Chapter 504

Chapter 127 The Gap Part 1

…Huh?

The Pope’s knight tilted his head slightly.

“You…”

She looked at Barrie, blinked her eyes, and uttered a word, but didn’t continue. Instead, she looked around with some confusion and then turned to the golden-armored knight behind her, frowning: “Saphiros. What are you doing here with me?”

“Hehe.” Saphiros grinned foolishly, “Nothing special, I just wanted to take a look and see who the adult’s brother is.”

After saying that, he winked at the stunned Barrie, but who knows what he really meant.

“Why are you looking at him?” My brow furrowed even tighter.

“I heard he was injured, so I came to check on him and will leave right away…” Saphiros smiled again, avoiding my gaze and turning to Barrie, raising his hand in greeting, “Hey, um, Mr. Barrie, right? I’m Saphiros, the captain of the sixth squad of the Knights of Judgment, currently serving under Lady Silvajia. Well… seeing that your injuries aren’t too serious, I’m relieved. Hey, rest assured here, we’ll be leaving first…”

He waved at several subordinates, draped an arm over one of them, and walked out of the tent. After two steps, he turned back with a smile, “Mr. Barrie, after everything is settled, I’ll come find you for a drink.”

Without waiting for a response, they quickly left.

…What’s going on?

I tilted my head, watching them leave in puzzlement, not understanding what Saphiros really meant… Was he trying to get close to Barrie?

Why?

…Forget it.

It doesn’t matter.

Shrugging my shoulders, I turned back to look at Barrie, who was half-sitting on the mat. Then, I glanced at the woman standing next to her, who seemed somewhat awkward. My brows furrowed again.

Who is she?

Barrie’s girlfriend?

Looking at how she gazes at Barrie, oh my…

Fine.

I’ve been worried sick, rushing from Woodward Forest, barely sleeping these days, fearing that any delay would make things irreparable… and yet Barrie is not only fine but has started dating someone here?

“Tch.”

I couldn’t help but pout.

But actually, at this moment… no, since the moment I saw Barrie was still alive, my heart has been filled with a joy akin to surviving a disaster, indescribable relief.

It’s as if a thousand-jin boulder had been lifted off my chest. Even now, that sense of relief hasn’t dissipated.

This battle has been far more than just “grim”. The Third Knight Order, which Barrie belonged to, with over ten thousand soldiers, retreated from the defeat at the Mosley coast all the way here, spilling their blood on the walls and this once peaceful land.

In such chaotic, meat grinder-like battles, they used their own flesh and blood to stop the demons’ advance until we finally arrived late from the north wall, stepping over countless fallen comrades, and ultimately defeated those heretics, achieving a thrilling victory. But behind that victory were countless sacrifices, piles of corpses.

I didn’t even dare to go and look at the battlefield being cleaned up in the north. I stayed hidden in the city tower, listening to the knights report the news — they said there might not be more than five hundred survivors in the Third Knight Order.

But Barrie is alive.

Seeing him at that moment was probably the first time I truly thanked the gods from the bottom of my heart.

Now, seeing him injured but seemingly unbothered, even a bit silly, I felt both happy and almost amused by his comical expression. When I noticed a woman keeping him company so comfortably, another inexplicable annoyance surfaced involuntarily.

Various complex emotions intertwined, making our reunion after a year rather complicated for me.

There was a sense of unease. Not knowing what to say to him and not wanting to reveal what was on her mind, whether it be complaints or scolding, all the words were stuck in her throat, finally turning into an indifferent click of the tongue, as if to serve as a greeting.

“You’ve gone mad? Seeing me, you can’t even speak…”

As the words fell, she saw Barry’s face quickly turn red.

“Xi—Xi’er sister…”

His call of “Xi’er sister” sounded rather stiff.

She roughly understood what he was thinking. In their daily interactions, she had long understood the boy’s character, so she deliberately frowned, making an unhappy expression, and gave him a light punch on his shoulder.

Bang!

Barry’s upper body suddenly staggered forward, rapidly leaning backward, falling off the mat, and let out a “ah” as he rolled out two circles. After two seconds, he sat up, rubbing his shoulder with a grimace, looking at her in confusion.

Ah…

This punch was too hard.

Many people around them burst into laughter. She hurriedly pretended to be surprised, covering her mouth with one hand. “I’m sorry, are you okay?”

“Why did you hit him!?” Before Barry could speak, the woman standing beside him spoke up. “Why did you hit him… Even if you are his sister, you shouldn’t hit him… He’s injured…”

“I’m fine, I cough, I’m fine…”

Young knight Barry sat on the ground, waving his hands at us repeatedly. She pouted and then gave that tense, protective woman a sweet smile.

“I didn’t mean to.”

So who exactly is she?

Stepping over the mat, she slowly walked over, extended her hand to pull Barry up from the ground. “This punch is for making me lose sleep.”

“Eh…”

The boy got up with a dazed look. “Then, um, sorry…?”

“Why is it a question?”

She rolled her eyes at him.

Immediately, she saw Barry’s gaze wander across her face, stopping at her forehead. “Xi’er sister… What happened to your hair?”

Hair?

She froze, then realized.

“It’s because of worry.”

She sighed softly, raised her hand to touch her head, showing a sorrowful expression.

Hearing this, Barry immediately became nervous. She saw him clenching his fists. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“Not much. There’s just someone I care about. Even though there’s only grandmother left at home, he insists on becoming a knight. Then he ran over here to fight heretics… I’m afraid he might die. Every day, every single day, I can’t sleep. Then, I got worried like this.”

While speaking, she kept her eyes on Barry’s ever-changing face. From the shock when he heard “someone I care about,” which seemed to carry a hint of anger, to the restrained confusion when he heard “only grandmother left at home,” then the sudden change in his expression, intense emotional fluctuations, and even a momentary look of joy.

Until she finished speaking, all these emotions turned into indescribable shame, perhaps mixed with guilt. This seemingly taller young man lowered his head in front of her.

“Oh… I’m sorry, I didn’t think that far, I just… I just hoped to do something, like father… like you—”

“Alright!”

She raised both hands and patted his shoulder with a fox-like smile. “I was lying.”

“Eh… Ah?”

“The reason for my hair is different.”

“…Oh.”

The boy nodded dumbly.

“But, not being able to sleep well isn’t a lie.”

“I…”

“Because you didn’t stay at home. So, I came over. The journey was quite tough…”

“…”

“But, seeing you’re alright, I feel relieved.”

She smiled at Barry.

In her line of sight, the boy’s shoulders, which had been tense, gradually relaxed in the somewhat playful dialogue, under her deliberately teasing expression and tone.