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Chapter 270: Rinella’s Destiny is Her Own (63)

My throat choked up, preventing me from speaking.

It was a deep sense of fulfillment that only my Junior Sister could give.

It was a relief that felt like my arms were finally full.

But now, the quality of the hug was marred by the girl\'s fading breaths.

It was my fault.

I had some business in the city and sent Junior Sister ahead of me, unaware of the impending attack. I never would’ve imagined that the ambush meant for me would’ve been dealt with by Junior Sister.

Even now, shockwaves were reverberating from the center of the residence.

It meant the battle was still going on.

The sheer force of the clash uprooted trees and sent fierce winds rushing through the area.

It was a battle between a Vampire, who was desperate to escape its long-standing curse, and my master, one of the continent\'s great Archmages.

Someone like me would only be a burden if I stayed nearby.

As a disciple, it might feel like I’m unworthy, but I was oddly grateful for that fact.

It gave me time to say goodbye to Junior Sister.

I stammered words of apology from my mouth.

My voice by then, sounded moist with tears.

"I-I\'m sorry. I\'m sorry, Junior Sister... I-I was too late..."

Even facing death, Junior Sister burst into a giggle.

It was the same playful laughter as always.

Today, that sound felt hollow, and a tear rolled down my cheek.

"…Don\'t cry, you brat."

Her tone was as confident as ever.

As if trying to comfort me, she even wrapped her arms around me.

Her sweet voice filled my ear.

It was a voice full of affection.

"Thanks to you, I could be myself… not a \'Rinella,\' but instead your Junior Sister and your lover. For the first time in my life, I was happy."

"Junior Sister, please…"

Every word she uttered sounded like a farewell, and all I could do was plead with her.

But Junior Sister didn\'t stop.

As if she still had so much to say.

"I experienced so many firsts with you."

My throat tightened.

"Love, kissing, and dates... Laughing and chatting with someone, dreaming of the future. I thought it would be wonderful if it could only be just the two of us left in the whole world."

It felt like a wound was being carved into my heart.

"…So, thank you, Senior Brother."

Even hearing her call me by a title she rarely used, I couldn\'t say anything.

The girl wore a gentle smile.

And she tightened her embrace around me.

"F-finally, I protected…"

As if relieved, she let out a sorrowful sob.

"…my precious person."

She was a woman who had helplessly lost her younger brother a long time ago.

As if it were her only salvation, she conveyed her final wishes to me.

With a thud, the girl\'s hand that had been holding my arms fell away.

"No…"

The memories we shared permeated my senses.

Our sweet first kiss.

The playful look she had as she sneakily opened her collar with a smile in her eyes.

The fragrant scent she carried whenever we met.

The bitter taste of her lipstick lingering on my lips, and the warmth that radiated from her embrace.

Begging, I continued to speak in a desperate tone.

But it was already too late.

"No, no, no…! I-It’s all my fault, Junior Sister… I-I was too late… I-I won\'t let it happen again…"

Even as I cried.

"D-Don\'t you hate being called \'Junior Sister\'? Then I\'ll call you senior just like you wanted… There are still so many places we wanted to go together… So, please…"

Even as I sobbed.

"Please, please…"

No amount of begging would bring her back.

"…Don\'t die."

That was, indeed, the essence of death.

Suddenly, my blurred vision cleared.

At some point, my breath had become ragged.

For a moment, I was confused, but the person in my arms was not a girl, but a boy.

A boy who dreamed of becoming a knight to protect his younger sister.

Ned, my mischievous friend who had always followed me around calling me Great Master.

My eyes had long since turned bloodshot.

"Great Master, j-just as you said... Kugh! I didn\'t neglect my training..."

"Yes, yes."

I could only mutter the same response like a broken machine.

Ned proudly boasted about what he had done.

"I-I... I managed to defeat the bad guy who was attacking my younger sister..."

"Yes, yes. You did great. Very, very much so..."

My voice choked up, and I struggled to continue speaking.

Ned didn\'t have much time left.

After I barely swallowed my sobs, I spoke to him.

"…You’ve grown up so much. Suddenly. You can even protect your sister like this."

"Great Master..."

Ned finally looked relieved after hearing my praise.

In a pleading voice, he said to me,

"But May is still back there."

"I will protect her."

There was no hesitation in my reply.

It was a solemn vow, born from my boiling emotions.

My arms, holding Ned, tightened instinctively.

When there was no response, I swore again.

"Definitely, I will protect her… your sister, no matter what."

Because we are brothers.

Because we vowed to protect our sisters.

These were obvious truths that I had forgotten somehow.

Ned\'s final words were not yet finished.

Through his labored lungs, he forced out a few more words.

"Not just May, there are many others... Rudy from the next village, and Charles from the neighboring house. I promised to, kugh, protect them, but..."

"All of them."

I made my vow through gritted teeth, as if to fortify my resolve.

Reflecting the flickering flames, a pool of blood mirrored my image.

My eyes were bloodshot red.

"I will protect all of them... not just your sister, but everyone."

"…Really? You won\'t abandon a single one?"

It was a question thrown out as if it were hard to believe.

So, I repeated the words I often told Ned.

"Of course… you know that, Ned. A great knight never..."

"…tells lies."

Reenacting the exchange we had countless times, Ned finally smiled brightly, as if at peace.

"That\'s a relief."

Ned’s breaths grew faint as if he were falling asleep.

"Because Young Master Ian is the most excellent knight I know..."

Thump, the boy\'s hand grew limp and fell.

I held the boy a little longer.

Until even the echo of his breaths completely faded from my ears.

Only then did I gently lay his body on the ground.

I staggered to my feet.

I was foolish.

I should have done this from the start.

Until now, I had been acting solely based on the information I knew about the future.

Thinking I should discard what must be discarded, and by doing so, things would pass over.

Picking and choosing what seemed rational and running away had led to this outcome.

In the end, I failed to protect anything.

You damned idiot, how could you not realize?

The fact that discarding and abandoning things leaves you with nothing.

I grit my teeth and took a step forward.

With each step, my body swayed back and forth. Blood dripped from the hatchet I had pulled from the Flesh Glob.

As I trudged forward with my head down, someone’s voice stopped me.

"…Ian."

My gaze briefly turned behind.

There stood Leto, my most trusted advisor.

A sigh escaped his lips.

It seemed he had already grasped the general situation.

"I understand how you feel but.... you can\'t do it on your own."

As always, he gave a calm explanation.

"The ‘You’ from the future calculated many things. We can\'t defeat that monster with our current strength. Of course, the sacrifices are painful, but we have no choice but to endure them…"

"...Leto."

However, for the first time in a long time, I responded to Leto with a seething voice.

The searing heat had already swept past my eyes.

In my dried eyes, only a faint reddish hue remained.

Yet, the words I spoke were filled with seething anger.

It was an emotion I didn\'t even know who to direct it at.

At myself, at the enemy, or at fate that had pushed me to this precarious position?

I only hoped that I wouldn’t regret this choice.

"If it were that man, he might have done so."

With those final words, I turned my gaze forward again.

"…But not me."

Before Leto could stop me, I launched myself forward at full speed.

Not even the flames consuming the world could stop me.

Space compressed, and the sound of roaring winds filled my ears.

In the distance, I could see the Corpse Giant.

It wasn’t long before the monster’s grotesque gaze fixated on me.

Even its gaze alone could send an overwhelming pressure.

It was such an insurmountable wall

The gaze gave me a feeling of oppression, as if asking me, ‘do you dare to resist fate?’

Suddenly, I remembered a phrase I had once seen before.

Let go of what must be discarded.

I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

The sound of my laughter scattered through the air torn as I moved forward.

"…what a load of nonsense."

There was nothing to discard.

Not Ria, not Ned, not May, not anything.

That was the fate I had chosen.