Chapter 37 – I’m Angry

I’m Angry

“Move her carefully, Leon. What if she gets hurt?”
Mona said to me as I gently lifted Ariel.
“For someone who’s worried about that to come up with this plan is a bit…”
“…It’s all punishment. For not contacting us at all.”

Thinking that she’s still a bit upset, I just carefully moved Ariel to the basement as Mona said.
The pre-set basement was decorated to feel like an ordinary living room.
…Since the interior was hastily prepared for this occasion, it does feel a bit empty.

On the table placed in the center were expensive champagne, some simple foods, and a cake Mona made herself.
And the gifts we each prepared. It’s quite a standard setup.
“Leon. Let’s lay her here. We need to put her down gently.”
“As you command.”

I gently laid Ariel on the bed in the basement.
It’s a bit new, but seeing Ariel’s face after a long time, I think she’s gotten much better compared to when we first met.
‘When we first met, she was skin and bones.’
Back then, she was like a frightened cat.

While I was thinking about the old days looking at Ariel, Lister quietly lay down next to where Ariel was lying.
“Um, Lister? Why are you lying down next to her?”
“Don’t interfere, Leon. Sigh…”
Dare I say, Lister had the happiest expression in the world.

She was like that before too, but it seems her condition has worsened a bit in the time we haven’t seen her.
“Hey, Mona. The sleeping powder won’t harm her body, right?”
“…Do you think I’d use something that would harm Ariel? Don’t worry, she’ll wake up soon.”
Mona added that she’ll wake up feeling refreshed – at those words, Marian’s worried expression eased.

And a little while later,
As Mona said, Ariel started showing signs of waking up.
“Alright! Get ready! Put on the blindfold, light the candles on the cake! You remembered the voice modulation magical tool, right?”
We started moving according to the plan under Mona’s instructions.

Even when I open my eyes, I can’t see anything.
It seems they’ve covered my eyes with something.
It’s like when I was experimented on in the magic tower.
The difference is, back then I was forcibly seated in a hard iron chair, but now I’m comfortably lying down.

‘It’s soft…’
It feels like lying on a feather bed.
From the side, a scent similar to Lister’s wafts over. That familiar scent gave some comfort to my mind.
‘I need to stay calm. If I break down here, it’s over.’
Blocked vision, unknown assailants, and my defenseless state.
The memories of what happened in the magic tower start to constrict my body.

‘Please calm down. You need to save Marian and Lister.’
With that thought, I forcibly suppress the rising anxiety and fear.

Barely holding back the tears that were about to spill and my trembling body, I started to assess the situation with a cool head.
‘When I was first attacked, magic definitely couldn’t be cast.’
As far as I know, to nullify someone else’s magic with magic, you need to be at least two levels above the target in skill.

That means among those who put me in this state, there’s someone whose skill surpasses mine… honestly, it’s hard to believe.
What I can say for certain is that they have a reason to keep me alive for now.
…Otherwise, they would have ended my life when they first allowed the attack.

‘Mana… is moving properly.’
Now my mana is properly activated. I’ll have to look for an opening to exploit their weakness.
“So you’re awake, you idiot Ariel.”
Just then, I heard someone speaking in front of me.
…Is it voice modulation? The voice sounds a bit comical. If I had to compare, it’s like speaking after inhaling helium from a balloon.

“Who are you? Where are Lister and Marian?”
“Get ready. Start.”
Following the assailant’s words that I couldn’t quite make out, familiar voices started to reach my ears. Those voices coming from both sides were…
“Kyaa~ Ariel. I’m scared. The bad guys kidnapped us!”
“Sa-save us…”
…Marian and Lister’s voices.

Hearing their voices, along with confusion, strangely, a sense of relief started to spread in my chest.
‘They didn’t betray me…’
But that relief was short-lived,
“Fufu. Did you hear that? If you use magic, I’ll do this to them…!”
“Ahn… Where are you touching? Mo…”

Along with the assailant’s words, I heard Lister’s pained moan.
“Take your hands off my friends! I won’t do anything, so. I’m your target, right?”
“You understand well.”
The assailant’s words sounded satisfied. Then the assailant spoke to me.
“Do you know why we kidnapped you here?”
“…How would I know?”

“Fufu. Of course, it’s to deal with all of you at once!”
“Kuh. Where are you touching, Mo… mmph.”
Immediately after, I heard Marian’s voice. Because my eyes are covered and I can’t see what’s happening, anxiety surges.
My plan to look for an opening to rescue Marian and Lister turned blank.

“Please… Please, stop!”
“Should I stop? It seems your comrades are that precious to you?”
“Yes…”
Of course. The people who warmly embraced my twisted self. They were my comrades.
“Are they that precious? More than your life?”
“If you’re going to kill me, then kill me. Just save Marian and Lister. Please.”

“Really?”
I begged the invisible assailant. To just kill me instead.
It bothers me that I won’t be able to see Saya and Puel grow up, but I believe they can live well even without me. They have Cherny too.
“Are they really that precious? Mona and Leon too?”
“Of course…”

After my answer, the assailant’s words stopped for a moment.
And the voice I heard next was not the ridiculous voice from earlier, but a familiar one.
“Th-then. Why did you leave us? It’s too much, Ariel. Were we that untrustworthy…?”
Huh? Is she crying?

“Idiot. Idiot Ariel.”
The assailant’s voice without voice modulation was so familiar that I could immediately recognize who it was.
“…Mona?”
Whatever was covering my eyes came down, and my blocked vision started to clear.

What came into my view then was a cake with lit candles, and a red-haired girl crying – Mona.
“What is this…”
It’s not just Mona. Leon with reddened eyes, and Marian and Lister sitting on both sides of me.
“It’s a bit embarrassing to hear it directly. To think Ariel thought of us like that.”
“It’s touching, Ariel.”

Looking closely, Marian and Lister were smiling contentedly, without a single scratch and in pristine condition.
Moreover, the place where I was looked like an ordinary home.
On the table placed in the center was a cake, and in one corner, several beautifully wrapped gift boxes were piled up.

“D-don’t tell me.”
“Sniff… Happy birthday, Ariel. And it’s been a while…”
The overly clumsy letter, the scene here now, and the other party members gathered.
All the elements connected in my head like pieces of a puzzle fitting together.
“Then, this was all a surprise? For my birthday?”

I didn’t notice at all. I didn’t even know today was my birthday.
…Because this world’s standard for counting years and months is similar but slightly different from Earth’s, I didn’t even try to count my birthday.
“I don’t know what ‘surprise’ means… but yes, this was a plan to celebrate your birthday. The mastermind is still crying over there though.”

At the end of Marian’s pointing finger was Mona, still sniffling.
“I-idiot. Ariel. You went to find Marian and Lister, but didn’t even contact us.”
“That’s right, Ariel. Maybe not as much as Mona, but I was a bit hurt too.”
…I have nothing to say. Honestly, I could have if I wanted to. I just kept putting it off because of various things happening.

There was also the concern that I might interfere with them dealing with the remnants of the Demon King’s army.
“I’m sorry.”
“Th-that’s, sniff, not it. What upset me was that you didn’t tell me even though such sad things happened to you.”
Sad things?

When I turned my head towards Marian, she was making a gesture of apology to me with both hands.
‘She told them. The reason why I left the party members.’
“I, I thought, we, could we really part so easily, sniff.”

Seeing her, who was always cheerful and mischievous, crying so sadly made my heart ache.
“…I’m sorry.”
“No… Leon. A tissue please.”
Pffft. After blowing her nose once, she wiped her tears and hugged me.

“Don’t leave on your own anymore. At least not without saying anything. Happy birthday, Ariel.”
“…I promise.”
“Well, well. The mood has gotten too gloomy, let’s eat the cake. If I’d known this would happen, I would have lit the candles later. Haha.”
Leon approached Mona with the cake, seemingly trying to lighten the mood.

On the cake he held, there was a message clumsily written in chocolate.
[Happy Birthday, Ariel.]
“Hm? Is Ariel crying too? Seems the crybaby Mona is contagious.”
“…Sniff. I’m not a crybaby. Marian, do you want to die…”

I’m not crying. It’s just some dust in my eyes.

After we all enjoyed the cake,
“Um, Ariel. My arms are getting sore…”
Mona and her accomplices were kneeling in front of me, being punished.
“Don’t lower your hands, Mona.”
“Hueeeng!”

I’m grateful, but punishment is punishment.
Do you know how worried I was? I’m angry.