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Chapter 54: Dinner
Having shared the weight of their respective pasts, Ryuu pointed Tsuna toward a secluded spot perfectly suited for his training.
Alright. I think I've got the hang of this skill. Entering Hyper Dying Will Mode, Tsuna had spent the afternoon testing his newly awakened skill, [Tri-Ni-Sette]. Through trial and error, he had successfully grasped the mechanics and learned how to freely shift his flame attributes.
The only problem is the Mist Flame... I just can't seem to use it right... While he could freely change his flame's attribute, he couldn't draw out the true potential of the Mist Flames.
Out of all seven Sky attributes, Mist Flames possessed the lowest sheer destructive power. However, their true strength lay in their unique characteristic: Construction. Mist Flames were used to create illusions and deceive the enemy's senses. A high-level illusionist could even create "Real Illusions"—illusions so dense they possessed physical mass.
However, Tsuna wasn't an illusionist. He had absolutely no idea how to construct a convincing mental image and project it into reality, leaving him struggling to utilize the Mist attribute effectively.
If I asked Lili... Tsuna had already deduced with his Hyper Intuition that Lili possessed a skill or magic that allowed her to change her physical appearance. He figured that if he asked her for advice, he might grasp the conceptual trick to weaving illusions. However, since they had a tacit agreement not to pry into each other's secrets, Tsuna ultimately decided against it.
.....
Night eventually fell over the 18th Floor, and dinnertime approached.
I wonder if Ryuu is still out there? Tsuna walked through the dense forest, carefully balancing two plates piled high with warm food.
Since Ryuu couldn't risk showing her face, she couldn't join the massive banquet back at camp. As a former adventurer, she was vastly more experienced than him and undoubtedly knew how to survive and forage on her own, but Tsuna couldn't shake the feeling that eating alone in the dark was a lonely experience. So, he had set out to find her.
She's probably over there... Guessing she would still be near the graves of the Astrea Familia, Tsuna altered his course and headed toward the burial site.
.....
At the graves of the Astrea Familia.
"!?"
Just as Tsuna had predicted, Ryuu was standing watch near the graves. Catching the faint sound of footsteps and rustling leaves approaching her position, she instinctively reached for the hilt of her wooden sword, dropping into a combat stance.
"Ah. Found you."
"Mr. Sawada!?"
Seeing Tsuna casually push his way through the brush, Ryuu blinked in surprise and slowly pulled her hand away from her hilt.
"W-Why are you here?"
"I brought you some dinner."
"Dinner? For me?"
"I figured you'd be lonely eating by yourself."
"You came all the way out here just for that?"
"Yeah. Oh, and don't worry, I didn't tell anyone I was coming to see you, so your secret's safe."
He doesn't appear to be lying... and I don't sense anyone else in the vicinity. Ryuu subtly expanded her senses to sweep the area. Because she had revealed her status as a wanted fugitive, she had been momentarily paranoid that Tsuna had either led bounty hunters to her or had been trailed by someone looking to collect the bounty.
"Was I bothering you?" Tsuna asked, noticing her tense posture.
"No. Thank you for the meal."
Ryuu wasn't cold-hearted enough to reject genuine kindness. She accepted the plate from Tsuna, and the two of them sat down to eat together.
"By the way, how did your training go?" Ryuu asked between bites.
"I think I've got a pretty good handle on it now."
"A handle on it?"
"Yeah. After Hestia updated my Status, I awakened a new skill. I was out here trying to figure out how to use it."
"I see. So that was it."
"But I still haven't fully mastered it. I'm just missing one last piece to make it click. I feel like if I could just ask an acquaintance of mine, they could give me the hint I need... but I don't know if they'd actually teach me."
"That is quite a difficult position to be in."
"Yeah. Hey, you don't happen to know anyone who can use illusions, do you?"
"I do know someone, actually..."
"Really!?"
"Yes, and depending on the conditions, they might be willing to instruct you. However, as there is an unspoken rule against deep fraternization between different Familias, I would strongly advise against seeking them out."
"Right... I forgot about that..."
Remembering the strict factional boundaries in Orario, Tsuna realized that asking someone from outside his Familia—let alone asking Lili—was completely off the table.
Ah, right. Feeling dejected that his only avenue for learning illusions was shut down, a sudden thought crossed Tsuna's mind.
"Speaking of which, you've known Syr for a long time, haven't you?"
"I have. What about it?"
"I was hoping you could tell me a little bit about her."
"Could it be you harbor romantic feelings for her?"
"Huh!?"
"It pains me to say this, but she already has someone she is destined to be with. I highly recommend you give up."
"That's not it!! It's nothing like that!!"
Realizing Ryuu had completely misunderstood his intentions, Tsuna furiously waved his hands, his face flushing bright red.
"Then why do you wish to know more about her?"
"Well... I was just wondering who exactly she is."
"What do you mean?"
"It's just... she doesn't feel like a normal person. Honestly, sometimes I wonder if she's even human at all."
"It is true that Syr possesses an aura unlike a normal human, but I assure you, she is a genuine human."
"Is that so..."
If Ryuu, who had known her for years, said so, then it had to be the truth. And yet, Tsuna still looked unconvinced, his Hyper Intuition persistently ringing alarm bells in the back of his mind.
"Regardless of her nature, Syr is an incredibly special person to me," Ryuu said softly.
"Because she saved your life?"
"That is part of it. But above all else, she is special because she is someone who can touch me."
"What do you mean?"
"We Elves possess great physical beauty, a fact we and others readily acknowledge. However, we are also an exceedingly proud and deeply fastidious race. We do not easily permit physical contact with other races."
Ryuu elaborated that many Elves looked down on other species, abhorred mingling with them, and chose to isolate themselves within their hidden forests. In her homeland, this elitist mindset was practically universal.
"However, I always thought differently. I believed that Elves who harbored such arrogant thoughts were truly the ugliest creatures of all. Believing that, I fled my forest and came to Orario, hoping that in a city where countless races gathered, I would finally find what I was looking for."
"What were you looking for?"
"I wanted companions. People who respected each other's character, laughed together, and stood as equals, regardless of their race. But when others reached out to touch me, I swatted their hands away time and time again. In doing so, I was violently forced to realize the truth: I was just as much of an Elf as the people I had left behind."
"I had no idea..."
"Yet, despite my nature, Syr reached out and touched me. And I found that I could accept her touch without a single feeling of rejection. She is one of the very few people in the world capable of doing so."
"Are there others besides Syr?"
"Yes. One was Alise Lovell, the former Captain of the Astrea Familia who originally recruited me. The other is your Familia member, Mr. Cranel."
"Eh!? Bell!?"
"Yes. Through a coincidence, I discovered that I do not experience any form of rejection when he touches me."
Before Tsuna had arrived in Orario, Bell had once lost his Hestia Knife, and Ryuu had been the one to find it. When Bell grabbed her hands in gratitude, Ryuu had been shocked to realize she felt no instinctual urge to pull away.
"But that still means you can't touch anyone else in your Familia, or your friends at the pub..."
Despite opening her heart to them, her biological instincts still barred her from physical contact. Learning about Ryuu's tragic disposition made Tsuna's chest ache with sympathy.
Suddenly—
""!?""
A massive, blinding flash of magic violently illuminated the dark sky from a distance.
"W-What was that!?"
"Someone just unleashed a high-tier spell."
"B-But why!?"
"I don't know. But I have a terrible feeling about this."
Forged through years of brutal combat experience, Ryuu's instincts screamed that something disastrous had just occurred.
"Mr. Sawada, I am going to investigate. Please, return to the camp immediately."
Not wanting to drag a supposedly inexperienced rookie into a potentially lethal situation, Ryuu ordered him to retreat and prepared to sprint toward the blast zone alone.
"No. I'm going with you."
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