v1c5-1 - Intermission 1 - Ellie, an Arch Wizard who is about to cry because her childhood friend left.
“Mmm! Stella, good morning!”
“Good morning, Ellie. Yesterday’s attack was terrible, isn’t it?”
“I guess so. There were so many monsters that I thought I was going to run out of magical energy for the first time in a long time.”
Well, for me, it’s okay because it gives me an excuse to ask Alex for a piggyback ride.
But when I first got the job, I didn’t know how to pace the use of magic, and I was often depleted of magic power, so I wonder if he’s fed up with it now?
Moreover, Stella, a Priestess who also uses magic, has never experienced a depletion of her magic power, which may be even worse.
Thinking about how to get Alex to give me a piggyback ride, I headed to the cafeteria on the first floor of the inn and saw the back of a man leaving the inn.
“Huh? Just now …… that was Alex, right? Where is he going this early in the morning?”
“Fufufu …… Ellie, you really can’t help but be curious when it comes to Alex.”
“I-It’s not like that, but …… well, you know, we’re always being protected, after all.”
“I agree. We wouldn’t be able to fight monsters without him.”
I wonder.
I can’t believe Alex left so early in the morning, all by himself.
…… I had a bad feeling about this, so I went to the cafeteria to talk to Roland first.
“Ellie, Stella. Good morning. Well, it’s a beautiful morning.”
A theatrical, not-so-pleasant voice called out to me.
“You two want your usual morning set, right? I ordered it.”
“Ah …… yeah. Thanks.”
I’m tired today, so I was hoping for something lighter, not a set.
However, I had no choice since it was already ordered, so I took a seat anyway.
“Hey, Roland. I saw Alex leaving by himself earlier.”
I immediately ask about Alex.
“Oh, yeah. Alex asked me to leave the party. We talked about it, and I decided to go along with his wishes, which are very unfortunate.”
“Leave the party!? Alex did!? Why!?”
“Ellie. You know how Alex hasn’t been able to play an active role in the battle lately, right? Apparently, he felt guilty about it.”
“What part of that do you mean? Without Alex’s protection, neither Stella nor I can concentrate on our magic.”
“…… but isn’t it true that Alex rarely defeats monsters, right?”
“That’s true, but that’s not his role in the first place. It is my role and Roland’s role to defeat monsters. It is Alex and Stella’s role to protect and heal everyone.”
Does Alex feel guilty about not being able to defeat monsters?
In the first place, we only fight on the premise that Alex will protect us, and I think he knows that.
If we were left without Alex, we wouldn’t be an S-class party, we would be a B-class party.
“I’m going to go find Alex!”
“Wait, Ellie. T-Think about how he feels too …… That’s right, I tried so hard to keep him from leaving. But he’s already made up his mind. Besides, do you think that he, who left thinking about the party, can say that he still wants to go back to the party because her childhood friend told him to?”
“Uhh …… Certainly, Alex can be pretty stubborn.”
Alex has always been the type of person who once he makes a decision, he goes through with it.
When I picked up a kitten when I was a little girl and found out I couldn’t keep it at home, Alex said, “I who would keep him!” When he said that, he went around to different houses every day and finally found someone who would take good care of him.
But if that’s the case, then …… you should also finish what you said to me when Roland invited me on his adventure, you said, “I’ll protect Ellie, so don’t worry”.
“Got it? That’s why you need to forget about Alex already. Besides, we already have a new party member.”
“Eh …… W-What do you mean?”
“I mean it exactly as it is. I don’t mean a paladin who can only defend, but a good one who can both defend and attack.”
What do you mean, Alex just left and there is a new member of the team already!?
I was left with a very depressed feeling, and I simply put my breakfast, which tasted nothing, into my mouth.