Chapter 382: Baby's Heart Is Bitter.jpg (62K, please subscribe)

(poke)

"Wake up."

Uniel crouched beside Teresa, gently poking the young girl's cheek with her finger.

(poke poke)

"Hey—wake up already!"

(poke poke poke)

"Stop sleeping! It's been days! He's already gone! You need to wake up—"

The God-blessed girl poked away for quite a while, but the half-blood girl who had fainted from excitement still showed no signs of waking.

Teresa lay on the ground with a blissfully happy face, curled up comfortably into a little ball, showing absolutely no sign of waking.

If she were just being lazy in bed, that would be one thing.

But Teresa had been sleeping like this ever since Herbert and the others left—it had already been over a day now, and if she didn't wake up soon, Uniel would really start to worry.

"Mm… oh, I've got an idea!"

Seeing how blissfully Teresa was sleeping, a wicked thought flashed through Uniel's mind.

"Still sleeping, still sleeping! Well, if you won't get up, then don't blame me, hehe."

She bent down, lay next to Teresa's ear, and whispered: "Teresa! Stop sleeping!"

"If you keep sleeping, I'll tell everyone that you like him…"

Before the words had even faded, the half-blood girl—who had been immersed in a sweet dream—suddenly flung her eyes open and sprang straight up from the ground.

Whoosh—

Teresa clamped a hand over Uniel's mouth, pinned her to the ground, and said through gritted teeth: "You! Shut up!"

Didn't I already tell you to stop talking about it!?

Didn't you also promise me you wouldn't say anything!?

"Mmm mmm mmm—pfft!"

Uniel put on a show of struggling for a few moments, then winked at Teresa—she hadn't actually said anything, but somehow it seemed as if she had said everything.

Touched a nerve.

See, look, worked up again, didn't she?

The more agitated you get, the more it proves I'm right.

"You—!"

That teasing gaze made Teresa furious.

"Uniel! I'm going to get angry!"

"Hehe! Look at you, getting worked up again… eek!"

In the chaos, no one could tell who threw the first punch, and the two girls just ended up "wrestling" like that.

They shoved and pushed each other, pinched cheeks, tweaked waists, fighting with great enthusiasm.

After such an exhausting battle for a while, both girls retreated at the same time, collapsing weakly to the ground, lying side by side and panting heavily.

"Ha, ha… fine, I'll let you off this time, but next time I won't go easy on you," Teresa muttered softly.

Halfway through the scuffle, Teresa had already caught on and realized there was no one else around, no one who would hear her little secret.

So her reaction just now had really been a bit over the top—once again proving her little secret without a word.

But the fuss had already been kicked up, and it wouldn't do to admit fault halfway through.

This kind of thinking is actually very common.

Regardless of gender, when arguing with someone, there's often that moment halfway through when you suddenly realize the problem is on your own side.

And at that point, few people have the courage to apologize on the spot—most will talk around the subject, quietly swapping a "matter of principle" for a "matter of attitude."

From "Was it you who messed up that shot?" to "Even if I whiffed just now, wasn't your voice a bit too loud?"

From "It was definitely your fault just now!" to "You're being so mean to me, you must not love me anymore!"

Regardless of gender, right or wrong, the whole point is just being stubborn.

"Pfft, hahaha!"

After Teresa's awkward muttering, Uniel giggled and teased: "Ha, ha… hahaha! Listening to you, it sounds just like the real thing~ haha!"

Teresa rolled her eyes at her, pouted, and then couldn't help laughing herself.

One second the two girls were roughhousing, the next they were giggling and laughing together in a heap.

"Um…"

After laughing for a while, Teresa hesitated, then finally mustered her courage and said apologetically to her friend: "Sorry, I was too worked up just now."

Although the matter could just be let go like this, and Uniel probably wouldn't mind too much.

But if she didn't apologize, she'd still feel a bit uneasy about it.

"It's fine~"

Uniel accepted Teresa's apology with a beaming smile, not taking the small matter to heart at all, and waved her hand: "Alright, I'm also at fault—I really shouldn't have kept teasing you about this, my bad!"

"I won't do it anymore, and I won't laugh at you anymore either! I'll never mention you liking him again… pfft!"

Uniel was saying this, but halfway through she couldn't help laughing herself, which made Teresa pout in displeasure and complain nonstop.

"Still laughing! You're still laughing! You never actually stopped!"

After another bout of fooling around, Teresa finally remembered the important matter and asked: "Where's Herbert, my lord? Was he unhappy when he saw me faint?"

The girl felt rather bad about it, thinking how useless she was to have fainted in front of him.

Would this make Herbert, my lord think she was a useless burden?

She had clearly wanted to become his support—even if she couldn't do it now, at the very least she shouldn't hold him back.

In the end, her performance was still this embarrassing.

Sigh…

"Him? He doesn't know!"

"Huh!?"

The girl suddenly raised her head, looking at her best friend in confusion.

What's going on?

He actually didn't know!

She had already fainted, and according to Yunier, had even been unconscious for a day and a night; everyone else already knew about this matter.

But my lord Herbert didn't know?

Could it be that he simply doesn't care about me at all?

"…" The girl silently pressed her lips together.

…That's right, there was never any reason for him to keep caring about me.

She was nothing more than one lucky girl among the countless unfortunate people my lord Herbert had saved, a girl with nothing special about her.

Being able to stay by his side was already the greatest happiness; she shouldn't ask for more.

The girl thought self-pityingly, understanding in her heart, yet still bit her lip with some unwillingness.

Unwilling.

Truly unwilling!

"…Hah!"

A moment later, the grievances and heartache in Teresa's heart gradually faded, and her gaze turned resolute.

"I have to do my best!"

She would keep working hard, so that my lord Herbert would turn his eyes toward her.

I will definitely make him see.

He will definitely see me!

"…Hehe, just as I thought~"

Yunier, watching from the side, observed her micro-expressions, a flash of unusual approval passing through her eyes.

Not a bad temperament.

Although the Winter Goddess had attached herself to Yunier, she had not stripped away her will; in daily life she was still a normal-tempered, innocent girl.

But among those qualified to become a God-Chosen, how many are truly naive, ignorant children?

Innocence does not mean stupidity.

A pure state of mind often implies a sharper intuition.

Yunier was willing to become friends with Teresa partly because the two were close in age, and partly because their personalities were alike.

Two people who seemed to have completely different personalities were, in truth, the same kind of person.

The very first time they met, Yunier could smell a kindred aura from Teresa!

This seemingly delicate, shy girl, timid at every turn, was in truth very brave and resolute deep down.

All Teresa needed was more time to let her slowly transform.

Once she grew accustomed to everything as it was now, and cast off the shackles of the past, she would eventually reveal her true nature.

Watching the girl whose will had grown firmer after calming down, Yunier smiled inwardly and asked out of nowhere: "Um~ is it possible you've misunderstood something?"

"…Eh?"

The emotions Teresa had been brewing in her heart were all interrupted; she turned her head and saw Yunier winking at her with a teasing look.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but you're probably overthinking it!"

"My lord Herbert not knowing you fainted isn't because he doesn't care about you — it's because he was captured~"

Hearing Yunier's words, Teresa's heart suddenly loosened.

"Oh, so that's how it is. He was just captured. I thought he didn't care about me… Hm?"

Something seems off?

He, captured, by…

Teresa's still-groggy little head came back to its senses, and after finally sorting out the logic of that sentence — she became even more confused.

Teresa's eyes went wide, and her small head was instantly filled with big question marks.

Ah???

"Wait! What did you just say? He was captured?"

Teresa didn't understand.

"With that terrifying dragon there, how could my lord Herbert be captured by a chimera?"

Although that three-headed chimera had felt terrifying, impossible to defeat no matter how hard she tried, making her want to flee several times.

But compared to that monstrous beast that blotted out the sky, it shouldn't have been comparable at all!

Besides, hadn't my lord Herbert already come back by then?

What happened afterward?

"Captured by whom!? Exactly how… no, that's not it! We have to hurry and rescue him!"

Never mind exactly what happened — the most important thing now was to rescue my lord Herbert!

She turned to rush out of the room, but Yunier caught her arm halfway — though she failed to hold her back.

"Eheheh, wait, wait! Let me finish first!"

Yunier grabbed Teresa's arms with both hands, pulling backward with all her might, but was still effortlessly dragged out of the room by her.

In terms of stamina, she really was no match for her opponent at all.

Seeing that she couldn't be stopped, Yunier could only quickly say: "No, you're wrong again! The one who took him wasn't the chimera — it was that dragon!"

Click.

Teresa's footsteps paused, and she stiffly turned her head back.

"That dragon?"

"Mm! That very dragon! Not long after you passed out, she came back and took my lord Herbert away directly!"

At the time, they had both seen the scene of Herbert gently kissing the dragon — the handsome white-haired knight, tilting his head up to kiss his own fearsome, crimson-scaled, powerful mount.

It was like a scene out of myth and legend, reflected into reality.

At that moment, some believed that what lay between Herbert and that dragon was merely the affection of master and servant, but Teresa did not think so.

In an instant, she had caught the tender love in Herbert's eyes — the relationship between them could not possibly be that simple.

And after thinking this point through, Teresa realized exactly what it meant that Herbert had been carried off by the dragon.

"So that's how it is, that's how it is…"

That my lord Herbert was safe and sound let Teresa breathe a quiet sigh of relief in her heart.

But at the same time, her heart ached even more.

She felt a faint bitterness rise in her throat — the bitterness a loser has to swallow.

The child's heart is bitter, but the baby won't say.

The two of them right now… must be doing something happy, right?

Although she knew she had no right to think such things, she still couldn't help thinking it — a little envious, even faintly jealous.

Yunier caught her friend's mood, knew she was feeling low right now, suppressed the urge to keep teasing, and said softly: "If your heart is hurting, you can quietly tell me — it'll make you feel a little better."

She gently opened her arms, the tenderness radiating from her drawing sidelong glances, making Teresa blink blankly.

She hadn't expected this friend of hers to suddenly transform into such a picture of overflowing maternal warmth.

What was going on?

Teresa hesitated, did not step forward, and said softly: "Um, I'm not hurting, I was just…"

Just a little unwilling to accept it.

She wavered, and in the end did not voice this unwillingness.

Although Yunier had already seen through most of her inner thoughts, there were still some things she didn't want to say out loud so soon.

She still needed to try a little harder before she could barely have the right to speak her ambition aloud.

"Yunier, I…"

Just as Teresa was hesitating over how to explain, a gentle voice rose without warning from behind her:

"What are you two talking about? Whose heart is hurting?"

!!!

At this moment, let alone Teresa being startled, even Yunier — possessed by the Ice Goddess — was given a tremendous fright.

"Who!?"

"Who is it!?"

The two of them were purely acting on reflex, instinctively launching attacks toward the one behind them — and were then immediately pinned down.

A flash of holy light flickered and vanished. Herbert ignored Yunier's instantaneously-cast ice burst, and with one hand stopped Teresa's long leg as it whipped toward him like a sweeping tail.

"Ugh! How can it be you…"

"H-Herbert, my lord!"

Looking at the two whose expressions had already gone rigid, he couldn't help teasing: "You two little ones have quite the temper, heh heh."

The two young ladies were now completely frozen in place.

In both their hearts there was only one thought — we're done for!

Teresa, because her secret little feelings had been churning at the very moment she ran into the person herself, had already fallen into a rigid state from her overstimulated brain.

Yunier, on the other hand, felt the awkwardness of badmouthing someone behind their back only to be caught in the act — her fair, tender toes were at this very moment digging hard into the ground.

"…"

"W-we… ugh."

Herbert looked at the two young ladies who had suddenly fallen silent as cicadas in winter, transformed into quiet, gentle maidens, raised both hands, placed them on their heads, and smilingly ruffled both of their hair.

What a delightful reaction.

Sure enough, the spur-of-the-moment idea of deliberately scaring them just now was the right call~

【"Your personality really is awful, you know."】

Nie Nasha couldn't help snarking: 【"Spying on us is one thing, but deliberately picking this exact moment — you really are a great villain!"】

You're the one. (Thumbs up)

"Hey, what right do you have to talk about me?"

Herbert, his smile unchanged on the surface, savored the young ladies' reactions, and retorted in his heart: "Are you really any better?"

Calling me a rotten bastard?

Bah!

What right does this demon have to spout her nonsense here!

In response, Nie Nasha was equally self-righteous: 【"Hehe, I never said I wasn't bad~ Besides, I'm Miss Xie Shen! Isn't being bad only natural? You're a holy knight, for crying out loud!"】

"I'm a holy knight, true enough, but I'm even more the ally of you, Miss Xie Shen!" Herbert pursed his lips, then paid no more attention to the bored, chattering goddess.

This one had only spent half a day researching the Heroic Spirit Pool fragment; the rest of the time she had spent in a daze, watching herself fight Valentina…

Now, being this argumentative — she's probably in a bad mood, isn't she?

Oh dear, getting anxious now, are we?

Besides, this isn't your first time being a spectator, is it really worth all that?

【"Hm? You seem to be thinking about something rude."】

【"That's just your imagination."】

Of course, although he was grumbling this in his heart, Herbert didn't dare say a single extra word right now.

If he actually said that out loud, there'd really be no coaxing her back.

What needs to be said must be said, not a single word can be spared.

What shouldn't be said must never be said, not a single word can be uttered.

Some people just don't understand this, always thinking it's no big deal to crack a joke.

But that is gravely, terribly wrong!

Some things simply cannot be said, jokes included.

After all, who knows how many people use the guise of a joke to speak their true feelings.

All those people who keep phrases like "If you won't cooperate, then divorce!" or "I'll dump you and find someone else!" on their lips without caring about others' feelings, even though they call themselves "harsh words, soft heart," are actually just plain foul-mouthed.

Using such a manner toward enemies poses no problem at all.

But using it toward family — that's a big problem.

Everyone who seeks their own happiness by making their loved ones uncomfortable will most likely get what they wished for in the end, meeting the miserable fate they deserve.

The wheel of karma turns, and retribution never misses.

……

"Hm!?"

After Herbert's palm rubbed the top of her head for a while, Teresa finally came back to her senses.

It's my lord Herbert!

It's really my lord Herbert!

The girl excitedly tilted her head back, wanting to gaze into the other's eyes, but quickly turned away, her eyes shyly darting about: "My lord Herbert, I, I…"

For a moment, she actually didn't know what she should say.

"Hehe."

Herbert chuckled, sensing the strange emotions in the girl's heart, a faint glimmer in his eyes.

He took his palm from the top of their heads, helping Teresa shift her emotions, and asked with a smile: "Why so excited? Have things not been going well for you here?"

!!!

Teresa suddenly reacted, waving her hands repeatedly: "No, no! The people here are all, all, very friendly, they've all been very good to me! Very caring!"

This was the truth.

Without exaggeration, after coming to Elda, Teresa experienced the warmest period of her life.

Everyone was friendly, no one looked down on her, everyone took good care of this little sister of theirs.

"Mm, that's good then."

Herbert smiled with narrowed eyes, nodded, gently patted her shoulder, and habitually gave it a light squeeze.

His original intention was to gauge the girl's physical condition, to see whether she'd lost weight or gained a little.

The girl had been far too thin before, and after puffing up like a balloon, Herbert would often test it like this.

As a result, the moment he pressed, the already excited girl's body went limp, nearly collapsing straight into Herbert's arms.

"Mm!?"

But fortunately, Yunier beside him was quick-eyed and quick-handed, grabbing Teresa's clothes from behind, preventing her from the misfortune of tumbling into Herbert's embrace… Hm?

Yunier suddenly froze for a moment, a thought flashing through her mind.

Did she just stick her nose in where it wasn't wanted?

Could it be that Teresa did this on purpose? Was this her deliberate arrangement?

Wow!

Schemer!

Can't tell at all, so you were actually such a scheming woman!

Yunier sighed inwardly, her fingers loosening, and even feeling that wasn't enough, she gave a light push.

Directly shoving Teresa, who had just been about to steady herself, into Herbert's arms.

"Mm!?"

"Oh?"

Herbert:?

Teresa:???

The half-blood girl pressed against the knight's chest, her whole body stiff, turning her head to stare fixedly at the terrible teammate beside her who was winking at her.

What are you doing?

I ask you!

What did you just do!!?

"My lord Herbert, I didn't mean to offend, I'll get right up—"

Just as Teresa was flusteredly preparing to pull away, her waist was suddenly gently embraced and pulled back in one tug.

"It's alright, it's nothing."

Herbert held the girl by the waist, gently patted her back, and said softly: "I'm late, during this period, I've made you all suffer."

Although Herbert had no idea what exactly she'd suffered, in any case, saying this was fine.

"I think you could praise her a little more."

While Theresa's heart was in turmoil, the voice of the mushroom merchant Miss Mise sounded from the side: "If she hadn't captured the chimera's position earlier, your little village would have been mostly destroyed."

If it hadn't been for Theresa earlier, who had relied on temperature to sense the traces of the three chimeras, it might have truly let them approach within the Elda Territory.

If that had really happened, casualties would have been unavoidable.

"Theresa, thank you. Thanks to you, everyone was protected."

After saying that, Herbert smiled and let go of Theresa, turned his head and nodded at Miss Mise with a smile: "Haha, this is all thanks to her! Also, this isn't some little village, you know."

"This isn't a village?" Miss Mise glanced sideways at Herbert, gesturing for him to open his eyes wide and look around.

"Let's go, you're already late. Sophia and the others have been waiting for you for a long time." Miss Mise turned and led the way.

"Mm, I happen to have something to say to them as well." Herbert nodded at the two young ladies and followed at a leisurely pace.

"……"

Not long after Herbert left, Euniel looked at Theresa, who had been standing dazed in place, shrank her neck, and asked tentatively: "Um… are you still feeling unwell?"

She had already come to her senses, realizing that she had seemingly meant well but done harm just now.

"……"

Theresa was silent for a moment, then gently shook her head and said softly: "I don't feel unwell anymore."

She raised her hand and touched the top of her head, where the warmth of his palm still lingered.

"I will never feel unwell again."

With this warmth, she could continue to persevere.

This… was enough.

Besides…

"Euniel! What did you just do?"

"Eek! It was an accident, all an accident—"

……

……

The Third Commandment Office.

"I say, can you really not have a fight with me?"

Valentina looked at her reflection in the mirror with a displeased face and snorted: "Hmph, you coward!"

And the Liukalia in the mirror said helplessly: "I've told you many times, I'm really not good at fighting!"

"Just let me off!"

"I didn't do it on purpose earlier!"

"Can't I just apologize to you—"

The Mirror Demon Young Lady's heart was bitter.

Herbert!

Didn't we agree to let her chat with me?

Why is she always thinking about fighting?!!!

(End of this chapter)