Estimated reading time: ~7 minutes
Chapter 60
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「Ashley! Are you alright!?」
I could sense Anon’s concern for Ashley in his voice.
He suppressed his urge to rush to Ashley’s side and came to me first.
The sole reason for this was so that Anon and I could get our stories straight before facing Ashley.
I’m nothing but grateful to Anon for understanding my situation.
He has a somewhat flippant and falsely wicked air about him, but he is extremely considerate of his friends, both Ashley and myself. He truly is a caring person.
At the sound of Anon’s voice, Ashley turned her face towards us from the bed.
「Yes, I’m fine. More importantly, it’s been a while, Anon.」
Ashley still seemed far from fully recovered as she raised her body from the bed with an 「oomph」. Her pink-blonde hair, longer than her shoulders, swayed gently.
「A while? You just met me a little while ago…」 Anon muttered.
「Well, it seems like I was asleep for a long time, so my sense of time is all messed up,」 Ashley replied.
Indeed, dark circles were clearly visible under Ashley’s eyes.
「Are you really okay?」
「My body is truly fine. In fact, strangely enough, I don’t have a single wound, apparently.」
I heard there was intense combat, but not a single injury?
「What do you mean?」 Anon, feeling puzzled, asked again.
「When I was found collapsed, it seems there wasn’t a single wound on my body. Not even the indelible scars I’ve acquired throughout my life.」
「That’s Mika’s Heal.」
I unintentionally blurted that out.
There’s no doubt that the person who healed Ashley was Mika.
Her extraordinary Heal can erase even old scars that ordinary healing magic can’t remove.
In fact, not a single scar remains from when I lived in Japan.
「You are?」
Ashley gave me a puzzled look as I interjected.
「Ah, he’s Low. And the woman behind him is Omi. They’re both my friends,」
Anon introduced me as his friend, just as we had planned.
「Nice to meet you. My name is Low – Yanmar D. Low.」
「I am Omi. Pleased to make your acquaintance.」
「Low and Omi, huh?
I’m Ashley Noble. As you probably know, I’m one of the Holy Knights.」
Moreover, Ashley continued.
「You just said ‘Mika’, right? That’s a rather familiar way of referring to her. Are you an acquaintance of the Saint?」
「Oh, no…」
「Low, you don’t need to be so stiff. No one’s blaming you for calling the Saint by her name. Ashley, Low once had the Saint use healing magic on him when he was badly injured long ago.」
Anon skillfully covered for me as I stumbled over my words.
「More importantly, Ashley, what’s going on? It’s not like you to speak so harshly to someone you just met.」
Ashley covered her face with her right hand and said, 「I’m sorry.」
「No, I’m the one who should apologize. For doing something akin to interrogating you while you’re recovering…」
「No, that’s not it. I couldn’t stay calm when I heard the Saint’s name. Low, I’m sorry for questioning you like that.」
Ashley bowed her head deeply.
I was the one who should have apologized. A stranger barged into the room of a recovering woman. And I lacked the consideration to bring up a topic related to the Hero’s party.
「I’m the one who should apologize. I didn’t show enough consideration for you while you’re recovering.」
Fatigue was evident on her face as she raised her head.
Shadows fell across her well-defined features as she lowered her lashes.
Sensing the heavy atmosphere, Anon spoke up, 「Hey now, let’s stop this. If we both keep apologizing, we’ll never see the light of day.」 Considerate Anon.
「More importantly, Ashley, I heard the gist of it from Mr. Justus. What actually happened?」
With her face still lowered, Ashley began to recount the events in the cave shrine, bit by bit.
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Ashley’s story was largely as I had expected – while she was sealing the shrine, the three members of the Hero’s party appeared and usurped the Sword of Affirmation.
「Did you use that, by any chance?」
Without mentioning the whereabouts of the sword or Ashley’s defeat, Anon inquired about Ashley’s use of her skill. Anger seeped into his voice.
「Yeah, I used it. I was made to instantly understand that I couldn’t win without it. Though in the end, I was still defeated by them and they took the Sword…」
Ashley spoke as if mocking herself.
「Ashley, I’m not trying to say anything like that. We can retrieve the Sword. If the seal is broken, we can just seal it again. But what did you intend to do if using that caused you to die?」
「It doesn’t matter what happens to me. No one would grieve if I were gone.」
Ashley was haggard.
The gloomy shadows on her face seemed even darker.
I could see a teary expression on Anon’s face, which should have been hidden under his hood.
「I would grieve.」
Anon was truly saddened.
「And Mr. Justus and everyone at the manor would grieve too. Who cares what the rabble says! Throw them out with the trash!」
Anon raised his voice, his emotions running high.
「…I never thought I’d hear Anon say something like that. Thank you. You’re absolutely right.」
Mr. Justus had given me and Sensei a stern look. It was all because he was worried about whether we would harm Ashley.
Similarly, everyone at the manor, whom I had yet to meet, must also adore Ashley. The manor’s cleanliness, the meticulously maintained garden landscaping. The intricate work must stem from their feelings for Ashley.
「Let’s take everything back from here, Ashley. We’ll somehow deal with the seal and get the sword back. That’s why I brought them here.」
Anon entrusted the conversation to us.
「There’s probably no one more knowledgeable about the Sealed Domain than I,」
Sensei, who had little presence until now, finally puffed out her chest.
「Just stand firm like you’re on the battleship Yamato.」
It’s already sunk, you know…
Who taught Sensei this random trivia? Seriously…
Sensei glanced at me.
「The two of us will lend our strength in conquering the seal labyrinth. We’ve got a thing or two to say when it comes to labyrinth conquest.」
I pointed my thumb at myself and conveyed that we would help in any way to put Ashley at ease. In fact, we’ve conquered seven labyrinths that were deemed impossible for humanity.
However, Ashley didn’t seem entirely convinced.
「Anon, can the two of them, you know, fight?」
「It’s fine, no problem.」
Anon’s line is a flag synonymous with problems, but let’s not say it.
「Are they famous adventurers or something?」
Sensei and I shook our heads.
「Then, are they masters of some martial art? Or experts in magic?」
Again, Sensei and I shook our heads.
Seeing this, Ashley turned to Anon with a face that seemed to want to say something. Anon replied, 「I told you it’s fine,」 but…
「You two, please listen carefully. I appreciate your offer. But in this battle, we don’t know if we’ll make it back alive… I can’t involve you two, who have nothing to do with it, in such a desperate fight.」
Ashley’s concerns were valid.
Without any titles like status or honor, it was indeed difficult for people to believe in my and Sensei’s abilities. How sad.
「They’re offering to help. We should accept their help. They’re adults too. It’s not like I forced them. Ashley… if you doubt their abilities at this point, you should fight them once.」
What are you saying to a woman who’s recovering!? As I was casting an accusing gaze at Anon…
「Then let’s have a battle. That would be the clearest and best way.」
Ashley, on the bed, gave an unexpected response.
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