After my sermon to Lilia-san is over, I decide to ask her again about the current situation that I'm curious about.

''Speaking of which, what happened to the hunting competition?''
Due to the black bear incident, the tournament has been cancelled.


　My questions are answered by Lilia-san and Lunamaria-san.
　I see, the tournament was cancelled........well, it can't be helped, but.......

Then the fruit of the World Tree would be...
''I heard that it's going to be carried over to next year's Treasure Tree Festival. The fruit of the World Tree is a mysterious fruit that doesn't deteriorate with time, so it's said to be perfectly fine even after a year.
I see.....

　It seems that the fruit of the World Tree will be next year's prize, so at least Lilia-san and the others won't be able to get their hands on it this time.
　Considering how Lilia-san and the others are feeling right now, I can't talk to them casually.

　A little silence passes, and Lilia-san turns to Zeke-san and opens her mouth.

''Zeke, I'm sorry. I said something that made you expect it, but in the end I couldn't get the World Tree Fruit...
....

　Following Lilia-san's words, Zeke took out a note and pen from his pocket and wrote something on it and pointed it at me.

''I'll apologize first too. Lili, I'm sorry.''
'What?　Wait, hey, Zeke....no way....
....

　Something that looks exactly like what I said to Lilia-san a while ago.
　Lilia-san's face turns saaaaaah and blue when she sees it.
　Then Zeke-san clenched his fist and swung it and slammed it into Lilia-san without hesitation.

''Geez!

　Phew, it's blown up!
　Lilia-san's body flies backwards with an iron fist that's incomparable to my earlier brawl, sending her flying backwards with tremendous force.
　Oh, I punched her with all my magic power.......is this going to be okay, Lilia-san?

Ow......

　But then Lilia-san, who had fallen, got up while holding her face.
　No, no, I was doing about two spins in the air!　To be hit with such power and be able to get away with 'ouch', even if you defend yourself with magic power, Lilia-san is mostly a monster too.

　It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to get a good idea of what you're looking for.

It's not a good idea to make assumptions about my feelings. I've told you many times. I have nothing against you.
"...Zeke.
"I do not regret losing my voice and resigning from the Order. I'm just happy that I was able to protect my best friend's men.
....

　Somehow I had that feeling.
　Lilia-san was desperately trying to heal Zeke's body, but Zeke-san was looking at Lilia-san and the others with a sad expression rather than wanting to do so.
　Then, Zeke-san turns to me and smiles slightly.

''Hearing what Kite-san just said, I woke up too.''
What?
'Lili, I've never been able to tell you but to be clear, I've never once thought of healing this wound.
What?

　Liliia's eyes widened as she forgot to suppress her face when she saw the sentence Zeke had written.

''But I knew that Lili was feeling guilty about me. That's why I thought that if the return of my voice would make Lili feel a little bit better, then I should not say anything and wait. So, if Lili had obtained the World Tree Fruit, I was going to take it with open arms.''
"...Zeke.

　A written, not very sound conversation. However, the feelings that Zeke-san wants to convey resonate strongly.
　

''Lili, I'm with you. I've been feeling guilty about you ever since that incident.
...What?
'If I had been stronger, if I had been able to stand up better, I wouldn't have had to put heavy fetters on my precious you... Just as Lili wanted to bring my voice back, I wanted to lighten what you carried on my back as much as possible. In order to do that, I thought it would be best for me to accept your redemption in silence. But I finally realized just now that I was mistaken.''

　Just like Lilia-san felt responsible for Zeke-san losing her voice, Zeke-san felt responsible for causing Lilia-san a hard time because she was weak.
　That's why Zeke-san felt it was hard for Lilia-san to be desperate, but still couldn't stop her... because he was convinced that it was his fault and that he had to accept Lilia-san's redemption in order to atone for it. .........

　After all, maybe Lilia-san and Zeke are similar to each other. Both of them had a strong sense of responsibility and couldn't forgive themselves, which is why they crossed paths for so long.

'I was just running away. I was ashamed of my inadequacy and avoided facing you. It's not just a matter of time before you get to the point where you'll be able to get your hands on a new one. So.........''

　So, Zeke-san stops his pen and removes the scarf he had wrapped around his neck.
　Revealing the deep, slightly discolored scar, which has been hidden by the scarf for a long time so as not to hunt down Lilia-san, Zeke-san looks straight at Lilia-san.
　Then he puts his hand on his own neck, and a thin red magic light is lit there.

''............................''
?
My name is Wada... she... she's... she's... she's... she's... she's... ...nai... nai...

　
　The sound was difficult to hear and yet, above all, it was like a beautiful voice.

...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no...no.
"...Zeke, you're not...

　The words he would have wanted to convey the most. To Zeke-san, the large scar on her neck is not something to be ashamed of, etc., but a proof that she has protected something important to Lilia-san.......pride.
　As if that way of speaking was excessively fatiguing, Zeke-san breathes heavily on her shoulder, but still smiles a gentle smile and takes up her pen and notes again.

''See, it's easy to get your voice out. So, Lili, please don't blame yourself any more. Please don't think that you are going to erase my precious pride.''
"...Zeke, I...
Lili's always been a sweetheart and she was very, very whiny when she was little.
When did this happen, exactly when did this happen, and how much do you know about it, other than Zeke?

　Large tears spilled from Lilia's eyes as if to free her from something heavy that she had been carrying until now, and Zeke saw that and gently hugged her.
　The scene was just like a sisterhood.
　After the incident that occurred once upon a time, the relationship between the two of them has been unknowingly distanced from each other, but now it seems as if they are repairing their relationship.

Mr. Miyama would you like me to take it off?
Yes.

　I bury my face in Zeke-san's chest and Lilia-san sobs like a child.
　Seeing this scene, Lunamaria-san softly calls out to me, and I nodded to her words and left the place.

　Dear Mother, Father - I was reminded once again that the heart is a difficult thing. We were supposed to be thinking about each other and taking care of each other, but this had the opposite effect of pushing each other to the edge. But today, I think that the relationship between Lilia-san and Sieg-san, which had been misunderstood, has been repaired - in a real sense.