Chapter 165 – …Huh? (4)

===================

Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

===================

They spent some time discussing the gift they would give to the Great Moon.

After that, the meeting gradually returned to its normal flow.

Of course, the flow was interrupted from time to time when Deus abruptly brought up the Great Moon again, or when Seol Lang declared, I will be the gift.

Even so, the meeting proceeded a little more smoothly than usual, and only just before dawn did it begin to approach its end.

Just as everyone was about to exchange their closing farewells.

[Seol Lang.]

[Hm?]

Deus suddenly called her.

[Why are you doing that with your ears?]

Seol Lang was pressing both of her own ears shut with her hands.

And not just once or twice.

Throughout the entire meeting, whenever she had the chance, she had pressed on them again.

This strange new habit had been puzzling Deus the whole time.

When everyone’s gaze turned to her, Seol Lang let out an ah and broke into a bright smile.

[Master did it for me.]

[…The Great Moon did that for you?]

[Yes. Like this, like this.]

No one had asked, but Seol Lang began laying out, one by one, everything that had happened in Colony this time.

[And that is how it happened.]

The moment her story ended, the moons each let out their own sounds of reaction.

[…To think the Great Moon showed an expression of sincere worry.]

[That is surprising.]

Deus and Radan looked envious.

They knew Alon’s usual expressionless face.

So the very fact that the Great Moon had shown even a moment of that kind of emotion toward Seol Lang carried great meaning for them.

[…]

Rine, who had already spent several days with them in Colony, also looked at Seol Lang with a faintly sulky expression, as if she envied her.

But.

[Of course, Seol Lang. He thinks of us. Since you are one of us, it is only natural that he would worry if you were in danger.]

Yutia alone did not erase her usual smile.

It was a gentle smile that showed no visible change in emotion.

Seol Lang stared at Yutia for a moment, then suddenly shrugged her shoulders proudly as if she had realized something.

[But I even saw Master smile.]

[…The Great Moon smiled?]

[Yes.]

When Deus barely managed to ask the question, Seol Lang nodded vigorously.

The corner of Yutia’s mouth also twisted slightly.

[…That must only be because he smiled at you out of worry.]

But while Yutia still had not yet lost her smile.

[No. He just smiled while we were talking.]

Snap.

The atmosphere changed abruptly.

[…]

Yutia’s mouth shut tightly.

And seeing that, Seol Lang grew even more triumphant and shrugged again.

[Yutia, you have never seen Master’s smiling face, have you?]

Seol Lang even raised two fingers in a V sign, as if to declare victory.

Hidan, who had remained silent and merely watched the situation until now, found his expression turning strange.

It was true that whenever the Great Moon was mentioned, the moons as a whole became a little childish.

But even taking that into account, Seol Lang’s provocation right now was, honestly, even more childish than usual.

Surely the Red Moon would not be enraged over something like this.

Certain of that, Hidan turned his gaze toward Yutia.

Then he could not help parting his lips.

The smile Yutia had worn unchanged until a moment ago.

[…]

“…”

Was visibly off in a way anyone could see.

In other words, it was obvious beyond denial that Seol Lang’s words had gotten under her skin.

Hidan lowered his eyes cautiously.

[Right? I knew it. Then that means I was the first one to see Master’s smiling face, right?]

Maybe because she felt she had defeated Yutia for the first time, Seol Lang kept chattering proudly with no sense of the situation at all.

But only for a while.

[Hm hm. And then Master pressed my ears like this…]

Even Seol Lang, who had spent several minutes boasting happily, gradually began trailing off and watching the mood.

[…]

Because Yutia was no longer smiling at all.

The moment Seol Lang belatedly realized that she had become too intoxicated by the feeling of victory.

[Hm hm. I have something to do now, so I should get going. The meeting seems over anyway, so I will leave first.]

Radan, who had grasped the situation with impeccable accuracy, cited business that could not possibly exist at this hour before dawn and disappeared from the screen.

[…The same goes for me. I have a knight order meeting after this.]

Deus also escaped the meeting immediately.

Just as Hidan was thinking that there had to be better excuses than a meeting at this hour.

[…I should go too. I have something to do.]

[…Hm?]

Rine, who had glared at Seol Lang with a somewhat dissatisfied expression, also fled.

Only then did Seol Lang realize that something was wrong.

And then.

[Hik…]

She spotted the sneer that had somehow appeared on Yutia’s lips and instinctively released her ears.

Her newly freed ears folded back on their own.

Her eyes darted in every direction, and as she slowly backed away.

[I, I should go too.]

She fled as well.

And then.

The last two people left in the meeting.

Hidan.

And a very angry Yutia.

As Hidan cautiously raised his head, he realized something.

He had missed the timing to leave.

What do I do?

His chest tightened.

The other moons had surely known too, which was why they had fled.

The moment the Red Moon became even a little angry, everyone knew how frightening she became.

Of course, she would not mercilessly kill an ally, but the anger itself was terrifying enough.

Worried that her misplaced rage might fall on him, Hidan quietly slipped out of the visible frame and held his breath.

Then, the next moment.

[Hoo.]

What reached his ears was not an angry voice, but a small sigh from Yutia.

Having succeeded in moving out of sight, Hidan carefully glanced sideways toward the screen that was still on.

And there he saw.

Yutia, with her cheeks puffed out slightly.

Puffed out… cheeks?

With a faint blush and an expression that looked somewhat sulky.

[I am the one who thinks about him the most…]

She muttered quietly, almost like a pout, then ended the communication.

“…???”

Hidan stood there blankly at the fresh side of the Red Moon he had never seen even once before.

And then he realized.

Because he had stepped out of frame, the Red Moon had mistaken it for all communications being closed and relaxed her tension.

It did not suit the Red Moon at all, and yet paradoxically, it felt as though he had finally seen her as a distinct person.

As if he had seen a mirage.

Hidan stared into empty space for a moment.

Then he quickly grasped the situation and broke into a cold sweat.

I need to forget this.

If the Red Moon ever found out about this.

…I would be dead that very day.

So.

I have to erase all of it from my head.

He made that vow firmly to himself.

####

Roughly two months had passed since Alon met the Teal Forest Merchant Company.

The ball was slowly drawing near, and information matching the original story Alon knew began to flow into his ears.

“…With this, it is basically complete.”

“So it is.”

Facing Penia, Alon dispelled the new spell whose tuning they had just perfectly completed.

“Thank you. If you had not helped, this would have taken far longer.”

“Hm hm. Think nothing of it.”

Her answer was modest, but her shoulders rose ever so slightly.

See? This is how capable I am.

Watching Penia show that off with her whole body, Alon let out a small laugh behind his expressionless face and asked,

“When is the next conference?”

“Ah, from now… about three months away, right?”

“Then let us go to the conference together at that time. You kept your promise, so I will keep mine as well.”

“Thank you very much.”

Penia bowed deeply, delighted as if she had obtained the greatest treasure in the world.

Alon looked down at his own hand for a moment, then sat.

“By the way, there is no point in trying to form more combinations now, correct?”

“Hm. Based on what we have researched so far, if we want to make a seal better than this, I think we would need to carry out a good deal more experiments….”

Penia’s face turned visibly nervous, as if she were thinking, no way, is he trying to do even more?

Alon lightly shook his head.

“Do not worry. I am not that lacking in conscience.”

“Ah, yes….”

Is he not already lacking in conscience?

The words occurred to Penia briefly, but she chose not to say them.

“Still, your magic really is a little strange, Marquis.”

“In what way?”

“…Its power. The method of establishing the spell and the molecular arrangement are clearly the same, but strangely, the power keeps increasing.”

“…Can you feel that clearly?”

Penia thought for a moment before answering.

“Hm. If you compare it day by day, it is only slight. But if you compare now to two months ago, there is definitely a clear difference.”

“…I see.”

Without realizing it, Alon nodded.

Of course, it was not as though he had been secretly training at night behind Penia’s back, or testing new arrangements.

His terribly small mana hole did not allow him that sort of luxury.

Even so, the reason his power kept increasing was probably divine nature.

…Though I still have no idea where exactly it is increasing from.

Just as Alon was thinking that.

“Um…”

“What is it?”

“If it is all right with you, could you at least give me a hint about the reason?”

Penia asked carefully while darting her eyes around.

She clearly looked afraid of something, yet also looked as if curiosity was overcoming that fear.

Alon thought for a moment.

He could not exactly say that the reason the power was increasing was because of divine nature.

After turning it over in his head.

“…I will tell you next time.”

“R, really? Thank you very much.”

After giving her a vague answer, he left the second office, which had in practice become Penia’s laboratory.

Now then. My mana is fully recovered, so it is time to move.

Alon took Foot that Runs Through the Past out from inside his clothes and checked it.

At first it had simply been jet-black.

Now it had turned blue.

Meaning that, unlike before, it had become usable.

…That took some effort, pouring mana into it. Well, it is not time to use it yet anyway.

While carrying out magic experiments, Alon had steadily poured mana into the artifact until it reached a usable state.

Recalling those rather exhausting days, he organized his schedule in his head.

First I go to the ball. After that I stop by Lartania, use Foot that Runs Through the Past, meet Kailus, then head to the ruins and receive the item.

Without taking any real rest, Alon immediately left the Marquisate according to plan.

And several weeks later, when Alon and his party arrived in Theria, where the ball would be held.

In the Holy Kingdom of Rosaria.

“Hello, Cardinal Yutia.”

“Yes, it has been a while, Chosen One.”

Cardinal Yutia.

And the chosen one, Elivan.

Were greeting each other.

With deep smiles that seemed to hide something.