Prison of a princess (3)

There was nothing forcing me to kill her, so I would like to avoid it if I can.

While the issue with the rampaging guardian existed, I was sure that she could manage that, as her ether control was quite extraordinary.

In addition to that, there was no apparent reason for her to have a grudge against me if I helped her escape the ruin and the seal.

Assuming that she won't find out my mother was the person who sealed her, that is...

Looking eyes at the girl, I repeated my question again, smiling.

"I'm asking once again. Would you like to live?"

"Huh?"

The girl looked at me with a flabbergasted expression on her face, as if she still couldn't understand what I was talking about.

Although she definitely looked confused, I knew that it wasn't a look of confusion, but disbelief.

Understandably so, as I, too, wouldn't be able to just accept such a situation immediately.

Knitting her eyebrows, she adverted her gaze before looking into my eyes again, this time with a small glimmer of hope.

"...Are you serious..?"

Nodding, I stood up, pulling the sword back to give her some freedom of movement.

"Of course I am."

When I let go of her, the ether density in the atmosphere lightened, slowly dissolving into purple particles, as my surroundings turned into their normal state, revealing the dark walls of the ruin.

The dimension vanished according to her will.

Rubbing her arms, she sat up, sighing, as the expression on her face lightened.

"I'll accept your offer, then."

Without looking into my eyes, the girl spoke, embarrassed about the awkwardness of the situation.

"...so...what now?"

Lowering her head, she threw me a glance, cracking a weak smile, not knowing how she was supposed to behave.

"You said that you were my sister, right?" I began, realizing how ridiculous my idea sounded. "...how about me adopting you as my sister, then?"

"What."

Blinking, she cracked a stiff smile, looking at me in disbelief.

"I'm sorry. Could you repeat that again?"

"It's exactly what I said. I'll be adopting you,"

I affirmed my words, my voice carrying an absolute tone that didn't leave any room for rebuttal.

I had already decided my course of action, and as long as she didn't have any other idea, I'll stick with my decision.

Adopting her would be the safest choice, as I could provide her with a place to stay and food to eat.

Although I wasn't under the impression that food was needed for her survival, or mine for that matter, I still thought that food was a nice thing, and even though I could probably survive without eating, I would rather not try that out.

Besides that, I also had to watch over her, as she was my responsibility.

I was the one who let her out, after all.

Coming to think about it now, there were still a few questions left that had to be answered.

"...I see..."

"There are still some questions left, though," I said in an unbothered tone, as if the situation was something completely normal for me. "But we'll talk about it on the way."

Turning my head to the staircases, I approached them again, about to leave the room, before stopping for a while, glancing at her in the corner of my view.

I wasn't really injured in any way, so moving wasn't that difficult for me.

"..Wait for a second, please."

However, the same couldn't be said for my sister.

Turning my head toward her, I watched how she struggled to move, trembling with every step she took.

To me, she looked like a toddler trying to walk for the first time, which involuntarily led me to release a short snicker.

"...don't laugh, please."

While she still sounded very nervous, unsure about how she should act toward me, as I just told her, that I would adopt her, she at least was willing to talk to me, which I appreciated.

I could totally understand her mixed feelings about the situation. No normal person would behave naturally in such a predicament, after all.

However, I wasn't normal, so I didn't need all that much time to adapt to the situation, as embarrassment was a thing I barely felt due to my apathy.

I just lacked the energy to be able to waste such a thing on emotions that didn't have any use for me, which was probably also the reason why I wasn't angry at her for the things she did.

Or rather, the things she didn't do.

Even though she was at fault for my mom's disappearance, I couldn't help but feel a sense of pity toward her as I watched the young girl cry.

It wasn't her fault for being born after all, and who would I be to condemn her for trying to attain freedom?

In the end, it was she who suffered the most.

Although she seemed to be 140 years old, converted to the Overworld's time, she was only 14, which was reflected in her appearance.

I also doubted that she possessed the experience to consider her as 140, which was another reason why I couldn't help but think of her as a kid.

Sighing, I approached her and grabbed her by the leg, as I picked her up, throwing her over my shoulder.

"W..what are you doing?"

"Carrying you, obviously."

Our conversations were short and awkward, with both of us not knowing how we should act toward each other.

In silence, I carried her while walking down the stairs.

While the silence was comfortable for me, it didn't seem to be very comfortable for her, as I could feel her fidgeting around on my shoulder.

As her guardian, I should probably try to lighten the mood, shouldn't I?

"Your name. What is it?"

It was a question that was on my mind for a while now, but I didn't know the timing of when I should've asked her.

Just suddenly going like 'By the way, what's your name?' would be weird, wouldn't it?

Actually, why was I even worried about how I had come off to other people?

Slowly but surely, I began to realize that I, in fact, didn't know anything about myself.

"...I don't know..."

Oh.

I should've known that nobody was there to give her a name.

"Do you..." I paused, taking a deep breath. "...do you want a name, then?"

I was unsure if I had the right to give her a name, but as I was going to be her guardian anyway, why not just ask her?

After all, getting a name would be the first step to forming a close bond with each other.

"Would that be alright?" She hesitantly asked.

I nodded my head, waiting for a second to try gauging her reaction.

"Of course. Your name will be a part of your identity. You'll be known by your loved ones under the name and you'll be remembered by it. Trust me. It feels great to be called by your name."

Subconsciously cracking a fond smile. I was reminded of the thing my mother told me when I first asked her why people had names.

That happiness that she once gave me...was I able to pass that happiness on?

"I would love to have a name then."

Her voice sounded happy, softening, as she released a small giggle.

"How about Ophelia?"

"Ophelia?"

"Yes." I nodded in agreement. "It means 'aid' or 'help' in the runic language and was also one of the main characters in one of the novels I read. It can also represent 'selflessness' or 'beauty'."

"Really?"

She sounded excited.

I could already imagine the sound of the stars in her eyes excitedly sparkling.

"What was she like? The character I mean?"

I chuckled at her newfound enthusiasm about her name, finding it to be cute in a way that one would describe a cat as cute.

"She was a very strong character in the novel and endured many hardships."

"Really? She's just like me then!"

And for the first time since we'd met, she laughed.

A burst of genuine laughter that one would hear from a child.

While I still didn't understand the whole sibling thing, hearing her laugh somehow made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

"Hmph."

Subconsciously, forming a smile, I released a stuffed snicker, trying to suppress my laughter.

However, I kept a part of the story hidden from her.

Suffering from grief and madness, Ophelia died a young death in the end.

I didn't have any intentions of letting such a thing happen to her though.

Even though it was not official yet, I was her guardian, which made it my task to protect her life, no matter what it takes.

Just like I always saw how the parents prioritized the lives of their kids, I, too, began to feel a duty to fulfill my task.

I was unsure if it was because of my sense of duty or an irrational feeling that made me feel attached to her, due to her seemingly being related to me, but I had made my decision, regardless.

No matter what happened, I will protect her.

It was my responsibility as her guardian, after all.

"Alright. Ophelia, it is then."

And I was ready to use everything at my disposal to ensure that nobody will take away her happiness ever again.