During this time, the pink-haired, long-lived loli merely glanced once at the interaction between Ram and the Shogun before shifting her gaze away, focusing instead on Garfiel across from her.
"I heard little Garf brought an outsider in again. Out of curiosity... this old woman came to take a look. I didn't expect the visitor to be such a fine-looking child."
Ryuzu's eyes moved to the Shogun, briefly appraising her attire and appearance, a trace of admiration evident in her expression.
"...Fine-looking child?"
Hearing the unfamiliar phrase, the Shogun tilted her head in confusion.
"It means a good-looking child, or girl for short—'fine child.'"
Garfiel explained.
...What kind of bizarre abbreviation is that?
She complained inwardly.
"Since that child calls you 'Shogun,' then I'll call you 'Little General,' shall I?"
Ryuzu asked.
Why did that nickname sound so awkward? And somewhat strange?
"Call me Mio."
She suggested. The name Kokomi had given her sounded much nicer. Adding 'Little' to it was still acceptable—after all, Kokomi had been the first to call her that. The name itself had come to her on a whim. Perhaps it was fate of sorts.
"Mm, then it'll be 'Little Mio.'"
Ryuzu said.
"Um... what did you mean earlier by an empty shell that has lost its soul? Why did you deny the plan I just proposed?"
Otto asked, seizing the moment.
"Haven't you already heard?"
Tap tap~
Ryuzu took small steps to the chair opposite them and sat down, beginning her explanation—
A few minutes later... they understood what she meant.
In short, when mixed-blood individuals touched the barrier, they would lose consciousness. Everyone knew that. But according to Ryuzu, the true reason was that—the soul was knocked away.
The so-called 'knocked away' was merely her metaphor.
Simply put, when mixed-blood individuals tried to force their way through the barrier, their body and soul would be forcibly separated. In the end, the soul would remain within the barrier, and the original body would become nothing more than an empty shell.
"You grasped it quickly... that's roughly how it works. A body without a soul leaves the barrier. The soul represents life. A person without life means 'death.'"
Her voice grew heavy.
"Death..."
Otto's face turned pale, clearly frightened by the word.
"Blech!! What kind of awful tea is this? It tastes like disgusting grass! Pah! Ptoo!"
The next second, having apparently drunk Ram's 'coarse tea,' Garfiel shot to his feet, his face turning green as he spat the tea onto the ground and loudly complained. The sudden outburst startled Otto even more.
"Ahhh—! Can you stop jumping around like that?!"
Otto shouted in exhaustion.
"Quiet."
Unable to endure their voices, she coldly rebuked them.
"Yes!"
Otto immediately behaved. Garfiel was still retching.
"Since only mixed-blood individuals may undertake the trial, then why don't you..."
She had been about to ask, 'Why don't you try entering yourselves?' when something occurred to her, and she stopped mid-sentence.
Because they weren't foolish. They must have already tried that possibility. In other words, it still didn't work?
"It seems you've realized it as well. Yes, we cannot. We were born and raised here. This is an additional rule the Sanctuary imposes upon us—a contract bound to the residents of the 'Sanctuary.' It cannot be broken."
Ryuzu shook her head regretfully.
Knock knock~
The next moment, a knock sounded from the room where Emilia was resting. The door opened, and Emilia, dressed in her nightclothes and looking as though she had just woken up, slowly walked into the living room.
"Lady Emilia, are you feeling better?"
Ram stepped forward in concern.
"Mm... I'm fine now. My head is still a little dizzy, but it's nothing serious."
Emilia gave her a weak smile, then briefly swept her gaze across everyone in the living room before it finally settled on the Shogun.
"I'm sorry... Shogun, I—"
She had just begun to apologize.
"It's alright. This isn't your fault. It couldn't be helped."
The Shogun gently reassured her.
"But I—"
"You've already done very well. There's no need to apologize to me."
She answered again.
"..."
Emilia walked over in silence and sat down beside her, leaning against her and gently wrapping her arms around her arm, resting her head on her shoulder. She said nothing, but everyone could see how low her spirits were.
Looking at the pitiful girl clinging to her, the Shogun wrapped an arm around her as well, lightly patting her back and resting her cheek against her head.
"It's alright... don't be afraid."
She comforted her softly.
For a time, the living room fell silent. Even the usually noisy Garfiel refrained from speaking.
"...It's alright."
As she stroked the girl's hair and let her lean into her embrace, that gentle breath of reassurance slipped into the girl's ears like a calming spell, soothing her heart.
"Back then... in the tomb, I panicked. I was so scared..."
The girl slowly placed her hand over the back of the Shogun's hand and clasped it tightly, staring blankly into space as she murmured.
"The trial... is very painful."
Ryuzu looked at the somewhat frail Emilia in her arms and spoke regretfully.
"Then what should we do?"
Otto looked troubled.
"..."
Garfiel's expression was complicated. Seeing Emilia like this, even he, the one who had insisted on the trial, felt a twinge of guilt. Yet he still did not relent and merely averted his gaze.
"...Haa."
Emilia closed her eyes in the Shogun's arms, calming herself. When she opened them again, her violet eyes were slightly misted. She glanced around at everyone in the living room, then tightened her grip on the Shogun's sleeve.
"?"
The Shogun looked down at her in confusion. Emilia bit her lip, her body trembling, but her expression gradually grew firm once more.
"I... will try again tomorrow. So... the promise I made, I will fulfill it."
She answered Garfiel.
"..."
He looked away, guilt weighing on his heart.
"Emilia..."
"I'm fine, Shogun... As long as I can stay in your arms for a little while each time I come back, that's enough for me. I can gather my courage again. Even if I fail, I'll keep trying. So please, don't worry about me."
Emilia firmly pulled herself out of the Shogun's embrace. She let out a small breath, then turned and walked to the door of her room. Before entering, she glanced back at her once more.
"Good night, Shogun."
She offered her a long-missed, sweet smile.
"Mm... good night. Sleep well."
She smiled back at her.
After nodding, Emilia returned to her room.
"Ram..."
"Yes. I will stay in Lady Emilia's room tonight to take care of her. Please rest assured."
Ram nodded knowingly.
"Mm..."
She felt at ease.
Since Emilia had already declared that she would continue tomorrow, there was nothing more for the others to say. All that remained was to wait for the next day's trial. Seeing the time, everyone in the living room returned to their respective rooms, preparing to endure the long night.
Click...
She opened the door to her room.
What greeted her was the sight of two figures sitting on the bed, already deep in lively conversation. Judging by their expressions, they had grown quite familiar with one another.
The moment she opened the door, both of them looked at her in perfect unison.
"Welcome back, Shogun."
Sitting on the bed in a duck-sitting posture, Pandora gave her a serene smile and greeted her in a voice as clear as silver bells.
"...You're back?"
Ei, unlike Pandora, merely spoke gently. Her tone was natural—like a mother waiting for her daughter to come home.
"Mm... you two still aren't asleep?"
She glanced at the pair on the bed and spoke in mild surprise. It was already past eleven. They really could stay up.
"Mother said she wanted to wait for you so we could sleep together."
Pandora said with a smile, glancing at Ei before explaining.
"Yes. When you didn't come back for so long, I grew a little worried. Pandora said you would be fine, though. She was the one who allowed you your freedom."
Ei cast a reproachful glance at the silver-haired girl opposite her.
"Hehe~"
Pandora simply smiled sweetly without answering.
"Oh? So while I was gone, you two got pretty close, didn't you?"
She looked at them teasingly as she walked to the vanity, removing the ornament from her hair. While combing out her long locks, she spoke to them through the mirror.
"Mm, yes. Very close already."
Ei shot Pandora a meaningful look.
"Hehe, indeed..."
Pandora smiled as well.
Well then.
She suddenly felt that her room was becoming livelier by the day. Sigh... at this rate, she truly wouldn't need to fear nightmares anymore.
Truly, there would be nothing left to fear.
—
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