Frieren: Understand Humans, Aura!

Here's the promised double chapter today...

C'mon, let's make it to 150 stones so I can release triple chapter today :D

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'How long has it been?' Time seemed to blur and stretch in the darkness of her consciousness. Seconds felt like hours, and hours felt like an eternity.

'Have I already reached heaven?' The thought crossed her mind, though it felt strangely detached. She had heard stories of what awaited on the other side, but none of them seemed to fit this endless void.

'Is the goddess in front of me, just waiting for me to open my eyes...' Her imagination conjured an ethereal figure, bathed in divine light, but the image flickered and faded into the dark.

"Am I dead?"

In the endless darkness of Flamme's consciousness, a speck of light finally appeared, and she began to think logically.

Her eyes barely opened, revealing a sliver of vision. The light was blinding at first, forcing her to squint, but gradually, shapes and colors started to form. She couldn't clearly see her surroundings, but it seemed like she was still in the forest, the familiar canopy of trees filtering the sunlight.

'It seemed like someone was treating my wound and my abdomen feel itchy.'

What was the last thing she remembered?

'Oh, Aura should have escaped by now. Although I wasn't much help, I thought I could stay conscious for at least thirty seconds, but I lost consciousness suddenly. It was like someone hit my head with a hammer...'

'Wait, why does the back of my head hurt so much? I dodged all of the demons' attacks aimed at my head, didn't I?'

'Oh, and the demons...' The realization hit her like a cold splash of water. The two great demons they had encountered—

'Did Aura defeat those two demons alone... Eh... The probability is not high, so I might have fallen into the hands of the demons.'

'What happens to humans who fall into the hands of demons? They usually get eaten... Will I be eaten too? Or have I already...'

"Am I being eaten right now?"

Flamme's eyes snapped open. She felt the presence of her limbs and a sharp pain in her abdomen, as if some wretched thing had reached inside and twisted her guts.

Looking down, she saw a demon with purple hair bent over her abdomen, head moving as if eating something, while the only cloth covering her body had been lifted. She could feel a tongue probing into her navel, sending shivers of disgust and panic through her body.

"Bastard!!!!"

Blood rushed to Flamme's head, and her eyes filled with bloodlust. Her survival instincts kicked in, overriding the pain and confusion.

"What are you doing to my body?!"

She reached out, but unexpectedly the staff was nearby. As soon as the object was taken away by magic, the staff immediately flashed back into the owner's hand.

Without hesitation, she aimed the staff at the purple-haired demon's head and unleashed an Offensive magic: Zoltraak which she learned from the first encounter with Aura. The air crackled with energy, the force of the spell a testament to her desperation and fury.

BOOM!!!

In her fury, Flamme's magical output was even greater than she anticipated, but even such a powerful blast only sent the purple-haired demon flying without causing serious harm. The force of the explosion echoed through the clearing, leaving a haze of smoke and dust hanging in the air.

When the smoke cleared, the purple-haired demon who was blown away not far away slowly stood up. A layer of translucent diamond-shaped shield that Flamme had never seen before protected the demon, and not a single drop of Zoltraak penetrated it.

"Damn it."

Flamme did not continue to attack at the first moment, but checked her body. Her clothes were taken off, but she was wrapped in a layer of red cloth, like a cloak. She recognized the material. It belonged to Aura. It seemed that Aura saved her.

Then she checked her body, unwrapping the red cloth from her abdomen. Seeing the numerous bite marks and blood stains from licking, she felt a chill down her spine.

"It was me who did it. Pretty good, right?"

The demon's voice came from the opposite side. Flamme looked up and saw that the purple-haired demon had removed the magic shield, revealing her face. It was a face with blood in her mouth, and she was licking her lips, looking extremely happy.

"So it was you who did it—"

Flamme's expression darkened as she clutched her abdomen. Thankfully, she had woken up in time, or else this demon would have eaten her alive. The thought of being consumed by such a creature filled her with revulsion and rage.

'Damn it, why was I alone when I lost consciousness... Wait, alone?'

Flamme's pupils dilated as the realization hit her. The horror of her predicament crashed over her like a wave, leaving her breathless and terrified.

'Where's Aura?!!'

'Where's Aura!!'

Looking around frantically, she didn't see Aura anywhere. The only trace of her was the red cloth wrapped around her body. Panic began to set in, her heart pounding in her chest. She could feel her pulse in her temples, each beat echoing her growing dread.

"Aura!"

"Aura!!!"

"Where are you?!"

She screamed into the forest, her voice cracking with desperation and tears. The thought of losing Aura, the one who had saved her, filled her with a crushing sense of helplessness. The echo of her cries seemed to mock her, emphasizing the silence that followed.

"I'm right here~~" came a voice from the demon.

Flamme's body stiffened as she turned around in disbelief.

The purple-haired demon was holding a half-broken mask to her face, wearing a mocking, cruel smile.

Flamme's body shook as she recognizing that the mask was Aura's personal item, and a chill spread from her spine from bottom to top.

BOOM!!!

Another powerful Zoltraak erupted, the diameter reaching two meters, tearing through the forest for kilometers and engulfing the entire area where Aura stood. The explosion echoed through the forest, sending shockwaves that uprooted trees and scattered debris.

Aura barely managed to survive by deploying a full defensive magic shield. She felt the force of the Zoltraak battering against her shield, straining her magic to its limits. Her breathing was ragged, and sweat dripped down her forehead as she struggled to maintain the barrier.

'Huh?'

'Why?'

Aura's eyes were dull and she didn't understand.

She had clearly done her best to be friendly, and wasn't her smile sweet enough? It was a smile she had crafted from data on thousands of human smiles that she had integrated to create the best way to stretch the facial muscles.

It was supposed to touch the human heart the most. She couldn't understand why Flamme was reacting with such hostility.

Aura forced another desperate smile at Flamme, but what she thought was a pleading smile only resulted in more fierce attack.

Flamme, is indeed a genius who has promoted the promotion of magic to the entire human race by her own efforts. After facing defensive magic only twice, she realized that it was not good at dealing with the characteristics of physical attack. She used Erdbebensto which is lifting the soil, hurling debris and heavy earth at the defensive shield, quickly creating cracks. The strategy was effective, exploiting the weaknesses in Aura's defenses and pushing her to the brink.

"Why are you making that mocking face? What did you do to Aura..."

"I saved you!!!" Aura screamed in frustration, her voice raw with desperation. The effort of maintaining her shield and defending herself was taking its toll. The frustration of not being understood, of her intentions being misinterpreted, was overwhelming.

She didn't understand what kind of bizarre creatures humans were! She had shown friendliness... She had smiled... She also had it, why did humans still regard her as an enemy? Could it be that she spent so much time imitating humans, but still couldn't eliminate the communication gap between humans and demons?!

"Who are you looking for? I am A-"

"Are you trying to say you're Aura?!!"

"...Don't I look like her?" Aura replied, her voice wavering slightly as she tried to maintain her composure. She hoped her appearance and the familiar red cloth would be enough to convince Flamme.

"Demons will say any lie to survive." Flamme's words were sharp, filled with distrust and contempt. She couldn't see past the demonic exterior to the person who had saved her life.

"..."

"Pah—what a shameless creature."

Flamme spat out a mouthful of blood foam in disgust, her eyes still fixed on the purple-haired demon, that weirdo who was like her best friend and teacher. She had already lost her once and must not lose her a second time.

If Aura really had been eaten by a demon while trying to save her...

Then what was the point of all her desperate magic training and spending all her time hunting demons? She was still constantly losing things—this fact hadn't changed at all, had it? 

The countless hours of grueling practice, the sleepless nights spent perfecting her spells, all seemed futile in the face of this loss.

Flamme's eyes filled with deep sadness. Even so, her hands still tightly gripped her magic staff. The anguish she felt was almost palpable, but it did not weaken her resolve. Her intent to kill remained undiminished, driven by a fierce determination to avenge her fallen best friend and teacher.

Her intent to kill remained undiminished.

"I've seen many demons who try to survive by pretending to be important humans. But you're the first one who can't even provide convincing proof of such a poor imitation!"

"…"

Shit!!

Aura's eyes widened, her heart full of unspoken words. The weight of misunderstanding was heavy on her chest, and she struggled to find the right words to convey her sincerity.

Why do I have to prove myself?