Chapter 161: Trying To Cheer Up Protagonist
The morning sun had just begun rising above the city skyline.
Golden rays spilled across the rooftops and streets below, painting the city in warm colors.
Merchants were already opening their shops, and distant voices drifted upward from the bustling roads beneath.
Sitting on the chair near the large window of the recovery room, Noah stretched his arms above his head before letting out a long yawn.
"Yawn~"
His blue eyes lazily watched the city outside.
No life-threatening situations.
Just a normal morning.
"Enjoying the morning view?"
A familiar voice suddenly came from behind him.
Noah didn’t even need to turn around to know who it was.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Yes..." Noah replied while keeping his gaze outside. "Can’t I do that?"
Damien chuckled softly.
"Yes, you can."
Noah finally turned around.
Damien was holding a chair in one hand. The young man looked far better than he had during the battle, though traces of exhaustion still lingered beneath his eyes.
Walking over, Damien placed the chair beside Noah’s and sat down.
For a few moments, neither of them spoke.
Both simply watched the city below.
The comfortable silence lasted only briefly before Noah glanced sideways.
"You okay?" he asked.
Damien’s expression remained calm as he nodded.
"Yes, I am."
His answer came quickly.
Too quickly.
Noah raised an eyebrow.
The words said one thing.
The tone said another.
A faint sadness lingered beneath Damien’s voice.
It wasn’t obvious.
Most people probably wouldn’t notice it.
But Noah did.
After everything they had gone through together, it wasn’t difficult to guess what was bothering him.
Noah looked forward again.
His gaze drifted toward the busy streets outside.
"Are you..." he began slowly, "thinking about those who died?"
The question caused Damien’s expression to stiffen slightly.
His hands tightened together on his lap.For a moment, he didn’t answer.The silence itself was answer enough.
Noah wasn’t surprised.
After all, Damien was the protagonist.The hero. The kind of person who genuinely wanted to save others.
Someone who would gladly risk himself if it meant protecting people around him. But reality didn’t always care about good intentions.
Yesterday had proven that. They had run. They had survived. Yet not everyone had escaped.
Noah could still remember those disappearing footsteps behind him.
The memory wasn’t pleasant.
Damien lowered his head slightly. A bitter smile appeared on his face.
"Hah..."
He released a quiet breath.
"I am happy to see that you survived." Noah said.
Damien’s eyes shifted toward Noah.
"...but what about the others? Don’t you feel anything?"
Noah remained silent for several seconds. His expression became thoughtful. Then he leaned back slightly in his chair.
"Why?"
Damien blinked.
Noah continued calmly.
"It’s already a miracle that I survived."
His voice wasn’t cold.
It was simply honest.
"It wasn’t something within my capabilities to help everyone."
His eyes moved toward the bright city outside.
"I decided to put myself first and survive."
A small shrug followed.
"There’s nothing wrong with that."
Damien listened quietly.
Noah folded his arms.
"That’s the instinct of a living being."
His gaze remained fixed on the streets below.
"Every creature in this world naturally puts its own life first."
The words came without hesitation.
Noah believed them completely. "Everyone wants to survive."
A small smile appeared on his face.
Damien let out a weak laugh.
To be honest, Noah had no idead what words he need to use here. So he could cheer up the protagonist.
So he decided to use any line he remembered reading in novels.
Sadly they were broken...it’s not like he remembered those lines in detailed.
Noah continued to talk as he glanced at him. "So don’t be sad."
His voice softened slightly. "Be happy."
Damien looked at him.
Noah continued. "Because of you, we managed to save fifteen students."
The number hung in the air between them.
Total fifteen.
Nine were dead.
The number was not enough but not insignificant either.
"It would have been wrong if saving everyone had been possible and we simply chose not to."
His expression became serious.
"But that situation wasn’t in our hands."
Images of the giant skull flashed through Noah’s mind.
The horrifying pulse. The students disappearing behind him. Marbas being erased as if he had never existed.
Even now, the memory made his stomach tighten.
No one could have stopped that.
Damien stared at the floor for a few moments.
Then he slowly nodded. "I guess you’re right...But its not because of me..but because of us that more than half people survied. We all together survied and save each other."
A grin immediately appeared on Noah’s face.
"Of course."
Damien rolled his eyes slightly.
Noah leaned forward and pointed at him. "What you should do now is become stronger."
His tone became more determined.
"So that in the future, when something like this happens again, you can help people instead of running for your life."
The words weren’t meant as criticism.
Only motivation.
Damien understood that. A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Of course I will."
The sadness in his eyes seemed lighter than before.
It was not gone but it had became lighter.
Noah nodded in satisfaction. Then his expression softened. "...and I believe you’re also happy that your friends survived."
Damien looked at him. This time his smile became genuine.
A warm smile.
"Yes."
He nodded slowly.
"I am."
His gaze moved toward the window.
Toward the city.
Toward the future.
"I am happy that you and the others survived."
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke. The atmosphere felt lighter now.
It was less burdened.
The conversation had eased some of the guilt Damien had been carrying.
Eventually, Noah stretched his arms again and changed the topic.
"So when are we going back?"
He folded his arms behind his head.
"Any idea?"
Damien thought for a moment.
"Hmm..."
He looked outside as if estimating something.
"Maybe in the evening."
"Evening, huh..."
Noah sighed dramatically. "I really want to get back to the Academy before we somehow get caught up in another disaster."
Damien laughed.
A genuine laugh this time.
"Yeah."
He nodded.
"Me too."
The two young men sat quietly beside the window afterward.
Neither spoke for several minutes.
The morning sun continued rising higher into the sky.
Below them, the city carried on with its normal life.
For the first time since entering the dungeon, neither Noah nor Damien had to think about fighting.
Then Noah said with dejected voice. "Damn! I had been more happy if I bad such talk with some beautiful girl like Lyria or Arisha."
Damien immediately replied with a laugh. "Hahaha! Well I guess that’s expected from you...but you know what? You are one hell of a bastard!"
