As I whispered to Saluena’s back, the dark violet armor she was wrapped in broke apart into a million particles of light before disappearing completely.
“Wielding my sword for the sake of my master is my duty.”
The sword Saluena was carrying turned back to normal as well. Will there ever come a day where she can stay in this world without having to give anything up?
Although I haven’t fainted after releasing the power of the Dark Violet Knight, the effort of keeping her out for less than a minute reduced my magic power much more than I would have imagined.
If this had resulted in any kind of drawn out battle, I definitely wouldn’t have lasted.
“Get up!! Open your eyes!! Oi Carol, Carol!!”
Toslin’s grief-filled screams echoed around as she held Carol who had collapsed and was not moving in her arms.
Toslin is always calm, keeping her eye on the bigger picture, and while she can be impatient at times, she keeps a cool-head whenever moving forward……but she doesn’t have the the leeway to act like that right now.
Hair disheveled and kneeling in the dirt, Toslin holds Carol’s body close while rubbing her own blood caked face against hers.
“Wake up…….please…….”
Toslin squeezed out a pleading voice. But Carol didn’t respond. Carol’s eyes were still open, but…….there was nothing there.
“Rose, Rose!! Please, you have to save Carol!!”
Toslin suddenly picked up Carol’s limp body and ran over to Rose-san. Then gently laying Carol out on the warm grass, she took a seat beside her while still clinging to her bloody hand.
“I-I understand…….”
Rose-san had been sleeping for a couple days herself and was clearly not in good shape. So I took a seat next to her and helped prop her up in Goldmund’s place.
“The adherent Rosalith Cuulbacall offers her prayers. Goddess, heal this person’s wounds.”
Rose-san’s hands gave off a pale, golden light once she recited her prayer. That light wrapped around Carol’s body, healing every cut and bruise that marred her arms and face.
“……Carol? R-Rose……how is she?”
But that was it. Carol kept staring off into the void without moving a millimeter, without showing any sign of life.
“……I, I’m so sorry……”
“Y-You’re sorry……w-what’s that supposed to mean!? Can’t you save Carol!?”
A grave expression grew across Rose-san’s face at Toslin’s question. And then, she shook her head.
“The healing miracle can only cure……physical wounds. At the moment Carol-san has fallen into an extremely debilitated state. Her very life which she carries in her chest, it’s fading away.”
“Then fix it!!”
“…..it’s impossible….. There’s, nothing I can do. I’m sorry…..”
“………..huh………..huh?”
Toslin broke into a smile.
But it was a complex smile, showing all kinds of emotions all at once.
“……….you’re lying………. Hey, Carol……… Oi Carol!!”
Toslin grabbed Carol’s shoulders and started trying to shake her awake.
“Quit fucking with us!! Do you think you can just suddenly fall asleep wherever you want to……. Huh!? Huh!?”
After glancing between Rose-san and then back to Carol, Toslin’s arms fell limp at her side. *Boomf* and Carol’s body fell to the ground. But we never got a half complaint or even a word back from her in response.
Finally, the tangled mess of emotions battling across Toslin’s face gave way, and one single emotion came through.
“…….we…….can’t be together anymore?”
And the tears poured out.
“N-No……No, that’s…….No…….. We said we were going to find all the treasure in the world, but we haven’t even found one yet…….”
Slowly placing her hand across Carol’s chest, her head drooped down as if she were asking for penitence.
“If it was going to be like this…….I shouldn’t have ran away……then I would…….still be with you. Sorry……..I’m sorry. Were you lonely? I’ve been away from you for days……”
“It appears that in one more moment, I will have saved another soul bound to this world after all.”
On the back of Toslin’s grief, a voice sang out that did not belong to me, nor Rose-san, nor Saluena, nor Lapris.
“Wha-, you…….it’s still alive!!”
We all turned our heads at once to find a mass of flames burning in the air.
Odd ends and pieces of the carbuncle’s body could be found along the outer edge of the flames cluing us in to the monster’s identity.
“On top of this……allow me to act as your pilot, guiding you down a new world completely separate from this one.”
The flames were burning with the dream gem stationed in the middle of it all. But the power of those flames were clearly yet gradually waning.
“Elf woman. Do not mourn. If you truly wish to see that half wolf girl again, then I……can take you to her…….”
“Shut up for a bit.”
The words leapt out of my mouth as soon as its grating voice touched my ears.
“…….Eh, just now…….from you?”
Lapris looked up at me honestly surprised.
I surprised myself, but we don’t have the time right now to politely choose my words. Right now I’m running entirely on intuition, sticking out my right arm as I talk.
——toward the carbuncle, who is already fading away from this world.
“Rose-san, you said………Carol is still alive right?”
“Y-Yes……although it’s small, I can still feel the pulse of life.”
“Okay then. If so……”
I take one look at Carol.
She’s always walking behind Toslin with an innocent smile; I don’t want to say goodbye like this.
I just became a proper adventurer. We’re going to need her smile and her laugh to brighten things up for us for years to come.
“Iris…….”
And Toslin.
Our always calm and wonderful party leader.
And yet right now, she’s crying. Her, who pulled my indecisive hand and showed me a world I was only ever able to get a glimpse of through books.
It’s only natural I would want to do something for them.
“I now…….release the bonds on this world.”
And so, focusing all my magic power into my right hand, I began my chant.