Fiancée of the Wizard Volume 8 Chapter 6 Part 6
Even when I called for him, no reply came back. The man was also unconscious. I recalled the weight of the man’s body when he had been pierced in the stomach by Noct. However, this chill in my spine immediately disappeared when I saw the man’s expressions.
The man was the same as Noct. He was also sleeping, making healthy snores. Upon looking at his calm, almost childlike sleeping face, somehow, I felt like I was about to cry.
「……Really, good job. Thank you for helping me, Edi」
Whispering this softly, I kissed the man’s forehead.
Then, while being sandwiched by the man and Noct, I held my head thinking, what should I do now? It was only 10 or more minutes before residents from the nearby village came and help me upon hearing the noise earlier on.
＊＊＊
In this way, we were helped by the villagers, and carried by horse wagon to the Schtorenvihein estate. When I finally arrived at his estate, the hero hugged each of us with all his might. Apparently, he had heard of our return by a report by a messenger on a fast horse. While wetting his eyes with tears, he repeated: it is a relief that you guys are alright.
Apparently, the demon’s hypnosis on everyone in the Schtorenvihein estate had finally been dispelled when she was destroyed. When the hypnosis was gone, seemingly, the Schtorenvihein estate fell into quite a huge panic.
——It is our fault that Filmina was kidnapped.
Saying this, the hero bowed down very very deeply. Why could I blame him? Why could I think that it was the hero’s force? As I had thought before, the hero really cares about others, and really is a kind-hearted young man. Indeed, both Edi and I are so lucky to have so many splendid friends. The hero seemed to be confused at Noct who we had suddenly brought, but he warmly welcomed him. I could not thank the hero and the Schtorenvihein estate enough for this.
Then, in the afternoon two days after that night. The man had slept in the Schtorenvihein estate’s guest room to his heart’s content as he has not done so for a long time. After two days of silence, he finally woke up.
Noct had woken up a little earlier than the man. Then, both Noct and I obediently listen to the man’s explanation; the man who was sitting upright on the bed.
——According to the man. The “good winter wolf” was a god that was kept in secret by the church.
While sipping the herbal tea that he had brought from the capital himself, the man slowly explained.
「The church believed in monotheism. Hence, it did not accept other gods. However, if the goddess rules over spring, obviously there should be other gods for the other seasons. The “good winter wolf” was a god that was hidden by the church. The goddess who rules over spring sleeps during the winter. In this period of time, it is the role of the “good winter wolf” to guard the goddess. This god was told to disguise as a human during non-winter months and hide himself in human settlements. Perhaps in this time, the god had held a relationship with Noct’s ancestor」
It was a legend that I had not heard before. Most probably, Noct, who was silently listening to the man, was the same as well. I could almost see a question mark appear above Noct’s head.
Even if you say so out of the blue. I felt so strongly. Nevertheless, I did not have any evidence to disprove his words. Even though I was not directly involved, I was like this. Surely then, Noct’s feelings must be quite mixed right now.
「I had said on that night that Noct was the descendant of the “good winter wolf”, as a result of backward evolution, right? Upon consideration of the holy message that was given 16 years ago, I believe that you were born with the role of protecting the princess, the goddess’s beloved child」
「Edi, when had you noticed that Noct was the descendant of the “good winter wolf”? 」
Had not the man said when he invited Noct to the estate? That Noct was 『one of the demon race』. At that time, he had certainly thought that Noct was a demon……but wait.
Suddenly, I remembered the conversation we had the night when Noct had come to our estate. At that time, the man had said 「perhaps」. It was an ordinary, almost trivial conversation. I am surprised at myself for remembering this now. Don’t tell me this 「perhaps」 linked to now. Had the man predicted this from the beginning?
Glancing at my dumbfounded face, the man shrugged his shoulders.
「I did not have confidence in my guess from the beginning. At the start, I only guessed that he was not an ordinary demon. I could not imagine a demon so high ranked that it would have pitch-black fur and be able to be in human form be able to cross my barrier and live without any concern in the capital that was filled with the princess’s holy power. All the more I felt odd because the demonic sense that was around him was real. If one is not a demon, one could also be a spirit, a fairy, or a god. Noct has real form and could be seen, so there is a low chance that he is a spirit or a fairy. Then, the only other possibility is that Noct from a godly race. Although the church keeps cultish legends in secret, there certainly are existing documents on those legends. While working, I look for those kinds of articles and made a theory. You guys should know the rest」
Saying this, the man sighed once, and sipped the herbal tea. Both Noct’s and my face were frozen in surprise. Looking at us with amusement, he opened his mouth wet with herbal tea once again.
「Well, the moment I saw the silver wolf in Noct’s subconscious, my theory was proven. When I destroyed the magical tool and saw that his fur changed to whitish silver, I finally felt certain. I had felt that there would be some precursor to Noct’s birth, and I had told the princess but……I did not think there would be a holy message. For this, I must thank the princess」
He said this in a nostalgic manner, but amidst what he said, there were words that I could not miss. He had certain said, thank the princess, right?
Had he noticed the change in what overall atmosphere? The man lifted his gaze from the herbal tea to me. After gazing at his beautiful face, I opened my mouth. My tone of voice had become quite resentful.
「Edi, yet talking to the princess in such a resentful way…… 」
Surely the princess had gone into much trouble to find for the godly message that the man had mentioned. While knowing this, still saying such things to the princess, huh. I could not help but glare at the man. Even the man seemed to feel guilty and looked away.
「……I will apologize once we return to the capital. Don’t say that」
「It is a promise, alright? 」
I reminded him. He reluctantly nodded, and looked at Noct now as if to reset the conversation. Noct had been silently listening to the man’s story. I could not deduce any emotion from his expression. All the more, this made me worry. Nonetheless, ignoring me, the man continued.
「Anyways, the palace was supposed to receive the report of the godly report. However, this report was crushed by the priest at that time who did not want to accept the existence of the “good winter wolf”. Even if it has whitish silver hair, if somebody who does not know sees it, it is something irregular. It is not difficult for people to misjudge Noct as of the demon race. That is why Noct was discriminate…… 」
「Um, Edi. Please stop right there」
I could not help but interrupt. The man seemed to notice suddenly, and closed his mouth.
Although there was a need for explanation, I wanted the man to not remind us of Noct’s painful past——as well as the man’s past. Although the man did not know Noct’s past, surely it must have been easy to imagine based on his own experiences. For humans, it is very hard to be kind to a being that is different from oneself. Both Noct and this man had gone through pain that was so tremendous I could surely not imagine. By talking about Noct, I was scared that the man himself would be hurt.
Yet, the man seemed fine even while I worried. Meanwhile, Noct shook his head. He smiled with his thin but proportionate face.
「It is alright, Filmina」
His voice was not trembling. It was firm. With his calm voice, he continued with a somewhat relieved tone.
「I was thinking all the time. Was there meaning to my life? That should I have died much earlier? That is why it’s great that he told me that there was a meaning. I learned that there was a proper meaning for me to be born」
Comment (0)