Sunlight and a cool breeze filtered through the window. While drinking rum accompanied by roast beef packaged in the store across the street, I couldn't help but exclaim: «Yeah, that's for the best».
How long had it been since I was able to enjoy a mundane day like this? Maybe it was because he had been in the drab Noark for several months, but the change was incredibly satisfying. Although it's not that I didn't have worries in mind.
It's been a week now.
So much time had passed since those days occupied by all those big names that appeared from everywhere: Auril Gavis, Lüchenprague, the Knight of Light Jerome.
Sigh.
I was still stuck in this time period.
«When will this be activated?» I took out the Stone Fragment from the Records and toyed with it as a habit, but there were some good things about having bought time. At least I had time to get rid of the equipment.
I also have some guesses as to why this remains silent...
Anyway, for that reason, we decided to take a break and find a place to stay in the overworld. By the way, only one room. I tried to find two separate rooms, but Amelia scolded me saying it wasn't necessary and to be honest, I accepted her reasoning. After all, we had already been living practically as one body for several months. It was too late to discuss a distinction of sexes.
«Drinking again...»
«Oh, you're here».
«I told you to keep the door closed when I'm not here». Amelia returned from her excursion and familiarly threw her coat on the coat rack. I didn't bother asking where he had been since early in the morning. It was obvious. He probably went to stalk his sister to check on her again.
«Scolding you as soon as you walk in?»
«I'm not scolding—»
I quickly changed the subject. «So how is Laura?»
Perhaps due to the powerful effect of the Lethe Blessing prototype, Laura opened her eyes just three days ago. After the priest who was volunteering at the first aid station diagnosed him with memory loss, he began to believe that the name on the nameplate was his.
«No es Laura, es Shannon».
«Ah been.»
Shannon Ellaura was the new name we created for her. We were a little reluctant to use the label the old man had given him. Changing the label to a new one on the patient's belongings box and even correcting the patient records written at the aid station one by one, Amelia had been quite busy.
«So how is she?»
«Unfortunately, it has attracted the attention of the priest who came as a volunteer. Today he started learning to read for the first time and is learning very quickly. The priest seems to think this is a sign that his memories will be back soon...»
«Don't worry. That won't happen».
«I'm not worried about that part. It's just that since the priest is from the church, his attention bothers me».
At first I was confused about what he meant, but I quickly understood. «By essence?»
«Yeah. It will seem suspicious that a child who is not yet an adult has an essence».
If she were left alone, she would probably live her entire life without knowing that the power of an essence resided in her body. The statistics could be explained as a naturally healthy body and without its memories, it would never be able to manifest its special abilities.
«That definitely makes me nervous too. Getting the attention of the volunteer priest was not in the plan».
If he lived a life closely linked to a religious denomination, that changed things. As a place that had the power and authority to erase an essence, it created the possibility of the existence of the essence being revealed.
«...Since memory loss is rare, it seems to have caught their attention unexpectedly».
«So what will you do now?»
«What can I do? Not that I can forcibly remove it». Amelia licked her lips bitterly and said she would just watch for the moment. I agreed with your opinion. With that, this conversation ended.
«Anyway, why don't you change the way you speak?»
When I started, Amelia looked at me with cautious eyes. «... What's up with that?»
«Your tone is too rigid to use among clanmates».
«Clanmates?»
«What is that expression, as if you were hearing it for the first time? You're not thinking about saying you forgot or something—»
«I do not remember. I just... I don't know what that has to do with the way I speak».
«Hmm, it doesn't really have anything to do with that. I was just curious how you sound in a different tone».
«... What?» Amelia looked at me pitifully before sighing deeply. «Really...»
«What, I may be curious, right? Listening to the way you spoke when you were young, it doesn't seem like you've spoken that way since.»
«That's it...» Amelia fell silent. This was an unexpected reaction. In the past, she would have simply ignored me or asked me if I was making fun of her. «I'll try to improve my tone».
«¿Eh?»
«No, I'll work on it... Are you satisfied? No, is it... good?»
What do you mean by good?
It really gave me goosebumps, which is why I was speechless when Amelia started thinking about her tone with a serious look. «Hmm... Does 'good' sound softer than 'good'? Which do you think is better?»
«E-wait. Aren't you changing it too easily?»
«You were the one who told me to change it, Yandel».
«Yes, but, still.»
«Don't get it wrong. This is a problem I've also been thinking about recently».
«Have you been thinking about that?»
«... Laura would have wanted that. Also, as you also mentioned, it must be true that there is a problem with me».
Ah... I was just joking with her before getting to the point to ease the depressing atmosphere...
I quickly resolved the situation before it was too late. «Thinking about it again, I don't think you have to force yourself to change it. Who cares how you talk? The important thing is the essence of a person».
Amelia showed a lukewarm reaction to my words, but then nodded as if she could trust me as someone who had a history of falling in love with Missha. «So that's the relationship between you two».
«Ah...»
Why did I say this? I haven't told anyone.
«Hmm, certainly since you never find fault with a speech like that, I'm sure it's not empty words this time. Alright. For now, I will leave the topic on hold».
«...Okay, good idea.» This was a pretty awkward topic for me, so I quickly got to the point we should have gotten to sooner. «Anyway, since we've gotten enough rest, I think it's time for a serious conversation».
«Conversation... okay.» Then Amelia sat in the chair in front of me and we began the meeting that we had been postponing for a week under the name of a break.
The first point of the meeting was this. «Do you really have no connection with the Order of the Rose?»
«I don't know. And that conversation ended a long time ago».
I learned that Lüchenprague had pursued Amelia so insistently because he believed she was a member of that group. It seemed that he held some grudge against them that the public did not know about.
«That way I can show you what it feels like to lose something».
Considering the guy said this at the time, he must have lost someone valuable to him. But that wasn't important.
«Why do you mention this again?»
At the time I overlooked it as a strange coincidence, but as I thought about it slowly, a possibility came to mind. «You said you learned your aura from a woman you met by chance at Noark Castle, right?»
«Yes, she taught me some things, saying that she liked the look in my eyes. Of course, she only created the basic foundation for me, it was much later that I awakened the aura. But... I'm sure we've also talked about this before.»
«That's true.» At that point we came to the conclusion that this woman must have been a member of the Order of the Rose. «Is there a possibility that that woman was you?»
"... ¿Which? ⁇
«It occurred to me suddenly. There is no way a strange woman would show such kindness».
Amelia, who was quite insightful since she was a child, understood exactly what he was trying to say this time. «Are you thinking that's the work we have left to do?»
«Yeah.» Creating the framework of an aura for Amelia F, who was left alone in this world, could have been our remaining task.
«Don't worry. That will not be the case.» Amelia flatly rejected that possibility. I asked her to provide evidence, but she only told me to trust her in this case and did not explain it to me in detail.
From the way he speaks, I think I'm really wrong...
If that were true, it would be good news for me. If we were to follow the story as it unfolded, that would mean we would have had to stay here another two years.
«Then let's move on to the next point». The second topic I mentioned was Auril Gavis. What kind of variable would this old suspect be advancing? We discussed this for a long time and, without much benefit, it ended with a reprimand.
«Why did you do something so dangerous? It might have been nice to part ways on good terms».
«What do you mean? Are you saying I should have revealed my name and face?»
«Even if you didn't, I'm saying that in the end there was no need to make fun of him».
«Ah...» That was true. At that moment I felt good, but thinking about the old man who would have been furious afterwards made me shudder a little.
«You're great and all, but you need to behave better».
«...Okay.»
«Since you say that, I won't say anything else... But be careful. Becoming your comrade also means that I trust you with my life». I was very grateful for that resolution, which went beyond trust.
... But didn't he say he wouldn't say anything else?
«Ahem.» I finished this topic coughing and moved on to the next. It was none other than the core of this meeting, how to activate the Record Fragment Stone. «To be exact, I want us to discuss what exactly the task we were given is...»
«It seems like you have something on your mind.»
Of course, I wouldn't have mentioned this without thinking about it. In addition to providing the basis of an aura for Amelia F two years from now, there were a few more candidates. The first was this one.
«Treasures of Genesis...?» Amelia seemed confused as soon as the Genesis Treasures were mentioned, but I couldn't erase the possibility.
Well, I couldn't be the one to steal the Genesis Treasures in twenty years, but it might have something to do with that in the future. For example, like the barbaric shock of the heart, the result would come much later, but I could end up providing the cause.
«True, you said that Genesis Treasures are particularly important objects for evil spirits. In that sense, that makes sense. You are also evil—»
«Shh.»
«Ah, how bad. You told me not to mention that.»
Although it was a sensitive topic for me, as Amelia immediately apologized, I let it go with a yellow card. Let's move on to the second. «The GM... that's the nickname of the man who took over the meeting instead of Auril Gavis».
«Yeah. But what about him?»
«This is exactly when he took over the community».
Should I say it was a little coincidence? Maybe I needed to meet him in the past and do something to get back to our original time.
«That also seems plausible. Do you have a third?»
Do you think not?
I immediately told him the last possibility. «Hide everything I collected here so I can deliver it to the future. Maybe that's my final role».
«That's... just your wish, right?»
Uh, I have nothing to say about it...
«So, have you thought of anything? What do we have to do?»
«B-well... I'll tell you when I think about it.»
I thought you might have a good idea. It was a bit disappointing, but accepting the shortcomings of a comrade would be the quality of a leader. «Anyway, did you sell all the equipment?»
«More than half. At a reduced price, it can be removed sooner...»
«No, it doesn't matter how long it takes. Sell it for the full price».
«There were some valuables among them, isn't it better to keep some?»
Do you really not know?
When it came to equipment, maintenance was essential. The value decreased over time. Furthermore, selling equipment from twenty years ago would raise suspicions about the source, so apart from the Demon Crusher, it was better to get rid of everything.
The problem is where can I hide this to be sure...
I was about to continue the stream of thoughts I had been repeating countless times when Amelia said, «Oh, and I have one thing to tell you».
«¿Eh?»
«I heard this when I came out today, but they say a rank 3 essence will be auctioned on the central exchange».
«Hey, a rank 3 essence? Why not at the auction house in heaven?»
«Looks like Alminus Trading Company is trying something new».
Hmm, are you looking to gentrify the central exchange? Even if they are, they won't be able to beat Sky Auction House.
«So what essence is it? Oh, this is also kept silent until the day before the auction, like in Heaven's Auction House?»
«It is, but I already know what its essence is, so it doesn't matter. It was a very famous auction».
Yes, this was the benefit of a returnee.
When I urged her to speak, Amelia opened her mouth. «It is the essence of Vol-Herchan».
Is this what they call destiny?
Coincidentally, it was an essential essence for my cultivation method.