33 - Chapter 30: 30[D-day 3-1 Jailbreak]
The stinging sunlight forced my heavy eyelids open.
Through half-closed eyes, I saw the sun, already high in the sky, streaming through the window.
I slept until now?
But after sleeping so long, why do I feel anything but refreshed? My whole body aches as if it's breaking apart.
What the hell happened yesterday?
Ugh...
A splitting headache washed over me.
Yesterday...
Fragments of memory surfaced, cutting through the intense headache.
Yes, I vaguely remember.
Aria, thoroughly...
Yes, I was devoured. That's the only word for it.
But why does my body ache so much?
It hurts so bad I can barely lift an arm.
This kind of pain is like...
It's the first time I've felt anything like it since the battle with the Evil Dragon.
An immediate, body-shattering pain.
An exhaustion so profound I could barely twitch an arm.
"Ugh... ah-ah."
I tried to utter a sound, but even that came out hoarse and broken.
Still, at least I woke up in my own room.
I must have passed out right after yesterday's 'big event' and ended up here.
There was no sign of anyone else on the bed.
I'd expected Aria to be lying next to me, making some excuse or other.
Or maybe she woke up first and left?
I don't know, but first, I need to get up and check my surroundings.
I got up from the bed and stood.
"Ugh... it really hurts so much."
Every muscle in my body screamed in protest.
What the hell happened yesterday?
Stepping out of bed, I assumed a posture and looked down at my body.
"What is this...?"
My body was covered in red marks.
What is this...? Not just a few, but dozens? Hundreds of marks, all from Aria.
At this rate, she must have... not just for thirty minutes yesterday, but continuously while I was unconscious?
Gulp.
Good heavens, what in the world...? No, I need to find Aria.
"Agh!"
My legs trembled, and I lost my balance, collapsing to the floor.
"Phew, this is seriously too much... Huh?"
The person I saw before my eyes, having fallen to the floor, was—
"Aria...?"
Aria was visible, squatting below the bed, staring into space.
"Aria, why are you doing this here...?"
Hearing my voice, Aria turned her head and looked my way.
Aria's face...
it was broken again?
Her hair was disheveled,
and the dark circles had returned.
Not as dark as last time, but still...
She was fine until yesterday.
Did she not sleep all day?
Not at all?
Surely not...
Nah, it can't be, right?
.....
The pain, as if my body would shatter at any moment,
the intense fatigue weighing me down despite sleeping for so long,
and Aria's sleepless appearance.
Surely, really...?
All of this fit perfectly into one puzzle.
"Aria, you didn't... all night yesterday...?"
"Yuria, I'm so sorry!"
She apologized to me, her eyes somehow empty.
"Ah, no, it's fine. These things happen."
"Aria, are you okay? You don't look well at all."
"Ah, eh? Yes, I'm fine!"
Aria smiled brightly at me.
Although her face was haggard, her bright smile made her seem perfectly fine.
Wow, so she really did squeeze me all night yesterday.
Is Aria also just feeling the after-effects of burning herself out like that?
Oh, wait a minute!
If I play this right...
I clearly said thirty minutes, so Aria was the first to break our agreement.
"Alright, Aria, I... won't ask how long you went last night."
"Uh, thanks?"
"Instead, since you went over thirty minutes, for the remaining two days, I get to..."
Her expression suddenly vanished.
No, what should I call it?
Her emotions seemed to drain away.
It was the kind of look that promised immediate trouble.
That expression was terrifying enough to send shivers down my spine,
but I couldn't back down now.
"Then, shall we skip today?"
Her expression was still terrifying.
But for my own survival, I couldn't back down!
Yes, I'd remind her of her mistake again!
"Th-then, how many hours did you do yesterday, no, today?"
"......"
Is this really okay?
I'm not going to die, am I?
My life felt like it was flashing before my eyes.
No! Don't be scared. What's there to be afraid of with Aria? She wouldn't actually kill me, right?
"Aria, if you keep ignoring me and acting like this, can we just call off everything we agreed to?"
A stiff, mechanical sound escaped her lips.
"But that would be breaking a promise?"
A promise, she says? Yes, if she's talking about promises, I have something to say!
"Aria was the first one to break the promise."
"Thirty minutes every day was the promise, wasn't it?"
"I broke the promise?"
Aria stared into space again, speechless...
What's she looking at?
I even checked outside the window where she was staring, but there was nothing special there.
"Th-that Aria?"
"Yes, that's right, I broke the promise."
"Then, we're skipping today, right?"
"Understood."
Yes!
I cheered inwardly.
I'll get through today comfortably!
My miraculous eloquence
had earned me a comfortable day.
Good.
Good! So good!!
But something still bothered me, a lingering uneasiness.
Aria shouldn't be this clumsy in an argument, should she?
She always won trivial arguments with her Comrades.
Is she really not feeling well somewhere?
"Aria, if you're sick anywhere, you must tell me."
Of course, even if she was sick, His Holiness the Pope was here, and she was the Saintess herself, so there was nothing for me to worry about. Still... something bothered me greatly.
"Bang!"
Now what?
Does she always open doors like she's trying to break them?
"Yuria!"
"What is it, Cynthia? What's wrong?"
"It's... Ella escaped!"
"Huh?"
"It seems Lily probably helped her escape..."
"What? Why Lily?"
What on earth was happening all of a sudden?
"Oh, Yuria, she left you a letter."
"A letter? Did anyone else see it?"
"No, Ella cast a spell so that no one but you could open it, so they wouldn't have seen it."
"Give it to me."
I took the letter from her.
Letter paper, stamped with a purple seal.
As I reached for it, the seal melted away on its own.
Opening the letter, I found two letters.
What was happening now?
For the sake of my screaming muscles, I went to the desk and read the letters one by one.
--From Lily Ophelia to Hero Yuria--
I'm sorry, Yuria. You must have so many questions about why Ella and I suddenly disappeared like this.
I don't know where to begin this story.
Watching you suffer and break down under the Curse, I thought long and hard.
Why must you suffer like that, Yuria?
What on earth did you do wrong?
But do you know something?
Looking back, I was the one who said there would be no problems after defeating the Demon King,
and I was the first to suggest we return.
That's right... I was the one who told everyone to go back then.
I wanted to quickly deliver the news of victory and bring relief and joy to everyone,
and I was arrogant enough to think there couldn't be a Curse that even Saintess Aria couldn't find...
No, these are all just excuses, aren't they?
I'm sorry.
If I hadn't said those words,
if I'd made a decision a little more carefully,
I should have searched the entire Demon King's castle and ruled out all possibilities before coming back.
I'm truly sorry.
These words can't express my feelings or convey the weight of my guilt, but
Nevertheless, I will dedicate my entire life to breaking your Curse, Yuria.
I made Ella swear an oath:
to prioritize breaking your Curse above all else.
It's an oath made on our souls, so it won't be broken. And I'll keep a close watch on her.
Then, the next time we meet, I'll surely return with a solution.
I'm sorry, and again, I'm so sorry.
------
Ah... damn it.
Lily was worrying like that.
I swear to the heavens, I've never once resented Lily.
She always made the right decisions for everyone, at the forefront of urgent battles, more than anyone else.
Who could resent a woman like that?
Even if I went back in time, even if it hadn't been her, I just wouldn't have made the decision so quickly, but I would have returned to the Capital eventually.
She always had an expressionless face, so I didn't notice.
No, as she said, that's just an excuse.
I was simply indifferent.
And to my most precious Comrade.
Phew...
With such a sorrowful heart, I tore open the next letter.
--From Ella Veronica to Yuria--
Hello, Yuria?
It seems you're having a hard time lately, being 'squeezed' by Aria?
Anyway, you and I are now connected by the Corridor of Souls, which even a goddess can't separate,
so I no longer worry about losing you to anyone else.
Why?
Because we've been woven into a destiny where we'll be together for life, for better or worse.
So, I also persuaded Lily to help break your Curse.
I hope you don't blame her too much.
It was all my doing, seducing her.
So, just stay safe in the Capital, and I'll find a solution and return. Don't go anywhere, okay?
P.S. - I wish you'd go easy on Aria. You might not know, but I sometimes try to use Sensory Sharing on you, and... sigh... well, Yuria, what power do you have? Keep suffering.
----
Haa.
Still, to think everyone is moving to break my Curse...
This is truly...
I should be grateful, but
it was hard to feel grateful to Ella, who had instilled such fear in me.
"Why? What's written?"
"Ah, just... they said they left to break my Curse."
"Sigh, I knew it."
"Huh? Cynthia, you knew?"
"Yes, Lily's condition seemed to be getting worse little by little, and in the end, she caused trouble."
Even Cynthia noticed, but I, like a fool, hadn't noticed at all.
"Ah, don't worry too much. I'll also provide them with as much convenience as I can."
"Thank you, Cynthia."
"Hmph, 'thank you,' indeed. And with Ella here, the atmosphere was heading toward an execution, and I couldn't just stand by and watch that."
"Then you'll be in contact with them sometimes?"
"Well, something like that?"
"Then, could you set up a way for me to contact them too?"
"Well, that much is fine."
"Thank you, Cynthia."
"Hmph, it's not particularly for you, you know?"
"Yeah, I know."
I want to quickly get in touch with Lily and write her a letter, asking her not to blame herself.
"But Yuria, is something wrong with Aria?"
"Huh? Ah..."
How could I explain this?
I couldn't exactly say that Aria did that to me while I was unconscious yesterday.
"Uh, um..."
As I struggled to answer properly, Cynthia approached Aria and examined her.
"Huh? It looks like she cast a spell on herself?"
"What?"
What did that mean?
A spell on herself?
Is that why she seemed so blank?
"Can you tell what kind of magic it is?"
"Well, it's Holy Magic, but wait a moment."