EMATEC Chapter 157

157

There's a saying that "the arm bends inward." It means that one naturally sides with those close to them.

When faced with the same situation, people tend to unconsciously consider only the perspective of someone dear to them. This is a kind of biased thinking.

And my mother's arm bent toward Aunt Diana.

I don't know how painful it must have been for Aunt Diana to choose to become the Emperor's shadow. Nor do I know how torn my mother's heart must have been watching her make that choice.

All I remember is Enoch's young face, so small, so young, when he ran away to Emblem after hearing the news that Aunt Diana had gone missing.

'If she didn't want our last memory to be that day… If she didn't want to leave me with this kind of wound… then Mother should have come back somehow.'

'She should have come back even if she had to grit her teeth. Even if she wasn't in one piece, she should have returned. After sending me that kind of letter…'

'If she made me wait, then she should have come back. That's what a mother is supposed to do.'

It was the first time Enoch, who usually acted like an old soul living his second life, looked utterly lost, like a child learning what despair truly meant.

And so, inevitably, my own arm could only bend toward Enoch.

"Ugh, I came all the way out here… so where are they?"

I glanced around quickly as I rushed through the mansion. It hadn't been long since Enoch and Aunt Diana had left after training, so they were likely still inside the Emblem mansion.

It made perfect sense, they would want to avoid attention and keep the meeting quiet. And the Emblem mansion was the best place for that.

"...Ah."

Then, a certain place flashed through my mind, the Emblem garden, where Enoch always used to hide whenever he ran away from home.

I ran toward it. And just as I suspected, before I even entered the garden, I could sense their presence.

Ever since becoming aware of my powers as a Swordmaster, my senses had grown incredibly sharp when I focused. Relying on those heightened senses, I followed the faint presence of the two, and then I heard Aunt Diana's voice, softly.

"...No. I really... to you…"

It had been so long since I'd heard her voice that it felt unfamiliar, like something buried deep in my memory. I stopped in my tracks instinctively.

"Enoch, not once have I ever forgotten that promise. I meant it when I said I would come back to you…"

Even though so many years had passed, I had never once forgotten Aunt Diana's face. Time may have left its traces on her, but I still remembered.

And I was sure Enoch did too.

Seeing the expression on Enoch's face as he stood in front of Aunt Diana, my legs froze in place. I couldn't move.

"……"

It was because Enoch's face looked… so calm.

"I understand, Mother. You don't need to keep making excuses anymore."

"……Enoch."

"I'm truly glad you've returned. You must've been through a lot."

Enoch's calm, indifferent response left Aunt Diana visibly taken aback.

And I felt the same.

I had thought that if Enoch ever saw Aunt Diana again, he would erupt in anger and sorrow. That he'd demand why she made such a choice, that he wouldn't be happy at all about her return. I was sure he would lash out.

But he didn't.

"It's just… I'm worried. Now that you've come out from the shadows, you're bound to be in danger again."

"……"

"Father is far too weakened now… I don't think he could handle losing you a second time."

Standing before Aunt Diana, Enoch's voice remained even and composed. He expressed no personal feelings about her return, only concern for his father.

That lack of emotion, the emptiness, made it feel like something inside him was beyond repair.

"Ah, Cherrya."

Enoch noticed me and turned. His expression lightened as if relieved, his eyes silently asking for help.

It seemed like my presence gave him a bit of breathing room.

"Aunt Diana."

"Ah… Ah… Cherry…"

Only then did Aunt Diana finally realize I was there, her face stunned as though waking from a dream.

While searching for the two of them, I had constantly wondered what I would say to her if I saw her again.

But now that she was standing in front of me, my mind went completely blank, and I couldn't bring myself to speak.

Was this how it had been for Enoch too? Unable to voice his feelings?

Still, I managed to gather the strength to speak.

"……You must've been watching over us all this time, right? I heard… you were His Majesty's shadow."

"We've even crossed swords before. You were impressive."

"What? When?"

"During the Lowes Mountain Range extermination Operation."

"……Ah!"

A memory flashed in my mind, the shadowy figure Enoch and I had fought back then, mistaking them for an enemy. Could that really have been Aunt Diana?

My jaw dropped in disbelief.

Just then, Enoch stepped closer, his brows furrowing slightly in discomfort.

"Tch. I swore I'd never cross swords with Mother…"

"……!"

Both Aunt Diana and I stared at Enoch, eyes wide in shock.

He just shrugged, like he didn't understand what the fuss was about.

'Is this… really how a son reacts after reuniting with the mother he was separated from as a child?'

I was honestly confused.

Was the betrayal Enoch felt toward Aunt Diana so deep that it numbed him?

Or did she simply no longer mean anything to him at all?

"Wh-why would you make such a promise, Enoch…?"

I couldn't help but glance over at Aunt Diana, feeling oddly guilty on her behalf.

I wanted to nudge Enoch with my elbow, telling him to lighten the mood somehow, but Aunt Diana was staring at us so intently that I couldn't bring myself to do it.

In this suffocatingly awkward silence, Enoch, looking completely indifferent like some bystander, said to me.

"Don't you remember? You told me to do that."

"……I did? Told you to what?"

"To become so strong that Mother would regret not seeing me grow up."

"I said that?"

I had to dig deep into the murky, half-faded memories of the past to recall what Enoch meant.

I clearly remembered the expression on young Enoch's face, how his breath trembled, the emotions in his voice…

But I couldn't remember my own words or actions from back then, those were blurred, like fogged-up glass.

After struggling to sift through my memory, I finally found a faint glimpse of that day.

'You hate Aunt Diana and resent her? Then this is how you get your revenge. Become a knight so brilliant, so strong, that she regrets not being able to see your growth. Strong enough to make her feel she missed out. That's how you hit back.'

It was me, pretending to comfort Enoch while actually pushing him toward revenge.

'I… I never even thought of that as revenge on Mother.'

I remembered Enoch's young face, lit with an expression as if he had just discovered something profound.

'God, what was I even thinking?'

As if things weren't already awkward enough, now I couldn't even meet Aunt Diana's eyes anymore.

I felt like I had come between a mother and her child, and from now on I should probably consider Aunt Diana's face a closed chapter in my life.

Was this the moment that the rift between Emblem and Gray deepened, because of me?

Just as I was spiraling into all sorts of guilt, Enoch let out a deep sigh and spoke.

"You two seem to be misunderstanding something. I'm really okay."

"What?"

"I always knew this day would come. You told me Mother was still alive, remember, Cherrya?"

"……I did?"