She wiped her nose with the back of her hand and spoke assertively. "What are you talking about! I'm healthy as—achoo!"
Thoma laughed heartily. The children were gleefully throwing snowballs at one another, playing much too loud to overhear either of them. Ellie silently watched them run to and fro with Thoma's fur coat wrapped around her. She started to move her feet nervously, and asked him another question.
"… Sir monk."
"Yeah?"
"What's your wish?"
Thoma paused at Ellie's question.
He contemplated it for a bit, before finally answering. "My wish… Well, I don't really have one in particular. I'm content to watch the children grow up and live my life with them."
"… That's so simple! Even a child would have something better!" Ellie began to snicker once again.
"… Is that so?"
He had answered her rather seriously. Having his dream teased like this was a little discouraging.
"Do you want to know what my wish is?"
Her sudden question broke him out of his melancholy. Ellie's guarded expression evoked his mischievous spirit. He wasn't sure what her wish was, but he would make sure he teased her about it.
"Sure, what is it?"
"You won't laugh?" she asked sheepishly.
"Of course not."
'Even though I will!'
Ellie drew in a deep breath and quickly stated her wish. "I wish for everyone in the world to be happy."
It was a simple wish, but an unachievable one. Faced with her sincere and innocent wish, he gave up on teasing her.
'Ah, I can't make fun of this.'
Thoma smiled awkwardly. "It's a good wish."
"Don't patronize me," she said, puffing her cheeks, "You probably think it's just some naive nonsense, right?"
Thoma felt a prick in his heart and evaded her question with silence.
'Too clever! It's not like she has the power to discern the truth like I can.'
"I'm well aware," Ellie muttered to herself dispiritedly. "It is a hard wish to achieve, but…"
She turned her head to look at the children and smiled affectionately.
"Even if it's not a world where everyone could be happy, I can keep wishing for a better world! A world more comfortable than this one. More free. More happy. With less hunger. A world with less worries…!"
Thoma looked at Ellie in surprise.
"My wish is to be able to see that kind of world come to pass."
"…Sister."
Ellie returned Thoma's gaze, tilting her head curiously.
"You're very gentle."
"Really? W-what all of a sudden…?!" Ellie blushed, taken aback by his unexpected praise.
Thoma only barely managed to suppress his laughter. "Erhem, No, It's nothing. It's just that you look like a little startled bunny when you get surprised."
"T-that's too much! You're teasing me, right? Is this revenge for earlier?"
"Hahaha!"
Ellie only blushed harder as Thoma burst into laughter.
"…Did you know rabbits die when they're lonely? They might feel happy just by being together, but more than that, rabbits want to be loved." She paused for a moment, working up the courage to say what was in her heart. "So…"
Ellie hid her face behind her silver hair, though the parts of her face that could still be seen were beet red.
"Sir Monk, you should—eep!"
Ellie let out a small shriek as a snowball crashed into her face. The children were laughing at her while hurriedly packing more snowballs.
"Hahaha! I hit Sister Ellie!"
"So funny!"
"She's like a bunny covered in snow!"
Ellie's body trembled as she grabbed the pile of snow plastered over her blushing face.
"You brats?! Right when I finally mustered up the courage to say it…! Ok, let's have a go!"
Ellie ran toward where the children were gathered.
She looked back toward Thoma and shouted,
"Brother Monk! What're you doing! Let's go together!"
"Sister, your wish might be hard to achieve."
Ellie froze at his words.
"But… There are definitely people that are happy due to your presence."
Thoma smiled at the warmth he felt spreading through his chest as he reminisced on all that Ellie had done for him.
'That's right. Like me. There are definitely people that have felt the same happiness.'
Thoma didn't voice the last part of what he wanted to say. Ellie looked dumbstruck; she had never expected Thoma to say such things—directly to her at least. She was still frozen in place, with her eyes glued to his figure.
"What are you doing, sister! Let's play!"
The children knocked her from her stupor as they pulled at her arm.
"Hm? Ah, ah… yes! Okay! I'll show you my snowball skills!"
Ellie left with the children as though she was fleeing from the scene. Thoma only watched as she left.
'Sir Monk, you should… !'
He felt like he knew what she was trying to say, but he could not accept her feelings.
'That's right. I can't.'
It was at that moment that someone interrupted his thoughts.
"… Brother Thoma."
A tired-sounding voice caused him to turn around.
"Brother Faron?"
Brother Faron stood limply behind him. A deep-set look of despair was etched onto his face, making him look quite pitiful.
"My wife…"
His voice shook and his face twisted in agony as he forced the words out. "has died."
***
The funeral was a humble affair. The body was set into a coffin made by the monks, which they nailed shut and covered in flowers. It was carefully lowered into a freshly-dug grave using rope.
Even though everything had been made by hand to save money, the funeral wasn't inexpensive. The only way to fund it had been to spend nearly all of the abbey's remaining donations.
"Why are we spending money on this when we're already in such a poor state?!"
"To go and die after using such expensive medicine bought with our stolen money…?"
"Hey, your voice is too loud!"
"So what?! For goodness sake! First the medicine and now the funeral expenses? Just who does brother Faron think he is, to be so insolent!"
Ellie recoiled in shock at the content of their whispers.
After firmly patting down the last shovelful of dirt, Thoma wiped his brow and walked over to Faron.
"Brother monk. What do I do now…?"
He was fixedly watching the soil under which his wife was buried, with a dumbstruck look.
"… Be strong," was all that Thoma said.
There was nothing he could do for Faron other than offer him some encouraging words. Suddenly, Ellie appeared beside Thoma. She reached out and gripped the hem of his tunic. He could tell something was bothering her just by looking at her. She was smiling, but it looked forced, like she was trying to suppress her emotions.