"What... what's going on?" Jetri looked utterly bewildered.
"So Jetri's still single?" Victoria murmured to herself, gazing blankly at him.
"Yeah," Jetri replied, completely baffled.
It's not like they just found out today. After working together for years, the only human women he ever interacted with were these two.
"I see," Victoria forced a faint smile.
Jetri suddenly realized Victoria had been looking directly into his eyes just now.
?
What was that about?
Why wasn't she avoiding his gaze anymore?
He couldn't make sense of it.
Instinctively, he glanced at Lilith.
The moment Lilith noticed his gaze, she jerked her eyes away like she’d been shocked, lowering her head slightly.
Jetri felt even more confused.
"Hah! That was quite the speech, all of you—Jetri, I never knew you had such talent!" Old White chuckled heartily.
Despite his easygoing manner, no one would guess he was a level 89 Sage and a former Valiant Hero himself.
"Headmaster, please stop with the 'never knew' already..." Jetri deadpanned.
Old White just shook his head with a smile.
Jetri hadn’t caught his meaning—he’d meant Jetri’s speech was the best he’d heard.
Brutally honest, yet refreshingly real.
He’d noticed how the Brave Academy students lost all motivation after hearing the Demon King was defeated. Some even seemed lost about their future paths.
But today, Jetri had shaken them awake.
Even if Jetri had probably just gone up there to vent.
"Thank you all again. Visit whenever you have time," Old White personally saw them off at the gate.
"We’ll see. Maybe we’ll come back sometime," Jetri replied alone.
The others stayed silent.
Jetri felt a flicker of annoyance. We were teammates. I never held you back—I just pursued you for a while, and when it didn’t work, I backed off.
Not even pretending anymore?
Whatever. I’m leaving anyway.
He decided not to dwell on it.
"Jetri, walk with me for a bit," Vya suddenly cut in with a smile.
"Huh? Sure," Jetri agreed, puzzled.
Of the four teammates, only Vya and Jetri shared the same route home. Lilith and Victoria lived in opposite directions.
Jetri bid farewell to the others.
Silence was his only reply.
"Vya... if I leave today, tomorrow, next month—even a year from now—"
"Really?!" Vya’s eyes lit up with hopeful anticipation before he could finish.
Jetri sighed again.
The carriage rolled smoothly over even roads.
The capital remained lively.
Children’s laughter and shouts from residential streets mingled with afternoon sunbeams streaming into the carriage.
"I’ll leave eventually. What’s the point of delaying a day or two? Besides, don’t you have matters to handle?" Jetri hinted at Violette’s situation.
Vya looked genuinely lost. "What matters?"
All she could think about was how to keep Jetri here.
"I know it’s hard to say goodbye. I’ll miss you too—but we don’t need to be together constantly. Distance won’t change what we have," Jetri reasoned gently.
"So you mean... if two hearts are truly—"
"Whoa, whoa! Not that!" Jetri cut her off sharply.
Seeing Vya’s flawless face earnestly misquoting poetry gave him an unexpected pang of guilt, like he was tricking some naive girl.
"Alright then. Consider it a farewell," Vya suddenly smiled.
As if shedding every worry weighing her down.
That warm smile reminded him of their first mission together—the one that had filled their then-inexperienced team with sudden, inexplicable confidence.
Looking back, those adventures truly were precious memories.
But they didn’t change his decision to leave.
Distance always made emotions sweeter.
Absence always made the heart grow fonder.
And memories were most beautiful when slightly blurred.
"Let’s spend tomorrow exploring the capital. I’ll see you off the morning after," Vya added.
Seeing Vya seemingly at peace, Jetri relaxed into a genuine smile.
"Deal."
At home, Vya did something unprecedented: she cooked.
Jetri tried to stop her, but she wouldn’t be deterred.
He’d always handled meals because Vya was utterly hopeless in the kitchen.
Teaching her was pointless.
Jetri watched Vya grip a kitchen knife with intense, almost battle-ready focus.
He’d probably been less tense facing the Demon King.
A single bead of sweat rolled down her smooth jawline.
He sighed but let her be.
Sometimes Vya was mature, tolerant, gentle, and rational.
Other times, she was stubborn as a child.
Especially over small things.
Knowing she couldn’t cook, she insisted on doing it alone—and refused his help.
The result was exactly as Jetri expected.
"Hmm..." He searched for a diplomatic phrase. "At least better than last time?"
Vya showed no disappointment. She studied the dish thoughtfully. "Looks better."
She took a bite. "But still tastes awful."
Setting down her fork, she gave him an apologetic smile. "Guess I’ll never learn to cook."
That remorseful expression on her face hit Jetri harder than he expected.
"It’s fine," he said, steadying his voice.
He took a bite.
It was terrible.
But edible.
His rule was simple: eat well when you can, but never waste food when you can’t.
This wasn’t exactly a survival situation, but it was Vya’s effort. He owed her that much.
As he ate, he mentally listed who to bid farewell to before leaving.
Violette?
Hmm...
Headmaster White, definitely.
Lilith and Victoria...
Might as well.
"I’ll wash up."
Jetri finished before he realized it.
Vya naturally took his plate.
Before he could react, she’d disappeared into the kitchen.
Huh...
Something felt...
Different about Vya today.
Domestic?
