[30 Minutes Later]
Lillian's eyes twitched under her eyelids, her body feeling hot. Eventually, she opened her eyes, albeit slowly, as she adjusted to the brightness of a... Unfamiliar room.
She glanced down, finding herself lying on a clean hospital bed. She raised her gaze, looking towards the side and at the light blue curtains surrounding her.
Her eyes then fell to a bedside table with a bowl of apples and a small plate beside it. And next to it was a small wooden stool.
Moving her gaze away from the wooden furniture, she looked up at the pure white ceiling, which... Was awfully polished to a degree to where she saw a glimpse of her reflection.
Could it be... She was in a hospital? The academy's medical ward, to be exact?
'Was the cut that bad...?'
Tilting her head, she gazed down at her body, finding that the outfit she had worn in the match had been stripped off her body.
Replaced with a light blue, thin fabric, long-sleeved shirt and pants.
Lillian tilted her head at this, expecting to find herself wearing a hospital gown, but it seemed that the academy chose to make her wear this instead.
She then pinched the hem of the shirt and slowly raised it. High enough to where she would be able to see her bare chest, which... Was wrapped in a tight layer of white bandages.
She widened her eyes and repeated her earlier thought out loud:
"Was... Was it actually that bad?" She whispered in disbelief.
Sure, she did feel the Sword Genius's blade sink into her skin and muscle, ultimately drawing blood, but...
"Surely, it didn't... Go that deep, right?" She muttered under her breath—in thought—as she continued to gaze down at her chest.
However, that was until she heard a soft voice make itself known beside her.
"It was rather deep."
Lillian flinched, quickly sitting up as she looked to her right, finding a familiar black-haired woman sitting on the once-empty wooden stool with her legs crossed.
The woman's red eyes stared into her blue eyes before slowly moving towards the apples inside the bowl that rested on top of the bedside table.
Grabbing one, the Assassin held it in her hands before creating a sharp knife made of pure darkness. But only after placing the small plate on her lap, which was now flat.
Lillian, who was still staring at the woman with shock, then asked:
"Uhm... Why are you here? Have the doctor said you ca—"
"No. And I frankly don't care." The Assassin muttered, pressing the edge of her knife against the red skin of the apple before gently pushing against it.
"I've already sanitised myself. So you don't need to worry about infections..." Saying this, the woman took a subtle glance towards Lillian's chest before adding, "Not like it would been a concern since they had already disinfected and healed your injury."
Lillian slowly looked down and raised her hand to her chest, gently stroking the bandage.
"So... They disinfected it? That's nice... Wait. Was I put under anaesthetics?"
"You were."
"..."
Lillian silently stared at the woman beside her, who had already sliced the apple, even going as far as cutting the skin a bit more to make the slices resemble rabbits.
Watching as the Assassin did this with precision, she asked as the woman moved onto her next apple:
"Were you here the entire time when they were operating on me...?"
"..."
The woman paused mid-slice before turning towards the girl and raising an eyebrow.
"Is that a rhetorical question?"
The look she gave Lillian made it seem it should've been obvious. And... It was this look that caused the girl to put on a wry smile.
"I-I see..."
"So, are you alright now...? Does it still hurt?"
Putting the plate of apple slices back on the table, she asked Lillian with a subtle look of concern in her eyes, which... Would've been hard to notice due to how expressionless her face was.
Lillian watched as the woman's right hand slowly moved towards hers and interlocked fingers with hers. It brought a rather warm feeling inside her chest.
She gave a soft nod before opening her mouth and saying:
"Yeah... Are you... Disappointed that I lost?"
Marionette's eyes slightly widened at the girl's question.
"... Were you worrying I would be?"
Lillian's smile turned crooked as she chuckled nervously whilst scratching the side of her cheek with her index finger.
"Hehe... Maybe~...?"
Hearing this, Marionette sighed, slowly leaning back away from Lillian and resting her rear on the wooden stool again. She then crossed her legs and folded her arms.
"Did you feel like you lost?"
"... Huh?" Lillian raised an eyebrow, finding the question odd before realising that Marionette was going to give out her wise words again.
Lillian smiled softly, deciding to go along with it.
"Well. Didn't I? I got absolutely destroyed, schooled, and even injured because I tripped."
She moved her fingers to an apple slice, admiring the look of it before popping it into her mouth.
She then turned her attention back to the Assassin, who was stroking her chin, in thought of Lillian's words.
"... I suppose that's true... However..." Marionette gave a dramatic pause before adding:
"Although you did lose to an extremely talented and skilled swordsman, in a way many people would define as losing... You also didn't lose, in terms of growth, Lillian."
A proud smile stretched across her lips as her gaze softened on the girl, who continued to listen keenly to her words.
"You're growing stronger, Lillian. Bit by bit, step by step, every day. And, I am glad to be able to witness the growth of a talented person such as yourself, who began as an utter weakling."
As her words left her mouth, she found that Lillian's eyes became a tad bit more reflective—her eyes glimmering even more brightly from the lights.
Although the last part of Marionette's words was extremely harsh and brutally honest... Lillian couldn't help but feel accomplished and even proud of her current growth.
Marionette watched as Lillian's face was tilted towards the floor and her arms slowly raised. It was almost as though she was asking for a—
"Mari... I want a hug."
Marionette, her ears twitching at this, closed her eyes as she drew in a sharp breath. Lillian was currently too adorable for her.
The Assassin immediately stood up and wrapped her arms behind the girl's head, whilst also letting the white-haired girl wrap her arms around her waist.
She slowly patted and stroked the back of Lillian's head.
She then quietly muttered in an encouraging manner:
"You're doing great, Lillian. Just keep on moving. Keep on working hard. And sure enough, you'll get to the point where you want to be."