Chapter 5: The Crane Has Already Taken Flight
I won’t speak about her.
This isn’t a matter of logic anymore.
I want to abandon all thoughts related to her. My mind is a chaotic mess, and I’m overwhelmed by the urge to claw at my chest in despair.
With these feelings, if Anon or Kuroa were to ask if something was wrong, and I had to talk about that time (…), I would—
“The completion of the prototype has coincidentally been delayed because she immediately withdrew from the development, and I also fell seriously ill.”
Why did she withdraw from the development?
That’s something—
“After a while, I’m not sure if it was for some business or a volunteer effort, but she approached me with a proposal to purchase the ‘Portal Area Security Disarmament Theory.’”
—It must be for Ryuguin.
I had always divided the money and treasures obtained from labyrinths other than the three I conquered alone equally.
Mika and Ange were over there with me.
So, in essence, he had been receiving 75% of the total.
Everyone should be free.
They can love as they please.
They can spend their money however they like.
I have no right to blame them.
That’s what I thought.
But I was wrong.
Ryuguin’s extravagance was beyond anything I could compare to.
For him, decadent indulgence was the norm.
I had heard that he reserved all the women from the country’s most renowned luxury brothel for an entire week, not just a night.
He bought lavish dresses favored by high nobility at their request, and he spent money without hesitation on accessories and precious metals.
And there’s one clear episode that illustrates his spending habits.
There was a phantom liquor that even royalty coveted. It was said to be produced through the secret techniques of elder dwarves, and a single drop was valued at the equivalent of a platinum coin. I had once conversed with Ryuguin when he joyfully acquired it.
“Shopping is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Thinking of it that way, it was a cheap purchase. I made a splendid buy,” he had said.
Later, when I casually asked a merchant I ran into about the price of the liquor Ryuguin had obtained, I was met with a jaw-dropping figure.
Yet, his words about it being a “cheap purchase” were, in a sense, true for him.
Because for him, money flowed in effortlessly without him having to lift a finger.
I, who had delved into the labyrinth, and Mika and Ange, who received their share from me, had handed over a vast amount of wealth to someone who contributed nothing.
And I knew.
The money earned from labyrinth conquests couldn’t sustain his lavish lifestyle.
That’s why I understood that Puffy was providing exploration support solely to Ryuguin.
Still, I wondered.
Had Puffy been supporting Ryuguin to the extent that she had to scramble for funds herself?
“I thought it was a mistake, but Princess Puffy seemed anxious about her finances and said she would accept any price, so I asked my brother to stretch a bit and bought it outright for cash.”
The money paid to Princess Puffy by Kuroa might have gone straight into Ryuguin’s pocket.
Kuroa was a well-bred, intelligent boy.
Not only that, but he was also dutiful, resembling his brother.
When the conversation about Princess Puffy wrapped up, Kuroa proposed to transfer the rights to ‘Crane’s Guidance’ and several prototypes directly to me.
I hesitated, but remembering Anon’s warning, I gratefully accepted his goodwill.
However, since I couldn’t manage it myself, we agreed that Kuroa’s clan would continue to oversee the rights to ‘Crane’s Guidance,’ and I would receive a small percentage from it.
During that time, I couldn’t reconcile my feelings and struggled to maintain a proper expression. Being natural was the hardest thing of all.
As expected, not only did Anon and Sensei worry about me, but Kuroa also asked repeatedly if I was okay from afar.
Each time, I managed to squeeze out words like “I’m fine,” “It’s nothing,” and “Really, it’s nothing at all.”
But I wasn’t fine.
“I’m sorry. Kuroa, let’s meet again. I’m just feeling busy and worn out.”
I decided to leave everything regarding the final discussions with Kuroa and the upcoming strategy meetings with the Arrogance and Virtuous factions to Sensei and Anon.
“See you later, I’ll leave the rest to you.”
I returned to the room assigned to me.
At that moment, I didn’t want to think about anything anymore.
Back in my room, I downed a glass of water in one go.
I lay on the bed, unable to muster the energy to do anything, but my thoughts wouldn’t stop.
Puffy had been supporting Ryuguin financially to the point of exhausting herself. I should have known what that money was being used for.
That reality tightened around my chest.
It wasn’t that I wanted her to support me. No, what I truly wanted was Puffy’s smile.
And if I could hear her say, “Ichiro, you did well!” that would have been enough for me.
—“Like you, I will strive to stand tall and take pride in myself.”
She had said that.
—“I will carve out my own world.”
She had indeed said that.
Is she standing tall now?
Is she proud of who she is?
Is she still carving out her own world?
On that day of departure, when Puffy dove into Ryuguin’s embrace, she was no longer the Puffy I knew.
I couldn’t bear it and closed my eyes.
I heard the sorrowful cry of a crane.
In the darkness, the pure white back of the crane faded away.
The girl who cried in the fable is no longer here.
She is no longer here.
The crane has already taken flight.
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