The Second Son of The Marquis Runs Away from Home ~ Lacking Talent, He Abandons Everything and Becomes an Adventurer ~ - 159

Chapter 159: How to Find Answers

Returning to Aria and Serena with the letter in hand, Shurin was sitting on the bed, with Aria and Serena watching over her.

“How’s she doing?”

“I’ve healed her wounds, but she’s been like this since she woke up…”

“Understood. Could you both give us some privacy?”

When I said that, the two of them left the room. I sat down at the edge of the bed and handed the letter to the bowed Shurin.

“I found a letter left by Elford.”

At my words, Shurin raised her head to look at the offered letter and began reading it after taking it. For a while, the room was filled with silence, only interrupted by the sound of tears falling onto the paper.

“What should I do…?”

She murmured in a choked voice.

“I would have been fine as long as Father and Ailseed were together… I didn’t need anything else… But now Father is gone… and our clan is gone… I can’t even avenge Father… What should I do…”

With tears streaming down her face, Shurin poured out her feelings, her fragile figure on the verge of collapsing.

“Berg must be enviable. If I were strong enough to be entrusted by Father… I wouldn’t hesitate like this…”

She seemed to be losing track of what she was saying, her emotions overwhelming her to such an extent.

“…”

I placed my hand on Shurin’s bowed head, gently stroking it to calm her down.

“…I felt the same way.”

“Huh…?”

“I have an outstanding older brother. He’s kind, trusted by many, achieves results, and works hard for what he wants to become.”

While looking at Shurin, I recalled my past, the time when I was cornered and wandering in the darkness…

“I couldn’t live up to his expectations, be kind, or achieve results like my brother. I didn’t know what to do… What was the right thing to do, or what I could become… I wanted someone to tell me the answer.”

“…?”

“But… sometimes, you can only find that answer within yourself.”

Wiping Shurin’s tears away, I looked into her eyes and conveyed the conclusion I had reached.

“So no matter how difficult or painful it may be, you have to find out for yourself what you want to achieve, and who you are… That answer lies within your heart.”

Slowly withdrawing my hand and standing up, just before leaving the room, I stopped and said:

“Since I’ve supplied mana to the workshop, it’ll hold up for a while… But once we’re ready, we’ll head to the ‘Tower to Challenge the Heavens.'”

“Huh!”

“Tomorrow, or at least the day after, we’ll depart… Think about what you want to do until then.”

With that, I left the room…

—

Outside the room, I handed Elford’s remaining materials to Aria and Serena, and then the three of us began to prepare. Aria asked:

“How’s Shurin?”

“I don’t know… But whatever choice she makes, I intend to support her with all my strength.”

The options had been given, and Shurin had Ailseed with her… Surely, she would think about it together with him.

“Hmm… Then tonight, embrace us, Berg.”

As Ruskdite, now in her monster form, said this as soon as she spoke, I couldn’t help but hold my head in my hands.

“Even at a time like this…”

“It’s precisely because of times like this. The threat we’re facing now is incomparable to anything we’ve faced before… So having as many reasons to return alive as possible is good, whether it’s for desire or anything else.”

Ruskdite said this while looking at us, as if advising us.

“People are kept alive by their desire for the ‘next’—wanting to eat delicious food again, wanting to embrace loved ones again… That desire for the ‘next’ is what keeps us alive.”

“…Well, she does have a point.”

In response to Ruskdite’s words, Aria said so, while Serena didn’t deny it, though her cheeks turned red.

And so, tonight, we embraced Aria and the others…