EP.15 Field Battle -5
EP.15 Field Battle -5
A hazy sensation.
It felt like my body was floating in midair, as though I were submerged underwater.
But I wasn't cold. The buoyant energy around me wrapped my body like a warm blanket.
Where the hell was this? The last thing I remembered was dragging that Divine Beast down with me.
Was this the so-called afterlife I'd only ever heard about?
"You'd be in a bit of a pickle if you thought you truly died, young human."
"Huh?"
A familiar voice came from behind me. I turned around, and a Divine Beast I'd seen before stood there with the kindly smile of a grandfather.
The Qilin Divine Beast I'd encountered once before, when I dreamed of being Miho.
He was the Divine Beast who had asked me to look after Miho.
"Ah, I'm sorry. I ended up dying first without keeping that request."
"Spare me such nonsense, please."
"But I got impaled by a massive horn. A human's definitely dead from that, even if a Divine Beast wouldn't be."
"Worry not. Your pierced body is safe and sound and alive right now."
"Huh? Is that true...?"
"Aye, right on the brink of death, the fox appeared and saved you."
"Miho did..."
So she woke up late and came.
She'd said she could catch my scent from over ten kilometers away, so it wasn't an unbelievable story.
Though the fact that she found me right as I was wandering the brink of death was still astonishing.
"Hearing that I'm alive puts my mind at ease."
"Well now, I'm glad you finally believe it."
"But anyway, why have you come to find me this time? To show me another dream about Miho?"
"That's not the business I've come for this time."
"Then?"
"I've come to make a contract with you."
"U-uh... I'm sorry, old-timer. No matter how broad my tastes are, old dudes are a bit... Besides, I'm heterosexual, too."
"Yah! You scoundrel! I don't have that kind of hobby myself!"
"B-but you just said you came to make a contract..."
"Not a Companion Contract, a Provisional Contract! Who said I came here wanting to become your Human Companion?!"
"Ah, ahaha! Sorry for the misunderstanding!"
Not even a day had passed since I'd made a Provisional Contract with Bicorn, and I'd already forgotten what a Provisional Contract was.
Man, this was embarrassing.
"But what's the reason you suddenly want to make a Provisional Contract with me?"
"Wouldn't you know the reason best yourself?"
"Because I'm weak."
"Indeed. I asked you to protect the fox, but regrettably, you were hopelessly weak."
"So since your request was a shameless one to make, you're looking to share your power with me, even now?"
"You seem to have forgotten how to phrase things delicately."
"Haha, sorry. I'm aware of how weak I am, but hearing it said outright still made a flash of anger spike up."
"I see. I'm sorry as well for putting it too bluntly. But don't let how weak you are get you too down. You bear the limitations of a human, so it's unavoidable."
There was an unavoidable gap between humans and Divine Beasts.
In this fight, that fact had been driven into my bones even more painfully.
Even the Taotie I barely managed to take down—bluntly speaking, I only killed it because of Yata and Baina's power.
If I'd been alone, I would've been brutally slaughtered without managing a thing, and that would've been it.
"At any rate, to narrow that gap, I've come back seeking you out."
"So you'll give me power through a Provisional Contract?"
"Indeed. I intend to give you a portion of my ability, but as you're aware, I can't give it for nothing, yes?"
"Of course."
That guy I'd met before had also obtained a part of a Divine Beast's power in exchange for offering up something precious of his own.
So to obtain power from a Divine Beast, it was only natural that I'd have to offer a corresponding price.
"But I'll ask that the price not affect my Divine Beasts, if at all possible."
"Worry not about that. I intend to take the price solely from you."
"Then that's a relief. So, can you tell me about the ability you'll grant me first?"
"Aye. I'm thinking of lending you the Power of Bonds."
"The Power of Bonds? What's that?"
"It's an ability that creates another connecting link between you and the Divine Beasts you've contracted with."
"Hmm... Sorry, but honestly, I'm not quite sure what you mean."
"To put it simply, you will become able to borrow a portion of the abilities from your Companion Divine Beasts."
So, did that mean I could create illusions like Miho, or see into the future like Yata?
If that was truly the case, it was an incredibly groundbreaking ability.
If I could borrow my Divine Beasts' power, I'd never be outmatched in a fight against other Divine Beasts going forward.
"However, it is only a portion of their abilities. The very act of containing a Divine Beast's power in a fragile human body is exceedingly reckless."
"That's fine, even if the abilities are weakened."
I'd been steadily researching something ever since I got my Companion Divine Beasts.
How to utilize my Divine Beasts' abilities to the maximum.
Since I couldn't directly help them out, I'd wanted to assist them at least in theory.
So I'd been brainstorming and researching their abilities in various ways every chance I got.
But no matter how much I deliberated and explored, the Divine Beasts' power always seemed to transcend my thinking with ease.
Especially Yata, since she'd look into the future like it was a cheat code and envision applications, which made researching pointless.
But if I could use weakened versions of their abilities myself, all that research so far would definitely shine.
"On the contrary, great!"
"I-is that so? Well, I'm glad the proposed terms are to your liking."
"Then, can you tell me what the price I must pay is?"
"Mm, before I tell you the price, there's one thing I need to ask you."
"What?"
"The price I will present from now on may be an exceedingly lethal condition for a human. Will that still be all right?"
Even if it was a portion, since I was gaining a Divine Beast's power, the price was bound to be great.
Moreover, I'd already made it clear in advance that I couldn't offer up my most precious things as the price.
In that case, all I had left to offer as the price was my body itself.
Grandpa Qilin had to be worried about that point, telling me it was fine to refuse if it came to it.
But through this fight, I'd learned painfully.
That no fight exists without a price, and just how selfish a thought it was to refuse to risk my life to kill an enemy...
These were facts I'd learned by bracing myself to die.
So it was the same now. I didn't mind however much he took. I would give up my body freely.
If only a day could come where I lived peacefully with my Companion Divine Beasts, then this body of mine... I would resolutely sacrifice it.
"I've already braced myself."
"Good. Then, the price you must offer is precisely..."
***
"A strong and mighty morning!"
The moment I awoke from the dream, I shot straight up from where I lay.
I'd heard from Qilin in the dream that I was alive.
Then my Divine Beasts were surely waiting anxiously for me to wake up, wracked with worry.
To relieve some small part of their worry, I'd gotten up somewhat forcedly.
But...
"No one's here...?"
My expectation had completely missed the mark.
...No, it didn't seem to have gone completely off the mark.
A faint but regular breathing sound came from my left. When I turned my head, Tia was sound asleep, clutching my left arm tightly.
The skin around her eyes was swollen to a faint red; it looked like she'd cried her heart out and fallen asleep from exhaustion.
If there was a reason Tia would've cried that hard... it couldn't have been anyone but me.
"I'm sorry, Tia."
I used my right hand to stroke the sleeping girl's hair.
Tia's hair was heavily tangled this way and that. She'd been so sad she couldn't even groom herself properly...
Once she woke up, I'd have to apologize properly and comfort her.
"A strong and mighty morning, dear husband."
"That voice... Yata? Yata! Are you oka—?"
I was happier than I'd ever been in any moment to reunite with her alive and well.
My heart soared immediately, and I smiled without realizing it, but the moment I saw her condition, the smile that had come out slipped right back in.
A puffy, swollen face. Here and there were bluish bruises, the kind you could tell were made from getting hit, not from crying.
"A-are you okay? What the hell happened? Did I maybe not finish off Taotie properly?!"
"Ahaha, don't worry. You took it down properly, dear husband. And I got hit because I put you in a life-threatening situation."
"That's too harsh. Want me to have a word with Miho?"
"Don't. It wasn't just the fox; I messed up so badly that I got scolded by Kor and Tia, too. You see this wound? This is a scratch from Tia."
"Even Tia got you..."
I understood everyone's feelings.
If it were me and someone else took a person precious to me behind my back and brought them back half-dead, I might go berserk.
But did Yata really have to get hit this much?
There must have been a reason she had to make this choice...
A future where everyone was fated to meet their deaths. Yata had simply made the best possible choice to erase that future.
It was an achievement worthy of praise, yet all that came back to her was the reproach of the other animals.
"Now that I've confirmed you're safe, I should get going. The fox ordered me barred from approaching you. For the sake of mending our relationship, I'd better follow it."
"Wait a moment, Yata."
I caught Yata's cheek as she was about to get up, as if caressing it.
Because I had to acknowledge her hard work. Because I had to commend her for doing her best.
And more than anything, because there was something I absolutely had to apologize to her for.
"Thank you. And I'm sorry I didn't keep my promise."
"Ah, as for that, it's fine. If I may add one hidden thing about that..."
"I know. You deliberately let Taotie capture you, right? Knowing I wouldn't abandon you."
"...Why do you think that?"
"Because the usual Yata would've tried to save me in a dashing way, not sacrifice herself. Even so, the reason you got caught was that I had to take down Taotie personally for us to reach the future you wanted. I'm right, aren't I?"
"I never imagined you'd have figured it all out..."
"I'm your Human Companion. When everyone else can't understand you, I'm the one who does."
"You understand me...?"
"Yeah, I'll understand you no matter what happens. So Yata, from now on, you don't have to struggle all by yourself..."
"Haha, that's too cruel... When you say it like that, I can't smile even if I want to...!"
Drip, drop. The crow's tears began falling little by little onto the floor.
Yata, who had always shown only a playful smile, was crying for the first time.
The emotion of a sadness so unbearable she burst the dam of her tear ducts. She had every right to feel it.
Because during this fight, the person who suffered most wasn't me, but her.
"Dear husband! I...! Hic...! Sniff...!"
"Thank you. For always working so hard for me."
Was being able to see the future really a good thing? At least, I didn't think so.
If there are futures you can tell to everyone, there are also futures you can't.
When staying silent leads to a better future, the one who has to guard that secret is bound to suffer.
The anguish of being a bystander, having to watch in silence while someone precious is in pain.
Tortured by a situation you want to help but can't, that would have continuously worn her down and tormented her.
She probably wanted to help more than anyone, but for the sake of the future, she couldn't.
If she'd known nothing at all, she could have at least lived settling for the present.
But Yata's ability and her fate didn't permit that.
Her fate must have endlessly threatened her, showing her the horrific ending and telling her to sacrifice her current self.
And yet, despite bearing such agony, Yata's efforts weren't even acknowledged by anyone else.
Because she knew the future, the pitiable crow had no choice but to be hated by everyone.
"Sniff, hic, sooob...!"
"It's okay. I, at least, know. How much pain you've endured, how much effort you've poured in. I know it all, and I'll never forget it, going forward."
"Dear husband...!"
Unable to contain the surge of sorrow welling up, Yata ended up stealing my lips.
The plaintive sulking of a crow. I decided to accept it all. And so I pulled her body into an embrace.
Yata's warmth brought the moment of our first meeting back to me without my bidding.
Our bizarre first encounter, stranger than fiction. She suddenly started calling me husband, stole my lips, went at it with the fox like mad...
It was nothing but chaos.
But as I moved forward into the future together with Yata, I came to realize it. How sincere and lovely her devotion was.
So I wanted Yata to know too.
That just as much as she thinks of me, I think of her as well...
With those feelings in my heart, I hugged her body even tighter.
***
"Are you calmed down now?"
"Yeah... Thank you, dear husband."
"Don't mention it."
After a long time spent on comfort and affection, Yata didn't stop grinning, her cheeks spreading wide.
It meant that this moment was so happy for her.
Thinking that way, my heart felt fulfilled as well, and I found myself smiling naturally too.
"I'd better get going soon."
"Huh? Isn't it okay to stay a bit longer?"
"No, the others are coming back. This face of mine... I don't want anyone but you to see it, dear husband."
"Is that so?... Then it can't be helped."
"Yeah, so I need to hurry and wash it away with the hot spring water. You should take care of yourself and rest well for a while, too, okay?"
"Sure."
"Oh, right! And about your current condition. It'd be best not to hide it and to tell everyone everything. Good luck with that!"
"Ah...! Yata, wait!"
Leaving only that last piece of advice behind, Yata dashed off as if fleeing.
All I could do was watch her back as it faded into the distance.
Because Yata's shoulders were trembling slightly...
I was certain that if I stopped her, the tear dam she'd barely managed to build up would come crashing down again. So I couldn't do something as crass as grabbing her.
"Sigh..."
Anyway, so she already knew. Though it'd be weirder if she didn't.
My current condition...
I blinked my left eye. I sniffed with my nose. I licked my lips lightly. I snapped my fingers next to my left ear. Lastly, I clenched and unclenched my left hand.
After going through that series of motions, my sentiment, regrettably, came down to a single dry conclusion...
Which was, 'I don't feel a thing.'