Chapter 93: Halo (4)

 

As the campsite bustled with noise, the members doused their heads with water they had fetched.

 

I also washed off the blood that coated my body.

 

I started to free myself from the heavy scent of iron.

 

After fighting all night, blood had dried and stuck in places.

 

I moved my sore body, thoroughly wiping myself clean.

 

In doing so, I enjoyed a peace of my own. Sometimes, I liked this calm atmosphere that followed the fight.

 

The dawn was breaking.

 

The cool air blew in, chilling my heated body along with the water.

 

It was refreshing.

 

And I felt good.

 

“Berg.”

 

While I was washing, a familiar voice resonated from behind me.

 

Turning around, I saw Adam Hyung standing there.

 

“...”

 

I gave Hyung a glance before pouring more water over myself.

 

I didn’t know what to say first.

 

Hyung let out a long sigh.

 

“...I told you that you could act on your own, but...isn’t this a bit too much?”

 

I smirked.

 

Eventually, Hyung couldn’t help but release a defeated laugh at my amusement.

 

“What are we supposed to do if you stomp all the vice-captains flat? What if they band together and attack us?”

 

“Sorry.”

 

As Hyung broached a more realistic concern, I offered an apology.

 

But he simply shook his head.

 

“No need to apologize.”

 

-Thud.

 

I set down the water bucket and began to dry off with a cloth I had prepared.

 

Hyung took a seat on a nearby rock and asked me.

 

“...Any serious wounds?”

 

“Nothing major.”

 

I didn’t lose any teeth or broke any bones.

 

Just some cuts on various places on my face, and scratches on my arms and the like.

 

I hung Arwin’s World Tree leaf from around my neck, which I had taken off earlier.

 

Her leaf was certainly in better condition than before.

 

It was one fact that brought a smile to my face.

 

Meanwhile, Hyung spoke again.

 

“Sometimes, I wonder if I should have never taught you how to fight.”

 

“...”

 

“It never sits well with me, seeing you come back hurt all the time.”

 

“If you hadn’t taught me, I’d be coming back even more injured.”

 

“...So learning has made you fight more, not less?”

 

Adam Hyung’s regret was laced with affection for me.

 

I knew I couldn’t out-argue him with words.

 

So, I uttered something to defuse the situation.

 

“It’s too late anyway. I’ve learned it all by now.”

 

Hyung laughed.

 

“Yeah, that’s true.”

 

I grabbed my clothes and tossed my head back, slipping into them.

 

The clothes stained with blood, I tossed aside.

 

As things seemed to wrap up, Hyung sighed and got up.

 

“Go and get some rest. You must be sleepy.”

 

“What about the meeting?”

 

“Do you think it’ll happen after what you’ve done?”

 

“...”

 

“…We’ve postponed it till late afternoon. Everyone needs time to regroup.”

 

I nodded.

 

And then, I started to walk away.

 

As I approached Hyung, he lightly smacked the back of my head.

 

- Smack.

 

“Try not to worry me so much.”

 

I shrugged without a response.

 

“…And thank you, Berg.”

 

“...”

 

With a serious look, Adam Hyung finally said,

 

“It seems the meeting will go smoother, thanks to you.”

 

“...”

 

“I’ve got backing now, and a cause... It’s time to rise.”

 

I too let out a long sigh.

 

It wasn’t my intention to aim for this... but I was relieved things were turning out well.

 

****

 

At the campsite, cheers reverberated through the air, prompting me to wave them off.

 

My ears rang painfully.

 

“Vice-Captain, aren’t you really crazy? How did you even think to take down all three of them!”

 

“Did you see? Everyone swallowed their fear before the Vice-Captain. To be honest, I’d be scared too.”

 

“It’s truly satisfying. I hated seeing those fame-seekers strut around.”

 

“I knew the Vice-Captain could fight, but to think you’d dominate to that extent. Is leading the Head Hunter unit always this routine for you?”

 

Eventually, I addressed the gathered members.

 

“Now, everyone go back and rest. You must be tired from watching the fight. I’m going to rest too, so please be quiet.”

 

At my words, they nodded with smiles, one by one.

 

Yet the noise did not cease.

 

As if they needed time to calm their excitement.

 

I left them behind and entered my quarters.

 

There, I found Arwin and Ner.

 

Ner, with her eyes swollen, looked up at me.

 

“....”

 

Unlike before, she approached with a deep frown on her face, holding numerous medical tools in her hand.

 

Seeing my face battered and bruised, Ner bit her lip hard.

 

“Berg, sit down here first.”

 

I refused her offer.

 

“It’s okay. They’ll heal even if left alone.”

 

“But...”

 

“I said I’m fine.”

 

It wasn’t just talk. Wrapping up these minor wounds seemed more troublesome than they were worth. It felt like it would just be an unnecessary inconvenience.

 

“I want to rest. You both look like you could use some sleep too... go lie down and rest.”

 

Our quarters were one large space, divided by a long tent curtain into sections.

 

One area had a large bed, the other a smaller one.

 

I lay down on the large bed, a routine so familiar.

 

Taking off my jacket, I prepared to rest.

 

My body, having moved vigorously, now embraced the comfort more deeply.

 

I felt like I could fall asleep with just a bit more focus.

 

“...?”

 

Yet, as I lay there, the absence of any movement or sound from the others prompted me to open my eyes.

 

In front, Ner and Arwin stood frozen, exchanging glances.

 

“Why are you standing around? Let’s rest.”

 

Arwin and Ner remained silent.

 

I asked,

 

“Aren’t you tired?”

 

Arwin shook her head.

 

“No, I’d like to rest. The tension has finally left me...”

 

Yet, I couldn’t understand why they continued to stand there.

 

“Then let’s rest.”

 

“...”

 

“Come lie down, Arwin.”

 

Ner’s gaze, which had been fixed on Arwin, now shifted to me.

 

It was Arwin’s turn to sleep beside me tonight.

 

Sensing the deadlock, I ventured to ask.

 

“...Is it because I’m hurt? Should I sleep alone?”

 

Arwin hastily waved her hands.

 

“No, it’s not that.”

 

“...”

 

Then she explained.

 

“Just...with the morning came confusion about whose turn it was...”

 

Following that, Arwin climbed into bed.

 

Ner watched us, her arms laden with medical tools, a sight that couldn’t be ignored.

 

It wasn’t until Arwin had climbed into bed and lain down beside me that Ner shifted her gaze.

 

“...Sleep well, Berg.”

 

Then she spoke.

 

“...Yeah. You rest too.”

 

Ner soon lifted the tent flap, heading to her own bed.

 

Lying next to me, Arwin whispered as if confiding a secret.

 

“...Berg?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“…Doesn’t it hurt?”

 

I shook my head.

 

“Not really.”

 

She frowned, voicing a quiet complaint.

 

“...I told you not to fight.”

 

I chuckled at her words.

 

“Don’t laugh.”

 

“Okay. Sorry.”

 

“What if something serious had happened to you...”

 

In that moment, Arwin’s hand covered the back of mine.

 

“...”

 

She hesitated before speaking.

 

“...Try not to worry me so much in the future.”

 

Arwin said, repeating the same words I’d heard from Adam Hyung before.

 

I smiled and replied.

 

“I’ll try.”

 

****

 

Arwin gently stroked the hair of Berg, who had fallen asleep.

 

She still couldn’t forget the moment when Berg, having laid out all the vice-captains, approached amid the cheers, bloodied and victorious.

 

“...”

 

In that moment, one thing was certain.

 

Berg, in his essence, had appeared stunningly beautiful.

 

It might have seemed more so because it was beyond her comprehension.

 

He never hesitated to push himself to the brink for his wives.

 

Every moment, he gave his all for his people.

 

Even if it meant sacrificing himself, he always put others first.

 

As an elf, she couldn’t understand Berg, who was a human.

 

With such a fleeting life span to begin with, how could he sacrifice himself so readily?

 

She lost count of how many times he had done this.

 

Perhaps that was why.

 

Just as a flower that blooms for a single day is more beautiful than one that blooms all year round.

 

Was it because Berg’s existence had an end that he lived his life so passionately, appearing so beautiful in doing so?

 

Arwin could never choose the options Berg did, as if they were the most natural choices to make.

 

In this difference, he seemed all the more remarkable.

 

‘…I’ll protect you from now on.’

 

A day she could never forget revived in Arwin’s memory.

 

Berg had promised her that while slipping a ring on her finger.

 

And not once since then had he failed to keep that promise.

 

This time was no different.

 

As soon as Ner shed tears, Berg had sprung into action.

 

“.......”

 

Arwin tenderly stroked Berg’s bruised lips.

 

It was a soft, warm touch.

 

...Moved by Berg’s beauty and at the same time... such wounds suffocated her heart.

 

It made her angry that he was hurt. It was like seeing a radiant flower marred.

 

Moreover, the image of Berg comforting Ner, not herself, upon his return, remained vivid in her mind.

 

The memory of him stroking her hair lingered in her mind.

 

‘...Oblivious to Ner’s true feelings.’

 

Arwin thought to herself.

 

Berg was exerting all his effort to get close to Ner, unaware that she harbored thoughts of betrayal.

 

Ner had no intention of reciprocating his feelings.

 

Even if she was moved to tears, she would never give her heart away.

 

Arwin felt a pang of sorrow for Berg, becoming so wounded for such an unreciprocated devotion.

 

Pity welled up for him, struggling for something that would never be returned.

 

Would Berg have to suffer like this for Ner in the future as well?

 

“...Idiot.”

 

Arwin whispered, and finally, she took his hand.

 

Just as they did back in Stockpin, she intertwined her fingers with his, a gesture of affection Berg often showed her in front of others.

 

No matter how she thought about it... Berg was too good for Ner.

 

“...”

 

So perhaps he too... within a boundary where he wouldn’t get hurt, needed to learn a bit of the bitter truth about Ner.

 

Only then, it seemed, would he stop embarking on such reckless endeavors for her.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

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