“Nuaaaaaa!”
Of course, after flying, there’s the inevitable fall awaiting you…
Umm, what was it again!? I think it was some kind of landing technique when using a parachute… a five-point landing? Was that it?
Ah, I’m falling, falling!
Desperately recalling the images I’d seen in my previous life, I unleashed my aura to its fullest to protect my body.
The ground rushed closer.
Foot first! Then the outside of my shin! Then my butt! My back! And finally, my shoulder!
The sheath of my sword banged mercilessly against the ground.
It hurt, but I was alive! The terror of falling had made my heart pound even more than the wyvern had.
“Katia-chan, that was amazing! Amazing, but incredibly foolish! Are you okay? Does anything hurt?”
Fina-san rushed over.
No, you don’t need to touch me so much.
“Ah, yes, I’m fine. But I never want to do that again.”
“Of course not! From now on, we’re deciding on our plans together!”
“…Understood.”
I couldn’t resist the force of her words, not to mention her face pressing close and looming large.
Bis sisters are strong.
By the way, Neil-san was lying flat on his back on the ground, the reaction of using all his aura at once.
Yeah, sorry about that.
“Hey, hey, this isn’t what we agreed on. I never thought you’d take it down with just three people.”
The middle-aged squad leader approached us, calling out.
“But really, who tries to slash at something in the sky? I couldn’t believe my eyes. There’s a lot I want to ask, but first of all, thanks for the help. I hate to ask this of you, who did so much, but there’s still more to do. If you’re able to move, would you help out?”
“Yes, of course.”
Given the state of this village…
We can’t just say our goodbyes and leave just because we defeated the monster.
“I can use water attribute magic, so I can use healing magic!”
In this world, healing magic is water-based.
I guess I’m only good for treating simple surface wounds, at most.
Maybe it’s because it’s hard to visualize what healing should look like.
That’s why doctors are pretty common.
“Alright then, Elf lass, you help with healing the injured. Swordswoman, help carry the bodies. As for that other lad, ah, let him sleep it off.”
Post-battle cleanup is hard, but necessary.
Fina-san ran off to treat the wounded.
And then, I saw a person wearing a hooded robe running from the shadows of a building.
Something felt off.
“Who is that!? Hey, you!”
The squad leader called out, demanding to know who they were.
Not one of our squad?
I had a bad feeling.
I immediately wrapped myself in aura and moved in front of the suspicious person.
“Hii, don’t come any closer!”
Judging by the voice, it seemed to be a man.
He brandished a knife, trying to intimidate me.
His reaction suggests that we might need to capture him.
While trying to move naturally, I slipped into his range.
I twisted his knife-wielding hand upwards, circled behind him, placed my short sword against his neck, and forced him to his knees.
The knife clattered to the ground. Job done.
“Damn you! Why is someone like you in a place like this…! You heretic!”
“You’re an Imperial!”
The squad leader reacted to the word “heretic.”
Other soldiers came and took the man from me, binding him.
“I don’t know what kind of trick you used, but did you send that wyvern after us!? Tell me! What’s going on!”
The squad leader’s interrogation was intense.
Considering how unnatural it is for an Imperial to be here, it’s fair to assume he knows something.
“Silence! The Empire has finally gained the power to command even monsters! This is all the guidance of our guardian god, Baal!”
Did he let it slip out in his haste, or was it information he didn’t need to hide?
The way that wyvern moved, it all made sense if someone was controlling it.
No wonder they were able to avoid attacks from blind spots.
But how are they controlling it?
“Die, die, die! All you heretic monkeys should be eradicated! Only the Imperials are the only ones chosen by god–”
The man’s eyes were bloodshot, his mouth was drooling, and he writhed even while bound.
The man was no longer making any sense, so the squad leader punched him.
The man seemed to have fainted, because the barrage of awful insults stopped abruptly.
“Take him away. This is the job of the intelligence department from here on out…”
A terrible aftertaste was left.
The possibility that the Empire could control monsters would be vital information for the future of this country.
I hope we can get some information out of that man.
We carried the bodies of the victims.
The horrific sight made me want to throw up, but I endured, thinking that it would be disrespectful to the deceased.
I guess I’m a selfish person for being okay with the bodies of the monsters.
Seeing a body lifelessly bleeding from the abdomen reminded me of my previous life.
Was this how I was discovered too?
In a narrow alleyway, as if sinking in a pool of blood…
An unpleasant sensation accompanied by chills crawled up my spine.
No, I shouldn’t think so deeply about it.
I shook my head, trying to get rid of the horrible images.
“–tia-san! Katia-san! What’s wrong?”
“Huh?”
“You looked really scary there for a moment, you okay? Are you tired?”
“…Ah, it’s nothing, nothing at all.”
“You sure? Don’t push yourself too hard.”
“No, I’m fine. Thanks, Neil-san.”
Thanks to Neil-san, who had somehow recovered, I was pulled out of my dark thoughts.
I can’t go down that line of thinking.
I need to focus on the things in front of me.
“Big sister.”
Huh?
I noticed a small beastkin child with dog ears standing near me.
It’s hard to tell with kids so young, but… I think it’s a girl.
“What is it?”
I crouched down to meet her gaze.
“Um… thank you for protecting the village!”
She said that one phrase, then hugged me tightly before running back to her parents.
She came to thank me.
“That’s great, Katia-san.”
“…Yeah.”
Somehow, I felt like I was the one who was saved.
After we finished carrying the bodies, the reinforcements arrived. They completed some basic repairs to the village before they left.
They also took the wyvern’s corpse to investigate why it was moving so strangely.
The six soldiers who had died were taken to the town, and the eight villagers were taken to the cemetery at the back of the village.
The only soldiers left were us, currently in the village cemetery.
The reason is because Fina-san was requested to draw portraits of the deceased.
It seemed that there were people in the village who knew Fina-san, and they asked her to draw portraits of all of those who had died.
Fina-san returned to the town to grab her supplies before coming back to the village.
She looks at the faces of the deceased, listens to the stories about their lives, and creates pictures of their “living” selves.
As the families of the deceased talked about their loved ones, many couldn’t stop crying.
Fina-san listened with an expression as calm as a still pond, capturing the likeness of those she drew.
And then,
“Ugh, ugh, eghh…”
“…”
Neil-san, who was standing next to me, was a blubbering mess from crying so much.
Or rather, his eyes had already reached flood level.
“…Are you alright?”
“Buah. I’m fine.”
I patted him on the back.
He didn’t look fine at all…
Well, though, because Neil-san was bawling next to me, I was able to stay calm.
It’s a scene that makes your heart feel like it’s about to be crushed, just from watching…
I absentmindedly watched the families of various races gather at the cemetery.
“…In the end, it’s the same for all races, if their family dies, it’s all just sad.”
“Huh? What’s the matter, hic, all of a sudden?”
“No, I just remembered that Imperial we captured earlier.”
“Everyone, no matter who they are, feels pain and sadness. But I think it’s also in people’s nature to forget easily.”
That might be true.
When attacking someone, it’s not that they can’t imagine the pain, but that they’ve given up on thinking about it.
“That’s why, we at least have to remember scenes like this!”
The people of the Raza family are all so pure…
Compared to them, I felt like I was a filthy person.
But maybe you’re being a little too loud, Neil-san?
The area has gone silent around you.
“…Ah, I’m sorry.”
“No, no, thanks. Please continue to help and save as many people as you can. It was a bit of a naïve speech, but young people should be that way.”
The village chief of Teska village patted Neil-san on the shoulder.
Some of the weeping families even smiled through their tears.
And as the heavy atmosphere was lifted a bit at the cemetery, Fina-san finished drawing the portrait of the last person.
