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(Gwendolyn POV)

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The sky is getting cloudy, and the warm breeze that gently caressed our faces is slowly becoming a cold wind that makes our bones shiver.

It has been a month since we defeated the Thief Guild.

Adrian, the Leader of the Adventurer Guild helped us by giving us information and coordinates about those bastards.

Turns out that Nezhit was also one of them, which Frank revived as an Undead, he helped us even more, and then, we finally raided their place.

Yeah, we were not the same as before.

All this time, Frank, we have not been slacking off at all.

We trained literally every day, arduously.

Until this very moment.

We knew that this one organization had been trying to kill you, and in fact, the bastards had tried to kill us 8 times until that day.

And in all of them, we came on top somehow… and we kept on living and improving.

Now, we were able to finally have some sweet revenge.

This world is harsh.

Survival of the fittest sounds terribly overused, but there are no better words than these to describe our society.

We were attacked by several experiments similar to Zero, but we wiped them out, and then the leader.

Zero did it, she sliced his head off.

Although she is Undead, I could clearly see within her eyes that she hated this man.

I could see the suffering that she had gone through all due to this bastard.

He was known as Gaspian, and he actually worked for an even bigger thug at the capital.

But lucky for us, he had cut ties with him and was working independently.

That is most of the reasons why we choose to strike him down.

With the assistance of the Adventurer Guild to boot.

This man used to experiment in the extraction and insertion of Mana Cores, and artificial Mana Cores.

And he had somewhat succeeded in some areas, as he had created a giant… being.

Something alive and not alive, a creature made of many bodies stitched together which used a single, enormous mana core that gave it a lot of magic power.

But we defeated it after… what I might say to be one of the hardest fights he has ever had…

We saved this giant Mana Core for you too…

Frank… I hope this can make you feel a bit more relieved.

And do not worry, I made sure to protect everyone… Well, we protect each other now.

It has really been some very long months.

I only met you for around three weeks before you went to take a nap…

But those days were very memorable.

You are such… a charismatic and unique child.

Someone that came from the stars.

My entire aloof and dull life turned upside down when I met you.

And well, of everyone else…

Frank… I do wonder how are you now…

Kamei is always going to visit you…

But I…

I think I am weak…

Very weak…

Compared to Kamei who is so brave to go see your face every day…

To see you sleep every day… for so many months…

But I…

I…

I cannot…

I cannot see you in the face…

After having acted so much as an authority figure that wanted to teach you about so many things…

But you ended doing everything for all of us…

I am just the worst…

I cannot see you in the face anymore because I will most likely begin to cry, and to kneel, asking you to forgive me…

All of this would not have happened if I were stronger…

I was… I was the adult figure of your life… I should have… protected you instead…

I know that you saw me as a motherly figure… Especially after… what happened to your mother…

And I… failed you horrendously…

I wish I could comfort you… to tell you that everything will be okay...

But you are sleeping, covered in some strange crystal that cannot be destroyed by anything, even the most acidic of substances created by Vheslia's Poison Synthesis was not able to break through it.

We were left without many options…

Vheslia is still trying to get you out of there.

She says that there is always a way for everything in the world and that she will… one day find out one.

Boy, she only met you for about a week, but she is crazy in love with you…

You sure hit on all the girls without missing, huh?

And there you are… sleeping…

Sigh…

I miss you, Frank…

I may not look like it, but I really do miss you, boy…

I hate to admit it but… you also hit my heart a bit…

But it is not like… such feelings will ever get anywhere than inside my own heart…

That day you already told me that you had someone in mind…

I am just an old woman… why would I ever think that you would be interested in me?

You have a bright future ahead…

I have to… save these feelings…

Keep them… encapsulated within my heart, and close them tightly within a chest, and sealing it with a key.

And then… burying the key deep underground, and forgetting where I put it by getting all drunk that night...

Yeah…

Yet…

Haahh…

Every time I think about you I am filled with sorrow.

I bet Kamei and the rest are the same.

We all… are trying our best to not be overcome by it.

But even Cathyl begins to cry sometimes when we talk about you…

The kids too… my little girl, even…

We all miss you so much…

You bear way too many burdens, boy…

Way too many…

We have grown so strong so, perhaps, you can bear a bit less…

We had already taken care of an annoying one in the Thief Guild…

Yet, I am sure that there are many, many to come…

Will we be able to even fight them all?

The only thing I am sure of is that we will do our best…

It is the least we could do.

We are truly trying the hardest we can.

Each day we train…

We train…

We train…

We train…

So you can see us grow stronger…

So you can… know that our conviction is real.

Not a single day we had missed exploring Orb's Dungeon…

I have gotten so strong I cannot even recognize my own strength sometimes.

But yet… We are very far from the strength necessary to actually bear your burdens…

I miss you so much…

Frank…

Please… wake up…

…

Today I went to go buy some groceries with Annabelle, Cathyl, Hilvera, and Asterion, so we could change some of the air and pace.

To enjoy a bit of the day…

The kids are happy, they are wandering around and buying sweets and other things that they are beginning to make for this season in the town.

There are many delicious pies and other pastries…

I wish you could be here, boy…

I often dream about you… waking up and coming with us… to enjoy life a bit.

You have really had it rough, way too rough…

I want you to see the sky again…

I want you to… wake up…

Frank…

"Mommy, why are you… crying?"

Annabelle ask me a question that surprises me.

I realize that as we walked around, I began to cry…

I quickly wipe out my tears as I give the most precious thing in my life the brightest smile I can muster.

"I am fine, my dear, let's go have some fun, alright?"

"…Are you sure?" she asked.

"Of course… I want all of us to… distract ourselves a bit," I said.

"Alright then… You also eat some of this, it's pretty good!" said my daughter, as she shared a piece of a pastry in the form of a ball made of sweet dough, filled with jam and covered in a bit of sugar.

Way too sugary for me, but it was also quite refreshing, and a bit uplifting…

"Hmm, it is good… but… too much sugar…" I sigh.

"Muh, you're so boring! Sugary stuff is the best!" said Annabelle.

Well, when you grow up you will realize that sugary stuff gets a bit… boring.

And then we begin to see alcohol, something we found disgusting, very attractive.

Haahh…

I think I am becoming an alcoholic, well a bit…

It is just that every time I think about the boy I get all melancholic with Cathyl and Vheslia, and we all begin to drink our sorrows away at night…

We really have to throw away the booze…

We just get sadder.

And now I am thinking about him again…

You never go away from my mind, don't you, Frank?

Seriously… what have you done with me?

Sigh…

I miss you so much…

Frank…

Will you…

Come back one day?

From your little nap?

…

I will make sure to wait for you until then, with everyone… together…

Recently, news about the Demon King awakening got to us… and because you are a hero, you are required there.

But you are still resting…

The beautiful and immense world we live in might be more fragile than we believed…

But…

You don't need to wake up yet if you don't want to…

Rest as much… as you want…

We will… make sure to fight for you.

It is about time that we bear your burdens a bit…

Take your time… as much as you want…

Days, weeks, months, even years…

We will wait patiently…

For the day you open your eyes again…

Boom!

Suddenly, as I was thinking these things, a loud tremor emerges in the middle of the town.

I glance at it with some concern, as I find the paved floor wide open, and an enormous quantity of black ooze flowing out of it… people began to panic as they ran away, but I kept glancing at it.

It began to move on its own, as a figure emerged from it…

A monster I have never seen before.

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