Flap Flap
The battle didn't last as long as I'd expected.
Not that the enemies were weak, of course. Aside from the syndicate members who'd just charged us, none of the others had even shown themselves.
I didn't fully understand the situation, but according to Cecilia, we were currently surrounded. Their plan, she said, was to isolate us and slowly bleed us dry.
The Level 5 healer was more capable than I'd expected — skilled enough that after partially sealing the hole in her own stomach, she could still tend to the wound on my back. Regrowing severed limbs was beyond her, of course.
"A-Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeees…"
The healer kept asking, as if the wounds I'd taken were worse than even I realized. In truth, a bizarre sensation of new flesh growing and knitting the wound closed was accompanied by agonizing pain — but I pretended it didn't hurt, hoping to look good in front of the pretty healer.
It hurts!
"Hmm…"
She tilted her head with a puzzled little sound, then focused back on healing my wound.
Do you know the sensation — and the pain — of something alien writhing and probing at a place where flesh has been torn away? And that alien sensation is, in fact, your own body growing back.
"Ugh… Uwaaah…"
I finally couldn't take it and thrashed my arms and legs wildly. Flap flap.
Cecilia, who'd been sitting quietly beside me, sighed and took one of my hands.
Wait — did she just smile a little? Laughing while her student is in agony? She's definitely a psycho.
Cecilia's warmth traveled through my hand, but the sensation at my back was so much stronger that I couldn't stop thrashing.
Flap flap. Flap flap.
Unfortunately, the healer said she needed to conserve her stamina, so she couldn't fully heal the wound. Apparently wounds this severe were hard to heal all at once anyway — they needed to be treated in stages over several days.
So I ended up wrapping bandages tightly around my back and putting clothes on over them. The tightly cinched bandages were stifling… but there was no helping it.
Before long, the moon hung high overhead and the hour grew late. Cecilia called everyone together.
"Alright… let's gather up for a bit."
I say "everyone," but the number was pitifully small. Me, Cecilia, the soldier with one arm gone, the pretty healer, and a lean-looking man holding a spear.
The spearman was supposedly an A-rank Awakener from Team B. His ability: high-speed movement.
Considering the assault teams A and B had totaled forty people, the fact that only five of us had survived was nothing short of despairing. And the support teams waiting in the rear weren't necessarily fine either.
Support Team A, which had been spread throughout the city, had probably been wiped out, and the remaining teams that had encircled the city were either already dead or still fighting. In other words, we couldn't count on reinforcements.
Ugh… I really hate this. Mudwell or whatever — I just want to go home, wash up, and sleep. Having Tania and Adel on either side of me would be even better.
"Haaaah…"
I let out a deep sigh, and Cecilia — who'd been quietly watching me — squeezed the hand she was holding. Her calloused hand was incredibly warm. Just holding it was enough to settle my heart.
Or maybe it wasn't that her hand was warm — maybe it was because she was beautiful.
After that, the others talked among themselves. They seemed to be putting together some kind of plan, but my head had been fuzzy for a while and I was in a strangely good mood…
So I just held Cecilia's hand tight and stared blankly up at the moon.
Looking at that pure white moon, Adel suddenly came to mind. Platinum hair and porcelain-white skin. Accessories like rings and necklaces that carried the color of moonlight.
Adel's ability was Moonlight Sculpting, wasn't it? I briefly imagined her appearing like a prince to come save me — but it was impossible. This city of Crineas was outside Lucia's sphere of influence.
Adel was the second daughter of the Moonlight family, the core of the Lucia Guild. If she acted rashly, it could cause real problems. She wouldn't even know I was here in the first place.
"Hmm-hmm-hmm~"
I hummed a little tune out of boredom, and suddenly everyone's eyes turned toward me. What?
Well, I suppose it isn't every day you see a beautiful girl like me humming under a moonlit night sky. They watched me for a moment, then got up and returned to where they'd been sitting.
Embarrassed, maybe? I can understand that.
Cecilia, who'd been holding my hand the whole time, came right up beside me and plopped down.
"The meeting's over. You weren't listening, were you?"
So they hadn't scattered out of embarrassment — the meeting had just ended.
"Uh… no."
Cecilia let out a wry little laugh, as if she couldn't believe it, and roughly ruffled my hair with her free hand. My already messy hair got even messier.
She let go of my hand and rummaged through her clothes, looking for something. Feeling a faint sense of loss, I looked down at my hand, still warm with her residual heat.
"I'll explain the plan for now."
She pulled a flat, thin silver case from her clothes and continued.
"Honestly, there's not much of a plan. They're definitely watching us from somewhere, so we might as well break through head-on all at once!"
Cecilia shook the silver case once and called out softly. Then she opened it and took out a single cigarette.
"Aw, this is the last one."
She clicked her tongue, tossed the case aside carelessly, and pulled a clearly expensive Dupont lighter from her pocket.
She put the cigarette between her lips, flicked her fingers to open the Dupont lighter's lid — a crisp clink rang out. She was about to bring the rising flame to the cigarette when she seemed to remember I was next to her and glanced at me.
I gave a small nod that it was fine, and only then did she light it. A soft hiss as it caught, and soon white smoke began to rise.
Normally I hated cigarettes, but because the person smoking was Cecilia, I didn't mind it much. Is it because she's beautiful? Even the way she smoked looked somehow sexy, and the cigarette smell felt fragrant — nothing like the cigarette smell you catch on the street.
I was staring blankly at her profile when Cecilia, sensing my gaze, looked back at me. She blinked a few times, then lifted the cigarette from her lips and held it out toward me slightly.
"Want a drag?"
A teacher offering her student a cigarette! Ah, wait — I'm an adult.
"I don't smoke."
"This isn't a cigarette, though?"
"Huh?"
She put it back between her lips and blew a little of the smoke she'd held toward me. I started to frown at the gesture — then realized the smell truly wasn't cigarette smoke, and my eyes went wide.
It was actually a refreshing scent. Just breathing in the smoke she'd exhaled cleared my head.
"…What is this?"
"Hmm~ Strictly speaking, it's mana herb? Some Awakener blends medicinal herbs to make custom tobacco that matches your order."
I asked for a calming effect for stress relief, she said, taking another drag.
Watching her made me want to try it myself, and I fidgeted my feet while still sitting.
"I… I want to try it once."
"Hmm~ This is the last one left, so it'd be a shame?"
Cecilia narrowed her eyes prettily and smiled gently.
"If I let you smoke it, what will you do for me?"
"Um… umm…"
What could I offer her? I had no money, nothing expensive. All I had right now was this one body… So I have no choice but to pay with my body?
"I'll give you a hug!"
I threw my arms wide open. But Cecilia's reaction was lukewarm.
"Whaat? What's so good about getting a hug from you?"
"Umm… it feels nice?"
"Hmm~ If you want me to feel good, that doesn't seem like enough?"
"Huh?"
"Never mind."
And with that, still holding the mana herb in her mouth, she pulled my open-armed body toward her.
"I'll settle for this for now."
She squeezed tight and hugged me firmly. It wasn't painful, but it was tight enough that I couldn't possibly escape with my own strength.
I'd meant to hug her, but she pulled me into her arms instead, and my face buried itself in Cecilia's chest. I thought it would be hard to breathe and stifling… but it was actually soft and nice. I wanted to fall asleep like that.
Even though Cecilia was the one holding me, I was the one who'd offered the hug — so I hugged her waist tightly right back, not to be outdone.
In her warm embrace, I could feel Cecilia's heartbeat. Thump. Thump. Was she feeling mine too?
I thought I heard her laugh softly above my head.
She held me like that for about a minute without saying a word, then let go. I held on about thirty seconds longer before relaxing my arms.
I was staring blankly at her face for a moment when Cecilia took one last drag and held the mana herb out to me.
I carefully accepted the half-burned mana herb and put it between my lips. Since Cecilia had been holding it until just now, the part between my lips was slightly moist.
The belated thought that this was an indirect kiss made my face burn, but to avoid showing any embarrassment, I bit down even more boldly. I could feel Cecilia's moisture gradually soaking into mine.
And when I carefully drew in a drag, refreshing smoke pushed into my body. The herbal scent swept through my lungs once, cleaning them out, and even cleared my fuzzy head. And my heart, which had been pounding restlessly ever since the fighting started, finally settled.
I coughed lightly from the unfamiliar smoke, then asked Cecilia:
"So when do we leave?"
Cecilia, who'd been watching me smoke the mana herb with a small smile, stood up and said:
"Now."