Raven took a moment to gaze at the distant mountains, composing himself, then turned back to Yuria with a serious expression.
It was a look that seemed to demand an explanation, as if he were staring at a complete stranger.
But for Yuria on the receiving end of that gaze, all she could do was roll her eyes and try to gauge the situation.
Even if he asked for an explanation… how could she possibly explain when she couldn’t even speak?
‘More importantly, who is this person? Could it be… he doesn’t know who I am?’
Come to think of it, it wasn’t that strange for him not to figure it out.
Greg’s towering physique was over two meters of pure muscle. Naturally, his coat was just as oversized, completely covering his head and trailing down to his ankles.
Just in case, she had tightly tucked away her fox mask at her waist, hiding it from view. And to avoid being recognized by her hair color, she had carefully rolled it up and concealed it behind her neck.
She was confident that none of her defining features were visible.
Even someone as sharp as Raven wouldn’t be able to recognize her like this!
Feeling oddly amused, Yuria chuckled softly under the coat and quickly hid behind Greg.
To be honest, she was more worried about getting scolded than being discovered as a psychic.
He had explicitly said she couldn’t come along, so what would happen if he found out it was her? Not to mention, she’d been genuinely terrified when he threatened her earlier—she almost cried.
‘…This pretending-to-not-know thing is harder than I thought.’
Of course, her worries were completely unnecessary.
Raven had already figured out that the person hiding under the coat was Yuria.
True, the coat did a good job of concealing any distinctive features.
But ultimately, there was no hiding her small stature and slender frame.
And then there was her porcelain-white skin peeking out from under the coat hem. The way she gasped in surprise upon seeing him clearly gave away her identity as Yuria.
But contrary to Yuria’s concerns, Raven had no intention of revealing her true identity.
After all, he already knew she was a ghost—it just hadn’t been confirmed yet. Besides, Raven wasn’t the type to pry into things people didn’t want to reveal.
Moreover, he never imagined there would be two high-ranking members of the Beastmen Liberation Army.
If Greg hadn’t risked his life to take one of them down, the fight wouldn’t have even happened.
If Yuria hadn’t been there, things could’ve gone terribly wrong—he should actually be thanking her.
‘Not to mention, I deliberately told David to pretend it was a mistake and send the location via email… Yeah, it’s better to let this slide for now.’
And after all, he had sternly warned her not to follow him.
If he revealed her identity now, it would only make things incredibly awkward.
So for now, the ghost and Yuria were entirely separate individuals.
He firmly etched that sentence in his mind and looked at Greg, who appeared visibly troubled.
“…”
“Wait, let me explain. This is…”
“Oh, is this the ghost Alice mentioned meeting before? I never imagined you’d have a connection with Greg. Meeting like this is quite unexpected.”
“Hm? Ah… yes.”
“…?”
Raven subtly signaled Greg without drawing attention.
The signal meant they should play along and gloss over the situation.
Fortunately, Greg immediately caught the meaning behind the signal.
For him, it was odd that Raven hadn’t noticed Yuria.
With Raven’s sharp instincts, capable of detecting lies just from someone’s tone, how could he miss her just because of a coat?
Perhaps he felt there was no need to reveal that Yuria was the ghost.
Especially since psychics were dangerous beings who could face consequences simply for hiding their powers, Greg decided to go along with this clumsy act for Yuria’s sake.
“I’ve helped this person out in the past. When I asked for assistance, they gladly agreed. Thanks to them, I survived.”
“That’s a relief. Ghost, allow me to express my gratitude as well. I nearly lost a dear friend. Thank you so much.”
“…”
Is that so? Well, I mean… I just did what I had to do.
Unaware that Raven had already figured it out, Yuria slowly nodded.
Truthfully, she had planned to protect Greg no matter what.
But hearing words of gratitude from someone she admired made her shoulders shrug instinctively.
“Well then… I suppose we’ve sorted things out. Hm, the Beastmen Liberation Army, huh? Those troublesome guys are on the move again.”
Perhaps judging that introductions and explanations were mostly done, Raven rubbed his neck and furrowed his brow as if dealing with a headache.
He was right. The Beastmen Liberation Army was a dangerous group from the start.
They trivialized sacrifices for the greater good and ruthlessly excluded anyone who disagreed with them.
Their movement signaled the inevitable outbreak of conflict and war.
Having fought countless battles against enemies in the past, Raven found the prospect exhausting.
“I’ll handle the cleanup. You all should leave quietly before your identities as beastmen are discovered. Things could get complicated if you’re exposed.”
“That’s… certainly not wrong.”
“I have Pixie authority, so don’t worry too much.”
Still, there were things that needed to be done.
Raven assured them he would take care of everything as a Pixie.
After all, Belmont was a human city where beastmen couldn’t roam freely.
If Greg or Karen were discovered, things could get messy.
If they got tied up in the investigation, they might be stuck in Belmont for months. It was better for them to appear completely unrelated.
“I prepared a hideout in advance, knowing this might happen. Lay low there and take a train to Night Haven. It’s not too late.”
“…Thank you. I won’t forget this favor.”
“Th-Thank you, Raven.”
“If you’re grateful, treat me to a meal in Night Haven sometime.”
“Hmm, I’ll consider it.”
Greg bowed deeply to Raven, vowing to repay him someday.
His help had been nothing short of miraculous—words like “savior” didn’t feel adequate.
And so, Greg, Karen, and Yuria left Raven behind at the scene.
Though it felt like leaving him with too much responsibility, Yuria wasn’t overly worried about him.
The lingering traces of dense magic would reveal everything as the work of a mage.
And the werewolf fur scattered around would prove the culprit was a beastman.
Likely, the reappearance of the Beastmen Liberation Army after years of silence would cause an uproar, but Raven would be released soon and return to Night Haven.
‘Even considering that, it’s not an easy task. He’s ridiculously soft on his own people.’
Yuria smiled faintly as she followed Greg.
How could she dislike someone who casually did things she could never imagine doing herself?
Still, Greg had returned safely. Their paths would part now.
The thought brought a sense of relief but also a tinge of regret.
As if hearing Yuria’s thoughts, Greg suddenly spoke to her as they quietly headed toward the hideout.
“Hmm, speaking of which, I haven’t properly greeted you yet. Long time no see, Yuria. Has it really only been a month?”
“…!”
A month? It’s been longer than that!
Yuria poked her head out from under the coat and glared at Greg like a fierce puppy.
But she had forgotten one crucial detail: she hadn’t put her mask back on yet.
Karen, walking beside Greg, widened her eyes in shock upon seeing Yuria’s devastatingly beautiful bare face for the first time.
She was so stunned that she reflexively activated her Arachne Eye, magnifying Yuria’s features hundreds of times.
“Wow… How can someone’s face be so perfectly crafted like a work of art… Ow!”
“…Yuria, you forgot your mask.”
“…? …!”
Yuria’s eyes widened at the sight of Karen, who looked like she had collided painfully with a wall.
Realizing she had indeed forgotten her mask, she quickly hid back under the coat.
But since her face was already exposed, was there any point in hiding now? There was no one around anyway.
Deciding that, she cautiously peeked her face out again.
Seeing this, Greg realized Yuria no longer intended to hide her face. He averted his gaze slightly and spoke while looking straight ahead.
“I meant to return after a month, but as you can see, I got caught up in some unpleasant business.”
“…”
“I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m truly sorry.”
Yuria’s eyebrows tilted inward as she watched Greg avoid looking at her.
What kind of apology was this? Did he find her so unbearable to look at?
In truth, Yuria wasn’t angry about him being late.
Considering he was chased by two Seven Spears members—both as monstrous as Raven—it was impressive he escaped unscathed.
But his dismissive attitude of avoiding her gaze while apologizing still made her pout. I thought we were close friends.
Perhaps sensing Yuria’s hurt feelings, Greg pressed his forehead with his hand and calmly apologized again.
“Not being able to look at your face… honestly, I hope you can understand. For an empath like me, your face is overwhelmingly overwhelming. It’s almost like mental contamination for those with refined artistic sensibilities.”
“…?!”
Wh-what? Is that really it?
Yuria rolled her eyes in bewilderment and glanced at Karen walking beside Greg.
There, Karen was quietly marveling, stealing glances at Yuria as if unable to believe such a face could exist in reality.
I knew I was somewhat cute, but… is it really that extreme?
Confused by their reactions, Yuria’s gaze wandered aimlessly.
Finally, she hid her face back under the coat, put on her fox mask, and popped back out.
Now feeling a bit better, Greg’s gaze shifted toward Yuria.
Almost simultaneously, both broke into small smiles and extended their palms toward each other.
Clap.
Greg and Yuria’s palms met.
If their last farewell had been a promise to meet again, this was a greeting of joy upon reuniting.
The half-day of chaos that had felt so long finally came to an end.
I’m going to collapse the moment I get home. Yuria thought quietly to herself.
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