The Hero’s Brother Is Bound To Be Depressed - Chapter 249



250 – What you see only when you stop

Comforting someone was something very unfamiliar to me, a liar, so I felt frustrated, like I was wearing clothes that didn’t suit me.

However, Navier shed tears because of my joke that crossed the line. It was right to put Navier’s feelings before my own.

Navier, who shed tears so much that his eyes were a little swollen, sat down on a bench to catch his breath for a moment and fix his messed up makeup.

After calming down to a certain extent, Navier seemed to be belatedly embarrassed for shedding tears in front of me, so he grumbled for no reason.

“Playing with other people’s hearts is the worst thing… “I was really a little disappointed.”

I agree. I know because I’ve been through it too. Tried to use my heart-

I think I remembered something, but I can’t remember. What I was thinking felt strange. It felt like I had the search bar on and was thinking about what I was going to do with my stupid face.

I shook my head to come to my senses and focused on apologizing again.

He said, bowing towards Navier.

“sorry. “I crossed the line.”

When I apologized sincerely, Navier slightly pursed his lips and sighed. As if trying to shake off the depression from earlier, he vigorously stood up from the bench, raising the tension that had subsided.

“okay! I have a big heart and will forgive you! “Stop wasting time and let’s go on a date!”

“thanks.”

Thanks to Navier’s consideration, I was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.

“So what date did you really have planned? “Is there some secret in Lake Xyren?”

Navier looked at me expectantly again. Like a sinner, she wanted to reveal everything she knew, but I had never seen it either, so I had to look it up myself.

There was also the author’s desire to not give spoilers.

“That’s right, let’s start by getting off the trail.”

I left the trail and headed towards a forest lined with dense old trees with Navier. First of all, Naver looked very satisfied with the fact that he was going in a different direction than others.

Maybe Navier is a girl who loves freedom. In fact, the thought that everyone would be like that if they lived in the same house as Raelan, a picky person, crossed her mind for a moment, but she didn’t make the mistake of saying it out loud.

As I set foot on the path leading into the forest, I briefly explained my goal.

“You just need to find a tree with a flaming red color in the forest located on the west side of Lake Xiren.”

Navier, who was walking at the same pace, tilted his head.

“Fiery red? “The trees around here are only dull gray or dark green?”

If it were red on a white background, it would be noticeable from afar. There was certainly no eye-catching, intense color among the snow-covered trees.

“Won’t it come out if I walk?”

It may sound a little irresponsible, but I couldn’t help it. Since it was the origin of a discarded plot that did not appear in the novel, it was as if only the broad framework existed and there was no detailed setting.

This is because it was a plot that was discarded after realizing that a hot and intense one-night stand would be more helpful in terms of viewership than a routine date with the Grand Duchess of the North.

I wrote it down in a notepad to use in another work, so it will definitely exist here, just like in Estelle’s case.

After about 30 minutes of looking around the forest and talking about various things with Navier, Navier suddenly stopped walking, looked around, and said.

“This is your first time back?”

“… “I thought it would be easy to find because it’s a striking red color, but was I being too optimistic?”

Navier smiled pretty as I scratched my head feeling sorry that I was making him exercise for no reason.

“It’s okay, the pasta I ate earlier hasn’t even been digested yet. “Let’s take another look!”

Oh my, I felt even more burdened by the sight of Navier paying attention to me as if everything was okay. As she walked her path again she looked around her with even more concentration than before.

As I looked around in silence, Navier, who had been talking to himself, suddenly grabbed my arm.

“why… ?”

“It’s just that I seem to be focusing too much on finding the tree. “But since we’re here to visit Lake Xiren, how about taking a look around?”

Navier’s words freed me from my goal of finding a tree and allowed me to look at my surroundings leisurely for a moment.

It was clearly a road I had passed, but there was something I could only see when I stopped.

The lightly piled snow reflects the sunlight coming in diagonally between the dense trees and sparkles.

The sound of couples talking from far away, birds chirping somewhere, and even twigs swaying in the passing wind.

Because he was only focused on the goal of finding the tree, his perspective seemed to have narrowed, failing to see the beauty of harmony that nature provides.

I said after a pause.

“… “It’s beautiful.”

“That’s right, so let’s not be impatient and take our time and look around. “It’s too unfortunate to just pass by.”

Even when looking at the same work of art, each person has a different interpretation. What used to look like just a forest now seems like it would be a shame to just pass by, as Navier said.

I took a deep breath of fresh air and spoke openly.

“I think you’re really amazing.”

“huh… ? suddenly?”

Perhaps because the compliment was so unexpected, Navier let out a small laugh. But I was serious.

“Yes, I think he’s a person I have a lot to learn from.”

When I said that to Navier with a sincere smile, for some reason Navier blushed slightly and started walking ahead, waving his arms loudly.

“Go on, it’s cold standing still! “Let’s move quickly before we catch a cold!”

I nodded at Navier’s words and walked forward at a fast pace.

We walked along the path in silence for a while. All I could hear was the sound of us stepping on the snow. Navier, who had been keeping quiet, suddenly stopped her steps and started hitting my forearm.

“Uh, that!!!”

As I turned my head to follow Navier’s fuss, a tree caught my eye. There were many trees close to the trail, but this tree stood alone.

Thanks to this, the snow that had piled up on the tree that was monopolizing the sunlight was melting and, unlike other trees, it was dyed a blazing red.

“no way… “That?”

I nodded slightly towards Navier, whose eyes were shining with anticipation.

I left the trail with Navier and ran towards the tree. As I stood in front of the tree, I knew it was the tree I was looking for.

I left behind Navier, who was smiling brightly with a face full of anticipation, and placed my hand on the bumpy tree.

It was a tree that felt a little warm, perhaps because of the sunlight.

“If you inject magical energy into a tree… .”

As I said that and concentrated my magic power into my palm, the floor began to shake as if an earthquake had occurred.

“W-what… !”

“Hold my hand!”

As I held Navier’s hand with my other hand and continued to inject magical power into the tree, the roots buried in the ground came out. As the roots sprouted as if a person was raising a body, a hole was created where the base of the tree was.

“Once the magic power injection is over, it will go back to normal! “Go in first!”

Navier was taken aback by my shout and quickly threw himself inside. I could feel Navier’s screams getting further and further out of the hole.

I let go of the tree and threw myself towards the hole. The smooth passage continued like a water slide. It felt like I was falling deeper than the bottom of the lake.

Eventually the passage leveled out and the speed began to slow down. Suddenly the passage came to an end and my butt fell to the ground, but fortunately there was a soft plant covering so it didn’t hurt. There were light-emitting plants blooming everywhere, so it wasn’t dark inside.

Navier, who arrived first, helped me stand up and asked.

“If it goes down this deep, wouldn’t it be the bottom of the lake?”

“Maybe so?”

Navier narrowed his eyes like a cat at me as I dusted my butt.

“But how do you know about this place? “There was no sign that anyone had been there recently.”

Navier’s words stung me for no reason, but I lied and pretended to be calm.

“I saw it in the academy library. “I can even go into forbidden areas.”

Unfortunately, perhaps because it was an excuse that was also used at the lighthouse, it was not as effective as before.

“lie! Who would hide such a secret in the academy library?”

“Of course, it doesn’t explicitly say in the book that a place like this exists. “I found the location by combining legends and various stories about the North.”

With that said, I told the truth that would support my lie.

“I found out that our club room was a secret room created by Alex Floyd, the first principal of Transcendence, by combining clues in the academy library.”

Navier’s big eyes grew even wider at those words. Navier asked me with an incredulous expression, her mouth hanging open.

“Your club room is a secret room? “The one rumored to be an Academy legend?”

As expected, butterflies respond well. Just as Rosaline is in charge of Roel’s reactions, she is also in charge of my reactions to Nabi.

“Okay, I found the hint that Principal Nelson left when he was a student-”

While I was explaining with a smile, Navier suddenly cut me off with a cold voice.

“Why did I know that now?”

“… uh?”

The atmosphere is somehow strange. I just want to look down for no reason. I feel goosebumps growing on my forearms.

“There must have been plenty of time to explain the club room… Why didn’t you tell me until now… ?”

When Navier asks that in a cold voice, the shade in his eyes seems to have disappeared… Was it simply my imagination?