Surviving as a Useless Bard in a Game

---

The Emperor donned his mask again.

“Good night. At the same time, good morning.”

She threw a joke.

Since no one reacted to her joke, she seemed a bit sulky.

Though she wore a mask, my eyes could see her genuine feelings.

“The matter is done. Since you have accepted, it’s time for me to return. We shall meet again in Regan.”

“…Right.”

Scipio answered quietly.

Tap.

The group gathered around the campfire looked up at the sky.

That’s because they heard a strange sound.

The night sky spread silently, deep in darkness.

Stars twinkled like scattered dots, while the moon peeked faintly between the clouds.

But suddenly, it sounded as if a giant hand was tearing the sky apart.

The night sky began to slowly split open.

Dark blue darkness tore apart with long cracks, and a faint morning light began to seep through the gaps.

At first, the light was faint like a thin thread, but gradually it grew wider, stretching across the sky.

Through that gap appeared the soft blue of the morning sky and the golden light of the warm dawn.

As if pushing away the darkness, the light intensified and broke through the veil of night.

The sky seemed to be divided into two layers.

Above, remnants of the black, deep night remained, and below, a fresh sky tinged with dawn slowly spread out.

In that moment, stars that had been endlessly shining on the torn boundary of the night sky began to disappear one by one, replaced by the warmth of morning.

Once the sky was fully torn apart, it seemed the darkness could find no place to remain and gradually faded away.

And finally, the night completely retreated, leaving the morning sky to claim its place.

“We’re going back!”

The Emperor raised a hand and issued the command.

At the Emperor’s order, the soldiers turned around in unison.

The sound of armor clashing echoed through the chilly air as the banners slowly descended.

Their footsteps were rhythmic, yet the noise of the heavy metal felt strangely lonely.

Dust rose along the path as the soldiers’ silhouettes stretched long behind them, and they began to walk silently towards the capital like a massive creature.

Watching that scene, I felt a strange emotion.

…Was the reason I listened to their weary sounds in solitude not because they were lonely, but because I was the one who was lonely?

That was one of the questions I had.

Slowly, I looked at Skylar.

Even in this moment, he remained a wizard.

He was diligently investigating fragments of the barrier as if he weren’t at all curious about the answer to the confession he made at dawn.

I felt a bit hurt.

At the same time, I felt disgusted with myself.

I was a selfish bard who wished he would stay by my side, without deciding whether to accept or refuse his confession.

So, I turned away.

I turned my head back to gaze at the enormous army that already stretched across the distant horizon.

The sword sheathed in its scabbard, the emblem carved into the shield, and the weighty footsteps seen over their shoulders.

I absorbed it all into my eyes.

“You don’t plan on following right away, do you?”

“…No.”

Scipio, who had quietly stood behind me, nudged me gently.

Of course, I wasn’t foolish enough to immediately follow behind them. Maybe I used to be, but at least not now.

“Let’s get ready.”

“Yeah. That’s the plan.”

“…”

“And before we set off, you better sort things out with that damn little brat.”

“…What?”

“Expressions and words of people contain a lot of information, even without magical eyes; one can easily pick up on it. I suppose everyone already knows.”

It’s similar to how men in love think their affairs are a secret.

…Wait, wait, wait.

Yeah. There’s something I must say, even if I have to repeat myself thrice.

—It’s embarrassing.

I could see the color of my face without looking in the mirror.

Incredibly embarrassing.

Did everyone know? That Skylar confessed to me, and I postponed my answer? Really?

“No, in fact, I didn’t just postpone, I rejected.”

The reason I postponed out of selfish and disgusting fear of losing Skylar if I rejected him.

Scipio telling me to sort out my feelings meant.

“…to give an answer.”

Right.

Holding onto him out of my greed while not letting him go felt… suffocating.

Let’s choose not for me, but for him.

That’s what I thought.

After the bizarre magical performance of dawn ended, under the fully bright morning sunlight, Scipio and I were left behind where the Emperor had departed.

The only traces remaining where the army had passed were hoofprints and dust, faintly proving the Emperor’s majesty.

Scipio still stood there as if looking right through me, and I, avoiding his gaze, walked towards Skylar.

Skylar, holding the fragments of the barrier, was still engrossed in his analysis.

As it slowly oxidized, the fragments transformed into magic and scattered into the air.

“Skylar.”

At the sound of my voice, he slowly looked up.

His sharp eyes met mine.

I wanted to avoid it but didn’t.

I took a deep breath while looking directly into those eyes.

Now I had to be honest. For him, and for myself.

“…I have something to say about the confession you made.”

“Ah, yes.”

Skylar answered casually, as if nothing had happened.

I was thrown off by his reaction.

Was it nothing to him?

Or was he pretending to be nonchalant because he was afraid to hear my answer?

“Yeah. I want to answer you clearly again. No, I thought that I must answer.”

“I believe I’ve already received my answer.”

His words made my heart sink.

He had already received his answer.

That could be interpreted in many ways.

“You said you couldn’t answer right away. That means you’re still hesitating and there’s room for change.”

“……”

“Wizards always look for possibilities and are patient. They mark time accurately and experiment continuously. It’s what they always do.”

I was at a loss for words.

Skylar’s interpretation was accurate in some ways but made me reflect on how unkind I had been to him.

Simply hoping that our relationship wouldn’t change gave him false hope.

It’s like giving him an empty promise that I might possibly care for him.

I made it so he would be waiting indefinitely.

“I decided to wait. Selina, you’re always late.”

“…I’m not always late.”

Skylar smiled faintly.

That smile felt so cruel to me.

***

How long had it been?

Though the city’s recovery wasn’t completely finished, we began to prepare to leave.

The North’s end could rise strong again, just like it always did.

Even without us.

Nisha and Propertyius packed their things in the old church, while Scipio and I moved about in the awkward atmosphere, with Fura and the Gray Cat playing with Auris.

…Once again, it left just the two of us awkwardly.

The silence between me and Skylar grew lengthy.

I tried to speak several times, but the emotion caught in my throat would not easily go down.

I finally realized just how ridiculous the cliché of “I turned down the confession, but we’re still friends” that often appears in dramas and novels really was.

We couldn’t be friends at all.

That meant we could not become lovers either.

We had become a vague relationship that was neither here nor there, leaving only the prospect of drifting further apart.

“Skylar.”

“Yes.”

“…Let’s go. To Regan.”

In the end, the only thing I could say was nothing of substance.

Just killing time with meaningless conversation.

He said it was fine if it wasn’t now, but it was I who wasn’t fine hearing that.

My head was a mess.

It throbbed.

A headache tormented me.

It felt as if blood was boiling in my throat.

I was weak but not to the point of spitting blood.

This was… just a simple misunderstanding.

If only narcolepsy would come back and put me to sleep, how convenient would that be.

Falling into sleep, unknown to anyone, getting up and acting naïve and stupid as if nothing happened, like I used to do.

Time approached like that.

I held Skylar’s hand.

Magic flowed.

Connecting from my heart to his.

Though his heart had vanished long ago, I felt a hot heartbeat starting from the empty spot for some reason.

Slowly, his hand grew larger.

Thick and rough.

But still, it was soft.

“Now it’s fine.”

“Uh, yeah.”

He smiled at my face.

I turned away from his gaze.

I slowly let go of his hand.

He looked at his fingertips with a bitter expression.

Skylar, having found his original self, drew a magic circle.

Preparing for teleportation.

The destination was the midpoint between the Imperial capital and the North’s end.

To a base for resupply.