041-060 · 053-ch47

Chapter 47: The Queen's Feelings

After we both finished eating and cleaned up the dishes and pot with water from a magic tool.

I was finally able to sit across from Selene and talk with her.

But at the same time, something had been bothering me.

"The stars are out..."

"Stars? Is something wrong with the stars?"

When I glanced up at the sky and muttered this, Selene reacted, so I explained what things had been like until yesterday.

Upon hearing my explanation, Selene nodded as if everything made sense.

"If that's the case, it's because of my magic."

"...Meaning?"

"My magic power alone was naturally insufficient to protect the city for so long, so I had developed a spell that draws power from moonlight and the arrangement of stars."

"I see, so the moon and starlight were being absorbed there."

Selene nodded at my conclusion.

I had thought some great power was at work, but when I asked about it, it turned out to be a simple matter.

>>Hoh, so magic can do that too?

>>Is our magic even the same as theirs in the first place?

>>Moon and star arrangements sounds like astrology.

>>Rather, that feels more like magic. More proper than using weird powers.

Still, it seemed to be an interesting topic for the viewers.

Anyway.

I started the conversation anew.

"What will you do now, Selene?"

"...I don't know. First, I should check all the houses to see if there's really no one left... But actually, I already know. My people are no longer in this world."

That was in response to my question about what she would do now.

I'm currently on a journey.

I stopped here because something caught my interest.

And naturally, once that interest is satisfied, I'll move on.

There are certainly several things that concern me.

For example, the true nature of the zombie soldiers and the mysterious black mass that commanded them.

Or the people who should have been inside the sealing magic but have vanished.

But seeking those out specifically isn't my purpose.

That's the work of a seeker, not an adventurer.

I intend to become that way regarding strength, but I don't intend to become that way about other things.

"If you want to check all the houses, I'll accompany you that far. But after that, we'll definitely be leaving this place."

Therefore, this decision is only natural, and it's equally natural that I have no particular concern for what happens to her afterward.

I go my way, and she goes hers.

After all, we're neither companions nor longtime friends.

"I understand that... I know that you are a traveler from some faraway place, and that you are like a passing wind."

Even so, leaving her alone would be cruel.

Especially since my waking her caused the sealing magic over the city to break.

I don't know how many years it will take, but the city will surely fall into ruin.

Leaving her there alone, having lost her emotional support, would be far too cruel.

"...Then, would you like to come with us?"

And here, I had what was probably a rather ideal option.

It would make things a bit more difficult, but in exchange, it would provide me with information and give her a future.

"...May I really come with you? You are surely very strong. I believe I would only get in the way of your journey."

Her words made me realize that I hadn't explained my own stance or purpose to her at all.

Indeed, from her perspective, taking her along would be nothing more than an act of pity.

But I had a reason for wanting her with me.

"You may or may not have noticed, but I'm not a resident of this world."

"...I don't quite understand what you mean by 'world,' but I understand that you came from somewhere far, far away. You felt somewhat different from the people I know."

>>Selene-chan, he's just weird, that's all.

>>Don't talk about outliers like they're normal.

>>Don't place him on the average curve.

>>Hey, wait, don't act like you're representing humanity. You'll mess up her sense of perception.

Pretty harsh words.

But if that's how Selene perceives me, I'm grateful.

I should have said I came from a faraway place instead of suddenly talking about worlds and such.

"We've been investigating this world continuously. So if you're willing, as a resident of this world and as someone of noble blood with knowledge, I'd like to keep you nearby where I can talk to you at any time."

"As a source of information, you mean?"

"I don't intend to treat you poorly. I may not be able to let you live as a queen, but I have no intention of taking away your life as a human being. However, this place is too far from my base. If possible, I'd appreciate it if you could come to my base—it would be helpful when I want to ask you things."

>>Straight to the point, huh.

>>But he's being honest about it.

>>That's John's straightforwardness for you.

>>I wish our Prime Minister was like that too.

This wasn't a place to throw curveballs.

If she accepts my request, depending on circumstances, this could become a relationship lasting ten or even a hundred years.

If that first step isn't sincere, she won't be able to trust me going forward.

Besides, from what I can tell, even after seeing me talk normally with her, she doesn't seem like the type to put on airs about her noble blood.

So I should just convey that I need her and that I won't leave her alone.

That was my thinking when I spoke those words, but I wondered how she would respond.

After thinking for a moment, she began to speak.

"...When you woke me, I already thought the city would never be revived."

She must have realized this from the moment she cast the seal.

That her people would never awaken, even in the distant future.

And yet, she had placed her hope in the future and cast a sealing spell to protect and preserve the city, even sealing herself.

That ice was probably an image of stopping and freezing time.

To prevent the city's deterioration and ruin, and to ensure that someday, someone would wake up.

"Yeah."

I simply nodded to her determination.

This was a moment to listen.

Not a moment for me to speak.

"So I thought I would decay together with this land, together with my people."

She must have.

The sadness in her eyes and the lonely atmosphere when she spoke of her people showed how much she had loved them, the people of this city.

That's why.

"Yeah."

"But... Even the forms of my people, with whom I intended to decay together, are no longer in this city...!"

"That's right."

Surely, the fact that they weren't there—people she didn't know about—was the most shocking, painful, and bitter thing for her.

She had cast the sealing spell with the worst-case scenario of her people never waking as the premise, yet still placing hope in the future.

Even so, she would have been able to meet them, asleep as they were.

She must have had that comfort somewhere in her heart.

But what of it.

When she woke, her people hadn't merely remained asleep—they had vanished completely.

How should I express this?

Her pain, her heart.

She must be in a state of despair and helplessness, having had even her worst predictions far exceeded.

I gently stroked her head as it began to tremble.

Through my actions, I conveyed that she could let it out now, that she didn't need to hold back.

Soon, droplets began to fall onto her hands one by one, and before long, she was crying with full force.

"Hic. Sniff, uwaaaahn—"

There was nothing I could do for her as she cried like that.

I gently pushed back Robo, who was poking his nose in as if to ask what was wrong, and simply waited until she stopped crying.

>>Ah, there he goes making her cry again.

>>This time it's an even more serious cry than before.

>>Well, of course. She never imagined the city was destroyed, let alone that not even the bodies remained.

>>Having her resolve shattered beyond what she had prepared for...