Chapter 31: The Watcher in Silence.

In fact, what had driven Cynthia’s actions so far was merely an irrational blind faith.

A belief that the ‘Teacher’ she knew could never fail like that.

A conviction that there must have been some kind of arrangement.

Although there was no evidence to support that thought,
Although all circumstances pointed to the death of the most precious person….

She did not give up.

The days they spent together.
The meaning of life he had taught her.
Memories that were never forgotten for a moment were her guide and milestone.

She had not repaid anything she had received from the teacher yet,
Even if it took years, decades, she had no intention of giving up.

Thanks to that, Cynthia finally reached the truth she had been searching for so much.

Confirmation that the teacher was alive.
The magical power connected to a part of him was still connected to somewhere in this world.

At the moment she confirmed that fact, she really….

Only suppressed emotions that she couldn’t describe.

After that, Cynthia had only one thing to do.

To find the whereabouts of the teacher, who was clearly alive but had disappeared somewhere.

But even that was not an easy task.

She was clearly an ability user who naturally memorized over a thousand magical formulas and had the power to burn down a colony of mutant species with a single gesture…

But even that power was not very helpful in finding someone.

The teacher’s whereabouts had completely disappeared.

She thought that his actions, which were so meticulous and planned that they fooled even the children who were close to him, must have had the presence of an assistant.

Therefore, Cynthia focused on investigating Seo Jin’s past relationships.

His friends, colleagues, and even passing acquaintances.

She devoted herself for days, weeks, and months, checking all traces that might have reached the teacher.

Cynthia’s investigation did not exclude even his old comrades.

Acquaintances who were in the same unit when the teacher was in the Allied Forces.

As much as they had built trust on the battlefield, there was a high possibility that they would become reliable assistants.

In the past, Seo Jin had been in the ability user combat support corps.

A small detachment of the Allied Forces that fought alongside the Aegis, the most important force of humanity.

He was also a member of the ‘Dawn Unit’, which had achieved remarkable achievements as a support squad for ‘Arciel Daylight’, the strongest Aegis of the time.

However, after Arcel’s death, her support unit was also naturally disbanded, and all the squad members were transferred to other units and scattered.

Some of them, like Seo Jin, had either completely discharged from the Allied Forces or changed their affiliation and transferred to other headquarters.

One of those people was ‘Sergeant Jenny Terris’.

She was Seo Jin’s old comrade.

Her affiliation after the transfer was the Defense Forces Intelligence Command.
She was still in the military, making use of her experience and skills.

However, Jenny, whom Cynthia found, was already on the verge of death due to an attack by someone at the time.

Cynthia didn’t really know the details of her situation and didn’t want to get involved, but she helped her because of the possibility that she might be related to the teacher.

“… Are you, Seo Jin’s…?”

However, as she was already fatally wounded, she was unable to even have a proper question and answer and died, leaving only one request.

“Give this… to Dr. Selena….”

Unexpectedly, she recognized Cynthia at a glance and handed her something that she had not let go of even covered in blood, asking her to deliver it to someone on her behalf.

It was an external memory.

A storage device containing evidence of corruption that had been instigated internally to make the Allied Forces’ large-scale operation planned several years ago fail.

That was what had been passed on to Seo Jin now-

“Yes, that was exactly a year ago.”

Back to the present.

Seo Jin was listening quietly to the story the other person was telling.

He swallowed his complicated feelings for a moment and asked again.

“So, the data contained in that memory is….”

“Yes, it’s the original file that I gave to the teacher.”

A clue related to Arcel’s death.

The mystery of why Cynthia had it has now been solved.

To think that she had investigated his acquaintances and it had been passed on in that way.

The information that finally returned to Seo Jin was… the blood price of his old comrade who had lost his life while uncovering the truth in an unknown place.

Surely, if any of the Dawn Unit members had discovered such a clue of suspicion, they would never have given up. Everyone had been indebted to Arcel in some way, big or small…

Upon learning the truth, Seo Jin felt an unknown weight on his heart.

It was a kind of responsibility. It was an outburst of revenge that had become even more important than the lives sacrificed.

But now was not the time to get caught up in such emotions.

There were still unresolved questions in the story.

Therefore, Seo Jin asked again.

“That was a year ago?”

Cynthia nodded lightly.

If the story was true… it didn’t make sense.

From the point of securing the clues to this extent, there was no reason why it would take a year to find Seo Jin.

Given Cynthia’s determination and capabilities that she had shown so far, surely a few weeks, or even a few days, would have been enough.

Why didn’t Cynthia appear to him immediately after catching the clues and waited?

Seo Jin couldn’t understand that part.

Why did she tell him all this now?

If she had taught him a little earlier, if it had been a year ago-

At least the time he had left would have been a little more….

In response to that question, Cynthia simply looked into Seo Jin’s eyes.

Her expression reflected beyond the met gaze.

A torrent of complex emotions swirled in her eyes.

“I told you. I was watching over you, teacher.”

= 1 year ago =

Cynthia finally,
Found the teacher she had been searching for so much.

He was there.
Within reach if she ran a little,
In a position where she could meet his eyes if she just turned her head slightly…

He hadn’t found this side yet… but even so, he would hear if she called him.
It was a distance she could reach if she approached.

The face she had feared she would never see again,
Hair,
Eyes and lips,
A rarely smiling expression,
Even so, the appearances that touched her heart so much when he gave her a smile from time to time…

He was still alive and remained in this world.

But…. Cynthia’s heart became so complicated.

She was relieved, but she was also angry and anxious at the same time.

The teacher’s appearance living in an unfamiliar place looked so ordinary.

The fact that he had left Cynthia’s side and was enjoying a normal daily life… she hesitated because she didn’t even want to guess what that meant.

She couldn’t immediately run into his comforting arms, and she couldn’t come forward and ask why he had deceived them, so she hesitated.

Because she was anxious.

Perhaps, if there was really even one in a million chance that there was something wrong with her in the reason why he left…

If he hated this side so much that he disappeared without saying goodbye…

She felt like she couldn’t bear it.

So, she hesitated even though she had found the person she had been searching for so much right in front of her.

One day, two days, three days.

At some point, watching him from afar, she realized.

What the reason why he left was,
She could know the identity of the secret he wanted to hide while disappearing without saying a word.

The identity of the medicine he sometimes took.
The gestures of enduring pain from time to time even while living a daily life.
Even the fact that the things he was getting from somewhere were infection suppressants…

With that, Cynthia instantly deduced all the circumstances.

With the outstanding understanding of the girl who was always praised for being smart.

The fate of parting that was determined from the beginning,
She also realized with what thoughts the teacher did not return.

Surely he didn’t want the people he was leaving to be sad.
He thought that he didn’t want to hurt the precious relationship even more.

‘If that’s the case, if that’s really the case….’

The moment she realized all the truth, Cynthia felt a deep sense of loss, as Seo Jin had worried.

She felt more resentment than ever for the fate that was already set to part, even though she had met him again.

She was so sad that she just wanted to sit down and cry.

At the same time, she wanted to run out and hug him right away.

She wanted to stay by his side.
She wanted to be with him.

She didn’t want to let go of a single moment until the last moment of the given time.

But Cynthia hesitated and hesitated.

Then she finally couldn’t approach the teacher.

She still couldn’t accept his decision to choose to disappear alone,

Nevertheless… if that’s really what the teacher wants…

Really, although it was difficult to bear to the point of tears,
Cynthia, the teacher’s kind and proud student, could not deny that choice.

The teacher always makes the right decisions.

The reason why he wanted to be alone at the end must be because he didn’t want to leave sadness to the children who were so precious.

Cynthia also thought that it was rather right not to appear in front of him.

Consideration that even suppressed her own heart.

It was the thought that she didn’t want to give even a little burden to the person preparing for rest.

The reason why Cynthia didn’t give him the information of doubt was the same.

Because she knew what the ‘old lover’ meant to the teacher.

If Cynthia showed him this, he would surely try to challenge the difficult revenge no matter what his remaining time was.

The teacher’s rest, who had been quietly preparing for the end even while leaving everyone, would be broken.

So, everything was a choice for the teacher.

The desire to be with him right away.

The hope that she wanted to hold his hand and not be separated even for a moment until the very end.

All the time she just endured and endured, just to watch him from afar, was for him…

But-

“This is what the teacher did wrong.”

Because she had endured so much,
At least the role of watching the last appearance should have been Cynthia’s.

But, why…

“I endured it, I was really enduring it with difficulty….”

Because she cherished it so much,
Because she was afraid that even the wind would scratch it,
The feeling when the most precious treasure, which she couldn’t even touch the tip of her fingers, was suddenly taken away by a thief in front of her eyes, was really….

She felt wronged and resentful.

“Why did you so easily take your eyes off me?”

Cynthia no longer smiled.

In the deeply sunken eyes, the torrent of emotions that had lost the stopper of patience was dangerously overflowing.

“I always only looked at you, teacher. You’re too much.”