—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: TushChen
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Elena ran.
She didn’t even notice that the sun was shining on her.
The moment she saw Elin’s eyes, the same color as hers, only one thought remained in Elena’s mind.
She had to save her.
The sister she didn’t know about until now and hadn’t even thought to look for.
Elin sat forlornly under the shadow where the sun hadn’t reached yet.
Writhing in pain, struggling with the poison of agony, sorrow, and loneliness.
Elena couldn’t leave her sister like that.
Elena had noticed the young lord’s thoughts when he looked at her.
An endlessly kind and good being.
Yes. Maybe he saw her as a genuinely angelic being.
Perhaps he thought of her as a pious lamb with faith.
It made her happy to be seen that way. She liked it when someone saw her as kind.
However, Elena evaluated her own desire to save Elin as selfishness.
Since childhood, Elena has been surrounded by people.
Numerous priests and holy knights took care of her.
Even compared to other holy knight candidates, she received special treatment.
It was because she was born under the light of the Fiat constellation that symbolized Nephthys.
Everyone was kind, friendly, and affectionate.
Even in a temple with strict rules, Elena had objectively lived a happy life.
But sometimes, Elena would place her hand on her chest and press it firmly.
Deep near her heart, there was an emotion that couldn’t be explained solely by affection and love.
No, it wasn’t an emotion.
It was a hole.
There was only an empty hole that seemed to have nothing but darkness when looked into.
Elena couldn’t understand why that hole was there.
It was just there.
‘Then I should be loved more. To fill this hole, that’s the only way.’
So Elena became even kinder to people.
To receive more love, she acted even more gently.
She smiled prettily, laughed brightly, and treated everyone that way.
So everyone truly loved her more, but the hole wasn’t filled.
‘Why?’
‘When will this hole be filled?’
‘The emptiness… won’t disappear.’
And just yesterday, Elena had secretly left the temple due to the agony caused by that hole.
She knew she was doing something terrible, but a little deviation was one of the few times Elena could have personal joy.
And that day, she found the reason for the hole she had been harboring.
In the dark alley where the moonlight shone.
When the hair of the girl who was like her mirror flowed down like a waterfall, and the moment she saw the girl’s eyes as beautiful as the moonlight.
Elena could understand what was needed to fill that empty space, even if it didn’t fit perfectly.
She wasn’t a complete human being alone.
Somewhere, she had another half, and that hole was empty because of the missing half.
So she, trying to save Elin, was just a selfish child.
She was just desperately trying to fill her own empty hole.
“…Lady Elin! I’m coming now!”
Elena shouted desperately and ran into the darkness where Elin was sitting.
“Why…? Why are you coming!”
Elin screamed.
“Are you coming to kill me?! You hate me too, don’t you!”
Elena thought she wasn’t mistaken after all.
Elin was suffering.
She was saying she didn’t want to do this.
“Be careful! The Divine Field is already…!”
The young lord’s warning shout was heard.
Elena shuddered at the eerie feeling approaching behind her back.
Even though she couldn’t see it because she was only looking forward, it must have been the Divine Field created by Elin chasing after her.
It might be one step too late.
But Elena didn’t stop her feet.
Soon, she was right in front of Elin.
“Lady Elin…!”
If she just reached out a little!
However, Elin shouted as if rejecting Elena’s touch, tightly closing her eyes.
It was a word of rejection.
“Don’t come!”
At the last moment.
With Elin’s shout, the Divine Field completely enveloped her surroundings.
It was a step too late.
She had seen some of her hair that had touched the Divine Field earlier instantly turn black and melt away.
The same thing would happen if she jumped into Yuan’s Divine Field now.
However, Elena recalled what Leonhart had said.
His way of speaking was definitely fierce. His actions were rough, too.
Honestly, at first, she thought he was quite a hateful person.
But she remembered his hand that had held hers and guided her.
In the face of the young lord who had embraced her and fought desperately, there was definitely more goodwill than herself.
The young lord was definitely a hateful person, but he was someone she could trust.
Elena overcame her fear and leaped into the Divine Field that had spread around Elin.
Even amid the sharp pain enveloping her entire body, Elena executed the plan Leonhart had told her.
Elena spread her arms and gently embraced Elin.
Warmly.
At that moment, the Divine Field gathered around Elin and Elena, enveloping them like a spherical cage.
Like a space of death.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Since earlier, Elin had been in a dazed state.
Her head was dizzy, and her vision was blurry.
All the energy had drained from her body, and it felt like her entire body would crumble into dust at any moment.
However, the dark and sticky emotion inside her didn’t disappear.
No, it was burning even more like oil catching fire.
‘I have to kill.’
The voice of God disoriented Elin’s ears.
As if that was the only answer.
‘I have to kill.’
‘Kill.’
‘That’s an obstacle.’
‘She took what you could have had.’
‘So…’
‘I hate her.’
Elin thought as she watched the silver-haired girl running towards her.
How could she be like that?
As if the sun was following her, that girl was shining brightly.
Even with blurry eyes, that sight was so beautiful, and Elin felt jealous.
Her eyes became hot, and tears burst out.
‘Could I have been like that too?’
If she had been the one chosen at that time.
Then, could I have become that girl?
She had always been in the darkness.
It was so dark here, and the moonlight was only shining.
Even that was so distorted.
Elin felt as if darkness that devoured everything was lurking around her.
So, don’t come.
If you come here and come by my side, you will lose that light.
“Don’t come!”
So she refused. She vehemently refused the first act of kindness towards her in forever.
She hoped the girl wouldn’t come into her darkness.
The girl leaped into the Divine Field as if prepared to die.
‘Kill!’
Elin’s will was already as good as gone.
Following God’s words, the Divine Field enveloped Elin and Elena.
But the next moment, Elena did something Elin could never have imagined.
Elena lowered her body, spread her arms, and gently embraced Elin, who had been in the darkness.
“I’m sorry.”
Elena’s voice was already sobbing.
She seemed to be even sadder than Elin herself.
“I came to save you, even if it’s late. I’m sorry for not knowing until now.”
Elena confessed her true feelings as if spitting them out.
Soft hair and a gentle cheek touched Elin’s cheek.
At that moment, the light flowing from Elena’s body slowly spread.
And that light gradually pushed away the dark Divine Field surrounding them, extinguishing each other’s light.
The Divine Field of Nephthys and the Divine Field of Yuan collided and returned to nothingness.
The darkness that had enveloped the two disappeared, and the sun’s warm gaze returned.
Elin blankly looked at the ceiling beyond Elena’s shoulder.
Even in a place filled with darkness, sunlight was already pushing away the darkness.
Elin slowly reached out and wrapped her arms around Elena’s back.
As she closed her eyes, the tears that had welled up flowed down her white cheeks.
“I won’t leave you alone anymore.”
Elena whispered as if the sunlight was spying, tightly embracing Elin.
The sunlight Elena had brought was already shining even in the darkness where Elin had been sitting.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
When Yuan’s Divine Field had completely enveloped Elin and Elena, I thought it was all over.
The Divine Field, enveloped in a circular shape, looked like a substantial fortress.
Divine Fields are canceled out when opposing forces come into contact.
However, when there is a difference in the level of the Divine Field, one side simply devours the other.
The difference between Elin’s Divine Field, directly controlled by Yuan, and Elena’s Divine Field was bound to be considerable.
Therefore, the plan was to weaken Elin’s Divine Field by giving her a mental shock.
So, embrace Elin.
Speak your true feelings.
That was the plan I had told Elena.
I thought that if Elin’s mind was shaken even a little by doing that, we could suppress Yuan with Elena’s Divine Field.
After that, I thought we could control the Divine Field by having them stay close together.
They wouldn’t be able to use the Divine Field in the future, but it was a much better outcome than one of them dying.
However.
‘As I thought… it didn’t work?’
I closed my eyes tightly.
I had made Elena risk her life, and ultimately, we failed.
But rather than the pain of a pricked conscience or regret, I had to think about how to move next.
*Ding!*
Without mana to support my body now, even a slight movement made my entire body creak with excruciating pain.
Still, I was about to stand up…
At that very moment.
As if popping a swollen water bubble with a needle, the black Divine Field enveloping Elena and Elin burst out.
Elena and Elin’s figures were revealed there.
The sunlight coming through the windows had already filled the castle corridor.
Under that sunlight sat two beautiful girls embracing each other.
“Can I really… stay by Elena’s side?”
Elin asked in a trembling voice, bursting into tears.
The arms tightly hugging Elena spoke of the hardships she had endured.
“Yes. It’s okay. Now I’ve also found what I was lacking.”
Elena smiled as she gently swept Elin’s disheveled bangs and tidied them behind her ear.
“It’s you.”
And then, Elin burst into tears again.
I stared at that sight momentarily as if my soul had left my body, then plopped back down on the floor.
“…Hah.”
I’m dying.
Only after using every damn thing in my arsenal could I somehow overcome this ordeal.
Isn’t this too much?
*Ding!*
*Ding!*
I looked at the system window and closed it for now.
There was something more important…
“Excuse me…”
I spoke to the two crying girls.
“Save me…”
I was about to die right now.
The mana would recover, but the physical injury worsened in real-time.
At my words, Elena reacted first with a scream.
“Oh my gosh! That’s right! Uh, quickly… right! If I pray…”
Elena gently held my hand.
“I’ll help too.”
Elin, who followed behind, also held my hand and infused healing power.
Huh? I understand Elena, but why is Elin’s divine power being maintained?
After pondering for a moment, I realized the reason.
Just as Elena suppressed the use of Yuan’s Divine Field, Yuan also needed to keep Elena in check.
For Yuan if Elena could freely use her power, she would directly confront Yuan as a rival.
That was more of a problem for Yuan.
Therefore, it seemed that Yuan intended to continue maintaining the divine power given to Elin to prevent Elena from freely using her power as well.
‘The gods of this world are quite petty.’
I thought like that while accepting the healing power of the two saintesses with my whole body.
“Thank you.”
At that moment, I smiled weakly at Elena’s words.
I kept the words that I was glad to be able to continue taking responsibility in the future to myself.
“Yeah.”
Seeing my smile, Elena smiled brightly as if she was happy.
“… I’m sorry.”
Elin, holding my other hand, seemed to have the opposite emotion.
She couldn’t even raise her head properly due to her guilt.
“What’s there to be sorry for?”
“That… yeah. Sorry.”
And at that moment.
“Achoo.”
Someone reacted to the pollen brought by the spring breeze and let out a tiny cough.
When I turned my head, I saw Nias, who had been hiding.
Nias’ eyes were darting with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. But it wasn’t just a harmless misunderstanding—no, I saw something far more sinister brewing behind those dark, shaking orbs.
“…Sob!”
Ah.
Come to think of it, I forgot to mention that Nias was quite a jealous person.
“This is troublesome.”
I muttered weakly as I looked at Nias’ shaking black eyes.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
