While Selena was standing with a dumbfounded expression, Sybil, who was busily rolling her eyes, approached and spoke.
"Well, right? Selena? Selena's power is really needed by us. So, Frondier probably thought it would be better if Selena was with us......"
Sybil said so, then paused, as if she had a thought.
Initially, she brought up the topic to soothe Selena, but as she spoke, it seemed plausible, so plausible that she ended up considering the idea that it might have been the truth from the beginning.
And that was the truth.
And the real reason Selena was angry was because of that.
"I wish Lord Frondier had told me that."
Everyone who heard Selena's tantrum had the same thought.
'Isn't that a good thing?'
"Lord Frondier must have decided that it's better for me to be here. That's why he didn't give me any orders. So that I can make a choice. Always leaving a way for me to escape. So that I can leave him at any time."
From the time Selena started acting as Frondier's surveillance.
From the time Frondier made Selena a double agent.
─I will not doubt you.
─Whether you tell me the truth or a lie, I won't even care about that.
At that time, Selena couldn't understand Frondier's intentions.
However, looking back now, Frondier wanted Selena to turn her back on Manggot and join his side by her own will.
Frondier can't see through Selena's act. Selena heard what he said, but she didn't know that he had given up on trying to see through her act.
That's why, when Selena joined his side, the only way for Frondier to fully trust her was to do that.
Selena is grateful for his consideration, but now that consideration is just a disappointment.
To Selena now, Frondier's words, 'It's okay to leave anytime,' are nothing but a wound.
"......Hmm, Selena. But Frondier is,"
When Aster tried to say something to Selena.
"──Really! That guy!"
Elodie interrupted in the middle.
Elodie held Selena's hands and burned her eyes as if she strongly agreed.
It seemed as if she had been waiting for someone other than herself to say that.
"He usually keeps everything to himself! Moreover, he always has a poker face so others can't even notice!"
"That's right! Absolutely!"
"And in the end, he just shakes it off by himself? At least, shouldn't he give the other person time to apologize?"
"That's right! It's selfish! Pretending not to be hurt and then really not being hurt by himself!"
Aster thought, 'Is that selfish?' but kept his mouth shut.
Instead, he spoke while looking at Aten.
"It seems like everyone has a lot of pent-up feelings about Frondier. He's a good guy."
"...If we put aside whether Mr. Frondier is a good person or not."
But Aten also seemed to have something on her mind, her expression was not good.
"I also strongly agree with what the two of you said. Mr. Frondier mostly tries to endure everything by himself. Recently, he has started to ask for help from people around him, but in the end, he thinks all the pain is his share. He's a very cowardly person." ř
Aster thought, 'Is that cowardly?' but held back again this time.
This patience twice was indeed a wisdom worthy of being called the hope of the world.
Aster spoke, looking around at his companions.
"Frondier's plan was halted midway. It seems that the demon who tried to threaten him has fainted."
Elodie nodded at his words.
"In other words, Frondier's suicidal-like behavior will also stop for a while."
Meanwhile, Sybil seemed to think for a moment and then spoke.
"But what should we do then? If something happens to Frondier, the enemies might put Lunia in danger."
Aten shook his head at that.
"I don't think that will happen."
"The enemies kidnapped Lunia, risking significant sacrifices. In other words, Lunia has that much value to them, and perhaps it might be the only way to threaten Frondier."
The one who continued the conversation was Elodie.
"Lunia is the last fortress for the enemies. Unlike us, the demons are not fully communicating. Although the enemy's leader is unconscious, the enemies probably don't know the specific situation. It's absurd to try to kill Lunia in such a situation."
Then Aster spoke again.
"I just heard this from Frondier, but it seems like the enemies are not trying to kill Frondier. It looks like they were trying to use Frondier as a means."
The one who responded was Selena.
"Usually, criminals who have taken hostages rarely demand lives. A person's life is the most important. No matter how valuable the hostage is, it's useless if the trade doesn't work. So, killing Frondier was not the top priority from the beginning."
Trading lives to get a hostage is a story that comes out in movies, and there are very few people who actually respond to such trades.
However, Aten's eyes dimmed a bit after hearing that.
"......Of course, that's the general case, but for Mr. Frondier, that deal might have actually worked out. After all, he's the type to recklessly gamble with his own life."
"It's unusually harsh coming from you, Aten."
Aten seemed to have various emotions about Frondier surface after the previous conversation, as her usually pale face now had her lips pointed sharply.
After a moment of thought, Selena spoke.
"......I didn't connect shadows with Ms. Lunia. I also didn't consider the possibility of Ms. Lunia being in danger, and there are those who dislike the very idea of connecting shadows."
"Why would they dislike it?"
Aster asked out of pure curiosity, and Elodie answered.
"Having someone who could pop up beside you at any moment. Even if they're on our side, it's not something you can always welcome."
Aster understood immediately. Looking at him, Selena spoke again.
"However, once you connect shadows even just once, you could use shadow transfer to launch a surprise attack. If timed right, it could ensure safety."
At this moment, there is another person who can shadow transition like Selena, but Mei is not here.
This was the decision made after Elodie and Frondier had a discussion.
Mei is not on the side of humans right now. She is just pure.
It's too early to decide whether that will be evil or good.
That's why Frondier is thinking of going around Constel with Mei.
So, they decided not to involve Mei in the battle as much as possible. Because they don't know what will happen. The unexpected situation when Mei is involved is immeasurable even in scale.
That's why they minimized Mei's participation in the war. Even then, Frondier hoped that Mei would only use restoration magic.
Anyway, because of that, Selena can't escape with Lunia through shadow transition now.
Because she can only transition her own body. However, if she can somehow shadow once, a surprise attack with the people here can be successful.
Aster nodded his head.
"First of all, safety is the top priority. If there is a route that Selena can approach secretly, let's prioritize that. If Lunia and the shadow are connected, Selena can be closer to Lunia than anyone else, and Selena can protect Lunia for a sufficient amount of time."
Selena spoke with confidence.
Somehow, it seemed like she was trying to completely resolve the resentment that had arisen towards Frondier at this opportunity.
"Then after that, everyone,"
And the currently most fiercely burning Aster.
His command was simple and clear.