Alnea chased after his friends, as they ran around in the Blood Hall, laughing and teasing each other. Sometimes, even kicking each other’s legs. But the grumpy Wanderers around them did not seem to like seeing other people happy. Probably because the jealousy bubbling within their chest. Unfortunately, the Star Seekers were outnumbered. And out-Ranked.

  Heeding the warnings given by over ten True Wanderers at once, the Star Seekers quickly made their way to the Blood Hall’s exit. Yet, the moment they were about the step out of the Blood Hall, they could not help slowing down their steps. Be it the ones running ahead, or the one chasing behind them, all came to a stop, with only one thought in their minds. They had come as a team, but were leaving as just friends.

  “…Is Captain crying again?”

  “…Ask that question after wiping the tears in your eyes.”

  “Tears? What tears? That is just my eyes acting up from all the dust that got in earlier.”

  “…Idiot.”

  “Hey! Who are you calling you an idiot? And do not change the topic, Captain. I just saw you crying again.”

  “I saw it too. Look, his eyes are still red.”

  “…Tsk. This is what happens when you spend too much time with women. You become weak.”

  “…Hey, Cecilia! Zain is—

  “Shut up! Are you tyring to get me killed?”

  “Who is weak now?”

  “…This is cheating!”

  “This is called using my head.”

  “…I seriously wonder how long this idiot can last in the inner city on his own.”

  “…Good thing he is going back to his clan then.”

  “…Somehow, that makes me worry even more about him.”

  “…And somehow, I agree with you.”

  “…Are you two doubting my abilities? If you have forgotten, then let me remind you that in the Final Trial, I took down thirty Peak Stage False Wanderers all by myself. That too, all at once.”

  “…Was it not twenty five Wanderers yesterday?”

  “And twenty the day before?”

  “At this rate, in a week, he will be saying that he took down all the enemies by himself.”

  “I remember Captain saying that he took down only ten to twelve enemies. And that too, only because Captain bought time for him to cast his Arcana.”

  “Then he got sucked dry by his own Arcana in just ten seconds.”

  “And had to be carried around like a doll—

  “You have gone too far!” Zain said, glaring at Ralph, causing him to flinch a little. And before the latter could say anything in his defence, the others betrayed him almost immediately.

  “…That’s indeed a bit too much, Ralph.”

  “There is a line that you just do not cross.”

  “…But you said the same thing!”

  “No, we were just teasing him.”

  “And you…”

  “You were digging up his wounds…”

  “…You…”

  Alnea glanced around at his friends, glaring at each other, and could not help himself from laughing out loud.

  “…What happened to him?”

  “Who knows? Maybe he has finally gone crazy.”

  “…I thought he was always crazy. Leading us against an enemy twenty times our number…”

  “…Are you still stuck on that? And were you not the first one to agree to his plan?”

  “…I never said that I was not crazy,” Norren said, joining Alnea in his laughter.

  “…Sometimes, I wonder how I am still alive with teammates like you.”

  “Come on,” Norren said, slapping Karl on his back. “It was not that bad.”

  “…Do you want me to remind you the amount of Blood Coins we spent in the past year on getting our wounds healed?”

  “But you were never suffered as much as the rest of us.”

  “That’s because I did not charge ahead like some idiot,” Karl said, rolling his eyes at Norren, but only got a grin in response.

  “…Admit it. You enjoyed the battles just as much as anyone else.”

  “…I did n—

  “Before you answer, just remember, that this may be the last time you see some of us,” Norren said, withdrawing his grin for a solemn face. “You know how perilous the path of Wanderers is. I cannot even count how many times I came close to death in just this past year. And our journey is going to get even more tough. Especially for some narcissists.”

  “…Worry about yourself. Unlike you, I was born to become a Supreme Wanderer.”

  “…How long do you think an idiot like him can live on his own?” Norren said, rolling his eyes at Zain. “Are you sure that the last thing you want them to remember about you, is a lie?”

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  “…Maybe a little.”

  “…I knew it,” Norren said, resuming his grin, before slapping Karl’s back once again, earning a glare for himself. But he did not care. “There is a Warrior within you.”

  “…How many times do I have to tell you?” Karl said through gritted teeth. “I am a Scholar!”

  “…I remember someone saying that he was an Arcanist when he first joined the team.”

  “…I meant Arcanist,” Karl said, feigning a cough to hide his embarrassment. In vain.

  “I lied,” Aren said with a smile. “You joined the team as a Scholar.”

  “…You can smile? I thought you could only grimace.”

  “…Me too,” Aren said, widening his smile into a grin. “Me too.”

  “…This just shows that there is so much more for us to learn,” Alnea said, as the gloominess in his Heart blossomed into a smile warmer than Enn. “Both, about ourselves, and about the world.”

  “…Is Captain going into his philosophical mode again?”

  “Is he really a few years younger than us?”

  “I wonder where he gets all his weird ideas from.”

  “You mortals would not understand. For geniuses like us, ideas come as naturally as breathing. Unfortunately, he is wasting all his talent on chasing after—

  “Who is wasting his talent?” Vestia said, almost scaring Zain into a jump. “Who are you talking about?”

  “…Me. I was talking about myself.”

  “Really?”

  “Of course. You know me. I would never lie about such things.”

  “Hmm… I guess you are not wrong. Had you spent half the effort you spend on showing off in your training, then you would not have been stuck at just the Second Level, and let Yuri catch up with you.”

  “…You are right,” Zain said, nodding solemnly. “I will redouble my efforts when I go back to my clan.”

  In return, Vestia just nodded with a smile, while the rest of the boys burst out into a laugh. Even Yuri let out a smile, leaving just Cecilia standing there in confusion.

  “…What happened?” Cecilia said, glancing around in a daze. “What is so funny about what he said?”

  “…Nothing,” Alnea said, shaking his head, as he restrained his laugh into a smile, before glancing at his friends. At the Star Seekers. “I will miss you bastards…”

  “…Miss us?” Ralph said, feigning a shiver. “When did you become so corny, Captain?”

  “…This is what happens when you spend too much time with girls,” Zain said, stepping away from Alnea. And the girls. “I always knew they were trouble.”

  “…I do not know about the girls, but that sure did not sound right to me,” Norren said, following Zain’s actions. “Maybe the pressure has finally broken him.”

  “…He is not thinking about kissing us, right?”

  “…Please. I would rather go back to the Final World.”

  “…Forget it,” Alnea said with snort, as Karl barely dodged his kick. “You bastards do not deserve any goodbyes.”

  “It was a joke. A joke.”

  “Of course, we know that you only like girls.”

  “That too, not one, but three!”

  “I truly admire you, Captain.”

  “How do you keep them from fighting each other?”

  “You bastards…”

  “Hey! You cannot hit us, Captain. Technically, we are still in the Blood Hall.”

  “That’s right. You better watch your legs, or the city will punish you.”

  “…I should have left you bastards in the Final World.”

  “Stop bluffing, Captain.”

  “We know you would have never done that.”

  “You are too soft for your own good.”

  “Maybe this is why they like you.”

  “…I was wrong,” Alnea said after a moment of silence, trying his best to not glance at the girls. “I never should have chosen you bastards as my teammates in the first place.”

  “The how would you have made all those memories with us?”

  “Or reach the inner city?”

  “Maybe, you would not even have gotten the chance to kiss.”

  “Speaking of kissing, why don’t you kiss once again, Captain?”

  “That’s right. A farewell kiss.”

  “…What farewell kiss? They are coming with me!”

  “Not for them, for us.”

  “…Get lost!”

  “Come on. Don’t be shy. It is just a kiss.”

  “It is not like you have never kissed before.”

  “Treat it as the last thing we ask of you.”

  “Just one kiss.”

  “…But whom will he kiss?”

  “Whom, indeed.”

  “…You bastards are just trying to get me killed!” Alnea said, cursing the bastards whom he called his friends a thousand times in his Heart. Could they not feel the terrifying glares coming from their side? Or did they think that the Blood Hall would save them? And why were they trying to drag him with themselves? No, not drag. These bastards were pushing into the pits of despair.

  “What are you thinking?”

  Alnea gulped, and glanced at the girls, who had come behind him at soe point.

  “Ignore these bastards. They are just messing around.”

  “It is alright,” Vestia said, flashing her dimples at him. “I also want to know the answer to their question.”

  “As expected of a vixen…”

  “Do not tell me that you are not curious.”

  “…I am not a pervert like you,” Cecilia said with a snort, but did not forget to sneak glances at Alnea. “But if it is just to answer a question…”

  “…The question is indeed intriguing,” Yuri added. “Which one of us are you going to choose?”

  “…Can I choose all three?”

  Alnea got his answer in the form of a kick to his shin, and either side of his wait being pinched at the same time, along with three glares full of disgust.

  “What do you think?”

  Alnea gulped, as he glanced between the three girls, unable to come to a decision. The chants of ‘kiss’, coming from behind him were not helping him either. And neither were the stares from all the Wanderers around him. Including that from Nubia, Tia, and Daes. Especially Daes, who seemed to be enjoying his dilemma. But he did not have much time to think.

  The dissatisfaction on the faces of the girls was growing, as was the strength with which they were pinching his waist. And his robe had long failed him. In the end, for the sake of his flesh not being torn off of his waist, he did the only logical thing he could. Pull all three girls into a hug.

  “Let go, pervert!”

  “I won’t,” Alnea said, further tightening his grip. He even blessed himself with Oren. Though it did not look like he needed to. Yuri and Vestia put up only a symbolic resistance, and while Cecilia did try to push him away first, she gave up soon after. But they did not shy away from showing dissatisfaction on their faces. Or in their words.

  “And what exactly do you think you are doing?”

  “…I am doing what I should have done a long time ago,” Alnea said, trying his best to ignore the bastards cheering him on. “Marking myself on you.”

  “…Can I take this as a confession?”

  “No,” Alnea said, loosening his grip slightly, before kissing Vestia on her lips. “This is.”

  “You… Everyone is watching us.”

  “Good. Let them watch,” Alnea said with a grin, and kissed once again. This time, on Cecilia’s lips.

  “…Pervert,” Cecilia mumbled, but did not resist. Though she did blush fiercely, before burying her face in his chest. Just Vestia on his right. The only one who still staring at him was Yuri.

  “Did you get your answer?”

  “…Not yet.”

  Alnea leaned in and pressed his lips against hers. Just a soft touch, like how he had kissed Cecilia and Vestia. Not the wild, passionate kiss he had shared with her in the Final World. But that soft touch was enough for their Hearts to connect.

  “How about now?”

  Yuri’s answer got drowned out by the loud claps and cheers of the bastards, but she did not need to say anything out loud. The moment their eyes met, he already knew what she was trying to say.

  “…I love you too.”