Limited Extra Time - Chapter 67

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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—— Page 1 ——

Over my shoulder, Periel Kalos watched Carina Leopold and Millaiyen Pestellio with an expression that seemed somehow displeased.

When Carina Leopold offered an awkward smile, Periel Kalos squinted his eyes as though he’d forgotten his earlier mood and smiled warmly.

“See you later, Carina Leopold.”

At that parting greeting, Carina Leopold nodded. Millaiyen Pestellio’s gaze briefly touched upon Periel Kalos and Carina Leopold before drifting away.

“You’ve grown quite close to Periel Kalos.”

“Ah, does it seem that way?”

Carina Leopold spoke with a faint smile.

At that small gesture, which seemed somehow embarrassed, Millaiyen Pestellio’s brow furrowed without his awareness.

Strangely, his chest stirred.

“I’ve decided to be friends with Periel Kalos.”

“Friends?”

“Yes, he’s my first friend in life, so I’m quite delighted. Of course, I’m not entirely sure what friends are supposed to do with each other.”

“I see.”

At Millaiyen Pestellio’s curt reply, Carina Leopold fell silent. He seemed reluctant to continue the conversation.

She had no desire to further disturb his mood.

“May I ask why you keep pushing yourself so hard?”

“Pardon?”

“I may not understand art or artistic matters well, but I do know that creating something so immense requires considerable strength.”

Millaiyen Pestellio spoke as he opened the door to Carina’s Room.

He laid her naturally onto the bed. Carina stirred and propped herself against the headboard, meeting his gaze.

“Why did you draw something so enormous?”

His eyes grew serious as they fixed upon her—honest eyes, clear and unwavering, eyes that despised deception.

I couldn’t tell him it was because I was in pain.

Even if I confessed that my heart ached, that I drew to survive, he would surely fail to understand.

And even if he did understand…

“I’m not sure myself.”

I smiled faintly and let the familiar lie slip from my lips once more.

—— Page 2 ——

I just woke up and suddenly felt the urge to draw.

I opened my eyes wide as I spoke. Millaiyen watched me with his arms crossed.

I suppose I regretted simply erasing Herta.

It was a common lie.

There was no regret. I hadn’t wanted to diminish my own life in that way.

Drawing something so enormous carries a backlash that arrives soon enough.

…And I never know when it will come.

I was already dreading that moment.

Had I resisted the impulse, I surely would have fared better…

But I lacked the courage to endure that agony—my heart constricting, my breath catching in my throat. Especially knowing how quickly that pain fades.

I’ll try my best not to do it again.

You still have no intention of telling me what your art disease is?

Carina Leopold offered a bitter smile at his question.

If I could have told you, I would have done so long ago. Carrying something I cannot speak of within my heart was profoundly lonely.

I dislike it. If Millaiyen Pestellio were to know, I fear he would treat me like a fragile glass marble that might shatter at any moment.

She deliberately opened her mouth with a curt tone.

Sensing her transparent desire to evade the subject, Millaiyen Pestellio closed his lips.

It’s not quite like that.

Millaiyen Pestellio is kind, after all.

But isn’t Periel Kalos even kinder when it comes to kindness?

At the abrupt mention of Periel Kalos’s name, Carina Leopold’s eyes widened. Millaiyen Pestellio wore an expression of deep chagrin at words that had escaped him unbidden.

Periel Kalos’s kindness and Millaiyen Pestellio’s kindness are quite different, you see.

Different?

Periel Kalos is affectionate toward everyone. Perhaps he is always affectionate whenever needed? Since he is so accustomed to dealing with people, he discerns what others desire without difficulty.

She moved her lips slowly. She conjured an image of Periel Kalos in her mind.

He is adept at everything. No matter what he does or where he stands, he will surely be able to command those around him.

Perhaps Periel Kalos is… someone who can stand at the center wherever he goes, with whomever he is, even if he possesses nothing.

He’s just good with words.

Millaiyen Pestellio dismissed Periel Kalos’s sociability with a single remark.

Despite the harsh evaluation, Carina Leopold burst into delighted laughter.

Millaiyen Pestellio was well aware of his own dullness. He was not the sort to be warm-hearted wherever he went, nor was he someone who could bend to another’s will like Periel Kalos could.

I had to say what I wanted to say, and I had no intention of following what I didn’t believe in.

Periel Kalos once told Millaiyen Pestellio that he was like a tree that would snap if a fierce wind blew. Sometimes, he said, one must know how to bend like silver grass.

But Millaiyen Pestellio had no such inclination. If a fierce wind came, he would simply stand more firmly against it. He would drive his roots deeper and become as solid as an ancient, gnarled oak.

—— Page 3 ——

“But Millaiyen Pestellio is a bit different.”

“How so?”

“Hmm. I think he’s someone without tact.”

Carina Leopold, who had been carefully gauging the mood, let the words tumble out abruptly.

As Millaiyen Pestellio unfolded his crossed arms and opened his mouth, she let her expression crumble into a smile.

“…What?”

“No matter where he goes, he won’t be able to find his footing as easily as Periel Kalos does.”

“That’s quite a harsh assessment.”

Carina Leopold, her laughter rippling softly, turned her head away.

Watching her silhouette as she gazed toward the Window, Millaiyen Pestellio blinked silently.

“But you will find your center. As we spend time together, everyone will soon recognize your strengths.”

“My strengths?”

“My harsh tone comes from worrying about you, I jump into dangerous situations myself, and I can’t push people away when it matters.”

Just as she ended up accepting him despite his sudden and unexpected arrival.

Carina Leopold looked at Millaiyen Pestellio again and smiled faintly.

“Take a rest. If you want to draw for a long time, I recommend taking care of your body. Don’t get hurt.”

“Are you worried about me?”

“Yes, I’m worried. I hope you’ll stay healthy.”

Carina Leopold, who had been attempting an awkward smile at Millaiyen Pestellio’s words, suddenly stiffened.

She drew in a sharp breath and held it.

Carina Leopold’s head slowly drooped downward.

Pain bloomed—a sharp ache in her heart. There was no need to contemplate what price this was.

“Carina Leopold?”

“It’s… it’s nothing.”

She lifted her head and forced the brightest smile she could muster.

“You should rest too, Millaiyen Pestellio. You only just returned this morning. There are… things to… ah…”

As she spoke rapidly, she suddenly clutched her heart in panic. The throbbing pain twisted her face involuntarily.

She couldn’t hide it. In that moment, despair flooded her expression.

“…Carina Leopold!”

Millaiyen Pestellio rushed to examine her, his own hand flying to his heart as she curled inward.

Her face had turned deathly pale, and her lower lip had lost all color.

Her expression was contorted with agony.

“Is it that cursed illness? I’ll summon the Physician and Periel Kalos right away…!”

“I’m… I’m fine… truly.”

Carina Leopold reached out and grasped Millaiyen Pestellio’s hand.

The warmth radiating from his hand seemed to ease her heart, if only slightly.

Of course, that was merely her own thought.

“In a moment….”

It would get better. It had to get better.

This pain was something she could not discuss with Periel Kalos or Winston—there was nothing they could do about it. It was a suffering she alone had to endure.

“Don’t be foolish!”

—— Page 4 ——

“I’m really fine… ugh….”

Carina Leopold’s hand, which had been gripping Millaiyen Pestellio’s, trembled violently.

Millaiyen Pestellio’s eyes quivered as he urgently seized her hand, which had begun to slip weakly from the unbearable pain.

“Carina Leopold.”

At his soft voice, Carina Leopold finally surrendered her stubbornness.

Watching him yield, she squeezed her eyes shut.

It felt as though someone were thrusting a sword through her heart—withdrawing it, then thrusting again, only to withdraw once more, an endless cycle of repetition.

Until it finally ceased.

Her breath would catch, then release, and when it released, the agony was such that sometimes she wished her breath would stop forever.

Sometimes she even prayed that if she were to endure such torment ceaselessly, she would rather it all simply end.

“I’ll return shortly….”

Carina Leopold managed a labored nod.

She lacked the strength to utter even a single word of acknowledgment.

In truth, she wished he would not go….

He knew full well that he would never stand idle and watch her suffer.

Millaiyen gazed at her without uttering a single sound, watching as she curled her body tightly and gripped the bedsheet with white knuckles, as though this were all too familiar.

Her face was contorted as though she had endured such agony more than once or twice, yet in her eyes lingered a glimmer of resignation.

One side of his heart throbbed sharply. At this inexplicable sensation, he felt his body shudder.

It was a chilling sensation, as though the ground beneath his feet had suddenly given way and he were being pulled into an endless abyss.

“Damn it!”

Millaiyen, who had been about to leave, turned back and gathered her into his arms instead.

Supporting her thighs as one would cradle a small child, he swiftly carried her from the room with a single arm.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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