episode_0046

* * *

“Irene… … As I said… … Irene… … .”

“Swen!!!”

Irene called Swen’s name several times.

He was unconscious and made no reply.

“No… … What on earth is this, Swen!! Answer me! Come to your senses!”

No matter how many times I grabbed him and shook him, there was no answer.

Irene couldn’t figure out what was happening right now.

I asked them to build an altar, so I built it for them, and I made a drum, and I asked them to make it for me.

It was true that Swen trusted me even when he did something strange.

but… … The result is-

I had no idea that it would result in a burning stone suddenly falling from the sky.

‘how… … ‘What did you do?’

Swen said, ‘There is a need to communicate with heaven.’

They said something like three stars disappeared.

I don’t know what she said at first, but the Swen she had seen was always a man with strange insight.

So, everything he did was definitely meaningful.

The result… …

Couldn’t they have done something to make rocks fall from the sky?

then.

What on earth did Swen do to lose consciousness right away?

If you think about it a little, you can easily deduce it.

Even though Irene had absolutely no knowledge of this mysterious power, she knew that it took a lot of energy to make a rock that size fall from the sky.

no.

At this scale, it would not be the extent of ‘energy’ being consumed.

no way… …

‘Life… … Put it on… … ‘Did you do it?’

If you think about it, it was natural.

It would have been even more strange to say that they didn’t risk their lives to cause such an absurd miracle.

why?

As soon as she thought of the question ‘Why’, what Swen had been saying to her all along flashed through her mind.

It’s called “Swen. As of today, we are hosting Lynn Brans. My lord said, He has ordered me to live here as a roommate for the time being.”

that’s right. That’s how we met.

Although our encounter was never a pleasant one, he was always there to support us.

“What are you saying? If it’s okay with Irene, I’d like to live with Irene forever.”

Even though he was caught up in my master’s affairs, instead of getting angry, he comforted me.

“It’s okay. Getting to know Irene is a wonderful thing for me.”

He was a really kind person. So much so that even when I talk about something serious, he listens to it all without showing any signs of it.

“Irene… … I’m so glad you’re safe.”

He was truly worried about me when no one else in this country was worried about me.

“The person I want to protect in this country is Irene.”

He was the person who said, ‘I want to protect’ me, who was born to protect and was deprived of even the ability to protect.

His kindness was too sweet for her.

“Irene… … As I said… … Irene… … .”

And at this moment… … .

For me, he protested and risked his life to create a miracle.

I’m making a contribution… … Because I want to prove that what I said is right.

“… … Swen.”

Tears began to flow from Irene’s eyes.

She soon fell into Swen’s face and began to sob.

“Don’t die, Swen… … do not die… … .”

My heart ached.

Someone who believed in me, told me I was right, cared about me, and wanted to protect me.

He who had lived his whole life protecting someone – was actually unable to protect the person who said so.

if.

If this man dies, what will happen to me?

Just when I was about to break free from the constraints of the Brans family and move forward-

What if you lose the man who freed you from that bind?

“… … no… … !”

You can never lose it.

I won’t let you die.

Iren shouted at the nearest soldier.

“Call the doctor right now!”

There will be a doctor in the fortress who will take care of the wounded soldiers along with him.

“Doctor… … What do you mean?”

“Hurry!”

In response to Iren’s urgent cries, the soldier loudly answered that he understood and quickly ran away somewhere.

Even from the soldier’s perspective, he would have been very surprised.

Irene, who I thought would lead everyone with dignity for the rest of her life, was crying like a child.

But for Irene, now was not the time to save face.

She quickly checked Swen’s current situation.

Although he was unconscious… … He was breathing slightly.

Since I didn’t know exactly how much strain the act of communicating with the sky would have put on my body, I had to hurry even more.

‘I will never let you die… … !’

It was this moment.

It was a clear admission that I had been abandoned by the person I wanted to protect my whole life.

It was okay.

It’s not him anymore… … Because I wanted to protect others.

‘I, you… … I will definitely watch… … !’

The target protected by Irene Juliet’s sword has changed.

A miracle that had never happened in any other world line was just happening.

* * *

When I came to my senses, I found myself wandering down a familiar alley again.

Between alleys of various buildings with blue roofs and white walls.

However, I didn’t dislike this hesitation that much.

The wind I felt was refreshing, the sky was blue and warm, and crucially, it was because she was next to me.

While I know who she is-

I couldn’t really figure out who she was.

I wondered what this meant, but for some reason, rather than questioning it, I ended up thinking about how it was supposed to be.

Just as things fall from above and fall, and when the sun sets and the moon rises, it becomes night.

I hold her hand and walk through the alleys here and there.

Although I didn’t encounter a single person in the alleys, I felt more comfortable than curious.

Well, how long has it been since I walked around alone with her like this?

Turn your head and look to the side.

She was looking at me and smiling.

Blonde hair that shines coldly, and golden eyes that sparkle even brighter than the blonde hair, so dazzling that it makes you think they were filled with stars from the night sky… … .

okay. This time.

This time I can spend with her… … .

That moment.

The floor I was standing on collapsed.

He lost her hand and began to fall infinitely downwards.

And, consciousness fades.

*

“… … Ah.”

Consciousness returns.

After about 30 seconds, I feel my heart beating, and the smell of furniture in the air tickles my nose, and only then do I recognize it.

Ah, this was a dream.

That dream. This is the exact dream I had when I first slept at Irene’s house.

“… … .”

I slowly raised my hand and touched the area around my eyes.

It’s tears.

I don’t know why I cried… … Was I crying?

no.

Because I had just woken up, the contents of the dream were still vivid.

I don’t think it was sad content.

With a woman I met for the first time… … It felt like a dream, walking through a neighborhood I had never seen before.

I even remember the blonde hair… … I don’t remember anything else.

Is the experience in a dream something that quickly volatilizes?

Instead of the memories of a fading dream, what filled my mind was vivid reality.

I was now lying in an old bed.

This ceiling… … I think I understand. It seemed to be the ceiling of the fortress guarding the fortress.

It is directly connected to the conference room, and when Kalinz is not there, Miguel is there. When even that wasn’t available, Irene used it.

Only then did the memories from before I lost consciousness slowly return.

When I saw the meteorite that hit Serpina-kun directly, I lost my mind.

okay… … meteor.

A meteorite fell.

I never thought a meteorite would fall.

In fact, there was one blind spot in this plan to ‘make people think I caused the natural disaster’.

If you can summon lightning with a spell, doesn’t that mean you’re a wizard?

Although they made a big show of building an altar and beating drums to make it not look like magic, in any case, making lightning strike the ground is exactly the same as the magician in legend.

Being misunderstood as a wizard caused a lot of annoyances… … First of all, we had to make the enemy run away, and since they told us to ‘stand in a visible place’, we just followed that.

but.

Meteorites are different.

There is no wizard in this world who uses something like this.

In the latter part of the game, wizards who appeared on the continent with the talent to detect mana used typical but obvious magic such as fire magic, lightning magic, and earth-shaking magic –

Because no one used ignorant magic reminiscent of Meteor.

At the time, I was wondering if I had done something so outrageous that I felt uncomfortable being mistaken for a wizard.

Only then did I feel something pressing on my knee.

“… … Tskcha.”

I lightly braced my back and sat down on the bed.

Only then did I realize what was pressing on my knees.

“… … .”

Irene, who was sitting in the chair, was asleep with her head on my lap.

The sunlight shining down on the side of her face created a very peaceful atmosphere.

On the small table next to her were the dishes from the meal she had apparently eaten, as well as various medicinal herbs used in this world.

Did he continue to nurse me by my side?

“Irene.”

“… … .”

“Irene.”

I called her name a few more times, and she twitched on my lap for a moment… …

I slowly raised my head.

“… … eww… … hmm… … ?”

“Irene. Are you awake?”

She looked a little dazed, turned her head and looked at me.

The pupils of her eyes widened slightly.

“… … Swen?”

“Yes.”

When she saw me, she looked at me, speechless, for a moment, and then—

Soon, a single tear flows down from the large purple eyes.

“Swen… … Are you coming to your senses?”

“Yes. Anyway.”

“Swen… … !!”

She seemed to have exploded with emotion and hugged me tightly.

“Swen… … thank god… … I’m glad you’re awake, Swen… … !”

She spoke half in tears as if pleading with me.

At this point, I realized two new things.

The first was that for some reason I wasn’t wearing a top right now.

Because I felt her tears flowing down my body.

And secondly, she wasn’t wearing any armor either.

Thanks to this, I felt her soft body and warm body temperature even more vividly.

“I’m fine. however… … The fortress… … What happened to Serpina?”

“You protected it. Swen. In a battle no one said you could win, you did it… … As you push yourself like this… … .”

“Is it too much?”

Iren looked up at me and nodded.

There was something resembling guilt on his face that I had forced this man to do something unreasonable.

“For me… … To prove that I was right, I overexerted myself… … This is what you did, right? so… … Have you lost your mind? Because I risked my life… … .”

“… … Yes?”

“Well, if you don’t risk your life… … Because something like this can’t happen… … .”

???

I think I’m misunderstanding something.

Did you say that when you don’t understand the other person’s actions, you should have a dismissive attitude?

I quickly put myself in Irene’s shoes.

What did I look like in her eyes?

First, he says nonsense like ‘I will communicate with the sky’ and ‘Three stars have fallen’, then suddenly builds an altar and mutters something strange.

He then coaxed him to make a drum and had the soldiers beat it.

On the day of the battle, he performed a strange performance and shouted “Sky!!” like a madman, and soon a meteorite fell from the sky.

After the meteorite falls, he immediately loses consciousness and faints for some reason.

‘… … ah.’

In an instant, I realized why Irene was talking about her life.

It must have looked like the electricity was discharged after summoning a meteorite.

I think I just passed out at the right time because I was nervous because my force level – that is, my base health – was low.

If someone witnessed something like that without prior knowledge, it would seem like they risked their lives.

It might have been a lightning strike, but it was a meteorite. It was enough to make me think, ‘I have to risk my life.’

“Because of me… … Sorry… … Swen, risking your life for me… … Please don’t do it again… … .”

Irene had abandoned her usual somewhat dignified tone and was crying, clinging to me.

When I saw that, something warmed my heart.

I reached out my hand and stroked her head.

“Irene. I am okay. I didn’t risk my life. It’s okay.”

“Lie… … fool… … Don’t lie, Swen… … .”

“… … .”

I looked down at Irene, who was trembling.

what.

There is no need to persuade me now.

Instead of saying anything more, I hugged her tighter.

The miracle I caused wasn’t something like summoning a meteorite.

That was – I saved Irene from Lin.

The fact that I succeeded in protecting the people I wanted to protect in Brans County was much more important than that right now.

So, just a little more.

It wouldn’t be a bad idea to feel her body temperature… … .

* * *

As I was regaining stability in bed, an unexpected face appeared.

“Oh! Swen! I heard you came to your senses!”

‘… … uh?’

A face I’ve seen before, a man’s voice I’ve heard.

A handsome man with blue hair, the fortress commander who led the construction of this fortress, and one of the main generals of the Brans army.

“Carlinz… … ?”

“Hmm! Yes, Swen! I’m so glad you came to your senses!”

I blinked and looked at the man.

Why on earth is this guy here?