Chapter 59: Ilya is Ilya

In this kind of world, sometimes death could almost feel like a gift.

At least, that was how Summer saw it.

Those children had grown up in a world filled with polluted zones, monster attacks, and the constant fear that one day, the barrier protecting them might fail.

Life was never truly safe and that didn’t make their deaths any less painful.

But if there was one thing Summer believed, it was that those children probably wouldn’t want Ilya to spend the rest of his life punishing himself for what happened, especially if they had cared about him.

"Niki held onto you because he cared about you," Summer said softly. "And I think people who truly loved you would be sad if they knew you were hurting this much."

"We can’t really know what they were thinking," Ilya replied in a low voice. "They’re gone."

"You’re right. They’re gone." Summer narrowed her eyes slightly as the sunlight reflected off the snow. "They can’t form a solid opinion about you anymore."

She finally turned to look at him. "The only one still doing that is you."

Ilya held his breath when he heard Summer’s words. He couldn’t even think of anything to say back to her.

"You are dangerous, indeed," Summer continued. "So is Archer. So are most high-rank Sentinels. But that doesn’t make you a bad person."

"You lost control once," Summer said. "And yes, people died. That’s horrible. I’m not going to pretend it wasn’t, but one accident doesn’t get to decide everything about you."

Summer glanced at the metal arm resting beside him. "You still help people. You still protect others. You were willing to destroy yourself in Zone 41 just to keep everyone else alive." She paused. "That matters too."

Back then, Summer had spent most of her life surrounded by people with powerful abilities.

She had watched enough of them to know the difference between someone who wanted to be called a hero for fame and status, and someone who truly wanted to help others and Ilya was the second kind.

She had seen it in the way he trained his students.

In the way he protected people.

In the way he kept putting others before himself.

Whatever Ilya was doing now, Summer didn’t believe it was only because he wanted to make up for what happened in the past.

He did those things because that was simply the kind of person he was.

"And as someone who also grew up in an orphanage, I’d be happy to have a big brother like you, even if it was only for a few years." Summer gave him a small smile. "That kind of thing means more than you think."

Ilya went completely silent. For a few seconds, even the cold wind seemed quieter. Not long after, he lowered his head and let out a soft laugh, but it didn’t sound happy at all.

"You really know how to say things that make it hard to argue with you."

Summer shrugged. "Maybe because I’m right."

Ilya’s eyes were still tired but the heaviness in them had softened a little. "Archer used to say something similar," he admitted. "Not exactly like that, though."

Summer smiled faintly. "Let me guess. He said it while cursing and yelling at you?"

Ilya let out another chuckle. "Pretty much."

"He just doesn’t know how to say it properly," Summer said. "But he really worries about you."

She looked at him for a moment before continuing, "And I think instead of constantly looking for a way to die just to make up for your mistake, it would be better if you tried to live properly."

Ilya’s smile faded a little, so Summer quickly added, "I’m serious."

He sighed. "I know."

"Then take a break."

Ilya raised one of his eyebrows. "A break?"

"Like a small vacation," Summer said.

He stared at her like she had just suggested something completely unreasonable.

Summer frowned. "What?"

"I still have to train you," Ilya said with a small smile.

"Oh." Summer thought about it for a second. "Then I can just train with another instructor."

Ilya’s expression changed almost right away. It was subtle, but Summer still noticed it. His brows lowered slightly, and his lips pressed into a thin line.

"You don’t like that idea," she said.

"I didn’t say that." Ilya looked away for a moment before adding, "It’s just... I think it’s better if you train with someone who has been watching your progress from the beginning."

Then he added, a little more firmly, "Besides, I don’t think the other instructors are good enough for you."

Summer raised an eyebrow at that.

In truth, being an instructor was considered a troublesome job by most high-ranking Sentinels. They had better things to do, and most of them had no interest in spending their time training others.

That was why Ilya was basically the only S-Rank Sentinel who worked as a full-time instructor.

As for the other elite Sentinels at S-Rank or above, they usually only showed up once or twice a year to help with training.

And even then, it was only volunteer work.

"Well, how about... you can train me somewhere else?" Summer suggested. "It doesn’t have to be in Zone 0, right?"

Ilya turned his head toward her. "Somewhere else?"

"Yeah. Somewhere that doesn’t look like a military base or a polluted zone."

Summer thought about it for a moment before adding, "Maybe somewhere with a beach, or a forest. Somewhere peaceful."

Ilya stared at her like he was trying to figure out whether she was serious. "You want to go on vacation while training?"

"Exactly."

"That sounds less like training and more like you trying to trick me into taking a vacation."

Summer tilted her head to the side, asking the most important thing, "Why can’t it be both?"

To be honest, she was just curious whether this world still had any vacation spots even though it was surrounded by polluted zones.

After all, even this entire mountain was covered by an invisible barrier to prevent it from being contaminated by the polluted air.

"If you insist," Ilya said. "But only after you finish your final evaluation."