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526 – Regrouping, and Hope
Eldia is defeated… as I find relief in finishing combat without incident, I realise that something has happened. Of the three stuffed toy spiders, two have disappeared. They were attached to my abdomen by the atlach-nacha.

Originally, she stuck them to me to act as a signal during her reconnaissance, and as there were no reasons to get rid of them, I left them as is. Now that the second is gone… It can only mean that some sort of abnormal situation has occurred at the atlach-nacha’s location.

…Don’t tell me, has Lilixira actually headed for Aro and the others?

I hastily kick off the ground and take to the air, feeling the urgency to link up with them. Flying through the mist, I scan the ground below me.

Just Beelzebub or Lilixira alone could pose a direct threat of annihilation for Aro and the others. I don’t know where they are now but… So that they wouldn’t get caught up in Beelzebub’s initial attack, I told them to head towards the mountain. Also, if a battle has happened, there should be defeated holy knights around. They’ll serve as landmarks for me. It shouldn’t take me too long to find them.

Suddenly, the sound of battle reaches my ears. I hear the sound of the ground being stomped on, the air being cut, and combatants striking each other. With great haste, I fly towards the source of the sounds.

When I arrive, it appears that the battle has already ended. Aro has one knee planted on the ground, and has run out of breath. There are many slash wounds all over her body. Next to her, treant-san is in tree spirit mode.

In front of them, the bodies of three men who seem like Holy Knights lie crumpled on the ground.

『Are you alright, Aro, treant!』

I call out to the two of them. Aro looks up at me, and her face brightens. However, her expression clouds over right away.

“Dragon-god-sama…! It’s great that we’ve managed to link up! But, atlach-nacha hasn’t… Even though she said she’d be right behind us, nothing has…”

The treant shakes his head, and looks downward.

『Aro-dono… Atlach-nacha-dono isn’t coming…』

“Treant…? What do you mean by…”

『…I had noticed it. It’s unusual for her to actually hurl abuse at us when she’s cornered. Well… I figured she must have been lying.』

In a brief moment, Aro’s expression worsens, and tears slowly gather in her eyes. I don’t exactly know the details, but I roughly guess. The atlach-nacha, she… probably persuaded Aro to escape, and took on the responsibility of holding off a strong enemy by herself.

“W-why, treant… Even though you noticed, you kept silent…? Even though you’re infatuated with her!”

As the treant hangs his head down, he meekly shakes his head again.

『I couldn’t say it… To see her resolution, and then throw it away… I was completely unable to do it… I’m terribly sorry, Aro-dono…』

After hearing that, even Aro can’t bring herself to question the treant further, and ends up hanging her head in silence the same way.

As for me, I don’t understand any of it at all. I wonder just who she stayed back to stop. Furthermore… It’s unsettling that there’s no sign of Volk, magiatite-jii, and the black lizard as well.


『Anyway, please calm down! Where is she?』

They raise their heads.

『Atlach-nacha is still alive!』

After hearing my words, their expressions change.

“I-Is that… really true?”

『In that situation, if she didn’t have some means of escape…』

Aro and the treant have disbelieving looks on their faces. I twist my body around and reveal to them my abdomen.

“Ah… the stuffed toys,”

Aro unconsciously raises her voice.

That’s right, on my abdomen, the last of the stuffed toys still remain. More than anything else, this is evidence that she is still alive.

The stuffed toys aren’t toys made out of ordinary thread. They’re made with the [Doppel Cocoon] skill, and are her body doubles, so to speak. They draw a continuous but small amount of mana from her to maintain their appearances and the strength to cling to me. The fact that the last stuffed toy still exists means that she’s still alive.

『I’ll listen as we move! Hurry!』

I bend down, and urge the two to get on.

“G-got it!”

Aro lifts up the tree-spiritised treant and speedily jumps onto my back. I face the direction she indicates and charge forward.

As I run, I check their statuses… Both their HPs are low enough to be threatening. While moving, I use [Fake Life] on Aro and [High Rest] on the treant, and let their wounds recover.

“Thank you, dragon-god-sama…”

『Your MP is low as well. Absorb some from me and recover.』

Aro has [Mana Drain], and the treant, can absorb MP from me by spreading its roots.

While they draw mana from me, I learn almost everything that has happened since I left from Aro. The fight with the dragon riders, Volk and his party breaking off due to the mysterious swordsman called [Ascetic], and the sudden attack from the monstrous girl with green hair who can control corpses, Aruane…

From what I hear, Aruane has stats approaching even Lilixira’s. A honestly unbelievable enemy. I’m worried about the battle between Volk, the black lizard, and magiatite-jii against that [Ascetic] too, but… Right now, rescuing the atlach-nacha from Aruane has to be my top priority.

As I run, I glance at the atlach-nacha’s stuffed toy from time to time. Really, I didn’t think a stuffed toy that looks like this would play such an important role. How unexpected. The moment it collapses, time’s up…

I shut my eyes tightly. Absolutely don’t die… Atlach-nacha!





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