Chapter 132: Crepes

“I was thinking, maybe we should clarify things. We can’t just let these strange rumors fly around. Setting the Apostles aside for now, it’s not the right time to release information about the Angel. If some people with ulterior motives take advantage of this gap, the losses will outweigh the gains.”

“Mm… that’s true. Do you need me to write it?”

Although she rarely put much effort into managing her social media accounts, Ephnel could easily post a clarifying statement or just state the facts.

All it would take was a picture or two and a few dozen words of text.

If she wrote it like she was on a trip, she could easily whip up a long post.

Anyway, the specific details would be released through the official account.

As the “Agent Idol,” Ephnel just needed to make her presence known.

And maybe she could ask Yukina for help.

That would be another chance to get closer to Yukina, and maybe she could get a legitimate photo with her.

Ephnel remembered that it had been a very long time since she and Yukina had been in a picture together.

Although she took a lot of photos herself and had some candid shots of Yukina, she still wanted a special photo of just the two of them.

“Mm… that could work.”

Yonomori Nami nodded.

“But if it’s inconvenient for you, Ephnel, don’t force yourself. I’ll make the arrangements. In any case, it’s necessary to address it.”

“Don’t worry, a small thing like this is no problem.”

Yonomori Nami took out her phone, glanced at it, and frowned slightly.

“Sorry, Ephnel… I have to go, I have something else to do…”

“Go on, bye-bye.”

“I hope you recover soon. See you~”

Yonomori Nami left with the bouquets that had been sitting there all day and were no longer fresh.

The hospital room became quiet again.

Ephnel gazed at the quietly blooming flowers, the expression on her face fading.

The sky outside had brightened up a little, but the rain showed no signs of letting up.

The constant pitter-patter of raindrops on the windowpane and the monotonous ticking of the monitoring equipment were the only two sounds in the room.

It was so quiet you could hear your own breathing.

Ephnel sighed softly, her brow furrowing slightly.

She wondered if this was normal during the healing process, but the injuries on her body felt even more painful than yesterday.

She sat quietly on the hospital bed, gently closing her eyes, feeling the residual warmth that silently flowed through the air.

Although she didn’t want to admit it, Ephnel still tasted a hint of bitterness.

The atmosphere in the hospital was oppressive, and the heavy air made it difficult for Ephnel to breathe. She didn’t like it.

The feeling of having her sight taken from one eye made her uneasy, as if half of her world had suddenly disappeared.

And more than that, through her blind right eye, Ephnel caught a glimpse of her own end.

Today, it was her right eye.

What would it be next time?

Was she really prepared to die? After she had finally gotten together with Yukina.

Even if she could come to terms with it, it was too unfair to Yukina.

The more she thought, the further she was from a solution.

Yukina, her parents, Masaki Hinaki, Ayse, and the others were all people who cared about her.

So she didn’t want them to be sad and disappointed because of their concern.

That’s why she had put on a brave face in front of them, as if nothing was wrong.

As long as she didn’t show her pain and sadness, their faces wouldn’t be written with sorrow either.

But in fact, the current situation was not easy for Ephnel at all.

The questions brought by the Apostles, what happened to Seiran, what was happening with Yukina, and what Masaki Hinaki had mentioned about the future.

Every single one of them kept Ephnel from sleeping.

It was past six in the evening when Yukina arrived at the hospital room.

She stood panting in front of Ephnel’s door, clutching her tote bag tightly, trying to calm her breathing.

She wiped the fine beads of sweat from her forehead, tidied her clothes and her windblown hair, and rubbed her sore legs.

Only then did she take a step forward.

Clutching the tote bag in her hand with trepidation, Yukina pushed open the door.

“Excuse me…”

Upon entering, Yukina realized the lights were off.

On a gloomy, rainy day, the unlit room looked like a completely different world from the bright hospital corridor.

Yukina hung her umbrella on the side, leaving wet footprints.

“Naoko…”

Naoko sat on the hospital bed, her gaze turning to Yukina.

At that moment, in the dim light, Yukina’s mind went blank for a second.

Looking at the quiet girl on the bed, she felt as if none of this was real.

“Are you cold? Come sit.”

Ephnel’s gaze was as gentle as ever as she smiled at Yukina.

Yukina looked at Ephnel, at the tightly wrapped gauze around her right eye, and her heart ached once more.

She tightened her grip on the tote bag’s strap and looked away.

“Naoko… why aren’t the lights on?”

With a click, the warm light illuminated the side of Ephnel’s bandaged face.

The white gauze turned a fluorescent yellow, and Ephnel squinted at Yukina standing by the door.

To accommodate Ephnel’s eye injury, the doctors had specially installed this warm-light lamp.

“I don’t really need it… so I didn’t turn it on.”

Ephnel said.

In fact, after Yonomori Nami left, no one else had come to the room.

Ephnel had been sitting here alone, lost in thought, so there was no need to turn on the lights.

Because of what happened yesterday, the doctors and nurses in the hospital were very busy.

If Ephnel didn’t make a request, they would only come by at fixed times, check on her condition, and then leave.

And so, Ephnel had sat there for two hours without realizing it.

In the afternoon, the light from outside had provided enough illumination, but now, at past six, it was barely enough.

But for Ephnel, who had been in silent stillness, the change made no difference.

“Yukina, did anything happen on your way here?”

“Huh?”

“It seems to have taken you longer than usual.”

“I… I heard there was a new crepe shop with good reviews… I thought you might like it, Naoko, so I went to buy some… Sorry for making you wait so long.”

Yukina took out the crepes she had bought, looking at Ephnel with a hint of guilt.

Having told a small lie, Yukina nervously gripped her tote bag.

Taking over an hour to buy crepes, no one would probably believe that, would they?

In fact, Yukina had gone to pick out a gift.

—But in the end, she had come back with nothing.

It was so difficult.