Flora closed the door to Rudger's hospital room and stepped out. She leaned back against the door for a moment, unable to move. Her blurry vision was projecting the conversation she had just had with Rudger.
-What's your…… relationship with the girl named Rene?
Flora took a deep breath and asked the question she was most curious about. She wondered if she should have asked the question right then and there. But she was more concerned that she would never get an answer from Rudger.
Normally, Rudger would have responded to Flora's question with silence, or at least dismissed it as nothing. But because of what was going on in his mind, Rudger listened to Flora's question, and then became deeply troubled.
From that alone, Flora realized that Rudger's attitude toward her was quite different. She realized that he seemed to care more about her than before.
-I can't go into details. It's my personal business.
-What does that mean, you actually have a relationship?
-Not a very good one.
-But you seem to care a lot about her.
Flora revealed the bitterness she'd been harboring, something she wouldn't normally do. But just as Rudger's attitude towards her has changed considerably Flora's behavior towards Rudger has also changed, and she was more genuine than before.
There was a kind of resonance between what had happened in their minds.
No one but the two of them will ever know what happened that day. But even so Flora was quite troubled about the relationship between Rudger and Rene.
-It was in the past. Something she doesn't even remember.
-Did you two meet a long time ago?
Rudger gave a small nod but Flora didn't ask how they had met, or what had happened. She couldn't bring herself to ask after seeing the changed expression on Rudger's face.
It was a look of deep sadness she'd never seen before and made Flora feel sick to her stomach.
She realized that she had been helped by Rudger, but she couldn't help him.
For the first time in her life, Flora felt a sense of inadequacy. At the same time, she thought that if something bad happened to her, would her teacher look like that?
Flora shook her head. She had promised herself to be different from now on.
She had to try harder since for the first time someone had reached out and given her a chance. She didn't want to waste a single minute of her life.
Pulling herself together, Flora made her way to her hospital room.
"……."
Feeling Flora's movement away, Rudger remained seated, staring out the window.
Contrary to what he'd feared, Flora seemed to be doing quite well. Neither her speech nor her behavior was any more embellished than before. Her emotions were more visible, which was nice to see. And while he was glad for that, Rudger couldn't help but feel his head spin.
The events in the capital would have far-reaching consequences but Rudger wasn't worried about the future of the ripples themselves. His only concern was Rene's condition.
When he had rescued her from Basara that day, he had looked into her eyes that were filled with bright light, a sign that the plan had worked.
Basara looked at Rene and said she was a saint but Rudger didn't know what that meant.
Rene had the qualities of a saint. The Judgment she possessed was not simply inherited through blood. It was determined by something much larger and more fatalistic.
'There is only one in every century.'
And most of the time, its bearers don't even realize they have such power.
The only time they wake up is when something big happens on a global scale but Renee's Judgment Eye has awakened.
It wasn't complete, but it was enough to make her wonder about herself.
'And most of all, I'm worried about Zero Order finding her.'
Given that Zero Order is a demon, he would be most likely to seek out Rene to eliminate her.
For now, Rudger is hiding her, but one day she will be found out.
Will he be able to protect her in the future?
'I just wanted her to grow up like a regular kid.'
He wanted the child to forget everything and live a normal life but fate would not allow it so easily.
Rudger stopped thinking about it and let out a self-deprecating laugh. He had no one to blame but himself for what had happened to Rene in the first place.
From the day he killed her mother with these bloody hands her life was already far from normal. In a way, by caring about her, he was doing her an even greater wrong. It was a selfish act, a one-sided way of relieving him of his guilt.
'But it happened.'
If he had come this far, he couldn't pretend he didn't know. And in a twist of fate, there was one other person in Theon who had been involved in the day's events besides Rene, Freuden Ulburg.
The little wolf was now a fully-grown man but his animosity towards Rudger has only increased.
He hadn't yet told Renee about her past, but Rudger never knew when something might come out of nowhere.
"Whoa."
Rudger thought back to the last conversation he'd had with Andrei in the underground central area.
He had failed to protect someone, and he had despaired about it. So had Andrei, and he had ended up becoming a warlock.
'You will not fail.'
The words of encouragement struck Rudger as ridiculous.
Not because it was silly. Rather, it made him feel grateful.
Those few words from Andrei touched Rudger's heart.
The irony is that the words brought sweet comfort to Rudger's parched heart.
'I thought I would live my life in solitude, but this is what happens when you live.'
Rudger thought to himself and looked out the window.
It was strange that the person who should have been the first to arrive by now hadn't.
'Strange. I thought she was in the capital. Isn't she coming?'
Grander's nature was such that she would have come to tease him in the middle of the night, away from prying eyes if he had been injured and taken to the hospital
'She's so selfish, it's not really strange that she doesn't come when she's supposed to.'
Rudger had given up trying to guess at Grander's behavior.
'If she doesn't come, that's good.'
* * *
"Well, well. I wish we could have chatted a bit more, he's quite an interesting guy."
Helia grumbled, twirling the mountain in her hand.
Zero Order responded to Helia's comment with a silent nod and continued on their way.
The streets of the dark capital were desolate with uncleaned debris from the terror that still lingered.
Helia liked the sight. It was as if the world had come to an end. Of course, the world hadn't ended. These ruins would be rebuilt and returned to their neat and tidy state by the next day.
"Still, it's good to enjoy it while you can……."
When Helia muttered that, Zero Order, who was walking ahead, stopped.
Helia, who was walking behind, also stopped.
"What the hell? What's going on?"
Helia poked her head over Zero Order's shoulder and stared straight ahead. Then her face twisted into a grimace.
In the center of the wide street, was a girl with blonde hair that shone in the moonlight that poured in like a curtain and red eyes that could be seen clearly in the darkness of the night.
She looked like a doll in a crimson dress.
Helia's crumpled expression didn't straighten easily, knowing her identity.
"No, why would you……."
"Going for a walk on a moonlit night?"
When Helia muttered that, Grander broke the silence.
"It's a rare sight, not just one of your kind, but two of you together, nay, three, considering what happened today."
Grander's red eyes glowed eerily. It was like a drop of water falling into a still pool of blood and rippling out.
The sight made Helia tighten her grip on the parasol in her hand.
Meeting her gaze, Zero Order remained unperturbed and spoke.
"What brings you here?"
"No business. Is there some reason I shouldn't be here?"
"I thought you wanted some quiet and thought you avoided crowded places."
"That was a long time ago. I have long since changed my mind."
Grander smiled mischievously as she spoke.
"That's what's bothering me now. I'm not in the best of moods right now. I came here to do some sightseeing, and now I've run into two creeps."
"You're the one who forced us to come here when we were avoiding you. Or are you going to fight right here and now?"
"Why not?"
A crimson aura began to swirl around Grander.
Not to be outdone, Helia began to stir up black magic, ready to use her illusions.
At the sight, Grander curled the corners of her mouth in disdain.
"You dare to use that crude illusion against me? I recall that I punished you severely once before, but you seem to have forgotten."
"At least I can buy myself some time and escape."
"You're the same as ever, trying to run away from someone who's stronger than you."
"Because no one usually wants to fight a monster like you."
Grandeur's eyebrows shot upward in displeasure at that retort.
"A monster?"
"……Uh, I take that back."
Helia immediately lowered her head.
Of course, it was only words and slowly illusions began to take shape around Helia as ancient beasts that looked like a mishmash of beasts and bugs appeared.
All she had to do was give the command, and they would attack Grander with everything they had.
It was then that Zero Order stepped forward.
"I'm not going to fight you anyway, so let's just call it a day."
"……What?"
Grander raised an eyebrow and shot Zero Order a look that said, "What does that mean?"
Zero didn't avert his eyes and their gazes collided in midair.
In the end, it was Grander who withdrew her power first.
"Hmph. My excitement is gone."
"That's good."
"It hasn't been that long since I've seen you, but you're still different from the other so-called apostles."
"I suppose."
"An immortal who wants to die and an apostle who doesn't seek God, it's so ridiculous I can't even laugh."
Helia was puzzled as the life drained out of him.
'What, I thought we were going to fight?'
She'd been scrambling since she'd realized Grander was in the capital.
When she and Rudger met, she didn't keep her illusions active too long to avoid being detected by her but Grander was more perceptive than she realized.
As they quietly made their way out of the capital, she appeared in front of them and showed hostility. Somehow, though, Grander had no intention of fighting her.
'Is that old woman senile? In the old days, she would have lunged at me, splattering me with blood.'
Even now, the memory sent a jolt of electricity down her spine.
Unlike Helia, who was genuinely surprised, Zero Order seemed to have guessed something.
"You found it."
Grander snorted at Zero's confidence.
"Not found. I've just pushed the goal back a bit."
"I see."
"And did you ever find what you were looking for?"
"I haven't found it yet, but I've seen the trail, so it shouldn't take long."
"You're faster than I thought."
"What the hell, what are you two talking about without me?"
Helia asked, but neither Zero Order nor Grander answered her so she pouted her lips, as if they weren't even in the same space.
"Ah, well. I don't need to know, then, do I?"
With that, Helia spoke with a huff and vanished like a phantom.
The illusion of the ancient beasts she had created dissolved into thin air like a mirage.
"I shall go as well, and I trust you will honor your oath."
With that, Zero Order vanished in a puff of black smoke.
"Oath."
Grandeur muttered the word "oath" once, then turned her carnelian eyes to a single spot, in that direction was the hospital where her apprentice was staying.
She had heard that her apprentice had been injured and had been taken away, and she had considered making fun of him.
"Today is not the day."
She shook her head in disappointment and strode back to her quarters.
At this rate, she's going to have to make fun of Hans.
"My apprentice picked up a pretty funny one, though."
* * *
Burrrr.
"What is it?"
Hans, who was nursing Belaruna back at the inn, shivered at the sudden chill.
Surely the events in the capital were over, so why the uneasiness?
'It must be an illusion, right?'