14. First, the appearance is complete.
“Why, why...?”
What's the problem again?
Diarin was taken aback by Ceres' unpredictable reaction.
A person who didn't care at all whether someone called him "Mr. Ceres" or spoke formally or informally suddenly became sensitive only to "Mr. Ceres."
"Again."
“...Mr. Ceres?”
I'll do it if you tell me to, but...
Why on earth are you so obsessed with 'Mr.'?
“Has no one ever called you that?”
“There wasn’t any.”
“...Huh? Really?”
Diarin, who had asked absentmindedly, soon realized that it wasn't that strange.
Up until now, Ceres has been in the 8th Division.
The 8th Unit was like an unmanned unit, without any ranks.
There was no one on the front lines who could issue orders to the 8th Division. They obeyed only orders from the capital—perhaps from a high-ranking official like the Emperor or the Commander-in-Chief.
Likewise, the 8th Division members were not allowed to give orders or command anyone on the front lines.
There was no horizontal relationship that could be addressed as 'Mr.'
One reason was that they weren't close enough personally to call each other by name.
“I guess I’ll have to say it a lot to get used to it.”
Diarin repeated "Mr. Ceres", "Mr. Ceres" in her mouth as if practicing on her own.
While she was practicing alone in her mouth, Ceres stared at Diarin intently.
“Why, Mr. Ceres?”
When she playfully called her ‘Mr.’ again, Ceres blinked.
"Again."
"...Again?"
"Yes."
“Mr. Ceres.”
"Again."
“Mr. Ceres... Oh, really. Haha.”
Diarin ended up laughing.
It was the first time she smiled since entering this mansion.
She even found Ceres' innocent greed cute.
It was like the laughter that bursts out when you see a puppy biting a bone and not letting go.
But Diarin quickly shut her mouth and hardened her expression.
What if the laughter is too loud?
But instead of showing any sign of annoyance, Ceres demanded again.
"Again."
“...Huh? Again...? Mr. Ceres?”
"No."
Ceres slowly reached out and touched the corner of Diarin's mouth.
"Uh...?"
"This."
“This? ...A laughing thing?”
“Laughing.”
Ceres hummed along, just like the other words he had learned from Diarin.
Laughing.
He didn't even know what it was.
There was no one laughing around Ceres. No one is crying.
Facial expressions are meaningless in combat. They've been trained to eliminate even the slightest hint of them.
At first, he was scared and had a hard time, so he cried.
He was thrown into a cold, bleak world with no memory and only three letters of his name.
However, in that state, they had to undergo endless and painful training, and if they made a mistake, they were beaten to the point of death.
Some of the people who trained together died like that and disappeared.
Meanwhile, Ceres gradually forgot his expression and his family.
The other 8th Unit members around him also became expressionless beings like Ceres.
But Diarin used her facial muscles so well.
This is the first time he seen a person like this.
It was strange, and the laughter was so loud it was ear-splitting, but it wasn't unpleasant.
"More."
So he made a request.
He wanted to hear more of that sound.
“Ah, um. Ha. Ha. Ha?”
But if you laugh when told to, would you be human?
Still, she tried to do it because she was told to.
"I've received all sorts of requests," Diarin lamented inwardly.
“No, this is. Laughing isn’t something you can do alone...”
"Then?"
"Usually, we laugh together. If you want to thrive in high society, you need to laugh a lot, right?"
“...”
Ceres became serious.
It was as serious and difficult as the order to rush into the enemy lines with bare hands, cut off the general's head, annihilate the remaining soldiers, and return unscathed.
In short, it was 'How do you do that?'
“Um... have you ever laughed before?”
Now, Diarin's perception has also reached a considerable level.
Ceres' silence captured the message almost exactly.
“...”
The silence that followed was a silence of affirmation.
In this case, even Diarin had not thought about it and was unable to come up with a solution.
Oh my gosh, there's someone who's never laughed.
Well, she understood that there was no time to laugh, whether it was during training or on the battlefield...
Diarin's life was also difficult and arduous. Like Ceres, she also struggled on the battlefield.
Still, when there was something to laugh about, she laughed and lived.
Even though she was exhausted and anxious on the battlefield, there were still things to laugh about.
It was like an incident where a frog entered the barracks and landed on a sleeping man's face. She couldn't help but laugh at the sight of her fellow priest running around on all fours in panic, as if the enemy had swarmed him.
It wasn't that there was something grand that made her laugh.
“First, raise the corners of your mouth.”
Ceres just looked at Diarin as if he couldn't figure it out.
Diarin placed her fingers on either side of Ceres' lips and pulled them up.
"Like this."
“Is this a laugh?”
It was quite eerie to say that with only the corners of his lips raised.
“...I don’t think so.”
What's the point of just raising the corners of your mouth? There's a murderous look in your eyes.
Even if you force a facial expression, it won't be a smile.
In particular, what Ceres was doing felt like a murderer's premonition of murder.
“Hmm... Yes, let’s think of something funny.”
Diarin thought for a moment and then thought of something funny.
“Don’t you find me funny?”
“?”
“I’m having fun.”
“?”
Ceres only had question marks in his head.
First of all, he doesn't know what is funny, and he doesn't know why Diarin thinks he is funny.
And it wasn't funny at all.
Ceres wandered through an endless labyrinth.
Diarin smiled, making a flower cup with her hand under her face.
"Why, if you're pretty and handsome, just looking at your face makes you smile. They say your face is the funniest thing."
“...”
“...”
Diarin lowered the calyx with a heavy heart.
Or rather, why are you looking at me with such profound eyes...
It will take a little more time to find Ceres' smile.
There are things that even children can instinctively understand.
Things like pretty things, fun things, likes, and dislikes.
Because you were a child, you felt pure emotions without any prejudice.
It was relatively easy to teach children the world's standards.
In Ceres' case, even hid original emotions were erased through training.
Reviving what was erased was harder than creating something that had never existed.
'I am not God!'
Creating something out of nothing is the work of God.
Diarin was overwhelmed by the excessive workload on her shoulders.
Ceres was nothing like she had imagined.
He was an empty person.
He only just come to understand what likes and dislikes are, but he hasn't moved beyond that to higher-level reactions or expressions.
'There's no need to be a lively and sociable young master.'
But no matter how she looked at it, that expressionless face was not that of the young master.
If it were just a cold feeling like the Northern Duke's, she would have let it go, but his eyes were strangely obedient, so it was a failure.
A look that simultaneously reflects both life and obedience. Does that make sense?
Diarin met those unbelievable eyes and drew up the divine power she had been pouring out.
“Where is it uncomfortable?”
"Nothing."
"Just don't say anything. If it hurts even a little, or if it hurts at all, it doesn't feel right. If you feel anything, tell me."
"... Nothing."
This time, she thinks it's true that he tried his best, as she saw that he took a little more time to answer.
The trauma was now almost gone.
Except for the deep scars, the minor wounds disappeared smoothly.
Except for his eyes, his appearance alone made him look like a well-bred young gentleman.
'Isn't this the perfect appearance?'
People are going to have poetry contests and musical concerts at parties.
Since it's an event where you're going to reveal that you're from the 8th Division anyway, wouldn't you rather have a somewhat rough appearance?
Now that he's not making a fuss about being too noisy, I think it's time to wrap things up....
She felt an urge to ignore the subtle, blossoming intrigue.
At that moment, Ceres raised his head.
Diarin's anxiety also flashed through her eyes at the same time.
“Why, what again!”
If Ceres does this, something will definitely happen.
Now, it doesn't glow at the sound of leaves or Diarin.
However, he was still sensitive to the occasional crawling animal, such as a cat or rat.
Thanks to Diarin's sacrifice, five cats have already been saved.
This time, too, Diarin braced herself physically and mentally and hugged Ceres's waist in advance.
“If you go, take me with you.”
She was thinking of doing that anyway.
Ceres easily got up, still holding onto Diarin.
Diarin closed her eyes tightly, imagining her body floating through the window.
It was hard at first, but after a few tries, it was doable. Sometimes, it was even fun.
She now learned that people don't die if they fall out of a window.
Bang!
But this time, he didn't fall out the window.
Instead, the visit was a mess.
“Huh?”
Diarin opened her eyes late and began to understand the situation.
This time, it came inside the house instead of outside the window?
Ceres sensed the presence of even a single lingering presence near the building. The fact that he remained still until he approached the door suggests he was quite a swift beast...
Diarin carefully observed the being that had passed away during the visit.
“Huh?”
“Ah, um. Ha. Ha. Ha?”
But if you laugh when told to, would you be human?
Still, she tried to do it because she was told to.
"I've received all sorts of requests," Diarin lamented inwardly.
“No, this is. Laughing isn’t something you can do alone...”
"Then?"
"Usually, we laugh together. If you want to thrive in high society, you need to laugh a lot, right?"
“...”
Ceres became serious.
It was as serious and difficult as the order to rush into the enemy lines with bare hands, cut off the general's head, annihilate the remaining soldiers, and return unscathed.
In short, it was 'How do you do that?'
“Um... have you ever laughed before?”
Now, Diarin's perception has also reached a considerable level.
Ceres' silence captured the message almost exactly.
“...”
The silence that followed was a silence of affirmation.
In this case, even Diarin had not thought about it and was unable to come up with a solution.
Oh my gosh, there's someone who's never laughed.
Well, she understood that there was no time to laugh, whether it was during training or on the battlefield...
Diarin's life was also difficult and arduous. Like Ceres, she also struggled on the battlefield.
Still, when there was something to laugh about, she laughed and lived.
Even though she was exhausted and anxious on the battlefield, there were still things to laugh about.
It was like an incident where a frog entered the barracks and landed on a sleeping man's face. She couldn't help but laugh at the sight of her fellow priest running around on all fours in panic, as if the enemy had swarmed him.
It wasn't that there was something grand that made her laugh.
“First, raise the corners of your mouth.”
Ceres just looked at Diarin as if he couldn't figure it out.
Diarin placed her fingers on either side of Ceres' lips and pulled them up.
"Like this."
“Is this a laugh?”
It was quite eerie to say that with only the corners of his lips raised.
“...I don’t think so.”
What's the point of just raising the corners of your mouth? There's a murderous look in your eyes.
Even if you force a facial expression, it won't be a smile.
In particular, what Ceres was doing felt like a murderer's premonition of murder.
“Hmm... Yes, let’s think of something funny.”
Diarin thought for a moment and then thought of something funny.
“Don’t you find me funny?”
“?”
“I’m having fun.”
“?”
Ceres only had question marks in his head.
First of all, he doesn't know what is funny, and he doesn't know why Diarin thinks he is funny.
And it wasn't funny at all.
Ceres wandered through an endless labyrinth.
Diarin smiled, making a flower cup with her hand under her face.
"Why, if you're pretty and handsome, just looking at your face makes you smile. They say your face is the funniest thing."
“...”
“...”
Diarin lowered the calyx with a heavy heart.
Or rather, why are you looking at me with such profound eyes...
It will take a little more time to find Ceres' smile.
***
There are things that even children can instinctively understand.
Things like pretty things, fun things, likes, and dislikes.
Because you were a child, you felt pure emotions without any prejudice.
It was relatively easy to teach children the world's standards.
In Ceres' case, even hid original emotions were erased through training.
Reviving what was erased was harder than creating something that had never existed.
'I am not God!'
Creating something out of nothing is the work of God.
Diarin was overwhelmed by the excessive workload on her shoulders.
Ceres was nothing like she had imagined.
He was an empty person.
He only just come to understand what likes and dislikes are, but he hasn't moved beyond that to higher-level reactions or expressions.
'There's no need to be a lively and sociable young master.'
But no matter how she looked at it, that expressionless face was not that of the young master.
If it were just a cold feeling like the Northern Duke's, she would have let it go, but his eyes were strangely obedient, so it was a failure.
A look that simultaneously reflects both life and obedience. Does that make sense?
Diarin met those unbelievable eyes and drew up the divine power she had been pouring out.
“Where is it uncomfortable?”
"Nothing."
"Just don't say anything. If it hurts even a little, or if it hurts at all, it doesn't feel right. If you feel anything, tell me."
"... Nothing."
This time, she thinks it's true that he tried his best, as she saw that he took a little more time to answer.
The trauma was now almost gone.
Except for the deep scars, the minor wounds disappeared smoothly.
Except for his eyes, his appearance alone made him look like a well-bred young gentleman.
'Isn't this the perfect appearance?'
People are going to have poetry contests and musical concerts at parties.
Since it's an event where you're going to reveal that you're from the 8th Division anyway, wouldn't you rather have a somewhat rough appearance?
Now that he's not making a fuss about being too noisy, I think it's time to wrap things up....
She felt an urge to ignore the subtle, blossoming intrigue.
At that moment, Ceres raised his head.
Diarin's anxiety also flashed through her eyes at the same time.
“Why, what again!”
If Ceres does this, something will definitely happen.
Now, it doesn't glow at the sound of leaves or Diarin.
However, he was still sensitive to the occasional crawling animal, such as a cat or rat.
Thanks to Diarin's sacrifice, five cats have already been saved.
This time, too, Diarin braced herself physically and mentally and hugged Ceres's waist in advance.
“If you go, take me with you.”
She was thinking of doing that anyway.
Ceres easily got up, still holding onto Diarin.
Diarin closed her eyes tightly, imagining her body floating through the window.
It was hard at first, but after a few tries, it was doable. Sometimes, it was even fun.
She now learned that people don't die if they fall out of a window.
Bang!
But this time, he didn't fall out the window.
Instead, the visit was a mess.
“Huh?”
Diarin opened her eyes late and began to understand the situation.
This time, it came inside the house instead of outside the window?
Ceres sensed the presence of even a single lingering presence near the building. The fact that he remained still until he approached the door suggests he was quite a swift beast...
Diarin carefully observed the being that had passed away during the visit.
“Huh?”
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