Chapter 26: Unspoken Bonds

Crunch, crunch
Hmm… the apple that entered my mouth is very sweet. But without indulging in the luxury of savoring the taste, I chew and swallow it eagerly.

Gulp, after swallowing the apple down my throat, I immediately

Swish

Crunch, crunch
Once again, beautifully sliced pieces of apple were pushed into my mouth. I accepted them without a word and chewed and swallowed them diligently once more.

And again, again, again…
The sound of me crunching the apple echoed through the hospital room.

Please, get me out of here.
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was an unfamiliar ceiling. I briefly wondered if I was in my room, but soon the situation before I fainted came back to me.

In an attempt to assess the situation, I tried to get up, but I felt something pressing on my stomach, so I could only raise my head slightly, stuck in a half-awkward, half-dazed position.

Looking down to check the source of the weight, I found a black cat, “Yaoongi,” curled up on the blanket covering my stomach. It was strange to see it sleeping here when it usually chose sunny spots to nap in.

Or maybe my stomach felt like a water mattress, and it liked it? The rising and falling of my breath might have given it a rocking chair-like comfort.

Carefully, I lifted my upper body so as not to wake Yaoongi.

“Meow~”
As expected, trying to sneak up was impossible, and Yaoongi woke up with the slightest movement, jumping off my stomach and rushing out of the slightly open door.

By the way, with Yaoongi here and seeing that I was lying in what seemed like a hospital bed, I deduced that this was probably the academy’s infirmary. I had never been here before, so I didn’t know what it looked like, but now it seemed I had to experience being admitted myself.

Thud
While I was absentmindedly lost in these trivial thoughts, I heard footsteps from outside the room. The door creaked open, and Presia entered the room.

“Ah, Boss.”
I had heard her running before entering, but once she was inside, she walked slowly toward the chair beside my bed, as if asking what happened.

From the sound of her running in the corridor, it must mean she realized I had woken up, but how did she know? Did she notice when Yaoongi ran out of the room?

“Lie down.”
Presia’s hand gently pushed me, trying to force me back onto the bed. Though I could easily resist the touch of a small girl who hadn’t undergone any training, I didn’t oppose her and instead followed her guidance to lie comfortably back down.

“Is there anything hurting?”
There were many things I wanted to ask, but Presia beat me to it. I didn’t think it was polite to answer a question with another question, so I checked my condition myself. Though I couldn’t tell precisely without moving, I felt no discomfort or pain at the moment.

“Maybe?”
“That’s a relief.”
After exchanging brief words, the room fell silent again. The silence in the room felt somewhat awkward, so I was about to ask my own questions when Presia spoke again before I could.

“Um… that…”
However, despite opening her mouth, her hesitant behavior was unlike the usual confident Presia I knew. She was always self-assured. Even during the dullest, most exhausting times of day, her confidence was something she could never hide.

So, seeing Presia act this way was quite refreshing to me.

“Um… I’m sorry…”
After a long struggle, the first words I managed to say were an apology.

?
“Excuse me? Why, Boss?”

“Because of my work… I got hurt while trying to protect myself…”
The girl in front of me seemed to think that my injury (though whether I was truly hurt in my current condition is questionable) was her fault.

“No. After all, I’m being paid to work for you, Boss. You should make the most of me in situations like this. Sure, there were some unexpected circumstances, but it’s not your fault, it’s the problem of the higher-ups.”
Despite my comforting words, Presia’s expression showed no sign of softening. In fact, her shoulders slumped even more, and her head buried deeper.

“I guess it’s a relationship based on money…”
Only then did I understand why Presia was so downcast. I could understand her feelings.
I may have many friends now, but before I came to the academy, I had no one I could call a friend.
I didn’t know what kind of life she had led, but I was certain it hadn’t been easy. That’s why I placed my hand over her small one resting on the bed.

“Well… I suppose it’s a contractual relationship, officially connected, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get along personally, right?”

“Really…?”
Only then did Presia lift her head and look at me, her eyes sparkling with the innocence of a girl her age.

“Of course. Or, could it be that you only see me as just an employee? Am I the only one who thought we had become close?”
“Is that…?”
Dori dori dori dori
I tried to joke a bit, but Presia’s head spun around madly. Her long hair fluttered, which was cute, but if she kept doing that, I knew she’d get dizzy, so I stopped her.

“So, will you continue working with me from now on…?”
Presia’s voice was soft, but it was filled with anticipation as she asked me. Of course, my answer had already been decided.

“Of course. And didn’t we agree in the contract that neither side can break it without mutual consent? I’ll never break it.”
Only then did she seem to remember the terms in the contract. She grabbed my hand with both of hers and nodded.

“Mm. I’ll never break it, for life.”
For life, huh… I hadn’t thought about it that long… But seeing Presia’s happy face in front of me, I wondered if I should point that out.

And when I thought about it, working for five gold coins a month for life didn’t sound so bad. It was just a side job that I’d only work when needed, and there were even extra bonuses. Maybe I’d end up holding on to her for life.

“Oh, but what happened to that demon?”
Since Presia seemed to have calmed down, I brought up a question I was curious about. The last thing I remembered before passing out was knocking out one of the demon’s hands, but I had no idea what happened after that, so I was curious.

“Mm. I killed it.”
It was strange to hear such a casual remark from a cute girl with a bright voice, saying she had killed someone.

“You did it alone?”
“Mm.”
It seems my boss is much stronger than I thought.

“And about the injury from the repair work… I’ll make sure to compensate you separately.”

“Excuse me? Why, Boss?”
“? Because you got hurt while doing my work. Of course, I should take care of you.”

“No. Of course, I like money, but it’s not your fault, Boss. If we’re being picky, it’s the academy and Felches who are at fault. We can get compensation from the academy or Felches later, right?”
While it’s doubtful whether the higher-ups would provide compensation, I don’t intend to take any money from my boss. After all, I already receive a regular allowance, and getting injured while protecting my boss was something I chose to do.

“Oh… Okay, I understand.”
Presia tilted her head slightly before standing up from her seat.

“Then, you rest well, Elis. I’ll go get a lot of money from them.”

“Huh…?”
Presia casually said something ridiculous, as if she were going for a walk, and then left the room.

Huh… Will she be okay…?
But Presia is a professor, unlike me, a student, so she should be fine, right?
Yeah, I’ll just trust Presia and rest well as she suggested. Of course, the academy is probably in the middle of classes, but when else can I skip them if not now?

Ta-da-da-da-dak
Just as I was about to lie back down and take a nap, I heard footsteps running outside the door again, and then the door to the hospital room suddenly swung open—no creaking, just a loud bang.

Startled by the sudden noise, I wasn’t sure whether to stay lying down or sit up, so I looked towards the door in an awkward position. The first person I saw was Celian, followed by Ann and Yuri walking in behind her.

“Uh… Hello?”
I awkwardly raised my hand in greeting, and Celian approached with a half-crying expression on her face.

“You really…!”

“Hey, Sel?”
I tried to say something, but Celian was faster in her actions.
She quickly walked up to me and embraced me tightly.

Though it was a bit shocking, I couldn’t help but feel happy that Celian cared for me so much. It’s funny to think that I, who once tried to assassinate Celian, now receive her genuine concern. Life truly is unpredictable.

I gently placed my hand on Celian’s back, which had buried itself in my chest, and tried to comfort her.

“We were all worried, but especially Celian, so you owe it to her to accept a little bit of pampering.”

“Since we saw you’re okay… we’ll come back later, Elis.”
Whether it was their plan all along, Ann and Yuri waved their hands lightly and left the room. As Ann said, I patted Celian’s back and comforted her, and soon enough, Celian’s trembling started to settle down.

However, as soon as her body stopped shaking, Celian, who had been quietly sobbing, began to tremble again, but this time, it was different. It was as if she was trying to hold back her anger.

?
And then, Celian suddenly lifted her head. Naturally, our eyes met.

The look in Celian’s eyes was one of concern for me… or was it…?

No…?

Huh…?