
Wait.
“...It’s exactly what you think it is.”
His whispered words seeped directly into my mind as his lips pressed against mine.
My thoughts went completely white again.
AHHHH!
I shoved Cruello away and shot to my feet.
Then, pointing a trembling finger at him, I shouted.
“W-wha—wha—what?!”
The words tumbled out in a completely nonsensical ss.
Even I couldn’t believe that I, supposedly a devotee of the god of stories, had managed to butcher language this badly.
Cruello, anwhile, curved his lips into a lazy smile, adding fuel to the fire.
“Why didn’t you dodge? You easily could have. You knew exactly what I was going to do.”
That—That was exactly what I had said to him at the engagent ceremony!
Was he seriously throwing that back at now?!
I glared at him, cursing him internally with every foul word I could think of.
And he had the audacity to laugh.
Oh, you think this is funny? You’re enjoying this?!
Yeah, I guess he would be happy. After all, he just confessed and then—
But wait—he said he was giving up!
Then what the hell was that?!
“You just confessed, told you’d move on, and then you—kissed ?!”
My voice rose incredulously.
Cruello burst into louder laughter.
He’s insane.
He’s completely insane.
At this point, he might as well change his na to ‘Lunatic.’
My entire face burned hot.
“...Now that I think about it, we really don’t have much left to do.”
“Don’t change the subject!”
“Would you rather keep talking about this?”
“...Wow! The building collapse has stopped. I think we can leave now!”
I exaggeratedly shifted the conversation and made my way toward the ice barrier.
I could hear him laughing behind , but I pretended not to.
I needed to change the subject. Fast.
“Really, once we get the Grand Elder’s key, it’s over. The problem is that old man never keeps it on him. What do we do?”
“Everyone has a weak spot.”
“...Huh?”
“I placed a tracking spell on Eden. We’ll take him hostage and lure the Grand Elder out.”
He said it so casually.
For the first ti in a while, I was reminded that Cruello was Destiny’s villain.
I had no objections, but—
“Would that really work? No matter how much he cares about his son...”
“If he never even taught Eden their doctrine, doesn’t that prove he °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° values him more than the church?”
His reasoning was solid.
I nodded, and Cruello activated the gate.
“For now, let’s get back to the surface. We can’t risk Eden escaping.”
Just as I was stepping into the gate, he called out to .
“Darling.”
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