As I walked back from the research building to my room, I had a smile on my face and I was tired.
The reason for my smile was that Ulka had accepted my proposal. I had made a mana contract with him after he had accepted my offer to remove all his doubts, and he had agreed without much question to do a detailed investigation into the Tenebra family. With my answer of 'family matters' and the assurance of the contract, he didn't press .
As for my exhaustion... I have to pretend to be a mysterious person in Ulka's eyes, that's the only way I can use him. He has to believe that I'm not a normal person, that I have secrets I can't reveal, and that I'm very influential behind the scenes, even if I don't look like it on the outside.
Otherwise, even if there's a contract between us, he'll believe that I'm soone who just makes things up, and there are a few other reasons.
So when I talk to him, I act like I already have the whole world in the palm of my hand and it's... exhausting.
"Whatever!"
I put a smile on my face and headed to my room.
After all, I had finished my work with this and now all I had to do was to rest and relax until I was healed enough. Two weeks away from the power, away from plans, away from training... Yeah, I'm definitely going to enjoy it.
'Hey... Isn't that one of your friends over there?'
Hmm? One of my friends?
I looked at the spot Sith was pointing at during my daydreams as we walked, then raised my eyebrows when I saw two blue eyes staring at .
"Aiden?"
"Sue?"
She had her black hair in a ponytail and was dressed in a more casual outfit.
A smile appeared on Sue's face and she ca over to without saying anything. She was about to say sothing when she paused. She looked first at the black dical bracelet covering my entire left arm, then at my cane, and her smile slowly faded.
"Don't you need to rest?"
"Well... I'm on my way to my room right now."
"Why did you leave your room? Go open your window if you want to catch your breath, you can't even walk without a cane..."
She quickly took my arm, making it easier for to keep my balance, and then sighed.
"A patient needs to be careful, and you don't give a damn..."
I simply smiled when I saw her concern. I was happy to hear such words from soone, but then... sothing else ca to mind.
"Thank you, but what are you doing here? Weren't you going sowhere with your brother?"
"I was, but when he was coming, he said sothing important ca up and he postponed his arrival. I was on my way to et him now, he said he'd be back in like half an hour."
"Ah... I'm sorry then."
"No problem, we were supposed to et at the café anyway. It's on the way."
I didn't say anything. We started walking slowly, step by step, in the silence between us.
"Do you love your brother?"
I didn't like the silence, so I asked the first thing that ca to my mind. Sue was not surprised. On the contrary, she smiled.
"After my father died and my mother left us, it was just the two of us. Our family issues affected him in a much bigger way than they affected . So I tried very hard to make him smile and one day... he suddenly ca out of his gloomy mood. Since then we've been on good terms, we talk almost every evening."
Suddenly one day he stopped being moody, huh...?
That's... a bit strange.
"I see."
"What about you?"
"I, huh..."
I paused.
I just wanted to break the silence, I didn't think the question would co back to , but I didn't want to give Sue an evasive answer. So a smile like hers appeared on my face.
"My sister..."
Her image ca back to . Her smile, her voice, her cuteness...
"Until recently, I was deceiving her to compensate for my own lack of love. I pretended to be soone I wasn't, I used her."
I felt like I was ruining the good atmosphere, but I didn't really care.
"You rember the day I woke up in the hospital and she behaved like she was angry with , right? That was because of that. I confessed that I deceived her because I felt remorse. She avoided for a while. And now... I think I can say that things are much better between us."
Sue sighed.
"I thought you were going to end it badly."
"So did I."
"Excuse ?"
"Never mind, we're here."
When I pointed to the right and pointed to the café, Sue turned there first, saw that we had indeed reached our destination, and we both stopped.
"Thanks for helping . I'm going back to my room anyway, you et your brother."
Sue looked at with raised eyebrows but didn't say anything when I quickly freed myself from her arm. There was a look of unease on her face.
"Aid-"
"Ah! Sis, I'm here!"
When Sue's voice was interrupted by the person who was obviously her brother, I felt sothing strange inside for a mont. It was a feeling I couldn't make sense of. Like... sothing was wrong. Like I had heard sothing familiar.
Sue turned in the direction of the voice, smiling. I turned back in the sa way, frowning slightly at this strange feeling inside .
When I saw Sue's brother, that's when I realized what that strange feeling was.
The world suddenly stopped spinning, everything beca aningless. All sounds faded, I felt like I was in an eternal silence.
My eyes widened as I froze in place, shivering as I looked at the sixteen-year-old boy approaching us.
He had black hair that was neither long nor short, and eyes that were sowhere between yellow and brown. He had a childish face, even his smile was that of a child. He seed innocent and shy.
"Paul, you didn't tell you were already here!"
My eyes widened even more when I heard his na. My suspicions, which I didn't want to be confird, were confird one after the other, while my mories reminded again and again who this person was.
H- how could it be...?
"I wanted to surprise you, hehe..."
The boy noticed after these words.
I saw a mont of surprise on his face, but it disappeared as quickly as it ca and was replaced by a smile.
"You must be... Aiden."
He held out his hand to . But I just stared at his face.
"My sister told about you."
His innocent smile widened as if he was excited.
"I'm Paul Dens, nice to et you."
*******
Throughout the script of a story, novel, myth, movie, or play, one is often fascinated by the characters one sees. They find so characters close to them, so they get too attached to, so they just like, so they are neutral toward, so they don't like, and so they... just hate.
In The Lands of The Lunerra, there were many characters that I loved, connected with, and hated.
However, there was one character in particular.
This was a person who made feel really complicated emotions while playing the ga. He was the person whose purpose I wondered about the most, the person who I couldn't really understand why he did what he did.
And he was also the person I hated the most.
"Will you stay for dinner before you go?"
Seeing this person in the flesh in front of my eyes now, seeing him smile at , finding out that he was the brother of a friend I cared about... It made not have the slightest idea what to do.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Paul's face suddenly showed concern, and Sue looked equally worried.
"Aiden? Are you okay?"
I swallowed, not knowing what to do.
Right, I need to calm down...
I transferred mana to the Absolute Mind, which had already started working, to boost it.
"Yes... Yes, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy, sorry... I'm not going to eat, I already ate before I left the house."
A look of disappointnt appeared on Paul's face.
"Oh, I see. Get well soon. Next ti then, I really wanted to et you."
He seed genuinely upset, hurt that he couldn't talk to . There was not the slightest ulterior motive, not the slightest awkwardness in his movents.
"Aiden?"
Sue took my hand and looked at . I could feel the worry in her blue eyes even in my cells, but I quickly withdrew my hand.
"I'm sorry... Enjoy your lunch."
I turned around and headed for my room without saying anything. I didn't care what was said behind my back, how they looked at , I just walked and walked and walked.
Paul is not a normal person.
He's a lunatic.
He's a complete maniac.
He's even more psychotic than wieras, even though he's not one of them.
I was acting relaxed because it was still ti for him to co out, but...
I must keep him away from Sue. I must keep him away from everyone I know, everyone I care about. I mustn't let him exchange even a single word with them.
Should I kill him?
I paused, then a thought ca to .
What if Sue's death is the reason Paul beca that kind of character?
Then, since Sue didn't die in the current Lunerra, didn't Paul beco a bad person too?
In the midst of these thoughts, I suddenly rembered what I had talked about with Sue.
Paul was to her what Clara was to . What would change in her life if Paul suddenly disappeared?
I turned around and looked into the café.
Sue and Paul were just moving to a new table. Sue's face was still a little grim, but Paul hadn't lost a bit of his cheerfulness.
No... he's a two-faced person. In fact, two faces are too few for him.
There's a good chance that he's putting on an act around Sue. Maybe he cares about her because she's his older sister, but the possibility that he could be soone she's 'close' to seems strange to , almost frightening.
Still, I can't just leave him alone like that...
I clenched my fist and looked at Sue again. Her lips were curled up a little, she was happy. I could see that, her happiness should have made , who was trying for her, happy too, but what I was feeling right now was... worry and fear.
"Tch."
I turned around and headed back to my room. I thought about the smile I had seen and grimaced, even involuntarily.
For now... Just for now, I won't do anything.
If Paul had any intention of hurting Sue, he would have done it a long ti ago. Either he sees no point in hurting her and has nothing to gain from it, or he genuinely cares for her as a sister.
I think back to the tis I t him in the ga. His behavior, his psychopathy, his actions.
I just froze.
No... I'm not taking any chances with Sue.
I picked up my watch and dialed a number. It took a while for the call to be answered, but I didn't care.
"Ulka, I have a favor to ask you."
*(A/N: Well... I didn't expect it, but you guys really gave 20 power stones, I believe it's even 24. That's why I'll publish two chapters as promised, the other one will be uploaded in 10 minutes. And I will also continue to use this system, but for tomorrow the threshold will be 25 power stones, not 20.)*
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