Tensei Oujo wa Kyou mo Hata o Tatakioru Chapter 88

Chapter 88

*Continued Bianca von Diebold’s point of view.

“…Of course. I get along well with Mary, you know?” I said teasingly.

   There was a slight hesitation because I couldn’t relate ‘princess’ to the girl I spent time with on the ship.

   Mary was smart and mature, but she also had a cute side suitable for someone her age. She was easy to talk to. Even if you say she’s a princess, I for one couldn’t see it.

“Is that so.”

“That’s right. How could I ever let go of someone that cute.”

“You totally dote on the Princess, don’t you.” Kukuku. Michael let out a stifled laugh.

“I thought she was a princess straight out of a book.”

   While I doubted myself for possibly exaggerating, it wasn’t entirely untrue either. Sometimes, what I felt was even stranger than those fairy tales.

“And it’s not only her appearance that’s beautiful. She’s also kindhearted on the inside too. I was surprised. On top of being a brilliant girl, she is not haughty nor arrogant at all.”

“Yeah. The princess is amazing. She doesn’t admit it, but she really is,” Michael said.

   I thought that was a funny way of putting it, but I knew what he meant.

   Mary didn’t look down on anyone. She treated them all equally with sincerity but would not hesitate to protect them using her own status.

   If you lined up her actions together, they would seem rather inconsistent.

“She worked her hardest to help us, and not once did she utter the word ‘royalty’. A girl younger than me was doing that so naturally, as if she was just breathing. I honestly thought it was amazing, but at the same time, I felt ashamed of myself,” Michael frowned as if he had swallowed something bitter.

   I didn’t know if I should call out to him.

“Michael…”

“I have a power that no one else has. It’s limited and difficult to use, but it has the potential to save someone. However, to me, this power is nothing but a curse,” Michael dropped his gaze and clasped his hands together.

“Even if I helped anyone, they would surely reject me. Even if I healed them, they would be angry. ‘Get away from us. We don’t want to be touched by a monster.’ If that’s the case, then I won’t use it. I told myself that I could still help people even without these abilities.”

   I couldn’t blame him for being scared.

   The Kingdom of Nabel didn’t look well upon those who were born with magical powers. They were immediately branded as heretics. It is a human instinct to

fear the unknown and avoid potential danger, so it was simply impossible for others to come to terms with magicians through words alone.

    Of all the people Michael had saved, I couldn’t imagine anyone that would express any grat.i.tude towards him. No, rather, there were probably many that feared him instead.

“But all that was a lie. I averted my eyes from it all. I turned my eyes away and denied lives that could’ve been saved.”

“That’s not…!”

   ‘That’s not true!’ I wanted to say, but somehow those words were stuck in my throat. Michael kept his head down and slowly shook his head.

“Of course it is. Those who caught a cold and died, those that were injured and lost their lives; all those people all over the world. I could’ve saved them.”

“You can’t save everyone! This is reality, not an ideal world!”

“I know. But those words can only be said by people who had actually put in the effort.”

“But…”

“At least, it’s not something someone like me who closes his eyes and waits for everything to resolve itself could say. Also, the princess would never give up and accept that kind of failure. Even if she didn’t know that she could be rescued, even in the face of danger, the words ‘It couldn’t be helped.’ would never escape her lips.”

   Michael finally raised his face. His eyes were like a calm lake without wind.

   While looking at him, I remembered a girl who once gave the same look.

   Mary didn’t lose determination when she was attacked, nor when her life was in danger. She overcame her fears, clenched her teeth and stood up for herself.

   This is a rhetorical question, but what would Mary have done if Klaus weren’t saved?

   Would she say that ‘It couldn’t be helped?’ What if someone were to tell her to differentiate between ideals and reality? No, if someone said that to her, she would have never accepted it in her lifetime.

   She won’t stop and think that she had done all she could. I was sure she would go as far as blaming everything on herself and herself alone.

“Truthfully, there’s no one out there who is prepared for everything. Even if the outcome isn’t what I wanted, or even if I don’t get any rewards out of it, I will still try my hardest. It seems that I finally understand now,” Michael gently whispered.

“I’ve decided that no matter how many times I get rejected, or how much I’m hated, I will keep moving forward. I tumble and fall because I’m weak… but those

those mistakes also brought me so much happiness.”

   Up to this point, Michael relaxed a little to stifle the stressed atmosphere. His cheeks were dyed a faint red from genuine happiness.

“I befriended my teacher. Mrs. Irene the Royal Head Magician is strict on the surface, but deep down she is extremely kind. She’s always worried for me. Speaking of friends… Although he knew of my powers, Georg didn’t shun me out nor did he hate me. I guess that’s just who he is. I have never shown them my powers, but I’m sure they will accept me without a doubt.”

“Is that so…” I got caught up in his speech and started to laugh.

   The idea of my cute little brother being independent is depressing, but I was more than happy. Even if I wasn’t around, this boy wouldn’t be alone anymore. I wouldn’t be lying if I said I was proud of him.

“I think I have been looking at the world through a twisted perspective. There are many scary things in this world, but there are also as many good things. Some people will accept me and some will not, and that’s okay. If someone were to reject me, I would be able to understand why…that’s what I… believed…”

   Michael’s shaken voice finally broke its composure.

   Large droplets fell from his indigo eyes like twilight rain. It didn’t stop and kept pouring out of him.

   For some reason, Michael covered his face with both of his hands and curled up into a ball with his face resting on his knees.

“Michael?”

   I hurriedly dropped down from the bed and rushed over to him. The mattress bounced and shook Klaus, but I didn’t care about that.

   Once I stood in front of him, I grabbed both of his shoulders and stared straight into his face.

   I couldn’t see the expression hidden behind his hands. However, the droplets that escaped through his fingers clearly conveyed his feelings.

“Michael…”

“I’m… alright…”

“…?”

   I couldn’t make out his voice because it was filled to the brim with emotion.

   Before I could ask him to repeat himself, Michael raised his face.

“…!”

   It caught me by surprise. I thought that he would be hiding a sad, clouded face under a pained smile.

   On the contrary, Michael gave a blissful laugh.

   The corners of his mouth loosened as his cheeks were dyed an even deeper red. He was laughing as if to show how glad he was.

“She said ‘Thank you.’” Michael uttered joyfully, his face like that of a child who had found their beloved treasure. “‘Thank you for saving someone dear

someone dear to me, Michael.’ The princess grabbed my hands and said her thanks with tears down her face.”

   Ah, Michael was gratified. I finally understood.

   That day, the child who Father shunned and frightened Mother finally got the words he had always yearned for. What Michael had always wanted was not praise nor respect. Neither was it position and honour, much less money. Just a single phrase; ‘Thank you’was enough.

“…That’s good. I’m happy for you, Michael.” I wrapped my arms around him as he sat on the chair.

   A grin naturally found its way on my lips. My heart was filled with joy, not sadness, and the blurred loneliness I had before happily melted away. Everything was going to be alright.

“Yes, sis. I’m glad I have these abilities.”

“I see.”

   The crying Michael that hid behind me all the time was long gone. He was walking his own path now, filled with determination. Steadily advancing step by step on a journey where he would meet many more people that were dear to him.

“You’ll be fine without your sister, won’t you?”

“…Sis?”

   Michael wanted to raise his head, but I held him down with my arms.

   I didn’t want him to see my face.

“I’ve been a terrible sister. I just hampered on your freedom. I came here to see you, but it’d be hard to pa.s.s off my reasons as anything else but my own selfishness.”

   I shouldn’t have doted on him so much and instead should have believed in him.

   Finally, I understood.

“I must have been very annoying to you. I’m sorry.”

“Sis.”

“But I was worried, you know? You are so pure, I didn’t want you to be caught up with some weird woman. But it seems that you have a good eye, so it was alright.”

“Sis.”

“I won’t say anything from now on. You are free to do whatever-”

“Sister!”

   After he shouted at me, I was forced to separate him from my arms.

   Before I knew it, Michael had become so strong. The days when I used to protect him had already pa.s.sed.

   I’m happy. You’re so reliable. I’m so proud of you, Michael. My precious little brother.

“Sis… please don’t cry.”

“…Eh?” I let out a startled voice. Michael’s hands touched my cheeks and wiped away the droplets that trickled down my face.

   It seemed that I was crying. Why, I wonder.

“I’ve never thought of you as annoying, sis.”

“That’s right. You’ve always been so kind.”

   I curled my lips as I doubted my own words, and Michael became angry.

“No, the kind one isn’t me, but this sister of mine. She hugged her little brother her little brother when he cried and always stood by his side. I ask you, sister, why do you want to push me away?”

“Michael?”

“I love you. If it weren’t for you, sis, I would’ve been done in a long time ago. The reason that I’m still here is because you’ve given me so much love, you know?”

   I was suddenly hugged by the thin and unreliable body that now belonged to a man.

“Because I love you, I didn’t want to become a burden.”

“Now I’m angry! I’ve never thought of you as a burden! Not even once!” I raised my face towards the words I didn’t want to hear.

   As he stared down at me, his face broke into a tender smile.

“Yes, I know. But you know, I want you to be happy. I want you to start thinking about your own happiness instead of worrying for me all the time.”

“…Is that why you ran away without saying anything?”

“If I did, you would’ve tried to stop me.”

   When I looked at him with widened eyes, Michael simply returned a wry smile and pulled my head closer to his.

“You know, sis. I can’t walk behind you in your shadow forever. Once you start to look for your own happiness, I promise to be strong enough to see you off on your own journey.”

   I wonder why I couldn’t say that I was truly happy.

   My happiness is to remain your sister. I wanted to stand by your side, along with the person you chose as your partner. If I could hold your child in my arms, then I wouldn’t ask for anything else in the world.

   But you said that it would not be my own happiness.

   You wanted me to find somebody that I thought was just as important as you and hold them dear. Just so that I could broaden my own horizons, right?

   You’ve grown stronger, Michael.

   Your sister is lonely, but she’s very happy right now.

“Please find someone that will take care of you. If that person is willing to put up with you even after you annoy them so much, then you can have my blessings.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I will send you off with ‘Please take care of my sister’ and a smile to match.”

   I pinched his red nose.

“That’s too cheeky even for my little brother.”

   If that future is waiting for you, then this pain in my heart will not have been in vain.

   I whispered to myself as I shed a tear of laughter together with my precious little brother.