I Pretended To Have Amnesia and the Hero’s Party Becomes Obsessed

47 – 7. The Second Piece (6)

It was the best birthday party of my life.

Marian gave me glasses she had made herself as a gift. Just looking at the title of a book would automatically recite its contents.

Smiling, Marian added, “Reading too much at night is bad for your eyes.”

On the other hand, Rem’s gift was the birthday party itself. From the five-tier cake to the whimsical decorations, everything came from Rem’s wallet and imagination.

Especially the five-tier cake, Rem complained that it was even challenging to bring it here.

And there, in front of it all, I cried once again.

Even though my heart was brimming with joy, tears kept welling up involuntarily. I felt like I had become a machine that shed tears.

I couldn’t figure out why I kept crying so pathetically.

But my friends didn’t ask about the reason for my tears. Instead, they started sharing all sorts of humorous stories with me.

Mostly, they were incidents that happened during the preparation for the birthday party.

Like the time we accidentally burned all the decorations while messing up the fireworks design.

Or the argument between Marian and Ray over choosing decorations.

The time Marian was designing glasses as a gift, and Ray kept lecturing him from the side.

Stories that were absurd yet warm, all in unison.

When I snapped out of it, the tears had stopped, and a hearty smile adorned my lips.

As if, after the rain, the sky clears up.

And then, the events that followed were not worth mentioning. They weren’t sophisticated activities suitable for cultured intellectuals.

Instead of eating the cake, we threw it at each other,

Critiqued the cheesy decorations, criticizing Rem’s aesthetic sense harshly,

Ray, completely defeated, went wild, casting spells with colorful sparks,

Acts that could be collectively labeled as foolishness.

However, during those foolish acts, I never knew the laughter would leave my face.

It was enjoyable.

Enough to forget about the issues with my mother.

But why does even a joyful time have to come to an end?

“Today was fun.”

Marian flashed a bright smile at me.

His hair was dyed in rainbow colors, and his entire body was a comical mess from the cake, but I couldn’t bring myself to smile back at him.

Because the word “a little more” squeezed my heart.

Perhaps noticing, Marian gently pulled me into a hug. In Marian’s embrace, the sweet scent of cake wafted in the air.

“You’ll see me again tomorrow.”

And Marian let go of me, giving me a teasing smile.

“And you’ll do this for my birthday too, right?”

I wanted to give a witty reply, but my choked sobs made it impossible. I just nodded vigorously.

Upon that, Marian chuckled, hugged me once again, and said, “See you tomorrow.”

And then, she left the room after saying those words.

I watched the door she left through for a moment, suppressing tears within me.

Then, I looked at another friend still in the room.

My unfortunate roommate, Rem.

He was cleaning up my completely trashed room. Whether it was because of losing in a rock-paper-scissors game against Marian for the cleaning duty or not, his face was filled with a rough expression.

I smirked and said to him, “You should go now too. I’ll take care of the rest.”

I received the best birthday party of my life. Tidying up afterward is the least I can do out of courtesy.

However, Rem only looked at me with a perplexed expression, as if he didn’t understand my consideration.

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s my room, so cleaning is my responsibility…”

“No, that’s not what I mean.”

Confidence filled Rem’s face with a bright smile.

“Did you seriously think my birthday present would end with this?”

“…Huh?”

Confusion crept up to the tip of my forehead.

“I’ve been waiting for you to finish quietly. We have a place to go together afterward.”

“Uh, yeah…”

Go together?

In the middle of the night?

…Just the two of us…?

The confusion that had surfaced turned into heat in an instant.

I quickly turned away from him. Embracing my warm cheek with my hand, I whispered softly.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake…”

The heart that had sunk into tears started pounding fiercely again.

***

Matop, it is not only a fortress of knowledge but also the tallest building on the continent, spanning 100 floors.

Even from the Papal Palace, which is a three-day journey by carriage, one can witness its towering height. In this vicinity, understanding geography with the Matop as a reference is common knowledge.

Truly a place that deserves to be called the Tower of Towers.

And, perhaps it is inevitable that a building like this has several balconies.

“…Is this really okay?”

I anxiously looked at Lem, who effortlessly unlocked the magic seal on the door. However, Lem shrugged as if it was no big deal.

“It’s fine, if it doesn’t work, then that’s it.”

“But if it does work…”

“It’ll be noisy, and I’ll open it.”

Ignoring my objections, Lem swung the door open.

Whooooosh!

An immediate gust of wind blew in, barely catching my hat as it tried to fly away. The wind was so strong that I couldn’t even open my eyes properly.

However, at Lem’s spell, the wind quickly subsided.

I slowly opened my eyes and looked out onto the balcony in the night.

It was like a small island floating in a sea of stars.

The crescent moon hung in the sky, with the stars twinkling around it, and the lights on the ground seemed distant and non-existent. The tiles on the balcony floor shimmered softly in the starlight.

Lem confidently stepped forward on the balcony.

Without any hesitation, towards the edge of the balcony.

Into the void of darkness without even a railing.

A sudden realization struck me.

Lem is blind.

“No…!!”

But it was too late for that realization.

Before the shout could even escape, Lem reached out into the black void.

I couldn’t bear to witness the sight and tightly closed my eyes.

But even with my eyes shut, the next scene appeared in the depths of my eyelids.

The black void would surely swallow Lem whole. He would struggle and scream in desperation. And as I listened to his cries, I…

“Why? Did you think you would fall?”

With a playful voice, he lifted his head reflexively. And a babbling voice flowed out through his lips.

“Uh…?”

From the edge of the balcony, one step forward,

Clearly, because Ray was standing on the empty black void where there should be nothing.

As if there was an invisible floor.

Only then, his pale face began to roll again.

“…Magic stepping stone?”

Rem smiled as if it were the correct answer.

Then, he took out a pocket from his embrace with telekinesis. He took out a handful of colorful powder and sprinkled it on the floor.

____!

The powders that touched the magic stepping stone flared up with a surreal light.

The transparent magic stepping stone revealed itself like an aurora.

On top of it, Rem smiled at me. Under the enchanting light of the stepping stone, it was a smile that seemed even more captivating.

“Are you not going to follow?”

***

Have you ever walked on the aurora of a summer night?

When you lift your head, you see the damp summer night sky. The moist stars feel like they would flow down your fingers if you reach out.

And then, when you lower your head, you see my feet stepping on the aurora. With each step, the surreal lights sway and emit various colors.

Beyond that, in the distance, you can see the stars of the ground. It is proof that there are people who couldn’t fall asleep down there.

And if you raise your gaze a little, you can see the back of the person walking ahead.

Every time he scatters the powder with telekinesis, the aurora forms in the night sky. The colors of the aurora flow down his robe.

It’s a sight that resembles a fairy who creates the night, rather than a human.

Am I dreaming right now?

But the traces of tears still vividly remain in my eyes. Even the sweetness of the cake emanating from my body pinches my nose.

Like that, the sense of reality was clearly clenched in my hands.

But I simply couldn’t accept this spectacle as reality.

It was too beautiful,

My mind was hazy,

But my heart was pounding like crazy.

If a butterfly were tormented by a fever, would it feel like this?

I silently etched every scene into my eyes, following Rem.

Our steps finally halted when we reached two chairs suspended in the air.

Rem meticulously brushed off the last speck of dust, revealing the aurora beneath the chairs. Then, he sat down and spoke with a stern expression.

“Take a seat.”

Afflicted by a fever, I wordlessly sat down on the chair and lifted my head.

Upon doing so, a fantastic sight greeted me.

A summer night sky filled with starlight,

Stretching across, a path of aurora reaching distant towers.

And below, the warm city lights ablaze.

Three lights overlapped but remained distinct as they flowed into my eyes.

Chimi, suppressing her emotions, finally spoke.

“When did you prepare all this?”

“About six months ago? Originally for a different purpose, but now it’s no longer needed.”

Rem, with a strangely uneasy expression, asked me.

“Do you like it?”

His words were like a siege weapon.

My eyes welled up instantly, and the three lights blurred and merged. Trying to hold back tears, I stammered as I opened my mouth.

“S-Sorry, *sniff* I didn’t want to cry… *sniff* But, you’re, you’re so beautiful… *sniff* I’m so grateful…”

Rem’s face, initially bewildered by my tears, gradually softened. Eventually, he sighed with relief and said,

“Thank goodness.”

“*sniff* Why…?”

“It’s a beautiful place as calculated.”

Rem closed his eyes as he spoke.

“I chose the most open place considering the terrain, but truthfully, I wasn’t sure until just now if the view would be beautiful from here.”

Then, he smiled, resting his chin on his hand as he faced me.

“But luckily, it’s such a beautiful place that you cried.”

Only then did I realize that Rem, despite all the preparations, couldn’t see any of this. He was blind.

Even though he had arranged everything, he couldn’t feel even the tiniest part of the joy I was experiencing.

All he could sense now was the lukewarm night air of a summer night.

And, it felt unbelievably unfair.

“Well, let me explain.”

“What?”

Confusion flashed across Rem’s face. I wiped away the last tear with the back of my hand and responded.

“I’ll describe how beautiful the scene I’m seeing right now is.”

It’s not about consideration. It’s just that if someone receives a gift, they should do what is expected of them.

“…That way, you won’t know how grateful I am.”

Expressing gratitude for the received gift.

“…”

A foolish expression appeared on Rem’s face as she heard my response.

For a moment, he looked stupid, then he chuckled.

“Haven’t you always been annoying in literature class?”

“Shh, keep it down!”

He really has no sense of mood at all. Alain, for heaven’s sake, why is the topic suddenly about my literature class grades!

“W-Well, listen…”

I shot him a look and suppressed my tears. I opened my mouth with as calm a voice as possible.

“First, it’s a night where stars are pouring down like rain…”

And I began to talk about everything that caught my eye.

How the crescent moon gives way to the stars,

How the road he created leads all the way to the mausoleum,

How the city lights are fading at what speed.

Finally, the sky is dyed with watercolor,

Until the morning star is entwined between the clouds.

Continuing, continuing.

***

I returned to my room after sunrise.

As soon as I entered, I lay down on the bed and tried to sleep. Since it had been such a busy day, I thought sleep would come quickly.

However, even when I closed my eyes, slumber did not come to me.

On the contrary, the more I closed my eyes and stayed still, the clearer my mind became.

The only person rising to the surface of my clear mind was one.

Realm.

At first, I thought he was just a boy threatening my position. Since he gave up the top spot, I only regarded him as an unfortunate shadow.

…I tried my best to think that way, at least.

But, no matter how hard I tried to deny the truth, it eventually seeped into my heart.

Walking above the aurora of a summer night, I could no longer deny my emotions.

I, Rem…

“No! No! It can’t be!!”

I kicked the blanket away and buried my face in the pillow.

It’s just a misunderstanding caused by simple fatigue! Or maybe some ailment in the heart!

There’s no way I could feel that way!

Yes, it’s a foolish, very foolish imagination!

After vigorously patting the bed with my legs for a while, I could barely calm down. I turned around and stared at the ceiling.

…But the fact remains that I owe him a lot.

Giving up the top position,

Preparing the birthday party,

…And the fantastic sight from last night.

And, a sage always repays kindness.

I jumped out of bed. Tying up my tousled red hair, I took out a scroll and a quill from the drawer and placed them on the desk.

Yes, this is just repayment.

No, it’s revenge.

Revenge for the tears I shed yesterday.

Imagining Rem’s tearful face, I placed the quill on the scroll.

Look forward to it.

After receiving my gift, you’ll surely burst into tears.