TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 100
After finishing his conversation with Austria.
Kraush went on a date with Bianca in the Holy Kingdom of Freeman.
In truth, there wasn’t much to their “date.”
As always, they ate something delicious and toured the Holy Kingdom.
“There are so many people. Should we hold hands?”
Since she wanted to, Kraush willingly took her hand.
Bianca seemed to be in an extremely good mood.
Seeing her like that, Kraush found her somewhat cute and granted all her requests.
‘The previous Saintess.’
Naturally, she was nowhere to be seen.
The Holy Kingdom must have taken her.
Kraush didn’t feel much sympathy toward the Saintess.
He had only revealed her existence for the sake of a better future for Austria.
‘I’ve always known you can’t save everything.’
It was already hard enough to protect what he held in his hands.
Kraush stopped thinking about it and returned to the temple with Bianca.
“Were you satisfied?”
Bianca nodded her head up and down.
Since some chocolate from earlier was still around Bianca’s mouth, Kraush raised his hand to wipe it off.
How careless of her.
“You seem really close. You’re saying she’s your fiancée?”
At that moment, Kraush turned his head toward the voice he heard.
Standing there was none other than Austria.
The blank expression from earlier was gone, replaced with a confident smile.
It seemed she had sorted out her thoughts.
“Since you dropped the formal speech earlier, I’ll do the same. You don’t mind, right?”
“Sure, that’s fine with me too.”
Using formal speech with Austria always felt awkward for Kraush.
So with a shrug, Kraush removed his hand from Bianca’s cheek.
But Bianca immediately grabbed that hand.
Bianca stood between Austria and Kraush, blocking Austria’s view of him while staring straight at her.
Austria, seeing this, cleared her throat once and spoke.
“I told you to let me know if you want the shackles removed. I remembered your exact words. Be prepared.”
She then left, saying the time would come soon.
On her way out, she glanced at Bianca for a moment, but she disappeared quickly.
After Austria left, Bianca looked up at Kraush.
“Mr. Kraush, I’m your fiancée.”
“When did I ever say you weren’t?”
What was she so anxious about now?
Kraush laughed in disbelief and patted Bianca’s head.
Still, perhaps because she was going through a growth spurt, her head didn’t shake as easily as before.
The cute, childish traits were fading, and she was slowly becoming an adult.
Recently, she had grown noticeably taller.
Of course, Kraush had grown even more, so the height difference was still significant.
‘Someday, when this kid is fully grown, my thoughts might change again.’
For now, he had to respect the thoughts of the 13-year-old Bianca.
“Your fiancé won’t change.”
From the moment he decided to take responsibility for Bianca, that was something that would never change.
Hearing this, Bianca stared silently at Kraush before rolling her eyes.
Then, she fidgeted and wrapped her hands around Kraush’s.
“Then it’s okay.”
Bianca’s face turned slightly redder than before.
It seemed she wasn’t aware that she was smiling.
“Let’s head back.”
The day had been long, and it was time to return.
Kraush planned to dedicate the remaining time entirely to training.
The Holy Kingdom’s teleport magic circles connected various places for emergency patient transport.
Naturally, Balheim was connected as well.
Using it would make the trip to Balheim quick.
Since it was late today, Kraush figured he’d prepare and return tomorrow.
Kraush was thinking this when he returned to the room he was staying in.
“Mr. Kraush, you have a guest.”
“A guest?”
Hearing the attendant’s words, Kraush showed a puzzled expression.
No one should have been coming.
As Kraush opened the door with a sense of curiosity, an unexpected figure was there.
A cascade of dark blue hair swayed as they turned toward him.
Shifting his gaze to the open door, he saw none other than Lilish Balheim.
“Kraush.”
She was the commander of this expedition.
As such, she had to finalize everything with her final report.
Having been unable to visit while Kraush was in the Holy Kingdom due to her duties, she came straight to see him as soon as her work was done.
Though she had heard Kraush was declared fully healed, she had still been worried.
‘We’re going to return to Balheim through the magic circle anyway.’
Kraush hadn’t expected Lilish to come first.
“I’m glad to see you’re safe.”
Lilish sighed briefly in relief after checking Kraush’s condition with her own eyes.
Seeing her now, Kraush realized how different Lilish had become compared to his memories before the regression.
In Kraush’s memories, Lilish had always been cold and indifferent to family matters.
‘Perhaps.’
If there had been a single catalyst back then, Lilish might have changed like this as well.
‘Is it possible for relationships to completely transform over such small things?’
Kraush looked at Lilish.
She was now clearly an older sister who, albeit belatedly, cared for her younger brother.
“I’ll stay with Crim.”
In the meantime, Bianca excused herself.
She tactfully left so the siblings could have time alone.
Thus, Kraush was left alone with Lilish.
A brief silence followed between the two.
Neither had much experience talking to family members.
So now that they were alone, they didn’t know what to say.
“…Do you want a candy?”
With that, Lilish suddenly pulled out a piece of candy.
It was the same candy she had given to Bianca before.
Back when she first met Kraush, he had been very young.
Perhaps because of that, she still remembered Kraush as a child.
Their relationship as siblings had always been distant.
Based on those memories, Lilish had heard that giving candy to children made it easier to bond with them, so she carried candy around.
She had thought that if she ever met her younger brother, she could use the candy to get closer to him, even if just a little.
Of course, Kraush, now on the verge of adulthood, was far removed from the age of children who liked candy.
“Yes, well.”
And Kraush, with a bewildered expression, accepted the candy.
Seeing that, Lilish felt a small sense of pride inside.
Although Kraush thought to himself that he would probably give it to Bianca later.
“This time, you’ve done something remarkable. Not only will the elders hear of it, but so will Father.”
Meanwhile, Lilish brought up the topic of work.
It seemed that Lilish had reported the truth to the upper ranks of Balheim.
Would they really believe that a 14-year-old had played an active role in the World Erosion?
Since he had secretly infiltrated the Blue Sea Knight Order, it was unclear how the upper ranks of Balheim might interpret it.
“The upper ranks may have taken note, but no one else knows, so it should be fine.”
Knowing that Kraush had tried to conceal his identity, she tactfully avoided blowing the matter out of proportion.
The fact that no commotion arose in the Holy Kingdom over Balheim’s involvement was proof of that.
While the Holy Kingdom did know that Kraush had fought against Agares…
…it was understood merely as him assisting Lilish Balheim.
The Holy Kingdom had no idea that Kraush had been the one to take down Agares.
On the contrary, the internal consensus within the Holy Kingdom was likely this:
A 14-year-old direct descendant of Balheim, driven by pride and recklessness, nearly lost his life while following Lilish.
Sending a mere 14-year-old boy to the Demonic Realm was absurd to begin with, but Kraush belonged to Balheim.
“Because there’s already the precedent of Charlotte.”
Before Kraush, there had already been the monster named Charlotte who roamed the Forbidden Zone.
So, it was likely interpreted as the immature actions of the youngest of Balheim, wanting to emulate his sister.
From Kraush’s perspective, this was a highly favorable narrative.
It meant he could still honor his deal with the 1st Prince.
“The Sky-Piercing Knight Order members also asked me to convey their gratitude.”
They could be considered comrades who had fought together, in their own way.
Since Kraush had saved them from danger several times, they expressed their thanks as well.
“Everyone made an effort.”
It wasn’t something achieved by one person’s efforts alone.
Kraush also acknowledged the contributions of the other knight orders.
Without their help, Agares would never have been defeated.
This was why Kraush never neglected his own growth while also looking out for others.
After that, a few more casual conversations between Lilish and Kraush followed.
However, they didn’t last long.
The period during which Lilish and Kraush hadn’t spoken to each other was far too long.
Once the work-related discussions were over, neither of them knew what to say next.
Their relationship as family was more awkward than their interactions with strangers.
“That’s all I wanted to say. You should rest now.”
In the end, it was Lilish who stood up first.
Her eyes held a hint of regret, but her wish for Kraush to rest was genuine.
There was a part of her that wanted to tell him not to overdo it anymore.
But she didn’t feel she had the right to say such a thing.
After all, she had been just as neglectful of their family.
Lilish began to walk out of the room.
Watching her retreating figure, Kraush bit his lip ever so slightly.
There was something Lilish had deliberately refrained from asking.
And it was something Kraush had originally intended to keep hidden.
“Sister.”
When Kraush called out to Lilish, she turned around.
“Is there something else you want to ask me?”
It was about none other than Kraush using Belorkin’s Ignis.
Though Lilish had interpreted it conveniently…
…the reality was far more devastating.
Yet she sincerely wanted to improve her relationship with Kraush.
So, if Kraush wanted to respond to that sincerity, he would eventually have to bring up this uncomfortable truth.
It was something he could have chosen to keep hidden forever.
It was a matter already completely covered up, one he could have concealed for the rest of his life.
But in this moment…
…he didn’t want to treat Lilish’s earnest efforts to mend their relationship as foolish.
During the Agares battle…
Kraush had witnessed with his own eyes Lilish’s faith in him.
“Kraush.”
After a moment of silence, she spoke.
“Before coming here, I looked into Belorkin and heard that she gave you a very hard time.”
Lilish had instinctively sensed that Kraush had stolen Ignis.
Because of that, she had also tried to understand the circumstances by investigating the relationship between Belorkin and Kraush.
Their relationship was truly a mess.
The Balheim family had never treated them as blood-related siblings.
They had pushed them to the edge of a cliff, again and again, until the end, forcing them to point swords at each other.
That was the nature of the Balheim family.
And Kraush had taken possession of Belorkin’s Ignis.
Could it be that the two, despite their bitter history, had made amends in the end and joined forces to defeat the Thousand-Face Demon?
Regrettably, Lilish had to shake her head.
Even though she had questions about what happened during the Thousand-Face Demon incident, she chose to remain silent for Kraush’s sake.
But Kraush brought it up himself.
He was the one to take the first step toward opening his heart.
“Could you tell me more about it?”
Upon hearing her follow-up, Kraush hesitated once again.
Whether Lilish would respond with anger or contempt toward a brother who killed his sibling, Kraush had no way of knowing.
But during the Agares battle, he had glimpsed her true feelings.
Thus, Kraush, who had kept his lips tightly shut, began to speak slowly.
“…I killed Brother Belorkin with my own hands.”
To honor Lilish’s sincerity, Kraush revealed the truth for the first time.
Kraush’s story continued at length.
The countless events and incidents entangling him and Belorkin.
He left out as much of his subjective feelings as possible, recounting everything in a relatively objective manner.
Lilish neither expressed anger nor disdain.
She simply listened to Kraush’s account of what happened with Belorkin, as his sister.
Watching her, Kraush came to understand one thing for certain.
Lilish was not someone who placed importance on who shared more blood with her.
To her, both were her siblings, regardless of their blood connection.
Rather, she regretted her inability to intervene in the catastrophic relationship between her two younger brothers.
For the first time, Kraush felt like he was truly getting to know Lilish.
Not just as a family member he barely understood, but as someone even closer than any acquaintance.
When all was said and done…
“I’m sorry. I didn’t pay attention to either of you.”
Lilish, her face filled with anguish, offered an apology.
“Could I hold you, just this once?”
When Lilish cautiously asked, Kraush nodded.
Lilish stepped forward and embraced him.
Though Lilish had always seemed stern, her embrace was warm.
At least for this moment, he could forget the cruel neglect and torment he had endured from his family and household.
Her embrace was warm.
People, even as they grow older, struggle to forget the pain of their childhood.
It was no different for Kraush, who had endured countless trials and moved forward.
Deep scars could be covered with a bandage to hide them, but they would never disappear.
That was why he needed to know.
That there were people who would see such scars and care enough to worry about them.
For some reason, Kraush felt as if he had momentarily returned to his childhood.
Belorkin, who had been like a scar to Kraush.
That scar and the long, drawn-out ill-fated relationship.
This was the first time Kraush revealed himself to his family.
Beyond the window.
Hydrangeas, soaked with the summer rain, were in bloom.
Hydrangeas, whose colors changed depending on the soil, seemed to resemble him in some way.
Kraush quietly reflected.