༺ Elaine and Pero’s Homecoming – 1 ༻
Elaine had already stained her hands with an abundance of blood to survive. She didn’t hesitate to crush the heads of hostile nobles, spread rumors to undermine someone’s authority, or even used unrighteous trickery as a means for deception.
Recently, she even contemplated using Irid’s benefactor, the Purple Magic Tower, through various pretexts. In the first place, the reason why she undertook Dimensional Travel was to secure that justification.
Therefore, cutting off a boy from her life was supposed to be trivial.
But what made her hesitate like this was because…She kept seeing overlaps.
The blond boy sometimes seemed like a young Irid and sometimes as Sledo. But every time a shadow of doubt rose in her heart, she could hear the laughter of the First Prince from the boy’s shadow.
She knew many old tales. It was because, when she was young, she had rummaged through piles of fairy tales in the library to tell her baby brothers.
Among them was a story about an Emperor with many suspicions. It was a simple story with a moral lesson; a king who couldn’t truly trust others would eventually destroy himself because of his own misgivings.
The fairy tale she revisited after poisoning the First Prince had become a book of prophecy.
Intellecutually, she knew that she would have to pay the price for such weak doubts. However, the past, when she could laugh purely, trust purely, felt so distant. It seemed far too perilous of a path to return to.As such…
“Elaine.”
“……Pero.”
“I……have something I want…to say.”
“It is the same for me, Pero. I’ll go first. It seems like this is as far as we go.”
She proceeded to cleanly bid farewell. After all, it was too dangerous to journey with the boy. The boy’s complexion turned pale. Despite the dim light from the reddish campfire, his pallor was evident.
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“I heard you’re being chased because of your power of healing. In addition, I suspect Pero might have been infected by a Variant. I do not want to take that risk.”
“……I’m sorry. For hiding it.”
“It’s not something you should apologize for. It is natural for each of us to lie to……survive, isn’t it? I think we’ve been together long enough. It was fun.”
“……Me too! It was fun for me too.”
The boy’s voice trailed off.”
“Consider the campfire as my last gift. I truly hope you reach Paradise.”
“You’re leaving already? Right now?”
“An ambush could come even at night, after all.”
Elaine stood up. The guilt of feeding Pero the poison that was Variant larva was still weighing on her conscience. But she felt she could cut it off soon.
Now, she just needed to take three steps away. If she turned her back on the boy and walked just three steps away, it would be farewell.
The crackle of the campfire filled the space between the two. It sounded like a fuse burning, and conversely, like a tiny flame going out.
Step. Step.
Just as she was about to sever this connection, this relationship with one last step, Pero asked.
“What about the compass?”
“……If you are talking about Paradise, I judged your risk to be greater than a return of Paradise, Pero.”
“No…… Elaine. I think it’s better if you take the compass.”
“That is your belonging.”
“Is there such a thing in this wasteland…….? After all, it’s a place where people can just snatch and steal things from each other.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“If you are leaving, it might be……safer to take the compass. Perhaps, you can even sell it to someone. Aside from that, there are also many useful items in my bag that would be of assistance to you.”
Elaine took a deep breath and then exhaled a faint sigh.
“Are you asking me to kill you and take them, Pero?”
“I mean, if possible, I’d like to be spared……”
“Then why?”
“It’s strange. You say you’re leaving because you don’t want to take risks, but you’re not interested in taking items that could increase your chances of survival.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“I have something I want to say. If you hear me out, I’ll give them to you. The compass. And my bag too.”
She had nothing to lose from this condition. No, rather, there were only gains. After playing along with a brief conversation, she could collect items that would aid in her survival.
Her feet, initially set to leave for the sake of survival, stopped for the sake of survival. In that gap, only Elaine’s heart was shaking severely.
“Before anything, I want to say thank you, Elaine. The last five days were really fun. Traveling with someone……was something I’d never even dreamed of. It was much more awesome than my vague imaginations, you know? It felt like I got a Noona……and that made me happy.”
“That was a contract. One where you provided me with the knowledge I lacked. And I compensated for your lack of strength.”
“I think I received much more. Without Elaine, I probably would have──.”
“Lived, yes? Since there wouldn’t have been an incident where some idiotic woman forced you to eat slime.”
“That’s not something you need to concern yourself with…… It’s not Elaine’s fault. I didn’t know it would be in the puddle either, and besides, Elaine has amnesia, right?”
“Why are you defending me to such an extent?”
“Because Elaine is a kind person. A good person.”
“Do you not realize you’re being abandoned right now?”
“A truly bad person would have already taken the compass and left. In fact, much earlier than now. Elaine, you had many chances to abandon me, right?”
“That’s…..”
Elaine was at a loss for words.
In his head, Pero heard Esteemed Parasite urging him to confess quickly. But he didn’t want to burden Elaine, who was leaving, with the weight of his heart.
“I always thought you were pushing yourself too hard. Sometimes, Elaine’s eyes looked as if you were strangled by something. So, I thought maybe Elaine……just like me, was harboring fear.”
Rather than what he wished to say, he chose to speak about what he wished she would listen to.
“However, I realized it’s a bit different. I tried to run away from my fears while it seemed like Elaine chose to wear thick armor. In order to protect yourself.”
“……So?”
“It doesn’t suit you, Elaine.”
Pero cautiously continued, ensuring there were no misunderstandings, so he could clearly convey every bit of his thoughts.
“We have hidden our wounds from each other, backs turned, and continued our five-day journey. But you know, Elaine, we can……do better. We can be free. It might just be a vague sentiment, but……”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“I hope you can lay down your armor and be happy, Elaine. In a good place where you don’t have to worry about food or Variants. And instead of tormenting yourself with survival and suspicion……you live peacefully. WIthout being tied and restricted to anything.”
What the boy articulated was nothing more than a series of vague words. But because, at the very least, his heart seemed to be conveyed…
“I do not know what you suffer from, what makes you sad. But…”
From the colorless world, cracks formed, and through those gaps…
“I want to tell you that it’ll be okay, Elaine. Over and over. As much as I can.”
Light seemed to seep through.
“I’ll shout again and again that we can move forward. Elaine, so……!”
Right before the boy’s words were about to reach its conclusion (Ending)…
BOOM──!!
“⋯⋯⋯⋯!!”
“What in the world…….?!”
Suddenly, a large noise resonated from the ground. The earth shook and the wind blew. Elaine raised her head and looked beyond, towards the source of the sound.
-Uuuuuuuuuuu.
A Giant Variant was rising.
Elaine turned her head away from the direction of the Variant’s appearance. There was no longer any bait to lure the Variant. But with some distance still left between them, if she started running with all her might now, there might be a chance for her to survive with Pero.
However…
-EUUOOOOAAAAAAAAAA!
From there, another Giant Variant had──.
===============================================================
I was quite pleased with the Tower Master’s RP of Pero.
Was this really the skill level of a newbie……?!
I had been watching warmly, waiting to intervene at just the right time. The foreshadowing until now had been laid out stunningly. Not intentionally, but the important thing was that it could be used.
1) The Giant Variant from the plains that had strangely been following the party
2) Pero drinking the slime (Applied the setting of Variant Larva)
3) Some foreshadow bait with Pero gazing blankly towards somewhere in the plains (Perhaps a red herring)
4) The burst of purple light that appeared for some unknown reason
5) Pero’s creaking movements as if encroached by something
All these breadcrumbs in my mind clicked together, painting a splendid picture.
A picture where the Variant Larva implanted in Pero’s head had subtly controlled him, calling the Giant Variants to this location.
-GROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAR!!
-GRRRRRRRAAAA!
From watching the Tower Master’s actions, she seemed to be trying to head towards a calm Happy Ending. But even if it was a Happy Ending, the protagonist needed challenges. So I created one. It was Round 2 with the Giant Variants. With the numbers doubled too!
From somewhere, the boy’s voice was heard.
“YOU SON OF A BITCH-!!”
Ah, that’s the Tower Master.
She seemed to be a little angry……but what of it? I just wanted to spice up the finale for these two people. And it seemed like Elaine was still one step behind too.
The problem with Elaine was not her drive for survival, trauma regarding poison, nor her distrust of humans. All these problems stemmed from just one characteristic.
From what I could see, the crux of the matter was responsibility.
A personality that, instead of asking for help when facing a crisis, tried to do everything by herself. The very thought itself of ‘I must be the one to do it’. The blind determination to achieve goals even at the cost of breaking herself.
A mere eleven-year-old kid deciding to commit fratricide for her younger siblings and carrying it out alone; that tremendous sense of responsibility was what I considered as her focal problem.
No one around Elaine believed the words ‘The culprit is the First Prince’. That experience, combined with her inherent sense of responsibility, synergized in a twisted direction……was my hypothesis.
Since she the sole variable in her calculations was herself, she could only think of abandoning something and throwing things away. After all, there was always a limit to what an individual could achieve.
However, the moment she broadened her view, thus not seeing the small boy as a mere burden or potential threat── but instead, recognizing him as an ally, this battlefield would result in an ending where everyone survived. That was how it was designed.
It was simply a so-called gimmick battle.
The information was given. Espero was infected and the aggro of the Variants were drawn to the boy. Additionally, it was depicted that the boy had healing powers that anyone would covet. Add aggro and healing together and that was just a recipe for a Tanker.
While the boy tanked, she just needed to destroy the Variants. Simple.
This gimmick was already conveyed to the Tower Master. Of course, the pain sensitivity was also lowered to the level of a cat’s punch.
Would Elaine see the boy as a tanker or bait? That was the part that needed to be focused on.
Or maybe she would recall the existence of Learo, which seemed to have been erased from her mind…… Learo was designed to fulfill the position of a sub-dealer. Weren’t they both in a situation of being attacked? It would be nice if she at least said some short comment about how they should cooperate to survive together. If she succeeded in simple persuasion, I would deal a fair amount of damage as a means of support.
Now then, the first attack of the Giant Variant was flying towards her.
Would it be escape or battle? Would she use Pero or not? Had she forgotten Learo or did she still remember…….
KUAAAAAAAAAAH-!!
“?”
The First Princess shredded the Variant’s arm into pieces.
===============================================================
Metamorphosis was a process of changing the color of the soul.
Strong emotions like shocking experiences, firm resolve, and overflowing affection dyed the soul, imbuing it with color. Then, the mana obtained by burning a colored soul── had special effects.
The reason why First Princess Elaine could achieve such feats on the Eastern Front was because she herself had entered the realm of Metamorphosis. She had refrained from using that power due to its extremity, but…….
She judged that now was the time to use it.
Elaine stretched out her arm and chanted the activation incantation.
“『Wind Gloves of Ravine』.”
Wind began to swirl around Elaine’s scarred hands.
It was a magic that could be used for both offense and defense, wrapping around her hands like a glove with blades of wind. However, when adding color to it once more…
The sharp wind gradually increased its speed with a buzz and then── quieted after a certain point. After all, it had exceeded the hearing range of humans.
Slice.
Blood splattered.
The wind, far too fierce, cut through the skin of Elaine, the Caster. As the wind drew its trajectory, wounds formed and blood flowed, becoming part of the wind itself.
The reason why Elaine’s hands were scarred like rags was because of this technique. A strengthening of a specific motion using mana that was manifested by changing the color of the soul.
“Metamorphosis – 『Bloodwind』.”
From a distance, it looked like she was swirling a red storm in both hands.
-GROAAAAAAR!!
The arm of the Giant Variant scratched the ground, flinging itself into the air. A cloud of dust bloomed from the ground, as stones scattered in all directions.
Even in such a situation where a gigantic wall seemed to be flying at her, Elaine merely took her stance.
And then, along with a stomp to the ground, she thrust the storm onto it.
KUAAAAAAAAA-!!
Crunch!
Following the spiral trajectory of the storm, the arm of the Giant Variant was literally shredded. And the aftermath of the explosion caused the Variant’s shoulder to bounce off heavily. A bloodwind scattered in the sky.
The destructive power was significantly superior even compared to other Metamorphoses.
However, Elaine’s complexion was rapidly turning pale. Just maintaining the technique caused massive bleeding, so on the Eastern Front, she had only used it when the Priest Order gave her backup.
In the present, without a Priest, she had about 5 minutes until she bled out.
She had to make a choice within 5 minutes. Could she slaughter two Giant Variants in that time? It was difficult. They weren’t that sturdy, but they were far too huge.
The head, where the core was presumed to be, was placed so high it was dizzying. In order to land an effective hit on its head by cutting down their legs, she had to strike at least 4 times. Considering the regeneration of the Variants, perhaps five punches were needed. And on top of that, there were two of them.
While dodging or repelling attacks from enormous masses, she had to strike a total of ten times. It might be possible if more time was given, but five minutes was far too little.
If so… She had to break through── and escape.
“I have to── escape, but!”
CRASHHH-!!
While still in the same spot, Elaine once again countered the attack of the Giant Variant. Why wouldn’t her feet move?
Maybe she was tired. Tired of all the suspicions, of all the survival. Fed up with miserably living on by doing evil deeds.
Maybe she found herself pathetic that she couldn’t even accept the boy’s goodwill and just gave it back.
Or perhaps, it was the boy’s last words she hadn’t yet heard that was holding her in place.
In her mind, the voice was still echoing. To run away from here. That she could survive, just like she did that day, if she just threw away her memories, feelings, her everything and ran away.
Right as she watched the palm of the Variant slicing through the sky once again, readying to counter for the third time…
“Here I am──! You nasty Variants, I’m right here──!! Your offspring is inside me──!!”
“……Pero?!”
Pero shouted while emitting a purple light from his hands, the principle of it unknown.
The Giant Variants turned their heads to look at the small boy. Towards something inside the boy’s head that was screaming at them to look this way. And then, they reached out.
A huge hand fell to crush the small boy.
“You, idiot…….!!”
Elaine lifted her body slightly, before slashing diagonally onto the ground. Along with a red storm, she shot forward with an acceleration her body could hardly withstand.
She reached the boy’s vicinity in an instant and snatched him away.
BOOM-!
Above the spot where Elaine and Pero flew past, embracing each other, the hand of the Variant fell by a hair’s breadth. During that time, 『Bloodwind』 was deactivated.
Elaine grabbed Pero by the collar and shouted.
“Are you a dummy, Pero?! If someone else is buying time, you shouldn’t dawdle! You should’ve run-!!”
“……But you were still left there, Elaine!”
Elaine’s expression twisted.
Was this boy saying that he was willing to sacrifice his own life, take everything upon himself, and die to save her?
Just like how Elaine, entangled in the First Prince’s game, made such a decision amidst her pain?
Right as she was about to spew out in anger due to such thoughts…
“I have healing abilities……You heard from Learo, right? So, as long as I don’t die instantly, I can endure. After all, when considering Esteemed Variant inside my head, they won’t act too violently!”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
“When that time comes, Elaine just needs to finish off the Giant Variants! Before I get too battered!”
Elaine blinked in bewilderment. The boy had a plan for everything.
“……It wasn’t self-sacrifice?”
“Er, uh, um……. I-Isn’t it good if we a-all combine our strengths and survive……together…..?”
Elaine’s expression turned dazed.
It was a novel feeling, but the boy trusted Elaine. He seemed to believe that if they fought together, no one would die and they would overcome this crisis.
Elaine was frozen with a bewildered expression, as if she heard someone say 1 plus 1 equals 3, before letting out a burst of laughter.
Perhaps she had misunderstood something. She felt the scattered puzzle pieces of something fitting together.
===============================================================
How long had it been since she had truly trusted someone?
Since the incident at the Pagoda Palace, Elaine had never fully trusted anyone. Not even herself.
If there was the slightest danger, she would avoid it, and whenever she met someone, she was always wary of betrayal. The only thing she needed to agonize over was ‘Can I do it myself’. A desolate world dwelled inside her heart.
If it had been a firm belief of safety first, there would have been no need to agonize over this decision.
But as Pero had said, it probably wasn’t an attitude that suited her all that well. After all, every time she made that choice, she could feel her heart drying up and crumbling.
If she used Pero as bait, she could definitely escape.
If she used herself as bait, she could definitely save Pero.
However, if she tried to save both Pero and herself at the same time… If she failed in this, she wouldn’t be able to achieve either one of such outcomes, but…….for some reason, her heart seemed to feel quite light. Unburdened. Refreshed.
As such…
Elaine decided to trust.
In both herself and in Espero.
The wind that had been cutting her flesh died down. Blood still oozed from the already inflicted wounds, unavoidably sticky. However, no further wounds were forming.
And from her fingertips, the wind…It was no longer tracing a restricted spiral, but was instead, freely unraveled. As if refusing to be bound or restricted.
Elaine felt it intuitively. She would no longer be able to use 『Bloodwind』.
But the strength she gained instead, though less destructive── made many things possible. Elaine watched the fluttering wind with fascination and gave it a name that suddenly came up in her mind.
“……Metamorphosis – 『Expectation』.”
The small enlightenment changed the direction of her heart. She had not completely triumphed over it, so she didn’t reach Sublimation, but it was definitely a step forward.
The wind lightly wrapped around Elaine’s body. And when she reached out her hand, a strand of wind began circling around Pero’s body as well.
“……W-Woah?!”
“I’m counting on you, Pero. I’m going to send the heads of both Giant Variants flying at the same time. Can you draw their attention?”
Though shaking uneasily…..it was undeniably glittering trust. And in the face of such faith, given to him for the first time in his life, Espero nodded vigorously.
“……Yes!”
It was time for the counterattack.
===============================================================
Distance remaining to ‘Paradise’──
0.
***
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