Chapter 202: Good Friend
The evening sun bathed the academy campus in a warm orange glow.
Long shadows stretched across the stone pathways as students wandered through the grounds in small groups, chatting excitedly about the events of the examination.
Noah walked slowly along one of those paths.
Earlier that day, he had finally been discharged from the academy infirmary.
Physically, most of his injuries had healed.
Mentally he still hadn’t recovered.
His footsteps were slow and heavy as he listened to the distant chatter around him.
While speaking with Instructor Morgana before leaving the infirmary, he had learned that the First Semester Examination had officially been canceled.
After the demon attack, the academy had decided it was too dangerous to continue.
There would be no retest.
Instead, the final rankings would be determined by the number of monsters each student had defeated before the incident, combined with the results of the VR Combat Unit Test.
Students who had participated in the battle against the demons would also receive additional merit points.
Because of his performance in the VR test and his contribution to defeating the demons, Noah would almost certainly finish within the academy’s top ten.
Under normal circumstances, that news would have made him genuinely happy.
Today he couldn’t bring himself to care.
The academy had also officially entered its summer vacation.
Students laughed together as they discussed where they planned to travel or how they intended to spend the break.
Their cheerful voices faded into meaningless background noise.
Despite another incident happened, students were not so much worried. After all only one student died. And it was not something that had occurred with them.
None of it reached Noah.
After walking aimlessly for several minutes, he stopped beneath a large maple tree whose leaves rustled gently in the evening breeze.
A simple wooden bench rested beneath its shade.
He quietly sat down. Leaning against the backrest, he lifted his gaze toward the orange sky.
His thoughts drifted back to everything that had happened over the past few days.
Mary’s smile. Her quiet voice. The moment she had pushed him away. The image of the sword piercing through her chest.
He slowly closed his eyes.
He had always known there would come a day when someone close to him might die. This world wasn’t peaceful.
It was filled with monsters, demons, and countless dangers.
Death was inevitable. He had understood that when he came to this world. At least he had believed he did. He had thought he would accept it more easily.
He had been wrong. It hurt far more than he had ever imagined.
A tired sigh escaped his lips.
He simply wanted someone beside him. Someone who would quietly listen. If he remained alone the thought of that incident would come back to him again and again.
For some reason one person came to mind.
Lyria.
She had visited him in the infirmary with the others the day after the incident.
Yesterday she had even returned alone to check on him.
So Noah took out his phone and called her. The call had barely connected when a soft, familiar voice reached his ears.
"Noah."
Her gentle voice sounded almost like a soothing melody carried by the evening breeze. He instinctively lifted his head.
Standing only a few meters away was Lyria. Her long golden-blonde hair flowed freely behind her instead of being tied as usual.
She wore a simple white blouse beneath a light beige cardigan, paired with a modest blue skirt that swayed gently with each step.
The warm light of the setting sun gave her soft pink eyes an even gentler glow.
She smiled faintly as she approached him.
"So you were here."
Noah managed a small smile.
"I guess... you found me faster than I expected. I was just going to call you."
She let out a quiet laugh before sitting beside him on the bench. She sat close enough that their shoulders nearly touched.
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke. The silence between them wasn’t awkward.
It felt comfortable.
Lyria finally turned toward him.
"I was on my way to infirmary, to meet you. And then saw you here."
Her voice carried unmistakable concern.
"So you’ve finally been discharged."
She studied his face carefully.
"Are you feeling alright?"
Noah looked down at his hands resting on his lap.
"...Yeah."
He paused before quietly correcting himself.
"No... I don’t think I am."
His voice sounded tired.
"I just..."
He searched for the right words.
"...wanted someone to t be with me."
Lyria’s expression softened. Without hesitation, she gently placed her hand over his.
Her touch was warm.
"I know."
Her thumb softly brushed across the back of his hand.
"You’re grieving because of Mary."
Noah remained silent.
Lyria continued quietly.
"You two were close."
A small smile appeared on her face as she recalled something.
"To be honest... I don’t think I ever saw Mary talk to anyone as much as she talked to you."
Noah lowered his gaze.
"...Yeah."
His voice had become almost a whisper.
"I really miss her."
He swallowed slowly.
"And..."
His fingers unconsciously tightened.
"I’m hurting even more because...she died protecting me."
His words barely escaped his lips.
Lyria’s heart ached.
This was the first time she had ever seen Noah like this.
The Noah she knew was always smiling.
Always teasing others.
Especially her and Arisha.
He somehow always found a way to embarrass her with one of his ridiculous compliments. Yet the young man sitting beside her now looked completely different.
His blue eyes had lost their usual brightness. His shoulders seemed heavier than ever before.
For Lyria who was from the holy region, the dukedom that was strictly religious. She was raised in a way to show kindness to other. And because of that she felt more worried for Noah.
Even his smile had disappeared.
She quietly watched him for a few moments before speaking again.
"Noah...Mary made that decision herself."
Her voice remained soft and gentle.
"She chose to protect you."
She looked directly into his eyes.
"Even if it meant sacrificing her own life."
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"That only proves how much she cared about you."
Noah slowly shook his head.
"I know."
His voice trembled slightly.
"I understand that."
"But..."
He clenched his fists.
"How could she throw away her own life just to save mine?"
Lyria looked at him silently.
Then she asked one simple question.
"...If your positions had been reversed..."
She paused briefly.
"...Wouldn’t you have done exactly the same for her?"
Noah froze.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Instead he imagined Mary standing where he had been.
A sword aimed at her.
Would he have hesitated? Not even for a second.
He slowly nodded.
"...I would have."
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