Inside the dark room, covered by blackout curtains.
The air was thick with a stale, musty odor mixed with a faint, sharp scent of flesh.
The floor was a chaotic ss, strewn with clothes and leftover lunch containers, nothing in its place.
On the bed, a woman lay buried under a blanket. Her disheveled hair was tangled in all directions, and the unfocused eyes peeking through it lacked any clarity.
“K-Kraush, is it really you?”
Mary stamred, her words jumbled as she spoke.
She had instinctively opened the door upon hearing Kraush’s voice, but the person standing before her was so different it left her confused.
Kraush stood silently for a mont, watching her in her pitiful state, before speaking.
“Yes. You ca to my room, so I thought it fair to return the favor.”
Mary flinched, her shoulders trembling.
Only Kraush knew about her visit to his room, and this confird for her that the person before her was truly Kraush.
Clenching her lips tightly, Mary struggled to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.
If she let go even for a mont, she felt they would burst out uncontrollably.
“Mary.”
Kraush placed the lunchbox Karandis had given him on the desk before approaching her.
“What did Sigrid say to you?”
The day Mary had t Kraush, she resolved to leave Sigrid for good.
Even if they had argued afterward, it wouldn’t have been enough to cause her to spiral into this level of ruin.
But now, Mary was visibly shattered.
That ant Sigrid must have said sothing in their confrontation that completely broke her.
Mary’s gaze darted around, filled with deep, unspoken anguish.
“…Even if I told you, Kraush, you wouldn’t understand.”
Those words imdiately clued Kraush into the possibility that Sigrid had brought up events from before their regression.
Mary was unaware that Kraush, like her and Sigrid, had regressed.
To her, it would seem pointless to share sothing Kraush couldn’t possibly understand.
Kraush stared at Mary in silence, fully aware of sothing she didn’t know.
The Arthur that existed in Mary’s mories no longer existed in this world.
This was a fact not just unknown to Mary, but to Sigrid as well.
And this truth could beco a devastating card to play against Mary.
Even if her trust in Sigrid had crumbled, Arthur likely still held a place in her heart.
“I see.”
Kraush responded calmly, pulling out a chair and sitting down, his tone betraying none of the thoughts racing through his mind.
Mary’s eyes wavered violently.
“I-I’m sorry. Kraush ca all the way here for , but I’m saying things like this…”
She quickly showed her vulnerable side, apologizing profusely.
Mary was extrely anxious about the possibility of Kraush resenting her.
After all, Kraush was the only one who truly supported her.
In Mary’s heart, Kraush stood far above Sigrid, and the thought of upsetting him terrified her.
Mary had spent her life as a knight, devoted to serving soone else.
That deeply ingrained nature hadn’t disappeared even after the regression.
“There’s always sothing people find hard to talk about. It’s fine.”
Kraush said with a gentle smile, as if to reassure her.
“If you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. That’s your choice, Mary. I only ca because I heard you locked yourself in your room after fighting with Sigrid.”
His words were not an interrogation but a reassurance born from genuine concern.
The mont she heard that, Mary felt a sudden surge of emotion welling up inside her.
Even though she had shut herself away, she knew all too well what was happening outside.
Mary understood Sigrid’s tendencies better than anyone, knowing full well that she was likely being slandered and dragged into the mud.
She’d seen Sigrid act that way countless tis before.
Of course, she had never imagined that Sigrid’s cruel habits would one day be directed at her.
Even so, it wasn’t hard for Mary to guess that her reputation had sunk lower than ever.
Perhaps that’s why Kraush’s words of concern cut so deeply into her heart.
It felt like being acknowledged on a desolate island where no one else could reach her.
Even though Kraush surely knew how low her reputation had fallen, he had still made the effort to visit, even going so far as to appear in a woman’s guise.
“Sniff… hick…”
Before she knew it, tears were streaming down Mary’s face.
Seeing this, Kraush pulled a handkerchief from his pocket.
“What’s with the crying?”
“I-I’m sorry. The tears just keep coming…”
Already broken in both body and spirit, Mary only cried harder when Kraush began wiping away her tears.
Her sobs, filled with anguish, echoed for several minutes.
When her tears finally subsided, Kraush poured her a glass of water and handed it to her.
Mary accepted the glass and drank deeply, feeling a bit of relief wash over her.
At the sa ti, she was overco with an intense sense of embarrassnt.
It was hard to believe that a grown adult could cry so openly like this.
During her ti as a Divine Spear, she had never cried this much.
As her flushed face lowered in embarrassnt, Kraush gave her a soft smile.
“Are you done crying?”
“Y-Yes.”
Mary replied, her voice timid, her feet fidgeting nervously.
She felt like crawling into a hole to hide from the sha of her outburst.
“Good. You seem a little better now.”
Kraush said, getting up as though he intended to leave.
“W-Wait!”
Startled, Mary quickly grabbed the hem of his clothes.
She couldn’t bear to let Kraush leave just yet.
When he was near, she felt a rare sense of calm. If he left, she feared she’d once again be consud by her anxieties, struggling to stay afloat.
Kraush turned back to her, his gaze eting hers.
Flustered, Mary averted her eyes, looking around nervously.
“Um, I-I an, would it be okay if you stayed a little longer? There’s, uh, so things I’d like to talk about.”
“Weren’t you the one saying there were things you couldn’t talk about?”
At Kraush’s considerate reply, Mary bit her lip.
She could feel his warmth and kindness, and it overwheld her.
How could soone care so much for soone as useless as her?
It was a stark contrast to how Sigrid had always seen her, as nothing more than a tool to use.
“It’s okay! With Kraush—if it’s you, I can talk about anything!”
Her voice grew louder, driven by the fear that her sincerity might not reach him otherwise.
Watching her, Kraush finally sat down next to her.
“Alright. If talking will help you feel better, then say whatever you’re comfortable with.”
His gentle words filled the emptiness within Mary’s heart once more.
Afraid of losing this warmth, she hesitated only briefly before beginning her story.
Instead of naming Arthur directly, she referred to him as “A.”
She described how A had always been her staunchest ally, wielding his sword on the front lines, and how he sotis felt more like a rival than a comrade.
Their rivalry had burned so intensely that they often vied for the top spot, constantly battling for first and second place.
So much so that Mary sotis envied A, using that feeling to drive herself harder, swinging her spear with even more determination.
But over ti, the gap between them began to widen.
She despised it. And so, day after day, she pushed herself desperately to close that gap.
Mary’s Heavenly Martial Body, despite its imnse potential, eventually succumbed to the relentless strain of repeated training and overexertion.
This led to a grave mistake during the World Erosion, putting her life in imdiate peril.
In that critical mont, it was A who appeared.
Despite ending up in a worse state than Mary, he saved her, dragging his battered body to do so before collapsing.
Seeing him like that shook Mary to her core.
The one she had seen only as an ally and rival now stirred a new emotion in her—love.
But A was Sigrid’s lover.
Suppressing her growing feelings for him, Mary resolved to put an end to them.
She decided to confront him with an honest confession, knowing she would be rejected.
However, to her surprise, A instead challenged her to a duel.
Under the moonlit night, their duel began.
Through their exchange of blows, Mary felt as though she was coming to understand A on a deeper level.
A was strong. But his strength ca from tireless effort, an unending struggle to grow and improve.
By the ti the duel ended, Mary found herself on her knees before him, acknowledging her inability to surpass him.
As she knelt, breathless, A spoke to her.
「Mary, I want to protect this world.」
For the first ti, Mary felt she had glimpsed his true feelings.
「And I want you to be part of that world with .」
His next words sent shockwaves through her heart.
Without thinking, she responded not with words, but with a confession of her own.
A smiled and accepted her feelings.
Fortunately, Sigrid also consented to Mary becoming A’s lover, a result of A’s persistent persuasion.
Feeling the depth of A’s care, Mary vowed to dedicate her life to him.
However, just days ago, Sigrid had delivered a devastating revelation.
「Did you really think Arthur truly loved you?」
With a sneer of contempt, Sigrid crushed Mary with her words.
「Arthur only chose you because your talents were useful. You’re the perfect at shield, after all!」
The Mary of old would have vehently denied such claims.
She had once been the Divine Spear, a knight with unshakable pride and confidence.
But the Mary of today was different.
Her spirit had been broken long ago, leaving her heart in shambles.
Her self-esteem was already in ruins, and now she felt entirely isolated, abandoned by the world.
When she abandoned her loyalty to Sigrid and even Arthur’s love beca uncertain,
the words Sigrid herself uttered were an irreversible wedge for her.
「Do you think Arthur would like you as you are now? Without being the Divine Spear, you’re absolutely useless! Just lock yourself away in a corner, longing for Arthur for the rest of your life! Do you think Arthur would ever co looking for you?」
「No, that’s not true. Arthur wouldn’t, Arthur wouldn’t!」
As Mary scread in despair, Sigrid, pouring out all her emotions, looked at her with an exhausted expression.
In Sigrid’s eyes, Mary was no longer visible.
Instead, she turned her back on soone who held no value anymore.
Sothing so broken could no longer be of use anywhere.
When sothing has lost its value, it must be discarded.
And so, Sigrid stepped towards the door.
「Ugh, truly, a useless woman. You couldn’t even manage to bear the cursed one’s child.」
With words that pierced Mary’s heart, Sigrid opened the door.
「I should’ve let you be executed back then.」
Watching Sigrid leave, Mary completely broke down that day.
She locked herself in her room and never ca out again.
“Everything is my fault… If only I hadn’t been so useless, if I had tried harder, everything would’ve been fine.”
After hearing the entire story from Mary, Kraush remained silent.
‘Damn, she’s not wrong though.’
Even Kraush thought there was no lie in Sigrid’s words.
[ Get your act together before your agreent shows on your face. ]
Noticing Kraush’s reaction, Crimson Garden, who was outside the dormitory window, spoke up.
Barely regaining his composure, Kraush adjusted his expression.
“Don’t put too much stock in soone who sees people as re tools.”
Mary looked at Kraush with wavering eyes.
“What matters is yourself. The Mary Diana I’ve seen isn’t such a weak person.”
With a light laugh, Kraush gestured outside.
“Seriously, how many out there could actually best you among the people outside of ?”
Mary’s strength was at a level no one could disparage.
In fact, except for Kraush, hardly anyone at Rahern Academy could go head-to-head with Mary.
“Rahern Academy is filled with exceptional talents. If soone like you, standing among the top ranks, says you’re useless, then there are barely any useful people in this world.”
Kraush raised a hand and gently untangled Mary’s disheveled hair.
With each touch, Mary’s body flinched.
“So stop blaming yourself so much.”
As he smoothed her hair, Kraush leaned slightly forward.
He rested his elbow on his knee, propping his chin in his hand with a smile on his face.
“I’ll take care of anyone who tries to put you down.”
That smile was so enchanting that it could montarily erase even the mories of Sigrid.
At the sa ti, the tangled thread of Mary’s emotions unraveled in an instant.
The one who unraveled that thread was none other than the person standing before her.
“So co on out already.”
Mary’s eyes began to well up again.
“You don’t belong in here, do you?”
Amid her streaming tears, Kraush stood up and faced her.
“If it’s really hard…”
Mary, following his words, lifted her head and t Kraush’s gaze.
Through the curtains, soft sunlight filtered in and gently illuminated Kraush’s face.
“Caw!”
At the sound of a crow from sowhere outside, a gust of wind swept through, rustling the blackout curtains.
In that mont, the sunlight poured in, casting Kraush in a light brighter than ever before.
It was a radiance so bright it could almost be compared to a star.
“Just follow .”
That starlike light outshone even Arthur.
Crack—
And then, above Mary’s head, the sound of the final dial cracking echoed through the room.
Translators note:
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