The World Is Mine For The Taking-Chapter 1298 - 197 - The Fall Of Milham Kingdom - Part 3 (5)
"It’s been a while, Shredica."
Arianne’s voice carried a mixture of surprise and disbelief as she looked straight at me. Her eyes lingered a little longer than expected, scanning my face as if confirming that I was actually standing in front of her and not some weird illusion her mind decided to cook up after a long day.
"I didn’t think that after not seeing you for so long," she continued, a faint smile forming at the corner of her lips, "the next time I’d run into you would be as a magic knight."
Her tone sounded half amused and half stunned, which was fair. A lot had changed since the last time we saw each other. The person she remembered probably looked a lot less polished and a lot more lost.
"Well, like you said, it has been quite a while," I replied, leaning back slightly in my seat as I spoke. "There was plenty of time for me to turn into something during those years. You know... people change."
My voice stayed calm, though I could tell she was still trying to process the idea. Her brows raised slightly, and she let out a quiet laugh through her nose.
"I still would’ve never imagined you becoming a magic knight though," she said, shaking her head slowly. "Seriously. Considering how many years it’s actually been, it hasn’t even been a full four years since you entered the academy. That’s barely enough time for you to become a magic knight, isn’t it?"
She paused for a moment before continuing.
"I didn’t think you’d have the qualifications to actually become one that fast."
Her words were blunt, though they were not meant as an insult. That was just how Arianne spoke. Honest, sometimes a little too honest, but never malicious.
"Well, a lot of things happened," I said with a small shrug. "That’s pretty much the reason I ended up like this. Life moves fast when it feels like messing with you."
I lifted two fingers casually.
"I’ve actually been a magic knight for two years now."
The moment those words left my mouth, Arianne blinked once.
Then twice.
Then she smiled.
It was the same smile I remembered from years ago. Warm, relaxed, and a little mischievous. Time had passed and the world had changed in more ways than I could count, yet somehow that expression stayed exactly the same. Seeing it again felt strangely nostalgic, like opening a dusty old drawer and finding something familiar inside.
"I didn’t think the two of you already knew each other," Angelica said from across the table, her voice filled with genuine curiosity. She looked between us with raised brows, clearly caught off guard by the sudden reunion. "I’m honestly quite surprised."
"Well," Arianne said, turning her head slightly toward Angelica, "we were part of something together after all."
She said it casually, though the meaning behind those words carried a weight that the average person would probably miss.
Angelica simply nodded, accepting the explanation without digging further.
Arianne never explained what that "something" actually was. There was no reason for her to do that. The truth behind it was not something you casually mention while sitting at a table with a magic knight nearby.
That "something" had been an organization that aimed to overthrow the government.
Talking about that out loud would have been a terrible idea. Even if I was sitting there quietly sipping whatever drink was on the table, the title of magic knight attached to our name still carried enough authority to make that kind of conversation dangerous.
"Well then," Arianne said, clapping her hands softly as if snapping herself back into host mode, "I should prepare some food for you. What do you want? It’s on the house."
The phrase rolled out of her mouth so naturally that it almost made me laugh.
She used to say that exact line all the time back when she worked in the capital selling coffee and sweets. Customers would walk in, look a little broke, and somehow she would still end up saying "it’s on the house" before they even finished ordering.
Two years had passed since we last saw each other, yet she had not changed a bit.
"By the way," Arianne said, glancing toward Angelica again before turning her attention back to me, "can I ask you something?"
Then she looked politely toward Angelica.
"Miss Angelica, would it be okay if I borrowed her for a bit?"
Angelica waved a hand lightly.
"Well, that’s perfectly fine. Since you two already know each other and only just met again now, it would be good for you to catch up," she said with a kind smile. "You should take the time."
She pushed her chair back slightly and stood up.
"I’m going back to where Robyn is," she continued. "Honestly, I’m still shocked after seeing her again after so long. I haven’t even had the chance to talk to her properly yet."
Her voice softened a little.
"It felt so strange seeing someone I thought had died..."
A short breath escaped her before she smiled again.
"Maybe it’s a good time for us to catch up too."
With that, she stepped away from the table and started heading outside.
The quiet that followed felt oddly comfortable.
Arianne looked at me for a few seconds. Her gaze held something gentle, almost relieved.
"I’m really glad you’re doing okay, Shredica," she said.
The sincerity in her voice was unmistakable.
"Well," I replied, meeting her eyes, "I’m glad you’re alive and well too, Arianne."
Those words carried more meaning than they sounded.
Back then, things between us had always been a little strange. The group we were part of had never been exactly stable. People came and went. Plans changed constantly. Everyone acted like they knew what they were doing even when half of us were just figuring things out along the way.
Despite that chaos, they were some of the only people who had actually been around me during those days.
I had always kept to myself. Solitude felt easier. Less complicated.
Yet somehow, those people managed to stay around me without feeling intrusive. Sitting beside them never felt exhausting the way most company did.
"I don’t think I’ve met any of the other female members of that... you know... besides you," Arianne said after a moment.
Her voice carried a faint note of nostalgia.
"It’s kind of nostalgic when I think about it."
She leaned back slightly in her seat.
"Even though we never managed to do what we originally wanted, and we failed in so many ways as an organization."
A small laugh escaped her.
"In the end, our power and voices simply weren’t enough to overthrow something as big as the monarchy."
Her fingers tapped lightly on the table.
"Still... it felt good knowing there were so many people who shared the same feelings we had about wanting to overthrow it."
Her eyes drifted somewhere distant for a moment.
"But when you think about it honestly," she continued, "it isn’t really us who gets to decide something like that."
Her gaze returned to me.
"It’s the people living under that monarchy who ultimately decide."
She said it calmly, though there was a trace of quiet acceptance in her voice.
Trying to start an uprising like that had always been strange when you thought about it too deeply.
Groups like ours appeared everywhere. Small organizations forming in secret, dreaming about overthrowing the monarchy as if it were just another political debate.
Our group had formed for exactly that reason.
That had also been the reason the leader allowed me to enter the academy.
The plan was simple on paper. I would become a magic knight and act as an inside connection for them. A pair of eyes within the system they wanted to destroy.
"Leader..." I muttered without thinking.
The word slipped out naturally the moment the image of that red-haired drunkard woman popped into my mind.
Arianne’s expression changed almost immediately when she heard it.
Her silence said enough.
Rumors about her death had circulated for a while. Stories passed from one place to another, each version slightly different from the last.
Seeing Arianne’s reaction made things feel a little more certain.
The rumors probably were true after all.
And that realization quietly pushed the reality of it deeper into place.
