Tears flowed down Yuriel’s face.

After rushing her mother to the infirmary in a daze, she stood in the waiting area as instructed, feeling time pass agonizingly slowly.

When the doctor finally called her in, Yuriel collapsed upon hearing the diagnosis.

[If there had been any more delay, it could have been disastrous.] [We were incredibly fortunate this time, but there won’t be a next time.] [Didn’t I tell you never to stop the medication?]

The following words blurred together, none of them properly reaching Yuriel’s ears.

Only the fact that everything was her fault echoed like a nightmare in her mind.

For a moment, she had let her guard down.

She had foolishly thought that since her mother’s complexion had improved, he would give the medicine on time.

Stupidly, she assumed there would be no problem even if it was a little late.

Until recently, she had been… elated by her mother’s clean bill of health.

She dared to dream and imagine a shining world, believing the end was truly near and that there would be light at the end of the long tunnel.

In reality, she had dared to believe that the increasing number of pills her mother swallowed would sustain her.

Not realizing that even a single day could be fatal for a patient who hadn’t received a clean bill of health.

How foolish.

[It won’t go wrong in just one day, but if you exceed the time limit, the patient will experience extreme pain. Then they’ll slowly die.]

She remembered her mother, who had always repeated that she was fine.

Overlaying that was the image of her smiling while hiding everything, despite being in such pain.

Why did you do that? Why?

But she couldn’t resent her mother.

She knew what feelings had driven her mother to do so.

It was her own fault for being so careless, knowing what kind of person her mother was.

If only she hadn’t delayed going to that man out of stubbornness.

If only she had swallowed her pride and begged him from the start, would things have come to this?

So all the problems stemmed from her.

The self-deprecation consuming her grew in volume.

The knot of emotions, painted gray, soon transformed into fear.

The image of that expressionless man looking at her flashed through her mind.

Overlaying that was the scene of him tossing the medicine bottle in front of her, as if throwing away trash.

As if her usefulness was over.

She had never seen the expressions of men embracing women, but she had heard about it.

They say a satisfying night brings ecstasy to them as well.

Even such noble aristocrats show disheveled appearances, they say.

Of course, he was far more dignified and upright compared to the common nobles they spoke of.

To the point where even his dishevelment might be considered aristocratic.

Perhaps that’s why he didn’t show such an appearance.

But could he really be so unshaken?

Could he alone be so noble and unbothered?

As the shame became clearer with each recollection, anxiety rippled incessantly.

By the time it had covered all other emotions, she reached a conclusion.

That night, overcome with shame, she had failed to satisfy him properly.

Perhaps… he might not seek her out anymore.

If that happened, what should she do?

As her heart turned black with despair.

A voice called for her to come inside.

After completing the admission procedures, the staff asked:

“Which room would you like?”

It only now occurred to her that she had never been able to provide a good place for her mother.

She, who had only known how to scrimp and save money, had always painted pictures of the future.

There was never room for the present in those visions, not even for a moment.

Because that’s what she had to do to survive. It had become a habit that continued even after coming to the capital.

Every moment she tried to break free from him while clinging to medicine she couldn’t obtain anyway was like that.

“The best… place, please.”

It seemed ridiculous that the first good place her mother was heading to was a hospital room, but that’s what she wanted.

The new white space they moved to, guided by the staff, was separate and comfortable.

The time spent quietly by her side after being told she needed absolute rest was hell.

Her mother tossed and turned several times, sometimes groaning in pain.

The fever wouldn’t break easily, and though she said she was fine, she didn’t look fine at all.

Although the doctor said she would be alright, her heart burned with worry, as most guardians do.

After several days spent like this.

Her mother finally opened her eyes.

“El.”

The faint voice pained her heart.

“You should have said if it hurt.”

“Mom is…”

She cut off her mother’s cracked voice.

“Don’t speak. It’s hard for you.”

As she tried to reassure her mother with a forced smile, her mother said something foolish again.

“You’re going through so much because of mom.”

“How can you say that?”

Her mother, who had been smiling faintly, repeatedly said it was okay to go home now before falling asleep again.

How could she go home when she was this sick?

A complex mix of emotions – relief that she had woken up and self-reproach – escaped in a long sigh.

“El.”

Turning her head at the familiar nickname, she saw Hael approaching.

Over the past few days, he had taken care of everything from submitting paperwork to the administration office, and this time he came with a fruit basket.

Like a fool.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know how to accept something like this…”

The fruit basket forced into her hands weighed heavily on her heart as much as its actual weight.

Of course, they weren’t in that kind of relationship anymore, and there was no reason for it, but…

Her heart felt strange for no reason.

Perhaps Hael had subconsciously realized that wasn’t her intention.

But Yuriel ignored it.

Just as she had been doing since leaving Alphonse.

As the examination time continued, the doctor went on about how her condition had improved.

Hael quietly gazed at Yuriel, who had finally relaxed, then averted his eyes when their gazes met and murmured softly.

“That’s a relief. That your mother is getting better.”

“…Yeah. I think we’ll be able to return to the lodgings soon.”

After various conversations.

The topic eventually returned to what she had wanted to avoid.

“About that medicine your mother was taking.”

As Yuriel turned her head, Hael’s blue gaze was filled with her image.

“Is she… still taking it?”

The reason Hael had to sell his words long ago, and the reason for her most miserable night.

For a moment, all of that flashed through Yuriel’s mind.

A deep tremor was etched at the end of Hael’s gaze as he looked at her.

Yuriel’s lips, filling his vision, opened slowly.

“…Yeah.”

Hael’s eyes trembled finely.

Even though what you know is just torn fragments of the edges, your eyes seem quite shocked.

She recalled Hael from long ago, asking if she really had to work at that house.

The experiences in Alphonse seemed to have accumulated not only for her, as Hael didn’t say anything more.

He turned his head and just walked silently.

Then, as they were about to turn the corner, he naturally started talking about everyday things.

How life at the magic tower was, how this project would turn out, and even how fortunate it was that her mother had regained consciousness.

Throughout his utterance of unrelated words, his gait was quite stiff.

Knowing this, she pretended not to notice. Just as Hael did.

On one hand, she felt relieved. As if a weight had been lifted from her heart.

Now that he knew about her pathetic state, there was nothing left to hide, nothing more to conceal.

It might be a selfish thought, as if she had thrown her emotional burden onto Hael, but…

There was something she had learned through the past experiences.

If these are facts that will be known anyway, it’s better for it to happen sooner.

As they reached the door, she suddenly stopped, and Hael followed suit.

“You should go now. It’ll be tough if you want to go to work tomorrow.”

Hael, who had already regained his usual smile, waved his hand at me.

“Alright. See you soon. I’ll talk to the magic tower’s administration department in the meantime.”

“No need. I’ll go from tomorrow, so don’t worry about it.”

“Ah…”

“I’m grateful for everything you’ve done so far. You must be busy too.”

Hael nodded with a smile on his face and walked away.

His waving seemed quite natural.

With a different reaction from long ago, we both turned our backs, pretending to be natural towards each other.

For me, who found it laughable to pretend differently from my true feelings, this was just everyday life.

For Hael, it was probably a different appearance he had acquired only after becoming an adult.

Step by step, I returned to my daily routine.

After returning to the hospital room, I quietly gazed at my mother’s peacefully sleeping face.

Following her even breathing, a sense of calm settled in my heart.

Turning my head, I could see Hael’s retreating figure far away through the window.

It had been quite a while, yet he still hadn’t left this place.

He must have been standing there for quite some time.

Where Hael had been, now reduced to a disappearing dot, the setting sun had deeply dyed the sky red.

The hospital room was on a fairly high floor, befitting its cost, offering a panoramic view of the scenery outside.

Below were the towering spires, behind them the long-standing imperial palace, and in front, the Blanchet Street, all visible without exception.

The street was dotted with boutiques and shops bearing the Blanchet crest.

As if to say that no matter where you are, you can’t escape the influence of Blanchet.

The eagle motif symbolizing Blanchet resembled that man.