Even in that moment, her lips continued to draw near. A forgotten unrequited love was attempting to culminate in a false romance after so many years.

But I could never allow such a thing. I pulled my captured hand free while simultaneously pressing my index finger against her lips.

“Why…?”

Feeling the rough skin of my finger instead of soft lips, Lena questioned in a small voice. I simply pushed her confused face away.

“Don’t.”

“Are you feeling shy? If so, don’t worry. No one is watching.”

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

“Then… you still haven’t forgiven me. I get it. It’s strange to suddenly approach you after spewing such awful things. I guess I was just too hasty. I…”

“Did Roselia put you up to this?”

I asked point-blank. The lingering sensation of Lena’s touch still remained on the back of my hand. Yet she played dumb to the very end.

“I told you. It has nothing to do with her.”

“You still haven’t explained how you escaped. Duke doesn’t seem like the type to use such a complicated method just to let you go, and I doubt you could have gotten out on your own. That leaves only one possibility.”

“Lope. There are far more complicated circumstances hidden here than you think. But that definitely doesn’t…”

“Lena.”

A deep sigh escaped me before I even realized it. I lifted my head and sifted through past memories.

“How long has it been since we first met each other? Do you remember, Lena?”

“Well. I’m not… really sure… It’s been so long I suppose I’ve forgotten.”

“Right. I don’t remember well either. But it’s been quite a long time. Long enough that I can tell you’re lying just by looking at your face.”

Lena fell silent at my words. Amidst the silence, the aeng-aeng sound of an insect rang in my ears. Ignoring the sound, I continued speaking impassively.

“Even a dog can learn to read its master’s expressions after spending a year together. It’s the same for me, Lena. I might not know about others, but did you think I wouldn’t figure out your lies?”

“…”

“I thought you knew me as well as I knew you. But that wasn’t the case. Just as you said back then, you truly only saw me as an easy mark to be used.”

“Lope… I…”

“So you probably thought I’d just blindly accept it if you simply said you loved me. Right?”

“N…no!”

Lena shook her head violently and grabbed my arm again. She then forced a smile and looked up at me.

“I mean it. I love you. That’s why I came here. Everyone makes mistakes, right? I was wrong before. So please, believe me. Okay?”

“Do you really love me?”

“Yes. I love you.”

“Really?”

In that instant, without any warning, I pushed her against the wall. I hadn’t pushed her that hard, but startled with a ‘hwadeuljjak’, Lena let out a scream.

“Kkyak…!”

“…”

But before her scream could fully escape, I grabbed the nape of her neck and pulled her into my embrace. Her hot breath gushed against my cheek, blooming into a red flush. I could see her round ears—unlike Saya’s—trembling slightly.

“Lope…”

“Stay still.”

I issued the warning in a low voice and exhaled once more. Then, very slowly, I moved my hand toward her waist. Her thin clothes fluttered in the cold wind.

“Lope, wait…”

“It’s fine. Stay still.”

I thought it was a rather gentle tone. But Lena squeezed her eyes shut and trembled all over with a ‘pareureu’. It was an attitude that screamed she couldn’t endure this situation any longer.

As my hand inched closer, her trembling grew more severe. Then, the moment my fingertips touched her clothes, Lena finally screamed.

“I told you to stop!”

“…”

But my hand did not stop. Lena gritted her teeth as if about to spit curses. Nevertheless, I finally brought my hand to her clothes.

And I peeled off the beetle clinging to them.

“Huh…?”

As I flicked the beetle away into the air, Lena gaped blankly. I released her and casually dusted my hands off.

“It’s cold. We should head inside quickly.”

“Lope… I’m sorry. I…”

“I get the gist of what happened. Roselia sent you, right? To take something from me. But I don’t have anything like that, so don’t waste your time.”

“Wait a second.”

“You can go back, or you can stay here. Do whatever you want. Just don’t think about approaching me anymore. We ended a long time ago. Didn’t we?”

“Lope!”

Just as I opened the door to go inside, Lena screamed and yanked my shoulder. I turned my head and saw Lena staring at me, her entire body quivering with a ‘badeulbadeul’.

“Y…yes, you’re right. That was my goal. But what’s so wrong with that…? Is it a crime to want to live? Even as your only friend, is it so wrong to hope for that much kindness?”

“I told you, I don’t have the means to do that.”

“Don’t lie! I already know everything. I heard it all from Roselia, just like you said. And Lope, I can also tell whether you’re lying or not just by looking at you.”

“Keep your voice down. People will hear you.”

“That means I’m right. Doesn’t it?”

Lena suddenly lowered her posture. She then grabbed my collar tightly and spoke.

“We can survive. If we go together, we can survive. Roselia said so, right? If we just have that mark or whatever, both she and I can take refuge in the Land of Elves.”

“So that’s how she seduced you.”

“Yes, that’s right. But… is there really any need for that? We can just leave, the two of us. Just like always. We can go to that island and live happily together. Just the two of us. Right?”

“…”

“Why aren’t you answering? You don’t plan on going there alone, do you? You’ll need someone by your side. Is there even anyone else besides me? Someone who will truly love you. Is there anyone else besides me who would do that?”

“I…”

“Is there anyone besides me who would love you?”

Lena’s question threw out an unexpected topic. Until now, crushed beneath the weight of being the last survivors of humanity, I had never even considered such a thing. Not someone who needed to survive, but someone I needed to save.

In other words, someone I could love.

Did such a person exist in this world?

…

That would be…

“There’s no one but me, Lope.”

“…”

“The person who made you smile. The person who made you happy. The person who was closer to you than anyone else. That was only me.”

With a face that looked like she would burst into tears at any moment, Lena forced a smile. She then raised her trembling arms as if to embrace me.

“You don’t need to overthink it. You liked me, didn’t you? Right? Your trust might have been broken once, but rebuilding it isn’t that difficult. So give me a chance.”

“A chance for what?”

“A chance for me to love you.”

Her desperate heart poured out as tears. But it wasn’t a profound emotion; it was something boiled up from the sheer desire to live. There was no meaning behind it.

Because of that, her voice slowly faded before scattering into the air. In the meantime, I carefully chewed over the words Lena had thrown at me. Someone who could love me. Someone I wanted to spend my time with.

I didn’t know who that would be, but I was certain of who it couldn’t be.

“I’m sorry, Lena.”

“Huh?”

“I’m afraid you won’t do.”

With those final words, I turned my back completely. Lena grabbed my arm tightly and refused to let go this time.

“Wh…what are you saying, Lope! Don’t say things you don’t mean. Is it because I pushed you away earlier? Th…that wasn’t sincere. Let’s start over. Okay?”

“I am sincere. I don’t think I can go with you.”

“Then who are you going with! And are you really going to leave me to die? You don’t plan on doing that. No matter how much you hate me, you wouldn’t just leave me to die!”

“It’s not that I hate you now.”

“…”

“It’s just that you’re no longer someone precious to me.”

“Lope!”

“Ms. Rebecca. You’re not asleep yet, are you? Haru?”

I opened the door with Lena still clinging to my arm. Ms. Rebecca, who had still been trying to calm Haru down, turned her head this way.

“Is something wrong?”

“My, the captain has arrived. Let’s end today’s roll call here, then.”

“Still doing weird things… never mind. There’s one more person outside who needs to be accounted for. Can you handle it?”

“Oh. What a rare sight, you actually taking attendance. Understood, Senior. Oh, and it seemed like Saya was already asleep, so you should head to bed soon too, Senior.”

“Right. I’ll leave it to you.”

I barely managed to pull my hand from Lena’s grasp and stepped away from her. Only then did she let go of me and call my name in a tearful voice.

“Lope…”

“…”

“I…!”

Her voice clung to me stubbornly, as if I could never escape it. But I didn’t listen and stepped right into the room. Ultimately, Lena’s final words broke off at the waist and vanished without a trace.

“Phew…”

I stepped inside the room and let out a long sigh. Continuing an unwelcome reunion with a childhood friend wasn’t a very good habit. Not for my worthless heart. And not for my mood, which couldn’t get any worse.

Bearing all of that, I looked toward the bed and saw Saya curled up on one side. Was she already asleep? It was a careless attitude given the situation, but in a way, that was Saya’s strong point. She didn’t need to suspect everyone like we humans did.

But unlike her, I had to live in suspicion every single moment. That was why I had given Haru and Ms. Rebecca a heads-up about Lena earlier. It might have been easier to just kick her out, but there was no telling what she might scheme, so it seemed better to leave her to those two.

With too much on my mind, I couldn’t relax even now that I was in bed. Besides, I didn’t think I could fall asleep tonight at all. So I sat on the bed and leaned my back against the wall. A yawn escaped me, but sleep didn’t follow.

“…”

Someone who could love me.

As I stayed up through the sleepless night, the words I had heard earlier lingered in my head. As Lena said, the person I would go with to the Land of Elves meant a partner to spend the rest of my life with. In that land where even the race was unfamiliar, the only ones we could trust would be the companions who came with us.

Since I had never considered it before, vague thoughts floated up with a ‘mongsil-mongsil’. From that perspective, who on earth should I choose?

If I ended up going with Haru, at least I wouldn’t be bored. She would wander around outside all day and then chatter all night about what happened that day. If I went with Ms. Rebecca, I would feel a certain sense of security. And Saya…

“…”

When my thoughts reached that point, I looked down at Saya’s sleeping profile. Come to think of it, why did Saya give me this mark? She called it the land of her kind, but she was a half-elf who spent most of her time in human lands, so she probably didn’t know anyone there besides her father. And even that relationship with her father was probably awkward.

Which meant that in the end, I was the only one left for Saya in that land. Did she know that and still choose me? Of course she must have known. Saya was smart.

Was someone like me really okay?

I suddenly remembered what happened during the day. That sight of her playing a prank out of nowhere and then smiling with a ‘baesisi’. Since the days when Saya was misunderstood as a mute, that was the first time I had seen her play a prank on someone.

And the first person Saya spoke to was also me. The first time she made proper eye contact. The first time she revealed her identity. It might be a presumptuous guess, but the partner for so many of Saya’s firsts might have actually been me. Even giving a gift to a friend.

And the same went for me.

The person Lena mentioned who was close to me now. And the person who made me smile.

That was Saya.

Actually, I still have that candy from back then. I didn’t always carry it with me, but it should still be sitting deep inside my backpack. At first, I just kept it thinking of it as a last-resort emergency ration, but as time passed, it turned into a sort of talisman.

What does Saya really think of me?

And which side am I on?

In the meantime, Saya was still sleeping peacefully. Her shoulders, rising and falling with her faint breath, looked exceptionally small today. If I hugged her, she really would fit right inside. It was definitely like that when I caught her falling from the tree last time.

…Her skin would probably feel really soft if I touched it.

Suddenly, Saya’s snow-white cheek caught my eye. The fact that I could only see things like this despite my poor night vision meant I must have some perverted tendencies too. Unlike Lena’s nape from earlier, it looked like it would be incredibly soft to the touch.

I felt so pathetic for having such thoughts. But my hand was already moving. They said a long time ago that a man should be careful with his fingertips, and that was exactly what I looked like right now.

Nevertheless, I slowly brought my hand toward her cheek. It was a very timid attitude, like a child afraid of dogs trying to pet a puppy. Like that, my fingers, inching closer little by little, finally touched Saya’s cheek with a ‘tok’.

The sensation was soft enough to send a shiver down my spine, just as I expected. I knew I should stop there, but I didn’t stop and stroked it. I felt like my body temperature was rising a bit.

And Saya’s cheek also gradually turned red. Because it was so cute, I kept stroking it for a while, until a voice suddenly spilled from Saya’s side.

“Lope.”

“Huh…?”

“…It tickles.”

“…!!!”

In that moment, I jumped up in surprise with a ‘hwadeuljjak’ and slammed the back of my head hard against the wall. Embarrassment, shame. And the pain that overwhelmed it all flashed white before my eyes.

“Ak!”

“Lo…Lope, are you okay? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“No, you don’t need to be sorry…!”

I rubbed the back of my head repeatedly while looking at Saya in a fluster. My cheeks were still red, but unlike me, she had a calm expression.

“Still, I’m sorry. Are you okay? Does it hurt?”

“Uh… yeah. But how long have you been awake?”

“I couldn’t sleep from the start, so I was awake the whole time. But you seemed like you had a lot on your mind, so I just stayed quiet. Should I have spoken up after all?”

“N…no, it’s not your fault. Definitely not…”

I lowered my head in dejection. In the meantime, Saya also put her hand to her cheek, perhaps feeling embarrassed belatedly. An awkward silence hung in the air for a moment.

But staying like this would definitely make things more awkward. Saya knew that all too well, so she once again brought up a topic first.

“So, did something happen? I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop, but I heard a loud noise earlier.”

“About that. I had an issue with Lena. I was actually going to tell you about it anyway.”

“What kind of issue?”

“It turns out Lena knows about the existence of elves. So you should be especially careful around her.”

“She knows about me?”

“No, not that far, but she seems to know about the marks. So be careful not to get caught.”

“…I see.”

At my words, Saya suddenly let out a light laugh. Then she spoke in a slightly awkward tone.

“Are you close with that girl, Lena? It kind of seemed like it.”

“We used to be friends. Before the world turned out like this.”

“See? It really is true that the only people you know are women.”

“That’s… true. I suppose…”

“…”

I thought it was a trivial story, but Saya lowered her head as if thinking about something. And she repeated what I had said once again.

“…Roselia… Lena… knows… about…”

Suddenly, Saya’s face darkened. Some kind of agony I couldn’t understand was taking over her mind.

“Lope.”

“Huh?”

After pondering for a long time, Saya spoke in a heavy voice. And with a very stiff expression, she asked.

“Could you tell me more about Lena and Roselia?”