"......Sarah."
Ermes called out the name of the girl who had grabbed his hand to stop him.
Sarah flinched at Ermes' cold gaze, but still, carefully, she wove her words together.
"......Please, reconsider. I know Albert's words certainly had problems. But... I'll apologize on my part too, and I'll talk to them properly. So please."
"Why should you be the one to apologize? You're not the one at fault."
"...Because we're classmates. And I'm the class representative of Class B. The fact that I couldn't keep you here... that's partly my responsibility too."
Honestly, it was a way of thinking he couldn't really wrap his head around.
From Ermes' perspective, ultimately, an individual was an individual. No matter what one did, the responsibility—whether it yielded good or bad consequences—reverted to the person themselves.
After all, that was what magic was when you pushed it to its limit. Even if one was influenced by someone else, in the end, you still had to give shape to the wish that lay within yourself.
Sarah continued.
"Ermes. Once, you told me that I could believe in my own feelings. Because of that, I'm here now.
In the same way—for others, too. Could you not believe in my classmates' feelings, just a little more?"
"...The previous matter—I said that because I felt you had potential. I cannot and do not intend to feel the same about them. ...To put it bluntly, I couldn't care less."
"...!"
Perhaps this could be called Ermes' weakness.
What he had done for Katia and Sarah, what he had felt for them—that was truly the exception.
With his muted emotional fluctuations, his ability to empathize with others was extremely low. Unless it was someone he actually wanted to empathize with, this was his default response.
As if sensing Ermes' resolve, Sarah choked on her words and lowered her gaze.
...It would have been fine to end the conversation right there.
Her expression was so desperately earnest. So utterly, unavoidable serious that—he found himself questioning it, and decided to ask.
"Actually, if I may ask you something."
"Hm?"
"Why do you go out of your way to defend them like that? I'm sure there are circumstances, and I know you don't like hearing your friends spoken ill of. So I apologize if this offends you—but to me, they come across as nothing more than hopeless people."
"!"
"That's why I want to know. The reason you go so far for them. Your conviction."
At Ermes' question, Sarah lowered her gaze and fell into thought for a moment.
It wasn't that she was struggling to find an answer—she understood that this was the turning point that would decide whether she could keep him here.
And then, she finally raised her face—and spoke.
"...I think it's because I respect them."
"Respect?"
"Yes. You as well, and everyone in the class. But not just that—and this might be a bit much to say, but—I respect people as people. Everyone who carries their own proper will and their own unique story."
"..."
Perhaps feeling that was a bit too vague, Sarah took a breath, gave a small, bashful smile, and continued.
"...Albert can be a bit stubborn, that's true. But if you look at it another way, he has a firm will and gives everything he has to do what he can in each moment. He's truly hardworking."
"Oh..."
"Niina is a bit of a flatterer and quite moody, but... when it comes to things she won't budge on, she has incredible backbone. And she really, truly cares about her companions."
"Whoa there, you're makin' me blush."
"Beatrix often doesn't get straight to the point, but she always says exactly what she wants to convey with everything she has. Rain is quiet but wonderfully attentive to the small things. And Castor is—"
And so, one by one, with careful sincerity.
Sara, with no flattery whatsoever, spoke from the heart. She listed the strengths of every single classmate, one after another. Not a single word of her praise felt forced or redundant or like a copy of what she'd said about someone else.
"Something like that, you see. Of course, it may not apply to everyone... but still, if you approach people with a genuine desire to know them, you'll find plenty of things to respect. I'm sure, far more than you think."
"..."
It was then that Ermes understood.
The difference between himself and Sara. And just how diametrically opposed they were.
If one were to define one's impression of others solely on the axis of like or dislike—
Ermes's impression of someone he'd just met was blank. He neither leaned toward like nor dislike, sitting in an utterly flat state. To put it negatively, it was a state of complete indifference.
Sara, on the other hand, under the same conditions, would approach the other person already tilted toward like from the very start. She wanted to get along, she wanted to know them—and true to her word, she would find a great many things about a person worthy of respect.
And what made that possible was the part of her that was the polar opposite of Ermes. Her ability to empathize with others was extraordinarily high.
That, precisely, was why she was so deeply cherished by her classmates.
"...?"
As usual, he couldn't say he'd fully grasped her way of thinking.
And yet—the way she existed, that alone. He found himself harboring a faint longing, wishing he could be like that.
"El."
As if sensing the moment his heart wavered, just slightly—
This time, from behind him, Nina called out.
"Honestly, I totally understand how you feel... I can't be as passionate about stopping you as Sara is. But—"
After that preface, Nina let a faint, almost ephemeral expression cross her face.
"If you go past that point, you'll end up... incredibly lonely. I'm sure it's the same path as the great 'Sky Witch.'"
"!"
Nina shouldn't know that Ermes is Rose's disciple.
But that was precisely why. Those words resonated deeply within Ermes.
...Ah, yes. That's right.
Hated, alienated, rejected. Giving up in the end, abandoning any interaction altogether.
Right now, he was exactly at the crossroads of whether to follow the same path as his master.
He didn't particularly think that was a bad thing.
But the truth was, during his training days, he had seen his master's profile—after leaving the Royal Capital and fighting near it—occasionally tinged with a lonely color, many times over.
"...Ermes. I respect you as well. If it's possible, I'd like you to be in the same place as the people I also respect. I want you to know their good qualities... And above all. I want to know more about you, and I want you to let me know you."
"..."
"So, I'm truly sorry. ...Please."
With that, she pressed her palms together and bowed her head.
It was as if she were trying to pull back, through prayer, a monster about to turn its back on humanity.
"—"
With Sarah's and Nina's words, Ermes managed to regain a measure of composure.
However, it was also a fact that he had become disillusioned with them—with the other Class B people besides those two.
Therefore, he—
"...With the intention of truly getting to know that person, huh—"
After turning over a portion of Sarah's words in his mind, he made a certain resolve, and to confirm it—
Facing forward, he declared:
"...Lady Sarah, and Lord Albert as well. Would you two—take me to a certain place?"
I'm sorry, but as usual this is going to be long, so I'll split it into two parts.
I'll post the next part soon!