"Fwaah... Good morning." I stretch my arms above me as I say so.
In response, Claud nods in an unenthused manner, slightly more solemn than usual. He didn't say hello today, usually he wouldn't be so stingy about saving Willpower.
Remembering what occurred yesterday, it's awkward to have greeted him so casually. His face didn't betray any emotions about whether he is still angry.
Without bringing it up, Claud proceeds as usual, getting dressed. Visibly he isn't angry, but he went straight to taking off his gauze and with one arm, haphazardly putting on fresh ones. Usually, he'd wait for me to provide assistance.
We had a big fight after all.
It's understandable to be a little uncomfortable even after we made up.
Without asking for help, he continued struggling.
[Claud Branford
Personality: Calculative, Empathy, Entitled, Foul-mouthed, Sadistic, Selfish
Skills: Covert Taunt, Heal Lv3, Mana Mastery Lv3, Speech Lv1, Summon, Throw Lv4]
Another day has passed without his arm recovering. All the fingers on his right hand are gone now, overtaken by the growth. Everyday I'm reminded. If I had been a little more responsive, Claud wouldn't have fallen with the first-class carriage into the strait...
No. We mustn't be so distant. I'll make an effort.
"I'll help you put it on."
If I leave him to it, the poorly wrapped gauze will increase the chance of other infections. For a calculative person, he sure is careless about his own body.
He gives me a quick glance before surrendering his arm over.
As I wrap the gauze over and over, I take the opportunity to examine his head.
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"Claud, I'm jealous of you."
"Eh?" Claud eyes widened due to my abrupt statement. "What for?"
"Your parents. I was really surprised when I first met them. They're so open with their love for each other... and you. I was jealous of that. I thought we were the same."
"The same?" A sincere question. "How so?"
"Your name, Claud. Meaning lame or disabled. I thought parents who would name their child that would be like mine."
Claud was pensive, pondering about what I had said.
"Are you disappointed?" He asked with a serious expression.
"Of course not. Just a little envious."
"Envious? Hah. You don't need to be. They're your parents now too." His hand raised almost instinctively to rub my head in a soothing gesture, with the expertise of a veteran.
As if he'd done it many times before.
"Do you have any younger siblings?"
He froze. Did I touch on something bad?
"... I don't think so?"
"... D-Did you hit your head?"
"I didn't."
"L-let me see!"
"You won't find anything! Stop messing with my hair and stop wasting Willpower on heal spells!"
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"All done." It was quickly finished as I'd had plenty of opportunity to practice over the course of a month. With a nod as thanks, Claud went straight to packing the bags.
Claud's Observation Diary continues.
Claud has a routine when packing.
Place everything onto the bed. Head count of items. Sort them into categories and place them in an order of priority.
First off, clothes, dresses and... The unmentionables, brazenly laid out in a crude display. Claud is shameless. How can he maintain a stoic face while handling my undergarments?
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Mmm... I mustn't be upset at him. He always does the laundry and folds them neatly.
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"Claud, you can't clean my clothes today!"
"W-why not?"
"I'm bleeding, you mustn't touch it. It's impure. You'll be cursed!"
"... Oh." Ignoring me, his hands continued scrubbing away.
"If you understand, stop then."
"It's just superstition. It's fine."
"It's not. People have gotten sick. We should burn it and get new ones!"
"... How do you think poor women deal with their monthly week of impurity?"
"..."
"Do you think they can afford to burn their undergarment?"
"No..."
"Exactly. Stop being silly, people only get sick if they don't clean up. Make sure you bathe properly. There aren't any servants to help anymore. Don't forget to wash behind the ears too..."
Nag, nag, nag, nag, he continued.
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I'd never thought about how the lower caste dealt with these issues. Despite being a noble too, Claud already knew about this. He's so smart and thoughtful and kind...
Maybe not as far as kind. He's a bit mean really but thoughtful.
Claud's always worried that we will go hungry.
Exorbitant amounts of food and water are in every single one of our bags.
He constantly nags at me to place the canteen on the left. Claud's reasoning is that I could reach backwards into the bag to drink while still holding onto my sword. Claud thinks I'm right-handed, he placed it there for my convenience. I couldn't reveal the truth that I only hold my weapon in my right hand because I wanted to mimic him. I think he'd be mad so I kept it secret.
The new magic lantern is on the bag's side latch. He replaced our oil lantern because it was a 'fire hazard' to carry around oil with all our important supplies. Although I don't really understand. Encountering fire breathing dragons is not a common occurrence. Does he perhaps plan to fight a dragon sometime in the future?
He wouldn't put us in that sort of danger.
The whole reason we're going home is precisely because we want to avoid dangerous situations.
Finally he groups all our precious belongings into our shared bag. Our numerous books we'd left lying around, the old lantern we used to read late at night, his lucky charm.
The room gradually lost its homely appeal as more of our personal items were kept.
He put everything away except for our two necklaces.
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"Sophie, you should stop wearing your ring."
"W-why?!" I couldn't help feeling anxious.
"In a fight, you could injure your finger or break the ring. I took mine off too."
"... I don't want to."
"Why not?"
"Don't you have... some... sentimental feelings about keeping them on at all times?"
"I do. But I also wouldn't want to lose my ring. Give it here, I'll keep the two together in a box."
"No. I want to keep wearing it."
"Don't be silly, I already told you why that's a bad idea. You could break it."
"Mmm..."
"Fine. We could wear the rings on a necklace. That way our hands are unobstructed, and we'd still be wearing the rings."
"O-okay! Promise not to take your necklace off, alright?"
"Promise. Except when we're sleeping. I don't want you to accidentally strangle me again."
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Click!
The sound of Claud putting the necklace around my neck broke me out of my daydream. How did he do that with one hand?
-Claud's Willpower: 43/44-
"Sophie? Are you tired? We can delay our departure if you're unwell. It will be dangerous if you're not alert."
"Oh... I'm okay. Just thinking about you."
-Claud's Willpower: 42/44-
"I see. That's fine then."
He looked slightly embarrassed. Such a difference from his initial impression. To the point that anyone would have noticed his cool demeanor is a pretense, truthfully he's shy.
"Let's pray to the Gods and Goddesses for safe travels. Come. I'll lead morning prayer."
Claud reluctantly bows down on his knees.
He's not very devout despite being a priest and having directly witnessed their blessings. I understand why. He's also received their curse in the form of his negative trait.
"Claud, which God are you a follower of? Is it the God of Knowledge? You would fit as her follower the most."
-Claud's Willpower: 41/44-
"I'm not a follower of any of the gods."
"But you can't become a priest without becoming one of their followers beforehand."
"..."
-Claud's Willpower: 40/44-
"... About the route we're taking-" He changed the subject casually. Avoiding the topic entirely. He had forgotten another memory.
"Claud..."
"We're following an old road that leads to the north, to avoid wyverns and other dangerous monsters-"
Claud is really adamant about not talking about it.
"The caves will lead to the Hazy District mountainside-"
There's no use even if I do make a fuss, I guess. We should return to the capital city as quickly as possible to find a high-ranking priest.
"No large type monsters are present but don't lower your guard. There are lots of winding paths, and it's easy to get lost. The correct way will be marked by blue..."
"... Blue what?"
-Claud's Willpower: 39/44-
"I don't know either. The travel logs don't say what the blue subject is." Claud piles the three bags plus our camping equipment onto his back.
-Claud's Willpower: 38/44-
"Alright then, shall we?"
"Let's shall."
"..."
"..."
Ignoring my flubbed line, we left the inn.
Goodbye, daily baths. I will have to bear with being filthy for the next few days. Hopefully we can reach there quickly, I'll try to run as fast as I can.
We left our room, Claud returned the room's keys to the landlady.
... We really are leaving this place.
We stayed here for so long it almost feels like home.
It feels as if we've let some things unfinished.
"Let's stop by Sir Hagen's and Paige's homes. As courtesy, we should inform them that we're leaving."
His movements halted completely, as he continued staring into the same space.
"I'm not going to overstep my boundaries. I know that a hero shouldn't help everyone they see." Overcoming much embarrassment, I manage to hug him. "Don't be mad, okay?"
He glances down at me then at the people around us with a perplexed, bordering on fear expression that silently screamed 'What are you doing?'. He's so easily embarrassed by a little affection.
Artificially the corners of his lips are raised with the help of my fingers. "Ehehe... If you're not mad, you can smile, right?" He was not amused.
-Claud's Willpower: 37/44-
"I'm not angry." He mumbles, brushing my hands aside.
"Then you're sulking."
-Claud's Willpower: 36/44-
"I'm not sulking!"
"Hihihi~" I poke his cheek. Claud is extra irritable today. "Today's my turn to tease you."
-Claud's Willpower: 35/44-
"Tsk. Mind your manners, we're outside."
"O-kay~"