In the pitch darkness of the sky, Kazuya sensed something almost like loneliness and trust in the girl"s tone. "....As you command Princess."

"Mmm ..." Lyn trails off, "By the way, those bags..."

His face color drained when he realized; he doesn"t have to look at the time to know he"s late. Just one look at the now pitch black skies is enough. "...I"m late back...what about dinner? What did those guys do?"

Lyn chuckles, "Don"t worry, I"m sure they found another alternative.

True. It"s not like they didn"t have any food completely, with Rhys cooking skills. Rhys could cook up anything even with such minor ingredients. "But we shouldn"t let those ingredients go to waste, right?"

Kazuya sighed, knowing where this conversation was going, as she looked at him with pleading eyes. This was one thing he could never resist when it came to her.

"Very well, but you are resting on the couch the entire time."

"Ehh, but how can I partic.i.p.ate in the games?"

"We will crowd around you. You are not to move at all! Your foot injury has gotten worse."

As he lectured her, Lyn suddenly clung on this arm, "Then, stay right beside me. My guard," Lyn winked at him.

Kazuya said nothing and continued to support the girl. He is glad it"s dark, it"s a good thing. He retreats his previous statement from earlier. It"s a good thing. It"s dark; otherwise, she will see it — the sudden wash of red hue that filled his cheeks.

....

One of the most memorable conversations he had with Lyn was during the night they met again.

"Well, I have a secret that I can"t even tell the Lord. I want one wish... one wish to come true. Maybe I can make it come true with you. Maybe we can catch up with the shooting star...No if it"s with you, Kazuya, I believe anything is possible. Even the things that would usually seem impossible... I have a cursed fortune... I fell in love with somebody. "I want to be happy."

Kazuya rubbed his eyes as he got up from the bed. Water water. His thoughts were wandering on to the events of the last few days; they finally been able to move back into the mansion. The only thing that was different now is the fact that his fellow guards were also residing with them.

At first, Kazuya was unsure how it would turn out, but everything has been going well. He wondered when Lyn would leave that person. Although it was brief, he got a glance at the exchange between the two. From now onwards, he wonders what will happen with those two.

She asked him to watch over that guy, and yet that"s easier said than done. He knows nothing at all about that man, aside from what he has heard from others.

The blonde is indeed supposed to be his mentor, and even now, that"s probably still the case. However, even when Kazuya returned, he did not speak to him about it.

He did have plenty of chances to do so.

His deep thoughts broke, though, when he spotted somebody. Black gorgeous hair, making her way across the hall out of her room. It seems like Lyn can"t sleep either. Maybe her wounds still hurt? He ought to check. Kazuya carefully made his way over, but when he got closer, he noticed something.

Kazuya frowned and called out, "Exactly where do you think you"re going?" he questioned.

The girl froze on the spot and nervously replied. "Um, the bathroom."

"In those clothes?" he said, raising his eyebrows. Lyn wore clothes that look like she was going outside, practical formal clothes that were for fighting.

"There was a job request. It seems like the others are having trouble, so I"ll..."

"No," Kazuya immediately declined. He still couldn"t get over what happened the other night. She showed up so badly injured that he didn"t think it was possible. The amount of blood he saw that time pained him.

Lyn"s sweatdropped, "Your so blunt, I haven"t even finished my sentence yet."

"Even if you did, I will not listen. Your leg is still injured, or rather because you were reckless yesterday, the injuries have gotten worse." When Kazuya noticed that the swelling on her leg had gotten worse, he called up Rhys.

Rhys never leaves anything out during examinations. So when Kazuya heard the details, a menacing aura had wrapped around him. Since then, Kazuya watched over the black-haired girl like a hawk. Why does she always get herself injured for? Doesn"t she care about herself?

Kazuya understood the current situation when they were in the dungeons the other time. Aside from the problem with the Snow Kingdom Knight. He sensed that there was something different about the cave. If he sensed that, there is no doubt that the same went for Lyn.

"Wah, you"re actually acting like a guard now. I"m impressed."

That"s right; he was technically a knight. A knight they approved of to protect her. Kazuya still found it strange that they accepted that.

"Lyn, please take this more seriously."

Kazuya"s words fell short when he felt the warmth of the girl"s hand on his face. "So warm, why are her hands so warm?" His eyes went wide. "Even if you do this, I will not retreat my previous statement," Kazuya muttered.

He knew her very well by now.

"Mm. I was just breaking the tension because you looked comically serious."

She really is foolish.

"You cannot go," he repeated. "Please, I don"t want to see the sight of you covered in blood ever again. Do you know how much you scared me? I really don"t want to lose you."

Lyn lightly kissed his lips, "I"m very sorry. I know I worried you," she trailed off. "Kazuya, say if you were to choose between doing things for the sake of the world and the one you love, which would you choose?"

She"s not answering his question. But it seems like Lyn is at least taking this matter seriously although he doesn"t understand what her question has to do with anything. "Of course it should be the first one. Doing things for the sake of the world leaves you satisfied that you were able to help loads of people."

"I think the opposite." Huh? Lyn smiled at him and removed her hand as she turned to pitch-black skies, "I think that I work harder if it"s for the sake of the one I love."