"S-... stop joking with me. You're joking, right?"
Tension and confusion were clearly visible on the red-haired girl's face. How could they not be, when all her hopes had collapsed and vanished… as if they had never existed.
"Do I look like I'm in a position to joke?"
Leona spoke in a serious tone without taking her eyes off the girls.
Silence spread through the area…
The group of girls stared at Leona with clear confusion.
The only one who didn't seem confused was… Lillian?
On the contrary, the pink-haired girl was the only one who seemed more aware than the others, despite behaving like a child.
"If the colony has fallen, does that mean the monsters entered it? What did they look like? Did you face one? What about the knights? Are they still fighting? Tell me everything!"
Lillian poured a sudden stream of questions at Leona, breaking the silence.
The girls stared at Lillian as if she were a strange creature.
How can she think about such nonsense at a time like this?! the girls thought, their gazes fixed on her.
But Leona showed no change in expression and answered.
"Yes. The monsters entered the colony. Most people were either crushed under each other's feet or… eaten by the monsters."
Leona's gaze darkened for a moment before she continued.
"And… yes, we encountered monsters."
The moment she said those words, everyone's attention shifted toward her with focus.
But… unlike the girls, Naivy and Edward did not look at Leona.
Edward lowered his head to the ground for a moment and clenched his teeth tightly.
Naivy's expression went blank for a fraction of a second before she refocused on the group of girls.
Leona continued:
"We faced some of them and escaped with difficulty before we went down into the sewers to hide…"
Lillian's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Hmmm… you're intentionally telling only half the story. That's boring."
Leona blinked twice.
Is this girl really foolish… or is she pretending to be?
It was clear to Leona, who herself acted, that Lillian was also acting—but in an opposite way that served the same goal.
Is she a noble?
While thoughts filled Leona's head, she forced herself to focus and said:
"What makes you think that… miss?"
For a brief moment, a very short moment, it seemed Lillian's hand trembled and her expression almost tightened when she heard the word "miss."
She remained silent for a few seconds, then returned to normal, just like Leona did.
She raised her finger and pointed toward Anas, smiling innocently.
"I don't want to ask why your expressions darkened when you said you met monsters because I believed you. But why are you protecting this boy even though he is a burden on you? Shouldn't you abandon him?"
Darkness filled Leona's vision.
Normally, she would have shouted that Anas was the strongest and most important member of the group.
After all, despite his selfish and sometimes strange actions, he had made the group gather around him.
It was not normal for a group bond to develop this quickly, yet he made it possible.
In fact, even Leona herself had only just realized it.
How did I overlook this detail?!
This sudden realization connected the threads together, giving meaning to all of Anas's actions.
Leona lowered her eyes involuntarily toward Anas and stared at his face, where the pain was beginning to fade.
What Anas gave them was not just protection.
He gave them safety.
A kind of safety that made them sleep beside him without doubting for a moment that he might slaughter them while they slept.
But if the group of girls realized this, they would exploit it.
How ironic. I fear these girls more than I feared that bastard. I must be more careful.
It was natural for Leona to doubt those in front of her.
But how would she justify her answer this time?
"Is he injured? We will help you treat him," Lillian said while looking at Anas with sympathetic eyes.
This time, she chose to take the initiative, to make the upcoming events move the way she wanted.
Leona exchanged looks with Lillian, then spoke.
"Why would you help us?"
The girls turned toward Lillian.
Caroline shouted:
"Yes! She's right! Why would we help them?!"
Lillian smiled slightly.
"Do we need a reason to help others? If that were the case, then why did we come back to help you?"
Caroline shrank as if Lillian had grabbed the hand that hurt her.
Leona stared at Lillian with suspicion filling her eyes, trying to uncover what this strange girl was thinking…
but she found nothing.
Lillian did not give her time to rest.
She was pressing on Leona slowly.
Very slowly.
"Do you still doubt me? We don't need a reason to help people. If I were in his place, I would want someone to help me without a reason. Isn't that right?"