Chapter 742

Beyond the window, Travelga’s night stretched wide. As the noise below suggested, the festival still raged in full force.

"Long live His Grace the Archduke!"

"

Ooooo

! Demigod of the North!"

Torches burned bright enough to rival midday. Music and cheers rose in overlapping waves, drunken revelry erupting in every direction. Farther off, the plaza near the church blazed especially bright, the sacred flame of the brazier roaring high into the night.

"You won’t have had a dull moment out here," Ian said, a faint smile lingering on his lips.

At its most generous, it was lively and vibrant. On any ordinary day, he would have called it utter chaos. The entire city writhed beneath the calm sea of stars, alive and restless.

"...No. I didn’t," Mev answered at last. Her voice remained slightly stiff.

Ian glanced sideways and tilted his chin toward the bottle resting on the windowsill. "I thought you left empty-handed. When did you pick that up?"

He kept his eyes on the bottle rather than her face.

A faint, embarrassed smile touched Mev’s lips. "Thesa brought it."

"Thesa?" One corner of Ian’s mouth curved. "She said she’d check on you quietly. Don’t tell me she caused trouble again."

Lately, the pointy-eared fairy’s mischief had surfaced far too often.

Unexpectedly, Mev shook her head.

"No. She wasn’t. If anything—" She trailed off.

Ian’s gaze shifted fully to her.

Under his eyes, Mev lowered her gaze, then turned forward again. "No, she wasn’t rude. Not at all."

"Well, that’s good, then." He did not press further.

Nodding, Ian looked back out over the city and lifted his right hand slightly.

"Give me a drink too. I don’t think I can endure this sight without it."

"Right. It’s beautiful and peaceful," Mev replied, handing him the bottle without hesitation.

Ian let out a low chuckle as he took it. The bottle felt nearly full.

"I meant it’s a madhouse."

Mev finally laughed, and the tension in her profile eased.

Ian glanced at her more relaxed expression and raised the bottle to his lips.

"Gather at the Snowy Toad! The barbarians are holding a duel!"

"Let’s head to the Northern Wolves! The bards are performing!"

His eyes twitched slightly, but not because of the shouts drifting up.

The liquor burned like liquid fire down his throat.

So that’s why she barely drank.

The image of the silver-haired fairy wearing a sly smile surfaced in his mind. Even so, the burn sharpened the cold night air, clearing his thoughts.

"Give me a sip, Ian."

As he lowered the bottle, Mev extended her left hand.

Meeting his gaze, she offered a small smile. "You said it yourself. It’s a sight you can’t endure sober."

"Take it slowly. Just a little at a time."

"I will. I’m fine. The drink’s long since worn off."

Below them, the city churned with light and noise. Above, the unusually clear night sky stretched vast and still.

Under the stars, they passed the bottle between them in silence for a long while.

"Were you very surprised?" Ian said at last, when less than half the bottle remained.

Taking the bottle from him, Mev asked quietly, "About what?"

"What I said earlier."

"I’m fine. I know you only said it to turn down Her Highness’s proposal smoothly."

She stiffened for a brief instant, then lifted the bottle to her lips and turned her gaze back toward the city.

Ian watched her profile as she swallowed.

"That wasn’t the only reason," said Ian.

Her lashes trembled faintly.

Ian was about to speak when Mev lowered the bottle and said quietly, "Do you think it looks like this from the heavens?"

He paused before answering, "Hard to say. Maybe."

She nodded, still gazing out over the city. "I hope so. Then even after you ascend, I could imagine you watching over it like this."

Only then did she turn toward him. "Even if you say you don’t want it now, you’ll become a god in the end, Ian. Fighting beside you this time only made me more certain."

He frowned slightly but took the bottle she offered.

Mev’s lips curved faintly as she tilted her face up toward the stars. "From the moment we first met, you always felt like someone who would leave someday. That feeling never changed."

Ian’s eyes darkened as he lifted the bottle to his lips. A conflict stirred within him—one she could not possibly guess.

"Sometimes that thought made me uneasy. It filled me with regret," Mev continued. "But not anymore. I realized it wasn’t just because you were born a wanderer."

He drank slowly, weighing whether to let her misunderstanding stand or to tell her the truth.

Normally, he would never have hesitated. To Mev, his returning home and his ascending to godhood were not so different.

"You were born for something greater, Ian. I want to help you walk that path. I don’t want to become something that holds you back."

Silence settled between them.

Ian lowered the bottle at last and turned toward her.

Mev was already watching him. Though her voice had remained steady, sorrow lingered faintly in her eyes, catching the city lights.

"I will never become a god," Ian said at last. "Even if I meet the qualifications, I will refuse ascension."

Mev drew in a slow breath. A bitter smile touched her lips. "You might refuse a revelation. But you can’t refuse ascension itself, Ian. That isn’t something anyone can simply turn down."

"I can. My soul does not belong to this world."

"... What?"

"I came from another world."

She tilted her head at first—then froze a heartbeat later.

Ian met her eyes, which seemed suddenly suspended in time. "A mage who can wield both divinity and chaos. That alone should be impossible."

"So you mean another realm? Like the void?" Mev’s lips parted slowly.

Ian gave a small nod. "Or perhaps just another distant planet."

"Good heavens." Mev’s eyes widened fully. There was no doubt in them—only stunned disbelief at the scale of what he had said.

"Of course, it’s true we might one day be parted forever. One of us could die first... or I might return to where I came from," Ian continued.

She did not answer. She could only stare at him, shock and tangled emotions flickering through her eyes.

He held her gaze. "Just as I came into this world without intending to. When everything here is finished, it could happen again. Regardless of what I want."

That uncertainty was one reason he had never promised to remain. No matter how precious the bonds he had formed had become, he could not guarantee he would not be torn away at the worst possible moment. If that happened, misery would await him on either side.

"So, unless you die before I do, you will never be a burden to me. Nor an obstacle."

When he finished, Ian raised the bottle again. Relief and regret washed through him at the same time.

"The heavens," Mev said abruptly.

Ian paused mid-swallow.

"The gods of the heavens. Do they know?"

"Probably," Ian replied.

She let out a long breath and nodded. "That’s a relief."

"Relief? About what?"

"If they didn’t know, they might have learned through me just now." She placed a hand lightly against her chest and looked at him again. "And then they might try to cast you out of this world or eliminate you."

Ian blinked, then let out a laugh. "That’s your first concern?"

It was not the reaction he had expected.

However, she knew better than anyone how the heavens treated what came from beyond the void.

"If the gods already knew... no... if that’s precisely why they favor you... and those secrets you carry...." Mev murmured, thoughts spilling out.

Her gaze snapped back to him. "Besides me, does anyone else know?"

"This is the first time I’ve spoken of it directly. But Lucy and my familiar are aware."

"What?" Her eyes widened again.

Ian held the bottle out to her. "That was more of an accident."

"Good heavens. Lucy knew something like this and never showed it...." Still muttering, Mev took the bottle and drank deeply, almost urgently.

She lowered it and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "But she was right. This must remain a secret. Completely, Ian."

She stepped closer and lowered her voice. "Even if the gods permit it, that changes nothing. If this becomes known, you will be in grave danger."

"Because I’d become a subject of study? Or something to be hunted?" Ian asked quietly, looking down at her grave expression.

Mev nodded at once. That was why she had asked who else knew.

A faint smile curved Ian’s lips. "Don’t worry. This will be the first and last time."

"Good." Only then did Mev let out a quiet breath.

She looked away and raised the bottle again. Though she had forced herself to steady down, emotions still swirled in her eyes as she inhaled.

Ian studied her profile before speaking. "Is that all you wanted to ask?"

"...Of course not. There’s a lot," she replied after lowering the bottle. "But I won’t ask."

A faint, crooked smile touched his lips. "I suppose that means the one who still has something to say is me. Earlier, and now, I put you in an awkward position—"

"Don’t apologize, Ian." She cut him off sharply and turned to face him.

Her eyes were wide, almost angry. "You didn’t do anything wrong. Not earlier. Not now. You’re the one who saved my life. In a way, you hold it in your hands. Whatever you are, that doesn’t change. I wasn’t upset. I’m glad I know the truth. And besides, I..."

The words rushed out—then stopped.

Her eyes widened slightly, as if she had almost said something she could not take back. Perhaps she had only just realized how close they were standing, near enough for their shoulders to brush.

"...I see. Then that’s a relief." Ian’s voice softened. He reached out almost unconsciously.

Her shoulders had trembled, and a lock of red hair had slipped down, nearly brushing against her eye.

His hand brushed lightly against her hair as he moved to tuck it aside. Before he could finish, Mev’s hand came up and closed over his.

For a moment, she held his gaze. Her eyes wavered, searching his face as though weighing something fragile and irretrievable.

"I also... you..."

She could not finish.

This time, something else interrupted her.

Her fingers, which had been gripping the bottle tightly, slackened. The bottle slid from her grasp and thudded softly against the stone sill.