679,

“What should we do now?”

Elyse asked the people gathered around the bed.

It wasn’t just Allen’s guards. Even the priests and nuns of the Water Shrine had gathered here.

Everyone had gathered around Shier, who was still asleep, to discuss what they should do next.

“How did that man find this place?”

“It means he’s been watching nearby. It has to be.”

“We should assign more people to guard them, then send the two of them somewhere else…”

Hearing the priest’s suggestion, Elyse couldn’t help asking,

“The man is the one who’s causing trouble! Why should Shier and his mother have to leave?”

Elyse had hit the heart of the matter. Shier wasn’t at fault, yet he was the one who had to run.

It was clearly unreasonable, and everyone understood that.

But…

“Setting aside whether we can catch her husband, even if we do, this place is already full of painful memories for them.”

The priest had a point, and Cyclone agreed.

Sometimes, running away isn’t the right thing to do.

But given the situation, leaving would solve far too many problems.

Then Yuna added,

“Even if they leave, we can’t send them back to their hometown, can we?”

Yuna was right to point that out.

As her husband, it was only natural that he knew his wife’s hometown.

Of course, it was possible he didn’t.

But there was no point in relying on that possibility. Their home was in Kakarl, and if he managed to figure out where they were from by picking up some stray clue, they’d be in extreme danger without anyone to protect them.

“Why don’t we wait until the two of them wake up before deciding?”

At Hilmirya’s suggestion, the discussion was put on hold.

But the problem remained. Until it was resolved, everyone would stay on edge.

To ease their worries, Allen’s guards had already promised to send several people to protect Shier and his mother around the clock.

And so, three days passed.

Shier and his mother both woke up.

Because of work, Elyse was the only one who came to the church that morning.

Yuna had come along too, but she was resting up in the church’s ceiling. Unless something went wrong, she didn’t plan to show herself.

So, strictly speaking, Elyse was the only one who came to visit.

“Shier?”

“Big Sis!!”

Seeing how lively Shier was, Elyse felt a little relieved.

Perhaps because he’d lost so much blood, both Cyclone and the church doctor had advised Shier to keep resting after he woke up.

But how could Shier possibly lie still when his goddess-like big sister Elyse was right there?

Fortunately, a nun was there. Otherwise, Shier might have gotten so excited that his wound split open again.

“What’s wrong?”

Elyse asked gently.

But she wasn’t asking Shier. She was asking his mother.

“…”

Unlike Shier, who was full of energy, Mrs. only stared out the window.

Elyse wasn’t angry at Mrs. for acting that way. She simply waited.

Several minutes passed before Mrs. finally spoke.

“I used to think… that if I came to this big city, my life would get better.”

It sounded much like what Elyse had thought back then.

She’d believed that leaving the City of Dusk and going to the place where Cyclone lived would make her life better.

Elyse couldn’t say her life was wonderful now, but so far, she had no regrets.

“I met my husband, had Shier… Everything was wonderful. It should have been…”

As she spoke, Mrs. began to cry.

“Mom…”

Seeing her mother cry, Shier looked deeply unsettled.

Then Mrs. looked at Elyse.

“I… Can I ask you something?”

Elyse didn’t know what she was going to ask, but she still nodded.

Several days later, a carriage left Kakarl before dawn.

On the high wall surrounding Kakarl, Cyclone and his family watched the carriage go.

“I heard they’re heading to the City of Dusk. After that, they’ll leave by sea.”

As she watched Shier disappear into the distance, Elyse silently prayed for the two of them.