The Guardian Knight of Affection-Starved Young Ladies

95 – Place (02)

096.

Roar-!

Where the waterfall falls.

Kallen and Laris arrived at a spot slightly away from where the water falls to the lower part of the cliff.

It means they had reached as close as they could possibly get.

Just standing there, they could feel the huge vibrations, and their legs trembled, giving them an eerie feeling.

For Laris, it was hard to keep her balance, so Kallen and Laris stood very close together.

Holding hands, Laris leaned against Kallen’s arm as if hugging it.

Even when she first held his hand, and when she leaned against his arm, Laris looked embarrassed.

But as they got closer to the waterfall, she seemed to have adapted, and now she could at least speak.

“…Is this where we bury it?”

Kallen looked around as he spoke.

There wasn’t much to see.

The pressure of the waterfall falling so close was pushing away the surrounding mist.

In other words, it meant that the pressure of the waterfall was strong enough to create mist from where it fell.

Looking around, there didn’t seem to be any suitable ground to bury Laris’s mother’s necklace.

Of course, they were burying a necklace, not a body, but it still held meaning, so they needed good ground.

But in a place like this, where there was hardly any ‘ground’ to speak of, burying the necklace would surely result in it being washed away soon.

Roar-!!

The sound of the falling waterfall was loud, but since they were so close, there was no problem in talking.

Listening to Kallen’s words, Laris shook his head, looking up at him, who was much taller.

“If we go upstream of the waterfall, there should be a suitable place.”

“Upstream?”

“Yes…”

Kallen and Laris looked up at the gigantic waterfall.

Now that they were this close, the waterfall, which had seemed so majestic from afar, was completely out of sight.

“…I didn’t know the Latia Falls was such a dangerous place. I don’t really understand why my mother knew about this place and wanted to be buried here…”

Winter Island and Latia Falls are not so different.

Simply labeling them as ‘dangerous’ doesn’t capture the full essence; there are many things you can’t feel unless you come here yourself.

Just like the overwhelming pressure of this waterfall.

To Kallen, this is not a place an ordinary person would come alone.

You can tell just by looking at Laris.

Even finding a path through the mist is overwhelming.

Even after breaking through to reach this place, moving around is difficult, just like Laris, who hugged his arms tightly, struggling to keep his balance.

The mist that obscures the view.

The vibrations and pressure that make movement difficult.

There doesn’t even seem to be a path leading up the steep cliffs surrounding the waterfall.

Laris’s mother was said to be a former slave.

It was hard to believe that she had reached this place alone and climbed up the cliff.

“…Mother-”

“Perhaps the lady-”

After a moment of silence.

As Kallen opened his mouth with difficulty.

Coincidentally, Laris spoke at the same time.

“Ah…”

“Please, go ahead.”

As Kallen conceded, the two, who had been looking at the cliff, turned their gazes back to each other.

Laris, who accepted the concession, slightly bowed his head.

“Did Mother… just hear that this place was beautiful and say that?”

“…”

“It’s hard to believe that Mother came all the way here alone and saw the cliff. We didn’t know either. We didn’t know it would be this dangerous.”

Kallen nodded at Laris’s words.

Laris’s words were exactly what Kallen had been struggling to ask.

“It was Mother who introduced me to third-rate plays.”

As Kallen remained silent for that reason, Laris continued.

“Stories that are too obvious and childish, and therefore nothing but dreams.”

Her murky gray eyes held a hint of sadness.

“Maybe… the story of the Latia Falls that she told me is just one of those dreams.”

Realizing that a weak woman of slave status couldn’t have come here alone.

The stories she told were just dreams tied to beautiful places in the world.

Kallen quietly gazed into Laris’s eyes, and just as he was about to offer some comfort for her sadness,

Laris buried her face in his shoulder and murmured.

“Still… I like them. Those third-rate play-like stories. To be exact, I like Mother’s dreams… Is that not okay?”

His shoulder is getting wet.

Is it from the fiercely splashing water?

From noble mtl dot com

Kallen silently waited for Laris to speak.

“Just once, could you indulge my blind taste?”

The words he had been waiting for were not much different from what Kallen had thought.

The beauty of the cliff’s view had now become something uncertain.

Laris’s mother had never been there, so her request to be buried in that beautiful place was a lie.

But Kallen soon shook his head.

Then, offering his shoulder for Laris to rest her face on, he quietly began to speak.

“I don’t think it’s a lie.”

“…”

“You called it a dream.”

He didn’t feel weak or think it was a waste of effort.

It felt somehow familiar.

“You also asked me to help you fulfill your ‘long-held wish.'”

“Ah…”

“In my opinion, you don’t like Mother’s dreams, but rather the third-rate plays.”

I remember Laris’s small room.

A small, shabby room that did not match the grand name of the Flache family.

The bookshelf there was filled with scripts of third-rate plays that were too obvious and childish.

So full that it was hard to believe she didn’t like them.

Laris looked up at Kallen in surprise.

Kallen slowly detached Laris, turned around, and knelt down.

“I’ve become curious too.”

A posture that anyone could see was meant for carrying someone on his back.

When Laris hesitated, Kallen continued speaking.

“About what the ending of that third-rate play looks like.”

“…”

It was a long time after that the girl was carried on the boy’s back.

*

Thud.

A deep mark is carved into the steep cliff.

“Haa… Haa…”

Tap.

It was Kallen, the boy carrying the girl who barely managed to place her toes there.

Using a third-rank combat magic ice spear, though the result was shabby.

In other words, it was so difficult that he couldn’t do it any other way.

“Kallen…”

Even using second-rank nature magic to ensure Laris could be safely carried.

Laris couldn’t even dare to say sorry to him for going along with her stubbornness.

Third-rank magic requires considerable strength each time it is used.

He was using it to create spaces to step on, one step at a time.

While maintaining second-rank magic to keep Laris safe, the weight of Laris and the pressure of climbing the cliff constantly weighed him down.

Thud.

The cliff is carved again, and Kallen climbs higher.

Kallen, who had even crossed the fourth-rank wall with the help of Felicius and Tiasse.

He was confident he could reach the top of the cliff, but the process was by no means easy.

Laris hugged Kallen’s body, which was so firm it was almost hard, and closed her eyes.

If she looked down, her heart would surely drop.

Even without looking down, the feeling was dizzying enough to be precarious, so there was no one to rely on but Kallen.

A feeling of guilt and gratitude coexisted.

Before she knew it, only one boy existed in Laris’s mind.

As she relied on him like that, she began to understand a little.

Why this boy showed such conviction.

How he could remain calm even after deciding to oppose the Lyle Merchant Guild and his own father.

It wasn’t about his skills.

She was impressed by his strong heart.

Honestly.

Just a moment ago, Laris wouldn’t have blamed Kallen if he had given up and suggested they go back.

No, she actually thought it was only natural that he would.

Her mother’s words had become nothing more than a dream she had heard countless times as a child.

The way to climb the cliff seemed hopeless.

Moreover, a noble lady throwing a tantrum was nothing but a burden.

But Kallen’s answer was different from what she thought.

He just carried her on his back and did his best to climb the cliff.

Laris slightly opened her eyes.

Instead of looking down, she raised her head upwards.

Before she knew it, they had reached the end of the cliff.

Thud.

A waterfall so steep and high that it couldn’t be compared to an ordinary mountain.

At the top, a hand left its mark.

The hand became an arm, and soon the boy carrying the girl appeared above it.

“…Haa…”

“…Kallen.”

Before she could even think that they had reached the top.

Laris hurriedly checked on Kallen after getting off his back.

His whole body was covered in dirt and sweat.

Even the nails were lifted and broken, and the fingertips were all stained with blood.

Laris quietly bit her lips and grabbed the hem of her skirt.

She took it to Kallen, not caring about the dirt and sweat, and wiped his face.

“Hoo…”

Did it help?

Kallen’s breath, which had been panting for a long time, stabilized.

A scene like hell.

An unstable physical condition.

Kallen, who did not skip exercise at the recommendation of Blamia.

He was confident in tasks that only required physical strength, but this time he had to finely adjust his magic and take care of Laris as well.

Even climbing the Latia Falls itself wouldn’t have been easy.

Kallen felt his breath returning and grabbed Laris’s wrist as she wiped his face and neck.

“Kallen…?”

“…How is it?”

“What…?”

“Is it as beautiful as you heard?”

Only then did Laris realize what Kallen was talking about.

He was referring to the scenery above the Latia Falls.

Laris slowly turned her head and looked around.

Swoosh…

The sound of water, which had been so loud that it hurt her ears when heard from below, turned static.

Only the sound of the spray rising from below could be heard.

The wind was cool, and the land was wide enough to bury a necklace.

If asked if it was beautiful, everyone would nod.

Laris did not deny it.

But, why?

Her gaze kept turning to Kallen.

She was only worried if he was seriously injured from climbing the cliff, or at least if his fingers hurt.

And, it didn’t seem as beautiful as she thought when her mother told her about the Latia Falls.

Laris alternated between looking at Kallen and the scenery above the falls, then fixed her gaze on Kallen and spoke.

“…Yes. I think it’s beautiful.”

Kallen bowed his head, took a moment to catch his breath, and then nodded.

That brief hesitation was so slight that Laris couldn’t notice it.