Chapter 230 - Samaim's Body and the City of Beginnings
A soft sensation touched my lips. Fam must be giving me a mana potion, I thought, pulling her into an embrace. She felt more voluminous than usual. Was she wearing something thick?
More importantly, I wanted to savor her lips. I pushed my tongue into her mouth, seeking what was inside.
"Mmph... ugh, nn!"
She tried to turn her head and escape, but I held her in place. After persistently sucking, I was pushed away. I opened my eyes to see Mizuki wiping her mouth.
"Wh-what, Mizuki?! Why..."
I instinctively wiped my own mouth.
"Why are you wiping your mouth too, Mash?!"
"I thought it was Fam!"
"Huh? So it's not okay if it's me?"
"You're wiping your mouth too! Why?!"
"W-well, that's..."
I sat up and looked around. We were in a clearing surrounded by trees. The reddened sun filtered through the gaps in the foliage, casting long shadows across the ground. A stone-paved road stretched into the distance before and behind us.
"This is... a little further south is where you fought with your underwear on full display, Mizuki."
I pinched the hem of her skirt, and she quickly pressed it down. There was no doubt about it. This was the place where Mizuki and I first arrived in this world.
"You've got to be kidding me. After nearly fifty days of travel to Migul, we're back in Richelle...?"
"So it really is this place."
Mizuki had been uncertain about our location, but my words seemed to confirm it for her. A light sense of despair washed over me. It wasn't just about the long journey we'd lost. Hyakka, the Wandering People, Rinko, and our other allies were all in Migul. They thought we were negotiating with Clovis. And Yuuki's Messiah group was in a city two days from Migul—one day if they pushed their horses. If they returned to Migul and found we weren't back, they could attack our allies one by one. But from here, it would take at least a month to get back, even at top speed. And we had no way of contacting them.
"For now, I want to go to the place where you showed me your underwear and sort out my thoughts."
"There's no such place! I was being attacked by goblins back then, it was serious! And someone was passed out on the ground!"
It was a wound of honor I'd received protecting the reckless Mizuki, but her phrasing was cruel. I thought she might have started to see me in a better light back then.
"Could it be that you're embarrassed?"
"Of course I am!"
She crossed her arms as if to hide her chest. Her cheeks were indeed red. We had just been kissing, and we'd even seen each other naked. And now she was embarrassed to show her underwear? When she acted like that, it just made me want to see them more. I reached for her skirt, and she quickly backed away.
"So, where are Fam and the others?"
"Well..."
She turned her head toward a shaded spot. Fam and the others were gathered there. Someone was lying on the ground, and Maira was casting healing magic on them. Did some townsfolk get attacked by goblins again? Still, it's pretty harsh of them to move an injured person into the shade while leaving me to bake in the sun.
I was surprised when I went over to them. The person on the ground was Samaim. Blood trickled from her mouth, and she lay limp. Her eyes were slightly open, but it was impossible to tell what they were focused on. Fam was holding her while Maira performed healing magic.
"...She bit her tongue."
Marmie, who had been watching Samaim from within the circle, came to stand beside me.
"What in the world happened?"
"...She bit it herself. By the time we arrived here from Lady Racshell's space, she was already bleeding. Probably a klutz."
"I doubt that. Is she being compelled by a slave crest?"
Samaim had been wearing tights, a flared skirt, and a long-sleeved top that covered her up to her neck. But now, to make her more comfortable, the ropes I'd tied had been removed, and some of her skin was exposed. From what I could see, aside from the slave crest, unfamiliar characters and geometric patterns were tattooed on her skin. They were a ghastly, bizarre contrast to her youthful face, and a shiver ran down my spine.
"...Probably magic to enhance her physical abilities."
So that was the power she'd been fighting with. The patterns were especially dense around her joints.
"Why are the patterns concentrated around her throat?"
"...Probably to seal her vocal cords."
She'd been forcibly silenced. As I listened to Marmie, Maira, who had been healing Samaim, stood up.
"Is she going to be okay?"
"Yes, for the time being."
Maira gave a vague nod in response to my question.
"Anyway, I want to free her from slavery. And these patterns on her body—can they be removed?"
"If it's a type of curse, I believe the power of a miracle can dispel it."
"Even at the church in Richelle?"
Maira's eyes widened at my words.
"Fam and Mizuki said we were near Richelle, so it's true?"
I nodded in reply.
Carrying Samaim to the city was exhausting. Thanks to the convenience of the Storage skill, I wasn't used to carrying things while traveling. I knew we were short on time before sunset, but whenever I tried to rest, the members of Levante would give me disapproving looks. On top of that, whenever I tried to caress her bottom to distract myself from the strain, Fam would glare at me. So I could only touch her occasionally. She didn't resist at all, simply letting it happen.
"...Her own Mana is being used for the physical enhancement."
Marmie explained that Samaim was in the same state as I was after summoning Racshell and running out of Mana. Giving her a mana potion might help, but it would be troublesome if she regained her strength and started rampaging, so we decided to leave her as she was until she could receive treatment.
When we took her to the church, the priest who saw us showed a perplexed expression. He probably hadn't expected to see us again so soon. I, too, had thought I would never see him again. The priest took Samaim with Maira. I told Maira it was unnecessary, but I gave him a magic seed as a donation.
Mizuki and Petra went to arrange for an inn, and Marmie said she wanted to see the city and went with them. And so, Fam and I were shown to a side room to wait. The room had a single bed, a bureau against the wall, and two chairs brought from another room. I sat down on one of them and let my body go limp with exhaustion.
"Master, your shoulder is wet."
"Did she drool on me?"
"Sam wouldn't do something like that!"
Listening to Fam's reply, I scanned the room. This was Maira's room. The layout was the same as before we left on our journey, and there was no dust. Someone must have been taking care of it even in her absence. I took a deep breath, but I couldn't smell Maira's scent. Yet, for a moment, I thought I could hear her breathing. Was she planning to return here once our journey was over? What was her dream now? I wanted to hear more of her stories.
Fam was gently patting my shoulder, trying to wipe away the stain.
"It seems Sam was crying."
Was it because I touched her butt? I knew Fam would get angry if I said it out loud, so I kept quiet.
"Fam..."
"Yes?"
"After the magic on her is dispelled, we'll have her slave crest removed. That's all I can do."
I glanced at her, and she gave a deep nod.
"I know. I'll make sure she returns to the Sam she used to be."
She stopped patting my shoulder and bit her lip.
"Fam, you've changed since you left the village. Samaim has too. So she won't go back to how she was. You need to see her for who she is now."
The physical enhancement magic cast on Samaim was, as Maira suspected, a type of curse. The priest said it could be removed with the church's miraculous power. There was still the worry that it might not be dispellable, like with Fam, but we had no choice but to entrust her to them.
"Master... sometimes, you're so kind it makes me anxious. But you're also cruel."
Fam pressed her head against me, in the same spot where Samaim's head had been.
"I once walked with Sam on my back, just like today. It was a very cold night, and the stars were so beautiful."
She told me a story about how Samaim had accompanied her to help with an errand in a neighboring village. There was a feast in that village, and Samaim had gotten drunk and passed out.
"She sounds like a handful."
"That's not true. There were some really scary people in that village. But because Sam was there, I was able to get along with them. Sam was always protecting me. When Sam is by my side, I feel brave. When she holds my hand, I feel strong. Even you, Master..."
Just as she was about to continue, the door opened and Maira came in. Samaim was carried in by another priest. It reminded me of when Fam had received treatment at the church. Just like back then, Samaim had been put to sleep.
"Is the physical enhancement magic gone?"
"Yes. And the head priest wrote a letter of introduction to the slave trader, requesting that her curse be lifted."
Maira nodded.
"Can't we just pay them to do it?"
"Normally, you need proof from the slave's master. Even if the contract was unjust, you would need to prove it."
"I see."
Though I nodded, it seemed difficult for a person forced into slavery to prove that their contract was unjust. In the end, it was a system designed to make it easier for the powerful to crush the powerless.
"I'll be staying here tonight. I have a lot to report to the head priest."
Maira lifted Samaim up. Fam helped her.
"Don't tell me I have to carry Samaim again?"
It seemed they wouldn't let us stay here until she woke up.
"The slave trader will close his shop if we're too late. Besides, you carried her all the way to the city. It's just a little further compared to that."
"Carrying someone who's awake and carrying someone who's asleep are completely different!"
Maira gave off a "You're a boy, you can do it" kind of vibe, but I'm an old man. I'm exhausted. I wish she'd heal me a little with those breasts of hers. And just like with Fam, why do they always send them back asleep?
"Master, if Sam were awake, she might bite her tongue again or start rampaging. I think it's better this way for now. Let's take her to the slave trader before she wakes up."
I felt like I'd been skillfully talked into it, but I hoisted Samaim onto my back once more.
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