"'Thank you'? Shouldn't it be 'I'm relieved'?"
Cid rarely heard Alise say thank you.
Even last time—when she'd messed up, got beaten to tears by Lady Astrea, then came to him for comfort—she hadn't said thanks.
"…Maybe it's because the weight you carry in my heart is heavier than I expected, Cid."
Alise answered half-jokingly.
Last night, all kinds of emotions had surged up inside her.
Looking back now, she was even afraid she might've truly lost control.
Cid surviving wasn't just "someone important returned from the brink"—it also meant she'd avoided the possibility of walking down a crooked path.
Now that she could see he was safe, she could throw last night's emotions into the back of her mind and go back to being her righteous captain.
Protecting everyone's smiles—when she was clear-headed, that was the only road she ever wanted to walk.
But she couldn't say any of that out loud.
Even a brute-strength girl like a "red-haired gorilla" could still get embarrassed.
"If you smile a little dumber, Sis, you'll be back to normal."
Cid finally relaxed too.
He didn't know what had happened, but when Alise first came in, her aura had been off.
Now she was much closer to herself.
"Who are you calling 'dumb-smiling'? Is that really how you see me?"
"What else would I see?"
"…Cid. Be glad you're still injured."
"I already transferred Familia. You can't hit me anymore."
"Don't tell me you left because of that?"
"Of course not—I said no! Let go already!"
Alise bit down hard on Cid's hand.
"Hard" only in attitude—she didn't actually use strength.
The end result was just Cid's hand covered in saliva.
"Alright! The most beautiful, most confident me is back!"
Alise returned to her usual state, wearing the same grin she would absolutely never admit was a dumb smile.
There was still work to do. She couldn't stay here long.
But before she left, there was one thing she needed.
"Cid… that Tyrant's slash still couldn't kill you. So from now on, you won't just die so easily, right?"
"Of course. I won't become a memory."
"Then it's a promise. Come on—this ritual was something you taught me."
Alise hooked her pinky.
"That was when we were kids. How old are we now?"
Cid sighed and linked pinkies anyway.
In the Japanese version, it's not "pinky swear, hang by the hook, a hundred years, don't you break"—that vow is too light.
In emotion-like-a-black-hole Japan, if you break a promise, you cut off a finger and swallow a thousand needles.
"Then it's settled."
Alise left with the same smile as always.
Cid had been thinking maybe he could slip away, but the time he got alone was short.
First came Mary, who entered to examine him.
Mary—nicknamed the "Starlight Madonna"—was the Astrea Familia's only dedicated healer, and her skill ranked among the best in all Orario.
Cid, however, knew Mary didn't like being called "Madonna."
"Big Sis Mary… could you not glare at my wound while grinding your teeth? It's kind of scary."
"Little bro Cid, you know me. Every time I see someone hurt, I want to kill everyone who harmed them. This time I hate it even more—because I can't beat the one who hurt you."
Usually gentle like a big sister, Mary didn't hide the disgust and hatred on her face at all.
She had two sides—perfect for a healer, and completely unfit to be one.
But one thing was certain:
She hated death more than anyone, and feared it more than anyone.
"…Alright. Now rest properly. You should be able to get out of bed tomorrow."
When the healing ended, Mary regained her usual big-sister gentleness.
"That's good. Lying here all day is miserable."
"Cid… even if your vitality is stronger than I expected, you can't do things this dangerous again. Otherwise…"
She didn't finish. She packed up and left.
"Otherwise what?!"
Cid hated people who stopped mid-sentence.
Before he could stew for long, Kaguya arrived—bringing Ryuu with her.
The two who normally clashed at every turn looked completely different right now.
Kaguya was bristling with anger.
Ryuu kept her head lowered.
"Cid, we're all busy—no time. Help me scold this useless elf."
With that, Kaguya strode to his bedside and swung a slap.
"Eek… huh?"
Cid didn't dodge. He only closed his eyes—yet felt no pain.
When he opened them, Kaguya's palm was just 0.01 centimeters from his face.
"Pat."
In the end, she only lightly tapped his cheek.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Since you didn't die, I won't slap you today. But if you go and die casually next time… don't complain about it hurting then."
Her prank successful, Kaguya left with a satisfied smile.
"If I'm dead, who's afraid of pain?"
Cid couldn't help imagining a ridiculous scene—
At his funeral, Kaguya slaps him—right there in the coffin.
Is that something a human being would do?
Cid could already picture her and Alise throwing hands at the wake.
Don't do that at my funeral!
And besides, the Astrea Familia had already prepared themselves for sacrifice in the first place.
Cid knew it too: aside from Ryuu, the others had already chosen graves for themselves on the 18th Floor of the Dungeon.
So why was he the only one not allowed to die?
Sure, he wouldn't die anyway—but that wasn't the point.
"Cid… are you okay?"
Ryuu crept closer carefully.
"I'm fine. Ryuu, sit. What happened on your end?"
Cid noticed Ryuu looked lost—her eyes unfocused, her thoughts scattered.
Kaguya might be hot-tempered, but she was still fairly reasonable.
If Ryuu had irritated her enough that Kaguya didn't even want to deal with it, then Ryuu's state had to be bad.
"…A lot happened. Thank goodness you didn't die, Cid."
"Tell me. I've got nothing to do anyway."
Cid sighed, preparing to listen.
For some reason, whenever these girls had problems, they all liked to come dump them on him.
He truly didn't want to hear it—but he also worried they'd have to talk and he'd have to listen. It was driving him crazy.
"…So, here's the thing…"
Ryuu began describing how her mindset had shifted.
Like Alise, she'd been close to breaking last night.
As a high-minded elf, her heart had once been filled with hatred.
And this morning—after an entire night without rest—she saw Orario in ruins.
The sight stole her breath.
"Cid, you were a major contributor. Thanks to you, the Flame Stones the Evilus side prepared didn't accomplish much."
Evilus still stole the trigger device, and produced some explosive Flame Stones.
But because Orario had advance intelligence, they launched an ambush first, then made the information about the Flame-Stone bombs public.
Residents and adventurers alike were mentally prepared, so the Flame Stones' effect was limited.
Otherwise… no one knew how many civilians and adventurers would've died.
As Ryuu spoke, Cid's expression turned deadly serious.
"Ryuu, if you call me a 'major contributor' again, I'll stab my own ears deaf."
"Huh? Why? Isn't that something to be proud of?"
"Just don't say it!"
"…Okay…"
Interrupted, Ryuu went blank for a moment and forgot the lines she'd prepared.
After a long silence, she finally continued.
"Cid… what do you think justice is?"
....
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