Chapter 468. Fragment (7)
"………………How did you know?"
The calm voice of Seolrang resonated in his ear.
Alon looked at her silently.
On her face, there wasn't the smile she always wore; in its place, only indifference remained.
The corners of her eyes, always playfully arched, were now relaxed and rested serenely upon him. Her tail, which always moved gently, now hung limply.
Her appearance was undoubtedly the same Seolrang that Alon Palatio knew.
The golden hair.
The eyes.
Nothing had changed.
But even so… she was not Seolrang.
"Master, how did you realize?"
Again, Seolrang's voice reached him.
It wasn't the usual cheerful, clear, and lively voice, but a quiet and calm one. For Alon, accustomed to the old Seolrang, the difference was so great that it was painful for him.
Listening to her, he thought:
‘How did I realize…?’
There weren't many aspects by which to notice a change. She still behaved as usual. The wagging tail. The smiling eyes. The playful grimace.
Nothing seemed out of place.
Even Lime, who constantly assisted her, and the others, hadn't noticed any difference.
But Alon did.
Just as Seolrang used to convey her sincerity to him, he had also received too much from her not to notice.
That is why—
"The first was the eyes."
He said, with serenity.
Seolrang's calm eyes seemed to be fixed on him.
But in reality… they were not.
From the beginning until that very instant.
She was looking slightly to the side, barely deviated.
And Alon knew when Seolrang avoided eye contact.
"Every time you can't look me in the eyes, it's because something unsettles you."
"When you resolved the Divine Blood matter, you couldn't look at me afterward either."
When that happened, instead of explaining things with a smile, Seolrang would simply throw herself at him to cry and complain.
She was sincere with her emotions.
"The second was the tail."
"The tail?"
"…You always moved it."
Seolrang always moved her tail when she saw Alon Palatio. But not all the time.
"In the carriage, when you were bored staring into space. Even at the festival, among so many people."
According to Alon, she didn't like being bored. Nor crowds.
There were more signs, many more small details. But—
"......I see."
Although he didn't say anything, Seolrang seemed to understand perfectly.
Too expressionless to be her usual self.
"Could you tell me what happened?"
He asked with caution.
Seolrang observed him in silence.
A moment of stillness settled between them.
She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again and again. Alon Palatio did not rush her; he simply waited.
After a brief silence—
"It may be that… I am not Seolrang."
"…What?"
She blurted out.
A sudden confession.
Alon Palatio asked instinctively.
With the same calm, she started to explain everything. While she spoke, her expression seemed resigned, almost as if she had abandoned any hope.
"…That was how it happened."
When she finished explaining, Alon was deeply shocked.
It was natural.
"So, in short… your mental age became fixed since you started using the essence of the Golden Mane Tribe?"
"Yes."
"And the power you showed last time is the power you obtained by completing the final test that essence gave you, right?"
"Yes."
On Seolrang's face, there was no emotion.
Alon sighed.
He had confirmed many things, but doubts still remained.
Especially about the power he obtained in the final test of the Golden Mane essence: the power he used when he defeated the enemy's new form, a power related to the Supernatural Blood.
‘What exactly is the Supernatural Blood…?’
But he shook his head.
It didn't matter now.
The only important thing was Seolrang.
"…So, are there memories of dozens of people in your mind?"
"Yes. But strictly speaking… they are not just memories."
"Then?"
"Their identities and values are also mixed within me."
"You know, Master…?"
At the call, Alon looked at her.
Her face was serene.
But… empty.
"…I no longer feel anything for the guild members."
She murmured.
With the same calm.
"Even if Lime worries about me… I feel nothing."
With the same calm.
"If I think of Deus or Radan… simply…. nothing."
With the same calm, but Alon Palatio could see it:
The emptiness in her eyes and—
"If I think of Rine… of Yutia… now…"
The sadness.
Drip, drip.
"……I no longer feel anything."
She remained calm, but her eyes were full of sadness and emptiness.
"What should I do?"
She asked, lost.
"What am I supposed to do?"
Searching for dry emotions, already nonexistent.
"Master… I don't know…."
Her hands began to tremble, so she held them herself.
"I don't… know what to do…."
It was contradictory.
She was so dry inside… that she didn't even know what was making her suffer anymore.
Alon looked at her without knowing what to say.
He wanted to speak, but closed his mouth. He knew something like this could happen. He knew he should console her. It was something he had to do. But he couldn't speak lightly. A bad consolation could damage her.
…She had lost something invaluable.
For another, it might be “just memories and values”, but Alon Palatio knew that for Seolrang they were part of her identity.
He had never lost something like that. He didn't know how deep that wound would be.
That terrified him.
Even so, he couldn't stand there doing nothing. He approached and gently took her hand.
Thousands of words crossed his mind, but they all sounded hollow. False. Artificial.
He liked none of them.
So—
He decided to simply say what he felt.
"At first… you were acting."
"Why was it?"
"That—"
"You wanted to hide it from me, right? You didn't want me to realize you had changed."
She didn't answer.
Alon Palatio continued, with a soft voice.
"That means that… I am still there, right?"
"…Master?"
"Yes. If you wanted to hide it from me, it's because you didn't want me to worry. Because I still meant something to you."
It was a clumsy inference. Possibly wrong.
But even so—
"…Then, I am still there. Inside you."
And he hoped Seolrang would accept it.
That at least a little sincerity would reach her.
"And if I am still there… then the others must be there too."
"You are just confused now. After so many sudden things."
"…Do you really believe that?"
She asked, with a faint voice.
After a small silence, he said:
"And if… if it weren't so, it is still okay."
"Because from the beginning… our relationship didn't start like this."
"A relationship can be built again."
"Just as you value our relationship… I do too."
"We can rebuild it. Over and over, from scratch."
Seolrang didn't answer. She only hugged him a little tighter.
…And with that, Alon Palatio felt satisfied.
He hugged her and stroked her back for a long time.
"Do you feel better now?"
"…Yes. Thank you, Master."
Seolrang smiled gently at him. She seemed to have recovered a little calm.
The emptiness had dissipated, even if minimally.
"Then I will leave."
"You are leaving already…?"
"If you want, I can stay a little longer."
She thought about it, and shook her head.
"No, it's okay."
"…Yes? If you need anything, tell me."
"Yes, Master."
With a faint but genuine smile, Seolrang saw him off.
Alon looked at her for a moment and left the room.
When the door closed—
"…It would have been better if he hadn't realized."
Seolrang's expression went blank again.
While she listened to the footsteps fading away, she combed her hair with her fingers.
‘A relationship can be rebuilt at any time.’
Alon's phrase passed through her mind.
And he was right.
If both made an effort, they could create a close relationship again.
But…
Could that relationship really be the same?
Alon already knew the truth: that Seolrang was not the same.
That she was no longer “Seolrang”.
That she was just “someone using Seolrang's remnants”.
Building another relationship… would not be with her, but with “the one using fragments of her”.
She knew Alon was kind. She knew he would never show it. But even so, that didn't change reality.
She sat down, hugged her knees, and hid her face.
…It was a cold autumn.
But… she didn't know why, it was unbearably cold.
Upon returning to his room, Alon Palatio sighed.
Although he expected it, Seolrang's state was worse than imagined.
"…Yes, thank you, Master."
He remembered her words.
They sounded calmer than before, but he had felt the emptiness inside. His consolation might have helped, but it wasn't a solution.
Alon Palatio ran a hand over his face.
His mind was tangled. But at the same time, he was grateful he had noticed.
He had already foreseen Seolrang's state and had started creating a spell for her.
"…Just a little more."
It was almost ready.
A spell that could return her to her original state.
Thinking that, he gathered his mana instinctively.
It was risky without Penia, and he was somewhat tired from the celebration, but even so, he didn't stop.
Simply… he wanted to do it.
A faint light shone from the room's window.
At that same moment, in the Eastern Empire.
Those called the latecomers of the Star Group.
Currently competing (?) heatedly with the Burning Tree, and seeing that he was recruiting Divine Bloods, the Darkness-Eating Sword, who came directly here burning with competitiveness to gather new recruits separately.
[…Will the Star Eater participate in the subjugation as a new form?]
[It seems so. They already started moving.]
[The Burning Tree too?]
[Yes.]
Upon hearing the report—
[Finally I will be able to serve by his side.]
He smiled deeply as if the opportunity had arrived.
