"Yes, I can't sleep." Gloria replied, then let out a soft sigh, "There are some things... I don't understand."
"What things?"
"What's the meaning of my glory and pride?"
"Maybe you could be more straightforward?"
"Why did I come to this place? Why did I come out to fight? Showing off in front of a few militiamen, bullying the weak without shame... What was I doing it for?!" Gloria said, a bitter smile on her face. But she lowered her head, hiding her expression in the darkness of the night.
"Is this your first time in battle?"
"Yes." Gloria replied, "What about you?"
"Me too. We both achieved something in our first battle. It's something to be proud of." Aurelio replied.
"Maybe, but I don't understand anymore." Gloria shook her head with a bitter smile, "At first, I thought so too, but after having a few nightmares, then..."
"Nightmares?"
"About that spider." Gloria replied, "I dreamed that I was completely wrapped in a web and couldn't move at all. Then I woke up and found that my whole body didn't listen to me at all. There was a buzzing sound in my ears. When I opened my eyes, I saw that monster staring at me. It's a bit embarrassing to say... I know they were all illusions, but I was really scared and broke out in a cold sweat."
"Well, a nightmare. It can indeed make people see some illusions." Aurelio said, "Maybe it's just that your brain was too active and your body was tired."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Considering that you drank a magic potion, it's very likely." Aurelio replied, "Or, it might just be nervousness. Just don't think too much about it."
"Really? There's really no special meaning... in it?"
"These conclusions were told to me by my friend. He was a famous doctor... used to be. You can believe his judgment."
Gloria nodded gently and then said, "Okay. But, what does 'used to be' mean?"
Aurelio looked up at the sky, was silent for a moment, and then replied in a low voice, "He's in the same situation as my teacher."
"The same situation? You mean... what?"
"Missing, just that no body was found." Aurelio stared at the brightest star in the sky and said, "For more than ten years in the past, I kept lying to myself. No body being found meant still alive. I lied to myself like this for ten years! It was only just now that I accepted the reality. I don't have any hope that the teacher can come back. That person was caught in an explosion. The result is probably the same."
"Sorry." Gloria said in a low voice, "I really didn't expect that you have so many sad things. For a while before... I thought you were a bit arrogant and looked down on others. I'm sorry." She turned her head and looked up at her companion from the side in the starlight. That pale face was bathed in the cold light, without any expression on it. She started to wonder again what kind of heart was hidden behind this face. "Have you forgotten? You survived the explosion, didn't you?"
"Indeed. But I don't plan to have any hope anymore." Aurelio replied, "In terms of probability, it's already a luxury."
"I see..." Gloria thought for a moment and then changed the topic, "Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's talk about something lighter? For example, why did you come to fight? It's not as simple as being conscripted, right?"
"Originally, it was supposed to be another person in the group who was conscripted. To replace him, I paid him a sum of money." Aurelio responded.
Gloria almost laughed and asked in surprise, "Ha? I only knew before that you had to pay to ask someone to replace you. I didn't expect it could be the other way around! Why did you do that?"
"Originally, I wanted to find out the whereabouts of my teacher or avenge him."
"Seems like this topic isn't very light either." Gloria said with an embarrassed smile.
"Now the only purpose is the latter."
"Revenge?"
"Yes, revenge. I investigated my teacher's situation, but actually didn't get much. Except that I know he disappeared while holding the rear. And... before he disappeared, he was last seen in this area."
Gloria thought, "No wonder he didn't want to hold the rear and didn't want others to hold the rear either."
"So, I can only target Finn II, that shameless tyrant. If it weren't for him starting that war..." Aurelio said, clenching his fists tightly, his eyes almost spitting fire.
"But this war... He's not our enemy!"
"I don't expect to be able to take revenge now." Aurelio shook his head and said, "This time is just to plant the seeds for him and harvest them later."
Gloria turned her head and looked at her companion again. His black eyes were like an abyss, both a bit intimidating and fascinating. "When it's time to harvest, please call me!" Gloria said in a firm tone, "Mr. de Leto, I adored him when I was a child too. I'm very happy to get to know his student!"
"Thank you."
"Your teacher will be proud of you somewhere!"
"Maybe not." Aurelio shrugged, "Compared to my teacher, I'm still far behind. If it were the teacher dealing with that spider, it definitely wouldn't be so messy." He remembered that when he dodged the spider's lunge, he rolled on the ground, and subconsciously reached out his hand to brush his robe, as if there was still dust on it.
"But, you're still very young. One day in the future, you'll definitely catch up with him!" Gloria encouraged with a smile, "I heard that there are eleven statues in a certain place in the academy. Isn't there still one space? That's reserved for you! The people of Serencia like the number twelve the most. With you, it'll be complete!"
"Forget it. Even among my peers, I'm not the strongest." Aurelio shook his head gently.
"No! You have to have confidence."
"Okay, I have confidence. Thank you. I feel very encouraged."
The female knight nodded with satisfaction, and then suddenly asked, "How many stars do you think there are in the sky?"
Aurelio looked at the female knight beside him and said in a low voice, "Why ask this suddenly? It's a... question that children like to ask."
Gloria puffed out her cheeks and said angrily, "I'm not a child! I'm just simply curious."
"As curious as a child? There's nothing wrong with that. We mages are all curious too. There is a certain school of mages who are very concerned about the stars. They think that the stars are the source of magic, so they are obsessed with counting the stars. Of course, in our eyes, they are the'magic heretics' and very stupid."
"Probably. Maybe there's no definite answer to how many stars can be counted."
"People have different eyesight; the environment is different; the weather and the phase of the moon are also different. There shouldn't be a definite answer."
"Well... What I know is that there are a lot of stars in the sky." Gloria said, "Every time I look up at the starry sky, I feel small. Some people say that we live on a star. A person is very small compared to the world, and there are so many worlds in the sky..."
"I think you're very great."
"What?" The female knight was startled.
"Not sparing your own life and having full courage." Aurelio looked directly into the other's eyes and said, "I like... people like this."
"...What? Don't always pause when you speak. I was ready to blush!" Gloria said dissatisfied.
"Sorry."
"What do you think about when you look at the stars?"
"Similar to you."
"Really?" Gloria looked at the other in disbelief. She didn't know how to describe these eyes. She just felt that they were greedily looking at the sky, as if they wanted to suck in the whole night sky, along with the tens of thousands of stars. She lowered her voice and said, "I like... people like this."
The two of them stood there for a few more minutes. Gloria felt sleepy.
"Tired?"
"Yes."
"Then go back to sleep."
"Good night."
"Good night. If you have another nightmare, you can scream."
"No! It'll disturb Mr. Elvin."