Chapter 24. No One Is Born a Hero (10)
What was he about to say?
To be honest, I wasn’t even sure if Ethan Behemoth had something like a weakness.
He was never someone who revealed his vulnerabilities to others.
“……”
“Edith Crowell.”
Despite my silence, he firmly called my name again.
At this rate, he was going to make up a middle name just to get my attention, so I had no choice but to respond.
“…Yes?”
“Are you afraid of caves?”
“No. I’m just feeling unwell, so could you please be quiet for a moment?”
I tried to shut him up with a sharp reply, but he only paused briefly. Then, in his low, pleasant voice, he continued:
“Then just listen.”
No… I told you to be quiet! You’re not supposed to speak right now.
Whatever he was about to say, I was sure he’d regret being so honest with me later.
But as I was riding on his back, there was no way to stop him from speaking.
I take no responsibility. I warned him. I squeezed my eyes shut.
“…Just like you’re afraid of caves, I’m afraid of watching someone take their own life in front of me. I hope you won’t do that.”
So he’d been thinking about that all along.
I blinked my heavy eyelids and spoke in a hoarse voice:
“…So you’ve concluded that I’m afraid of caves.”
For some reason, I felt deflated. On the other hand, Ethan Behemoth’s voice held a hint of amusement.
“I’ve sparred with you. I know you wouldn’t get this exhausted from something like this.”
“You’re flattering me…”
“You’ve been sweating cold sweat the whole time. So why did you even enter the cave in that state?”
“Because I thought I had to help, of course.”
The words came out without hesitation.
“It was a moment where help was needed, wasn’t it? Didn’t you desperately need someone?”
That’s all there was to it.
At that, he went silent for a moment. Then, with a short introduction, he spoke.
“My mother.”
“The duchess.”
…It was the first time I was hearing about his family directly from him.
He had always been a reserved lover, and I was someone who didn’t ask too many questions.
Keeping a part of ourselves hidden had always been a trait we shared.
That’s why our interests aligned so well, and I—madly and rapidly—fell in love with him.
Now that I think about it, it was strange.
Even in moments when I never expected to love him, I often found myself doing exactly that.
Even after preparing myself for every possible outcome and trying to understand it all—still, I felt the same.
Love wasn’t something you could prepare for just because you understood it.
Maybe that’s why Ethan Behemoth’s voice now sounded unfamiliar to me.
It seemed indifferent, yet I could sense emotions leaking from somewhere inside it.
…What kind of expression is he wearing right now?
“Yes. She was someone with noble intentions, just like you, Edith. But she also understood that it’s impossible to save everyone.”
“…So?”
Noble intentions… like me?
I never thought of my intentions as particularly noble.
There were many points I wanted to refute, but I held back. I was curious about what he really wanted to say.
Ethan kept murmuring:
“So when the time came to choose who would be sacrificed, she always put herself first.”
“……”
“One day, I couldn’t stand it anymore. I asked her—how could she always throw herself into the most dangerous situations?”
“…Did she answer you?”
“She said it’s simply the responsibility of the one who can protect. That she was just stronger than the others. That’s all.”
…It overlapped in some way with what I had said earlier—that I helped because I thought I should.
Was that why he suddenly brought this up?
The Behemoth ducal family was known for producing outstanding swordsmanship prodigies. The duke managed state affairs, and the duchess was a master spearswoman.
The duchess died in war when Ethan was young, so even before my regression, I never had a chance to know what kind of person she was.
But she left behind such words.
Maybe Ethan’s wandering the battlefield was his way of honoring her will.
Ethan Behemoth, in a voice like swallowing a mouthful of sand, said:
“I hope you won’t be like that, Edith. I’ll only say it this once.”
“Why…”
I swallowed the saliva pooling in my mouth. I could feel the magical energy that had been stinging the back of my tongue begin to disperse.
“Why… are you telling me this?”
“Because you…”
Whether from running for so long with me on his back or for some other reason, Ethan let out a heavy breath and whispered:
“…Sometimes look like you’re barely holding on.”
“……”
Even though my forehead was pressed against his back, it felt like our eyes had met—his deep navy eyes locking onto mine. The hairs on my neck stood up.
He calmly continued.
“Saving that student who fell from the cliff wasn’t a trivial thing.”
“That was just…”
“Refusing to quit the subjugation training despite the idiots criticizing you—that’s your courage. Sparring against me, someone two years older, and holding your own—that’s your talent. Finding a way for us to survive in here—that was you too.”
“…And?”
“So don’t give up. And lean on someone if you need to.”
…Was I really in such bad shape that even a kid would say this to me?
A dry laugh escaped me.
“…Haha.”
Strangely though, I didn’t feel too bad.
Rather than unpleasant, it was a strange sensation—something ticklish in my chest. A lightness I hadn’t felt in a long time.
I answered without hesitation.
“Yes, understood.”
“Good. Then—”
Ethan, who had just given a heartfelt speech and moved me, suddenly trailed off as if embarrassed by his own sincerity.
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence passed between us.
…I didn’t even feed him the headmaster’s butter cookies on purpose, so why was I suddenly nervous?
Surely, he wouldn’t realize that those cookies were basically a truth serum.
Dean, you’ve always been reliable. You won’t let me down now, right?
To distract him before he could fall into deep thought, I quickly tapped his shoulder twice.
“Hey, you can put me down now.”
“…You sure?”
“Yes. You’ve carried me a long way already. And the wind seems to be getting stronger—we must be near the exit. I can walk the rest.”
After I insisted, Ethan reluctantly stopped and gently set me down on the ground.
“Ugh.”
I felt a bit dizzy when my feet touched down, but after taking a deep breath, I managed to steady myself.
Maybe it was because I’d rested on Ethan’s back for so long—my condition wasn’t so bad now.
Even the blood I coughed up earlier seemed to have settled.
Camilla’s tea must have helped. I’m glad I didn’t have to waste an elixir.
I enlarged the glowing orb of light and gave him a nod.
“I’m okay now. Thanks to you, I recovered a lot. Let’s go.”
“Whew. Wait a moment.”
This time, Ethan asked for a short break. It was understandable.
After all, running through a bumpy cave for dozens of minutes while carrying someone—even that Ethan Behemoth would find it tough at his age.
‘Was I heavy?’
I felt a little guilty. I didn’t ask for his help, but if he hadn’t helped, our progress would’ve been delayed significantly.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, then uncorked his canteen and drank. After that, he leaned against the cave wall.
Sssss!
A chilling hissing sound followed by the stench of melting metal filled the air.
Ethan quickly pulled away from the wall, staring at it—then at me.
Why are you looking at me?
“…You didn’t tell me about this.”
As if it just dawned on him, he slapped his palm with a fist and said:
“…Ah. I forgot to mention it.”
“…What?”
This was the inside of a mimic’s digestive system. Even if the mimic was dead and digestion had stopped, some digestive fluid might still remain.
“The acidic fluid might still be lingering, so don’t touch the cave walls.”
“You…”
You’re telling me that now?—his look seemed to say.
I avoided his gaze and shrugged.
“We are inside a mimic’s belly. It’s only natural.”
“Most people don’t make a habit of entering mimics’ stomachs.”
“Well, I lost the timing to say it because someone was too busy making an emotional speech.”
In other words—this is your fault.
