TN: Thank Llama for the chapter.
TL/PR: Ruminas; ED: novicelily
The familiar ceiling. The familiar scenery.
I sat up in my loose clothing after waking from a long sleep.
As expected, it’s this memory again.
A year and several months ago, I realized I couldn’t kill myself through ordinary means.
It wasn’t theoretically impossible, but one wrong step would lead to a greater disaster.
Fearing that, I stopped trying to kill myself after that day.
Now, I feed on humans once a week. I know all too well what happens if I don’t.
After the incident, the back alleys were quiet for a while. Rumors of a monster lurking there further discouraged people from coming.
So now, these alleys have become my private domain.
The Empire tried to rebuild the collapsed alley a few times, but after I ate everyone who came, they stopped sending people.
“…Ah.”
This is why I hate revisiting memories.
Since falling into this world, none of my memories are good. No matter which one surfaces, it’s always a nightmare.
Of course, the present isn’t much different. It’s still a nightmare.
“……”
I wonder how far Ariel will grow.
It seems I’ll have to wait and see whether I’ll die in the final moment or if he will.
***
Two days had passed since the incident.
With classes canceled and everyone busy rebuilding, Iria decided to visit Ariel in the hospital.
It wasn’t that she had any special reason to see him. She just didn’t have anything else to do.
Entering the familiar hospital room, she saw Ariel and Sera lying side by side in one room.
What’s this? Aren’t hospital rooms supposed to be separated by gender?
Apparently, the women’s rooms were already full. They put Sera in with Ariel since they seemed close.
“Oh, it’s Iria.”
As she entered the room, Sera waved her hand.
Seeing Sera after two days was, well…
“Wait, patient! You can’t get up yet!”
“Let go! Iria is right there… Ugh!”
“……”
She still didn’t seem quite normal.
Trying to move despite her severe injuries, she groaned as her wounds reopened. An ambiguous moan echoed in the room, shared by a man and woman.
It’s unclear if she was aware of it herself, but her naturally youthful voice tended to spark inappropriate imagination.
Ariel, who had been relatively quiet in the hospital room, sighed as if used to Sera’s behavior.
Iria once again had to watch Sera and the nurse struggle.
Still, today was relatively calm. Usually, she would have run out of the hospital room on the first day, but it seems she was injured badly enough that even her tenacity couldn’t overcome it.
Well, of course.
Honestly, it was impressive that she didn’t die.
“Are you here to visit?”
Iria nodded at Sera’s question.
These two were the most severely injured in the recent academy attack. At the same time, they were being hailed as the ones who contributed the most to resolving the incident.
Apparently, they played a big role when even the professors had given up.
Those who saw Ariel slice through the giant monster at the end were especially left speechless. They praised his achievements endlessly, saying the hero of this generation had finally succeeded in unleashing his power.
Ariel had already surpassed the level of the academy’s professors. He might even be comparable to an Empire’s general in terms of pure strength.
Moreover, he exerted an even stronger influence than a general regarding monsters and magical beings. He had already entered the ranks of the top tier.
‘I guess that’s why he’s the protagonist.’
The scarier part was that his potential for growth still seemed limitless.
This is why the bloodline of the one who killed the Demon King is frightening. While the talented humans of the previous generation all died in the war, the new buds of this generation were gradually emerging.
It wasn’t just Ariel who had crossed the threshold, though his achievements overshadowed the others.
“Iria! Hey, can you come over here for a second? I can’t move right now, so you’ll have to come to me.”
Iria shifted her steps towards Sera at her call.
Iria had seen Sera fight the giant monster. Withstanding that much magical energy with one’s body wasn’t something possible just by being good at handling flames.
And she had done it not once but twice.
If looking at individual talent alone, Sera might be the most outstanding.
As much as Ariel was growing, Sera was also developing her talents at a terrifying pace.
“Why?”
Iria approached Sera and asked. If someone calls you over, there must be a reason.
“No, no. Come a little closer.”
“……”
Sera gestured for her to come closer with a small smile.
Feeling a bit uneasy, Iria took one more step forward.
Then Sera embraced Iria. For a moment, her breath was taken away by the presence of Sera’s large chest.
“Urk.”
“Got you!”
Sera exclaimed as she stroked Iria’s hair. A bit roughly.
Iria briefly considered using force to break free but decided against it since Sera was a patient.
Instead, she asked her:
“What are you doing?”
“Well, I don’t know why, but it feels like I haven’t seen you in ages. Iria, your hair is so long and fluffy? It seems like it would be perfect to hug while sleeping…”
“……”
“Eeek?!”
Iria was only able to escape Sera’s embrace after poking her wound with a finger.
She could breathe again.
After breaking free, Iria asked,
“It hasn’t been that long, has it?”
After all, weren’t they together on the day of the incident? However, they ended up going in different directions.
The incident happened just two days ago, so it couldn’t have been that long by any measure.
“I just felt like I hadn’t seen you in a while. It’s really boring in the hospital room, so time passes slowly. And Ariel over there is so stoic. He’s no fun. Plus, Ariel is being discharged today! Isn’t it too much to leave me behind?”
“There are too many injured people and not enough hospital rooms. If I’m healed, I should vacate the bed quickly.”
Ariel, who had been quietly listening, opened his mouth. It was a reasonable explanation, but for some reason, Sera made an expression of annoyance.
“I-I can be discharged too, you know…”
“This time, don’t overdo it and just get treatment quietly. You almost died this time.”
“Ugh……”
Sera pouted, unable to refute Ariel’s cold words.
Sera’s body, lying on the bed, was severely injured. It would probably take a few days to fully recover, even for someone like her.
It was quite a harsh punishment for someone as excessively active as her. She was paying the price here for recklessly risking her life in the Seed of the Demon King subjugation mission.
“Iria? Can’t you at least stay with me? If I’m left alone in the hospital room, I think I’ll die of loneliness.”
“I don’t want to.”
“You’re just as cold-hearted as Ariel.”
“So what?”
“……”
After giving a short answer, Iria turned her gaze towards Ariel.
Unlike Sera, who had suffered critical injuries, Ariel, who hadn’t been severely wounded, was controlling the overflowing starlight.
Even if he had been badly injured, he would have regenerated with it.
Having crossed the threshold through his battle with the Seed, he didn’t seem accustomed to the newly felt sensations. He appeared to still be in the adaptation stage.
He, too, had stepped into the realm of superhumans, no longer an ordinary human. Everything must feel unfamiliar to him. All his senses had increased dramatically from before.
Ariel sat up and called for a nurse to formally process his discharge.
After that,
“Iria.”
“Yes.”
“Shall we take a walk?”
He looked like he had something he wanted to say.
Iria was interested in what Ariel had to say. He was the only human whose memories she couldn’t read. Moreover, he was the protagonist of this world.
The more she knew about him, the better.
“Yes.”
Iria nodded and followed behind Ariel.
She felt slightly sorry for Sera, who was left alone, but she’d manage somehow. Iria didn’t worry about it and went outside. The air outside the hospital room was fresh.
Someone stuck in the hospital room for the next few days wouldn’t be able to smell it though.
***
Iria’s POV
This wasn’t the first time Iria had been left alone with Ariel. They had also been alone when sparring with wooden swords on the back mountain.
But it was a bit different from then. The atmosphere, you could say. The current him was quite different from the Ariel of that time.
A sharper, heavier aura could be felt. It meant he had risen to the ranks of strong ones that I would acknowledge. If I fought him now, I might have to give up an arm or so.
And he definitely seemed more relaxed than before. More so than when he was swinging his sword desperately to get stronger as quickly as possible.
I followed behind him as he walked ahead. His black hair fluttered with his movements.
Leaving the hospital room, we walked along the path. But Ariel never opened his mouth. How far would we have to walk to hear what he had to say?
I didn’t know.
I just followed him until the surroundings changed to a dense forest. It was the mountainside behind the academy where we had sparred with wooden swords.
“Iria.”
As if he had arrived at his desired location, Ariel called my name. I didn’t bother to answer verbally but nodded my head in response.
His calm blue eyes turned towards me. And he asked me:
“Are you hiding anything from us?”
“……?”
Silence fell in the mountain where only Ariel and I were present.
I hesitated to answer as I couldn’t grasp the intention behind his words, and Ariel didn’t elaborate for a while.
Ariel sat down in a suitable spot and slowly continued:
“I’m sorry if the question was sudden. You might not know, but I recently awakened my starlight. I feel like my senses, and things like that, have become more sensitive than usual.”
“……”
“I’m not sure yet either, but I can tell you’re incredibly strong. Probably even more than I am now. I’m not certain, but there’s one thing I think I can say for sure.”
Ariel paused for a moment before continuing. He seemed to be carefully considering whether he should say this out loud.
Of course, I was anxious waiting. Unlike with other humans, I couldn’t read Ariel’s memories. I wouldn’t have known his thoughts if I hadn’t heard it directly from him.
And after a while, he opened his mouth.
“……The stars are wary of you.”
It seemed like a statement with multiple implications.
I couldn’t read his memories, but I could guess from his expression.
Ariel was wary of me.