Chapter 67
“Xenon, is that really how you feel about me?”
Yeriel’s face resembled that of an employee who had just overheard their boss, who usually scolded them, praising them to others.
His bright smile seemed to catch even Xenon off guard.
“I’m truly moved. I always thought you found me annoying, but…”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, no need to say anything more. I completely understand how you feel now.”
With a gentle, warm smile that made it impossible to argue, Yeriel pressed his hands against his chest as if to accept the sentiment.
“As Xenon said, I will become a much more reliable healer than any potion. I’ll be a healer who can comfort and heal the pain of all my comrades, who trust me like this!”
Even as he spoke, he seemed overwhelmed, wiping away a tear while looking at us with sparkling eyes.
“…”
“…”
Even I could tell he had completely misunderstood the situation.
But I didn’t have the courage to correct him. Yeriel looked so moved and determined that I didn’t want to ruin the moment.
“Well…”
Xenon, too, gazed at Yeriel for a moment, seemingly at a loss for words.
“If that’s the case, I suppose it’ll be helpful.”
Clearly lacking the courage as well, Xenon sighed and replied before turning back to me, leaving Yeriel behind as he ran off, shouting, “Leave it to me!” and tending to the wounded comrades.
“Anyway, what I meant to say is that it’s okay to rely on your comrades more.”
Xenon’s follow-up sparked an immediate sense of defiance in me.
“You’re saying I’m too weak, right? That I should just stay out of the way?”
I understood that he wasn’t telling me to stay hidden and cheer from the sidelines because I lacked talent compared to my comrades.
But…
“Should I just stay behind quietly, cheering on my overly talented comrades?”
To someone acutely aware of their shortcomings, it felt no different from admitting my own helplessness.
“Even if I’m weak and untalented, I still have the freedom to step up for my comrades!”
So, I acted out petulantly.
It was childish and something I’d regret once my head cooled.
But facing such overwhelming strength had left me feeling suffocated, and I needed an outlet.
“What do you know?”
“…”
“What do you know about me?”
Having poured out everything bottled up inside, my chest heaved as I struggled to catch my breath.
The way Xenon looked at me made my face sting with embarrassment.
In his blue eyes, he saw a woman completely consumed by self-deprecation and inferiority.
My flushed face and near-teary expression were undoubtedly pitiful.
“…”
After a moment of heavy silence, I bit my lip in regret.
“Look over there.”
Xenon, who had been gazing at me with an unreadable expression, reached out and pointed somewhere.
“You were the one who brought someone out of the bushes, where they hid in fear.”
Following Xenon’s gesture, I saw Chrissy and Winfred.
Between them stood Nia, caught in a flurry of compliments from Darwin and smiling timidly, her face slightly red but genuinely happy.
“You were the one who saved someone who had resigned themselves to wait for death.”
Xenon pointed again.
This time, it was Eden, chatting with Lyria while trying to free himself from her playful pinching of his cheek.
“You were the one who rescued the abandoned twins, left in fear by their comrades.”
His gaze fell on Sylvester and Celestine, sitting side by side among their comrades, laughing and talking.
“You also saved those who might have been massacred in confusion.”
Xenon’s finger finally pointed to those who had entered the stronghold at my side during the battle for Fire’s Stronghold.
“And me as well.”
Xenon’s deep voice reverberated, striking something within me.
“It’s you who gave me direction, someone who once lived aimlessly, unable to blend into this world like an outsider.”
When I first met Xenon, he neither yearned for life nor seemed afraid of death.
He was just existing because he happened to be alive. But I could feel how much he had changed.
“These comrades are gathered because of you. They’re here because of you, Wendy.”
Finally, I noticed the gazes directed at me.
Trust, admiration, gratitude, faith, and hope. The colors of those emotions were now vividly enveloping me.
“Do you think your comrades would mock or belittle you for pushing yourself too hard?”
My comrades, those who believe in me so deeply.
What they would feel seeing me strain myself isn’t disdain…
“It’s worry and sorrow.”
The emotions Lyria and Eden must have felt when I volunteered to sacrifice myself.
The feelings Xenon experiences every time I recklessly step forward and push myself to the limit.
It was always warm concern and sadness.
“So you have a duty to give your comrades the chance to support and help you.”
How infuriating.
For someone so stoic and emotionless like Xenon to say such things.
For a living blade of a man to pierce my heart with these words.
And to realize that even I, Wendy Porcelain, knew less about my comrades’ feelings than someone like him—it annoyed me, and I felt angry at myself.
“Don’t make your comrades grieve.”
Just as I suffer when I feel like I’m failing my comrades,
They must also suffer when they feel like they’re failing me.
“Don’t make me grieve.”
It seems I, Wendy Porcelain, am an egotistical person after all.
“Haa…”
Xenon, who had been staring at me, finally spoke, and I sighed, lowering my head in embarrassment.
“You only say the right things at strange times, you foolish lump of steel.”
He’s usually like a statue, but every now and then, he stabs me straight in the heart.
After a moment of keeping my head down, trying to sort through my turbulent emotions, I slapped my cheeks.
“Alright! That snapped me out of it.”
Thanks to him, I had come to my senses.
I finally understood how foolish and selfish my actions had been.
I am not alone.
I cannot, and do not need to, shoulder everything alone.
Such actions aren’t selfless sacrifices—they’re just selfish self-satisfaction.
“Glad to see you’ve returned to us.”
I grinned at Xenon, who offered a faint smirk, and raised my voice to call my comrades.
“Everyone, gather up! We’re having a strategy meeting for the final battle!”
At my words, everyone stopped what they were doing and approached me.
I am no longer a petty villain standing alone.
With these people by my side, I will achieve victory.
***
[The Black Faction has captured the Wind’s Stronghold!]
As we exited the stronghold, the notification appeared again.
[You have captured three consecutive strongholds. All fatigue has been recovered.]
[All injuries have been healed.]
[Expended mana has been restored.]
The series of rewarding notifications was a welcome sight.
This was a reward that had appeared in the original story, so I had anticipated it.
That’s why I advised my team not to use the potions we received as a reward earlier.
[The White Faction has captured the Water’s Stronghold!]
And then came a notification that was far less welcome.
It couldn’t be helped. The Agatha faction was on par with ours, so it made sense that their progress would match ours.
[A majority of the strongholds have been captured. The Thousand Origins Stronghold has been unlocked.]
Finally, the final battlefield of this black-and-white war has opened.
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