kscans

Chapter 25 - Gently Grasping a Trembling Hand

Leonhard, now conscious of his feelings, and Mireille, dejected by her lack of femininity, were together in the cramped recognition-inhibiting tent.

Since there was no water source, Mireille had changed out of her blood-soaked adventurer's clothes and into a demure white dress, a choice of Kyle's, that she had brought with her.

(I seriously feel like killing Kyle right now.....)

Mireille was stitching up the clothes Leonhard had been wearing, which had been torn by the horn, using magic thread.

Neither of them spoke.

In this small space, with the dangers of the night, they had no choice but to spend it here together. Of course, that meant they would be sleeping here, together, tonight.....

This was exactly what the Supreme Commander wanted.

He thought himself fickle, but generally speaking, when a girl this cute suppresses her own anxiety to treat your wounds with all her might...

Moreover, if it weren't for this incident, she would have been a properly independent, professional alchemist. Even when he offered his support, she had hesitated.

As an alchemist, she could be a little too professional at times, but compare that to the noblewomen who just dressed up to scout for men.

It had only been two days... and maybe he was fickle, but wasn't it okay to fall in love after all this?

Lost in these troubled thoughts, a question about the Supreme Commander and Mireille's master suddenly came to mind.

Come to think of it, hadn't the Supreme Commander said he met Mireille's master when she saved him on the battlefield?

Mireille's monster butchering skills were superb, but she couldn't even properly stab a single moving slime.

"Mireille, do you know how our Supreme Commander and your master met?"

Mireille looked up from the clothes she was mending.

"No. I've been thinking about that recently, too."

Her face clouded with a hint of sadness.

"My master doted on me, and she taught me so much about alchemy since I was little. She even entrusted the shop to me. But when I think about it, she was hardly ever there during the day. I knew she and Darius-san had been together for a long time, but I don't even know how they met. Maybe... maybe the fact that they were dating was a lie too...."

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

She was already struggling just to survive. If her past was also built on lies, what could she believe in to keep living?

"At the very least, if he wasn't thinking of you, Mireille, he wouldn't have brought me here or tried to arrange a marriage to protect you. His affection isn't a lie." Leonhard hurriedly corrected Mireille's line of thinking.

"B, but because of that, it's caused problems for your work, Leonhard-san, and today I even got you injured."

Mireille's tears finally broke through.

Leonhard hesitated. He didn't even have a handkerchief to wipe her tears with right now. And it seemed his thoughtless question had hurt her. Was it okay to hug her this time, not just her shoulder like last night?

No, no, it had only been two days. This was surely the suspension bridge effect.

What should I do.

If it were Kyle..... no, he would have pounced the moment she seemed cute, no, the moment they entered this tent. Not a good reference.

Right! What would the Supreme Commander do? He was supposed to be devoted to her master. No, they were already an established couple, so that wasn't a good reference either.

In the end, after much indecision, he took her trembling hand and sat close beside her. In return, he mustered up his courage and interlaced their fingers. He just hoped she would laugh at him for being such a coward.

"I'm the one who decided to protect you, Mireille. You don't need to feel guilty about that. And if the Supreme Commander and your master deceived you, it must have been for a very good reason. They wanted to keep you out of it, which is why they tried to entrust you to me."

"Leonhard-san."

He wished he could wipe her tears with a handkerchief, but this would have to do. He gently wiped them away with his finger.

Silence fell between them for a while.

"Changing the subject, do alchemists ever go to battlefields?"

Mireille looked at him, puzzled.

"Of course not. I can't even kill a single slime!!" she said with a laugh.

"Right. Yeah, your dismantling skills are amazing, but you should leave the fighting to me."

Leonhard laughed too and patted Mireille's head.

---

So, the Supreme Commander's story about being saved by an alchemist on the battlefield was a lie. Or perhaps Mireille's master had been on the battlefield for some other reason.

Somehow, we didn't want to let go of our joined hands, and we fell asleep that way, still holding on even after lying down.