Chapter 13: Just Because it's You
The sound of tal against stone echoed through the dark cave.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Sweat rolled down my face as I raised the pickaxe again and slamd it into the wall.
I had been here for eight days.
An illegal, slave-operated mana stone mine.
These things weren't rare in this world.
Hidden away. Run by nobles or underground guilds.
The kind of place where "missing people" ended up.
And right now, I was one of them.
At least... as far as anyone knew.
I told my parents I was going on a "camping trip."
Which, technically, wasn't a lie.
But instead of roasting marshmallows, I was mining raw stone, dragging iron carts, and getting whipped across the back by guys nad things like "Bruhk."
But honestly?
It wasn't so bad.
The pain stopped hurting around Day 4.
Sowhere between the exhaustion and the broken fingers, my strength, endurance, and pain tolerance stats all skyrocketed.
I wiped my face and whispered, "GTP. You there?"
[Always.]
"Anyone useful in here?"
[Analyzing...]
[Based on the last eight days of observation, there is one person of interest.]
My eyes shifted toward the deeper part of the cave.
[Sector D. Row 7. Third from the front. White hair. Pointed ears. Slim build.]
"Elf?"
[No. Not exactly. She resembles an elf, but her mana signature and physiology differ slightly. Possibly a half-elf. Possibly sothing else entirely.]
"...Elves in this world are supposed to be top-tier races, right?"
[Correct. Elegant, rare, magically gifted. Not the kind of person you'd expect to see enslaved.]
I narrowed my eyes, watching the silhouette of the girl chipping at the wall, face obscured by dirt and hair.
"...Interesting."
"What do you want to do?"
[Befriend her. Earn her trust. Then escape with her.]
I cracked my neck, casually swinging the pickaxe over my shoulder.
"I can do that."
* * *
Noel didn't rember the last ti she smiled.
She had been in this cave for over two years.
Dragged here by slavers when no one in her village ca looking.
Because no one cared.
They called her cursed.
Different.
Wrong.
She wasn't a full elf, that much was clear.
Her hair was too white.
Her mana... strange. Tainted, they whispered.
Even as a child, people avoided her.
When crops failed, they blad her.
When the well dried, they called her a bad on.
Her days in this mine were hell.
No sunlight. No warmth.
Just pickaxes. Dirt. Pain.
And the wolf.
No matter where she went...
It followed.
A great, looming black wolf, made of smoke and shadow.
It never spoke aloud, but it always offered the sa thing.
"Power."
In dreams. In whispers. In blood.
"Make a pact."
"Unleash ."
"You'll never be hurt again."
But Noel always refused.
It was a demon. A parasite.
And it wanted her for sothing.
So she endured.
Alone.
Until that day.
Until he arrived.
The strange boy with ssy black hair, covered in dirt just like the rest of them.
Except he was... different.
He shared food with her.
Protected her when other slaves tried to ss with her.
Told her things. Funny things. Ridiculous things.
She didn't understand him.
But she felt sothing strange whenever he smiled.
Like the warmth of a fire through cold stone.
And then, one day, while they sat together during break, he looked at her and asked:
"...What's your na?"
She blinked. Cautiously.
"...Noel."
There was a long pause.
Then he grinned.
"My na's Sam. Sam Avencroft."
And just like that...
Her hell beca slightly less unbearable.
* * *
Oh yeah. and Noel? We'd gotten pretty close.
Noel was like a little puppy.
One of those ones where if you left them alone for five seconds, they'd sohow end up bleeding or getting kicked by soone.
Always quiet. Always alert. Like the world was just waiting to hurt her again.
Today, I was sitting down, eating.
—or, well, trying to.
I had a dented tal plate in front of .
Only one piece of bread left.
Across the cave, Noel was staring at again.
Not like usual though. Not shy. Just... staring.
I looked up.
"You wanna say sothing?"
She flinched slightly.
"...Are you... not eating?"
I blinked and looked at my plate.
Yup. Just one sad, dry, rock-hard piece of bread.
"...You eat it. I'm not hungry."
I held it out to her.
Noel just stood there. Frozen.
She looked at the bread in my hand like it was sothing sacred.
Then her eyes slowly t mine.
"Why... why are you helping ?"
That caught off guard.
It was rare for her to talk first, let alone ask sothing.
Her voice wasn't scolding. Not demanding.
It wasn't like she was rebuking or criticizing .
Just... pure curiosity.
Like she really, honestly didn't understand.
I was overwheld for a second.
What was I supposed to say?
Because I want to recruit you to my shadow organization?
Because I think you're valuable?
Because I feel like if I don't, you'll die?
I clicked my tongue and looked away.
"What, the bread I gave you before made you sick or sothing? My arm hurts today, so just take it already."
But she shook her head.
"No. You have to eat it."
That's what I didn't get.
Her face—
She looked even sadder than usual.
Sadder than when she was getting whipped.
Sadder than when her legs gave out from working all day.
That didn't make sense.
"You didn't eat anything this past week," she added.
Oh.
Right.
She was technically correct.
I hadn't touched the bread rations in days.
But that's because I'd snuck in a bunch of high-calorie mana crystals in my pocket before I ca.
I'd been eating those secretly at night.
They were expensive, sure—but effective.
But I understood how it must've looked to her.
I was doing extra mining with her.
Helping out because she was an elf, and I didn't want her to get mana intoxication.
Elves were sensitive to mana, and too much exposure without control could ss them up.
Just in case, I took more work off her hands.
I even stepped in and took her whippings when guards got pissy.
Didn't really hurt anymore, anyway.
So yeah. I understood where she was coming from.
But I didn't understand why she was making that face.
She could've just said thanks.
"Why..." she asked again. Softer this ti.
But I understood what she ant now.
Why did I help her?
Was it because I wanted to recruit her?
Because I thought she'd be useful?
Because she looked like she'd collapse without soone beside her?
There were a hundred reasons.
But how was I supposed to explain all of that?
Ding-ding.
The bell rang. Lunch break was over.
Everyone around us began standing and heading to the central et point.
I stood up too.
Noel looked up at .
Still waiting for an answer.
"...Just because it's you."
I said it casually. Like it was obvious.
But for so reason...
Noel made a weird face.
Like her heart did sothing and even she didn't know why.
I had no idea what it ant.
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