"Layla!" I shook her shoulders, but she remained unresponsive, and her skin grew colder by the second.
Looking around the familiar lake spot, my frustration boiled over. "Damn it!"
I had already tried giving her all the vials I had, but it seed to have no effect on her condition.
My mind was still reeling from the encounter with that mysterious girl. I couldn't believe I didn't notice that bastard lurking around!
[]
"Huh?" My eyes fell on a peculiar vial with a golden liquid inside.
[]
Recognition struck as I realized it contained a concentrate of Golden Grasses. Without hesitation, I uncapped the vial and made Layla drink it.
"Cough!" Layla coughed, and miraculously, her stomach wound closed rapidly. Color returned to her face within seconds.
"This is even better than what I gave Milleia's mother…"
Why did that girl give it to ?
"E-Edward?" Layla's red eyes opened with pain.
I sat down next to her on the ground, letting out a sigh. "What the hell just happened?"
Layla, still trying to recover, asked, "What do you an?"
"Why did you throw yourself in front of to shield ?" My confusion was genuine.
Layla gazed at the sky, lost in thought. "And why did you co to save ? I hurt you, right?"
I rembered the ti when I was bedridden at the age of four. "Rember back then when I was four?"
She nodded, recalling our first encounter. "You were always insulting whenever I ca near you. You even slapped when I tried to drag you outside. That makes three slaps in total."
I scratched my cheek awkwardly, feeling the guilt of my unstable behavior from the past. "Yeah, I wasn't in a good place ntally."
"Why did you still co to my aid even after all that?" I asked, sothing lingering in my mind.
"Mom told you about , and Aunty seed worried about . I-I don't know why, but you seed really angry and scared at that ti," she confessed.
I couldn't recall the specifics of that period, only the constant restlessness and pain. "I don't rember much from that ti."
I was always on my bed, thrashing around. Then one day, I felt better.
"Let's just call it even now," I suggested, trying to ease the tension between us.
As Layla looked at , her eyes glistening with unshed tears, a mixture of relief and confusion washed over her.
Her fingers nervously played with the hem of her dress as she spoke, "I never thought soone would co back for after everything I did. I... I don't understand why."
Still you were there at my lowest, you helped befriending the others and I have t Mirada thanks to you. It's enough.
"Let's leave, before Your Highness calls his daddy," I said.
Layla giggled softly, but then winced, holding her stomach. "I-I can't move," she admitted.
Glancing down at her, I had a strange intuition that she might be exaggerating her condition. Nevertheless, I chose not to argue and carefully scooped her up in a princess carry. "You are hopeless," I said half-amused and half-concerned.
"Thanks," Layla murmured, wrapping her arms around my neck as she rested her head on my shoulders.
"I don't know what you're planning, but it won't work with ," I stated firmly.
With her upturned eyes and a smile, Layla looked almost innocent as she replied, "Am I really planning sothing, Edward?"
I couldn't help but avert my face.
"Ah~" Layla suddenly let out a cry.
"What?!" I stopped, imdiately concerned.
Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she stamred, "Ah...you just touched my thighs suddenly. It's nothing."
"It's not nothing! Stop wearing those too much high skirts, first," I retorted, feeling irritated by her antics.
"Okay..." Layla nodded ekly, then unexpectedly buried her face against my chest, playfully tickling .
The whole situation felt incredibly weird. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing thoughts as we made our way back to her room. The attention we attracted along the way didn't bother as I was used to it and it won't last long.
Once inside her room, I gently laid her down on the bed.
As I stood there, my eyes locked onto the frad picture hanging on Layla's wall. It drew in, capturing a mont frozen in ti.
In the center of the photo, I stood with a grin on my face, flanked by two of my closest friends. On my left, Miranda clung to my arm, a radiant smile illuminating her features. On my right, Layla playfully trolled , forming rabbit ears with her fingers behind my head. It was a candid mont that perfectly captured the bond we shared.
Behind , my mother stood with an expression of pride and love, while behind Miranda was Aunt Olivia, her warm and caring presence evident. And behind Layla stood Aunt Alyssa, exuding a mix of strength and gentleness.
As I gazed at the photograph, a mix of emotions washed over . Shaking my head and leaving for my room. I needed so good sleep for tomorrow.
….
….
….
"Edward."
I turned around and saw a red-haired beauty there.
Kleah called right in the morning and since I also wanted to talk to her, I ca here.
"Senior."
Kleah smiled and sat on the bench next to .
"How are you, Senior?" I asked, concerned.
I didn't have ti to properly talk to her after what happened inside the Dungeon.
"Fine…that's what I would like to say but no…" Kleah replied.
"Is that about what happened inside the Dungeon? I'm sorry, Senior. It might be my fault that guy did that to you-" I started, guilt gnawing at .
"No, Edward," Kleah interrupted, offering a soft smile. "You must have heard it already. Liart spread the news about my elven lineage throughout the Kingdom."
That vile bastard... His actions had caused such distress to Kleah, and it infuriated . "Because you rejected him?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
Kleah nodded bitterly. "Now everyone looks at differently, and my family might co here to look for and my elder sister."
"I don't care about you being a Half-Elf, Senior," I said firmly, hoping to reassure her.
Her smile returned, grateful for my support. "I know, you never cared about that, but people have different opinions about halves like in this Kingdom, and even more so in Sancta Vedelia."
"Sancta Vedelia, huh..." Sancta Vedelia was a place of prestigious Elven Noble Houses, but it seed even there, Kleah's lineage had been t with disdain.
Kleah continued, her voice tinged with sadness. "My father married my human mother secretly, and it didn't sit well at all in my House. My House despises Halves, and my sister and I were treated harshly there..." She wiped away her tears and took a deep breath to steady herself. "One day, so of my kin tried to assault and my sister. We were just livestock to them. My sister and I managed to escape, and thanks to Aunt Lydia and others, we were presud dead after our House was burned to ashes."
My heart ached for Kleah, and I struggled to find the right words. "I...am sorry," I finally managed to say, knowing that my words alone wouldn't erase her pain.
She looked up at the sky, her leaf-like eyes shimring with emotions. "Sotis I feel hosick and want to see my few friends there, but unfortunately, I can't. We'll never be welcod there, Edward..."
"..."
"Edward... I'm going to join Ante-Eden."
"Huh?" My eyes widened in surprise at Kleah's unexpected announcent.
Did I hear correctly?
"Thanks to Leon, I recovered so mories of a girl on Earth."
"K-Kleah?" My confusion deepened.
"My na was Gladys Caleb."
"What...?" Shocked, I stood up. "G-Gladys?"
The na struck a chord in my heart. Gladys Caleb was one of my close friends back on Earth, along with Emric and Ephera. We shared so unforgettable monts in Paris together.
"Edward... back then, you hid your face and asked to call you Nyrel, right?" Kleah said, her eyes teary. "You are Nyrel Loyster?"
"G-Gladys?" I stamred.
Kleah burst into tears and embraced . "I'm so glad to see you... again."
Her revelation left speechless, and all I could do was pat her back comfortingly.
"After Ephera died, you disappeared, and Emric left on his own... Yanis, Lucy, Marlene, and I searched everywhere, but we couldn't find you..."
"I-I..."
At that ti, I had left for Tokyo...
"E-Ephera was also our friend! You left us without even telling us where you had gone..."
"Gladys... I didn't want to do that..."
"N-Nyr, I don't have much ti... please listen to . After you left, Emric killed his father and disappeared."
"What?!"
"Listen to !" Kleah gripped my clothes, tears streaming down her face.
"L-Lucy went to look for him, but she was found dead after a week. I-I, Marlene, and Yanis tried to find them, but..." Horror overtook Kleah as she recalled sothing.
"H-Hey, Gladys?" I shook her with concern.
Kleah shook her head, her grip on my arms tightening. "N-Nyr, everything that...happened to us, even before your family's death, was planned by soone...!"
"...!"
"I don't know what they want, but they won't stop. They'll never leave us alone..." Kleah's voice trembled, haunted by painful mories. "N-Nyr... I-I..." Tears flowed endlessly from her eyes as she spoke. "They r-r*ped ! Leon tried to stop them, but... I was r*ped because of them, and... we are just pawns!"
"..."
"W-We are just pawns, and our attempts to fight back are just so sick entertainnt for them!" She said, her voice filled with disgust.
While I couldn't fully grasp everything she was saying, I could see the overwhelming fear and despair in Gladys's eyes.
Kleah hugged tightly once more. "P-Please... Nyr... don't try anything anymore. Just leave, go sowhere else. I-I don't want choose between Leon and you... he ans everything to ... so please, go far away from here."
"G-Gladys... what are you saying?" I grabbed her arm, desperate to understand.
She wiped her tears and gave a sad smile. "It was good while it lasted, Nyr, but it seems none of us deserved happiness..." She said walking away.
My whole body shivered after everything I heard from Gladys. It just ca out of nowhere and I was having hard ti to connect all the points.
"E-Ephera is here, Gladys!" I blurted out, and Kleah stopped in her tracks.
"I-I know... I don't know where, but they are all here. But we weren't brought here by a benevolent person, Nyr... If you see them again, please tell them," Gladys said, her smile tinged with sorrow. "Tell them that I miss them."
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