A boy ran for his dear life in a dark, murky mystical forest. He was being chased by some monsters, but… they all repeatedly called his name. 

And more would appear from all directions. His eyes widen as he sees them in the eyes. And as he slowly backed away, cornered, a hand came out of the ground, grabbing his leg and making him stumble.

He stumbled, his palm sweaty as his eyes moisture and tears ran down his face. Faces of ugly and misery. He clenched his chest, saying, “I-I sorry!” he cried. 

The monster's eyes were red, and their faces and features were blurry. Until… the corpse crawled out of the ground. 

…it was wet, and the face was that of a young girl, rotting away. 

Feeling scared and desperate, the boy shook his leg, and the hand that grabbed it would still latch to it. Breaking and tearing the limb of the young girl. 

She looked at him. It was a look of despair, “WHY!?” she cried. 

Feeling shaken by the sudden outburst, the boy started to recognise her face…. soon, he’d recognised the face of all the other monsters, they got closer as he crawled backwards, unable to face away, his hands in a pool of blood as the sky turned crimson. 

He looked at his hands, which were stained with blood, and looking around him, corpses emerged from a red pond. Surrounded and realising everything was deep crimson, he drowns alongside the miserable voices.

— :::: — 

…Waking up and feeling groggy. I felt heavy as my eyelids wouldn’t budge, and I was cold and sweating. Why? I wonder…. 

I don’t remember a lot, but I think I had a dream. It was dark… and I felt uneasy. And as I opened my eyes, I saw a blond head—it was Julia. 

She had been resting her head on me and seemed to be soundly asleep.

…When did she get into my room? Well… doesn’t matter. 

Julia has been more clingy than ever. Even before the time she distanced herself from me. I don’t know what to think. 

Sure, I want to take care of her and judge the boyfriend she’ll one day have, but… at this rate, she’ll never leave my side. 

…To be honest, I got a little sad the first time she distanced herself, but it was for the best, and I cheered her on for trying to move on. 

But… is that only for her to get back to square one? 

“Hey, Julia,”  I called out. 

She was sleeping peacefully and nudged her head on my chest. Then, she sheepishly looked up. 

“...Aska, good morning,” she said, hugging me. 

….I… don’t actually know how to deal with this… I suppose it was easier when she ignored me…. 

“Julia, we’re not kids, and you shouldn’t sneak into my bed,” I scolded her and pinched her cheek. 

“Bwotha… stwop…” 

…what the hell happened to her!?!? 

Sure, she was clingy when we were young, but never once did she sneak into my bed. In fact, she’s been doing this since we started to live in this new place. 

‘Sigh…’ 

I tried locking the door, but… the very next day, her eyes were empty… I just couldn’t see her like that. What am I supposed to do? 

“...Anyways, I’ll go and make breakfast,” I said, lightly pushing her away. 

“Can I help?” Julia asked, cutely tilting her head. 

“Sure…” I replied and patted her head. 

…Well, maybe I’m as hopeless. 

And with that, we headed downstairs and met Hilda. She waved at us and waited for us to catch up. 

“Good morning, Aska, Julia,” she sweetly greeted us. 

“Morning, Hilda,” I replied, and Julia would softly reply a ‘morning’ as well, hiding behind me. 

“A..um… Aska, Miss Hilda… I’m still a little tired… so you can go without me,” Julia said and headed back. 

Hilda and I looked at one another. It had come as a surprise. After all, Julia’s been clinging to me and would basically hiss at Hilda… what is this? I don’t get it…. 

— :::: — 

…I knew it…. 

Those two do have a thing going on, and here I am, not being considerate of their feelings. I know fully well that Aska’s only being nice and says nothing about my strange actions because he treasures me… 

But… I need to move on. 

They seem nice together, and the mood is somewhat sweet… I… I’m just getting in the way. I know I am…. 

But will there be a place for me? 

— :::: — 

Later after making breakfast, I headed out to meet brother Al in the garden. He exchanged sword strikes with Mister Hilos, getting pushed back and knocked around in the air. 

Yet, despite that, he was composed, redirected, and defended against the very aggressive attacks. Despite looking like he doesn’t put in any effort, I’ve been seeing him get up early and practise before any of us. 

Then, Mister Hilos and I made eye contact. 

“Oh, kiddo, is it breakfast already?” He asked as he kept attacking brother Al without even looking at him.

It looked like he was playing instead of practising… but then again, brother Al wasn’t as good at swordplay as he was at magic, so Mister Hilos probably didn’t take him all that seriously. 

And despite his usual composure, he seemed frustrated that Mister Hilos wasn’t taking him very seriously. Heck… as Mister Hilos spoke to me, his blade ended up at brother Al’s throat. 

…and with that, they stopped their duel. 

“...You’re not taking it seriously at all,” brother Al complained. 

To which Mister Hilos snickered, “Heeh, you’re not good enough for me to take you seriously anyways,” he replied. 

Brother Al sighed, “I suppose I’ll just need to get better,” and readily accepted the fact. 

So cool, both of them…. So accepting and working hard to achieve results! 

I’ve made up my mind! 

“...Brother Al! I have a favour to ask!” I said, looking at him. 

“Mmm?” he softly replied. 

“I need your help with my love life!” 

That’s right…! The situation with Julia and my feelings for Hilda… these things are too complicated for me. And who can I rely on more than the man who seduced The Saint!? 

….Brother Al and Mister Hilos looked at one another, confused.

“...What?”