Chapter 259: Daily Life With Akari [1]

He wasn’t ready to tell a mother that the daughter she cherished had become someone he could barely stand to face.

"Akari."

She turned toward him.

"Yes? There are... a few things I haven’t told you."

She looked at him quietly.

Noah forced a smile. "I’m... not sure how to say them."

Akari’s expression softened. "Then don’t."

He blinked. "When you feel ready...You can tell me. There is no need to force yourself."

Her voice was calm. There was patience. Without a trace of pressure.

Noah slowly nodded. "...Thank you."

Silence returned. The only sounds were the gentle movement of the lake...

The whispering leaves and the distant chorus of insects beneath the mysterious moonlight.

Noah stared quietly at the water.

’What should I do...? I don’t know what to talk about... We’re close... Will she lean on me and rest her head on my shoulder...? No, she’d never do something like that. Maybe... I could try...’ He thought.

And without realizing it his body slowly leaned toward her.

His shoulder brushed lightly against hers. Then, almost instinctively. He rested his head gently against her shoulder.

Akari flinched ever so slightly. "...Noah? What are you doing?"

He let out a tired laugh.

"...Honestly...I don’t know."

He closed his eyes.

"I just...felt like doing this."

A weary smile appeared on his lips.

"I’m exhausted. So much has happened these past few days. I don’t even remember the last time I truly relaxed."

Akari remained perfectly still. She could have moved away.

She didn’t. Instead she simply let him stay there. His warmth spread through the sleeve of her kimono.

It felt strangely comforting.

For the first time in sixty years someone was leaning on her. Trusting her and depending on her.

She slowly lowered her gaze toward him. His snowy-white hair swayed gently with the breeze.

Without thinking she raised one hand. Her fingers gently brushed through his soft hair.

They moved lowly and tenderly. It was as if someone simply trying to reassure another lonely soul.

"You are safe here..."

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"So don’t worry anymore."

Noah’s body gradually relaxed beneath her gentle touch.

The embarrassment he had felt only moments ago quietly disappeared. His breathing became slower.

His eyelids grew heavier with every gentle stroke of her fingers.

Before he realized it he had fallen asleep.

Akari looked down at the sleeping young man resting peacefully against her shoulder.

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

"...You really fell asleep."

She whispered softly. There was no annoyance in her voice. There was only warmth.

She continued stroking his hair for a while longer.

Then very gently she rested her own cheek against the top of his head. Closing her eyes, she listened to the quiet rhythm of his breathing.

"...It’s wonderful..."

She murmured.

"...having someone beside you."

The loneliness that had accompanied her for sixty long years. Didn’t seem nearly as heavy anymore.

Under the quiet moonlight. Beside the peaceful lake... The two remained together in silence.

Neither of them spoke another word.

Yet somehow it was the warmest night Akari had experienced since the day she had been trapped in this forgotten world.

---

Morning arrived before Noah even realized it. The peaceful night seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.

Noah, he had slept without fear. There was no worry.

Inside one of the wooden rooms, a simple bed had been made from countless soft leaves gathered together. A single enormous leaf, nearly the size of a person, had been laid over it like a blanket.

Noah lay comfortably upon it.

"...Mmm." His eyelids twitched. Indicating he was waking up slowly.

Slowly, he opened his eyes. "Yawn..."

He stretched lazily before blinking at the familiar wooden ceiling above him.

"I’m inside the house."

The memories of the previous night gradually returned.

"The lake... Akari... I must’ve fallen asleep."

He rubbed his eyes. "Did she carry me back here after I fell asleep?"

He turned his head to look around.

"...Where is she?"

Then his breathing stopped. His blue eyes widened.

Lying beside him separated by barely the width of a single hand was Akari.

She was sleeping on her side, facing him.

Her long raven-black hair had loosened slightly during the night, a few silky strands resting gently across her cheek.

Her breathing was slow and steady.

The morning sunlight filtering through the window softly illuminated her peaceful face.

Without her usual composed expression. She looked surprisingly gentle.

Almost vulnerable.

Noah blinked several times.

’Wait a minute...D–did we sleep beside each other all night?’

His mind went completely blank.

’This can’t be real.’ He couldn’t believe on such things easily.

Unable to believe what he was seeing, he quietly pinched his own cheek.

"Ow..."

The slight sting made him wince.

’It’s real. It’s not a dream. Damnation!!’

He slowly looked back at Akari.

She still hadn’t awakened. She simply continued sleeping peacefully, completely defenseless.

A faint smile unknowingly appeared on Noah’s lips.

’She looks cute. Despite being over so many years. It’s honestly unfair. I wil have very hard time. How can someone who’s lived for so many decades still look this graceful?’

He quietly chuckled to himself. Looking at her calm sleeping face. An irresistible impulse suddenly surfaced.

’Should I pinch her cheek?’

His fingers even twitched slightly. But after a moment.

He sighed.

’No. I’d probably get punched through the wall.’

The thought alone made him abandon the idea.

Instead he simply lay there quietly.Watching her peaceful sleeping face.

Listening to the soft rhythm of her breathing.

Time seemed to slow. Then Akari’s eyelashes fluttered.

Her eyelids trembled gently.

Slowly those beautiful sapphire-blue eyes opened.

Their gazes met.

For a brief moment neither of them spoke.

Her lips curved into a small smile. "Good morning."

For Noah, this might have been the best morning he had ever experienced in his entire life.

---

[A/N: Guy’s... She’s going to be a female lead.Lyria, Arisha, Sefira, Morgana and Akari. Total five female leads so far. Though he is still a single hehe~]