Unrequited Love is Over, Fend for Yourselves (5 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 35

“Is this… Mitri?”

Nick stared at Mitri with half his soul gone. The journey here had been so exhausting that, toward the end, he’d simply resigned himself to fate—and the others felt the same. They didn’t even have the energy left for jokes.

Thus, they had come to see the Mitri tree.

“The sacred tree.”

Bazon muttered as if entranced.

Just by looking at it, their hearts swelled with emotion, leaving everyone staring at it as if half their souls had vanished—including Etienne. Seeing the Mitri tree herself, which she’d only heard about through rumors until now, stirred unusually deep emotions within her.

The Mitri tree was so immense that even tilting her head back, she couldn’t see its top. It was almost baffling how such a massive tree hadn’t been discovered sooner.

But there was a reason for that as well. The Mitri appeared indistinguishable from an ordinary tree until, at a certain moment, its color changed, revealing its true identity as the Mitri tree.

Thus, it was only when it turned completely silver that one recognized it as Mitri. Etienne gazed at it blankly.

‘It’s strangely satisfying.’

She couldn’t understand why she felt proud—after all, it had just been a difficult journey. Then she remembered she’d made it here entirely on her own.

‘Ah, right. I moved according to my own travel plan. I bought what I needed and used it at just the right moments. That’s why I feel this satisfaction.’

She had endured the journey entirely by herself.

It felt good.

“Etienne.”

Etienne turned her head at the sound of her name. Fernando, standing beside her and gazing at the Mitri tree, spoke.

“When we return, I have something to tell you. Something I can only share with you alone.”

He was looking at the Mitri, yet somehow, it felt as though he was staring straight at her, leaving Etienne frozen in place.

“At that time…”

Fernando slowly turned his head toward Etienne.

“I’ll focus only on you.”

“What are you trying to say?”

Etienne asked with a light laugh. Fernando’s mood was so heavy that she felt she had to smile—otherwise, the tension might crush them.

Though she didn’t even know what he was about to say, Etienne felt an inexplicable fear. Fernando didn’t even offer the smallest smile—just like that first time, when their eyes met after he regained consciousness by the lake.

“Would you come this way?”

At Reinhart’s voice, Etienne tore her gaze away from Fernando. As if their previous eye contact had never happened, she passed him indifferently.

‘Fernando hasn’t said anything yet—don’t overthink it.’

It was better to wait until she actually heard his words and then respond appropriately, rather than jumping to conclusions now.

So Etienne decided to temporarily set aside their conversation. She walked straight to Reinhart’s side. By now, the group had gathered around him, looking where he pointed.

“We should start slowly inspecting the area from here. If anyone notices anything unusual, let the others know. What do you think?”

The group nodded or murmured their agreement. Sola was the first to turn away, walking off with Nick, with whom she’d been chatting often.

“Etienne, aren’t you going?”

“I will. I’m just about to…”

Etienne looked down at Reinhart’s feet.

“Why are you hesitating?”

“It’s nothing… I just feel a little strange…”

She clearly felt she was missing something, yet couldn’t immediately recall what it was. Until now, the journey had felt fine—but suddenly, she sensed she’d overlooked something important. Could it be because of seeing Mitri?

Frowning in confusion, Etienne turned around. She hoped that by observing her surroundings, her memory might return. At that moment—

“Huh?”

Just as Reinhart exclaimed in surprise, Etienne’s body was yanked backward.

She fell involuntarily—but Fernando, who had been standing right in front of her, reached out with a startled expression. Instinctively, Etienne stretched out her hand toward his.

The instant she thought she’d grasped Fernando’s hand, her body dropped sharply downward.

[This is the timeline separator]

Etienne couldn’t quite grasp what was happening. Her footing had suddenly given way, and she’d instinctively grabbed onto something tightly. What happened afterward remained a blur—except for…

[Someone stumbled and fell in, and it took two days to find them. The tunnel branched off in many directions.] [Luckily, they grabbed someone’s ankle while falling, so they weren’t alone down there.]

Past events resurfaced as if from a dream. How could she have failed to recall this, even after the Crown Prince pointed to the ground?

‘Wait—but why did I have to fall?’

Feeling wronged, Etienne grumbled inwardly, then suddenly opened her eyes.

The smell of earth hit her first. Then she realized she was enclosed on all sides—the silvery roots of the tree jutted unevenly from the earthen ceiling and walls.

“Did I fall in?”

Etienne muttered in despair. How long had she been unconscious? She sighed, brushing her hair aside.

Only then did she notice the ground beneath her wasn’t as hard as expected—and she looked down…

“Kyaa!”

She screamed upon seeing two men pinned under her. Etienne tried urgently to get up, but her body wouldn’t obey so easily.

Fernando lay beneath her upper body, and Reinhart beneath her legs. She couldn’t tell where to place her hands to rise safely.

At least both men were still unconscious, which was probably a blessing.

Etienne quickly decided where to place her hands. Using one hand to steady herself on Fernando’s shoulder, she rose and carefully slid her leg off Reinhart’s body.

The moment she stepped onto the empty patch between them and stood up, Etienne immediately stepped back.

“My heart nearly stopped.”

She patted her chest, looking at the two men lying side by side. Reinhart, the Crown Prince, had fallen first.

He’d grabbed Etienne’s clothes as he fell, and Fernando had reached out to save her—causing all three to tumble down together.

“Seriously, why did you have to grab me and pull me down?”

‘If you’d just fallen alone, none of this would’ve happened. Or better yet—grabbed your good friend Counselor Alex!’

As soon as Etienne thought this, she quickly dismissed it. She knew she wouldn’t have thought “I’ll fall alone” either, even if she were in Reinhart’s place.

“But how exactly did His Highness the Crown Prince fall in?”

Since she’d been facing away from him, Etienne had no idea what happened. To understand the full situation, she decided to wake them both.

“Your Highness, Fernando.”

She shook both their shoulders, but got no response.

“Don’t tell me…”

Just because she was fine didn’t mean they were. Moreover, while she’d landed on top of them, the Crown Prince and Fernando had hit the ground directly.

Something might be seriously wrong. Worry crept onto Etienne’s face.

“Your Highness? Please wake up.”

She first cradled his head and checked the back of his skull. Seeing no blood, she examined his body for injuries.

Then she did the same for Fernando. Neither showed visible wounds. Etienne pulled a water flask from her pocket and carefully poured water into each of their mouths.

“Please wake up. I’m starting to worry so much I can’t breathe.”

Etienne glanced up at the light filtering through the ceiling, then back at the two men. Her efforts seemed to work—Reinhart and Fernando regained consciousness almost simultaneously.

“Huh? Where are we?”

Clutching his temples as if in pain, Reinhart opened one eye and looked around. Fernando sat up immediately upon waking and checked on Etienne first.

“Etienne, are you all right?”

“You should be more worried about yourself. Don’t sit up so quickly—doesn’t it make you dizzy?”

As if reminded, Fernando closed his eyes briefly and swayed slightly.

“Let’s first check if either of you are injured anywhere.”

They couldn’t escape until they were sure they were physically able. At Etienne’s words, both men began inspecting their own bodies—running hands over their arms and limbs.

“Thankfully, nothing seems broken.”

Fernando nodded in agreement with Reinhart’s assessment.

“Just… aching all over.”

“At least you’re not seriously hurt.”

“Sorry for worrying you.”

“Don’t be. You must be in pain from the bruises—though I doubt I could ask you to rest even a little.”

Though relieved they weren’t badly injured, Etienne still looked guilty that she couldn’t offer them even a moment’s rest.

“It’s fine.”

Fernando stood up, clearly unwilling to let Etienne worry anymore. Seeing both men on their feet, Etienne sighed in relief.

“How did this even happen?”

“Someone pushed me.”

Still holding his forehead, Reinhart stood up, wincing from the lingering headache.

“I must’ve grabbed your clothes instinctively while trying not to fall. Sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, fall alone next time.”

Etienne muttered under her breath.

“You really know how to hold a grudge. Would you really prefer I’d fallen alone?”

“At least then I could’ve thought of a way to save Your Highness from up there.”

Etienne retorted, having completely forgotten her earlier thought that she, too, would’ve clung to someone if she’d fallen.

Reinhart shook his head, seemingly exasperated.

“Let the people up there figure that out. Our job is just to get out of here.”

“How?”

“Maybe… the person I’m looking for will tell us.”

“Who’s that?”

Hearing that Reinhart was pinning his hopes on such a vague notion, Etienne’s voice rose in frustration.

“Do you really think they’ll handle it from up there?”

“What do you mean ‘handle it’?”

Exasperated by Reinhart’s vagueness, Etienne snapped loudly.

“No, I get that you’re upset—but there’s no need to get angry. We just need to stay put, right?”

“No! Staying put won’t work!”

“Why not?”

“How can anyone up there possibly rescue us? And besides…”

Etienne knew this too. In her past life, someone had rescued those who’d fallen—but it had been Fernando who found them.

The group who’d first gone searching couldn’t locate them; Fernando had miraculously arrived later and saved them.

‘But Fernando’s right here this time! So who exactly is going to save us?’

Someone would surely come looking—but with Fernando already trapped inside, it would undoubtedly take them great effort. Therefore, they had to find a way out themselves.

“The test question was wrong from the start—it’s the exam itself that’s flawed! I’d only ever heard rumors about Mitri, and I’ve never even been here before! So how am I supposed to know the answer?”