Between Your Letter and My Reply

Chapter 38

[Translation By Divinity]

She didn’t seem confused about accepting her sudden transformation from a 20-year-old to a 22-year-old due to memory loss. And at least in front of Damian, she didn’t show any significant difficulties in her daily life.

Damian, unsure how to react, remained silent for a moment before cautiously asking,

“Are you okay with not having your memories?”

Lilliana sighed deeply.

“Of course not. The biggest problem is that it’s become unclear whether I can graduate from university. I’ve even forgotten everything I learned at school.”

“Ah…”

“Besides, our age is the most important time in life, right? We’re young, and there’s so much we need to do for our future. But having a two-year gap is a huge loss in many ways.”

Lilliana frowned and gazed at the rabbit-shaped clouds. Her expression was a mix of disappointment and emptiness.

Damian had spent that time at war, fighting on the battlefield. He hadn’t even considered doing anything else during those years. To him, turning 19 meant leaving the orphanage without any support, nothing more than an inconvenient age. He had never thought of it as an important time.

So he didn’t know what words of comfort to offer Lilliana.

Instead, he gazed at her profile and asked,

“What kind of accident did you have?”

Until now, Damian had refrained from asking about the nature of Lilliana’s accident, thinking it might be impolite to pry. As a result, he had missed several opportunities to ask.

Except for the three cardiac arrests, Lilliana seemed perfectly fine on the outside. She didn’t have any visible injuries. He had been curious, so Damian decided to just ask.

Upon hearing Damian’s question, Lilliana lifted her leg and swung it downward, using the momentum to prop herself up. She crossed her arms and started pondering.

“Hmm… I’m not sure how to explain this…”

“You can skip it if it’s difficult to talk about.”

“No. You told me everything about what happened to you, Damian. It feels unfair that I’m the only one not sharing. So I want to explain, but this is…”

Lilliana inhaled sharply and carefully chose her words.

“I told you before that I was born healthy, right? Well, that’s true, but I have a somewhat unique constitution. It’s a bit different from others…”

“Unique constitution? In what way?”

“Well, it’s like… Hmm…”

Lilliana looked around, then clicked her tongue.

“Ugh, it’s too bright and crowded here…”

She ran her hand through her hair once and then looked at Damian.

“Let’s go eat.”

“Suddenly?”

“I’m really hungry. It’s already past 2 PM. If we get caught in the break time rush, we’ll have nothing to eat except sandwiches from street vendors. I don’t want to eat just anything on this monumental first day of sightseeing. I brought a whole thousand Hirks, you know.”

It was obvious she was changing the subject, so Lilliana probably didn’t want to talk about it. Damian didn’t complain and just went along with her suggestion.

They finally had a late lunch and were now sitting in a dessert cafe famous for its tiramisu, enjoying the cake and chatting.

After the meal, Damian thought they should end their outing for the day, as he had promised. But Lilliana insisted there were plenty of ways to spend time outside without exerting too much energy and dragged him to this dessert place.

Damian wanted to argue that there was no such thing, but seeing Lilliana’s complexion improve with each bite of tiramisu, he couldn’t strongly insist on going back.

They spent the afternoon leisurely, and only after the sun had set did Damian walk Lilliana back to her boarding house.

On the tram ride back, Lilliana seemed uncomfortable and kept glancing at Damian. She would quickly look away whenever their eyes met. This continued until they reached the stop near her boarding house.

It was the same on the walk from the tram stop to her house. She seemed lost in thought, her expression serious all day.

They finally arrived at Lilliana’s house.

Even then, she didn’t seem to want to go inside. After a moment of hesitation, she raised her hand to say goodbye.

Damian couldn’t pretend not to notice and asked her directly,

“If you have something to say, just say it.”

“Hmm…?”

“Is it about what we were talking about earlier?”

“Well, yes, but…”

“Do you want to talk about it, or do you not? Either way, I don’t mind, so do as you please, Lilliana. It’s really okay.”

“No, it’s just… I do want to talk about it… I really do want to tell you…”

Lilliana hesitated, and Damian sighed briefly and spoke.

“Is it difficult to talk about right now?”

“Huh?”

“For some reason, you can’t talk about it right now, right?”

“That’s… true.”

“Then tell me when you’re ready. I won’t rush you for an answer. It’s not that urgent that I need to know right away.”

Lilliana’s expression, which had been troubled, softened. She smiled awkwardly and asked,

“Is that okay?”

“Of course. I’ll wait.”

“He… Hehehe… Thank you, Damian. I’ll definitely tell you when I’ve sorted out my thoughts.”

Lilliana finally looked relieved, but then her face turned serious again as she saw the dark bruise on Damian’s face.

“The bruise needs to heal quickly… so we can take pictures.”

“My photos don’t matter. You should take more pictures of yourself.”

Damian handed her the camera. Lilliana took it and said,

“What are you talking about? We’re taking pictures together. The more good memories, the better, right?”

Hearing that, Damian couldn’t help but smile bitterly, thinking of Lintray, who never got to see his face because he refused to give her his photo, and who he couldn’t identify despite his efforts.

Lilliana, unaware of why Damian was making that face, heard him reply,

“Yes, you’re right.”

“Okay, then… I’ll go in now!”

Lilliana waved at Damian and reached for the doorknob.

“Lilliana.”

Damian called out to her, almost impulsively. Then, feeling a bit shy, he said,

“If you ever have any difficulties or troubles, feel free to tell me.”

Lilliana chuckled.

“Thank you.”

Damian watched Lilliana enter the house and wave one last time before turning to leave.

He glanced at the crescent moon and fell into thought.

“Two years…”

The period during which Lilliana had lost her memories bothered him.

‘Memory loss after turning 20…’

And Lintray had settled in Edenfallen at the age of 20. She had lived there for exactly two years since then.

‘Is it a coincidence?’

Damian walked slowly towards the tram stop, pondering.

‘Is this really just a coincidence?’

He couldn’t stop thinking until the tram arrived.

‘What are the chances of all this being a coincidence?’

His mind was in turmoil, trying to make sense of it all.

☆

Lilliana entered her room, tossed her clothes and bag onto the bed, and quickly walked to the phone in the living room. She took a deep breath, picked up the receiver, and dialed. After a brief ring, a familiar voice answered.

“Hello? Ah, Auntie? I’m calling to report on today.”

Pascal’s voice was filled with concern.

—You said you were going to explore the capital today. How did it go? You shouldn’t be pushing yourself like that when you’re sick… I should have been there…

“Oh, it’s okay, it’s okay. I was totally fine. Damian was with me. And I didn’t overdo it, okay? We just saw the palace, had a meal, and that was it.”

—You didn’t drag Damian around and bother him, did you? You didn’t make him uncomfortable, right?

“No, what do you take me for? I wouldn’t treat a friend like that. Damian said he was fine!”

Lilliana giggled and twirled the phone cord.

“And I have a question…”

Lilliana hesitated, unlike her usual self, and Pascal spoke in a gentle tone.

—What is it? Go on, tell me.

“Can I… tell Damian about it… about that?”

—About what?

“My condition…”