Chapter 858

“...There was a reason. I’m hurt, but it’s not that serious. Worry about the Commander first...”

“Not that serious? Who said that?”

Inon finally responded to Yuder’s words.

“......”

“Huh? Who the hell said that? Are you a pharmacist? A doctor? A priest maybe?”

And now it wasn’t just his arm—Inon grabbed him by the collar.

“You want me to show you what being seriously injured really means? Huh?! You look like this and think you can just stand there answering back like you’re fine?! You wanna die that bad?!”

His final shout sounded like it might crack through the hail. Even Yuder Aile, officially recognized by Kishiar la Orr as fearless, knew better than to say anything else in this moment. This went beyond fear or bravery.

As Inon violently shook Yuder by the collar, chaos erupted around them.

“Sir Inon! Yuder is seriously injured! Please, calm down! He needs treatment, now—let’s focus on that first!”

“Yes, Pharmacist, please! Calm down! He’s gonna die! He already looks half-dead!”

“Damn it! All of you, back off! I can’t even let go properly with you swarming him like this!”

To the others, it might have looked rough, but Inon’s grip wasn’t actually painful. On the contrary, he’d even made space so no one else would jostle Yuder’s weakened body. It seemed wild, but his hands knew exactly how to protect and save people to the core.

Finally releasing his grip, Inon let out a furious breath as he glared at Yuder.

“You, you worthless scrap of half-chewed tomato pulp. If you don’t want to drop dead right here, don’t move a muscle until I finish what I’m doing and come back. Got it?”

“......”

“Oh, you’re not answering now?”

“The Commander’s in worse shape than me. Start with him.”

“You stubborn little—!”

When Yuder mouthed the words please, just barely audible to only Inon, Inon clutched his forehead and trembled. His fierce yellow eyes turned toward Kishiar, then another angry exhale burst from his chest.

“Both of you, seriously...! Fine, if it’s needed, I’ll deal with it. So shut up and stay put! Lie down now! What? You don’t want to?! Fine, then sit! Just—don’t move another damn inch!”

For Inon to say that meant moving any more could really do serious damage. After Yuder had pierced Hosanra, the pain that had been so overwhelming it was hard to breathe seemed to vanish after drawing upon the power of the Red Stone. He’d thought it meant he could walk and talk again—but clearly, that wasn’t the case.

Still... half-chewed tomato pulp? In all his life, he’d never heard a more humiliating phrase to describe himself. Even burst tomato had been better.

‘No... they’re both tomatoes, so I guess it’s not that different.’

Something about the absurdity of it made him feel like he might laugh—even in this mess. Yuder wore an odd expression, caught between amusement and pain. Inon immediately twisted his face like a demon.

“You’re laughing? Everyone else manages to protect themselves, so why is it always you throwing yourself into harm’s way like this?!”

That, at least, Yuder had to correct.

“That’s not true.”

“What?”

“I’ve never sacrificed myself. If I’d been alone... this wouldn’t have ended here.”

Inon faltered, brow twitching. A moment later, he sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead.

“...Shut your mouth. Pretend you’re dead until I come back. Got it?”

After making sure Yuder sat down, Inon, still fuming, stormed off with Lusan and a few Cavalry members to assist with the aftermath. Only then did Kanna quietly approach, and beside her were the weary Ever and the Elder siblings, along with others Yuder recognized. Among them were Suns and Emon, who had come with General Gino. All of them stood in stunned silence, too shocked to even speak.

‘...It’s not that bad. The rift’s about to open soon... Even if it’s down to one, the situation still—’

“Yuder. I know what you’re thinking. You’re worried about the rift that hasn’t disappeared yet, right?”

Kanna had knelt beside him, her face calm but firm.

“......”

Honestly, he had a dozen other things on his mind—whether the Sage situation had been handled, whether they had enough people to handle the monsters likely about to pour out, whether anyone else had been hurt in the meantime. How Gakein and Kurga were, wherever they’d been taken...

But seeing Kanna’s face, he knew he couldn’t say any of it.

“You probably don’t think you’ve done enough. That’s why you’re still pushing past your limit, refusing to rest. Because you don’t trust us.”

“...That’s not...”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

He shook his head, meaning to deny it. But Kanna’s expression didn’t change.

“No. You don’t trust us yet. And I won’t argue with that—it’s true. If it weren’t for you and the Commander, the rest of us wouldn’t still be standing.”

As if no one here could possibly deny that, Kanna spoke calmly.

“The Pharmacist was right. Everyone was here, and yet only two of us °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° were seriously injured—and it’s you and the Commander. I’m ashamed of that. Deeply. And I’m furious. We all are. You understand that, don’t you?”

Because it was Kanna saying it, her words struck deep, stirring a strange ripple through Yuder’s mind.

“I’m not asking you to trust us like you trust the Commander. That’d be like a bunch of helpless kids begging for you to take care of them. But if we want you to believe in us, what we have to do now is get up... and finish what you couldn’t.”

“......”

“Everyone agrees with me, right?”

As Kanna slowly rose to her feet, a group of battered, soaked, and injured people answered her with fierce eyes.

“What kind of question is that?”

“It’s what we should’ve been doing in the first place.”

“Ugh, let’s go already!”

“Yuder. See you later, okay? After it’s all over—we’ll come back to the branch and tell you there’s nothing left to worry about.”

Ever spoke softly, briefly touching Yuder’s shoulder before letting go.

Then the others turned and walked away. Yuder watched them for a long time before slowly turning his head. Nathan Zuckerman and General Gino had already disappeared. The only one left was Kishiar, still standing there, watching him.

“...You didn’t go.”

“I couldn’t leave you.”

His voice and appearance looked slightly better than before—and in one of his hands, Yuder saw something unfamiliar. Looking closer, it was a Purification Stone.

‘Did Nathan Zuckerman give it to him...?’

Being able to use divine power, a Purification Stone would certainly help. As expected, his capable adjutant had come through. That alone was a relief.

‘But... what does he mean, he didn’t go because of me?’

Yuder blinked in a daze, frowning slightly. Kishiar smiled faintly.

“I’m far too used to situations where I can’t leave, even if I want to. That’s why I raised Nathan and the Cavalry—for times like these.”

“......”

“Sometimes, you have to learn how to trust others when you can’t step forward yourself. Especially now, when what we need most isn’t forcing ourselves through, but stepping back... and preparing for what comes next.”

Kishiar slowly approached and sat down beside Yuder. Even though the ground was a filthy mess, he didn’t care at all.

“And the one I love... still doesn’t know what that means. So... I chose to stay.”

Beside the one who needs me most—and whom I need the most.

He murmured softly, then reached out and gently wrapped his hand around Yuder’s shoulder so as not to cause him pain.

Their battered bodies leaned against each other, shoulder to shoulder. Yuder didn’t fully grasp the meaning of Kishiar’s words in his heart—but strangely, his mind began to dull.

His body, frozen until now, started to relax. As if the blood that had stopped flowing all at once resumed its course, the pain he thought had passed came back to life.

‘Ah...’

So that was it. He hadn’t gotten better—it had only been forcibly blocked off. He just couldn’t feel it until now.

This kind of pain flooding a numb body didn’t happen often. But somehow, it didn’t feel the same as the torturous agony he’d experienced earlier in that hallucination.

Maybe that was because... even in this state, someone had chosen to sit beside him.

The fury that had been boiling in him for so long was finally extinguished. The gaping holes inside him slowly began to close, going silent.

Blinking drowsily, Yuder opened and closed his eyes several times. And at last, he stopped resisting the sensations that overwhelmed him—and let himself go.