Advent of the Three Calamities

Chapter 690: I guess so [3]

Moments leading up to the situation.

‘What’s going on?’

It all happened out of nowhere. It was right when they had just finished counting their money and were about to close up the stall. Right at that moment, a figure appeared before them.

Just one look at her was enough to take An’as’s breath away.

He had never seen anyone so impossibly perfect. Her face was delicately sculpted, every feature refined to utter perfection. Her long, lustrous black hair cascaded down like silk, and her eyes, those eyes, were as deep and unfathomable as the abyss itself.

But that wasn’t all.

Forgetting all about her appearance, An’as became acutely aware of the identity of the person that stood before him, and his entire body froze on the spot.

She…

She was the same person who had taken care of Xa’hurl.

Recalling the moments when she fought against the beast, and even managed to suppress it up to a certain point, An’as felt cold sweat trickling down the side of his face.

Why in the world was she here?

He didn’t have to wait long to get his answer as he saw her look in Lazarus’s direction.

‘Shit!’

An’as was scared shitless. At first, he thought that Lazarus had in his own way offended her. Or even worse, she had somehow been swindled by him. If that were to be the case, then An’as was prepared to immediately make a run for it.

While she was strong, An’as didn’t believe for one second that with his skill, Lazarus wouldn’t be able to swindle her.

He was that much of a swindler.

But then…

‘Huh?’

He was quick to realize that something was amiss with the situation. Alternating his gaze between the two, he immediately understood that his previous assumption was different.

The two of them…

They know each other?

He tried to dismiss the thought at first, but staring at the two, An’as felt more and more sure of his assumption, until he heard Lazarus’s words. As if some sort of cold water had been poured onto his mind, An’as stood rooted on the spot as his eyes slowly started to widen.

‘He really knows her!’

He wasn’t the only one shocked. Anne also seemed equally shocked as they stared at each other.

An’as had always been wondering about Lazarus’s real identity. He had always been aware of the fact that it wasn’t his real identity, and that he had some sort of hidden background.

How else would he be able to provide such goods?

However, never in his wildest dreams did An’as think that Lazarus’s background was like this.

If the woman was truly on his side, then Lazarus must’ve been from some sort of major organization.

At least, this was what An’as thought at first. However, looking closer at the two of them, An’as felt that something was amiss between the two.

The air between them…

It was rather cold.

‘Maybe they aren’t on good terms?’

He silently licked his lips while turning his attention towards Anne, who stared at the two with a frown. She seemed to be sharing different thoughts from his. However, even under An’as’s pleading gaze, she didn’t answer.

Though the black-haired woman, whose very presence seemed to eclipse everything around her, carried an aura of absolute coldness, Anne could see it clearly. There was nothing cold in the way she looked at Lazarus. Her gaze, as intense as it was, held something far more complex… something closer to affection.

She…

‘Yes, I don’t believe they are on bad terms.’

Anne whispered silently to An’as, causing him to be confused. Anne could see at a glance that the story between Lazarus and the woman was complicated. In fact, she could tell that there was a certain something within the relationship as her lips pursed together.

A thought struck her in that moment.

‘That would explain his weird actions and connections.’

If the two of them knew each other, then Lazarus’s mysterious background could finally be explained. Or at least, to some extent. Anne was still unaware of the woman’s background.

However, at a glance, she could tell that she wasn’t from these areas.

Someone as powerful as her was sure to have made a name for herself.

The real question was…

‘What sort of relationship did she and Lazarus have?’

Anne didn’t have to wait long to get her answer as she suddenly felt the woman’s icy gaze on her. At first, she was confused, shocked, and even scared… but then, seeing her subtly look at Lazarus as she looked at her with that gaze, realization quickly struck Anne as she quickly got to work and tried to clear up whatever misunderstanding existed.

Thud!

Even as An’as fell to the floor, at a complete loss, with his eyes swirling around, Anne remained tense as she looked at the woman.

It was only a guess, and she wasn’t sure if it was going to work, but the moment she let go of An’as, it felt as though she felt subtle hints of ‘relief’ in the woman’s cold and indifferent face as she touched her lips.

In the end, she never once spoke a word, leaving as fast as she came.

It was only after the woman had walked far enough away that Anne finally turned to Lazarus, her voice low as she asked about his relationship with her.

But the moment he replied with a hesitant, “I guess…”, Anne felt the ground shift beneath her, like the entire world had suddenly turned upside down.

Even An’as couldn’t help but snap out of whatever state he was in as he looked at ‘Lazarus’ with a complicated expression.

“In the end… the reason why you posed yourself as a merchant is because of some domestic dispute with your girlfriend?”

“….Eh?”

Julien’s face twitched for a brief moment. His usually composed expression showed signs of cracking as his lips twitched.

He wanted to argue, but found that he couldn’t.

He eventually shook his head.

“It’s not that simple.”

“But… It’s not like it doesn’t exist?”

“Well..”

“So it does.”

Julien looked at An’as for a short moment before lowering his head. He seemed to have given up on arguing, which wasn’t far from the truth. In his mind, the previous scene replayed in his mind over and over again as he pursed his lips together, trying his best to keep himself composed.

‘In the end, did anything change?

He was extremely confused. The entire time, Delilah hadn’t said a single word. Did she forgive him? Did she hate him?

What was going to happen?

Julien’s thoughts swirled in all sorts of directions as he struggled to grasp what Delilah’s intentions were. However, it was in the midst of his confusion that he felt his chest throb, and when he looked down in the direction of the pain, he was surprised to see something within his breast pocket.

‘What?’

Confused, Julien reached out for his pocket, only to pull out a warm piece of paper.

His eyes widened slightly.

‘When in the world… No, wait. It must’ve been during the time when she smacked me back.’

Realization quickly dawned on him as he opened the paper and read the message.

[We will be leaving in two days]

That was all the message said. It had no location, no exact time.

It just… read that.

Julien covered his forehead.

‘What am I supposed to do with this piece of information?’

Was she telling him to come with them? …Or was she just telling him that they were going to leave then? Julien was an even greater loss than he was before.

In the end, the only thing he could do was sigh while blankly staring at the gray sky above.

All sorts of thoughts crossed his mind in that moment, but eventually, with a sigh, his expression relaxed.

‘Thinking about it, I don’t have any more reason to stay in this place anymore. I’ve achieved everything that I wanted to achieve. I… think it’s time that I leave.’

Lifting his head, Julien stared in the direction of An’as and Anne, and his gaze flickered for a brief moment.

It was also time for him to say goodbye.

***

A lone figure moved serenely through the crowd that filled the cobblestone streets. Like a passing breeze, her presence went unnoticed, her black hair drifting softly with every step that she took.

The world appeared to have completely lost her presence.

Whenever someone approached, they instinctively stepped aside, completely unaware of her presence, as if guided by something invisible. All the while, she stood still, calmly surveying her surroundings as the world around her moved.

She took in the scene before her. From the numerous stalls to the people who haggled by the stalls.

None of it escaped her sight as she calmly observed everything.

Eventually, however, her steps came to a stop as the people started to move around her.

Staring at everything that was around her, Delilah’s face fluctuated faintly.

Her thoughts drifted towards a certain man. He looked different than he did in the past. From his facial structure to appearance. He was almost unrecognizable.

However, she distinctly remembered seeing him in the past.

It was during the time when the head of the Evenus household came to visit the Academy.

‘He was there all along…’

Delilah’s emotions were complicated as her thoughts paused there. However, that didn’t last for long as her mind soon drifted towards the events from a moment prior.

She may not have been able to tell then, but she was able to tell now.

Even though he looked different, he acted the same. From his flustered expression, to the way he sometimes hesitated to look at her, to the times he would scratch the side of his face. It was him. Delilah was certain.

And in all honesty, she wanted to say something to him. She had never planned to stay quiet, but seeing his flustered expression, Delilah couldn’t help but maintain her expression.

That seemed to make him even more flustered as he tried to explain himself. He started rambling about a lot of things, and Delilah could see that if she didn’t do anything, he wouldn’t stop.

So she did.

He looked even more flustered.

And… that look. Delilah couldn’t help but feel amused by it.

In the end, however, she knew that things wouldn’t progress much from that point. That was why she left.

Now, standing in the middle of the crowd, Delilah slowly brought her hand to her lips as a certain conversation flowed in her mind.

‘Was that your companion?’

‘I guess so…’

Unconsciously, her lips slowly curled up as her figure faded from within the crowd.

His words.

…Not hers.

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