Childhood Friend – Preparations for the Journey
Everyone was stunned and stared at the old man. Ophelia, too, asked him in surprise, “Sir Corin, why not?”
The old man, called “Sir Corin,” was a paladin. It was a paladin's duty to escort a priest when they traveled.
Sir Corin had retired from active duty due to his age. He occasionally escorted priests, and usually devoted his remaining energy to teaching children.
He wasn't the type to turn away an aspiring young man who wished to become a paladin, but he pointed at Leo's arm and said, “This young man believes in a false god. I've seen that tattoo before, during my thirty years of service in the south.”
Everyone's eyes fell on Leo's arm.
A tattoo of several trumpets crossed.
Leo had the same tattoo as his father, so he thought it was simply a tradition passed down through their family of hunters.
Sir Corin's blunt words continued. “I don't know how someone who believes in a false god can live in a village with a church, but raising such a person as a paladin is against our doctrine.”
The barbarians had their own gods they worshipped.
During the Akaia Empire's subjugation of the heterogeneous tribes, the Holy Cross Church had protected the barbarians, and most of the barbarian tribes that received their grace converted.
However, some barbarians refused to abandon their faith.
The early Holy Cross Church was tolerant of them, but as time passed, it began to expel those who refused to convert.
Sir Corin had experience fighting against a tribe with such tattoos. It seemed that some barbarians had survived that time.
It made sense, as Sir Corin had disobeyed the Church's orders back then…
The old man's face hardened as he reminisced about the past.
Lena also looked at Leo's tattoo anew, and something suddenly came to mind.
It was a story her father had told her a long time ago.
Leo's father wasn't originally from Demos Village. He appeared in the surrounding mountains one day and hunted, and met and fell in love with a woman from Demos Village.
There was a lot of gossip in the village when they got married. This was because the village priest at the time was strongly opposed to it.
But in the end, Demos Village accepted Leo's father.
Lena remembered her father laughing and saying, “I wonder if our daughter will be the second link between Leo's family and Demos Village?” but it was a story from long ago.
After Lena expressed her desire to become a priest, and after Leo's mother passed away, her father never brought it up again.
“…”
Meanwhile, Leo couldn't refute the paladin's words. His father definitely worshipped a different god.
As silence fell, Ophelia the priest spoke, “Hmm… It can’t be helped. I understand your feelings, but I'm sorry. We can't violate the Church’s doctrine.”
“Then I’m not going either!” Lena exclaimed.
Lesley the monk jumped in surprise at Lena’s words. “Lena! This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity…”
Oh, these youngsters… Ophelia’s head spun.
“We’re planning to leave tomorrow morning. I’d like to give you a few days to sort out your feelings, but our schedule is tight.”
She spoke softly to Lena, trying not to hurt her. “I hope to see you tomorrow.”
With that, Ophelia took her companions and left.
She knew from experience that it was less painful to let the people involved deal with such matters than for others to intervene.
The village priest also took the distraught monk and went inside.
Only Lena and Leo remained in front of the village.
“Leo, I’m not going. Don’t cry.”
When Leo burst into tears, Lena’s eyes welled up too, and she cried along with him.
After they had clung to each other and cried for a while, Leo wiped his tears and said, “Lena, you have to go. It’s your dream.”
“But! I want to be with you!”
“You’re going to give up your dream because of me?”
“You were going to give up yours just now!”
“…Still, no.”
“I want to be with you. I want to marry you, have children with you, and spend the rest of my life with you!”
“No!”
Lena’s pleas and Leo’s refusals continued. They argued for a while, then their eyes met, and they burst into laughter.
“Leo, you! Those are a woman’s lines!”
“You too! And it’s too early to be talking about having children…”
They held hands.
A happy, yet slightly melancholic air hung between them.
“…Dad’s not home…”
“…Yeah.”
Lena and Leo walked hand-in-hand through the darkened village. They couldn’t remember the last time they had walked hand-in-hand through the heart of the village like this.
They arrived at Leo’s house.
Lena shyly stepped into Leo’s room.
It had been a while since she had last been here.
She noticed Leo’s bed, which she hadn’t paid much attention to before.
Both of their faces flushed bright red.
Lena sat awkwardly on the bed, and Leo paced around the room, unsure of what to do, before finally mustering up his courage and approaching her. Lena reached out and took his hand as he drew near.
Leo placed his hand on Lena’s shoulder and caressed her neck. As their lips met, they both collapsed onto the bed as if pulled by an invisible force.
His hand on her chest was hot, hers on his was cool – or so they felt as they embraced each other.
The candle that illuminated them burned down, its flame flickering passionately.
***
The next day, Leo prepared breakfast.
Lena stole glances at him as they ate together.
A giggle escaped her lips. But the thought that this might be their last time together sent a pang through her chest.
Lena hid her true feelings.
They had made the most of their time together.
As they lay side by side after their intimacy, Lena had burst into tears several times, and each time, Leo had comforted her until the very end.
Each time, Lena held him tighter, and the sadness in her heart gradually subsided.
An inexplicable sense of peace calmed her.
“I have to go now.”
Dawn was breaking.
Lena gave him one last embrace before leaving the house. Leo patted her back gently.
Lena was leaving.
Sadness welled up inside him, but he patted her back, and his own heart along with it, trying to soothe the ache.
He knew this was coming.
They had a plan to see each other again.
Lena would become a priest, and he would find a way to make her a princess; that was the best they could do for now.
They walked to the church together.