NOVEL NEXT Chapter 154
Whew!
In the eastern Alparion Empire, the desolate wasteland.
Chris stood alone on the vast land, her face filled with dissatisfaction.
“Where on earth have they been these days?”
[Protagonist ‘Drizzle Rain’ (busy with other matters)]
Even though she got off work early for the first time in a while, Rain didn’t greet her. He was busy gaming.
Chris logged into the game too. When she tried to message him to ask what he was up to, it turned out he was unavailable due to being busy with other matters.
Leaving a note for Rain, which could be sent to offline players, Chris let out a howl toward the horizon of the vast wasteland.
“Kaah! Just try showing up, you brat!”
What does she want to do?
Is she gonna do something to her little baby bird?
“Maybe just give her a little smack on the behind.”
Chris could only grumble.
*
Whew!
I nearly screamed when I saw Nagi’s tiny body engulfed in flames.
Sorry, Sister Chris.
Was this how you felt when you watched me fight?
Seeing a little one struggle through pain, and having no choice but to just watch.
I can’t save her. But I won’t close my eyes.
Nagi has to get through this.
Dungeons ahead are going to be full of these area-wide attacks.
I opened my eyes wide and watched Nagi’s every move to the end.
Phew!
Finally, the wyvern’s breath faded, and inside…
Nagi wore a slightly surprised expression.
She wasn’t burned. She wasn’t injured.
Without realizing it, I let out a loud cheer.
“Yay! Nagi! Great job! Now take care of the remaining little wyverns!”
“Hot!”
After a moment of being stunned, Nagi quickly regained her focus and dove toward the nearly defeated little wyverns.
Boom.
With the Black Wyvern finally down, Nagi sighed and collapsed on the ground, catching her breath.
“Hii, hii.”
Pitter-patter.
I quickly ran to Nagi.
And gave her a big hug.
“Oh.”
So soft.
With her tiny body, she really worked hard.
Nagi flinched for a moment in my embrace but soon calmed down.
“……?”
I tilted my head.
Nagi’s strange reaction.
She did this before.
When I saved her from danger during a trial, she didn’t react much, but it seemed like she was extremely awkward with physical contact.
Well, I hadn’t seen her with other people. She preferred the corners of dungeons where no one could see her.
A child avoiding people.
It’s almost like my own appearance before I met Chris.
Every time Nagi snuggled into my arms, she seemed awkward, as if wondering what this feeling was. But she definitely received it happily.
Maybe I am a weird case, but Nagi should be a normal girl.
Why would a girl at that age, who should be receiving love, feel awkward about others’ affection?
Could it be?
“Does Nagi not have family?”
“Yeah? Family? I have an older sister.”
“Ah… What!?”
I covered my mouth in shock.
What I was thinking burst out of my mouth.
“Sorry, sorry!”
“What for?”
With her light brown hair tilting, she looked puzzled. I didn’t have the mind to smile at her cute appearance. I hated myself for accidentally saying something that could hurt Nagi’s feelings.
Thump, thump, thump.
As I hit my head for a moment, I finally caught onto Nagi’s words.
She has a sister?
Her sister must be a really nice person.
Chris is like that, and all the older sisters I met in this continent were good people too.
When all the sisters disappeared and I was alone, hurt, I was somewhat like Nagi as well.
But since it had come to this, and confirmed that Nagi didn’t take it badly, I decided to ask her more about her family.
“Does your sister not hug you like this, like I do?”
“Umm….”
Nagi’s expression darkened a bit.
“Ah, if you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to.”
“My sister seems to dislike me.”
“Eh….”
I stared blankly.
All the sisters I met were good people.
But Nagi’s sister seemed a bit different.
“I get to see her once a week. But she just stares out the window without a word. And when I fall asleep, she disappears.”
“…….”
“She must be tired from work. I’m okay. I can understand.”
Nagi smiled brightly.
And she didn’t bring up the topic anymore.
I had many questions, but I couldn’t say anything.
*
Named Enemy, ‘Baron Statue’.
A boss with a combat area like a corridor, accompanied by a swarm monster known as ‘Knight Statue’ that was continuously added over time.
Nagi mastered the Knight Statue dribble in just a few tries. She absorbed my experience like a sponge.
Oooooo-!!
Boom.
The Baron Statue, having spent all its HP, crumbled into a pile of stones and fell.
“Yay~”
Nagi and I exchanged joyful high fives, grinning at each other.
And finally reached the Level 3 combat area.
Right now, in the middle of that circular dome surrounded by a massive lava lake, Nagi and the demon were engaged in their final battle.
Kaaaa-!
[Level 3 Named Enemy]
[Level 25 Sealed Demon]
[HP 117,050 / 500,000 (23%)]
Pah, pah, pah, pah!
Moonlight flickered around Nagi’s body. With a continuous flow of Nagi’s strikes, the demon’s HP quickly dwindled.
“Nagi fighting…!”
I clasped my hands and absorbed the scene of Nagi fighting into my eyes.
Her bright brown bobbed hair shimmered. Determined green eyes were firm. Her mouth, slightly open as she exhaled, was adorable.
Did Sister Chris always watch me like this?
Kaan! Drip, drip.
At the perfect moment, Nagi raised her sword to block the demon’s arm. But her lightweight body was pushed back. I could see her brow furrow.
Even though she blocked, a certain amount of damage still came through.
Indeed, the demon’s attack power is strong for its level, but even without the ‘just guard’ judgment on her blocking skill, if she blocks perfectly, the damage is manageable.
If she just avoids the quick ‘grab’ and the area-wide ‘magic orb’ patterns, that demon is practically a punching bag.
“Hup!”
Spin.
Swoosh!
Nagi’s sword sliced through the demon’s body, trailing the last moonlight.
Kaaaa-!
Boom!
The massive demon’s body lay sprawled on the ground.
Pitter-patter!
I ran to Nagi with a big smile.
“Awesome! Lesser Demon’s Tomb, all clear!”
“Wow…! That was tough!”
“You did so well! I think we cleared it even faster than when I did the first time!”
“Really?”
“Yup.”
This is actually true.
Of course, since I had a mentor who walked this path first and the performance of my invincible skill is better than before, but the actual combat was all Nagi’s doing. That’s a remarkable achievement.
A newbie soloing an elite dungeon? If this gets out in some community, it would be a major event.
Nagi cupped her cheeks with her hands, shaking her body side to side.
Was she embarrassed by the praise? Or just happy? Either way, her little movements were so cute.
“Good job, brave, adorable.”
I smiled brightly, softly murmuring, and kept petting Nagi’s head.
After sending Nagi off, I checked the time.
“Gah.”
It was already quite late. I hadn’t gained much experience today and had just played with Nagi all day.
And there was a message on my messenger.
[From Onmyoji ‘Chris’]
Sister got off work early, but Rain is gaming?
Seems you’re busy refusing messages.
You must be really swamped, huh?
I was lonely hunting alone again today.
Where are you and what are you doing?
I thought it’d be over soon and ordered chicken, but it’ll get cold.
Let’s eat together when you finish everything.
“Gah.”
I jumped up.
Chris’s anxious feelings came through the note.
What should I say in excuse?
I had been focused on hunting while showing my messenger status as ‘busy with other matters’?
But I didn’t even gain experience today?
If Chris hunted in the wasteland, she would have known my position as a guild member in the same area, but I was in another area at that time. She wouldn’t have found me.
What if my sister gets mad?
*
Whirr.
I quietly glanced around, wheeling myself into the kitchen.
The lights were off.
On the table, a chicken that looked like it had gone cold sat alone.
And.
“Gah!”
Flap!
If my legs were normal, I would have jumped in shock.
Chris was sitting in front of the table, blankly staring at it, with her sunken eyes, without even turning on the kitchen light.
Chris, with those unfocused eyes, looked at me and broke into a smile.
“Rain, let’s eat.”
“Yikes…!”
That’s not Sister Chris!
Something must have possessed her like a demon!
I’m sorry for what I did, but this is way too scary!
Desperately, I tried to maneuver my wheelchair to escape that terrifying dining hall.
Creeping.
But suddenly, the ‘demon Chris’ grabbed my wheelchair.
Tremble, tremble.
Unable to escape, I trembled in fear, facing those scary eyes.
What to do?
If my beloved sister has been possessed, how am I supposed to defeat this in this body?
This thing that looks like Chris smiled again.
“Rain, let’s eat.”
“Eep, eep.”
I whined like a child.