Love Letter From The Future

As I regained consciousness, I found myself in the temple.

I remembered greeting Professor Derek, but there was nothing after that; I seemed to have fainted.

Honestly, it wasn’t surprising to lose consciousness in my state. In fact, before Professor Derek arrived, I had already passed out once and had barely managed to open my eyes afterward.

I wasn’t bleeding excessively, but my body was beaten up. There wasn’t a single part that didn’t hurt. It was at least a severe injury; if I hadn’t been holding on to my sanity by force, it would have been dangerous.

So, I stumbled to my feet and lay down on the corpse of the wolf I had taken down. Its thick fur made it pleasantly soft. There was a comfortable warmth left in it, and I felt sleep creeping in.

And then, at that moment, the long-awaited Professor Derek finally arrived, along with many fellow students.

Finally at ease, I lost consciousness again.

When I opened my eyes, a headache hit me. I had never been in the temple’s intensive care room while attending the academy, and now, this was my second visit in recent times.

Staring at the white ceiling, I recited a line I had always wanted to say at least once.

“…It’s an unfamiliar ceiling.”

“Unfamiliar my ass, you were here just a while ago.”

I frowned at the immediate insult and turned my gaze away. Perhaps because my retina hadn’t yet adjusted to the light, my interlocutor appeared blurry.

But I could tell who it was. We had known each other for too long.

“Reto, I’m sorry, but I’m a patient right now… Could you please try not to stress me out?”

As I said this, I purposely let out a groan that I had been holding back. Reto, sitting in a chair by my bedside and reading a book, clicked his tongue and closed the book with a loud sound.

His green eyes were fixed on me with a look of disdain.

“Well, considering you risked your life trying to impress a girl, you do seem like a patient… but I’d say it’s more your head than your body that’s a problem.”

“What, am I supposed to just let myself die?”

I pressed on my temple to soothe the still-aching headache, defending myself. Wasn’t that a reasonable argument?

At that moment, Seria was in a compromised situation. With her ankle injured, it was safe to say that she had lost half her abilities. Additionally, it was a consequential observation, but the enemy was a four-legged beast with superior mobility.

It was better that I stayed. Otherwise, Seria wouldn’t have lasted an hour. No matter how top of her second-year class she was, there were things she could do and things she couldn’t.

However, despite my defense, Reto merely shook his head in disapproval. The look of disdain in his eyes deepened.

“Are you an idiot? I heard you had that potion Emma gave you. You could have fed it to Seria, set her up in a tree, and then you could have run away.”

“Ah.”

I let out an exclamation as if dawn had broken in my mind at Reto’s words.

Now that I think about it, the potion that masked one’s presence would work on anyone, not just me. What would happen if I gave the potion to Seria?

I could just keep running, and her presence would be erased, letting me play the decoy role naturally.

There would be no need to risk my life, and the probability of success was much higher.

Why hadn’t I thought of that? I looked at Reto with admiration. He was shaking his head, pressing his forehead with his palm. The sigh that accompanied his voice was a bonus.

“That’s why those swordsmanship department guys who only use their bodies won’t do… Huh? From now on, you and Selin should definitely ask me before doing anything.”

“…No, I just couldn’t think in that sudden situation.”

“You didn’t think that? Thanks to that, I heard Selin cried until yesterday and then exhausted herself going back to her dorm.”

I had no words to counter Reto’s sarcastic tone, so I kept my mouth shut.

Honestly, considering I had just regained consciousness after sustaining severe injuries, it felt a bit harsh, but Reto usually got to the heart of things.

Perhaps I hadn’t made the best choice because I was so flustered. Right now, I was lucky to be alive. Otherwise, I would have inflicted a horrible experience on my family and friends.

Additionally, Seria would have to deal with guilt for a while. To be honest, even now, I wasn’t exactly free of causing trouble.

Reto was sitting by my bedside after all. Selin had also stayed by my side all day yesterday, so I had nothing to say.

I crossed my arms and let out a groan, raising my hands in resignation. It was a gesture of surrender.

“Okay, it’s my fault… I didn’t think at all, just swinging my sword like a dullard. Does that satisfy you?”

With that, Reto smirked victoriously, wearing a face full of smugness. He always had a face I wanted to smack, no matter when I saw it.

Now, my muscles were screaming, so I couldn’t do that, but it was a pity.

“I’m glad you’ve realized… and, well, I’ll give you some praise.”

“…Praise?”

It was quite a surprising statement coming from Reto, who had been berating me since I regained consciousness. Praise? Was there something I deserved praise for?

When I looked at him with a puzzled expression, Reto burst into laughter. It was a look one had when they encountered something amusing.

“That ‘Yuridina’s brat’ seemed utterly smitten.”

“What do you mean by that… Oh, by the way, how is Seria doing?”

I was about to probe into the basis of Reto’s unfounded statement when I suddenly thought of Seria and asked.

She was someone who had never lagged behind anyone due to her talent with the sword throughout her life.

Though she seemed to harbor a strong sense of inferiority towards her half-sister and the legitimate heir of the Yuridina Clan, perhaps because of that, she was even more afraid to acknowledge defeat.

I wondered if that day, when she had to run away without me, had wounded her pride. After all, it had been nothing more than a mistake.

But Reto didn’t answer my question right away; he merely wore a vague smile.

“Should I say she’s doing well or not…?”

“Don’t beat around the bush.”

As a hint of annoyance crept into my voice, Reto shrugged, as if having no choice.

“She was pacing in front of the temple with an anxious expression the day before yesterday, and I saw her again today… I heard she does that about twelve times a day.”

At his words, my hand went to my forehead. It hurt. That socially awkward girl seemed to be hesitating to come and visit me.

She could just come; how much of a big deal was it among friends?

I looked at Reto with a bit of resentment. If he had seen it, he could have just told her to come in.

“No, she could just come in.”

“That’s why you still don’t understand a girl’s heart.”

However, Reto dismissed my complaint in that manner. He clicked his tongue once more as a bonus.

“I’m telling you, that ‘Yuridina’s brat’ had such a pitiful look on her face. She must have been on the verge of tears, even though she’s an ice statue of a girl. A senior who got badly injured protecting herself… and he devoted his whole body to taking down monsters…”

“…You’re exaggerating, aren’t you?”

“Girls usually tend to exaggerate little things. Especially if it’s about something that happened with a somewhat handsome guy.”

That didn’t seem right, and as I looked skeptically at Reto, he continued speaking as if nothing were amiss, his demeanor as confident as a prophet facing stones.

“Anyway, the key point to remember is that this tug of emotions is crucial in establishing the lead from now on. When the girl is at her most vulnerable, casually show up, and when it’s forgotten, remind her once again… Got it?”

Reto spoke as if giving me a great secret, but my reaction was lackluster. Instead, I shook my head in disagreement.

I looked at him with disappointment. A sigh escaped my lips as I spoke.

“That’s just being a womanizer.”

“No, you were the one who asked me how to woo a girl before…!”

Reto looked aghast for a moment but soon seemed to give up, slumping back against his chair in defeat. He shot me a look that said, “Well, of course.”

Then, he turned his gaze away slightly. His seriousness was out of place, and he appeared to hesitate for a moment. My questioning look was directed toward him.

Reto swallowed hard as if he was contemplating, and then, as if he had made a resolution, he spoke in a low voice.

“…I-an.”

“What’s wrong now? Acting all serious like that…”

Caught off guard by the sudden change in atmosphere, I could only respond with confusion. After staring at Reto for quite some time with a puzzled expression, a sigh escaped from his lips.

He spoke to me with an unusually serious look.

“Are you treating Selin well lately?”

It was an unexpected question. I thought it was an insignificant matter and smiled casually.

They had been acting like cats and dogs. I heard they grew up almost like biological siblings, so it made sense. For him to bring up Selin first was unusual.

I responded without much thought.

“There’s nothing to treat well or poorly about. We’re just getting along like usual.”

“It would be better if you treated her well.”

However, contrary to my nonchalant response, Reto advised me in a much more serious tone.

“The world of girls is much more murky than you think. If you plan to stay close to that Yuridina brat in the future, it would be wise to keep Selin in mind as well.”

“…?”

Reto often spoke in riddles, but I couldn’t make heads or tails of this.

Why? What relationship could there be between Selin and Seria?

But as I scrutinized Reto’s expression, he seemed unlikely to elaborate further, and his voice was so serious that I decided not to press the matter.

“Uh, okay… I guess?”

I had no choice but to respond that way. At the very least, Reto wouldn’t give me harmful advice.

Looking back, I should have paid more attention to his words back then.

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