well, just a short chapter i made.
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(Clement POV)
...
That night, sitting at the same table with the rest of the party, I looked at Herald with a puzzled expression.
"Hm… Is something wrong, Clement?"
It seemed he had noticed.
"Well… actually, I was just wondering why you asked me to come here so late at night."
Normally we did celebrate together here from time to time, but this felt a little different.
After all, everyone in the party was here.
"Of course it's to congratulate you for reaching D-rank."
When he said that, a thought crossed my mind.
How does he know?
I hadn't told him about it yet.
"You're probably wondering how I know," he said, as if he had read my mind.
"…Y-yeah."
"Well, simply put, Clare told me."
If it was Clare-san, then she probably heard it from Viola.
Huh…
"I see…" I replied with a faint smile.
"What's wrong? Aren't you happy?" he asked.
I shook my head.
"No… it's not that. I just feel like it's unnecessary to celebrate something this trivial. I don't want you all to waste your time because of me."
"Haha, so that's what you were thinking. You know, you don't need to worry so much. Besides, we're not wasting our time. If anything, we were already wasting it from the start. So there's nothing valuable being lost."
"So Clement… just accept it."
"…Yeah. Thanks for this."
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My gaze shifted to Viola and Clare-san, who were chatting together.
Then to Sheila, who was sitting beside Herald.
And Dein.
Well, since everyone had gone through the trouble of coming here, I might as well enjoy it.
Not long after, our orders finally arrived.
Herald then picked up a glass filled with alcohol and raised it.
"Ahem!"
"Alright! We're gathered here today to celebrate the promotion of one of our party members!"
"Cheers!"
Everyone enthusiastically raised their glasses.
Everyone except Dein, who looked completely bored.
But it seemed like no one paid attention to him.
"Cheers!"
And just like that, the party officially began.
...
Several hours later, the tavern had started to quiet down.
Most of the people who had been noisy earlier were now asleep after drinking too much.
Still sitting in the same chair, I simply stared ahead in boredom.
I honestly wonder why I'm not drunk at all.
Even Dein, who had looked reluctant earlier, was now sprawled out on the table.
"Hey, Clement. You've got pretty good tolerance."
A voice suddenly startled me.
It was Herald.
"Herald… You're awake?" I asked.
"…Ugh. Yeah, though my head still feels a little dizzy."
"You should probably get some rest."
"You don't need to worry about me, Clement."
-
For a moment, we both fell silent.
Then he suddenly started another conversation.
"By the way, Clement."
"Yes? What is it?"
"Have you ever killed someone?"
The question caught me completely off guard.
I stayed silent for a few moments before shaking my head.
"No… I've never killed another person."
In the dim lighting of the room, I could see him smiling.
"I see."
Honestly, I couldn't help but wonder what exactly he was thinking at that moment.
...
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