Thoma sighed as we walked down one of the many busy streets of Lania. He saw carpenters off to the side working hard to build a new home.
"… Should I really try to learn?"
He had travelled to Lania intending to learn the trade of carpentry from the master carpenters themselves. Now, whenever he visited the city he made sure to save a little time to visit the carpenters and learn something new.
***
He hauled wooden boards to the space where he'd been building house after house. Sawing and hammering away, his newest house was coming together bit by bit with help from Ellin and Ellie, who carried materials back and forth alongside him. Whenever he stopped to rest or take a nap, the two girls would sometimes nap beside him. It took a few weeks, but Thoma's dedication paid off.
"… It's complete."
In the end, he'd built a home for Ellin despite all his complaints. The house turned out much better than any of his previous attempts, mainly due to Thoma getting fired up after failing countless times. The house still wasn't much more than a small shed, but it was big enough for the Ellin and Sister Ellie to be inside together.
'How much time did this take me? No matter! It turned out well, despite my skills!'
Thoma suddenly froze, struck by a dreadful realization. His self-satisfied smile remained plastered on his face, but on the inside he was perturbed.
'… What am I doing?! I even gave them enough space to play together! Wasn't the whole point of agreeing to build this house to split them apart?!'
As Thoma groaned and rubbed his forehead in frustration, he felt a small tug on the hem of his clothes. Looking down, he saw the little demon Ellin staring up at him. Despite his obvious frown, Ellin seemed unbothered, wearing her usual blank expression.
"Thanks, mister!" she said, before quickly entering her new house.
Thoma said nothing in return, surprised by Ellin's gratitude. After a few moments of silence, he turned to the nun beside him.
"Isn't she thanking you?" she asked him, flashing him a smile before following Ellin into the house..
Thoma was at a loss. That single word, 'Thanks'. He hadn't expected that word to crack the barrier around his heart, which kept him from seeing Ellin as anything more than a demon. He no longer wanted to keep Ellie and Ellin apart. Instead, he had Ellie make two promises. First, she would never share this secret with anyone.
"I know that!" Ellie exclaimed, miffed at how patronizing it was to hear that coming from Thoma. "Ellin is my child, I wouldn't do something that would put her in danger!"
It was obvious that Ellie already saw herself as a parent, and with how Ellin acted around her, she may as well have been the girl's birth mother.
The second promise was that she would never visit Ellin alone. She'd gotten away with it up until now, but he needed to make sure nothing went wrong in the future. Unfortunately for Thoma, this promise was less well-received.
"Why do I need you around just to visit Ellin…?" Ellie asked.
Thoma could tell she didn't like what he was insinuating.
"Obviously in case anything dangerous happens!"
"What danger is there?" Ellie scoffed. "Ellin is a good child!"
"She's still a demon!" Thoma pointed out.
"She's nothing but a young, delicate child!"
"Before that—!"
"Fine then, I promise," Ellie conceded, cutting him off. "Let's just stop arguing!"
That was how he'd managed to get the two promises out of her. Now, Thoma was quietly watching the two of them playing together. Though he never let it show to everyone else at the abbey, the stress of his work was getting to him as of late. Watching the pair provided some much needed relief to his weary heart. He could no longer see them as anything else other than a pair of innocent sisters.
Suddenly, Thoma began to cough and hastily pulled out his medicine—which he'd started carrying at all times. It took only a few moments after it had passed his lips for the pain to subside, though his mind felt a bit hazy. Whenever signs of his illness reared their ugly heads, he couldn't help but worry for the future.
What would happen if he were to disappear? What would happen to these two? The worst part was that he had no way of knowing. For now, he was the only person who could protect them. That's all he was, their guardian.
"…I will continue to live for as long as I can," he whispered to himself.
Until Ellie and Ellin could live happily on their own, without him… He had resolved himself to endure whatever challenges lay ahead. No, he would force himself to endure even if his resolve one day wavered.
Thoma's mind was filled with such convictions, like an unending chant. But, even the firmest of resolutions couldn't change reality. He was dying.
***
Faron was unable to calm his trembling body. Just trying to lift a cup of tea to his mouth was a herculean task, one which he ended up failing. He placed the teacup back down onto the table in frustration, choosing to ignore his dry lips and throat in favor of avoiding an accident. When he had calmed himself, the person sitting across from him began to speak with a smile.
"What is the matter…? Could it be that the tea is not to your liking?"
Faron froze at his words. How was he supposed to know the flavor of the tea he hadn't even tasted? Despite the odd question, Faron knew how to read the atmosphere. The person he was speaking with was in a position far above his—not someone he wanted to anger. He quickly waved both of his hands in defense.
"N-no, not at all! How could that be! It is quite delicious! It is just that I-I am a bit nervous. I apologize, Your Holiness."
The person across from him was, in fact Salem Gottschurenche. The Pope and sovereign of the Holy Kingdom. He was the most influential man in the entire continent, a figure that kings and emperors alike bowed their heads to. And here he was speaking to someone as insignificant as him, a mere monk from some unimportant border region.
'J-just why does such a man wanted to speak with me…?!'
Many would consider this a great honor, but for Faron it felt overwhelming. It was hard to believe that the person he could hardly catch glimpses of in the past was now seated directly in front of him.
'This isn't a dream, right? Ah, I don't even know what to feel right now!'
He had heard that the Pope had visited the abbey a few months prior to see Thoma, he had been a companion of the former Hero, after all. He had been in Lania at the time which meant that he had missed a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet His Holiness. However, his disappointment had turned into a child-like anticipation upon being invited to personally meet the Pope.
'What should I do? Someone like me meeting him like this! Just what should I do… I still don't know why he even requested to meet me of all people?'