“Does the Snow Maiden really exist? I’ve never heard of her before.”
From Kayla’s perspective, it was surprising.
Having lived for centuries, she would have heard most rumors.
There were very few people who knew about the Snow Maiden to the extent that even she didn’t know.
But I knew the truth.
The Snow Maiden is already dead.
To be precise, she sealed herself in ice just before dying.
It was her final act of defiance against time.
If I were to kill the Snow Maiden who sleeps in the ice, her power would be fully mine.
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
I said, startling Kayla, who was surprised and clapped her hands again.
“Oh, no! I always believe in you, Seo-Hyun!”
No matter how loyal Kayla is, it would be hard for her to believe the fact I just told her.
Still, she tried hard to hide her embarrassment.
She may have had doubts in her mind, but she believed my words.
“Can you trust me and help me just once?”
It was an absurd proposal. There was no evidence or witness.
It meant risking our lives believing uncertain information.
In other words, it was nothing short of madness.
But Kayla stood in front of me without hesitation and bowed her head.
“I never doubt you.”
She trusted me to the point of blindness.
She had never refused my words before.
She only felt grateful and sorry.
Actually, Kayla might have had complaints or doubts about me, but she didn’t show it.
‘How nice it would have been if Erina were like this.’
I felt like doing anything for Kayla, who always followed me.
When I asked if she wanted something, Kayla blushed immediately.
“I have nothing to ask of you, Seo-Hyun. I just have one question.”
“A question…?”
“I heard that you made a vow with Erina-nim.”
Before meeting Kayla, I made a promise with Erina at the fountain of the capital.
To defeat the Demon King. To believe in each other. Never to betray.
As always, Kayla cautiously approached me. After a moment’s hesitation, she took my hand.
“Is it more important than the vow we made?”
As soon as I heard Kayla’s words, I laughed bitterly.
She was worrying about something unnecessary.
“I told you before. I trust you more than Erina.”
Erina is lying to me.
Kayla swore to devote her life to me.
It was clear which way my heart leaned.
“Thank you.”
Only then did Kayla’s anxiety seem to disappear, and she smiled brightly.
To reassure her, I approached her and hugged her.
“It’s a secret from Erina.”
“I understand. I won’t betray you.”
It felt like having a secret affair.
Although we weren’t lovers, we decided to share a secret known only to each other.
***
Maybe I gave Erina too much of a shock.
“Stop crying now.”
“Oh, no! I’m not crying…!”
Erina forced a smile and pretended to be okay.
Contrary to her words, her eyes were red and swollen.
“I-I’m fine…! It’s nothing! It’s all my fault…!”
A crooked smile and teary eyes filled with tears.
Sometimes she even bit her nails.
I couldn’t say she was okay even if I said it empty words.
She always lied without blinking an eye.
Seeing Erina so shaken was something I had never seen before.
I would have rather seen her clinging to me and crying after fighting with Kayla.
‘I didn’t expect her to be this shocked.’
I regretted saying something too harsh.
I should have persuaded her more calmly or turned the conversation around.
Or maybe leaving her alone wasn’t the right decision.
I had to calm Erina down now.
It seemed like we needed to talk alone.
“Erina. Let’s go to the quest center together. And let’s apologize to Colin and hear about the quest.”
“…Yes!”
The response was slower than usual.
Her lips formed an arc, but her eyes didn’t reflect any amusement.
It was obvious to anyone that she was following orders reluctantly.
Leaving her as she was could lead to unpredictable consequences.
It was like dealing with a time bomb that could go off at any moment.
I decided to take her outside.
“Kayla, you don’t have to come out if it’s too cold.”
And though I felt sorry for Kayla, I decided she should wait in the room for a while.
She hesitated at my words before getting up from her seat.
“…Shouldn’t I come with you?”
Surprisingly, there was a slight resistance.
It seemed she was afraid of being left alone.
Though I felt sorry, I couldn’t take Kayla with me now.
“Just rest here for a moment. I’ll be back soon.”
Among us, Kayla appeared the most exhausted.
She hadn’t slept properly due to the cold during our journey to Norton Village.
She tried to hide her fatigue, but it was evident in my eyes.
“Alright. I’ll be waiting.”
Kayla bowed her head, seemingly disappointed.
But she didn’t insist further, perhaps understanding my intentions.
I wanted to pat her head in gratitude, but my hand hesitated.
Erina approached and grabbed my hand.
“Hurry up and go! We need to come back before it gets dark!”
Intentionally, she blocked me from approaching Kayla.
Even though her intentions were clear, I didn’t say anything.
Erina seemed desperate.
She waited for me, looking as if she might burst into tears at any moment, her precarious state almost pitiful.
The dangerous appearance was so pitiful that it seemed as if tears were about to pour out at any moment.
If I were to treat her mercilessly again, she would probably fall to the floor and wail loudly like last time.
Once again, I couldn’t stop Erina.
With a sigh, I listened to her words.
“Alright. Let’s go.”
With her answer, Erina grabbed my hand.
With a gentle urging, she opened the door of the inn and pulled me out.
Kayla, who had been watching us, waved silently without a word.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Before I could respond, the door closed abruptly.
Finally, Erina and I were left alone.
As I scrutinized her slowly, I couldn’t say anything.
“Erina, are you okay?”
“Yes…! It’s nothing…!”
Erina’s whole body was flushed.
Her face frowned as she breathed heavily.
Her body trembled intermittently.
Her pupils were contracted, and her gaze was unfocused.
It was all symptoms of too much stress.
“Let’s just go to the quest center! And apologize to this Colin person, and then we’re done with the quest, right…?!”
Erina spoke energetically, pretending to be okay in front of me.
But even her voice was shaking.
Her actions of stopping me and her hurried steps were awkward beyond belief.
I couldn’t leave her in this state.
“Erina.”
“Yes…!”
“Calm down for a moment.”
Her trembling eyes flickered.
For a moment, her smile disappeared, and the mask she wore crumbled.
“I-It’s okay! I’m f-fine…!”
Slowly, I approached Erina.
Instinctively, she took a step back.
Ignoring her resistance, I approached and held her face in my hands.
Others might see it as rude.
But I didn’t care, and brought my hand to her face.
“Huh… ?!”
I gently wiped away the tears streaming down her face.
I smoothed out her tangled hair.
Once her disheveled appearance was tidied up, she seemed a bit better.
The tears overflowing onto my hand froze instantly in the cold air.
Erina didn’t know what to do.
Meanwhile, I spoke to her in a calm voice.
“I don’t want to drive you away either.”
I didn’t want Erina to disappear.
‘I really like you! That’s why I wanted to protect you…!’
Her tearful confession of love still lingered in my mind.
But she was lying to me.
She caused the world to fall into chaos, imprisoned the goddess, and dragged me into this world.
I should hate Erina. I should find a way to cast her aside.
But I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
‘What do you call this feeling?’
A mix of affection and hatred.
I felt affection towards her.
She was a character I had created.
In a way, I was like her parent.
And she was also my comrade and ally.
I couldn’t be hostile towards her now.
Erina had caused too many problems.
There were times when I was genuinely angry with her during our arguments.
But never once did I want to part ways with her.
I had thought long and hard about what to do next.
And now, I had come to two conclusions.
‘I need to become stronger than Erina.’
I had to stop Erina from committing atrocities or acting recklessly.
‘And I need to save the Goddess.’
I had to defeat the Demon King with Erina and ascend to the Heaven to save the Goddess.
Achieving both would not be easy.
But it was something I had to do.
I couldn’t abandon either Erina or the Goddess.
And if we reached the Gate of Heaven after defeating the Demon King…
‘What should I do then?’
I hadn’t reached a conclusion yet.
Still, it was going to take a lot of time to subdue the Demon King.
For now, persuading Erina was my priority.
“Erina, I want to continue being with you. But things can’t go on like this.”
Erina’s wrongdoings were partly my fault too.
As the leader of the party, I had to take responsibility.
“You don’t harm people for no reason, do you?”
Erina bit her lip and nodded.
“Yes, you’re right…”
“You’re just trying to protect me by being cautious with people, aren’t you?”
“Yes, yes…! I just want to protect you!”
She had her reasons for being wary and threatening towards people.
But her actions had been too extreme.
I had to put a stop to her violent behavior or murders.
That’s why I had even mentioned driving her out of the party.
“I’m not telling you to become friends with everyone.”
“…”
“But at least be polite.”
I didn’t expect her to act friendly or show warmth anymore.
I couldn’t overlook behaviors that caused friction with others.
So, I decided to draw a clear line.
“Don’t provoke conflicts with others. You need to fix your attitude of being defensive for no reason.”
Erina chewed her lips tightly, her face revealing the constantly fluctuating emotions.
She harbored dissatisfaction with my orders.
But if she didn’t follow me, she would be left behind by the party.
There was a conflict brewing between us.
“Then.”
Erina slowly raised her head and opened her mouth.
Her eyes looking at me lacked their usual brightness.
With vacant focus, she took a step towards me.
“If someone appears to harm or threaten you.”
“…”
“Should I stay quiet even then…?”
A person who is trying to kill me or has obvious hostility towards me.
We couldn’t just leave robbers or bandits attacking us with swords right away.
Erina prioritized my safety.
It couldn’t be said that even her loyalty to me was misplaced.
Denying even that sentiment felt too harsh.
“So let’s do it this way.”
Never harm anyone.
However, exceptions would be made if the other party clearly displayed hostile attitudes or actions.
“I’ll leave it up to your judgment.”
I left it to her to determine what constituted hostile behavior.
I chose to trust her conscience to some extent.
“Alright. I’ll do that…!”
Finally, a faint smile of satisfaction returned.
The anxious expression vanished, and she returned to her previous self.
“I’m going to the quest center. I’ll make sure to apologize to Colin first.”
“Yes. I’ll follow your lead.”
Finally, I could hear a positive response.
It was absurd that such a lengthy conversation was necessary just to encourage an apology.
I hoped that through this incident, Erina would learn how to interact with people more smoothly.
The quest center wasn’t far.
It was just a minute away from the inn.
Carefully opening the door and stepping inside, I could see Colin alone behind the counter.
As we entered the quest center, she greeted us warmly, waving her hand.
“Oh! Seo-Hyun-nim! And this is…”
Unlike me, Colin glanced at Erina before nodding respectfully.
Perhaps because of their first encounter, she showed signs of nervousness.
Before I could say anything, Erina stepped forward.
“You’re Colin, right? Nice to meet you.”
“Oh, yes!”
Fortunately, Colin accepted her greeting without any problem.
As if forgetting the initial friction, she approached Erina with a smile.
“I’ll be in your care!”
Once again, Colin extended her hand.
But Erina waved it off.
“Sorry. I’m not really fond of shaking hands.”
With a hint of disappointment, Colin withdrew her hand.
Nevertheless, the atmosphere was much more relaxed than before.
I was satisfied that Erina had learned how to politely decline.
She had finally learned how to gracefully refuse.
