TYLWBOHEDNOOAOTTE CH 13

He had such a look on his face, as if he was fully prepared to be beaten, even clenching his jaw, that all the tension drained out of her.

He was being far too dramatic.

“……As long as you’ve come to your senses, that’s enough.”

Pushing her away, Serdel got out of bed, drew back the curtains, and opened the terrace door wide.

A refreshing breeze and warm sunlight streamed leisurely into the room.

As the dazed feeling gradually faded, the contents of her dream unfolded vividly in her mind.

“…….”

It had been chaotic.

Very chaotic—and so utterly out of nowhere.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been easy to dismiss it as a meaningless dream.

But she couldn’t do that this time.

After all, she had heard the words prophetic dream from Kartal just yesterday!

Moreover, with an ordinary dream, the moment you wake up, only a vague afterimage usually remains before it quickly fades.

But this dream was different.

The details are becoming clearer and clearer.

As if they had been engraved into her mind.

A gigantic cavern…….

The green mist that had enveloped her, and the immense power emanating from it.

That was undoubtedly the phenomenon that appeared when she obtained the special ability she wanted in the Elvash Forest.

But why did the Second Prince appear?

Her hand curled into a fist.

And why had he tried to save her?

What was going on? What could it mean?

Because she hadn’t been shown everything from the beginning, it was difficult to accurately piece together the situation.

The future me wouldn’t have been traveling together with the Second Prince.

If it were truly her, there was a high chance she would have acted separately.

Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed like I arrived at the cavern first.

If they had gone there together in the first place, judging by the Second Prince’s actions, he would never have simply allowed her to be trapped by the green mist.

Serdel’s eyes trembled.

Then did the original protagonist’s power lead him there?

Crack.

She gritted her teeth.

Normally, it would have been natural for him to obtain that power, but it still felt unfair.

At the same time, she was angry.

Damn it. Then who took Ladune’s legacy?

Even when he appeared before it, the green mist didn’t release her. Instead, it attacked him as though warning him not to interfere.

But there was a problem with the final scene she had seen.

He had tried once again to attack the green mist with a sword surrounded by aura.

An obstruction that continued throughout the process of absorbing the power.

What if, only later, he realized whose body he was supposed to inhabit and then spat me out?

The possibility made her head throb.

Damn it. Why did I have to wake up right then?

She should have seen how it ended!

Her insides churned with frustration.

As she repeatedly pressed the corners of her eyes, there was suddenly a frantic knock, knock, knock, knock!

The door burst open.

“Serdel!”

It was Addis.

Redan followed right behind her. Serdel was already troubled enough, but he immediately started shouting.

“Hey! What the hell were you thinking?!”

“……What about you two? Why are you making such a commotion this early in the morning?”

Her ears were ringing from his shouting, and her tone naturally became sharp.

At her cold response, Redan’s eyes wavered for a moment.

“Hey! Why are you so calm about this? Huh? An expedition? You’re going on an expedition? Does that make any sense? Huh? I’m asking if it makes any sense!”

“You’re being loud, so please lower your voice. And Father has already given me permission.”

Serdel answered with an expressionless face.

Redan stared at her as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing, then irritably scratched his head.

“Has Father lost his mind? No, seriously! He’s sending her on an expedition? Does that make any sense? Why would he send this fragile girl to a place like that?!”

There was concern hidden beneath his rough irritation, but right now, it was nothing but bothersome to her.

“Serdel.”

Addis, who had already approached her, spoke carefully.

“The Elvash Forest is dangerous. Of course, you probably know that well enough, but it’s even more dangerous than you imagine. You never know what might happen inside.”

“Do you think Father would have given me permission that easily?”

“……What?”

“I mean, do you think Father wouldn’t have tried to stop me, just like you and Brother are doing?”

Addis couldn’t answer immediately.

Serdel moved her lips.

She needed to say what came next, but for some reason, her throat felt dry.

Her heart also felt uneasy.

But if she responded vaguely, the two of them—whose behavior had changed so drastically lately—would only try even harder to stop her from going.

“He tried to stop me. But even so, he gave me permission.”

“…….”

“I suppose you haven’t heard the reason yet?”

“You investigated quite a lot about the Elvash Forest—”

“I had a dream.”

Unless they had problems with their own memories like she did, the two of them probably knew about prophetic dreams as well.

Though she did wonder why they never commemorated the Countess’s death.

Kartal, who had always been so cold and composed, had been shaken so badly by those words. Perhaps the term prophetic dream had left a wound in the hearts of these two as well.

Because the result of ignoring their young sister’s words had been their mother’s death.

Her chest ached, but once the words had left her mouth, she couldn’t take them back.

If she wanted to avoid restrictions on her future actions, this was a hurdle she had to cross at least once.

“……You…… had a dream?”

Just as she expected.

Addis, stunned, repeated her words.

“Yes. I had a dream.”

Emphasizing it once more, Serdel clenched her hands.

Her fists tightened.

“……A dream…….”

Addis’s lips trembled.

Her eyes were shaking, and soon even her complexion turned pale.

“What’s wrong with you? What does the dream have to do with anything? You had a dream, so what?”

She flinched.

“……Don’t tell me……”

Redan frowned as he looked back and forth between Addis and Serdel. His complexion darkened in an instant.

His eyes glistened.

Whether it was to hide his emotions or because he found it difficult to meet Serdel’s eyes, he abruptly turned his head away.

“A dream…….”

Unlike Redan, who chose silence, Addis was even more shaken than Kartal had been.

“……A dream…….”

Whoosh!

Suddenly, Addis reached out and grabbed Serdel by both arms.

“You! Are you all right?!”

Her eyes were red.

She looked as though she were angry about something, or perhaps anxious. Somehow, it seemed like she might burst into tears if anyone touched a nerve.

This side of Addis was unfamiliar to Serdel.

“……I’m fine.”

There was no reason for her not to be.

She felt unsettled, and her emotions were gradually sinking, but she had no memories connected to that event.

When you think about it, it didn’t actually happen to me.

She simply hated being caught up in a situation like this.

After some time had passed—

“……Do you really have to go there?”

Addis finally spoke.

Her voice was low, heavy, and gloomy.

“……There’s something I need to obtain.”

“…….”

“And there’s something I need to protect, too.”

“……Something you need to protect…… I see. Fine. Since I was planning to participate in the expedition anyway, I’ll allow it. But you must not leave my side for even a moment.”

Serdel almost said that she couldn’t do that, but stopped herself.

For some reason, she felt that pushing any further right now would be a bad idea.

“What? You’re giving her permission? Why are you doing this too, Sis?”

Redan, who had been biting his lip while keeping his head turned away, suddenly let out a shrill cry.

“Does this make any sense?! Weren’t we supposed to come here together to stop her? And now you suddenly give her permission? Sis, are you crazy? Have you lost your mind?”

“…….”

“Argh! Damn it!”

After complaining at Addis for quite some time, he seemed to finally make up his mind.

“I’m going too. I’m going too! Damn it!”

Clicking his tongue repeatedly, Redan stormed out first.

“I’ll go now. Make sure you eat properly.”

“Yes. Take care…….”

They exchanged an awkward farewell.

Only after Addis left did Serdel finally release the breath she had been holding.

Hoo……

It felt as though a storm had just swept through the room.

Fatigue suddenly washed over her.