Academy (13)
The moment the Death Knight's head was severed, its formidable body and seemingly impenetrable armor crumbled away. Not only that — the undead thrashing about nearby began to collapse as well.
And the miasma that had blanketed the village gradually dispersed.
"Father…!"
Investigator Liza shot to her feet and rushed to the crumbling Death Knight's side. I started to stop her, thinking it was dangerous, then held back. The Death Knight was already dead. And with the Young Master and my older sister there, she would be fine….
Investigator Liza clung to the Death Knight's corpse as it turned to dust and began to weep.
Did he stop in that moment because he saw his daughter…?
I knew that undead could be influenced by memories from life. That was how high-ranking undead could wield swordsmanship and move with tactical intent. Even so, I'd always understood that their grudge against the living outweighed everything else, rendering those memories largely meaningless… I shook my head.
Nothing would change just because I fretted over it….
"Sister Mary… will she be all right?"
I shifted slightly and checked on Sister Mary's condition. Her complexion was still deathly pale. I used Holy Magic on her again, but it didn't seem to have any effect.
I decided that once things settled down roughly, I'd gather the fallen Sister Mary and our belongings and get us out of the graveyard.
After a long bout of tears, Investigator Liza said she would build a grave for the others using their remaining keepsakes. I offered to help, but she said she wanted to do it alone, so I stepped back for the time being.
I told her to shout if any monsters showed up, so it should be fine, right?
We left the village, found a suitable spot, pitched the tent and laid out the sleeping bags, then settled Sister Mary down.
"I have no idea what kind of Holy Magic she used to end up in this state…."
"Even so, her color has improved quite a bit."
Once we laid her in a sleeping bag and warmed her body, her complexion did start to return.
"That was a hard fight…."
The Young Master flopped onto his back, clearly exhausted.
"You looked like you had it under control. Was that not the case?"
"I had no leeway at all. That final sword strike, especially — it nearly stopped my heart."
So he hadn't been at ease after all…. I closed my eyes and checked my own condition. I'd used a great deal of magic and Holy Magic myself, and my remaining Holy Power was low.
About… three-tenths left? Damn, I really do have an absurd amount….
"Are you all right?"
"Pardon?"
"You were attacked by a zombie, weren't you…."
He asked with a worried look.
"Ah, well — it wasn't that bad."
I checked my ankle and found faint handprint-like marks still remaining. I applied Holy Magic and healed them.
"What about you, Young Master? Are you all right?"
I hadn't seen him take a direct hit, but given the opponent he'd faced, I was concerned. The Young Master gave a wry smile and showed me his arms. The state of both was worse than I'd expected.
There were small cuts around his hands, and above the wrists, burst capillaries and bruises were visible.
"Its strength was so overwhelming that just parrying the attacks was nearly too much."
He laughed, saying even fighting an ogre wouldn't have left him this battered. He could laugh because it was over and we'd survived — if there'd been casualties, he wouldn't have managed even that.
"Show me your arms."
I took hold of the Young Master's arms and healed each wound one by one.
"If you're hurt, don't hide it. Tell me."
"I will."
While we were resting briefly inside the tent, Investigator Liza arrived with my older sister.
"Have you finished everything?"
"Yes. You've all been through so much. Truly — thank you."
Investigator Liza bowed at a full ninety degrees, praising our efforts. I hadn't done any of it for praise, but looking at her, I felt glad we'd helped.
I would have liked to head back right away, but Sister Mary still couldn't get up, and neither the Young Master nor my older sister was in good shape, so it was impossible. And though I was putting on a brave face, I needed rest too… There was also the chance more undead might appear, so it seemed wise to watch how things developed for about a day.
Of course, the fact that the sun was setting and we couldn't travel was another reason.
"The sun's going down…."
I was standing watch alone. The Young Master and my older sister had both expended so much mental energy that once they lay down to rest, they fell asleep almost immediately.
Investigator Liza was resting as well, worn out from the cleanup.
Everyone's busy sleeping, so I suppose I'll have to handle dinner? I gathered usable wood from the surroundings and first got a campfire going. It was still early autumn, but the evenings were chilly.
After lighting the fire, I rummaged through the bags, checking what food we had….
"There's barely anything!"
I hadn't expected things to drag on this long. I should have thought it through and packed more provisions….
I would have liked to forage nearby, but there was no leeway to go looking. Regrettably, dinner was going to be a simple porridge. It would have been nice if at least the portions were generous, but there was nothing to be done… Using emergency grain and the little dried meat we had left, I made a simple porridge and shared it out.
Everyone was so tired that they ate in silence, then collapsed again to rest.
Having something in my stomach put a bit of strength back in my body and eased my mind.
"All right, all right — don't worry about the night watch. Rest first."
A short rest clearly hadn't been enough for the Young Master or my older sister to recover.
"I'm fine."
The Young Master stubbornly tried to stay up, so I kicked him in the shin.
"You need to rest now so you can take over at dawn, don't you?"
His eyes went wide, then he nodded.
"Ah. Of course. Understood. I'll rest right away."
"Yes, yes. Please rest quickly — for my sake, if nothing else."
Honestly, I was tired too. I was only stepping up because I was in better shape than the others….
Once I'd confirmed everyone was asleep, I quietly took up the night watch.
I added wood to the campfire, guided a little more warmth into the tent for those sleeping, and went toward the village to check whether any undead had reappeared….
"I'm so tired…."
I tried to fight the drowsiness, but it was hard to keep my eyes from sliding shut.
How many hours have passed? I lifted my head and looked at the moon. Its position didn't seem to have changed at all.
"Hah! Has no time passed at all?!"
I slapped both cheeks to wake myself up. But why couldn't I feel the pain…?
I have to protect everyone….
"Yuli…, ……lian, …Miss?"
Someone was calling my name. But I was so exhausted I couldn't move my body. I felt a light tapping, and the voice kept coming. I couldn't make out exactly what was being said, but I could clearly hear it….
"…sleeping out…, don't…, come inside……, sleep…."
But my body, heavy as lead, wouldn't obey, and even opening my eyes was a struggle.
I felt myself floating in midair. What's going on….
I have to get up….
I was too tired to rise.
Ah — suddenly I felt warmth…. My utterly spent body couldn't resist it….
My consciousness slipped away once more.
"Sleep well."
I surrendered myself to the gentle warmth.
"Hah!"
I jolted awake and sat bolt upright.
"Where am I?!"
I was definitely standing watch, wasn't I? I turned my head and looked around.
"You're awake?"
"Young Master…?"
"You worked hard."
He said it with a smile.
"I — last night…!"
I tried to get up, but the Young Master stopped me.
"I laid you down."
"What do you mean?!"
You have to explain so I'll understand! I glared at him in protest, and he laughed as he explained.
"I rested thoroughly and woke in the night to find you dozing off. I took over the watch and laid you in a sleeping bag as you were."
"Ah… is that so?"
"Yes. Nothing happened during the night, so you needn't worry. You worked hard."
"We're comrades, after all."
The Young Master smiled a little awkwardly. Something about that bothers him?
"Yes."
Once I'd collected myself, I checked on Sister Mary. She was still asleep. The side effects of yesterday's Holy Magic seemed to be lingering. Even so, her complexion had improved, and her condition looked better than the day before.
Just what kind of Holy Magic leaves someone this drained? I was starting to worry.
We roughly ate breakfast and packed up the campsite. The problem was Sister Mary, who still hadn't come to.
There was no need to deliberate over what to do.
We had to go back, no question. Staying here wouldn't let her rest comfortably in the first place.
Naturally, the plan settled on carrying her back — the only questions were who would carry her and who would haul the luggage.
"I'll manage somehow."
The Young Master said he would carry Sister Mary and take the bags as well. Something about that grated on me. Sister Mary was a woman, and a nun at that….
Being carried by a man would make her uncomfortable.
"But she's a woman. How could you?"
It wasn't a short journey, either. Think about how much jostling there'd be over that long stretch of travel. Waking up to find herself on a man's back? She'd be horrified on the spot.
I glared at the Young Master. Then I looked at Sister Mary — at her chest rising and falling with each breath.
"That's just an excuse. You just want to enjoy how soft Sister Mary is, don't you?"
"What? Th-that's not—!"
Displeased with the Young Master, I decided to ask my older sister instead.
"Older Sister, you carry her."
"Mm."
I can carry Older Sister's bags and Sister Mary's, right…? The Young Master, flustered, insisted that wasn't it at all. I ignored him either way.
"Yes, yes. Of course you had no such thoughts."
While my older sister took charge of Sister Mary, I picked up the luggage.
"At least let me carry the bags."
I couldn't load heavy packs onto our front-line defender, the core of our formation.
"If we're ambushed, you'll need to step in, Young Master."
"Ugh…."
I more or less talked him around, and we headed back toward the city. Investigator Liza, watching us, fretted with guilt. There was no need for that….
By traveling without rest late into the night, we managed to return to the city in a single day.
That said, blisters had formed on Investigator Liza's feet, and some of the wounds had split open. Despite the pain, she kept asking me to heal her quickly so we could keep going.
I asked the overexerting woman,
"We could rest a day and then go… aren't you pushing yourself too hard?"
"No. I'm worried about Sister Mary's condition."
Apparently Investigator Liza still felt responsible for the hardship we'd endured because of the reckless request she'd made. It was fortunate I could heal her at all… Without that, the wounds on her feet might have festered until she couldn't walk.
Thanks to Investigator Liza pushing herself, we made it back to the city.
"It's night — will they even let us in…?"
She wasn't the only one who'd overdone it. Honestly, I wasn't in perfect shape either. I still had some reserves, but hard was hard.
"I'll speak with them."
Investigator Liza talked with the gate guards. I watched from a short distance….
So guards can be that deferential.
It was a truly remarkable sight.
"Fortunately, it seems we'll be allowed in."
"That's a relief…."
Ah — finally, I can get a proper rest!