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“To Director, what kind of person is Zion? Just a patient who undergoes medical treatments, like you told me?”

“…….”

Absolutely not.

To me, Zion is neither ordinary nor simple.

In fact, I know as well. I know what this feeling I have is.

I was living a second life, and this is not the first time I’m feeling this emotion.

I know. I know that.

But…

But I shouldn’t be this way.

I have sinned.

The sin of falsely informing Zion of a bleak and hopeless future for my own desires.

I made Zion recall the endless pain and suffering that destroyed her and warned her that such events would happen again.

And used this world, which Zion cherishes above all, and the people she must protect, as bait, saying she must dive back into that pain.

Zion’s rehabilitation was not a journey like everyone else’s to overcome pain and wash away suffering.

It was merely an ascetic practice to feel new pain and bear new suffering.

While everyone else sought hope in rehabilitation, Zion came to face the despair that lay beyond it, to prevent it.

It was I who forced her into such a trial.

To see her broken appearance, to watch her crumble and suffer, to witness Zion, who once soared beautifully from the highest place, crawling at the very bottom…

And now you want me to say that I… like her?

For my desires that I can never reveal to others, again putting Zion in that position…

“If you can’t say it, then don’t.”

And it seemed like Naou wasn’t going to wait for my answer either.

As I fell silent, Naou let out a big sigh and lowered her head.

“It’s fine if you don’t answer me, but will you also not answer Zion? If you keep silent like this, neither Zion nor you will be able to do anything…”

“I know.”

All of this is common knowledge.

I knew that Zion was waiting for my answer, and that if I didn’t answer, we wouldn’t be able to move forward.

What Naou doesn’t know is what I have done to Zion, and what our relationship is.

To push me without knowing anything. It irritated me, and for a moment, I even forgot that she was a princess.

Naou seemed taken aback when her words were interrupted, momentarily showing a surprised expression, but quickly composed herself and continued.

“So you know, but you choose not to share it. Does that mean…”

Naou’s expression had turned serious, and her tone had taken on a pressing quality.

“Is Director Hop’s answer something Zion wouldn’t want to hear? Is that why you can’t say it?”

Is that the conclusion she drew for why I was tongue-tied?

“Princess. Do you know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“What Zion truly wants to hear.”

“…….”

If there is a correct answer I should say in this situation, and by saying that, it would resolve everything, then I would willingly do so.

But I don’t know what that answer is.

Does Naou know? If she does, please tell me.

What exactly is my relationship with Zion?

What should I tell Zion…

“What do you mean?”

Naou stepped one step forward along with her answer,

– Tap.

She gently placed three fingers right on my chest, just above my solar plexus.

“It’s in here, isn’t it?”

Naou, with her hand on me, looked straight into my eyes.

As if she could penetrate and see what was inside just by looking into my eyes, she faced me directly.

“Director Hop, honestly, I’m worried. Zion is currently in an unstable condition. If you give the wrong answer this time, she might really collapse. So we came to check. To see the two of you directly and gauge what kind of feelings you have for each other. But it hasn’t gone as we thought. I never expected such a thing to happen…”

So that was it. They came to confirm how we felt,

In the eyes of others, it seems we didn’t appear to share an ordinary relationship.

“But what’s done is done. Now we have no choice but to hear the answer from you directly. And we can only hope that Zion doesn’t crumble. You may not realize it since you’ve only seen Zion in such a state, but she is stronger than you think. She has overcome everything that has happened until now. So even if your answer isn’t what Zion desires…”

At this point, Naou eventually lowered her head.

If that were the case, it would be an unfavorable scene that popped into my mind.

But when she opened her mouth again, she lifted her head and faced me directly.

“Zion will probably accept it and overcome it, if that is your honest heart. So tell her. Just leave it as it is…”

“I can’t do that, Naou.”

“……?!”

The one who interrupted was none other than Hanamana.

Having finished the hints and purification with Mirae, Hanamana had turned back this way.

“Hanamana? Why can’t it be that…”

“Just now, senior Hop was in a panic. Even if it was temporary, he was so numb that he could hardly hear Naou’s words. I can’t ask someone in that state to convey their feelings right away. This is Hanamana’s professional opinion. I won’t allow expressing such confusing feelings to Zion.”

Hanamana… is she now giving me a diagnosis?

Am I in a confused state right now?

I don’t think so, but it is true that I don’t know how to speak to Zion right now.

Then what does Hanamana plan to do? Is she just going to leave Zion as she is?

“Naou. Senior Hop. Let’s go to Zion’s ward for now. I’ve purified all the people, so she should wake up soon.”

“I’ll handle the aftermath. You three go ahead and talk.”

Naou nodded, and I also agreed to Hanamana’s suggestion.

Leaving the situation to Mirae, the three of us moved.

We left behind Zion’s empty bed and took our seats, facing each other.

For a moment, a heavy silence fell, and it was Hanamana who broke it first.

“Senior Hop.”

“Speak, Hanamana.”

“You received Iris’s sphere, right?”

The sphere of Iris. That’s the gift I received for our 100th day celebration.

“…Yes.”

“That is not something you can give to just anyone. Senior, you need to listen to the story before you give an answer to Zion.”

“The story?”

“The thing is, we can’t know for sure what kind of existence you are to Zion. But to some extent, both I and Naou can understand how important you are. Because…”

She paused for a moment, lowering her head.

With a solemn expression, eyes closed, Hanamana continued her story.

“We’ve seen it. Three years after the Demon King’s defeat, we witnessed how Zion crumbled.”

Three years after the conclusion. That was a story I didn’t know.

Was something happening during that time?

“Therefore, it was hard to believe when I first heard it. That Zion decided to undergo rehabilitation. Hanamana became an expert in rehabilitation, trying to save Zion because I thought, maybe that would start her rehabilitation. But suddenly, she decided to undergo treatment from senior Hop. What kind of magic did senior Hop cast on Zion?”

“…….”

What I did was not magic, but a lie.

It was a truth I could never reveal to the two of them.

Feeling embarrassed to look into their faces, I turned my head away, but since I needed to hear the story, I still focused intently on what Hanamana was saying.

“Senior. So please listen. The story of the last three years. I can’t keep Zion waiting for too long, so it has to be a short story, but while telling this story, please gather your emotions and prepare your answer. Carefully. That answer must… be one that you won’t regret, filled with your true feelings. Understand?”

I still couldn’t look directly at Hanamana.

But with my gaze down, I nodded just enough for Hanamana to clearly understand, signaling that I got it.

“Naou, tell the story to him.”

It seemed Naou would tell the story.

Naou nodded too, then closed her eyes for a moment as if recalling a memory before slowly beginning to relate the story.

“After losing Iris and driving out the Demon King, we returned to the Empire. And at that time, we…”

***********

“Naou, my body is…”

“Zion. Are you teasing me right now?”

“…….”

At that time, Zion was already in a completely ruined state.

Though her body was entirely broken, she was holding herself afloat in space like a hero using her power, No Resistance.

But Naou, who had been hit by the Demon King’s magic and had her legs ruined, couldn’t possibly know that.

“I can’t stand anymore. My legs were pierced by dark lightning magic… Even though I was healed immediately, the nerves inside are all damaged. I… I can’t…”

Sitting in a splendid Imperial throne, Naou was a princess, but what good does that do now?

For someone who can’t stand, a chair is no different than a prison from which one cannot escape.

Tears flowed endlessly from Naou’s closed eyes.

The pain of the lost cannot be understood by anyone who hasn’t lost the same.

And among the two facing each other now, the one who had lost more and endured greater pain was none other than Zion.

This is the story of a little girl who saved everyone but lost everything.

The tale of Hero Zion Laurel after the conclusion of the Second Great Shiroya War.