128. Elixir
128. Elixir
It took a full hour to calm Stella down as she endlessly muttered that she was going to kill herself.
During that time, Pina and Eurasia focused on cleaning away the impurities and smell that had flowed out of Stella's body.
And so, just before the two-hour mark.
Just as I was starting to think about knocking her out with a chop to the back of the neck, Stella finally calmed down.
"H-hic..."
"You calmed down now?"
"...I-I don't... I don't know anything about that stuff."
"Sure."
"It... came out of my body, but... it's not mine."
"Yeah."
"I'm... I'm the victim here."
"Well, people have those kinds of moments."
After half-heartedly babying Stella, I thought back to the impurities that had poured out of her body.
There were too many.
Not to make fun of Stella, but in a purely literal sense, there were far too many.
On top of that, poison had come out along with them.
I had no idea why there was poison.
And I also had no idea why that poison hadn't disappeared and had remained inside Stella's body.
Eurasia, Pina, and even Stella herself hadn't recognized it as poison, but I had identified it precisely.
Someone had tried to kill Stella.
Judging by how it hadn't disappeared from her body and had discolored, it felt like it had been there for at least ten years.
And looking at the amount... if she had eaten even a fingernail's worth more, it would have killed her.
Ten years. Before Stella's mother went missing.
And before Stella fell out with her family.
The timing was suspicious.
Who had fed her the poison?
Should I tell her?
I turned my gaze to look at Stella.
She was still steeped in shame, her face looking like she'd burst into tears if you poked her.
Of course, even setting aside that face... just thinking about the expressions she sometimes showed after we got out of the Labyrinth, I figured it was better not to say anything yet.
"...Hah."
Why am I like this?
Why am I racking my brain worrying about whether Stella might get hurt?
Compared to my Past Life, I've really... gotten a lot softer.
Whether it's the body or the environment...
"Why, hic... why are you sighing? Am I dirty...?"
"I'm not sighing because you're dirty, I'm sighing because I'm tired, you brat. Do you know how exhausting it is helping you like this?"
"No..."
Hesitantly, Stella's lips quivered, and she fidgeted with her fingers before wiping them on her freshly changed clothes.
Then she slowly came closer and wiped the sweat from my face.
"Still... thank you."
"Of course you should be thankful."
"Hnn..."
"Pick one. Hmph or yeah."
"Both."
Stella, who said that primly and giggled, returned the one remaining Elixir she hadn't eaten yet to me and said,
"Then I'll eat this one later."
"No. Since we're already at it, it's easier to just keep going today. Sit down, quick."
"...Are you sure?"
"Yeah. You eat yours, Pina eats hers, and we're done."
I plopped down and patted the spot in front of me.
Stella, still hesitating and moving timidly, gulped and sat down in front of me.
"Now... that... stuff won't come out anymore, right?"
"Yeah, no more nasty stuff coming out."
"D-don't call it nasty!"
"Then is that stuff clean?"
"W-well, still!"
She looked like she was about to cry again, so I shut my mouth.
"The one you're eating this time is an Elixir that could kill you if you mess up, so you need to focus properly."
"K-kill me? No, no. Fine... I'd rather die than let that stuff out again."
For some reason, Stella had gotten brave.
She nodded with a resolute expression.
Now she was about to put the Elixir in her mouth without even asking its name.
"You're not asking the name this time?"
"You said the name doesn't matter."
"Yeah... that's true."
She clicked her tongue.
I do know the name of that Elixir.
...I kind of want to tell her.
That I know the name of this Elixir... but later.
Around the time I end up revealing my identity, I want to tell her the behind-the-scenes story of the Elixir she ate today.
Well... I can tell her later.
There's no way she'll ever forget today.
After expelling impurities like that, how could she forget?
Anticipating Stella's reaction when she heard the story behind the Elixir, I placed my hand on her back.
"Don't chew that. Just swallow it."
"What? How am I supposed to swallow something this big? Am I going to choke and die?"
"Just a moment ago you said you'd rather die."
"W-well, still!"
"You won't die. The moment you think about swallowing it, it'll slide right down on its own."
"...Really?"
I nodded. Matching me, Stella nodded too and put the round Elixir into her mouth.
Then she flinched, her body trembling.
It seemed to have gone down her throat, so I immediately sent Mana flowing into her body.
"Don't fight my Mana. Follow that path and control it just like that. Your acupoints are open right now, so it might be hard to control, but try anyway."
Instead of an answer from Stella, violet Mana burst forth.
*****
After Stella, it was Pina's turn, and that was done too.
Actually, in Pina's case, there was nothing for me to help with. Sparkle, connected to her innate constitution and soul, guided the absorption of the Elixir on its own.
So right now, she's over in the corner playing with Sparkle.
From now on, her connection to the spirit realm should be strong enough that she can keep Sparkle out at all times.
And as for Stella.
She absorbed a full seventy percent. That's excellent.
Maybe it was because she expelled the impurities built up in her body and then took the Elixir right away.
She cleanly absorbed most of what she needed.
On top of that, she still had energy to spare, so she was immediately firing off magic here and there and prancing around.
She seemed to have completely forgotten about expelling all those impurities just a little while ago. What a simple girl.
"This is amazing!"
"Of course it's amazing."
"Wh-what is all this?"
"What do you mean, what is it? It's the Mana you're going to use now."
"Incredible... incredible!"
I'd expected it, but... it seems Stella had never taken an Elixir before either.
She didn't seem to have fallen out with her family when she was little, so did they not feed her Elixirs even back then?
Well, it's not something I need to worry about right now.
And it's not something I need to worry about anymore.
"A-at this rate, I might be able to complete the 5th Circle soon?"
"Good for you."
"Heh! Eliarnes! This means I'm finally going to be the same as you! Get ready!"
"What's the point of just matching numbers? The level's completely different. At least make the 6th Circle before you run your mouth."
"Grr..."
I smirked at Stella, who was all puffed up with indignation, then walked over to Eurasia, who was tidying up.
"How about you, Eurasia? You doing okay?"
"Ah, yes! It's a little... hard to adjust because my output has changed, but if I practice with it all day today, I think I'll be adjusted by tomorrow!"
"Good. Then starting tomorrow, let's train properly."
"Huh? Train what?"
"What do you mean, what? We're training until you can handle the weapons I gave you like a proper person."
Eurasia's mouth opened and closed before she made a teary face.
"...I still have trouble even handling Aura, you know...?"
"That's something you have to train steadily, minus sleeping hours. What we're doing tomorrow is physical training. It's completely different. A day has twenty-four hours—both short and long—and you're going to spend all of it only on Aura training? What are you going to do if your Mana runs out and you can't even form Aura? I've always told you. Training the inside of the body is important, but in the end, mind, energy, body. The harmony of these three—"
"Aaaaahhh. I get it! I'll do it!"
"Oh-ho? What's this. Does what I'm saying sound like nagging to you? This is all extremely valuable advice that's for your own good, Eurasia."
Stella, her brow furrowed, came up beside Eurasia, who was backing away in dismay.
"You're giving Eurasia that old-man nagging again."
"What?"
"Pina just nods her head mindlessly anyway, and I don't even listen to you, so you only ever do that to Eurasia!"
"...No, I'm not. I do it because I genuinely worry about Eurasia. And you should say things to people who actually listen. What's the point of saying anything to someone like you who doesn't listen at all? It just wears out my mouth."
Eurasia may act all put out like that...
But she still remembers everything I say and tries to follow it.
That's why I always give her advice.
Stella's reaction was bizarre.
"Sometimes... Eliarnes, you're really, kind of... how do I put it. Like a professor at the academy who's... around fifty or so. Not burning with passion like a new professor, but not completely passionless like a senior professor... just, kind of, in that ambiguous, middle zone?"
"What kind of... bullshit is that."
It did sting a little.
Fifty... if you add the age I lived to in my Past Life and my current age, wouldn't it be around there?
Probably.
"Anyway, I'm telling you to stop picking on Eurasia."
"Since when have I ever picked on Eurasia?"
Tsk, I clicked my tongue, picked up the broom that had fallen on the ground, and stood up. Then Sparkle came fluttering over and perched on my shoulder.
"...Yes?"
I decided to use formal speech for now.
When Sparkle first popped out, it tried to call me Ronan, so I smacked it on the head and knocked it out.
When it woke up after that, I glared at it as hard as I could, and Sparkle, having assessed the situation, started using formal speech.
And... the reason Sparkle kept clinging to me was, it explained, simply "because you're a Eustetia."
A surefire explanation that could instantly convince anyone, anytime, anywhere.
[Ah? Huh? Ah, ahaha! I just find this spot comfortable!]
Sparkle laughed awkwardly, then stopped laughing and whispered in my ear. No, rather than whispering in my ear, it spoke directly into my head.
[There's a strange presence outside.]
'A strange presence?'
[Yeah. It's not a Demon, but how do I put it... something similar to a Demon? Something halfway between a Demon and a human...?]
'...A half-breed?'
[No. It feels different from a half-breed. More than a half-breed, it's... like an artificially created being.]
A created being...?
I subtly turned my gaze to look at Stella.
Eurasia and Pina, the three of them were chattering away, giggling and laughing about whatever was so fun.
It's probably not Stella.
Sparkle hadn't felt anything particularly strange about Stella either.
Then... who is it?
[It's getting closer...!]
'Is it waiting at the door?'
[No, it's not that. It's walking this way. Now that it's a bit closer, I'm sure. It's a really... peculiar being. It's taken Demonic Energy into its body, but it's neither a Black Wizard nor a Demonized Human... how do I put it. Like a puppet? That kind of feeling?]
'Hide in my clothes for now.'
[Got it. Be careful, just in case!]
The word "puppet" made me think "no way," but I opened the door, wondering if it really could be.
And then.
"...Oh? Junior?"
I came face-to-face with the person I'd suspected—Ophelia.