Chapter 73 – Friends, Allies, and Enemies (19)

Friends, Allies, and Enemies (19)

Chirp chirp.

The birds are singing. They cry out cleanly and refreshingly.
It’s the sound that heralds the morning. It’s a pleasant morning, one I haven’t greeted in a while.
The crying is a bit loud. Judging by the gentle breeze, it seems I fell asleep without closing the window. Surrounded by forest, there must be a lot of insects; I hope I haven’t been bitten.
Actually, it might not matter if I was.

With Cecilia here, any minor thing can be treated. That’s the convenience of another world.

When I open my eyes, I see a wall. My view is high.
The small entranceway is in full view.
It seems I’ve managed not to fall over, even though I fell asleep leaning against the wall.
I grab my stiff back and head towards the bed.

If I’m to head to Chloe’s early in the morning, even leaving now would be late. I must hurry and find Chloe’s house with Cecilia.

“…Are you awake?”

But they were asleep.
Both of them. Soundly asleep.
It’s bright morning and they’re this lazy. I’m used to not sleeping for hours. Am I the healthy one, or are these guys just weak?

Well, I used to be the one with less stamina during my hero party days.
I couldn’t last on just a few minutes of sleep. That’s why I learned to sleep even if it meant leaning against a wall. Otherwise, I would have already bid farewell to this world from overwork.
Troka could stay up all day and still be fine. Back then, he was inexplicably energetic, and it seems I’m becoming like him. Maybe it’s because of the excessive use of the holy sword.

…But that can’t be it.

It’s simply that my body has become stronger, naturally increasing my stamina.
That’s what I choose to believe.

“Umm… just a little longer.”

Cecilia mutters something like sleep talk.
There’s no sign she’ll wake up.
I need Cecilia if I’m to barge into Chloe’s place. Should I just wake her up?

“……”

No.
There’s no need to wake her up right now.

I lower the hand that was heading towards her shoulder and instead grab the blanket to cover her.

There’s no way she’d forget the location of the house in just two days.
Today, instead of Chloe, I can meet someone else. And I’ll give them a heads up so we can head to Chloe’s early tomorrow morning.

Let’s go meet Rahi.
Chloe could ignore and dismiss any evidence I present. She’ll think I’ve fabricated it.
She was furious when Cecilia leaked the truth. Having these pieces of evidence won’t change anything. If anything, it might make her unable to contain her anger and lash out.

But what if I have Rahi’s testimony?
It would be impossible to dismiss it as a lie, no matter what.
I’ll make her confess about her sister’s misdeeds and Troka’s unavoidable sacrifice.
For Troka, who saved her from being condemned by association, she would at least do that much.

Well, Chloe might think that she said those things because of my threats…

But if it comes to that level, I won’t hesitate to use my last resort.
No second thoughts.

Now, let’s get going.

As I was about to leave the room… I naturally turned back.
Because of a promise.
I told these guys not to leave without saying anything. It wouldn’t be right to go out like this.
Promises must be kept.
No exceptions.

However, waking them up wasn’t an option.
And just waiting around didn’t sit well with me either.

Turning my head, I spotted some paper within view.
Instructions for using the lodging… I don’t really remember reading it. When I first came here, I couldn’t see in front of me anyway. I don’t feel like reading it now. It’s perfect paper to write something on.

I’ll use the navy-blue liquid in my pocket for pen and ink. There are a few thin rods, so no problem there.
With that, I pulled a chair over and sat down.
Sitting makes my back start to ache.

Cecilia… I should’ve just woken her up. Now here I am, writing a letter for no good reason.
Well, I’ve come this far; I can’t wake her now.

“A letter… a letter, huh…”

I sat in the chair, looking at the paper.
I hadn’t written anything. Just looked at it.
It’s well known that writing a satisfactory first sentence can take a long time.

The guy I know who wrote the most letters must have pondered for a long time too. He surely did. Most of it was probably due to the goddess’s meddling, but still, he was the one writing. How he managed to write that much…

“…Ha, should’ve been a novelist instead of a hero.”

With that self-deprecating thought, I picked up the pen.

* * *

After the rain, the forest is always silent. Myluman was as calm as the sea after a storm, with the faint sound of small birds chirping like gentle waves.

Breaking the stillness, a girl makes her way down the path.
Pale green hair, upturned eyes.

Under the moonlight peeking through the clouds, her brown eyes shine fiercely as she presses forward without hesitation.

Crunch, crackle, crunch.

She steps on branches without care, her brow furrowing with each step. Even on a familiar path, walking at night comes with its difficulties.

Yet, she doesn’t slow down.
As if she doesn’t mind tripping over tree roots.

At the end of her path, the girl stops.

A treehouse.
At a glance, it might seem like a typical Myluman dwelling, but it’s slightly different.
A small, curious symbol next to the front door, a symbol representing the forest keeper.
A location difficult to recognize unless one is a fellow forest keeper.

Recognizing the symbol, she knocks on the door carelessly. Bang, bang, the loud noise echoes into the night. The birds that were singing have now silenced, and only a few insects in the bushes continue to raise their voices unabated.

Bang, bang, bang… Knock, knock,
Are you there?

But perhaps realizing she was being too loud, she softened her knocking.

Soon, a yellow light seeps through the window slits.
Someone must have turned on a light.
Though the night was deep, the quick response suggested there would be no trouble in having a conversation.

A few seconds pass.

Creak,
The door opens.

Inside appears a figure with blue hair and clear eyes.
A typical beauty of an elven woman.
It was Rahi.
In one hand, she held a newspaper. Despite the late hour, she seemed wide awake for some reason. Instead, a frown of deep thought was etched on her forehead.

“Who is it at this hour… Oh, Chloe?”

“Sister Rahi. I have something to talk about. Let me in.”

Rahi, surprised by the statement, nonetheless set her face in a resolute expression.
As if she had anticipated this moment.
But she didn’t show it overtly.

And naturally, she welcomed the unexpected nighttime visitor into her home.

The interior was sparse.
While not unusual for a forest keeper’s home, Rahi’s place was particularly empty, almost giving the impression of poverty.
She wanted to leave Myluman quickly and hadn’t bothered to spread out her belongings.
After all, she wasn’t on good terms with the upper echelons and no longer wanted to be tied down to this place.
She yearned to resign as a forest keeper and become free. The surroundings reflected that sentiment.

But from Chloe’s perspective, it didn’t look that way.

She thought it was because of her brother Rapi, who had been killed by the hero. Given her standing with the elders, it would be difficult to lead a proper life in Myluman. That’s what she believed.

“…Would you like some tea?”

“Ah, yes. Please.”

“Alright… have a seat over there.”

Chloe usually interacted with everyone without hesitation, but for some reason, she felt awkward around Rapi. Should she say the atmosphere was different? Rahi, who seemed different than usual, appeared to be hiding something. However, Chloe didn’t voice this observation. She needed information.

“Have you seen this newspaper?”

“Ah, yes. Yeah, I’ve read it all. Every bit of it.”

She said this to Rahi, who had returned with the tea. Rahi had placed the newspaper on the table and went to the kitchen to brew the tea.

“I see…”

She had read the entire newspaper. That meant she must have read all the information about Troka as well. There shouldn’t be any trouble getting her testimony.

“I’m sorry to bring this up so late at night, but can we get straight to the point?”

Chloe spoke without even taking a sip of the tea she had brought. Rahi slowly nodded her head. Somehow, it felt like she had anticipated everything from the beginning.

The tea slowly cooled.

“Troka, Rapi… tell me everything that happened that day. It would be even better if you could recall every detail without leaving anything out. I need all the related information.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

The response was immediate. Then she took a sip of her tea.

Rahi seemed somewhat uneasy.

“Of course, I understand. It’s hard for me to think about that bastard too…”

Chloe continued speaking, slightly flustered but empathetic to Rahi’s sorrow. She understood why Rahi couldn’t answer. To her, Rapi was a friend. Her best friend, but still just a ‘friend.’ However, for Rahi, Rapi was a brother, family. It was clear that recalling those memories was more painful than anything else.

Yet, she didn’t give up.

“Please, it’s for everyone’s sake. For the poor souls killed by Troka. For the comrades who died without finding the traitor because of his wasted time. And… for the honor of Rapi, who was the first to die at his hands… It’s a painful memory, but please tell me, I’m begging you.”

The identity of the person killed by Troka was not disclosed in the published newspaper, out of consideration for Rahi. However, with Rahi’s consent, everything could be revealed without hesitation. They could restore Rapi’s honor and tarnish Troka’s false glory.

It was for everyone’s sake.
Rahi’s words were crucial in this situation, for the sake of all.

The letter from Flan had long been erased from Chloe’s mind.
Now, she was simply hoping for Rahi to speak about anything related to Troka.

Chloe begged on her knees.

“Anything you say is fine. Just tell me once… please.”

Rahi’s expression grew increasingly stern.

She knew.
She knew who was responsible for opening the gates of Myluman.
And who had executed the traitor.
Everything.

Because her brother was more precious to her than life itself, she hadn’t told anyone the truth.
She couldn’t.
Even though her own sibling had done wrong, who else but her could stand up for Rapi?
Troka had taken on all the blame. Should she reveal the truth?

Now that the newspaper had been published, Troka’s reputation had fallen beyond repair. Was there really a need to tell the truth?

From the start, she was in a situation where she couldn’t speak openly due to pressure from the elders.

Rahi wanted to kill Troka. She wanted revenge on the man who had taken her only sibling from her.
Yet, she also felt gratitude.
Ironically.

She had nearly lost her head due to guilt by association, but he had saved her. She didn’t know why, but after cutting Rapi’s throat, he had apologized over and over again. At first, she thought he was just trying to placate her for a while.

But he… he took on all the crimes committed by the elders and contributed to stabilizing Myluman.
Without any benefit to himself.

And it was Troka who had subdued the rampaging Chloe and taken her away.

The Troka that Rahi thought of was strange, peculiar, hateful, and yet, grateful.

“Sister Rahi… please…!”

Chloe’s pleading grew more intense.

Should she tell the truth?
What would happen to Chloe then?
Would she try to kill me?
After all, the whole family died because of her sister…

She wasn’t afraid of dying.
But she was afraid of how Chloe, who was like a sister to her, would react after hearing everything.

That was what she feared.

Rahi was visibly trembling.
To Chloe’s eyes, it might seem like fear of Troka.

Rahi’s complexion turned pale. Her eyes were not those of an ordinary person.

It was as if she wished she had died that day.
Her eyes resembled those of a man haunted by guilt.

If it weren’t for the newspaper, it wouldn’t have been this bad. But because of the inflated information about Troka published in the paper, Rahi felt cornered.
Troka was not the villain he was made out to be in the newspaper.
Rather, he was a good person.

He was like a savior sent down by the gods.

Moreover, he even took down the assassins sent by the elders to silence us.

But… he killed her brother.

From her perspective, killing her brother is something she can never forgive.

But that doesn’t mean he deserved to be slandered with such exaggerated accusations.

Rahi agonized.
She looked at Chloe.
She thought of Troka.
She remembered Rapi.

And then,

…Yes.
She had made her decision.

She gasped for breath over and over. She tried to move her tongue, but her muscles spasmed as if her body was preventing her from speaking. It seemed as if her entire being was saying she must not speak.

Chloe stood steadfastly by Rahi’s side, trying to make her as comfortable as possible.

“Troka, on that day…, the deed he committed that day was….”

Eventually, Rahi opened her mouth, trembling with fear, and said,

Rahi sent a smile of triumph.

However, what came back was,

“Troka killed Rapi… But, Rapi, Rapi was… the traitor who opened the gates of Myluman, and… the one who punished him was…… Troka.”

The sentence fell like a dead branch in a windless space, rigid yet filled with resolute determination.

And a girl’s question, frozen with shock,

“Eh…?”