Chapter 126
{TL: By Creed}
"You are..."
This girl... I met her in the cafeteria before.
"Lena?"
"Yay♪ You remembered me properly!"
"Well, yeah."
She was a girl with a strong impact, in many ways.
It wasn't something I could easily forget.
And, well...
She was also the girl who confessed to me.
I'm not heartless enough to forget someone like that right away.
"Fate, you're really strong, aren't you?"
"Did you see what just happened...?"
"Yeah, yeah. I thought something was going on, so I peeked in, and I saw you and that guy fighting, so I couldn't help myself."
"That's a pretty dangerous thing to do... You could have gotten caught in the crossfire."
"It's fine. You know I'm strong too, right, Fate?"
Lena said it nonchalantly.
Her words weren't exaggerated or boasting.
There was a sense of confidence and strength in them.
"Is that guy dead?"
"No, he's alive. I dealt quite a bit of damage to him, so he'll probably be heading straight to the healing ward... but he shouldn't be injured to the point of death."
"He's pretty tough, huh."
"Yeah... for some reason."
My gaze drifted to the magic sword the man was holding.
Could this magic sword not only be giving him strength but also some unusual endurance?
"Is there something about that sword?"
Lena seemed to have noticed I was focusing on the sword.
She asked me that.
"Well... I'm not really sure, but this sword seems to be something special."
"Oh, like a one-of-a-kind piece made by a master craftsman?"
"I don't know... It doesn't seem like a normal sword. It feels more twisted and dangerous, but I don't know the details."
"Now that you mention it, it does give off a dangerous vibe."
Lena spoke casually and then lightly picked up the magic sword.
"What?!"
"Hmm... the weight is normal. The grip feels ordinary too. But, maybe there's some power in it that other swords don't have?"
Lena... doesn't seem affected.
She's casually giving her impression of the sword, as if it's nothing.
I thought it would be dangerous to touch it recklessly...
Could that not be the case?
"Do you want to hold it too, Fate?"
"Well, if you say so..."
"Ah."
Lena was about to hand me the magic sword...
But just before she did, the blade snapped with a crack.
Cracks spread all over the sword...
First, the embedded gem shattered.
As if in response, the sword itself crumbled into pieces and turned to dust.
"......"
We froze.
Lena froze as well.
Moving awkwardly with a creaking sound, we looked at each other.
We remained silent for a while.
"Was that... my fault?"
"Who knows...?"
"Let's pretend we didn't see it."
"That might be hard."
"Yeah, you're right."
"Haha."
A dry laugh.
"Whyyy!?"
After a while, Lena's anguished cry echoed.
――――――――――
After that, the knights rushed to the scene following the report.
Then, with the cooperation of the Adventurers' Guild members, an on-site investigation was conducted.
Based on the information gathered so far, it was determined that the man was indeed the "Jet-Black Sword Demon."
However, during the fight with me, the man suffered some injuries. He was taken to the healing ward attached to the knights' headquarters, and the interrogation was postponed.
Instead, Lena and I were the ones questioned about the situation.
Since I am an adventurer and was acting based on a request, I wasn't particularly suspected of anything.
Lena, however, was a different case. She seemed to be a traveler from another place and had no identification to prove her identity. On top of that, she had broken the magic sword. This raised suspicions about whether she might be an accomplice of the man, leading to a barrage of questions.
"Ugh... What a terrible experience."
Lena, who was finally released, seemed very exhausted and was completely drained.
I had been released earlier, but... leaving her alone and going back first felt a bit heartless, so I decided to wait for her.
Sofia might get mad if she found out, but... Hmm. For some reason, I just couldn't bring myself to leave Lena alone.
"Good job."
"I'm so tired... Even though I didn't do anything, they kept suspecting me of being one of the culprits or an accomplice."
"Maybe it was because you shattered the magic sword."
"But that wasn't even my fault... Ugh, I'm just so tired."
She was swaying and looked like she might collapse at any moment. It seemed to be more of a mental exhaustion than a physical one.
"Want to grab a meal together? Eating something delicious might help you feel better."
I invited Lena, not out of any ulterior motive, but simply because I wanted to talk with her a bit more.
"You're treating me?"
"Yeah."
"Oh! ... I'd love to be happy about that, but..."
Lena's shoulders slumped.
"I'm actually in the middle of a little errand. If I delay any longer, I'm going to get a serious scolding, so unfortunately..."
"I see..."
"Well, see you later!"
Lena smiled brightly, waved her hand, and walked away. I waved back...
"Hmm?"
I felt a sense of something being off...
However, I couldn't quite figure out what it was, leaving me with a vague, uneasy feeling.
TL Note: Will Sofia know about this meeting?
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