Love Letter From The Future
Chapter 429: Proof of existence (17)

Chapter 429: Proof of existence (17)

0% Celine’s continuing statement was as follows:

She’d gone out for her usual late-night training. It was to get used to the surge in her mana capacity as well as to get a better feel for the battle axe—a weapon still unfamiliar in her hands.

There was just one problem: Her training involved noise.

Swinging a sword didn’t produce much noise. But a battle axe nearly as tall as she was? That was a different story. The noise it produced was as powerful as its destructive force.

Especially since Celine enjoys projecting mana at full force. In other words, she couldn’t stop the weapon mid-air. Anyone could imagine the sound a battle axe makes when it’s slammed in the ground.

That was why she had to go outside the orphanage.

It was then that the unexpected encounter took place.

It was like a magical moment. As the moonlight dimly pierced through the veil of clouds, the reflected light from a pure white mask shone into Celine’s eyes.

Silence hung between the two figures standing in front of the wall.

“Saying it like that makes the atmosphere weird.”

“Shut up, this is important... And do you think I’m the type of woman who’d get distracted?”

I wonder what kind of distraction she was talking about.

Since I was a man who got distracted far too easily, I decided to keep silent for now.

“There was no conversation. I just instinctively knew something was off about that person.....”

“Off how?”

“They didn’t feel human.”

She called them ‘that person’ earlier, but now she’s saying they didn’t feel human.

I didn’t know how to respond to that.

Still, Celine’s eyes were dead serious.

“It was more than just unpleasant. The way they looked at me was unsettling.”

“Sounds like a demonic human.”

Based on my long experience, I came to a simple conclusion.

Celine’s head tilted in confusion. Come to think of it, she’d never faced a demonic human before.

I had to face Mr. Gilford alone. And she didn’t come with us to the North either.

“Normally, demonic humans hide their true nature. But when they unleash their power, that’s when you get that unpleasant feeling.They’re beings between humans and demonic beasts, after all.”

“I see... Could that be related to why I fainted?”

Hmm, a sigh climbed up my throat.

I couldn’t entirely rule out the possibility. There were often demonic humans with special abilities.

While lost in thought for a moment, I asked vaguely.

“Do you remember anything else?”

“Well, I tried to swing my axe right away, you know? But then....”

There was a flash, and then she fainted.

There were no signs or warnings. Or rather, there might have been, but Celine wasn’t skilled enough to even notice it.

I found that point particularly puzzling.

“You got taken down while making direct eye contact? And from quite a distance too?”

“Ahaha... That’s the thing.”

Celine became dejected again and gave an awkward smile. An undisguisable gloom seeped through her expression.

She seemed depressed about the fact that she was defeated without a proper fight. I’ve been caught off guard by enemies plenty of times myself too, so I could understand her feelings.

But I couldn’t comfort her right away, her testimony about the ‘flash’ was bothering me.

I’d heard something similar before.

Didn’t Dame Irene also testify that there was a ‘flash’ before her eyes? At that time, I thought she was just being her usual incompetent self and talking nonsense.

Coincidences don’t happen twice. In other words, somewhere in this testimony was a clue to identify the culprit.

Not that I had any clue what it was right now.

I swallowed a bitter laugh and turned my eyes back to Celine who still looked gloomy.

“I’m sorry, Ian Oppa......”

“What are you sorry for now?”

A bitter smile involuntarily appeared on my lips. Having known her for a long time, I could tell.

How much Celine was struggling.

Helplessness breeds inferiority. I’d been too busy to notice, but deep wounds were being carved into Celine’s heart. That fact was unbearably sad and regrettable.

I should have noticed the signs when she said she wanted to stay at the Academy and train alone.

“I was useless again. If only I were a little stronger.....”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

Tap. I placed my hand on Celine’s head as I spoke. Usually, she would have gotten angry about messing up her hair, but today, she remained docile.

Maybe she didn’t even have the energy to get angry anymore.

“You’re already being plenty helpful. We’ve been in many battles together... And besides, your skills have been improving lately.”

It was an honest observation.

When I met Celine at the Academy not long ago, I couldn’t help but gasp. Her skills had improved beyond my expectations.

I tried to speak as warmly as possible while stroking her head.

“You just need to keep going like this.”

“......Like this?”

Only then did Celine look at me. Her amber eyes had lost their light. The gloomy shadows in her pupils gave off an eerie feeling.

I put more strength into my voice.

“Yes, like this. Keep moving forward at your own pace. In fact, I just got stronger by luck, you know. Even then, my skills are far from enough compared to the enemies I have to face.”

“But I want to be helpful to you, Ian Oppa.”

Her words were filled with suppressed determination.

I closed my mouth for a moment and stared at Celine.

“I don’t want to be a burden. I hate being treated as if it doesn’t matter whether I’m there or not. I want to be someone you absolutely need.”

“Celine....”

With a sigh, I quietly placed my hands on both of Celine’s shoulders.

I knelt slightly to meet her eye level. It was the height where our hearts could communicate best.

“You are already someone I absolutely need.”

“Really?”

“Yes, of course......”

“You seemed to live just fine without me for the past few months.”

Her unexpectedly sharp tone left me speechless for a moment. I didn’t think Celine would be this upset.

To be precise, I’d assumed she’d understand. Weren’t we closer than anyone else?

My duty, my responsibilities. I thought she’d naturally accept the sacrifices that came with them.

Was I being too selfish?

“Right? You have plenty of people even without me. There’s the nerd, Senior Rinella and Senior Yurdina. Oh, and we can’t forget the Saintess or Her Highness the Princess, can we?”

“Celine, I think there might be a misunderstanding.....”

“I know.”

Before I could finish speaking, Celine declared in a cold voice. It was a firm yet slightly watery tone.

“It’s all my fault... So I’ll handle it myself.”

Handle what exactly? I didn’t even have time to ask what she meant.

Celine turned away, as if trying to hide her choked sobs. All I could see was her fists, clenched so tightly they might crumble.

“I just need to get stronger, right? Somehow....!”

With that resolve seeping through her gritted teeth, she hurriedly walked away. It seemed she had no intention of looking at me anymore.

“Celine!”

Even calling her name didn’t make her stop. At least she was heading toward the orphanage, which was a relief. I had feared she might disappear again.

Ughh, I groaned and rubbed my forehead.

“What the hell am I supposed to do.....”

This was why I hated relationships. There were no clear answers.

If only someone could just tell me what to do.

My feet started moving, carrying me forward as I stared resentfully at the sky. The steady rhythm of my footsteps only added to my troubled thoughts.

The masked assailant, and Celine.

I couldn’t see a proper answer for either of them.

**

I returned to the orphanage with a weary expression.

Celine was nowhere to be seen, probably holed up in her room. Even if I met her, I didn’t have the confidence to persuade her anyway.

Come to think of it, the Saintess told me to come to her bedroom.

As I felt depressed, my desire for comfort grew stronger. The Saintess’s pouch, filled with overflowing holy power, could surely comfort me enough.

That was when I noticed Yuren.

He was watching the children play with an indifferent face. They seemed to be playing soldiers, wielding tree branches while sword fighting with quite skillful forms.

But to me, it was just cute.

No, even before that, how could the sight of little kids squabbling not be cute? Before I knew it, a faint smile had formed on my lips.

I naturally stood beside Yuren. He had his arms crossed and was leaning against a pillar.

“So, do you see any potential second Yuren among them?”

Yuren snorted at my joke. From that dry sound, I could sense his disinterest.

“No? At their age, I was already mastering Quick Sword techniques. Even guys several years older than me couldn’t touch me.”

“Yeah, yeah... You’re so great. But still, you never know, right?”

It was probably true, but there was something irritating about a genius boasting about their exceptional talent. That was probably why he was second in the Academy’s Knight Facility.

That was why I retorted without thinking.

“Maybe they’ll discover their talent later. Life is long, and it’ll be even longer for those kids.”

“Perhaps.....”

Even at my reasonable opinion, Yuren still seemed skeptical.

“Will they even live that long? And the path of the sword is as long as life itself. Even I thought I was a genius when I was young.”

“But you are a genius, aren’t you?”

It was a baffling statement to me.

If the second-best in the Academy’s Knight Faculty, the master of Quick Sword techniques that the Holy Nation boasts about, isn’t a ‘genius’, then who is?

However, there wasn’t a hint of modesty in Yuren’s calm voice as he expressed his opinion.

“At first, I thought the same. But the sword isn’t an easy tool. The more you wield it, the more weaknesses you see, and trying to fix them can sometimes make things worse.”

“.....A ‘wall’, huh.”

Only then did I mutter in agreement.

The ‘wall’, it was also the biggest obstacle I was facing. While my aura was getting stronger and my swordsmanship was becoming more precise, the characteristics of my aura weren’t developing.

Why? No matter how much I pondered, I couldn’t find an answer.

Maybe I should ask the future ‘me’ for advice next time I see him.

Meanwhile, Yuren continued his story.

“I thought I was going crazy. I remained stagnant, but the person next to me was already far ahead. I was supposed to be by their side, the one protecting them.....”

A laugh escaped Yuren’s lips as he muttered like that.

As if he didn’t know why he was lamenting his life.

“That’s how you fall prey to the ‘Shimma’. Well, doesn’t matter now... Anyway, did you find out anything useful?”

Yuren’s question was clear. There was only one piece of information our group was focused on right now.

I could only sigh and shake my head.

“There was a ‘flash’ before her eyes, that’s what she said.”

“I could say that too.”

I had no counter to that. I just shrugged.

Silence fell between us, and the two troubled men absentmindedly watched the children play. Then, at some point, Yuren’s eyes lit up.

“So, she was taken out in an instant? Or maybe.....”

My bewildered gaze followed his. There, opposite of the boys playing soldiers, were girls mashing weeds in broken pottery, as if they were witches.

“Magic, perhaps.”

And again, silence fell.

However, it didn’t last long before I started walking.

“I should go find Senior Elsie. And could you prepare a crystal ball? I need to contact the Academy.”

Fortunately, there were enough magic experts among our companions.