Chapter 91
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Siesta had offered to accompany the boy on his journey, but the result was disappointing.
Even she thinks, 「Ah, this is a reasonable outcome.」
Although Siesta was among the top two sisters in the church, the difference between her and Saint Mika, who boasted an extraordinary amount of mana and recovery speed, was stark.
Just as she’s losing a bit of confidence and feeling down, it happens.
The boy, who has finally become capable of taking on the Knight Commander + Vice Commander + four elite knights, a total of six people, engages in a grand battle with them. Before he knows it, he ends up in a situation akin to being ganged up on, rolling around like a worn-out pair of split-toe socks.
As they enter a break, Siesta approaches the fallen boy to administer healing.
He asks her, 「Did something happen?」
She thinks, 「Well… wasn’t it you who had something happen?」 but doesn’t say it out loud.
「You know, I have a little sister, so I’m pretty good at noticing these things,」 the boy says.
Eh… I’m older than you, but you’re treating me like a little sister?
As Siesta hesitates on how to respond, the boy, for some reason puffing out his chest, continues with some mysterious talk: 「Could this be what they call a unique barrier that only works for big brothers?」
Normally, she would never reveal the innermost thoughts she kept tightly locked away.
But perhaps because her companion was this boy, or because she was drawn out by his personality, or because of his calm demeanor at that moment, Siesta finds herself unexpectedly opening up.
She reveals her disappointment in herself for comparing herself to others and realizing her own inadequacy.
Also, the ugly feeling of having harbored such presumptuous emotions of comparison.
And how she simply can’t have confidence in herself.
Once she starts talking, words spill out from her heart effortlessly. It’s surprising even to herself, causing her to reconfirm her own emotions.
「Well, look at me. Sure, being a ☓☓☓ is an amazing profession, but the guy next to me is a ☓☓☓.」
Indeed, the growth rate of ☓☓☓ is 5x, while that of ☓☓☓ is 3x. It’s easy to say the numbers, but with training, the difference would quickly become decisive.
Siesta tries to comfort him but hesitates for a moment, unsure of what to say. Sensing this, the boy responds,
「It’s okay. I’m fine.」
She senses a firm resolve in his words.
「No matter where you are, there’s always someone above you, and constantly looking down on yourself would just make you negative, right?
So in the end, we just have to play with the cards we’re dealt.」
「The cards we’re dealt…」
As Siesta repeats his words, the boy asks as if he’s realized something,
「Do you know poker?」
Siesta nods.
A summoned hero once brought playing cards and introduced several card games – one of them was poker. The boy mutters, 「Knowledge cheat is really impossible, huh?」 and then continues:
「There are always people around us who naturally have flushes or straights hidden, and right next to me is ☓☓☓, who’s basically holding a royal straight flush.
It’s like, how ridiculous is that?!」
He pauses there, clearing his throat.
He has used cards to express things beyond one’s control, like talent, wealth, or background.
「In the end, we just have to use whatever means we can, be it bluffing or anything else, to play with the cards we’re dealt.」
His analogy contains a humorous irreverence. Yet, strangely enough, it resonates deeply with Siesta at that time.
「Well, I’m just parroting what my grandpa said,」 he adds, laughing with a 「Gahaha!」 as if to cover his embarrassment.
Siesta finds this somehow funny and giggles.
「Besides, I’ve heard that Siesta is second only to the Saint in terms of power, and holds the same rank as the Archbishop within the church. And you’re not that much older than me.」
Though she was used to hearing such compliments as mere flattery, when he said it, it wasn’t unpleasant. In fact, she felt a warmth in her heart. It must be because of his sincerity.
「Siesta, isn’t that pretty good?」
Without asking what he meant, she waited for his next words.
「It’s important to look up and think ‘I need to work harder,’ but sometimes it’s necessary to look down and be kind to yourself by thinking ‘There are plenty of people below me!’」
「But isn’t that—」
She couldn’t bring herself to ask if it was an ugly act.
Because he wagged his raised index finger from side to side a few times.
「No problemo, no problem at all.
It’s absolutely no problem at all. No one can see what’s in your heart.
See, they say thinking is free, right?
Looking up, and sometimes looking down – it’s important not to lean too much to either side, but I think what’s crucial is the balance between them.
Siesta, while you work hard, please also praise yourself more, like ‘I’m amazing!’」
She realized that each of his words was sinking into her heart.
His eyes seemed to sparkle.
「Ah, this isn’t something my grandpa said, it’s just what I thought on my own,」 he says, laughing again with a 「I won, gahaha.」
Since that day, Siesta has never forgotten his words.
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A few days before his departure, during training.
He faced all the skilled members of the Knight Order, handling them all with acrobatic movements.
His fierce movements evoked a ferocious beast, but that wasn’t all. He was a hybrid beast, combining the skills of a seasoned professional with clear intelligence and judgment.
At times, he not only deflected swords with brute force but also knocked down half of the large knight opponents with a single blow. At other times, he skillfully manipulated his sword to entwine three opponents’ swords at once.
Naturally, the frequency of his injuries decreased, and the role of the Sisters became almost non-existent.
Siesta felt a little sad about this.
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The day she saw him off on his departure.
「☓☓☓, please don’t be too reckless. If you fall ill or get injured, please rely on Saint Mika immediately.」
Siesta thought this might be the last time, and felt she must convey her true feelings.
「I wish I could have been the one to heal you, but I simply wasn’t capable enough. So please, take my heart with you, if nothing else.」
She prayed to God for his safety.
「I’ll say it again, please don’t be too reckless— you’re just an ordinary boy like the rest of us, yet we rely on you so much— I’m sorry.」
And then, overcoming her rational restraint, Siesta poured out the guilt she had been harboring in her heart since he first came to this other world, feeling it was cowardly and mere self-satisfaction.
「Siesta, thank you for everything.
I respect you— your kindness.」
At the boy’s words, his thoughtfulness, Siesta could no longer hold back her tears and buried her face in her sleeve.
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That’s why she thought it must be some kind of mistake.
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Information about the boy was delivered to Siesta one after another.
Please let it be some kind of mistake.
From then on, she prayed fervently to God every day.
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A week after their reunion.
His clouded eyes were sad.
His decadent lifestyle was simply heartbreaking.
Siesta shed tears on sleepless nights.
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The invitation of Mr. Balen and Leopard the ‘Tycoon’ was Siesta’s suggestion, but the Hero had also agreed to it.
The fact that he remembered nothing and ordered them to be sent back was either because he hadn’t listened to the story seriously and had just let it slide, or because his brain was numb from alcohol.
Either way, the result was disheartening.
The invitation of the two was Siesta’s last hope.
Not once since she had been sent to Lemone had she seen the Hero engage in any activities aimed at conquering the dungeon.
Instead, he was endlessly indulging in a decadent lifestyle, spending money like water and pursuing pleasures that were embarrassing to even mention.
There wasn’t a single mistake in the information she had heard.
But, but, if even a fragment of what Siesta had felt then – that dull yet certainly powerful, shining crystal of his heart – remained within him…
And if, just before – really, right before – she had to contact the cardinal, he would change his mind, no, return to his former self, and show even a glimpse of that with those who had been invited, even for a moment, no, even half a moment…
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However, her wish was easily shattered.
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Just a few minutes left until the contact from the cardinal.
Memories of him from the past race through her mind like a revolving lantern.
Time is running out.
The current Hero’s eyes, murky like dirty water, and his self-centered behavior that disregards others, torment her.
Tears that she thought had dried up, that she thought she had no more of to shed, fall again.
And then, she wipes away her tears and—
『Hello! It’s been a while, Siesta!』
The voice, and then slightly delayed, the image appears on the magic device in front of her.
It was the cardinal who had sent Siesta to Lemone.
And she had made up her mind.
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