The Sage that the Sword Saint is Obsessed With

15 – 4. Reunion (3)

1.

The sounds of the villagers celebrating victory gradually faded away.

“……”

“……”

As if they had just submerged into a lake, the sound became muffled, making the atmosphere dense.

In the silence, they faced each other. Contrary to the diminishing sense of hearing, vision became sharper, capturing each other’s figures vividly on the retina.

Eight years had passed.

Naturally, both had grown.

Evan’s round, baby wolf-like face, just starting to learn hunting, now appeared angular and mature like a sharp-witted wolf.

He had also grown taller. Until just before they parted, their eye levels matched, but now Leuen had to lift her chin to meet Evan’s gaze.

It wasn’t just height that had changed.

His body had become sturdy.

Although he hadn’t engaged in separate exercises.

The skeleton itself had grown, making his shoulders appear broader.

Evan scanned Leuen from top to bottom.

Except for the loss of chubby cheeks, resulting in a slender jawline and a hint of weariness, her face remained as Evan remembered.

If there was a notable change, it was in the length of her hair.

The hair that used to reach her shoulders now extended near her hips.

It looked even more voluminous and curly.

Whether her height had increased or not, Evan couldn’t tell, but her once frail and meager chest seemed to have swelled to the point of being distracting whenever she wielded a sword.

The pelvis had also widened, enhancing her femininity.

Is beauty still beauty as time passes?

He felt pathetic and foolish for having such thoughts about this woman, but he couldn’t deny that she was truly a beautiful woman.

When they had been staring at each other for a while, it was Raven who broke the silence.

“Sir Evan, this is the leader of our knight order.”

Time seemed to halt at Raven’s introduction.

As the muffled sounds clarified, the bustling noises around filled the ears.

“The leader?”

Raven, surprised, widened her eyes and lightly tapped the frozen shoulder of Lewin, who seemed dazed.

“Ah…”

Uncertain whether the person in front was real, fake, or just an illusion, Lewin shuddered.

“Huh? What?”

Still unsure if this was a dream or reality, Lewin blinked rapidly.

Wondering if he had forgotten about the reinforcements from the Sage’s Tower, Raven elaborated on the man standing before them.

“He’s the sorcerer from the Sage’s Tower who’s here to assist us. Please exchange greetings.”

Usually, before saying such things, they would shake hands and introduce themselves, but these two just stiffly stared at each other.

Raven couldn’t fathom why they weren’t conversing but just gazing.

“Uh…”

Lewin bit his lower lip and tucked his hair behind his ear.

Observing this, Evan made a facial expression.

Tucking hair like that was a reaction Lewin displayed when feeling embarrassed or flustered.

He felt impressive for still remembering these minute details.

He had thought he had forgotten.

But as he witnessed that action, memories started surfacing slowly.

Hidden memories started to peek out one by one.

“T-The…”

Lewin stuttered, closed his eyes tightly, and extended his hand forward. It was a gesture for a handshake.

“…”

Evan calmly looked at Lewin’s hand.

“Ah, um… H-hello!”

Trembling, Lewin greeted while shaking hands.

He was so tense that his voice faltered, and in the end, he even bit his tongue.

Lewin bowed deeply.

The face is burning.

It’s absurd that the first words spoken after such a long time together would be like this.

Raven, who was standing next to me, looked bewildered.

Master, I’ve never seen my sister like this before.

Even in front of nobles, she usually holds her head high with confidence, but to see her so tense like this…

…Is there something only I feel around her?

I glanced at Evan.

I don’t know.

I don’t feel any aura that makes people nervous.

Evan, who had been standing still, began to move.

“…Hic!”

As Evan approached, Lwen recoiled in surprise, like a startled puppy, and huddled her shoulders.

His hand remained outstretched.

It’s been a while since I could hold Evan’s hand.

It’s just a formal greeting.

But I can feel the warmth I’ve missed.

-Thump thump!

The sound of my heart beating is loud.

…Could Evan hear it?!

The thought made my face even hotter.

However.

Evan passed by Lwen.

“Uh, uh…?”

Lwen turned around.

Evan was heading out of the village.

“Ah…………”

Lwen sighed quietly.

She pulled her outstretched right hand back with her left hand.

She clenched her fist tightly to suppress the trembling heart.

…What was I expecting?

It was an audacious expectation.

Well, that’s true.

Even if it was just a greeting, did Evan really expect Ebba to shake his hand?

Not anticipating this reunion, he had driven nails into his heart with harsh words back then. He had told him to forget himself, as their bond had weakened.

Those words had torn Evan’s pride to shreds.

Even now, his face, filled with sadness and anger upon hearing those words, still occasionally haunted Raven’s dreams. He regretted saying such things to himself to the point of startling himself awake.

Despite knowing it was meaningless regret.

“Who the hell is that guy?”

Raven, staring at Evan’s retreating figure after rejecting the handshake, spoke with a rough tone.

“Come on, don’t…”

Llewellyn tried to intervene.

“No, sister. Even if someone has been holed up in the Sage’s Tower like a hermit for years, it’s not right to ignore people and dismiss them without a greeting… Wait, come to think of it, didn’t we exchange greetings quite normally when we met?”

They had clearly shaken hands and exchanged polite greetings.

That’s why Evan’s behavior was even more incomprehensible.

If he were a rude person, they could have cursed him for being that way, but since he wasn’t, it became ambiguous whether to curse him or not.

“Still, I have to say something. Ignoring other members might be one thing, but ignoring my sister is like ignoring our entire Order.”

Llewellyn tightly grabbed Raven’s arm, who was about to go after Evan.

“I told you not to…!”

Raven, who knew nothing, couldn’t understand why Llewellyn was acting this way.

“Why?”

“…”

Llewellyn sealed his lips tightly.

He couldn’t bring himself to speak about their relationship.

“…I’m tired. Don’t make a fuss over nothing.”

Llewellyn led Raven towards the inner part of the village, preventing him from confronting Evan.

Raven grimaced.

There was a lot of strength in Llewellyn’s hand holding his wrist. It seemed like it wasn’t just to prevent him from confronting Evan, but also to provide some strength to endure something.

2.

Evan, now outside the village, splashed water on his face for a quick wash.

“Ssueup… Hoo….”

My heart flutters.

What is this intense emotion?

Discomfort?

Anger?

Without a doubt, it was both.

The moment I saw Leven, my insides trembled.

Things I had barely started to forget rushed back all at once.

Especially, the memories of the day we parted, the ones I wanted to forget the most, surged first.

“I hate a voice that floats like mist. I hate soft hands like a girl’s. I hate a personality like a girl’s and hobbies too. I hate relying on me alone during battles, and I hate taking on missions and doing nothing. I hate not being good at magic. I hate not utilizing mana well. And above all, I hate being weak.”

The words that had been deeply embedded in my chest, rendering me numb, now began to resurface, causing pain.

“…I had a feeling, but…”

Looking at Raven, I thought she looked exactly like Leven.

Could she possibly be Leven’s younger brother?

I really didn’t know.

Although he hadn’t introduced himself as her younger brother, seeing the two of them together made it instantly clear that they were family.

“…Damn.”

Cursing, I cooled my anger.

In the past, I would have beaten anyone up, but now, I wasn’t the loser I used to be, so I substituted curses for action.

However, the anger didn’t easily subside.

“The world is disgustingly small.”

Sighing heavily, I closed my eyes while exhaling hot breath.

What should I do?

Living there for six months means I have to see Leven’s face for six months.

Naturally, I dislike it.

Even if we had parted amicably, who would like living in the same village and fighting together on the battlefield with an ex-girlfriend?

But there’s no turning back.

I made a promise to the sage.

For six months, I have to establish myself on the Southern Front, prove my abilities in magic, and become the next sage without embarrassing the current one.

“Ha…!”

Evan tousled his hair in frustration.

Feeling that staying there any longer would sour his emotions, he impulsively left the village, but he knew he had to return somehow.

“…It turned out for the better.”

Let’s think positively.

This is an opportunity to show that woman how much he has grown and how well he is living.

He will demonstrate that the man who was once belittled as weak has become a magician appointed by the sage as the next sage.

Even if it means shaking off this filthy curse-like feeling.

“Ha….”

Evan let out a deep sigh and returned with heavy footsteps.