Chapter 1001

Yuder Aile, whom they had assumed had already returned with the Cavalry, was standing there alone.

“Ah... Y-Yuder...?”

“Why are you still here... not back yet...?”

“I was bothered by the forged invitation.”

“Then... the Commander and the others are still...?”

“No. I’m the only one left.”

His voice came out slowly, devoid of any noticeable change in emotion. His seemingly indifferent expression was exactly as usual—so much so that even Kanna, who possessed the ability to read information, couldn't guess what he was really feeling just from the outside.

Kanna and Gakein exchanged a brief, rapid, and tense glance. For some reason—something that hadn’t even happened during their recent, extremely dangerous battle—they could now exchange and understand thoughts with a single look.

‘Did he just hear... all that?’

‘I don’t know... but judging from that attitude, maybe he didn’t...’

“If you’re curious, yes. I heard what you two said about me and the Commander.”

‘U—Uwaaaah!’

‘He did hear!’

The fragile hope they’d clung to shattered immediately at Yuder’s calm remark. He glanced between their faces, both frozen and silently screaming, then exhaled briefly.

“Let’s talk somewhere else.”

“R-Right now?!”

Gakein’s voice cracked with panic.

“I need to hear what you found out about the forged invitation anyway.”

“Ah, r-right. Yeah, we should tell you that...”

Unlike Gakein, who still hadn’t recovered from the shock, Kanna—having been through something similar once before—was quick to regain her composure.

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

“...If it’s uncomfortable, we can talk later.”

“No. I learned from last time. It’s better to talk about things like this right away. Gakein probably feels the same.”

“...Alright then.”

Yuder turned his back and led the way. They took a carriage that had been waiting in front of House Hern and got off near the branch. There, in a small building originally set up as a temporary outpost and meeting space during the giant wave and monster attack, they found the place still vacant.

From the outside, it looked no different from a small house, but inside, traces of the frantic battle still lingered—torn maps, leftover bandages, broken weapon fragments. Without a word, Yuder glanced over the debris and moved them aside before taking a seat.

“This place should be quiet enough to talk.”

“Yeah... I was wondering where we could talk without drawing attention, especially dressed in formal wear like this. This is just right.”

The three of them sat, staring at one another. A moment of silence passed before Kanna finally broke it.

“Yuder. First, I want to say—there’s nothing for you to worry about. This was all my fault. Gakein didn’t do anything. I just read something on my own, and it surprised us both. And what I read... it wasn’t much different from what I already knew...”

Her gaze faltered at that last part, but she quickly steeled herself, clenched her fists, and spoke firmly.

“Anyway, while we were startled by that, you showed up. That’s all there is to it! Gakein doesn’t even know what or how much I know.”

“...”

“No, Yuder. It wasn’t Kanna—it was me!”

Before Yuder could say anything, Gakein jumped in, shaking his head urgently.

“I, uh. That time, during the hailstorm, inside the shadow veil, I... saw you and the Commander... doing something. I mean—I didn’t literally see it with my eyes, but I saw it through my ability. You know what I mean, right...? Anyway, after that, both of you were hurt badly and busy, so I figured it’d be better to just pretend I didn’t know anything...”

Gakein trailed off, then slammed his forehead onto the table with a deep breath.

“I guess that wasn’t the right call after all... I should’ve said something back then. But I want you to know one thing—I never once thought it was weird. Not then, not ever. It was you and the Commander. I figured you must’ve had a good reason to do what you did in that situation... I don’t know what that reason was, but still...”

“...”

“So I never told anyone, and I tried hard not to let it bother me. Just now... I only reacted because I didn’t expect Kanna to know too. I shouldn’t have reacted... I’m sorry if that caused a misunderstanding.”

He hadn’t said exactly what he saw, but Yuder could easily infer it. Watching the two of them take turns blaming themselves, he quietly observed. It was rare to see these two—normally sociable and competent—so flustered and stumbling over their words because of someone else. The fact that he was the cause only made it feel more surreal.

And in the end, what were they saying? That they were just shocked to learn they both knew a secret they thought only they knew—but had no intention of sharing it or judging him?

Even if he lacked the ability to tell truth from lies, there wasn’t a shred of doubt that they were sincere.

‘Besides, in the first place, I...’

“...I didn’t call you here to scold or question you.”

Kanna and Gakein immediately went silent at Yuder’s words.

“Gakein, I already suspected you might’ve seen something back in the shadow veil. I was the one who acted first there. I’d been meaning to talk with you about it once things settled down. From that angle, I suppose it’s actually my fault—you ended up carrying a burden because of something I did.”

“N-No. That situation wasn’t your fault at all... Why would it be?”

“But I do have a more pressing question. Was that all you saw back then?”

“...Huh?”

Gakein blinked, caught off guard.

“Did you see just the kiss?”

“T-The...!”

The directness of the word hit him like a brick. His face flushed crimson—so red it nearly matched his hair. Struggling to rub his face with both hands, he finally took a few deep breaths and nodded.

“...If we’re talking about you and the Commander, yeah, that’s it! Really!”

“Ah. Not about me and the Commander. I meant, when I was fighting Naham.”

“Uh... huh?”

Gakein’s eyes flickered violently. Kanna, too, looked startled.

“Yuder. Did something happen between you and Naham...? No way...? That can’t be...”

“You just fought him... right?”

Yuder realized a beat too late that they were misunderstanding. The flow of the conversation had opened the door for their thoughts to run in a strange direction.

“What happened between me and the Commander has nothing to do with Naham. I was just asking if you noticed anything unusual when he attacked me inside the shadow veil.”

“Ah! So that’s what it was.”

They both visibly relaxed at once. Gakein let out a sigh of relief and laughed awkwardly.

“Hmm, if you’re asking whether I could see or sense the illusion Naham used, then no. His illusions were individual-specific, right? I could feel you fighting him, but that’s it. Did you see something important and wanted to confirm?”

‘So it was as I thought.’

Though Gakein could roughly sense what happened inside the veil, he hadn’t been able to perceive Naham’s illusions, which tampered directly with one’s mind. If he had, that would’ve been the first thing out of his mouth—long before the kiss.

‘Images that don’t yet exist in this world, but might one day. If he’d seen that, keeping it a secret wouldn’t have been so simple.’

It wasn’t unexpected, so Yuder wasn’t disappointed. He shook his head slowly.

“No. ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) If you didn’t see it, that’s enough. And as for what happened with the Commander... you were right. There was a reason.”

“Ah, I figured.”

“It’s hard to explain in detail, but that kind of contact helps with the Commander’s injuries.”

“Oh... wow... Really, that’s possible...?”

“Uuh... I see... Then maybe what I sensed was...”

Kanna and Gakein blinked rapidly. They didn’t fully understand how that was possible, but they seemed willing to accept it because Yuder said so. But then he poured cold water over their heads again.

“Though that was only half the reason. The other half was just because I wanted to.”

“...”

“Not the Commander—me.”

A heavy silence filled the empty outpost. Yuder didn’t know what they were thinking, but the moment he said those words, he felt a small sense of liberation.

‘Yeah. Because I wanted to.’