Flafla was feeling anxious today.
She was nothing like the common stereotype of elves—proud, powerful, and mysterious.
Flafla was timid.
Or rather…
Cowardly.
When it came to Alet, Flafla admired him, but she never dared to get too close.
Even simple conversations required her to think three times before speaking.
The reason was simple: the leader, Mello.
Whenever she spoke with that knight, she could feel those blood-red eyes staring straight at her.
The aura alone was enough to make Flafla feel like she couldn’t breathe.
When she learned that Mello and the others never intended to seek help to rescue Alet, she nearly burst into tears on the spot.
Yet in the end, she spinelessly gave in to reality.
After all, she wasn’t the leader of the adventuring party, nor did she have the ability to go back and save Alet.
All she could do was pray for him, hoping he would return safe and sound.
Fortunately, Alet really did escape from that near-death situation.
Tonight, Flafla had originally planned to go see Alet, ask about his condition, and then apologize.
However, on her way to his room, she found Alet collapsed on the ground from exhaustion.
And so, things led to the current situation.
Alet had mistaken her for Mello and said a lot.
“K-Knight sir…”
“Please, wake up. It’s me, Flafla. Not the leader.”
After hesitating for a moment, Flafla decided to point out his mistake.
“Ah…”
Only then did the ringing in Alet’s ears ease a little, allowing him to hear her voice and understand what she was saying.
“It’s you… Sorry, I mistook you for someone else.”
“No, no, no! There’s nothing to apologize for! I’ll take you back to your room right away!”
Flafla already felt guilty towards Alet, so now, facing this situation, of course she would do everything she could to help him.
Within just a minute, Flafla managed to help Alet back into his room.
Yet even half-reclining on the bed, Alet was still pale, sweating all over, looking extremely weak.
No matter how she looked at him, she couldn’t set her mind at ease.
“This won’t do. I have to help him!”
That was the only thought in Flafla’s mind right now.
But she didn’t know any healing magic, nor did she have any medicine.
“Then I’ll use support magic!”
She was the team’s bard—support magic was her specialty. It was the only thing she was confident in.
Making up her mind, Flafla pulled out a wooden string instrument from her back, nearly half her own size.
It was a mandolin.
She cleared her throat, her slender, beautiful fingers resting on the strings.
As her small cherry mouth opened and closed, a string of melodious phrases flowed from her lips:
“When green leaves and blooming flowers fall, when ancient rocks and dust sing long—”
“Though bones and flesh may rot here, withered wood and grass still sprout new branches—”
“Budding, growing, spreading, withering…”
“You and I join hands at the end of ruin, waiting together—”
“For the beginning of the next cycle.”
While playing and singing, Flafla seemed like a different person.
All timidity and hesitation vanished from her eyes, as if she had poured everything into her voice and her mandolin.
Flafla’s singing was truly skillful; the notes seemed to come alive in her mouth.
As the short song ended, a field of enhancement magic spread out, enveloping Alet.
What she had just played was the “Song of Life’s Cycle,” which could help those nearby dispel negative conditions as much as possible, while also enhancing their self-healing ability and boosting their mental state.
Within the beautiful melody, Alet’s condition gradually stabilized.
The overwhelming weakness and dizziness inside him were slowly suppressed. His body temperature began to rise, and the deep aches in his skin faded away.
“Ha… ha…”
Alet gasped for breath, his eyes slowly focusing.
“Knight sir, knight sir!”
Seeing color return to Alet’s face, Flafla hurried over, squatting down and gazing intently at him.
She even spread her fingers and waved her hand in front of his eyes.
“Can you see me? Are you feeling better?”
“Cough… It’s all thanks to you. Thank you.”
Thanks to Flafla’s support, Alet finally began to recover.
“I’m glad you’re better… Knight sir, were you badly hurt in the dungeon?”
“I’m sorry… I didn’t know the leader didn’t plan to rescue you. I couldn’t help at all…”
The small girl stood beside Alet.
She held a mandolin almost half her own size, the tips of her green hair falling over her face, which was full of guilt.
As she spoke her words of apology, Flafla herself felt guilty, felt fake.
When Alet was abandoned in the dungeon, she too, because of her own cowardice, had become one of those who did nothing.
But if she said nothing at all, the guilt in her heart would be unbearable.
Even if the chance of being forgiven was slim, she still wanted to apologize to Alet.
But then, Alet said something unexpected:
“It’s not your fault.”
“Staying behind was Miss’s order. Carrying it out was my duty.”
“Even if I died in the dungeon, it would only be because I wasn’t strong enough.”
“It was Miss who said she would bring people back for a rescue.”
“You didn’t deceive me, so there’s no need to apologize, Flafla.”
“Instead, I should thank you. Without you, I probably would’ve fainted out in the corridor.”
He calmly stated his opinion.
As he spoke, he gathered the little magic he had left in his body, using healing magic on himself.
After a few rounds of that green glow mending his body, the strange feelings finally faded away. Only then did Alet feel a little more at ease.
Even though Alet had forgiven her, Flafla still didn’t dare to look him in the eye.
She just lowered her head and softly whispered, “Thank you.”
“And besides, you don’t have to worry about me too much. I won’t leave the Crystal Thorn Adventuring Party.”
“My life was given by Miss. Until I help her realize her wish, I won’t leave.”
“Don’t worry.”
Hearing Alet talk about Mello, Flafla couldn’t help but feel a little relieved.
She was glad that Alet wouldn’t leave.
At the same time, though, her throat felt a little tight for some reason.
As if something was blocking it, making her uncomfortable.
“You really care a lot about the leader, don’t you.”
Blurting that out, she suddenly realized something was off about her mood, so she quickly added,
“Th-then I’ll head back to my room now? If you feel unwell again, you can come find me.”
Flafla quickly slung the mandolin onto her back, her eyes nervously darting around.
“Mm, go ahead.”
After a moment’s thought, Alet added,
“No matter how many times I hear it, your singing is always wonderful.”
Being praised out of the blue, Flafla’s long ears instantly turned red, and she dashed out of Alet’s room with a “thump-thump-thump.”
Only after escaping from Alet’s sight did she finally breathe a sigh of relief, leaning heavily against the wall.
“Leader really is that important to knight sir, huh.”
“So important that even after being treated so badly, he can always forgive her…”
“If I worked hard enough, could I also…”
Flafla murmured softly to herself.
But when she got to the last part, she suddenly stopped, and tightly clutched the collar at her throat.
“Knight sir…”