Hela did not have friends.

It was normal. Who would want to be friends with a cursed existence like her?

Nobody wanted to be close to a harbinger of misfortune, and the few people who approached her left as soon as they learned about her circumstances.

Hela did not blame them, though. She did not want friends in the first place.

She knew better than anyone the fate of the people who wanted to be her friends.

She was a monster, just like Cynthia said. A monster that killed everything in her surroundings.

If she did not want to repeat her father’s tragedy, it was better to keep a distance from other people.

Now, though, she was facing a problem.

She had never been close to anyone, so she was clueless about what to do in her current situation.

What should she do when someone forcibly treats her for dinner?

Looking at the boy who was pulling her arm, Hela was confused.

Normally, she would have pushed the other person away, but for some reason, she could not do it this time.

Although she was struggling to break free, even she noticed that it was just a symbolic struggle.

If she really hated it, she could have forced him to release her.

‘… I see, so I don’t really hate it.’

Hela realized.

She looked at the back of the boy pulling her arm.

Jane.

Someone completely different from her.

He was tall, taller than her, and his back was really broad.

While she did not have friends, he had a lot of friends. She remembered seeing him talking with every one of their classmates, and the girl with him now was a popular senior.

Hela was gloomy and depressive, and he was outgoing and cheerful. She carried a dreadful curse, and he was blessed with talent.

They could not be more different.

But that same boy was now trying to become close to her.

He was aware of her curse, but instead of feeling afraid or disgusted, he showed understanding and even expressed his desire to help her.

Furthermore, for some reason, her curse was not that effective on him. She thought it was an illusion at the start, but now that he was grabbing her wrist, she could feel that her curse could not drain his life force.

‘… Perhaps it’s possible if it’s him.’ That thought appeared in her mind.

Perhaps if it was him, her curse could be broken.

Hela looked at his back again.

As she thought, it was broad. So broad that it seemed like it could carry her burden.

Hela lowered her face with a complicated expression.

What she was seeing now was hope.

But she was afraid this hope would turn into despair.

 

…

 

The way to the restaurant was mostly silent.

Strangely, Hela did not resist that much. I was worried about what to do if she resisted, but besides her initial struggle, she stayed quiet.

I sighed in relief.

Honestly, forcing her to come with us was a bit impulsive.

But Hela was someone who had built a barrier around her to block anyone from becoming close to her. If I wanted to break that barrier, I needed to take strong measures.

Fortunately, it seems it worked.

The restaurant was almost full when we arrived, which was surprising considering it was not the usual time for dinner. It must be a really popular place.

We were lucky and found an empty table in a corner, but I noticed that Hela seemed a bit pale.

She hesitated to sit down, and eventually, she bit her lips and shook her head.

“I should leave. This place is not for me.”

I was surprised.

[She is trying to control her powers, but it’s of no use. She is constantly draining the life force of the people nearby. If she remains here for more than one hour, some of these people will start to feel unwell.] The demon explained.

Right, how can I forget about that?

I smiled bitterly.

‘Is there anything I can do?’

[Mm.] The demon hesitated briefly. [Perhaps. Try using Confidence to wrap your aura around her and block her skill. It may or may not work.]

I put it into action immediately.

“Wait,” I told Hela and grabbed her hand.

She was startled and tried to remove it instinctively, but in the next second, her expression stiffened.

She could feel my aura surrounding her body and stopping the curse from spreading.

At first, it was not that effective. But I quickly got the gist of it, manipulating my mental energy to create an effective barrier around her.

“… How did you do that?” She asked astonished.

I shrugged.

“I just did. Now you don’t have a reason to leave, right?” I said and let go of her hand.

But this time, it was Hela who grabbed my hand.

“Don’t let go.” She said anxiously. “Please.”

“Don’t worry, you don’t need to hold my hand for it to be effecti-”

“Please…”

Looking at her pitiful expression, I was unable to refuse her.

In the end, I sighed and allowed her to continue holding my hand.

The entire time, Jazmine was looking at us with a strange expression.

“Are you two in that kind of relationship?” She asked.

“We are not.” I smiled wryly. “It’s… complicated.”

Jazmine looked at us with a suspicious gaze, but perhaps noticing that Hela’s state seemed a bit off, she stopped asking.

Instead, she called a waiter and ordered the food after asking what we wanted.

Just like Jazmine said, the food here was not bad. Despite the restaurant’s casual appearance, the quality of their service was surprisingly high.

There was a reason it was so popular.

However, I had a bit of trouble eating with just one hand.

I could not ask Hela to release my other hand, though, not when I saw her tense expression.

Nonetheless, the atmosphere was pretty good. It was a bit of a shame that I could not flirt with Jazmine as I initially planned, but seeing Hela’s improved mood, I thought it was worth it.

It seemed like Jazmine also thought the same, because she occasionally looked at Hela with a small smile.

It felt as though she had finally opened up to us, even if only a bit.