There had been no communication at all.
So the Young Scholar felt a little regretful.
He wanted...
To have a proper face-to-face conversation with the Black Monster.
It seemed...
He wouldn't get the chance.
"If it doesn't appear in front of me on its own..."
The Young Scholar shook his head. "I don't know where to look for it, either..."
He was the one left waiting.
"Forget it."
"Maybe last time..."
"Was the last time we ever met..."
He had, in a way, told it everything he wanted to say.
Although it hadn't responded at all.
Perhaps...
That was its response.
As far as it was concerned...
He hadn't mattered in the slightest.
He even suspected that, in its eyes, there was no difference between him and his older brother, despite the fact that he had spent so many days with it.
It was hard not to feel embarrassed, indignant, and dissatisfied at the thought...
Perhaps there was also some unwillingness to accept it, and a little hurt.
Since that was how the Black Monster felt...
Why should he keep pursuing it?
Failing the exam was a fact.
He couldn't change it.
And failing the exam was in the past.
He shouldn't stay fixated on it.
He should look ahead.
Not every question could be answered.
He'd known that for a long time.
The Black Monster was destined to remain a mystery to him for the rest of his life.
But he wouldn't let it become shackles that bound him for the rest of his life.
"I gave myself time..."
The Young Scholar spoke softly.
He had given the Black Monster time, too.
Time had passed.
The Black Monster hadn't appeared.
So this matter...
The Young Scholar took a deep breath.