Sis?

　Filia was confused when Hal suddenly began to cry and scream.

''My sister, my sister, oh!

　Filia gently wrapped Hal, who was sobbing like a dam, in a hug, as she had done to Aldis just a few moments ago.
　It's a very good idea to have a good time with them.
　Feeling the warmth of Hal's body as he welcomed her into his bosom, Filia felt like she knew what it meant to be an adult for a little while as she thought back to the warmth that Ardis had poured out on them.

　The next thing she knew, Hal, who had regained his composure, began to talk about his situation.
　Hal was apparently born and raised in a farming village about two days' walk from this town.
　His father, his mother and his sister, who is seven years older than him, lived together, but the civil war that engulfed the entire Kingdom of Albarn left no trace of their lives behind.
　Although Hal's village was not turned into a battlefield, his parents decide to take refuge in a larger town when soldiers fleeing from the battle and a band of mercenaries who lost control after a losing battle turn into wild thieves and raid the neighboring villages.

　Unfortunately, on the way to the town, they are attacked by raiders, and both parents die, and she and her sister manage to reach the town.
　Fortunately, they are able to get into the town before the traffic gets tougher, but the refugees suddenly arrive with nowhere to live and food to eat, and there is no work for them.

　They have nowhere to live and nothing to eat.
　One day, as the refugees are gradually driven to the corner of the town, a group of armed men rush in.
　They cut down anyone who resisted, and then captured a group of refugees, mostly young women, and took them away on the back of a carriage.

'Hmmm, I see. ......'

　Rona murmurs with a look of understanding as she listens to Hal.

'What do you mean?'

　Rona answers Filia's question in a matter-of-fact manner.

I think they are reaping the benefits of the refugees amidst the chaos of the civil war. The merchants can make money by selling them as goods. Well, when there is a disturbance in the order, people like that can appear anywhere.

'Terrible ....... Is Albarn allowed to do that?

At least it is illegal in this country. It is illegal to kidnap a person and make him/her into a property owner, as is probably the case in every country. Of course, I'm talking about it ostensibly. In reality, there may be many people who hunt people and slave traders who do not care about the source of their goods. It doesn't matter how many refugees are missing, the people of the town won't be bothered, and the voice of the refugees won't be heard by the lords, even if they want to appeal. It would be a tasty situation for the slavers to reap as much as they can in their backyard, with no trouble and no money.

Such a thing is .......

　Hal pleads desperately to Filia, who is speechless as Rona confronts her with reality.

'Please, help your sister!　They'll take you away if you don't hurry!

Do they take you?

　According to Hal, his sister had been sold as an object and a buyer had been found yesterday afternoon.

　Filia recalled a scene she had just seen a few minutes ago.
　The scene of people being carried away on a cart.
　It's hard to say whether the people who took them were the sellers or the buyers, but at least Filia knows that their future is not bright.

'How do you know they've found a buyer?'

Hee......!

　Hal freezes when Rona asks him about it, but his feelings for his sister are probably stronger than his own.
　After a short silence, he begins to explain.

The people who are sold ...... are transported by wagon from the slave market hut to the chamber of commerce. The next day the people who bought them from the chamber of commerce building seem to take them away. Your sister was moved to the chamber of commerce building yesterday, so she'll be taken away today!

　They already knew the merchants who used armed groups to reap the refugees.
　Hal, who had been monitoring the movements around that merchant since his sister was taken away, had a firm grasp on what kind of flow of goods and people were being sold.
　He decided that there was no longer a moment to lose and broke into the merchant's building to rescue his sister, but he was soon found, and Filia rescued him when he was being sanctioned.

''Please!　Save your sister, save your sister!　I'll do anything!　Your father and mother are gone!　I have no one else in my life but my sister!　So help me out at .......

　Filia's heart tightened in her chest as she heard Hal's strained voice begging for help.
　After the loss of her parents, she saw her former self and Hal, who was the only source of support for her heart in Liana.
　If I had been separated from Liana before I met Aldis, I would be filled with unspeakable pain.

'...... All right. I'll do something about it, just don't cry.

...... Really?

　Hal turns to me with tear-stained eyes as he sips his sniveling nose.

　Filia was aware that she was talking irresponsibly.
　But still, she would never be able to abandon Hal.
　Because for me, who was saved by Aldis, it seemed like it was my natural duty to save Hal, who could be said to be my past self.
　I even felt that if I couldn't save Hal here, I would lose the meaning of my existence.

'Filia......'

　Rona called out Filia's name in an admonishing tone of voice.

　He knew what Rona wanted to say without putting it into words.
　The fight just now. No matter how many three people were on the other side, it was against amateurs who weren't trained combat experts, and even though they had been taken by surprise, they would have been in danger if Rona hadn't followed up with them.
　It would surely be reckless to infiltrate the Chamber of Commerce, where there would be mercenaries to protect them, and rescue Hal's sister with such strength.

　Filia is acutely aware of her powerlessness.

''Rona, please. Help me.''

　Her eyes heated up and she desperately appealed to Rona, even as she struggled to hold back what was about to spill over.
　No matter how strong her determination, no matter how much she was pushed back by her sense of mission, Filia herself knew very well that she was not capable.
　She also knew that the only way to fulfill Hal's wishes was to ask for the help of Aldis and Rona.
　I'm disappointed in my pathetic self, but still my reason tells me to choose a practical method.

It's not just me ......

　A sigh escaped Rona's mouth as she looked at the desperate Filia.

The first thing that comes to mind is that I don't want to put Filia in danger where Al can't see her. I'm afraid of the rest and ....... Can't we just join Al and then?　I know you said something like that earlier, but for what it's worth, Al has a soft spot for Filia.

'But that might not be enough time. We have to get Hal's sister out of there before they take her away.

'It's not like they're going to take you out right now. I don't think Al is going to be separated for that long either.

That's true, but...

　Hal slips out of Filia's arms, who looks lost.

'...... What's up, Hal?'

　There was a slight hint of disappointment in the eyes that turned towards us.

'Hal?'

　In response to Filia's call, Hal twisted his face in a manner that sounded like he was talking, then ducked and ran.

''Hal, wait!

Philia!

　Rona stops Filia, who was about to chase after her on the spur of the moment.

I'm sorry, Rona. Even if Aldis says no, I am ............, I am!

　Stopping and turning around, Filia left him with a tearful look on her face and started to run after Hal.
　Aldis might be angry with her, she might be dismayed, maybe even abandoned.
　For Filia, being abandoned by Aldis was as much of a fear as being separated from Liana.

　Still, Filia couldn't abandon Hal.
　She wondered what Liana would do if she were Liana, she thought futilely.
　In the past, they used to think the same things without saying anything, and shared the same values and thoughts.
　There is no doubt that they are still irreplaceable partners, but the gap between them is more pronounced now than in the past.
　That's normal, Carina says.

　Filia didn't think she and Liana were normal.
　Normal people don't get pelted with rocks just for walking outside.
　Normal people don't get sold as people just because they lost their parents.

　If they were able to find a normal way of life, it would definitely be because of their encounter with Aldis.
　I wanted to be the person who brought that kind of encounter to someone else.
　But Filia did not know how to become such a person, even if she thought about it.

　In that case, the first thing she did was to pursue her own ideal image.
　The black-haired ideal image inside Filia would never abandon Hal.

''It's impossible to save everything.''

　He said that.

　But he didn't say 'I don't intend to save it'.
　I feel that behind those words, there was a true intention of 'I want to save it if I can' hidden.

　So Filia thinks.

　If Aldis's hands would be full of Filia and Liana, Filia would extend her own hands to someone else while being protected by Aldis's hands.
　If someone she saved in that way would also save someone else, that meant that Aldis had saved her.
　With an argument that Liana would accuse her of being cryptic if she heard it, Filia settled her will.

　As she ran, Filia kept a close eye on Hal, who was ahead of her, so as not to lose sight of him.
　He's not that far off yet.
　A large shadow suddenly appeared beside Filia, who was running as fast as she could, saying that she should be able to catch up with this one.

You can't blame me for this. When Al gets angry, you have to be responsible for helping him, right?

　The reassurance makes Filia's foot feel light.
　To Rona, who complained but implicitly offered her help, Filia returns the words with gratitude.

''Leave it to me!''