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Chapter 111 - Ismera’s Great Forest (10)

"L-Lies..."

Ismera stuttered, and Nierta shook her head.

"It’s not a lie. It’s the truth."

"That can’t be true... It’s impossible..."

"Ismera."

"Why is everyone doing this to me...?"

Ismera shook off Nierta’s hand as she tried to hold hers.

"Why are you doing this to me... Please, stop... Why is everyone so eager to torment me...?"

"That’s not what we’re trying to do—"

"Stop it!!"

Ismera bolted out of the tent.

"What? Professor!"

"No, Lord Dian."

Just as I was about to chase after her, Nierta, who had followed me out of the tent, called out to stop me.

"Don’t follow her. Let her be alone for now."

"Will she be okay?"

"She’ll be fine. Ismera’s not behaving this way because she doesn’t believe who you are, but because she can’t accept it."

"I see... But there’s nothing to accept or reject. It’s just the truth."

"Not to Ismera. She hated you, Lord Dian."

"Well, that’s true..."

"From her perspective, it’s driving her mad. The human she’s hated all this time has suddenly turned out to be the one who saved her life."

"I understand."

"Ismera is strict with herself, sensitive, and doesn’t have much room for error."

Nierta smiled gently.

"She’s likely filled with regret and guilt over what she said and did to you, loathing herself, and feeling angry and confused about how twisted the situation has become."

"Hmm, yes..."

"Ismera’s always been like that. Just leave her for now. Give her some time to process everything and figure out how she really feels."

"Alright, I’ll do that..."

Following Nierta’s suggestion, I watched Ismera’s figure disappear into the forest.

I wonder where she’s headed.

# # # # #

The summer of about ten years ago was particularly hot.

Outside the Great Forest, war raged between the demons and humans, and those who patrolled the forest often brought back news of battles taking place on the outskirts.

However, the elves felt no real sense of crisis about it.

The Great Forest lay deep within the vast Tyraellen Forest, and there was no reason for demons, humans, or any other sentient race to come all the way here to start a battle.

Tyraellen’s Great Forest was a safe and cozy refuge from the harsh and savage world beyond.

So young Ismera, rather than being fearful of the war, was more focused on complaining about the unbearably hot summer.

"It’s so hot. I feel like I’m going to melt."

"Melt? Then I’ll have to put you in a pretty jar and keep you on a shelf."

Ismera, who had her feet dipped in the pond, grumbled, making her friend Nierta burst into laughter.

It was a small pond deep within the forest, far from the Great Forest.

A secret place that only Ismera and Nierta knew, where they often came to escape the nagging of their elders.

"I’m not joking. It’s really hot. I don’t want to do anything, and I’m just getting annoyed."

"But the heat isn’t all bad, Ismera. When the summer is hot, the fruits become sweeter."

"It wasn’t this hot last year, and the fruits were still sweet."

"Then this year, they’ll be even sweeter than last year."

Ismera couldn’t help but smile at Nierta’s endlessly positive attitude.

Unlike the strict and rigid other elves, Nierta was gentle and kind, a peculiar personality.

She was Ismera’s best friend, despite her sensitive nature.

"Still, I can’t understand how there could be a war in this weather. Maybe they’ve all gone crazy from the heat."

"It was a war that was bound to happen eventually."

Nierta said as she looked around the forest.

"The races outside don’t enjoy the abundance we do. So they fight to take it from each other."

"Hmph. If they just lived like us, eating fruits and plants, everyone could be happy."

"That’s true for us, but other races would probably wither away if they tried to eat like we do. If you saw demons or orcs, that thought would vanish right away."

"Why? What are they like?"

"Have you seen the ogres that live in the forest? They’re just a little smaller than that."

"And that’s supposed to be a sentient race? It’s practically a monster! You’re lying to me!"

"I’m not lying! Look over there. They look just like—"

Nierta’s words were cut off.

Between the trees, massive silhouettes flitted by.

With their keen elven eyesight, Ismera and Nierta quickly recognized the figures as heavily armed soldiers with goat-like horns on their heads.

"D-Demons..."

"Ismera. Get up. Hurry...!"

Nierta jumped up and roughly pulled Ismera to her feet.

As they fled towards the Great Forest, hot flames began to rise behind them.

"Gasp?!"

Ismera’s body twisted as if in a seizure, and she jolted awake.

She breathed heavily as she quickly looked around and sighed in relief, leaning back against the tree.

She was now at a small pond on the outskirts of the Great Forest.

A secret pond she and Nierta had often snuck away to as children to escape the elders’ nagging.

She had ended up here unconsciously after running away from the tent in a panic.

The pond, which had completely dried up during the Demon King’s attack ten years ago, was thankfully full of water again.

Though it no longer sparkled like a hidden gem amid the lush foliage as it once did.

It was a place where she often came to find peace, dipping her feet into the water.

So it was no surprise that Ismera had sat down by the pond, leaning against a tree to catch her breath, and had fallen asleep without realizing it.

It had been around midday when she left the tent, but now it was already late evening, with twilight settling in.

Considering the late summer sunset, quite a bit of time had passed.

I should be heading back now...

But Ismera couldn’t bring herself to get up.

The thought of returning and facing Dian again sent a storm of turmoil through her.

Dian was the one who had saved me back then...

Now that she thought about it, it made sense.

Dian had already told her the truth directly and indirectly several times.

And during the public competition, Professor Dian and the mage Kaiden had spoken with each other like old friends.

But at the time, Ismera had been too shocked by the thought of her position being replaced to dwell on it.

And then there was Nierta’s testimony. Plus, the potential confirmation from Sir Linus.

Ismera wasn’t the type to ignore what was plainly in front of her, even if she wasn’t particularly sociable or proud.

In fact, she was more rational than emotional, and at this point, Ismera was starting to accept that Dian’s words weren’t baseless.

But even so, the reason she ran away instead of thanking Dian was because it was Dian.

Ismera hated Dian.

From the moment he arrived, Dian’s various eccentricities had driven Ismera up the wall, and the fact that those eccentricities had all led to good outcomes only made her angrier.

To the strict elf Ismera, Dian was a rogue human who used connections with the Palace and the Security Office to take the easy way out of everything.

She resented his every action and was uncomfortable with his very presence.

And now this man, who she detested, had suddenly appeared before her as the one who had saved her life. It was an unacceptable paradox.

The thought crossed her mind that it would have been better if she had never known, or if she could have continued hating him without ever learning the truth.

Ismera’s thoughts scattered, unable to settle on anything, and her emotions were a tangled mess.

Everything she had believed in, and all the resentment she had harbored towards Dian, shattered in an instant.

A deep sense of guilt rose within her, making her feel like she was suffocating.

She tried to push away the chaotic thoughts, but the more she did, the more questions and self-reproach flooded in.

Ismera felt like everything she had said and done to Dian was coming back to stab her like a boomerang.

All the anger and contempt she had hurled at him now turned into accusations against herself, piercing her deeply.

Ismera felt like she couldn’t endure this situation any longer.

All of her actions now felt like self-inflicted wounds, and the pressure was choking her.

What should I do now?

Obviously, she should go back and apologize to Dian, ask for his forgiveness.

But Ismera couldn’t bring herself to do it.

The moment she bowed her head to Dian, the weight of her guilt would crush her.

She felt that she couldn’t bear the consequences of everything she had done to him.

Maybe... I should just run away...

After all, she had never planned to stay in the Great Forest permanently.

She had only come here to rest briefly before moving on to another city, so it wouldn’t be much of a loss to leave now.

But still, she had to return to Dian...

Ismera had always longed to find the person who had saved her life ten years ago.

She had always thought that if they met again, she would repay him.

And now, she had met that person.

So she had to go back...

"It seems to be around here."

A voice suddenly broke through her thoughts.

"The place where Dian saved you from the flames."

She looked up and saw a blond man standing there.

Ismera knew who he was.

There wasn’t a single citizen in the Empire who didn’t recognize his face.

"Sir Linus...?"

Linus stood with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the starry night sky.