Chapter 17 (2/2)

Nectar's cheeks turned bright red, so I guess he h his , thanks to the firecracker that somebody nearby set off

We've reached the city's plaza, where lots of stalls were erected the other day and where people were dancing in huge circles

The excitement reached its peak the ic fireworks from the tip of his staff, which was et all about it, we also went to a special venue where a play was being perfor the role of the Guardian Knight His performance was alsoourselves like that, the tio hoe of the sunset, alk the road leading to the castle, which only for today was opened for everyone

I gently looked at Nectar's profile, who's been looking straight ahead

Since Nectar'srather slow, the only way to tell that it's been years since our very first th of his hair

As astories about the daughters of nobles that claiht, after first seeing him at some official party or other event like that

Certainly, when you look at Nectar wearing a long-sleeved, silky robe ee around these parts, walking with his staff made out of a branch of a Plant Spirit tree, even I could feela beat or two

Even so, since Kyle's ical power capacity was smaller than that of Nectar's, there rinkles that started to show up on Kyle's face, a visible sign that he was ageing

I as Massive body covered from head to toe with purplish-black scales Red skin Golden eyes with thin, vertical pupils I a to be the same now and in the future as well

I really liketo feel really lonely on so?」

Asked Nectar, seeing that I was looking at hi, but for some reason in return he pattedtiet worried when I see that you are troubled by so a good ti」

「…… You're exaggerating」

Suddenly being told soently pushed Nectar away and looked back at him with a bitter smile

It was true that co asinside offor the memory of the past

It was rare for me to be at a loss or that I didn't knohat to do, but today I was really confused and puzzled at this strange kind of pain that kept e in my chest

It is a sensation that I cannot bear to feel

Unexpectedly, the thing that I was thinking until thisthat topic up as casually as I could

「I airl or woman that you're interested in? You could, you know, start a family all of your own Just let me hold your child in er and saw the city change across the years, Kyle hian to think that there is always a liht ent to see him

Just because we are friends, it doesn't ether forever

Then, what if he had children?

His bloodline is going to continue Even though Nectar one someday, I can still watch over his child, and his child's children and so on and so forth

That was the conclusion that I h Nectar's ical poas immense, he was still but a hu wife, ould no longer be able to ht to crush one's right to be happy and have a normal life

In a day, in a week, in a e

It's a little bit lonely, but it is so that cannot really be helped I try to put on a s sensation that kept pricking on , Nectar started to walk farther away fro about it now, at that , but ulti? Nectar」

「…… Lava」

「What's the matter?」

「Am I, am I still your friend?」

「Of course you are Why would you think otherwise?」

The truth is, I lied to hiot that strange feeling that even though Nectar was s

A fewthe leylines in the h the scale

That sort of thing happened for the first time in like, ten years, so I was somewhat surprised

With that, he forcefully broke ourthat he didn't quite want to talk about

A few e from Kyle via one of the communication scales which hasn't been used in years

<>

About a year ago, soon after we parted ways, Nectar would often stay locked in his private laboratory, and it looks like one day he suddenly packed his things and went on a journey

I knew that things like that were not all that uncommon for Nectar, for he would frequently invite me to join him in his escapades into the wilderness, but this time he did not made any prior contact to let me know, and when a month has passed and he was still yet to return, I realized that so must have happened and I asked Kyle to check his laboratory on my behalf

The ever-cluttered interior was now neatly cleaned up, with the ated on top of his desk

He scanned the whole rooed to find the evidence that suggested that Nectar has left the country, and that he was

I also tried to lend a hand in looking for Nectar, usingfor soive up

However

I wasn't able to track down Nectar'sas I was able to sense theas that signal was still intact, he would be safe The y of the scale has completely disappeared from the world

It sometimes happened that a scale would drain the body of its user dry of y, but it would only happen in the time of a serious crisis

Perhaps, that effect was activated?

I suddenly felt as if all strength has vanished fro like that, but right nowall over, as if a bucket of cold water was splashed on my head

No way, but what if, what if Nectar has died?

What's worse, somewhere unknown to me!?

If there indeed was a reason, then they would have to be hidden soy was densely accuy of the scales would not stick out like a sore thumb But the only such places could be either at the bottoround zeroes for natural cataclysms or the former battlefields where the place was completely destroyed and totally unhibitable

For a brief h the scales were given as a guarantee of his safety, hts ed to cal to Kyle for so aard here, but since Kyle was not here to see it, I guess it was fine

Although it really hurt me a little bit, at the sae kind of exciteic power in the leylines spread across the whole wilderness wasn't completely restored, my possibilities were rather liht about noas to sit and wait

To live meant to meet new people, co understood by theoodbye to one another

It only occurred to me that this sense of security that I felt everyday was in reality nothing but a fantasy and an illusion

Being scared and unsure, to worry about what's going to happen everyday, was beco since I last felt any of those emotions

How about tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow?

The search results that would periodically coh Kyle were not so bad at all

One of them even confirmed that Nectar presu for another country

One year have passed, two years have passed, and eventually the country gave up on their search for him after three years

For all those years, Nectar had to research ic all on his own

Initially, I was afraid that Nectar leaving the country would have negative i like that happened I assumed that they wanted to keep the matter of his sudden disappearance strictly confidential and avoid letting the general public know

Even though the investigation would be continued in the future, there would be no large-scale searches anymore

Only once I dared to visit Kyle at his house to ask hi, and before I could even have a chance to apologize to hi was okay and that I had nothing to worry about

And because I did not bother to look back, I couldn't possibly know that both Kyle and his ere looking at me with eyes filled with pain and sorrow