Nain had stayed silent through the entire conversation. She had simply sat there, listening.
"Nain is the daughter of the king of Mariana city," Shine said.
"You're a princess." Daichi immediately rose from his chair and bowed low to show his respect to Nain.
"There's no need for that," Shine said. Nain still said nothing. Daichi raised his head and looked toward her.
Nain smiled and nodded.
Jhed was feeling something different now. A desire had risen in him — he wanted to know Ro-Ro. He wanted to meet him. But he also knew this feeling would only last for a while, because the mind kept changing with time. Today you liked one thing, tomorrow something else. Just like how Jhed had owned a Linux 3D Pro, and yet had still asked his mom for a Linux 4D Pro. That single desire had changed the course of his life. He felt alone in this world — the things he wanted simply didn't exist here. He used to love playing games all day. In these fifteen years, memories of that old world of his games kept coming back to him again and again, and each time, it left him sad. But that's how it is, isn't it — sometimes one person can change you completely. In the same way, his respect for Guild Master Ro-Ro had grown, just from this one small story. Why had something so small made him admire Ro-Ro so much? It wasn't something words could explain. It was a feeling from within — one that was different for everyone.
But there was one thing — Ro-Ro had lost all his power. Someone had cursed him, and all his strength had been taken away. Now he was just an ordinary man, with no magic left, and no power left either.
"I'll tell Dad too — I'll help your town," Nain finally spoke up. But her own growl startled her back into silence.
"That terrifying growl really did happen to you, Nain. That was awful." Shine looked at Nain, and a wave of pity rose in his heart once again. He kept forgetting — in that room, he had made himself a promise: that he wouldn't think about anyone else. That he would put himself first.
"I'll go bring Silia," Jhed said, and walked off to his room.
He stepped inside. Since the wall had broken, he could see outside from within the room too. Jhed looked toward the moon. Moonlight was falling into the room. The sky was clear tonight. A cool breeze was blowing. A gust of wind brushed against him, and goosebumps rose on his skin.
"Ohh... it's quite cold." His teeth began to chatter. He wrapped his arms around himself. His nose had gone numb.
Night had fallen. They'd all been so absorbed in talking that no one had noticed the time slip by.
"Silia, come on out — I've told them everything," Jhed said. He walked over to the bed, crouched down slowly, and looked underneath it.
"Silia... she's fallen asleep. Maybe I shouldn't wake her."
Jhed stood up and lay down on the bed. Another cold gust of wind swept through.
"Ooh... this cold. Where's the blanket?" He pulled a blanket over himself and settled in to sleep.
"Maybe we'll leave this town tomorrow. These three days were pretty strange — I ended up becoming friends with a monster, and then found out that this very monster was the one Ro-Ro had once defeated. What worries me is this: if every monster starts living inside a human's mind the way Silia does, how will I even be able to recognize them? Well, that's a problem for later. Right now, sleep is what matters. I think I'll sleep well tonight. Mom... I wonder what you're doing right now."
Jhed drifted off to sleep, still talking to himself. Outside, the sound of night insects filled the air. Beyond that, silence. What tomorrow would bring, no one knew. They'd find out only when it came.