"Woo-!"

A whistle sounded, and Estes, who was sitting by the window, was pulled back from his thoughts to the real world by the whistle.

The verdant landscape in front of him was gradually replaced by desert and yellow sand, and in less than a moment, Estes's train was almost to Ishbal.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

Some people will ask, Orange, did you miss a chapter? How is the span so large? Turning back before the train arrived?

It's really not that Orange forgot to post a chapter, but ............

――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

"Why did my sister come back when she arrived at Lisengbul?"

There were no other guests anyway, and the little girl Linda, sitting opposite Estes with a cup of coffee, asked puzzledly.

A few hours ago, when Estes was having dinner with her, why did her sister, who had said that she would stay in Lischenbull for a few days, come back in a blink of an eye?

Although Linda was happy to see her sister so soon

"Linda, can you come over and let my sister hug you?"

But at this time, Estes just looked at the desert in the distance, which represented his cangsang soul, and said to Linda pitifully

"Hmm."

Since my sister said so, let's go over, put down the cup, jumped out of the seat, and the little girl ran to Estes, climbed into the seat and sat beside her.

"Sister, I'm ready."

Seeing the little girl next to her, who was about the same age as Wen Li, smiling innocently at herself, Estes took Linda in her arms and held her warm and soft in her arms, unwilling to let go.

"I'm sorry...... Sorry ......"

What just happened?

Just a few hours earlier, when Estes and the others arrived at the Lischenbull train station, they saw Grandma Pinako, who had been waiting there for a long time, and Wen Li with an expectant face.

"Mom! Father! This way! This way! ”

When she saw Estes and her mother, Xiao Wenli instinctively took the bespectacled Knox behind her as her father, but when Xiao Wenli rushed over with anticipation, she found ......

"Huh? You...... Not a dad? ……”

The helpless and innocent little girl looked around, from this end of the train to the other end of the station, but she never saw her father.

"Mom, where did Dad go?"

Looking at her mother's sad look, she squatted down and hugged herself in her arms......

Watching her mother burst into tears and holding herself in her arms......

Wen Li seemed to understand.

Her parents were doctors, and many times she had seen patients lying on the operating table and never getting up. She knew what it meant, though she had never thought that so soon, her father ...... It will ......

"Mom? Does Dad still work in Ishbal? Is that right? ”

Hugging her mother, Wen Li's eyes moistened

"Wen Li ......"

But Mom didn't say anything else and didn't answer her

"Dad, because he has too much work, does he want you to let Mom come back first?"

“…………”

Mom still didn't say anything

"Dad promised Wen Li, said that he would come back, with good things, with your favorite chocolate cake and puffs, and a lot of toys, and when the work is over, he will come back to accompany Wen Li...... Dad said it. ”

Hugging my mother tightly, tears flowed down my eyes.

"Mom, please tell sù dad, Wen Li doesn't want it, she doesn't want anything, as long as dad comes back. Mom, can you call Sù Dad? ”

Although she was unwilling to accept this reality, Wen Li probably understood.

"Wen Li doesn't want that! Nothing! As long as Dad comes back, as long as Dad and Mom come back, Wenli, you don't want anything Mom! ”

The mother and daughter, who hugged each other and cried together, experienced the most helpless and objective birth, old age, sickness and death and natural and man-made disasters in the world.

"Daddy, Daddy...... Father!!! Wow, ah, ah~!!! ”

The only thing that is unacceptable is that this day came too quickly, too suddenly, too early for the young gentle monk and young Mrs. Lockbell.

…………

"Wen Li-chan ~ Do you want something? ~Sister said, sister will bring you back~"

"Wen Li doesn't want anything else, I just hope that my sister will bring her parents back."

…………

"Captain......

"Colonel Estes!"

Seeing that Estes suddenly turned around and ran onto the train, neither the red pupils nor the black pupils nor Knox reacted.

Estes threw down his luggage, didn't want anything, and ran straight to the train.

…………

"My sister must bring Wen Li's parents back~"

"Agreed?"

"Well~ It's agreed~ I believe in my sister~ My sister is very powerful~"

"Hmm~I ask you to believe in my sister~"

…………

Why...... Why is this so? Obviously, I have fought so much, but I have tried my best but only got such a result?

Just saved Sarah's life, he was complacent, just saved Sarah's life alone, and he was comfortable talking and laughing with the people around him...... Do you talk like this?

…………

"Woo-!"

The train whistle sounded, and Estes hugged Linda in his arms, tears streaming down her eyes again.

knew that he had done what he could, even if he saved one person, he lost two people.

didn't make his own agreement, and reached the agreement between himself and Wen Li......

Bringing back a little girl's parents, a really simple agreement was not made.

What are you?

"Is my sister crying? Sister don't be sad, sister doesn't cry, sister if she has anything to say, say it, Linda listened. ”

Feeling that her sister seemed to have been hit hard, Linda took the initiative to stroke Estes's back and neck.

Dad said that when people are sad and lost, the best comfort is to hug and soothe.

With a warm heart and arms.

…………

Thinking that he had so many opportunities from the beginning, but he didn't grasp them, he always thought that victory was within reach, and it was effortless to complete a small agreement, so he missed so many opportunities on the way.

Obviously, at the beginning of the war of annihilation, it was just a matter of bringing people out regardless of their ideas.

Obviously, it would have been nice to take the couple out when I saw them for the second time.

Wouldn't any of these things happen then?

But......

"I'm sorry...... Sorry ......"

The arrogant self always wants to solve things in the most perfect and noble way, always regards victory as a plaything in his hands, and plays with her as his own.

However, in fact......

"Never,...... I've never really grasped her......"

Victory and success slipped away again and again in front of his eyes as if he were mocking Estes.

Fate taunted her.

There was no other reason than because Estes had never looked down on her.

It was Estes who first mocked fate, so in the end, fate also mocked Estes.

Because from the beginning, Estes, who had never failed, thought that he could not fail at all, and he could not save even three people.

And those who ridicule and ignore opportunities and successes will eventually be abandoned by opportunities and successes.

Because she never respected success.

I don't understand the preciousness of success.

And now, she, the naïve girl, understood, knew how painful it was to fail completely, and how childish and ridiculous her previous thoughts were.

I thought I was playing with my fate, but in the end I was playing with my own fate.

Because I didn't respect this qiē.

"I'm not going...... I'm really sorry ......."

Now she understands and knows to cherish it, but some things are irreparable.

Promise...... Friend...... Teacher...... Life.

They had all been reduced to cold corpses, lying far away in Ishbal, in the yellow sand of the eastern border.

All that can be taken away is remorse and lessons.

After experiencing this failure, a great failure in life, perhaps that immature heart can become more mature and the weak heart stronger.

Leave the past behind, face the reality, and take on new challenges.

A heart as strong as steel tempered by the fire of Ishbal.