Volume 4 Chapter 41-2 The Rotting Dragon’s Flame and the Shield of Kindness
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
No eyes, but I can feel its gaze.
Can’t sense any emotion.
Just… cold.
Yet that stare… it feels like death.
I break out in goosebumps.
The zombie dragon opens its maw.
In the back of its throat, I see something glowing.
”Lifia!”
”Mooluumve, Air Domus!”
I shout, and Lifia responds instantly.
She deploys a defensive magic.
A wall of wind envelops us.
Right after, the zombie dragon breathes fire.
A scorching stream engulfs us.
The flames are held back by the wind wall, but…
The surrounding area gets mercilessly incinerated.
Trees burst into flames, and the dry earth sizzles with heat.
Even though the flames are kept at bay, the radiant heat starts to burn us slowly.
”No choice! Fall back!”
We can’t hold out like this.
And with the flames all around, there’s no escape.
But that’s not a problem for me.
I activate my skill, ‘Love Hotel.’
A door pops out of nowhere.
Like it’s sprouting from the ground.
We dash inside without hesitation.
Lifia, Yomi, Kéa, everyone jumps in, and I follow last.
The moment the door shuts, the world changes.
This is the Love Hotel.
A cool, safe space, far from the dragon’s flames.
The fire may be raging on the other side of the wall, but here, it’s irrelevant.
No one can get in.
”Phew, that was… too close.”
I wipe the sweat from my brow and catch my breath.
But it’s not over.
The dragon zombie’s regeneration speed, and the power of its breath…
That was unexpected.
And we still don’t know what they really are.
The fight continues.
”Should we rest a bit?”
I say, heading to the fridge inside.
Might as well grab a drink and take a short break.
I sit down and start to open a can when…
”Yomi”
Lifia calls out Yomi’s name quietly.
There’s a chill in her voice.
”You let that magic slip on purpose, didn’t you?”
”────!”
Yomi flinches, her shoulders jumping.
The color drains from her face.
”Uh… that was…”
Yomi stammers, her gaze wandering.
Far from her usual composed self, she’s clearly shaken.
I replay the scene in my mind.
Yomi’s light ray magic, aimed right at the black-clad enemy, only hit his shoulder.
The power was there, but it missed the mark.
No fatal blow.
The guy just jumped back, regaining his stance.
Was that a sloppy shot, or did she hold back on purpose?
Lifia’s gaze is locked on Yomi, steady and straight.
Just like that.
With her Spirit Magic, she can see through emotions, tell truth from lies.
If she says it’s so, it probably is.
”Sorry…”
The whispered word, an apology.
”…I think, back then, I could’ve killed him. If I really wanted to… A head shot, a heart shot, I could’ve made it.”
Yomi’s voice trembles as she watches her own quivering hand.
”But… I couldn’t. I was scared. They might not be human… but they could be. Shooting someone, it’s terrifying.”
Well, sure.
She was just a safe, ordinary student from Japan.
Thrown into another world, fighting monsters, survival of the fittest…
and on top of that, being told to “kill a human”?
No way she could do it.
I’m no different.
Killing people, you don’t get used to it.
You shouldn’t.
It’s not something you feel good about.
If anything, wanting to avoid it all costs, that’s normal.
”I don’t mean to hold us back! I’ll aim right next time, so…”
The girl’s voice shakes, fear and uncertainty in her eyes.
”…don’t give up on me.”
Her voice so small.
I gently embrace Yomi.
For a moment, her body tenses up.
She feels so fragile, like if I hold her too tight, she might break.
”You don’t have to push yourself.”
I choose my words carefully, speaking slowly.
”We’re fighting to survive right now. But that doesn’t mean we have to throw everything away. If we can stay strong and keep our kindness to protect someone, that’s the best way.”
”But I… like this, I’m just dead weight…”
Her voice barely a whisper.
Still, she’s trying to face forward, in her own way.
I smile to reassure her, continuing to weave my words gently.
”It’s okay, you’ll get the hang of it bit by bit. You don’t have to do it all now.”
”…Yeah, thanks.”
Yomi nodded softly in my chest.
”Heh…”
Suddenly, a faint giggle slipped in from the side.
Turning, I saw Lifia smiling gently at me.
”I understand. If Master says so, I have nothing more to say. This time, there was no helping it.”
”Since there’s no choice, we’ll support you ourselves!”
”Mm… thanks.”
At Lifia and Kéa’s words, Yomi finally lifted her head.
Rubbing her reddened eyes, she whispered a small word of thanks.
I patted my chest too.
Her voice still trembled with uncertainty.
But I could feel her determination to take one step forward.
For now, this was enough.
Is this being too soft?
Maybe I’m too lenient with my girls.
Will this leniency become a fatal flaw later?
I don’t know.
But right now, I just wanted to hold her close.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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