Free Web Novel"So, how did you two manage to get here?"
Irene's voice came from the front of the corridor, carrying a hint of curiosity and a touch of lightheartedness that comes from surviving a disaster.
"The lockdown order was only lifted this morning, wasn't it? You guys are way too fast."
"We've been camping out at the gate for three days," Victoria's voice sounded from behind her, breathless.
"We went every day, and every day we were turned away. As soon as I heard it was lifted today, I jumped right out of bed and ran straight here. When I dragged Cecilia away from the breakfast table, she still had half a piece of bread in her mouth."
"I did not have it in my mouth," Cecilia's voice calmly corrected. "I had already swallowed it by then."
"That's not important!"
The three of them were walking down the corridor of the Royal Knights Academy's medical building.
This grey-white, three-story building was usually as quiet as a monastery, but it had clearly gone through a catastrophe over the past few days.
Traces of hurried scrubbing still remained on the corridor walls, the smell of disinfectant in the air was thick enough to choke you, and military doctors occasionally jogged by pushing equipment carts.
Several days had passed since the explosion, but the busyness in this building showed no signs of subsiding.
Irene was walking in the lead, her steps light enough to almost be considered skipping.
Her school uniform jacket was draped casually over her shoulders, and her amber eyes held a bright, relieved glow.
This morning, the doctor told her that Pavela was completely out of danger, and the heart that had been hanging in suspense for days finally settled.
She had barely slept a full night for those few days, and now, with all the taut strings in her body seemingly pulled out, she felt exceptionally relaxed.
Behind her, Victoria von Hohenheim was almost jogging to keep up with her pace, her goose-yellow skirt fluttering in the corridor.
Her hair was tied up more sloppily than usual, clearly because she hadn't had time to style it carefully when leaving.
Half a step behind, the hem of Cecilia von Lindberg's lavender casual dress # Nоvеlight # was stained with some mud.
For an honor student who received perfect scores in every subject at the girls' academy and served as a model of a lady, this was quite a lapse in decorum.
The lockdown order had lasted for five full days. free𝑤ebnovel.com
During those five days, the Royal Knights Academy was tightly surrounded by the Gendarmerie; never mind students from outside, even most of the people inside the academy had their movement restricted.
On the first day, Victoria had brought Cecilia and charged to the academy's main gate, flashing the crest of Marquis Hohenheim, only to be turned away by the Gendarmerie at the gate with expressionless but polite refusal.
On the second day, she changed tactics and tried to sneak in through a side gate, but was stopped again.
On the third day, she even wrote an earnestly worded letter and handed it to the academy's duty officer, detailing the "humanitarian necessity of visiting a critically injured friend," but it was like a stone thrown into the ocean—no response.
Cecilia accompanied her the entire time without a single word of complaint, only quietly saying on the carriage ride back that third night, "We will come again tomorrow."
So, as soon as the lockdown was lifted today, they came.
They crossed half of Eisenburg.
"Seriously, your academy's Gendarmerie is just too rigid!"
Victoria's tone still carried the lingering dissatisfaction she had built up over these past few days.
"I told them I was here to visit the wounded, not to cause trouble!"
"They were just following the rules."
Irene smiled and looked back at her.
"But don't worry, Little Pa is fine. The doctor said this morning that she's out of the danger zone, though her injuries are still quite severe, so she'll have to lie down for a while."
"But that's seventeen serious injuries," Cecilia's voice was very soft. "Seventeen serious injuries, and several are old wounds that have flared up again."
The corridor went quiet for a moment.
Victoria's pace also slowed down, a flash of heartache appearing in her emerald green eyes.
"... Little Pa, has she always been like this?" Her voice suddenly became very small. "Has she always had so many old wounds on her body?"
Irene didn't answer.
Her pace also slowed by a beat, and the lighthearted glow in her amber eyes dimmed slightly.
But it was only for an instant.
She quickly lifted the corners of her mouth again, her tone feigning ease.
"That's why we need to go see her even more. To let her know that someone is thinking of her."
Victoria nodded vigorously.
Cecilia didn't say anything, just quickened her pace a little.
At the end of the corridor was a tightly closed white door.
A small sign hung on the door, with the room number written on it.
Irene stopped in front of the door, just about to reach out to push it open—
"Wait a moment," Cecilia's voice came from behind.
Irene's hand stopped in mid-air.
"Hm?"
"You should knock first," Cecilia said. "Senior Eleanor is inside. It's not very polite to just push the door open."
"Ah, that's true." Irene retracted her hand and scratched her cheek in embarrassment. "Almost forgot that my sister was inside..."
She raised her hand, just about to knock—then lowered it again.
"Wait, that's not right, she's my own sister."
Irene tilted her head, revealing a confident, justified smile.
"What's there to knock for? It's not like there's anything scandalous going on—"
As she said that, she pushed the door open directly.
Click.
Then she froze right at the doorway, one hand still maintaining the posture of pushing the door, her amber eyes wide as saucers.
Pavela was lying on the bed, two buttons of her hospital gown undone, revealing a stretch of fair collarbone. freēwēbnovel.com
Eleanor was leaning over her side, one hand still pressed against her collar, in a posture that couldn't be more ambiguous.
Both of them turned their heads to look at the doorway at the same time.
They saw Irene's gaze scanning back and forth between the two on the hospital bed.
The air seemed to freeze.
One second. Two seconds. Three seconds.
"Sorry." Irene's voice was a bit stiff. "Maybe I came at a bad time."
As she said this, she began to slowly back away, trying to close the door again.
"Wait, wait!" Pavela's voice was distorted. "Irene, it's not what you think—"
"I'm not thinking anything!" Irene's face was already red as a ripe apple. "I didn't see anything!"
"You clearly saw it!!"
"I didn't!"
"Your expression already betrayed you!!"
Just as the two were flustered, two little heads squeezed out from outside the door frame.
Golden hair. Black hair. It was Victoria and Cecilia.
"Irene?" Victoria looked at Irene standing at the door with a puzzled face. "Why are you standing at the door and not going in? Is Little Pa not inside?"
Irene's face turned even redder. "Um... Victoria... Little Pa might suddenly not be very convenient right now..."
"Not convenient? Why not?" Victoria's curiosity was thoroughly piqued.
She stood on her tiptoes, trying to look past Irene's shoulder into the patient room. "Let me see—"
"Don't look!" Irene and Pavela's voices rang out simultaneously.
But it was already too late.
Victoria's gaze had already landed on the hospital bed. It landed on the disheveled Pavela. It landed on the ambiguously positioned but composed-looking Eleanor.
The patient room fell into a deathly silence once again.
Victoria's mouth opened into a perfect "O" shape.
Cecilia's expression was as calm as ever, but the tips of her ears were slightly flushed, betraying her inner turmoil.
"Wow." Victoria's voice carried an unspeakably complex emotion. "I think I... saw something incredible?"
