Chapter 14: It’s not just about love or anything like that.

To Yousrid, Rinaria was, without a doubt, his first love.

In fact, she was also his love at first sight—and above all, his very first friend.

From the moment he became aware of the world, he had lived chasing only his father and his sword.

He had talent.

He had the perseverance to work hard.

But the father he aspired to reach was far too great.

A man who had even saved the world was, to a child, an impossibly distant figure, one he could never catch up to.

And so, until that moment—

Until the moment that golden-haired girl told him his sword was cool—

Yous was instantly drawn to Rinaria—or Rina, as he decided to call her.

Her lack of personal boundaries, her innocent smile when she laughed, the way she praised his sword so earnestly—

Every bit of it was too much for him, like a potent drug.

The only regret was that Rina had no awareness of herself as a woman, and because of that, she never recognized his feelings for her.

But even so, it was fine.

Someday, he and Rina would become something special.

As long as he kept striving forward—with his sword, with their bond—he believed that one day, his efforts would be rewarded.

At least, that’s what he thought—until the moment Rina told him about her fiancé.

—Looking back now, he knew what he did next was stupid.

Reckless, thoughtless.

But what happened afterward was something even that thoughtless Yous could never have imagined.

In the end, to put it simply, Yous owed his survival to Rina’s power.

At that time, it seemed Rina had shared a portion of her "Fate Force" with him.

Even his father, who had explained it to him, didn’t fully understand the details—but apparently, Rina’s "Borrowed Luck" constitution allowed her to transfer her Fate Force to others.

Either way, having been saved by sharing her life force with him, Yous and Rina became something akin to a pair of inseparable lovebirds.

The issue of Rina’s noble lineage still remained, but Yous and Rina were permitted to become adventurers, and on Rina’s 15th birthday, they left home together.

The condition for their adventuring was simple: Rina’s true identity must never be revealed.

Thanks to Yous’s father’s arrangements—and a fortunate coincidence that an adventuring party was being formed around the same time—the two joined Golem Randolph’s party, the Bronze Stars.

Since then, the two had grown through countless adventures.

And throughout it all, Yous had three problems he needed to solve.

The first was Rina’s self-identity.

Unable to recognize herself as a woman, no matter how much she loved Yous, she couldn’t openly accept his feelings. It was a matter of the heart—something that couldn’t be forced.

The only solution was to give it time.

The second was gaining formal recognition from Rina’s father for their relationship.

Because Yous had become Rina’s "White Luck" partner, his presence in her life was now indispensable.

If Rina were ever separated from Yous, the Fate Force she had shared with him would weaken, making her far more susceptible to death. Once, Rina had tried to leave the party alone—proof that, deep down, she had given up on living.

But even if her father was a hero, as a mere commoner, Yous would never gain his—or society’s—approval to marry Rina.

What Yous needed was achievement. A responsibility so great it would silence the entire nation.

And finally—Rina’s "White Luck" constitution.

While it brought happiness to those around her, it also exposed them to danger. There was no telling when it might lead to death or irreversible injury.

Worst of all, as long as it continued to affect those around her, Rina would keep borrowing from her own luck—until one day, she died young.

Just like Rina’s mother had.

It was too cruel.

No one was to blame, yet Rina bore the weight of it all.

He couldn’t accept that.

—And now.

Here, in this moment, Yuth was about to reach his conclusion regarding Rina’s "White Luck."

---

"—It was you who led me this far."

"...Yeah."

Yous’s voice rang clear as he spoke to me.

Holding me tight, resolved not to let me escape.

Like this, I had no choice but to listen.

The sound of his heartbeat—this was the first time it had ever felt so comforting.

"You were the one who gave me a new goal, when all I had was my father."

Looking back now, Yuth had probably been reckless all along.

Even as a child. Even after becoming an adventurer.

"I was able to keep going because of you."

With his good looks, Yous had always been burdened with excessive expectations—and, of course, endless advances from women.

At his core, Yous was an idiot. Or rather, the type who found more joy in goofing around with the guys.

Whenever he got dragged to mixers or the like, he’d tag along just for the camaraderie.

Given that, it wasn’t hard to imagine how much stress it must have caused him to keep up his "noble prince" act.

"You always looked conflicted when I talked to other women, but to me, those experiences were just training—to become a man worthy of standing by your side. So, what do you think?"

"What do I—? You’re seriously asking me that?"

"Hahaha, fair point."

"...Could’ve at least denied it a little."

I sighed.

What the hell? This guy was teasing me on purpose.

Damn it, I’d get him back.

"But, y’know… if I hate something, I just hate it. …Just keep your eyes on me, okay?"

"...You’re killing me here."

Ha. Look at him, turning red.

Heh heh, serves you right.

"Who even confesses in a place like this?"

"—Huh?"

Oh. Wait, no, that’s not—

I was just trying to mess with him a little—

"Sh-shut up! Idiot, idiot, idiot! Yous, you idiot!"

"Ahahaha! Hard to take you seriously when you’re that red."

Damn it, what’s with him all of a sudden?

…Normally, he’d be a little more reserved about this kind of thing.

Or—had I been the one making him hold back?

"...Sorry."

"For what?"

"For… a lot of things. Making you hold back. Making you endure stuff because of me—"

Just as I was about to continue—

"—Stop. Don’t go any further, Rina."

"...Oh."

Damn it, I did it again.

He didn’t want an apology.

If anything, he was doing all this to encourage me—to stop me from apologizing.

"Hey, Rina."

"...What?"

"Right now, it might feel scary, just the two of us. Maybe I alone can’t carry all the weight of your fears."

—Fears.

Yeah.

There were plenty of reasons I couldn’t live freely, but the only thing that truly made me afraid was my "White Luck" constitution—the thing binding my future.

My self-identity, my conflict with Father—those weren’t the kind of things that brought me fear.

Setting those aside for now, the real issue was my constitution.

How would I live with it? How could I make sure I’d die with this idiot by my side?

…Wait, there I go again, thinking like it’s a given we’ll be together.

Am I getting carried away?

As he gently stroked my head, Yous spoke.

Gazing upward, listening to the voices of our comrades still echoing from outside.

"But what if—someone besides me could help carry it too?"

—He asked me that.

And then—

"Rina, deep down, you’re someone who makes others happy. Maybe your constitution draws them in—but it’s your own efforts that saved them, right?"

"..."

"That’s why so many people are grateful to you. Your power might torment you, might make you afraid—"

Yous smiled at me.

"—But that same power is what connects you to the people who refuse to let you suffer."

———Crack.

A sound, like something breaking.

"I might not be able to protect you alone. I’ll fight to do it by myself, but fate might not allow it."

———Crack.

Light flickered in the sky.

"That’s exactly why—it shouldn’t just be one person. I want you to believe that everyone will fight to protect you."

———Crack.

And then—a voice reached us.

"Rinaaa!! Come back to us—to me and Yous!"

Anna’s voice.

"I love you, Rina! I want to be with you! I want you to live happily! And I want to help make that happen! Hey, Rina! Is that okay with you?!"

Then—

"Won't you trust us?! "

———A hand reached out.

"It’s not just me. There are as many people who want to protect you as there are people you’ve made happy. The more happiness you give, the more happiness comes back to you."

"But I—"

"—Isn’t that just how the world works?"

…Me.

"So… about your constitution, there’s only one thing I can say."

Before I realized it—

"Will you believe in us?"

———I had already taken Anna’s outstretched hand.

---

Dragged out from the shadows, the serpent thrashed in agony before violently flinging Anna and me away.

It glared down at us as we barely managed to right ourselves midair and land safely—

And screeched.

As if to say—I let you escape again.

I felt the fear I’d been carrying inside me finally wash away, and a smile rose to my lips.

Looking around, I saw our comrades sighing in relief at our survival.

When I turned to Anna, she was smiling—though her eyes shimmered with the threat of tears.

…Sorry for worrying you.

If I said it out loud, she’d scold me, so I kept it in my heart.

Now, we were back to how things should be.

"—You’ve got some nerve, you damn snake."

My voice rang out, strong and clear.

The serpent roared in fury, as if cursing its own failure.

If only it had swallowed us back then.

"Don’t be stupid. I’m going to live. As long as there are people who tell me I should live—I will."

I reached down and grabbed my rapier—the one I’d dropped when the shadows swallowed me.

Yous did the same, picking up his fallen sword.

Together, we raised our blades.

"Listen well, you bastard! We’re going to keep living—through countless more adventures! We’ll face forward, so that everyone can say their lives were happy, fun, and full of glory!"

———Alternative Skills.

The rule was simple: one per person. Once per day.

But for us?

"Let’s go, Yous. Just like always—"

"Yeah, Rina. From now on—"

If the two of us counted as one, then of course we could use it twice a day.

"—We’ll keep living—with our comrades in Bronze Star!"

A platinum light ignited along our blades.

"Alternative Skill—"

"—'Till Death Do Us Part.'"

The shadows, perhaps recalling what had happened moments ago, surged forward.

But this time, there was nothing holding us back.

If we didn’t let them touch us, they were nothing.

—Or so it should have been.

"Not gonna let you, dumbassess!"

"Rrraaaaaaagh—!!"

The party roared in response to their leader’s cry. Weapons were drawn, spells unleashed—the wizard’s incantations already complete.

"You really thought it was just the two of us here?!"

A spell pierced the serpent’s body as it tried to retreat.

It writhed, as if to say this barely tickles—but before it could recover, the frontliners were already upon it.

The serpent lashed out, hurling blade-like shadows to repel them.

But we charged in regardless. Even if we got hurt, the healers would patch us up.

"—This is it."

Yous’s voice was low, resolute.

His expression was dead serious.

"...You’re done, you piece of shit."

Yous’s strike—

And mine—

—Pierced the serpent’s body at the same time.

And just like that, the bastard who’d put us through hell met its end.