For a few days, I was bedridden from the aftereffects of activating the blessing.
And for several days, I sailed toward Laxia.
During that ti, I worked hard to learn the communication thods of the Demonic Race.
The aftereffects of the blessing, which had left bedridden, were now barely noticeable, so I had no trouble moving my body, but it still faintly scratched at my nerves.
Also, the fact that I couldn’t communicate properly was starting to beco frustrating.
As a result, I was able to reach a satisfactory level.
Though I still couldn’t understand the entire conversation, I could grasp the gist of what was being said.
For example, if soone said, “The apples are really cheap and tasty,” what I’d understand would be, “Apple, cheap, tasty.”
The information was fragnted and disconnected, but…
‘Because the intent was so directly conveyed, it was enough to understand the aning.’
So, it was sotis easier to comprehend than through conversation.
As long as I had enough vocabulary to read between the lines of these fragnts, I could piece things together.
Even for soone like , who lived far from any sort of formal education, I had enough vocabulary for that.
There were still tis when I couldn’t fully understand, and monts when my words weren’t properly conveyed, but I knew I would improve over ti, so I wasn’t too worried.
“Is this… an attack?”
That’s why I could understand when Celine spoke with a devastated expression as she looked at the corpses.
“No.”
I approached one of the bodies sprawled on the beach.
Although it had started to decay, it was still in good enough shape that I could estimate the cause of death.
“There aren’t any big wounds, so I don’t think it’s that.”
The other bodies I saw seed similar.
There were so small wounds, but nothing severe enough to be the cause of death.
“Ugh…!”
Da-eun kept retching.
Well, it wasn’t surprising since, as an Earthling, Da-eun likely hadn’t seen such sights before.
Unless she lived in a conflict zone, which I doubted.
Celine, though not as shaken as Da-eun, was clearly disturbed as well.
“If it wasn’t an attack, then why… are there so many bodies…?”
“No idea.”
Just like them, I had only just arrived at the scene.
“That’s sothing we’ll have to figure out.”
Why did they die?
And why were the bodies left here unattended?
‘…Do the Demonic Race not have funeral customs?’
But then again, I’d seen Artisha running around tirelessly, collecting the bodies.
The more I thought about it, the more it felt like I was getting lost in a maze, so I stopped pondering for a mont.
anwhile, Da-eun, who had barely stopped her dry heaving, staggered over.
“Ugh… Kana, are you okay…?”
“I’m used to it.”
It wasn’t the first ti I’d seen a decaying body. I had seen them often enough growing up, so it would be ridiculous to act squeamish over a few bodies.
I’d seen far worse than this.
Besides, after fighting in battles, if I were to act like Da-eun and start retching now, those I killed would laugh at from beyond the grave.
“…”
I didn’t regret killing them because if I hadn’t, I would have died.
Still, there were monts when I wondered what it would’ve been like if I had followed my father’s advice and lived a peaceful life.
Of course, even if I could go back, I would likely make the sa choices. But, it’s okay to wonder, right?
I exhaled briefly and turned around.
I saw Celine, closing her eyes and offering prayers for the dead, and Da-eun, pale-faced.
Noticing the significantly brighter glow from Da-eun’s ring than before, I said,
“We don’t have ti. Let’s go.”
It’s sad, but we can’t afford to stay here and mourn forever.
That’s not why we ca all the way from the distant eastern shore.
Whether I wanted to or not, if we headed to the center, we’d uncover the truth.
According to Artisha, there seed to be so Demonic Race mbers still alive there.
“Ugh, yeah…”
“…”
I looked up worriedly at Da-eun, who was murmuring absentmindedly like soone half out of it.
Would she be okay…?
I brought her along because of my selfishness, but seeing how uneasy she seed, I began to wonder if I should’ve left her behind.
“Should I send her back now?”
Even though Artisha’s boat had already drifted far away, we could still catch up if we tried.
Of course, we wouldn’t be able to catch up using the small boat we had switched to, so I’d have to put in so effort.
“No! I’m really fine!”
“…Really?”
“Of course! Totally fine! Can’t you see these bulky muscles?”
“I don’t see anything.”
“What? After all the hard work I put into exercising? Look, Kana! Take a good look.”
“If you win an arm-wrestling match with , I’ll admit it.”
“I’m just soft, boneless at. Please enjoy … Ow, ow, ow! Did you actually bite ?! Did you really bite?!”
Da-eun hastily pulled her arm away.
Her pale arm, which she had proudly shown off earlier, was now marked with a clear bite mark.
I wiped my mouth casually, as if nothing had happened, and calmly said,
“…You told to enjoy you.”
“I was just joking! Who takes that seriously?!”
“Well, here I am.”
“Why is it that you only listen well at tis like this, when you ignore every other ti?!”
“Isn’t it better to start listening now?”
“I an, you’re not wrong, but…”
Da-eun, who had been nodding as if agreeing, suddenly sharpened her gaze.
“You’re not really like that, Kana!”
“Buuu-”
“This brat!”
Da-eun grabbed both my cheeks and squished them.
If anyone were to see now, they’d probably think my protruding lips made look like a fish.
“Haha, you look like a fish. So cute.”
Of course.
Celine chuckled softly, expressing a sentint similar to what I had just thought.
“Buuu-”
I almost spat at her.
But for so reason, I had a bad feeling, so I held back.
It felt like I’d see the worst of humanity if I didn’t…
Anyway, it seed like the tension had eased, which was a relief.
Da-eun probably didn’t realize how much I was considering her feelings.
‘I should be the bigger person as an adult.’
Yes, exactly.
“…Your gaze seems a bit disrespectful.”
“Buuu?”
“Sigh… What am I even saying to a kid…”
“I can hear you.”
“I wanted you to hear it.”
Da-eun pinched my squished cheeks lightly before letting go.
Thanks to my new communication skills, I could now sowhat understand what Da-eun was saying as well.
“Falling for soone is a cri… What? A lolicon? Hey! Do you think falling for soone only has that aning? It can also an a pure feeling of being drawn to soone! I don’t care. Ban anyone talking about polar bears or whatever!”
Unlike with Celine, even though I understood Da-eun’s words, I still didn’t fully get them.
…Polar bears? Why bring up polar bears all of a sudden?
The polar bear I rember is a bear that lives in the Arctic, but is there another kind?
“I don’t know…”
It wasn’t just Da-eun’s words I didn’t understand; I also ant the path we had to take ahead.
Seeing how I felt more unfamiliar than close to Da-eun, who is from the sa world as , I guess I’m more of a Silia person than an Earthling.
Even if there are mories that the fierce vortex between dinsions and the harsh experiences couldn’t erase.
“…We still have so ti.”
I’ll think about it when the ti cos. When the ti cos.
“Rest in peace…”
With Celine’s solemn farewell as the last gesture, we left the coastline littered with corpses behind.
Celine seed troubled by leaving the bodies as they were, but she didn’t insist on burying them before we went.
Instead, she promised to take care of it on her way back to the Ardina Continent.
As Artisha said, we followed the paved road and headed toward the center of Laxia.
We walked for a while.
“…”
“…”
“…”
The state of the road was far from good, to say the least.
The stone pavent, whose laying date was a mystery, was cracked and uneven in places, and blackened bushes or debris frequently blocked the path.
One thing was clear—it wasn’t much help for walking.
When you think about how roads are supposed to make travel easier, it wasn’t doing a great job.
‘Still, I guess it’s better than nothing.’
“Whoa?!”
It seed like Da-eun disagreed with my thoughts because, almost imdiately, she stumbled over a protruding stone.
I quickly caught her by the waist to prevent her from falling.
“Be careful.”
“Th-thanks.”
Leaving Da-eun, who was patting her chest in relief, I looked around.
“It’s stuffy.”
“Huh? You’re talking about ?”
“No. The air.”
“Whew, I thought you were calling stuffy…”
“Well, you can be a bit stuffy.”
“What?!”
But this ti, I wasn’t talking about Da-eun; I was referring to the heavy, oppressive air around us.
Even the simple act of walking took more effort than it should, thanks to the magi surrounding us.
I don’t know how big Laxia is, but if they call it a continent rather than an island, it probably isn’t small.
If it’s already like this now, how much worse will it be in the center?
“I still don’t see anyone.”
“Only corpses.”
“Y-yeah…”
Though not as many as we saw on the beach, we occasionally ca across cold, lifeless bodies as we walked along the road.
“Were these people also heading toward the sea like the others?”
“Maybe.”
I half-heartedly agreed with Da-eun’s words as I drew my sword.
To deal with the monster that was growling as it approached from a distance.
“Don’t bother .”
Screech!
The monster, still clinging to life in Laxia, was quite resilient, but that was as far as it went.
The beast, which had bared its teeth so ferociously, soon fell into the eternal silence of death after being struck by my sword energy.
What kind of creature had that been before it turned into a monster?
Judging by the horns, it might’ve been a cow.
After dealing with a few more monsters along the road, Da-eun nervously spoke up.
“K-Kana, why didn’t you tell to fight this ti?”
Ah.
So that’s why she kept fidgeting, gripping and releasing her sword and stepping back and forth. She must have been expecting to tell her to fight.
“The monsters here are pretty tough.”
The one that appeared just now was sothing Da-eun could probably beat if she gave it her all.
But if she wastes her energy and ends up poisoned by magi, that would be a disaster.
With the fuse of the magi bomb burning away with every second, there was no room for carelessness.
And lastly—
“I said I’d protect you here, didn’t I?”
“Kana…!”
I’m just keeping my promise.
So, there’s no need to look at with such a moved expression.
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