Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat-Chapter 378: The Request for Family

The Request for Family

After Yoon Si-woo asked her to become his family, Lucy and Yoon Si-woo were forever bound in that relationship. Lucy was always by his side.

"Uh, Lucy, the girls are fighting again. Should I step in and stop them?"

[Sometimes, resolving things through conflict is the least problematic solution. Don’t worry.]

"But Sister Maria said I should step in when the kids fight..."

[If the cause of the fight isn’t clear, intervening might just make things worse. Si-woo, remember when I told you not to accept invitations from the girls for pretend play? When you do, they end up fighting over who gets to play your wife. It's inevitable. Have you heard of the phrase 'beauty that topples nations'? Let me tell you a story today about how having a handsome face like yours can sometimes lead to serious trouble.]

As time passed, Lucy became not only a guide but also a teacher, offering Si-woo advice no one else could.

"...sniff... Lucy, I miss my mom and dad."

[From the way you long for them, Si-woo, your parents must have been very good people.]

"...Yeah. Even when they were busy with their heroic duties, they always took good care of me. sniff..."

[Sorrow from parting means you shared many cherished memories with them. Never forget that. If you'd like, you could tell me about your parents. Reflecting on memories is the best way to keep them alive.]

At times, Lucy comforted Si-woo in his grief, filling the role of a caregiver for the boy who had lost his parents at such a young age. Whether this truly made her family, Lucy couldn’t say. After all, she had never known what it was like to have a family until she met Yoon Si-woo. But one thing was certain: she did her best to be the family he wanted, for his sake and her own.

Years passed, and Yoon Si-woo, now growing into a young man, enrolled in Aegis Academy to become ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ a hero. It was an elite institution that prided itself on its rigorous standards. Yet, with his natural talent for the sword and the training from one of the strongest beings who ever lived, no academy standards could pose a real challenge for him.

"I... I got in! Lucy! Thank you! It’s all thanks to you!"

Si-woo, upon being accepted into the academy, credited all his success to Lucy. But she thought otherwise.

[It’s not because of me. It’s because of your hard work.]

Talent and an excellent teacher mean nothing without effort. Si-woo had followed Lucy's grueling training regimen without complaint because of his dream to become a hero.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

One day, when she asked him why he wanted to become a hero, Si-woo gave a simple, almost thoughtless reply.

"Uh... maybe because I respect my parents?"

The answer was so vague, Lucy realized Si-woo had never deeply considered the question himself. But from his words, she understood that Si-woo was truly a good-hearted boy. He didn’t want to be a hero for fame or power—he just wanted to help people and couldn’t bear to see others in pain.

Lucy admired his pure intentions and was reminded once again of how different Si-woo was from the man she once knew. That man had valued strength and the sword above all else, but Si-woo was different.

So she only trained Si-woo enough for him to live the life he wanted. Enough to protect others and help those in need—just the right amount. Anything more would have been selfish, driven by the promise she had made to a man long ago and the endless wait that followed.

But life is unpredictable.

During his time at the academy, Yoon Si-woo met a girl. His attraction to her, being a young man, was nothing out of the ordinary. However...

"Lucy. I want to get stronger."

[You’re already strong enough.]

"It’s not enough."

[How strong do you want to be?]

After a conversation with the girl, who lost her arm while protecting others from a monster, Si-woo revealed his desire.

"I want to be strong enough to protect everyone."

Lucy couldn’t help but think that perhaps fate really did exist. Si-woo's words echoed with the same ambition: to become the strongest, to protect everyone.

‘Even in the next life, I’ll strive to be stronger than anyone,’ Lucy remembered the man once saying.

It seemed his words had come true after all.

Looking at Si-woo, Lucy smiled.

[A bold answer indeed.]

[But, I like it. I’ll help you unlock the true power of the holy swords.]

[If I grant your wish, you must grant one of mine in return.]

Si-woo, not understanding the weight of her words, asked,

"What do you want?"

And Lucy replied.

[I won’t allow my contractor to lose to anyone.]

What she truly desired, he had already given her.

Now, she wanted only one thing.

I promised you in the next life I’d become your sword, to be the strength that guides you.

I’ll do everything I can to help you.

So this time, as you wished...

[Become the strongest.]

Many things happened after that. Si-woo, with his unyielding desire to protect others, often recklessly risked his life, much to Lucy’s exasperation.

He threw himself into a coma trying to save a girl possessed by a witch.

He overused Lucy’s power, becoming corrupted by demonic energy.

There were countless times when Lucy considered using the Holy Sword to save him.

But thanks to the people around Si-woo—people just as dedicated to him as he was to them—he survived every crisis.

And in the end...

"You’ve finally surpassed me, Si-woo. You’ve become the strongest in the world."

Si-woo had achieved the goal that had eluded his past life.

He had become the strongest.

Lucy didn’t know if that made him happy.

But she felt a deep satisfaction in knowing she had fulfilled her promise.

Her final regret had disappeared.

Looking back now, in this moment when all her lingering regrets had been resolved, Lucy finally understood why the man had once wanted to use the Holy Sword for her.

He must have felt exactly as she did now.

Ah, so that’s how it was.

Though he never said it in words, you really...

With a smile, Lucy called out to Si-woo, who stood before her.

“...Si-woo.”

Si-woo, unsure whether he wanted an answer or feared receiving one, said nothing in response to her call. But Lucy continued quietly.

“...You asked why, didn’t you? Why I’m willing to do all this for you.”

"......."

“...After thinking about it, I realized the answer was simple.”

Lucy gazed at him, remembering the boy she had watched over from childhood to now. How had that small child grown into such a strong young man?

And with a voice filled with certainty, she gave him the answer.

“Because we’re family.”

Family.

That was Lucy’s answer to why.

She had no more regrets. All she wanted now was for her family, Yoon Si-woo, to be happy. Just as he had once been willing to sacrifice himself for her, Lucy was willing to give her life for him. After all, only family can truly wish for someone’s happiness at the cost of their own life.

“...Why... why would you go so far...?”

But Si-woo couldn’t accept her answer. Hearing Lucy say they were family only made him break down in tears, clutching her clothes, asking again and again, “Why?”

Lucy, seeing his tearful face, asked softly,

“...Does family need a reason to want each other to be happy?”

“A-ah...”

That seemed to break the dam. Si-woo sobbed uncontrollably, clinging to Lucy. Though he had grown, in that moment, he seemed like the little boy she had raised.

Lucy held him close, understanding his pain. After all, she had been the only family he had ever known, and she had been like a parent to him.

So, through his tears, Si-woo, sounding like a child, said,

“...But, Lucy, I don’t want you to disappear. You said you’d stay by my side until I didn’t need you anymore.”

“...I did.”

Lucy remembered. When she first became his family, she had promised to stay with him until he no longer needed her.

But she knew that if the girl Si-woo cared about remained dead, he would be consumed by guilt for the rest of his life.

If Lucy used the sword to bring the girl back and then disappeared, Si-woo would be heartbroken, but he would eventually move on.

So, she whispered to him,

“...Si-woo. If I could, I’d stay with you forever. Our time together is precious to me too. But everyone has to say goodbye to their family someday. This is just our time.”

Her words must have reached him because after a few moments, Si-woo’s sobbing began to subside. He slowly pulled away from her embrace, though tears still glistened in his eyes.

Even though he had accepted the inevitable, he still held onto her clothes, not out of resistance but from lingering doubt.

“...Lucy, are you really okay with this? Truly?”

Si-woo asked, wanting to know if Lucy was truly at peace with her decision, or if she was just doing this for his sake.

“Haha! What a silly question! Si-woo, who do you think I am?”

Lucy laughed, as if the question were absurd.

“I am Lucifel, the Witch of Pride. Do you think I would do something I didn’t truly want to do? I’ve achieved everything I desired. I have no more regrets. So, don’t worry about me.”

Standing amidst the radiant blue glow of the Holy Sword, Lucy smiled with the pride befitting the Witch of Pride.

She showed Si-woo that this was her choice.

“...Even if you tell me not to worry, I’m still going to cry...”

Seeing Si-woo cry again, Lucy couldn’t keep her proud expression for long.

“Honestly, you’re impossible,” she said with a chuckle, wiping away his tears.

“...Si-woo.”

With a gentle smile, not one of pride but of pure affection, she spoke to her family.

“Be happy.”

And so, the last witch of the world dissolved into a radiant blue light, meeting her final end.

After the last witch faded into blue light, that light began to gather.

The light formed the shape of a person.

The boy, still standing in tears, gently caught the figure descending toward the ground.

With fiery red hair that looked like burning flames, the witch who had once become a flame to protect the world was reborn in the body of an ordinary human girl.

But something seemed wrong.

Though the girl was alive, she didn’t open her eyes.

Believing it to be a minor issue, the boy resolved to wait for her to wake up.

Two years passed.