"Airen... just as I said... Airen..."

    "Swen!!!"@@@@

    Airen called Swen’s name over and over.

    But he didn’t answer.

    He had lost consciousness.

    "No... No, this can’t be happening. Swen!! Answer me! Wake up!"

    She grabbed him and shook him again and again, but there was no response.

    Airen had no idea what was happening right now.

    She had built the altar because he asked for it. She had crafted the drum because he said it was necessary.

    She had believed in him even when he did strange things.

    But...

    She never imagined the result—

    That burning rocks would suddenly fall from the sky.

    ''What... in the world did he do?''

    Swen had said, "We need to communicate with the heavens."

    He mentioned that three stars had vanished.

    She didn’t understand what he meant at the time. But Swen had always possessed an uncanny insight.

    Everything he did must have had a purpose.

    And now...

    Did he do something that made the heavens drop a burning stone?

    If that was the case—

    What had he done to make himself lose consciousness immediately after?

    The answer was obvious with just a little thought.

    Even though Airen had no knowledge of mystical forces, she understood one thing—

    Making something like that fall from the sky would consume an enormous amount of energy.

    No, this wasn’t just energy depletion.

    It was beyond that.

    Could it be...

    ''Did he risk his life... for this?''

    It made sense when she thought about it.

    Performing a miracle of this scale—

    If he hadn’t staked his very life on it, that would have been even more surprising.

    But why?

    The moment she asked herself that question, fragments of Swen’s words flashed through her mind.

    "My name is Swen. As of today, I have been assigned to serve Lady Lyn Brans. My lord has commanded me to reside here as your roommate for the time being."

    That’s right. That’s how we met.

    It wasn’t under pleasant circumstances, but from the moment we met, he had always been there to support me.

    "What do you mean? As long as Lady Airen is fine with it, I’d like to stay with you forever."

    Even though he was caught up in my affairs with my lord, he never got angry.

    He comforted me instead.

    "It’s fine. Learning more about Lady Airen is something I consider a great privilege."

    He was always kind.

    Even when I spoke of painful things, he listened to everything without hesitation.

    "Lady Airen... I’m so relieved. So relieved that you’re safe."

    No one in this country ever worried about me.

    But he did.

    "The person I want to protect in this country is you, Lady Airen."

    I was born to protect.

    And yet, the right to protect was taken from me.

    But he—

    He was the one who told me he wanted to protect me.

    His kindness had always been unbearably sweet.

    "Airen... just as I said... Airen..."

    And now—

    For my sake, he had defied orders.

    For my sake, he had staked his life to perform a miracle.

    All so I could achieve merit.

    All so he could prove that my words were true.

    "...Swen."

    Tears began to spill from Airen’s eyes.

    And then, she buried her face in Swen’s chest, sobbing.

    "Don’t die, Swen... don’t die..."

    Her heart clenched painfully.

    The one who had believed in her, the one who had told her she was right, the one who had worried for her, the one who had wanted to protect her—

    She couldn’t protect him.

    She, who had spent her entire life protecting others, was failing to protect the very person who had said those words to her.

    If—

    If this man died, what would happen to her?

    She had finally broken free from the shackles of the Brans family, finally started to move forward—

    But if she lost the very man who had freed her?

    "...No...!"

    She couldn’t lose him.

    She wouldn’t lose him.

    Airen turned toward the nearest soldier and shouted—

    "Bring a doctor! Right now!"

    There had to be one here—

    One of the doctors who had tended to the wounded soldiers.

    "A doctor...?"

    "Hurry!"

    At her desperate cry, the soldier responded with a loud "Understood!" and ran off as fast as he could.

    Even the soldier must have been shocked.

    No one ever imagined Airen Juliet—who had always commanded others with unwavering dignity—

    Would be crying like a child.

    But Airen didn’t care about appearances right now.

    She quickly checked Swen’s condition.

    He was unconscious—

    But his breathing was faintly there.

    She didn’t know exactly how much strain communicating with the heavens had put on his body—

    But she had to hurry.

    ''I won’t let you die... no matter what!''

    The sunlight streamed in through the window, casting a peaceful glow on her sleeping face.

    Beside her, on a small table, sat an empty dish—likely the remains of her meal—and several medical herbs commonly used in this world.

    Had she been tending to me the entire time?

    "Lady Airen."

    "......"

    "Lady Airen."

    I called her name a few more times.

    She stirred slightly on my lap—

    And then, slowly, she lifted her head.

    "...Mmh...?"

    "Lady Airen. Are you awake?"

    She blinked blearily, her gaze finding mine.

    Her pupils widened slightly.

    "...Swen?"

    "Yes."

    She just stared at me, speechless.

    Then—

    A single tear slid down her cheek.

    "Swen... you’re... you’re awake?"

    "Yes. Somehow."

    "Swen!!"

    With a cry, she threw her arms around me.

    "Swen... thank goodness... I’m so glad you’re awake...!"

    Her voice trembled with emotion as she clung to me.

    And in that moment, I realized two things.

    First—

    For some reason, I wasn’t wearing a shirt.

    I could feel her tears sliding down my bare skin.

    And second—

    She wasn’t wearing her armor either.

    Which meant I could feel her warmth very clearly.

    "I’m fine. But... what about the fortress? What happened to Serpina’s army?"

    "You saved it, Swen."

    Her voice shook.

    "A battle no one thought could be won... You did it. Even at the cost of your own strength."

    "Cost...?"

    Airen nodded as she looked up at me.

    Guilt was written all over her face.

    "You pushed yourself too far. Just to prove me right. Just to make sure I could earn merit."

    "...Huh?"

    "You risked your life, didn’t you? There’s no way... there’s no way you could’ve done something like that without putting your life on the line..."

    Wait.

    Was she seriously misunderstanding this?

    They say when you don’t understand someone’s actions, you should try putting yourself in their shoes.

    So I did.

    From her perspective, what had she seen?

    Some lunatic muttering about ‘communicating with the heavens’ and ‘three stars disappearing.’

    Then, he built an altar, started chanting strange words, and had soldiers drum along like it was some kind of ritual.

    And on the day of the battle, he put on an insane performance, screaming "O HEAVENS!!" at the top of his lungs like a deranged prophet—

    And then.

    A meteor fell from the sky.

    And immediately afterward, he collapsed.

    "...Ah."

    Okay.

    Yeah.

    I could see why she thought I had literally staked my life on it.

    If I had seen that without any prior knowledge, I probably would’ve thought the same.

    Had it just been lightning, maybe not—

    But a meteor?

    Yeah. That screamed "sacrificial ritual."

    "I’m sorry... Swen... Please... don’t ever risk your life for me again..."

    Airen clung to me, sobbing.

    Something in my chest felt warm.

    I reached out, gently stroking her hair.

    "Lady Airen. I’m fine. I wasn’t risking my life. I promise."

    "Liar... idiot... Don’t lie to me, Swen..."

    "......"

    I looked down at her trembling form.

    Well.

    No need to correct her now.

    Instead of arguing—

    I simply pulled her into a tighter embrace.

    Because in the end—

    The real miracle wasn’t summoning a meteor.

    It was saving Airen Juliet from Lyn Brans.

    And right now, that mattered far more.

    So for now—

    I’d just enjoy the warmth.

    ***

    As I rested in bed, regaining my strength, an unexpected face appeared.

    "Oh-ho! Swen! I heard you finally came to!"

    ‘...Huh?’

    A familiar face.

    A familiar voice.

    A handsome man with striking blue hair—

    The fortress commander who had overseen the construction of this stronghold, and one of the key generals of Brans Army.

    "Lord Carlints...?"

    "Mhm! That’s right, Swen! It’s truly a relief to see you awake!"

    I blinked in confusion as I looked up at him.

    Why in the world was he here?