Chapter 106. Regressed Mama~
Chapter 106. Regressed Mama~
Pata Garbonia.
A dream demon who had lived for millennia, a succubus queen who several years ago ascended to rule over all dream demons — a station she had earned across that same sprawling span of time.
She did not specialize in raw physical destruction, but her ability to seize control of minds was unmatched among all the demonic races that had ever beguiled humanity for their own gain.
Berdia, who had faced her directly during the Great Forest Defense Battle, understood that strength all too well.
Yet while Berdia had been occupied managing affairs at the royal castle, a calamity had unfolded: the hero party had been ambushed at their hands.
It had not been widely publicized, but since the party was actively raising its adventurer rank through quests, the Demon King's army must have been aware of their existence to some degree.
Even so, a fair number of the army's officers wished for the hero party's continued survival — so Berdia had concluded a direct assault was unthinkable and that her personal protection was unnecessary.
'That was a failure in judgment. I failed to account for officers like Garbonia, who operate utterly without restraint.'
Most likely, she had been provoked by Balmash's interference during the Great Forest Defense Battle.
She must have calculated that if she could bring the hero directly under her control, she could keep the other officers in check — and, going further, that taking the hero hostage would make it easier to seduce a portion of humanity's forces to her side.
Of course, the issue would not resolve itself as simply as she imagined, but anything that threatened to obstruct the hero party's future journey was not something the royal house could afford to overlook.
Especially not for Berdia, who was slated to serve at Serika's side going forward.
'If there is one silver lining in all of this ... it is the fact that for some reason, when Garbonia attempted to dominate Serika, the effort backfired on her.'
Even a low-ranking dream demon had once briefly shaken Berdia herself.
The notion that the Queen of Dream Demons had been devoured by an individual's nightmare was, therefore, difficult to believe — but the contents of the confidential letter delivered to the royal castle were equally difficult to dismiss as falsehood.
As were the aftereffects that had left Serika, the hero, severely impaired.
'They said there were aftereffects ... but I never dreamed something like this could happen.'
Now, having received that news and joined up with the hero party, Berdia could do nothing but despair as she stared at the scene unfolding before her.
Because what was happening in front of her was that shocking.
Because she could never — not even for a moment — have imagined the Serika she knew behaving this way.
"Ah-boo, boo."
Serika, curled up on the bed, made babbling noises.
Her wide, dewy eyes were fixed on the stick being waggled in front of her.
A baby's toy that produced a jingle-jingle with every shake.
"That's right, that's right. Here's the rattle, the rattle."
"Gya-u-ah!"
Serika giggled toothlessly, reacting to that jingling sound.
Yumir, who had been watching from the bedside, let out a dry laugh, her face steeped in exhaustion.
"Agh, seriously. How did I end up being the one stuck with babysitting duty? Sure, I'm a jobless layabout with nothing to do, but I'm still a Grand Archmage — isn't making me do this a bit much?"
"A-oo?"
"What are you 'a-ooing' at, you little brat. Honestly, I kept calling you an idiot and look — now you've gone completely brain-dead. No matter how much shit I gave you, did you seriously have to regress this far just to screw me over? Huh?"
Jingle, jingle. The moment the stick in her hand shook again.
But Serika's gaze was not on the rattle. It was locked onto Yumir, who was glaring at her with sullen eyes.
"Oo, nngh..."
As if that expression had scraped against her tender heart.
"Hey, hey — don't cry. You just stopped, and if you start bawling again, you'll just tire yourself out."
"Waaah, waaaaah..."
"Is it the tit? You want the tit again? But no matter how much you suck, no milk comes out..."
"Bwaaaaaaah!!!"
With that, the dam on Serika's crying burst wide open.
Realizing the situation she had dreaded had just erupted, Yumir heaved a deep sigh and dropped the rattle in her hand to the floor.
"Dammit. What do you want me to do?"
Her head whipped around along with the irritation that spilled from her lips.
That was when her eyes met Berdia's. Berdia stood at the doorway.
"...Yumir."
"Ah, you finally showed up, big girl."
It had been months since they last saw each other, but the greeting carried no trace of warmth.
Berdia did not mind. Knowing Yumir's personality, it would have been stranger if she had exchanged pleasantries comfortably.
"...What in the world happened?"
"Exactly what the letter said."
Without any particular expectation, Yumir produced something from her bosom and popped it into Serika's mouth. At that practiced gesture, Serika's eyes went round and her body stiffened.
"Nng, mmph, nng."
As though utterly absorbed by the familiar sensation now held between her lips.
Yes — it was a pacifier, modeled after a woman's nipple.
-Suck, suck, suck.
In no time, even her crying ceased as Serika lost herself to the sensation of suckling on her pacifier.
Unable to accept the sight before her, Berdia remained rooted at a distance and forced the question toward Yumir.
"Certainly ... the letter clearly stated that her mind had been placed under severe strain by a dream demon ambush and that it would disrupt her schedule, but..."
"It's not just severe strain — her mind's completely gone. Look at this. The kid's mentally regressed twenty years, hasn't she?"
"...Regressed?"
"Regression~ mama~"
Yumir snickered as she looked down at Serika, who was wholly absorbed in suckling her pacifier.
Plenty must have happened while Berdia was away; the dark circles painted under Yumir's eyes looked to have roughly doubled since her research days.
"...Still, you're technically a cleric, so I'm asking — do you think this can be healed?"
Despite her fatigue, the question carried an undeniable urgency. Yet it lacked any sense of haste, making Berdia feel like a fool for having come charging in half-frenzied with worry.
Of course, the situation truly was that grave, but how to put it...
Well, at least her physical safety itself hadn't been compromised.
"Ah, um. I'll have to examine her condition first before I can say, but..."
Still unable to conceal her bewilderment, Berdia approached the bed.
Only then did Serika register Berdia's presence, her blinking eyes slowly shifting toward her.
"Suck, suck, suck."
Still curled up on the bed, still working her pacifier.
"...Sucky?"
When Berdia saw her tilt her head in that state, she felt a sharp pang in a corner of her chest.
'Serika ... I never could have imagined you would end up like this while I was gone.'
How could she appear so infantile when her body was already fully grown?
It had to be considered in light of the psychological burden inflicted by the dream demon's ambush — but because Serika was a child she had known for so long, Berdia could not help but feel a uniquely poignant ache.
'Come to think of it ... Serika must have had a time like this too, long ago.'
Wasn't that a strange thought?
When Berdia had first seen her, Serika had still been a girl, yet now she was facing Berdia in a state even younger than that.
It ought to have looked pitiful and tragic, but the utterly guileless, pure gaze turned toward her began to stir something deep in Berdia's chest.
'So this ... this is what a baby is.'
It was an unfamiliar sentiment for a woman who had spent her life on the battlefield. And yet, it did not feel entirely bad.
'If I, if I stroke her...'
Moved by that feeling, her trembling hand had just begun to reach toward Serika—
"...Oo."
Serika's expression suddenly crumpled, and her body tensed.
Berdia stiffened in response and urgently scanned Serika's complexion.
"Ooogh, nngh..."
She scrunched up her face as if straining and shivered all over.
For a moment, Berdia feared something might be wrong with her physically — but Yumir, looking down at the scene, was utterly unruffled.
"Say, holy knight."
Shortly, she called out to Berdia and asked,
"Do you by any chance know how to change a diaper?"
"Wha— what? A diaper?"
"I don't know how. I've never done anything like childcare in my life."
A snicker escaped Yumir.
Along with it, a faintly sour smell reached Berdia, and her complexion drained pale once more.
'Oh, gods.'
Why do you bestow such a trial upon this child whom I have cherished, this child who was to become the savior of humanity?
All her earlier sentiment had evaporated in an instant. Inside Berdia's heart, waves of despair began to surge in, one after another.
"I'm back."
It was at that moment that another set of visitors drew near the estate.
At the sound, Yumir's exhausted face brightened with a welcoming expression as she glanced toward the room's exit.
Standing there was a man clutching a bag filled with various childcare supplies — and a green-haired girl trailing along behind him with quick little steps.
As for the girl, Berdia did not know her, but the man was someone she recognized well.
"Hey, hey, perfect timing. What took you so long? Do you have any idea how grueling it's been looking after this kid all by myself?"
"I'm sorry. The line at the shop was longer than I expected..."
"Enough. Dave, you deal with her somehow. I've hit my limit on babysitting."
With that, Yumir shoved Dave by the back and planted him in front of the bed.
He looked momentarily flustered by the sudden assignment upon his return, but once he caught the scent hanging in the room and grasped the situation, he immediately began looking down at Serika's body.
"Ah, looks like she had another accident. Perfect timing — I just bought diapers, so I'll change her right away."
The words came out as if it were nothing at all remarkable.
'...What?'
Hearing that, Berdia flinched sharply and rounded on Dave.
Her widened eyes betrayed that even she, who had navigated countless hellscapes, was utterly taken aback.
"Baah, baaa! Oppa!"
"Yes, yes. I'm your oppa. I'll change you right away, just wait a—"
"Wait just a moment, Dave."
Amid the atmosphere that had barely begun to settle, Berdia — unable to ignore the feelings raging inside her — seized Dave's shoulder and forced him to turn toward her.
He was another person she was seeing for the first time in months, just like Yumir and Serika. But what Berdia felt toward him was far from gladness.
"What exactly were you about to do to Serika?"
Wariness. And a sense of betrayal.
That was what she felt toward Dave, who was about to change the diaper of a Serika reduced to an infantile state.
"Pardon? I was simply going to change Serika's diaper..."
It took only a moment for him to stop being confused by her reaction.
Belatedly realizing exactly who was standing in front of him, Dave's face went pale.
"No, wait a moment. Wait a moment, Berdia."
"Dave, you — you, of all men..."
"It's, that's, so what happened was... No, please just calm down for now! I-I'll explain everything!"
"I trusted you! I left Serika in your care when I departed, and while I was gone, just what did you do to her...!!"
Their eyes had only met for an instant, but all manner of misunderstandings were already piling up in layers inside her head.
Just as that confusion was about to explode rather than subside, Yumir — who had been watching the spectacle — scrunched up her face and tossed out a single remark.
"Oi, old maid over there. Freeze."
—Flinch.
Hit by a remark she could not possibly ignore, Berdia stopped her outburst and turned toward Yumir.
"...Old maid? ...Are you addressing me?"
"Who else would I be talking to? You've put away some years but can't even change a diaper, so why don't you shut your mouth and just watch, you incompetent hag."
—Clang!
A deafening noise rang inside her skull.
As though she had been struck squarely across the back of the head, Berdia was engulfed in shock and began staring at Yumir with a blank face.
'In, incompetent...?'
...Incompetent?
Her? One of the Ten Strongest on the entire continent?