The Crow Saintess and the Magpie Bridge (4)
After finishing off the holy knights, Damien glared at the vision before his eyes. Emil Sinclair. That other version of himself who had introduced himself by that name—
Shade had said he needed to go underground. [Even if you glare like that, nothing changes, Damien. This is the best option.]
…Truthfully, he had already known to some extent.
[If you mention the 'Color from Outer Space,' he'll definitely go to save Raybi.]
The truth of this world. The reason he was pretending to be a man right now, the reason he had to meet Shade again no matter what and make him an ally—everything stemmed from some existence that toyed with this world like a plaything.
"…Damien! We took care of all of them!"
"H-holy crap, that was terrifying…."
"Honestly, I don't know if it's safe to leave everything to that one guy."
Damien looked at his companions' faces as they spoke, exhausted after dealing with the holy knights. Tired, worn-out expressions. None of them had noticed anything strange. Good. It's still fine. They didn't know yet that Shade had saved him when they were young. They all still mistook that person for him. It would be okay.
"…Let's head down. By now, Shade should have rescued Raybi."
But what was this uneasy feeling?
"Luna, could you light the way?"
He had followed Sinclair's advice and eliminated Cardinal August, and they had rescued the Saintess Raybi as well. …So what was this thorn lodged in his heart?
"O-okay! Got it, Damien!"
Damien began descending into the cavern Shade had entered, accompanied by a sphere of light. Across his retinas—
'Shade, the balance is off. Please lean more toward my side.'
'…Could you not just support me instead?'
'Why?'
'That… it keeps touching.'
'It's merely flesh. Ah, perhaps the stimulation is too strong for a man like you, Shade.'
'…Still, a little.'
'It's fine. We're comrades, aren't we? Besides, I'm a Saintess who must save the weak.'
'Are you really okay with this?'
'Yes. Who would have thought the leader of the underworld would get so embarrassed around a woman… You have a rather cute side.'
…Why was Raybi acting like that?
Grind. Damien's teeth clenched without him realizing.
Not every Saintess behaved that way. Holy power worked without direct physical contact, so there was no need to link arms and support someone like that. Simply carrying or piggybacking would be far more efficient.
…She was definitely doing it on purpose. Using that disgustingly large chest and hips to unconsciously seduce Shade.
[Why? Jealous?]
"…Wouldn't it be stranger if I wasn't? Sinclair."
[Still, if she had died, that kind-hearted Shade would've been devastated.]
That was true. If they failed to save Raybi, he would break because of his trauma over people around him dying.
"…If I'd known it would turn out like this, maybe it would've been better to just take care of a broken Shade."
[Hahaha! Then Shade would've only felt emptiness even if you confessed your feelings, right?]
"Maybe not."
[No. Love is like that. What it wants most is the other person's genuine heart. Fabricated lies… can't be called love.]
Sinclair smiled at him with her eyes. For the first time, Damien found her unpleasant. She wasn't some alternate version of himself—she was another possibility of himself. He knew how ugly and pathetic it was to feel jealous of his own self, but…
"You're being awfully blatant about showing off."
The sight of her wearing a ring on her left ring finger or growing out her hair made it impossible not to feel that way. In that worldline, she didn't have to hide the fact that she was a woman.
…Honestly, I want to wear pretty clothes too. I like cute dolls, and I want to throw off this heavy armor. But I couldn't.
[I know him better than you do, so this can't be helped, Damien.]
Damien could only feel envy toward Sinclair. People always felt the empty spaces more keenly than what they already possessed.
* * *
Something was wrong. No matter how devout and compassionate a Saintess Raybi was supposed to be…
"Please come a little closer. You may wrap your arm around my waist."
…This seemed excessive. The favorability displayed on the status window was only 10%. In game terms, that was barely the level of people who had only seen each other's faces. This shouldn't be possible.
…Or maybe I'm the one who's thinking of this world too much like a game.
"…Kgh."
The pain he felt now was real. The side effects of Copy. The agony from his clones dying or getting injured flooded in, leaving his legs without strength. He had tried his best not to rely on Raybi's help, but—
"Look at you. How can someone who can barely walk be this stubborn?"
She was already pressed right up against him, supporting his weight.
"This much is… fine…"
"If you're worried about my chest touching you, there's no need to be concerned."
How could he not be concerned? The tallest female character. That massive, ample chest that swayed with every movement. She was the very first pickup character promoted in the original game. Raybi possessed every trait men would like.
Honestly, his girlfriend had been jealous about Raybi… but he'd brushed it off, saying 2D characters and reality were separate. The sickly Yuho had been thin and flat-chested, and had often said she envied the healthy Damien. He hadn't wanted to poke at old wounds.
"Everyone says the same thing. In the past, other Saintess candidates even called me a cow."
Comparing anyone to that figure in the first place didn't make sense. The sensation was soft and warm, like freshly baked bread.
"…But if it's you, Shade, it's fine. You don't seem like a bad person."
An intensely stimulating sensation spread softly against his side. She even moved his arm herself to wrap it around her waist, then looked pleased with herself.
"Wait, carrying would be—!"
"Last time when Damien carried me like a princess, the sight was quite ridiculous. Will you be all right?"
…Right. Honestly, that had been pretty embarrassing. A thief being rescued by a hero in full heavy armor from head to toe. Even if it was another man, it felt like Damien had deliberately chosen the princess carry to humiliate him. It must have been a warning to the women who liked him not to throw themselves at Shade. After all, in a male-oriented gacha game, coupling was a taboo that rarely succeeded unless the story was exceptionally well-written.
"Like this… let's just wait for the others first."
He spoke while looking at the cluster of lights before his eyes. The light left behind by the First Saintess. Like dandelion seeds, the small sources of radiance illuminated him and Raybi. The only glow in the complete darkness.
"Shade, you once asked if we'd met before, didn't you?"
In the meantime, Raybi spoke in a slightly trembling voice.
"Ah, I did."
What was going on? Honestly, she was a bit overwhelming. Her breath kept brushing against him. The way she acted like she was checking his scent… was really distracting. Did he smell? He shouldn't. Even though he was sweating from the pain, he usually kept himself clean.
"Perhaps in the past…"
"Ah, found you."
At that moment, accompanied by a small light, the hero Damien appeared from afar. Upon seeing Shade being supported by Raybi, he bit his lower lip. He was usually so good at controlling his expressions, too. As expected, he didn't like seeing Shade tangled up with the woman he liked.
"I was worried. Shade, Raybi."
"…That doesn't look like the face of someone who was worried."
"Hey, I told you before, didn't I? I can't do without you, Shade."
Squeeze. Damien put strength into his arm to pull Shade away from Raybi.
"Ow…!"
"Ah, sorry. Still, I judged that carrying you myself would be better than just supporting you from the side."
No matter how much he liked the woman, wasn't this going too far?! The words almost burst out, but… he couldn't say them. It felt like a well-forged blade heated in fire had been stabbed into his solar plexus, draining all strength from his body.
"Damien, Shade is in serious condition right now. Please don't pull him so roughly."
"…And you're saying just supporting him from the side is enough for someone in that condition? Haha."
The atmosphere was murderous. Raybi clung tightly to Shade, perhaps because he had saved her life. Damien, whether he liked Shade or not, was trying to separate them. It felt like walking on thin ice. Why were these two acting like this? Was it a favorability issue?
…No. There was no way 10% would cause this.
"I'll nurse Shade. After all, I've just been officially recognized as a Saintess by the First Saintess."
Squish. As she spoke, Raybi pressed her chest against him. It changed shape against his waist. Even if he didn't want to know, the sensation was far too vivid.
"Officially recognized Saintess, huh. So the First Saintess's remains must be buried down here."
Not to be outdone, Damien also pressed close to support him from the other side. A strange sight, being supported from both sides.
"…By the way, do you know how to fix the side effects of Copy that have appeared on Shade's body?"
A rich rose scent wafted from right beside him.
"That… I don't know. Last time, Damien was the one who nursed him."
"Then the explanation of who should take responsibility for Shade now is complete. It's more comfortable with another man."
Damien was smiling, but it looked like he was angry at Shade. Maybe he hadn't expected their relationship to improve this much even if he knew the future.
"…Still, I refuse."
But Raybi, despite Damien's advice, refused to let go of Shade. …As if she didn't want her possession taken away.
"A crow's nature is to steal or snatch sparkling jewels, not to give them to others."
She said such things.