[The Banshee] had no freedom.
Ever since her companions had perished before her eyes, Filvis had no right, nor the strength, to embrace freedom.
Her encounter with the boy remained vivid in her mind. The lingering heat of it scattered with the night breeze, and once again, the elf girl stood alone atop the city wall.
As the captain of Dionysus Familia, Filvis was not well liked by others. Even the vice captain, Aura, was deeply uncomfortable with her past.
When night fell, Filvis liked to stand on the city wall and let her body sink into the darkness.
This was not the freedom people praised. It was only a brief pause. But to her, it was already a precious moment to breathe.
The cold wind stirred her hair. The city wall blocked the moonlight, casting an endless darkness around her.
There was no light from Magic Stone lamps here. As the moon climbed into the sky, the darkness that swallowed Filvis gradually receded.
She loved that feeling.
The cold moonlight fell over her, as if washing her body clean.
What Filvis liked most was standing high above, looking into the distance, and freely letting her imagination wander.
The lights of countless homes burned in her crimson eyes, and Orario's dazzling nightscape spread out before her.
Somewhere within it, the boy who haunted her thoughts was there.
Even if she could not see him, even if she could not hear him, Bell Cranel truly existed within this beautiful nightscape.
What was he doing right now?
Was he on a date with some girl on a street somewhere?
Was he saving a girl in danger inside the Dungeon?
Was he enjoying a peaceful everyday life at the mansion?
That fearless hero might have been caught up in another incident again. Would the golden-haired elf be able to use her barrier Magic well and lend him a hand?
No, the boy might also be flirting.
That lover with passion in his eyes might be tangled up with some troublesome girl right now.
Cranel...
What are you thinking about now?
What kind of scenery are you looking at?
What kind of song are you listening to?
What kind of food did you taste tonight?
Could it be that, just like in Rivira Town, you're enjoying bento from different women?
Hehe.
Just remembering the boy's smile made warmth well up in Filvis's heart.
She did not ask for much.
Ever since that wordless farewell, Filvis had lost the right to even a "chance encounter."
This body was filthy.
The calamity had nearly pushed the boy into the abyss of death, and she had been the one to summon it.
Filvis was afraid to approach the boy.
Even watching him from afar was not allowed.
There were many different women by the boy's side. The kind [Thousand Elves], the righteous [Gale], the powerful [Sword Princess]...
And the companions of Hestia Familia, brave and strong, who had offered the boy what help they could in the battle against the Floor Boss.
Those were only the parts Filvis had seen.
The rumored Moon Goddess, the Goddess Astraea who sang of justice... In places beyond Filvis's sight, the boy must have formed unbreakable bonds with many other beautiful women.
So even without her, nothing would change.
The identity of [Lover] had not even left behind a wisp of cloud. They should simply drift apart like this and never meet again...
Just as a trace of sadness surfaced in Filvis's mind, something unexpected happened.
"....."
Someone who should not have been there entered Filvis's field of vision.
She could not tell whether the golden-haired elf was holding the white-haired boy's hand, but the one walking near the city wall was undeniably the person she longed for.
Filvis hesitated for a moment and failed to escape from the city wall in time. Then she heard Lefiya's outburst.
Confusion and shock surged over her like a tide.
Cranel actually has feelings for Riveria-sama?!
How could he dare touch something so deeply disrespectful?
B-but... no matter how things develop, it has nothing to do with me...
I can't eavesdrop here. I have to leave right away!
Just as Filvis was about to move, she heard the golden-haired elf's heartfelt words.
Hiss...
Why was she cursing him so harshly?
What did she mean by a sun that leads people astray? And a piece of candy that makes women fall?
Were those insults, or praise on some other level?
Were the two of them down there flirting?
Filvis could not understand.
The only thing she knew was that the Lefiya shouting, "Only look at me!" was completely different from the timid girl she had known before.
Did Lefiya become like this whenever she was alone with Cranel?
Somehow, she felt a little envious...
Ugh?!
Filvis clenched her fists and forced down those complicated thoughts.
The instant she hurriedly turned around, her gaze collided head-on with the boy's crimson eyes.
Bell looked passionately up at the city wall, as if calling his lover's name with his eyes.
The towering city wall, the cold moonlight, and in the silence, Filvis's long black hair danced in the wind.
Coincidence?
Luck?
Whichever it was, Bell would not miss this once-in-a-lifetime encounter.
Oh no.
That same terrible feeling flashed through the minds of both elf girls.
"..."
Filvis silently turned and walked toward the stairs to one side.
She had clearly resolved never to see him again. Why did fate have to play with her like this?
She had to find a way to make their paths miss by chance.
"Filvis-san..."
Realizing that Filvis had heard everything she said, Lefiya's cheeks instantly flushed crimson.
In the end, what had she even been saying just now?!
What did she mean, "Only look at me"? Wasn't that way too strange?
She had definitely been bewitched! It did not count!
After repeating that to herself, Lefiya began to worry about Filvis.
This reunion was surely a gift of luck. How could she let it all go to waste?!
"Lefiya-san."
Bell did not say much. He only gave the golden-haired elf a look.
"Mm."
Lefiya nodded firmly and ran toward the city wall.
Now was not the time to be embarrassed. She had to catch Filvis-san!
The air turned tense.
With the speed of a Magic Swordsman, Filvis raced down the stairs.
She deliberately misled them, running toward the right-side entrance where the two of them could see her. In reality, before reaching the stairway entrance, Filvis lowered her body and ran in the opposite direction.
The two stairways were several hundred meters apart. Even if Bell and Lefiya chased after her, they would only head toward an empty, wrong answer.
This was for the best.
Someone as filthy as her could not bear that passion.
She absolutely could not cling to false hope and desecrate this stroke of luck.
The spiral staircase continued downward, like the darkness that swallowed Filvis, giving the illusion that it would never end.
Filvis drove her feet onward, the scene before her repeating over and over.
In the next instant, the girl and the boy, a pair of lovers, reunited in the darkness.