Everyone Except Me Is Hiding Their Power-Chapter 110 : Forest of Secrets (6)

Chapter 110: Forest of Secrets (6)
"…You’re like a damn rat."
With those words, I exhaled the breath I had been holding in.
Maybe it was the blood flowing down from the corner of my eye, but I could barely see ahead.
Wiping it roughly with my sleeve, I immediately headed toward where the other three were.
Normally, I would have healed such a wound right away, but I couldn’t afford to waste divine power in this situation.
"Is everyone safe?"
"Yes, thanks to you, Lian."
Cecilia nodded, still pale-faced.
The other two were still unconscious.
"…What now?"
"First, we need to get out of here."
"Ah, Lian. Wait a moment…"
Cecilia gestured as if telling me to lean down.
When I bent my body as she indicated, she pulled out a handkerchief from her chest and wiped the blood off my face.
"All done."
"Thank you."
I thanked Cecilia.
Her complexion remained pale.
"…Is it very hard for you?"
"I can still endure."
She shook her head after a pause.
"…Actually, it's a little tough. I probably won’t last long."
"Then we need to get out of here as soon as possible."
"And after that?"
"We have to follow that woman."
I took out a couple of candies I had been carrying in my pocket.
I knew all too well from experience that in situations like this, even a small amount of food could help regain strength.
"Cecilia, here."
"Thank you. I’ll enjoy—ah."
As soon as she received the candy, Cecilia’s hand drooped weakly, and the candy dropped to the ground.
Her arm, trembling slightly, betrayed her flustered expression.
She was in worse shape than I’d expected.
I brought the candy right up to her mouth.
"Here."
"Eh."
"Come on."
"…Ah."
After hesitating for a moment, Cecilia quietly opened her mouth at my urging.
Once I had placed the candy in her mouth, I gave her a belated warning.
"By the way, it’s really sour."
"…?!"
The moment the candy touched her tongue, Cecilia squeezed her eyes shut.
When she peeked them open again, her gaze somehow seemed to reproach me.
I averted my eyes and tossed one into my own mouth—candies I had always been scolded for offering in my past life too.
‘Ugh.’
No matter when I ate them, I never got used to the taste—but there was nothing better for a quick energy boost.
After popping in a couple more, I turned around and offered my back to Cecilia once again.
"……"
Without protest, Cecilia climbed onto my back.
With the other two still unconscious, I immediately began to move.
"What’s the plan now?"
"First, get them to a safe place."
Maybe it was the candy, but I felt a bit more energized.
I moved quickly, putting as much distance between us and the pillar of fire and the mausoleum as I could.
"They probably won’t wake up anytime soon. We can’t keep carrying them around, but we can’t stay in that spot either. Obviously, we can’t abandon them… So we’ll need to wait for rescue somewhere safer, even just a little farther away."
"And what about you, Lian?"
"I…"
I paused for a moment.
Not on purpose—just from exhaustion.
"As long as I can still move, I’ll do what I have to."
"……"
Cecilia said nothing.
She only tightened her grip on my shoulders.
I pretended not to notice and kept talking.
"My next move is to follow that woman. I don’t know what she stole from the mausoleum… but if Airos finds out about the theft, he won’t stay quiet."
I felt Cecilia nod on my back.
"I think so too. He definitely won’t."
"Right. And chances are, we’ll end up caught in the crossfire of his fury."
"That’s definitely possible."
"And I’m also worried about Allen. There’s only two of them, and they’re not versed in magic or sorcery, so they might be in a worse situation than us."
"Lian."
Just then, Cecilia suddenly extended her clenched fist beside my face.
Wondering what was going on, I looked—and saw a familiar face in her open palm.
"You…?"
—Creak! Eeeek!
It had shrunk a bit in size, but it was the spider I knew. That one.
It waved its front legs at me in a jolly dance, seemingly happy to see me again after so long.
"It pulled through. And also…"
At Cecilia’s words, the spider nodded and tapped something gently with its foreleg.
That was when I noticed the faintly shimmering thread of web catching the moonlight.
"Just in case, I attached it to that woman’s body earlier. If we follow the thread, it shouldn’t be too hard to track her."
With those words, the spider leapt and clung to my body.
After fidgeting a few times as if picking a spot, it strummed the thread again with its front leg.
The silk still shimmered faintly.
"And also…"
Cecilia hesitated briefly.
"That thing earlier… aren’t you going to ask?"
She mumbled carefully, as if trying to read my expression.
Realizing what she meant, I answered in a calm voice.
"There are more urgent matters right now."
"……"
"And honestly, I kind of understand how Cecilia feels, too."
At my words, Cecilia’s body flinched slightly.
In a trembling voice, she asked me:
"Y-You… read my mind?!"
"Not exactly read it… I just mean I kind of understand, that’s all."
I nodded slightly.
It wasn’t just flattery—it came from the heart.
"It’s only natural to hide your real abilities and resources from others."
"…What?"
Cecilia asked back in a dazed voice.
I simply shrugged.
"Who was it again… from the Wolpen Knights? I forget. Anyway, there’s a famous saying. That your known limits and your real limits should never be the same. Cultivate your inner self to be broad and deep—but never reveal it."
In short, it was about the value of information.
And for mages in particular, this was an especially sensitive subject.
In that sense, it applied just as much to Spirit Sorcerers.
"Especially for Spirit Sorcerers, being able to summon certain spirits is an extremely important matter, right?"
"No, I…"
Cecilia muttered softly, as if feeling unfairly blamed.
"Looking back, I’m the one who poked a sensitive spot. If anything, I was the one who was rude first. So Cecilia, there’s no need to feel bad about it or anything. You just did what anyone would. If anyone should be apologizing, it’s me."
Honestly, I had been a little surprised.
But it only lasted a moment.
Let’s be real—I had more than a few secrets of my own that I hadn’t told her. So if she had something she kept hidden from me too, it wasn’t strange at all.
Especially considering that for a Spirit Sorcerer, the type of spirit they could summon was practically life-and-death information.
In other words, Cecilia had done something perfectly reasonable.
'And it’s not like she kept it hidden forever, either.'
More than anything, the fact remained that thanks to her, we were all still alive.
In a situation like this, what I should be saying to her wasn’t a demand to explain why she hid it, but a thank you for saving our lives.
When I clumsily conveyed that intention, her body began to tremble even more subtly than before.
"T-That’s not it… Really, it’s not…"
She murmured with a voice that seemed deeply aggrieved.
"L-Lian. It’s not that I didn’t trust you or anything… The truth is…"
"Come on. I said I understand. So you really don’t need to feel bad."
"N-No. R-Really, that’s not it…!"
"Ah."
It was then that I noticed a small cave.
Though calling it a cave was generous—it was more like a pit. Still, in our current situation, it was just right.
"Just a moment."
I gently set Cecilia down, followed by the two who were still unconscious.
Then I pulled out the consecration tools I always carried and began setting up a simple protective barrier and ward at the cave entrance.
"Phew."
It was crude, but in an instant, I had created a makeshift base.
It was hastily built, but still far better than having nothing.
"Well then…"
"I’ll go with you."
"…Cecilia, you should stay here."
I cleared my throat softly.
Her face was still pale, but her eyes remained bright and unshaken.
"You know this is the best option."
As I removed my outer cloak and laid it over Yuran and Lancia, I said:
"Just summoning and anchoring Taranis in reality is already pushing you hard. And with the distance, the burden must be even heavier."
"…I can endure it."
Even as she said that, Cecilia subtly avoided my gaze.
"Someone also needs to protect these two. In the Forest of Secrets, there are wild beasts—not to mention goblins and the like."
"If I summon one more spirit—"
"……"
"…Okay, I’ll stop pushing."
In the end, Cecilia nodded with a gloomy expression.
"Honestly, you’re probably having a much harder time than I am. Keeping a Spirit King anchored in the real world… I can’t even imagine how hard that must be."
With those words, I took out the bag of candy I had eaten from earlier, along with various other items, and handed them to her.
They were basically just junk, but better than nothing.
‘If I’d known, I should’ve brought at least a potion.’
It was one of those moments when Windy May’s past advice hit me like a punch to the gut.
I was just about ready to leave when—
"Take this."
With those words, Cecilia held out her rapier to me.
"If I take this, what about you?"
"I can’t fight with it in my condition anyway. But you can, Lian."
She held the sword out to me again.
Knowing she wouldn’t back down no matter what, I silently took it from her.
"That sword is a fine blade."
Cecilia added,
"It’s one of the heirlooms passed down in our family."
"…Excuse me?!"
An heirloom of the Everglenn Ducal House…?
Startled, I looked down at the blade, and she took a deep breath before saying,
"So you have to return it to me. Personally. Promise."
"……"
At her words, I gave a silent nod.
"I’ll return it in perfect condition. I swear."
I really did say I’d return it in perfect condition.
"I’m seriously going to get my head cut off at this rate…!"
Grinding my teeth, I cried out in frustration.
The rapier that blocked the strike let out an ominous creak.
"Hehehehe…!!!"
The opponent simply cackled like a lunatic.
As if overjoyed that I was holding out better than expected.
"Please, get a grip, you bastard!"
"Heeheeheehee…!!!"
Even at my desperate scream, the opponent just burst out laughing like a maniac.
Allen Amiel.
He was staring at me with a wide, maddened grin stretching across his face.