Chapter 614: Tier (2)

For a moment, Alon stared at Yan, dumbfounded.

Yan was looking at Alon with an expression as if she were about to make a desperate last stand.

Watching her, Alon seriously wondered where, and in what way, he should begin asking about this, then slowly opened his mouth.

“......First, let me ask—”

“Yes, please speak!”

“.......”

Yan was full of force.

Alon, who had closed his mouth for an instant, carefully opened it again.

“......Why are you telling me that?”

“Yes?”

“Mm......?”

“?”

At Yan’s expression, which seemed to say, If I do not tell you, then who am I supposed to tell? Alon felt as if his head were starting to throb, and he asked again, unpacking the question.

“......Yan.”

“Yes......!”

“So...... Elivan and you are both adults, correct?”

“That’s right......!”

“If you are adults, then deciding something like marriage on your own is, well, the right thing to do, is it not?”

Of course, nobles did have a culture of arranging such things from a young age and getting married accordingly.

However, that was ultimately only a matter for nobles, and Elivan was not someone who applied to that culture.

First, Elivan was a commoner.

And he was also not someone who would be bound by such things, whether commoner or noble.

......Of course, after deciding on a marriage partner, telling one’s parents was indeed right.

It was right, but.

‘......I am not his real father...... am I?’

Of course, hearing that he had diligently cared for Elivan of the previous world from when he was very young, it might not be strange for him to regard Alon as a father.

Still, Alon thought that was only a matter of the mind, not enough to treat him fully like a father. When he said that—

“Elivan said he would marry me if you permitted it, Father-in-law......!”

Yan answered, standing straight.

“......He said he would do it if I permitted it?”

“Yes......!”

“I am asking just in case, but you did not promise to marry and come to receive permission. You mean, literally, if I permit it, then you will get married, something like that......?”

“That’s right......!”

“......??”

No, does she not feel that something is wrong......?

Alon’s temples throbbed.

“......Deus, are you perhaps outside?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Could you call Elivan for me?”

“Understood.”

A voice answered Alon’s words.

After waiting like that for a little while.

“Yes, Father. Did you call me?”

Elivan returned.

“Yes, Elivan.”

“What is it......?”

Elivan’s innocent expression.

At that, Alon looked at Yan once and asked.

“I heard the story, but...... did you say you would only get married if I permitted it?”

“Yes, I did.”

At Elivan, who nodded far too naturally, Alon once again felt as if his head were going blank.

“......Uh, why?”

“Uh...... because that is obvious?”

“Not receiving permission after discussing marriage, but the fact that getting married itself depends on whether I permit it......?”

“Yes.”

At the expression that seemed to say, Is that not obvious? Alon, in a daze, asked while thinking, Am I the only one whose common sense is different?

“By any chance, did the version of me in the previous world teach you that way......?”

“No?”

“......Then why?”

“Uh...... because I want to do it that way?”

Alon lost his words and looked at him.

“?”

At Elivan, who still looked utterly innocent with an expression as if asking, Did I do something wrong? Alon felt a strange emotion.

Of course, it was not as if he disliked Elivan liking him.

Who would dislike someone liking them?

But.

‘......Uh, this is.......’

Isn’t it excessive? The thought brushed through Alon’s head.

......Of course, Elivan did not seem to know that Alon was thinking such a thing at all.

No, beyond not knowing it, his attitude was, I will do whatever you tell me to do!

“So.......”

“Yes.”

“......Elivan, do you at least have your own thoughts?”

Alon asked first.

Because once Elivan gave off the atmosphere of “waiting for permission,” the words, Is this not a matter for me to decide? did not easily come out.

However, separate from that, he did somewhat expect the answer to the question.

Leaving aside the fact that Elivan seemed slightly strange in some way, the time he had spent with Yan had been very long.

And yet.......

“Mm—if Father permits it, then I can do it.”

“......?”

At Elivan’s following answer, Alon was once again struck speechless.

Because that answer was more—catastrophic than he had expected.

‘......This guy.’

Could he be lacking in sociality......?

Alon became slightly tense.

In truth, if it were only Alon and Elivan, he would not be greatly tense even if such a conversation came and went, but the two of them were not the only ones here right now.

The very person concerned, Yan, was here.

Anyone who heard words like that could have received a very great shock, so when Alon looked at Yan with a worried expression.

“Yes, please just permit it......!”

Far from receiving a shock, she instead put strength into both eyes as if this had gone well.

“If you just permit it, I will somehow—”

Yan met his eyes as if sending telepathy that said, Just permit it, and I will take care of the rest somehow.

For some reason, he felt as if she had lightly smacked her lips.

“......Elivan.”

“Yes, Father.”

“......I will respect whatever choice you make, so do as you want.”

“Mm, all right!”

Alon had no choice but to give that answer.

“And still, make sure you properly get to know the person you will marry.”

Together with that small advice.

####

Immediately after that.

Alon was able to talk with the children who had come to the Mage Tower as if they had been waiting for the right time.

He did not know it, but the children said they had already come to the Mage Tower the day before to greet Alon, and perhaps because they had already heard the news, not one of the children brought up anything related to Penia, as if being considerate of Alon.

Because of that, after talking to some extent, Alon came back up to the library again for magic research.

“Hoo—”

Only after putting down the book he had been holding did he recognize that the sky had turned black, and he let out a sigh.

‘Come to think of it, Yutia did not come this time either.’

Thinking about it, it had been after the elixir incident last time. Alon realized anew that it had been quite a while since he had seen Yutia.

“.......”

In truth, until now, he had perhaps passed it off with the thought that she was embarrassed and was not showing herself, but seeing it now, that did not seem to be the case.

‘Apparently, even in this battle...... she did not show herself directly.’

Of course, afterward, he had heard that Rine and Seollang had helped.

But why had she not shown herself directly?

‘......Once this matter is over, I should look for Yutia.’

Alon recalled that earlier, she had said she had not properly met Rine and Seollang after that either, then rose from his seat and stretched.

After loosening his stiff body to some degree like that, Alon soon moved his body to return to his room.

“......?”

Soon, he was able to see Heinkel.

Unlike usual, when she would sit in the shelves of old books and do something or interpret magic, she was blankly looking at the clock tower, lost in thought.

“Lady Heinkel?”

“Mm......? Ah, Alon.”

When Alon called her, she reacted belatedly, as if she had been deeply lost in thought.

“Are you perhaps worrying about something?”

At Alon’s question, Heinkel looked at Alon for a moment, hesitated, then answered.

“No, it is nothing so great.”

“......Is that so?”

“Yes. More than that, how about you rest soon? You did not even eat, and you were stuck here all day again today, were you not?”

At Heinkel’s words, Alon nodded, though he still wondered about her condition.

Creak, thud—

After that, after confirming that the extremely thick library door had closed, Heinkel let out a deep sigh.

Her gaze still remained quietly where Alon had left.

And along with that, she recalled.

[You understand, right?]

The girl who had come to her today at noon, as if she had been waiting, when a guest came to Alon.

Yutia Bloodia.

[So please stay quiet.]

The words she had said.

“.......”

Heinkel once again let out a deep breath.

####

Late at night.

“It has been a while, everyone.”

Deus was talking with his companions on one side of the Central Mage Tower.

Of course, he had already greeted them earlier, but now was different.

At that time, other people had been mixed in, whereas the people here now were Rine, Seollang, and Radan.

“I did guess, but—”

“It seems you found them after all.”

Looking at Deus, Seollang and Rine spoke in order.

“Yes, not all of them, but I did find them.”

“That is a relief.”

When Deus nodded with a slightly small smile, Radan lightly struck his shoulder for a moment, then soon looked at Rine.

“So—what is the reason you gathered us? Surely it is not to celebrate Deus regaining his memories...... well, Yutia is not here, though.”

After confirming that only the members of Blue Moon, excluding the others, had gathered, Radan said that. Rine gave a hem-hem sound and opened her mouth.

“Of course not. It is because there is a part I want to discuss in my own way.”

“What is that?”

At Radan’s question, asked while tilting the head, Rine cleared her throat again and continued speaking.

“But before that, there is something I want to ask first.”

“? What is it?”

“By any chance, everyone, how much memory do you all have?”

“What kind of question is that?”

“Exactly as I said. I am asking from where to where you remember.”

At Rine’s words, Radan answered as if finding it strange.

“Can you specify ‘to where’? Mine are just scattered here and there like fragments.”

“I am the same.”

“That is the same for me too. But I am talking about the endpoint.”

At that, Radan thought for a moment.

“Mm, I think I remember around just before I died.”

“I am the same.”

Seollang nodded as if agreeing with Radan’s words.

Then Rine also naturally nodded along, and soon looked at Deus and asked.

“What about you, Deus?”

“I—”

He drew it out with a hmm, then opened his mouth.

“Since they are still coming back, many parts are not in my memory, but I think I am the same.”

“Just before death?”

“That is right.”

When Deus nodded, Rine gave a hmm and then spoke.

“Deus.”

“Speak.”

“You were the very last among us, correct?”

The last.

It could have been a slightly bewildering statement, but Deus immediately noticed what Rine meant and nodded.

“Probably. In terms of order, that is.”

“Hm-hm—”

At Deus’s affirmation, Rine once again cleared her throat with a hm-hm.

At that, Seollang, who had been tilting her head slightly until a moment ago—

“Ah.”

Soon realized exactly what Rine was trying to ask and quickly began looking at Deus with curiosity filling her eyes.

“?”

Deus, somewhat flustered by Seollang’s gaze that he felt like that—

“You see, Deus.”

“Mm.”

“I heard something a little curious.”

“Something curious?”

“Yes, in truth, it is not really something that needs that much attention, you know? And it is also not a story that important, right?”

“......?”

“Truly, at this point in time, it has nothing to do with anything, and it will have nothing to do with the future that unfolds from now on either.”

“......??”

“As you know, the future is something no one knows, right? That was only back then, and now it is different again.”

“.......”

Deus thought that he did not know what she was trying to ask, but if that was the case, was there any need to ask at all? Still, first, he calmly waited for Rine’s words.

“Deus—who did Godfather marry?”

At the question that followed.

“Ah.......”

Deus was able to understand why Rine had laid that much groundwork.