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“Get away from Naowa right now!!!!”

Zion… why on earth?

How can Zion, who knows better than anyone that I wouldn’t do anything weird to Naowa, say something like that?

In an instant, everyone’s gaze turned toward us.

And their expressions were filled with shock and horror.

How on earth am I supposed to resolve this?

“Haah, Director Hop.”

Naowa, who had briefly leaned toward me, stepped back and quietly called me, redirecting my attention.

“Princess, what should we do about this…”

“Hanamana will take care of it, so just stay still.”

“Huh?”

Hanamana will take care of it? How on earth…

“Area Control.”

Turning to look at Hanamana, I saw her casting a spell.

The magic she cast was one that designates the next target for a spell over a wide area. Is she really going to use some magic?

“Magic Block.”

At the same time, Naowa placed her hand on my body, providing resistance.

These are all members of the hero party. I don’t think they would do anything harmful to civilians, but I can’t shake off this unsettling feeling.

What are they trying to do to the patients and staff?

“Sleep.”

And what Hanamana cast was none other than Sleep, a spell that immediately puts the target to sleep.

As the incantation ended, everyone—the patients and staff who had been looking at us—began to simultaneously lose consciousness and collapse.

“Wind.”

Naowa conjured a gust of wind to prevent the falling people from hitting the floor.

Wrapped in the wind, the unconscious individuals gently lay down.

I can’t believe they would resort to such a drastic measure.

“This… is this really okay? Just putting them to sleep like this doesn’t mean they won’t remember anything…”

“Don’t worry, Hanamana will suggest to each of them and confuse their memories. It won’t be possible to erase their memories completely, but since their memories will be randomly altered, they won’t agree on what really happened, making it impossible to know what was real.”

“Ugh, I really don’t want to use mind magic…”

“Stop whining and hurry up, Hanamana. We need to do the suggestions quickly because we can’t let the people stay fainted for too long.”

“Got it, Naowa. I can’t do it instantly because I have to do it one by one…”

“Um… can I help?”

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

Suddenly stepping into the conversation, the one offering to help Hanamana was none other than Mirae.

“Mirae? How are you awake?”

“Well, I don’t really know, maybe it’s because my resistance is high?”

Is that so? Is that even possible? I also have a high sleep spell level, but there’s bound to be a significant difference in power compared to what Hanamana is using, due to the amount of magic energy.

Hanamana is the cleric of the hero party. She could easily put the broken adventurers in this gym to sleep in an instant.

But are you telling me that a mere nursing maid could resist her magic just because of high resistance?

“Ugh, it looks like Hanamana made another mistake.”

Hanamana shrank back with a gloomy expression. Is it really a mistake?

While Hanamana is prone to errors, I never thought she would fail at casting magic…

But if it’s not a mistake from Hanamana, then it really means Mirae resisted Hanamana’s magic, which raises the question of which scenario is more plausible. In all likelihood, Hanamana making a mistake seems more likely.

“What should we do, Naowa? Should we just put her to sleep now?”

“Don’t do that. This person is Director Hop’s right-hand. She’s probably trustworthy, so let’s allow her to help Hanamana as she wishes. Do you know how to do it?”

“Yes, Princess! I can certainly do a simple suggestion spell. I have a bit of mind magic too.”

Mirae answered nonchalantly.

It’s true that Mirae has learned a lot of skills and has been very helpful. Aside from me, she’s the only one who can use Recover.

“Then I’ll start with this side.”

“Okay, then I’ll take care of this side.”

Hanamana and Mirae split up and began placing their hands over the heads of the unconscious patients and staff to weave their suggestions.

This will definitely take some time. But at least, it seems the situation is being managed…

“Zion.”

It was time to hear Zion’s side.

Calling out his name and turning to face him, Zion was looking at me with furrowed brows and a furious expression.

“Why did you say something like that? I was just catching the Princess from falling.”

“Is that really all?”

“Huh?”

“You casually laid your hands on my body while pretending it’s rehabilitation training, and not just to me, but to Naowa as well…”

Right now, Zion was clenching his fists, visibly trembling with rage as he directed his fury aimed expressly at me.

And it wasn’t just me who was astonished by how angry Zion was.

“What did you do to Zion? Director Hop, what are you doing to him?”

Even Naowa started to be on guard against me.

With cold glares coming from both sides, I felt a chill run down my spine.

I had thought the situation had been resolved, but it had become even more dizzying than when many people were staring just moments ago.

It seems like some serious misunderstanding has occurred, so I need to clear it up first…

“I swear I’ve never done anything other than provide medical treatment to Zion, nor have I had any other intentions. Zion… please, I’m really in trouble, so hurry up and explain properly to the Princess. Why would I do anything bad to you…”

“Is that really the truth?”

“Of course it’s the truth. So…”

“Have you truly… had no feelings for me at all?”

“Huh?”

What on earth does that even mean? My head felt like it had been struck hard, leaving me blank and devoid of thought.

Zion swallowed a sob, on the verge of tears, breathing heavily and increasingly trembling with anger.

It’s not like I had any bad thoughts or impure intentions towards Zion, so when I said there were no “other feelings,” why was he so furious?

“Well, of course…”

Of course, I need to say that there’s nothing. But I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

This is something entirely different. The feelings I have for Zion can’t simply be dismissed as nothing.

I’ve been deceiving Zion all along, but this time, I can’t do that.

And I can’t help but feel that saying no here wouldn’t merely be deceiving Zion; it would be deceiving myself as well.

“Ugh…!”

But Zion didn’t wait for my answer. My head was filled with so many thoughts that I couldn’t say anything when the event unfolded.

As I hesitated to answer, Zion closed his eyes tightly, turned his head away, and tears shimmered as they fell to the ground, turning into dark stains.

Then Zion maneuvered his wheelchair to avoid the fallen patients and headed toward the gym’s exit, heading up to the first floor.

“…”

At this moment, I couldn’t even call out to Zion to stop him. I could only turn my eyes toward him, watching helplessly.

Where is he going? I would hope to the ward, but given the current atmosphere, there’s a chance he might try to leave the center altogether.

“Zion…!”

Just as Zion left, Naowa rushed after him in a hurry, but—

“Ugh!”

Because his legs weren’t functioning properly, she genuinely fell to the floor this time.

“Serin!!!”

Raising her head while lying down, Naowa shouted toward the first floor where the ward was located.

Serin, who must have been stationed at Zion’s ward, appeared at once from the stairs and helped Naowa up.

“Princess?! Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, but hurry and go after Zion. Quickly!!”

“Understood.”

Serin nodded without hesitation and carefully sat Naowa down on the floor before rushing out of the gym after Zion.

The rehabilitation gym was in complete chaos in an instant.

People sprawled on the floor, Hanamana and Mirae weaving suggestions to them, and Naowa catching her breath as she rose again.

But right now, nothing around me registered.

“Director Hop.”

Of course, I couldn’t hear anything either.

In my mind, the last image of Zion endlessly replayed in my head.

Zion, turning away, tears streaming down his face. The final words he left behind.

Only that image was visible, and only that voice echoed in my ears. It was as if I was trapped in a never-ending hallucination.

“Did you really have no feelings for me at all?”

No. I… I’m sure I have feelings for Zion…

“Director Hop!!”

“?!”

I finally snapped back to reality as I felt a shock strike both my cheeks.

When I focused my eyes ahead, Naowa was standing in front of me, using her fingers to flick my cheeks lightly.

“Director Hop! Are you back with us?”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

“Do you have any idea how many times I called you? What are we going to do if the rehabilitation expert falls into a panic?”

“I’m sorry.”

I took a deep breath and composed myself.

There are more than just a few things to deal with, but now is not the time to worry about them.

We must focus on Zion. First, figure out how to resolve the situation…

“I really didn’t expect it to come to this, but it looks like I have to ask directly now.”

Naowa withdrew her hand and took a small step back.

It seemed she needed to brace herself too as she took a deep breath before inquiring,

“Director Hop, what kind of person is Zion to you?”

With a serious expression, she looked directly into my eyes, asking the question.

“Are they just a patient to you, someone for whom you only perform medical acts, as you said earlier?”

No. Now I know for sure.

Of course, I had thought so before, but somewhere along the way, that changed.

Zion is… Zion is someone special to me…

 

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