[Sound] rained down in a relentless barrage.
The witch's bombardment mercilessly slammed into the still-immature monster.
The creature shrieked, but the witch's attacks showed no sign of weakening.
Attack. Attack. Attack again.
At the sight of that almost overwhelming display, the sage's jaw hung open and refused to close.
"Was [Silence]... this strong?"
[Silence] Arphia. A Level 7 of Hera Familia, and the embodiment of talent that even the gods had been astonished by.
A warrior strong enough, as a Level 7, to trade blows with the Level 9 [Empress]. There was surely no one in this world who could call her weak.
And yet, even taking that into account, this was far too strange. Arphia had always been strong, but her weaknesses had been just as clear.
A congenital illness and the frail body it caused. That was both the reason she had reached Level 7 and the reason she could never go beyond it.
That was the Arphia Fels knew.
But now?
"Kieeeeeek?!?!"
The monster let out a pitiful scream under the witch's bombardment.
Under the merciless storm of [Sound], its body burst, crumpled, and shattered.
A bombardment born from a Mind so vast it might as well have been endless. The sound never once stopped as it ravaged the monster's body.
The blown-apart flesh restored itself in an instant. Thanks to its overwhelming recovery, it was crushed in a blink, then returned just as quickly.
And in the process, the mouths that had fallen away snapped their teeth and rushed at Arphia. The original Arphia would have blocked that attack with magic, but...
"It won't work."
"Eh...?"
She evaded with a fluid motion. When that was impossible, she deflected or brushed them aside with her gloved hands.
No matter how Fels looked at it, those movements were not those of a mage. No, before that, they were not the movements of a patient.
"Um... [Silence]. Were you always this strong?"
The sage's lone question drifted sadly through the air and vanished.
The witch, as if it were only natural, did not even glance his way, let alone answer.
"...Right. Arphia was always this kind of person."
So. Let's just accept it and move on.
Fels thought that to himself and forcibly convinced himself.
A single tear slid down the sage's heart.
Leaving Fels aside, Arphia herself was also quite shocked inwardly.
"Amazing."
It felt as if this were her body, and yet not her body at all.
Life had filled the miserable flesh that had been gnawed away by that detestable curse.
Had she ever felt this alive in her life? As far as Arphia could remember, there had never been a moment better than this.
Even when she cast magic or moved her body, all she felt was a pleasant fatigue accumulating. She felt none of the pain of death she had always known.
For the first time in her life, Arphia could truly feel that she was alive.
"But..."
But that did not mean the situation was good.
At first, she had been able to blow off an arm with a single attack, but now even dealing meaningful damage had become difficult.
Her firepower was lacking. She had stronger spells, but their range was far too wide.
Anyone other than herself and the rabbit would be vaporized by the aftermath alone.
She did not hesitate to kill gods. But it was also true that she had no suitable method.
Besides.
"...Tch."
Kagagagak—teeth and gauntlet collided, sparking in the air.
At the same time, she felt a chunk of her strength being shaved away.
Those teeth had been there from the beginning, so they were probably one of the monster's original abilities. It must have grown stronger by absorbing divine power, enough to affect Arphia herself.
She could feel the situation becoming increasingly unfavorable. If she delayed any longer, even responding would become difficult.
For a moment, hesitation crept in. A hesitation that asked whether she should stop holding back and crush the enemy with the resolve to self-destruct.
And that hesitation was...
Daaang—
With the ringing sound, it vanished just like that.
"Ais-san."
"...!"
I immediately kicked off the ground and moved to Ais-san's side.
Ais-san was startled by my sudden appearance. But unfortunately, I didn't have time to wait until she calmed down.
"Ais-san. Please help me."
"...Huh?"
Confusion flickered across Ais-san's face.
Well, anyone would react the same way if they heard it.
It was clearly a battle in the realm of the inhuman. In such a fight, a Level 1—no, before that, asking for the help of a child this young was just pathetic.
Besides, for me, this carried a deeper meaning.
"I don't need Ais Wallenstein's help!"
The resolve I had made when I first set out on my adventure. The will to stand on my own.
Ugly and embarrassing, but it was also the resolve that had brought me this far.
And now I was breaking it. I was bending my own resolve and stubbornness here.
Honestly, as a man with some pride, it was an uncomfortable thing to do.
It would be a lie to say I didn't want to save this young Ais-san in a cool way and look impressive instead of being helped by her.
Just as I had been saved back then, I wanted to save her too.
But I was still an awkward, lacking person, and there was very little I could do alone.
Receive someone's help, borrow their wisdom, share their courage, and move forward.
In the end, that was all I knew how to do.
And...
"Because the Ais-san in front of me..."
I had realized she was not the Ais Wallenstein I had admired back then.
So maybe it was fine. Even if I showed an embarrassing side of myself.
Maybe I could set aside something as troublesome as pride for a moment and speak honestly.
"I need your wind."
"Ah..."
"With your wind, I can win."
I looked straight at her without averting my eyes.
I knelt on one knee. I met her gaze. Like a knight making a vow, or a father looking at his daughter.
I threw away pride and pretense alike, and met her with nothing but sincerity.
Ais-san's eyes wavered.
"I'm too weak to beat that thing alone."
I wanted to show you only my cool side, but the world was so cruel it wouldn't let me.
Still.
"But if it's the two of us, we can win."
That still wasn't a reason to give up.
If one person couldn't do it, then two could.
I held out my hand. In it was a broken black dagger.
"So please. Lend me your strength."
Let's fight together. Let's end this nightmare together.
For the first time, something was given to the girl who had only ever lost things until now.
And the girl...
"...No."
"Huh?!"
The rabbit was stunned by the unexpected answer.
No, she said no now?
Even though he knew she wasn't the object of his admiration, the girl's refusal stabbed deeply into the rabbit's heart.
It was a critical hit. The rabbit's vision went dark.
"I don't like Ais-san..."
"Ah."
"I like Ais."
At the girl's words, the rabbit felt relieved.
Thank goodness...! She wasn't saying she hated me...!!
That thought flashed through his mind.
He laughed once at his own stupidity, once more at the girl's adorable request, and then faced her again.
"Ais. Help me."
"...Mm."
Hearing the changed way he addressed her, she blushed faintly and smiled. Then wind stirred around the girl's body.
Suddenly, the girl wondered whether she could forget what had happened back then.
"No."
She could never forget. Not the sorrow, not the lament, and not the despair.
That black wind from then would remain inside her forever and torment her.
But.
Still. It was all right now. Because she had realized she was not alone.
Surely, the wound would not disappear and had become a scar, but now she could move forward without being bound by it.
The girl's heart changed little by little. A little brighter. A little more radiant.
The seed planted today would surely bring about an outcome different from the one fate had decided.
And what that pointed to was—
Wind blew from the girl's body. Black currents gradually mixed into that wind.
The skill born from the girl's hatred responded to the monster before her. The wind began to howl, fierce and savage.
"Ah."
I could feel Ais's confusion. She was probably startled because this was not the outcome she had intended.
Fierce wind. In terms of sheer power, it was certainly formidable, but this was not a blessing—it was a curse.
Up until now, Ais had relied on this technique, but now it felt merciless. It was a power that destroyed everything regardless of her will.
Was this really all right? Worry named unease began to creep up in a corner of Ais's heart.
"[Firebolt]."
Flames surged from the broken dagger.
A blade of fire born from the rabbit's magic. Ais's wind mixed into that blade, forming dark red flames.
She felt a strange discomfort, as if she herself had sullied it. She did not like that black color.
"It's okay."
Perhaps sensing the girl's feelings, the rabbit smiled gently and said that.
Daaang—
And then. The great bell rang out.
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