My Servant Is An Elf Knight From Another World

766 Tired Conundrum

When we had finally staggered our way back beneath the tapered awning of the drink stand, the usual limping barista was nowhere to be seen behind the counter, instead, a woman of all smiles that befitted more with the merriment of the occasion was the one that saw to Adalia’s order.

I suppose he must have his hands full coordinating and giving out orders. Though what kind of orders they could be, exactly… yeah, I’d rather not get privy.

In a stroke of luck, we manage to stumble upon an empty bench after a few more minutes of wandering, a rare find ‘specially this far into the day. I mean, you just needed to stop and listen for a second to realize why. There was not a single area of the park that could come close to being the slightest empty or even sparse.

It was like the whole town itself had all come out to play, to celebrate, and just in time too. With the faint rays of light breaking through the pouring gray skies only growing fainter, the nippy breeze billowing as strong as it was cold, the evening was close approaching.

Spent a good while simply sitting in place, staring out blankly into empty space that wasn’t so empty, what with the hustle and bustle ebbing and flowing ever so often before my gaze. Then I jumped, felt my knees kick as a frozen sensation splashed and soak into the fabric of my left thigh.

“Huh? What’s up?” I asked, whirling my eyes over beside me just to find a half-drunk cup of chocolate held out in front of me, dribbling and splashing me again with an icy drop of condensation. “You can’t finish it?”

“I… don’t like… it…” Adalia muttered, thrusting it forward a little more and practically shoving her drink into my palm. “You have… it…”

Really wasn’t like her to skimp out on anything sweet, chocolate especially. I took a brief sip and felt only more puzzled. Drink tasted just fine to me, not as good as how Leon’s dad would have made it, but fine nonetheless. Then glancing back at Adalia, I got my answer there.

Slowly, she began to lift her feet off the ground, and as if relieving herself off a ton of bricks, she let her body sway and fall, the side of her head plummeting lightly onto my lap, her santa hat falling over the edge, then squirming, shifting, my question was resolved in the quiet heave of a feeble breath.

.....

Adalia was tired.

More than her usual tiredness, this time around, however.

“Next game... what... is it...?”

She’d blink, slowly and heavily, and it was like a steeper uphill struggle for her to pull her eyelids back up again. I didn’t even want to say anything to her, because I felt as if every word she’d try to speak would be nothing but a discomfort to her.

But I spoke anyway, pulling the crumpled flier from out my pocket. “Says here obstacle course is the final game.”

She breathed, discomfort mounting, and really, going by the state of her, wincing even at the slightest sound, obscuring, shielding her face from the dim beams in the sky in the cloth of my shirt, discomfort was really putting it mildly.

She wouldn’t admit it, she’d greatly disapprove to hear me say it, but I could see it.

Adalia was suffering.

Sleep was the simplest remedy. A couple of hours of shut-eye was what she needed. Besides, how long has it been really since she had actually rested? Again, judging by her current condition, too long apparently.

But she simply refuses. Her eyelids would droop, and she continued to just flutter then open again, no matter how desperate the need was calling for her. It was hard to stare at her the way she was, but it was even harder to look away.

That was when I had a thought.

“The next game doesn’t start for a couple more hours,” I began slowly, treading and speaking my words carefully. “I don’t mind just sitting here. I could… I could wake you up before it’s time to play.”

“Too… long… too… tired…” in the weakest voice, I heard her say. “...will not… wake up… in time…”

“Either way, you can’t play like this,” I said, placing her drink off to the side, and tried comforting her the usual way, entwining my fingers within her locks. But even to that, she barely reacted. “I’m sure we’ve earned enough points to secure a solid spot. If not first, then second’s also…”

“I want… to win…” Adalia weakly interjected. “I want… to be first…”

“Why?”

No answer, she didn’t speak, which probably was the wiser choice… it’s as I dreaded, every word was nothing but a pain to say, but that only adds to my point here. Like, how she was to speak, let alone play a game?

Was it just simple bullheaded competitiveness? It’s gotta be something more than that, surely. If she’s seriously using this silly contest as a way to gauge the strength of our relationship, then she’s got another thing coming.

“It’s just a game,” I spoke up again. “I’d love you no matter what, y’know?”

Still nothing. Just breaths, just blinks, like the whole world, including myself, was entirely absent to her sense of perception. After a long while, she did finally rouse again.

“Will… feel better… soon…” She said, the quiver in her voice failing absolutely to reassure me. “Make sure… I do not… sleep…”

I scoffed, no amusement, just plain disbelief. “If you reached to the point where you need my help to keep you up, then I’d rather you just go to sleep, Adalia.”

“It is… a waste…” her words left her in a murmur. “I… do… not want… to… waste…”

That sentence was incomplete, her pale lips shaped a word but did not voice it, I didn’t think she noticed. It didn’t matter anyway, her eyes were beginning to droop again, and there came a pause between excruciating sighs.

I could feel slumber slowly overtaking her, no matter how great she tried to resist. Her words, her request, repeated in my head, louder and more urgent than how she first said it. Suddenly, I’m wedged between indecision.

Do I listen—should I keep her up? What would be less crueler to do? Respecting her wishes or flat out ignoring them? Would it be selfish if I did? Would it be stupid if I don’t?

Really, the answer was both, I knew that. So the question now, frankly—which one would I rather be?

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