"As expected of Margaret's sister, although her fighting might not look very pretty—she can win!"
"I told you she could do it, didn't I?"
"Oh, come on, you were the most worried one back then."
In the old bar, several old knights were discussing Maria's recent matches with great relish, and their conclusions were surprisingly consistent: Maria's strength indeed exceeded their imagination. She looked like a quiet, gentle little girl, but she was still a child of the Nearl Family. Now, they couldn't help but be impressed.
"I wonder if reporters will come to interview us in the future. After all, we watched Maria grow up," the Old Craftsman asked enthusiastically. "Will I become famous then? Will I be able to earn a lot of money?"
"Earn money using Maria's name?" The old knight blew his beard and glared. "You're still thinking too much."
"You're right, Zofia would skin me alive."
"Good that you know." At this moment, Zofia, standing behind the two, gripped their shoulders tightly, with such force that it almost seemed her fingers would pierce their flesh. "A bunch of old perverts, you're useless except for corrupting children."
"How can you say I corrupted her?" the Old Craftsman protested. "Maria herself came to me to learn craftsmanship, and I refused many times, didn't I?"
"Oh, come on, you weren't saying that yesterday when you were bragging at the bar," the old knight immediately exposed him. People their age are always afraid of their brothers suffering, but also afraid of their brothers getting rich. At times like this, they would never consider any brotherly affection. Besides, there was only a father-son relationship between them.
"Old man, you're not supporting me now. I'll fight you!"
"When have you ever beaten me?"
"Last time," Bald Martin interjected. "You still haven't paid me for the damages from your last fight."
"Ah, that, I wasn't paying attention last time! It doesn't count!"
"You might not win this time either."
"The era of the Knight Lords being bosses is over!"
Just as the two were about to start bickering, Bald Martin separated them, one hand on each. In the entire arena, besides Zofia, almost no one was a match for Old Martin. After all, Old Martin was also a competitive knight before his disability.
"Getting back to the point, how has Maria been lately?" Old Martin asked. "Has she not been training recently?"
"I handed her over to someone else. He's even more skilled than me."
"It can't be Manner, can it?"
"…You guess?"
"…Has the sun risen from the west?"
"My reaction was pretty much the same as yours. It was too surreal. I thought I hadn't woken up yet."
The two were silent for a moment. Old Martin placed the beer on the table.
"Drink up. Perhaps we're both drunk."
"Indeed, no going home until we're drunk tonight! My treat!"
A thousand words couldn't compare to "my treat," and the atmosphere in the entire bar immediately became lively. Old Martin could also tell that Zofia was genuinely happy.
"They're back, everyone's back." Zofia was not only not upset about her job being taken, but she was overjoyed. "It's too late, you idiot."
In a trance, she seemed to see that day again, the carefree time when Snitz, she, and Manner were together—the serious Snitz, the unrestrained young master, and herself, who didn't understand anything but just felt comfortable in that environment.
The sunset was perfect that day, and the three walked on the road, their shadows indistinguishable. It was the most beautiful time she could only see in her dreams, and a time that could never be recreated. It was as fragile as a cicada's wing, yet etched deep in her memory.
Speaking of which, she wouldn't have thought of the later outcome: the serious one vanished without a trace, the uninhibited one reined in his sharpness, and the ignorant one was forced to mature. Tragedy is when beautiful things are destroyed before your eyes, and then you're given a memory, so you know what was destroyed and how irreversible it is. But at least today, Zofia felt that one person had returned—that gentle young man who always had a smile on his lips, his figure wielding a sword in the morning sun.
It looked like the past—
So similar—
—
Noah happened to pass by this bar and, thinking she was already there, decided to take a look inside. Right at the entrance, she saw Zofia, already dead drunk. This unexpected encounter was not part of her plan. But since she had seen her, how could she stand by? Noah arranged for Kuro to help Zofia up, but Zofia, in a daze, opened her eyes, saw Noah, and immediately blurted out, "…Yolanta? You're back?"
"…" Noah froze. She hadn't wanted to mention that name. Just thinking about it brought a sharp pain of helplessness. She opened her mouth, wanting to explain that she wasn't Yolanta, but Noah, but in the next second, Zofia interrupted Noah's words.
"Manner is back. When will you and Snitz come back? I miss you all."
"…Mm, I'm back." Noah's expression softened instantly. She deliberately lowered her voice and said gently to Zofia, "I'm sorry, you've worked hard, Zofia…"
"Yes, why did you two go for so long? I thought you were dead. Margaret and Maria, they both miss you very much. And Noah, the Noah you doted on the most… she has become very mature now. She's not the same as before, and I feel so heartbroken. But there's nothing I can do, I can't help her… I'm supposed to be the elder, but in front of her, I'm like a child. She must miss you very much, more than anyone. In her heart, you are her mother… So, go see her first, please? Even if you're just a dream, that's fine. Let me dream a little longer, don't wake me."
"…Mm, I've seen her. She's very well, truly very well. Don't worry about her. Get a good night's sleep, and everything will be fine when you wake up." Noah stroked Zofia's cheek, her voice somewhat choked. Although she was blind, her tear ducts had not atrophied. Two lines of clear tears streamed down her cheeks, yet she was comforting Zofia in front of her. Kuro watched, like a gentleman, taking a tissue from his pocket to wipe away Noah's tears.
"…Noah? Eh…" Zofia, having regained some sobriety, saw the blur before her eyes vanish for a moment, then recognized the person in front of her. "How are you here?"
"Just consider it me coming to pick you up?" Noah just smiled. "You can't go back like this now. Would you like to stay at my place first? I'll call Maria to come pick you up?"
"…No need. I can go back by myself." Although Zofia was disoriented, she seemed to realize that she might have said some inappropriate things just now, and she stood up with some shame, saying, "I won't trouble you."
But she had only taken a few steps when her vision swam, and she almost fell. Her stomach churned, and with a sour throat, everything in her belly came gushing out.
"Kuro, help me take her back, will you?"
"Yes."
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