Leaning against the Hunter for a mont seed to calm my racing heart.
Thinking back to the chaotic scene from earlier still made my head pound, but the re fact that soone was beside made it all a bit more bearable.
Choosing the Hunter as my companion for this trip was turning out to be a stroke of genius.
If I’d chosen soone else, they might have panicked after seeing like this. Their unease could have worsened my condition and caused to lose consciousness.
“Thank you, Hunter. I feel a bit calr now,” I said, turning my head slightly to glance at her and express my gratitude.
Feeling that I could move again, I tried to sit up and create so distance between us.
“Ugh.”
Just as I began to pull away, the Hunter suddenly tightened her grip, restoring my position against her.
What the—
I turned to her, a confused and slightly alard look on my face, as mories of her past antics resurfaced.
She remained still, looking at with an expression that seed contemplative, as if she were trying to confirm sothing.
Despite my embarrassnt, I was the one feeling awkward now.
“Uh, Hunter?”
“Different intentions.”
Her words were cryptic, and before I could ask what she ant, her face softened into an expression I had never seen before.
The Hunter—known for her sharp, unyielding deanor—was now gazing at with a gentle smile.
Not a wide or radiant smile, but a subtle one, like sunlight breaking through a cold winter morning.
It was so out of character for her that I froze, unable to say a word.
“Perhaps… there’s sothing to it after all,” she murmured.
I was at a complete loss for words.
This mont felt surreal, like I’d stumbled upon sothing I was never ant to see.
We fled into an inn as though we were escaping sothing.
The innkeeper froze upon seeing , their expression blank with what seed like a mix of confusion and awe.
The Hunter handled the arrangents while I stood to the side, feeling overwheld.
Once we secured separate rooms, I collapsed onto the bed as soon as I entered mine.
Though lying on the bed in my current disheveled state went against every fiber of my being, I was too dizzy to care.
The flashes of mories brushing through my mind made even staying still exhausting.
Who was the white-haired woman from my mories?
Her face was hauntingly familiar, identical to the woman I had seen in my dreams—the one who had left with the words “my final gift.”
I couldn’t think clearly.
Rather than finding clarity, my thoughts seed to tangle further, leaving grappling with an unsettling mix of emotions.
Tossing and turning on the bed, I suddenly heard a knock at the door.
Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I called out, “Yes, who is it?”
“Ti to eat.”
The Hunter’s voice ca from the other side.
I sighed. Perhaps she was trying to be considerate, knowing how shaken I was.
For all her bizarre behavior, the Hunter had her monts of thoughtfulness.
If only she didn’t have such peculiar fixations, she might actually make a good companion for soone.
I forced myself upright, pushing through the lingering haze of discomfort, and opened the door.
And then I froze.
The Hunter stood there wearing the sa distinctive outfit I’d first seen her in at the library.
“Hunter.”
“Hmm?”
“What… what is that outfit?”
“You’ve seen it before. It’s comfortable.”
“That’s not what I an! Why are you wearing it now?!”
My exasperation was t with a tilted head and an incredulous look, as though I were the one being unreasonable.
“Would you prefer I eat in uncomfortable clothing?”
“Your previous outfit looked plenty comfortable to !”
The Hunter ignored my protests with a shrug and turned to lead the way.
As she walked ahead, I couldn’t help but notice sothing.
Her steps seed oddly light, almost as though she were in an unusually good mood.
Or maybe I was just imagining it.
The Hunter had chosen a quiet, nearly empty restaurant, likely out of consideration for my state of mind.
Even so, I couldn’t help but worry about the food. An establishnt this empty usually wasn’t known for exceptional cuisine, and I wondered if it could satisfy the Hunter's refined palate.
When the pasta dish—laden with an almost absurd amount of at—arrived, I gave it a tentative taste alongside the Hunter.
“Oh.”
“This is… pretty good.”
It wasn’t just edible; it was delicious.
How long had it been since I’d tasted sothing this satisfying? The richness of the at, the perfectly cooked pasta—it all felt strangely familiar, as though I’d eaten it countless tis before.
I noticed there seed to be far more at than what was listed on the nu. Was that intentional?
“This place being so empty… how good must the busier spots be?” I muttered.
“No, it’s the opposite,” the Hunter responded, cutting off my speculation.
“This place beca a sort of shrine because of soone,” she continued, her tone oddly dry. “Most people can’t afford to eat here anymore. The owner keeps it running, believing that soone will eventually co back.”
Before I could ask who that soone was, another voice answered.
“You’re right about that.”
I turned to see a man—likely the owner—standing nearby with a faintly sorrowful look in his eyes as he gazed at .
“Sir?”
Why was he looking at like that?
I didn’t know him, and yet, his expression carried an odd mix of sadness and warmth, as though he were seeing soone dear to him.
“Thought you were dead, kid. Could’ve sent a letter if you were still alive,” he said, dabbing at tears with a handkerchief. “But seeing you here with your girlfriend, it’s almost like I’m watching my own son finally settle down.”
Girlfriend?!
I shot the Hunter a glance, silently blaming her choice of attire for this misunderstanding.
But the more pressing matter was…
“You… know ?” I asked hesitantly.
“Of course I do,” he said, smiling proudly through his tears.
“You’re the hero who brought peace to Lintpia, and my most loyal custor—Raydan Tantan, lover of beef pasta. How could I forget you?”
Lintpia’s hero?
Beef pasta regular?
Those words triggered another flood of mories.
In them, I was laughing and chatting animatedly with this very man.
He’d been kind, attentive, even fatherly in the way he listened to .
And then there was , gleefully devouring a plate of pasta, piled high with absurd amounts of at—just like the one in front of now.
“You really remind of the son I lost,” he’d said.
“Well then, be my dad! I could use a few more!” I’d joked.
“Haha! You brat. Finish up and head back before soone gets jealous,” he’d replied.
“Huugh.”
The sudden rush of images and emotions sent reeling.
My breath hitched, and I clutched my head.
“Raydan Tantan!”
The Hunter’s voice barely reached as I staggered to my feet, my body moving on autopilot.
Sothing deep inside was screaming, urging to run.
I abandoned my food and bolted out of the restaurant without looking back.
“Where are you going, Raydan Tantan?”
I heard the Hunter call after , but thankfully, she didn’t follow.
Good. I didn’t want anyone witnessing this—seeing like this.
I didn’t know where I was running to, only that my feet seed to know the way.
Every street, every corner I turned, felt agonizingly familiar.
Why?
Why did it all feel like I’d been here before?
The voices started again, faint but growing louder.
“Muji Absoluta?”
“Muji Absoluta has returned!”
“Muji Absoluta?! Could it really be?”
“Aah! Muji Absoluta!”
Muji Absoluta.
Lintpia’s hero, Raydan Tantan.
“AAAAH!”
Finally, I reached an open square and collapsed, my body and mind utterly spent.
Panting heavily, I forced myself to lift my head.
If nothing else, I needed to know where I’d ended up.
What I saw stole the breath from my lungs.
Before stood a statue.
It depicted soone raising a hand to the sky, a confident and almost cheeky smile on their face.
And that soone was unmistakably… .
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