“Blessing of the gods? What do you mean by that? All I see no matter how I look is mold and ruins. There’s no way that could be a blessing.”
Akashi had said strange things more than once, but this one was to the extent that getting struck by lightning for blasphemy wouldn’t be surprising.
“Myungho is right. Where here are there blessed followers of the gods? It’s all mold. You shouldn’t just randomly guess like that when you don’t know.”
Yuna also interjected with a tone of disbelief, negating Akashi’s claim.
“That’s why uneducated people… aren’t there believers right now under your feet? The floor, walls, and the fountain where that lizard submerged its body, everything covered by those things.”
“…Mold? No, stop joking around. What kind of god turns their own followers into mold? That’s blasphemous. If you keep talking like that, you might get struck by lightning, and I won’t take responsibility for it.”
Since Akashi didn’t wish for sudden divine retribution, he seriously advised him against it. However, Akashi laughed heartily, saying it would never happen.
“It doesn’t reach that level unless you directly insult them using their true names.”
“…Why do you know so much about it?”
Akashi evaded that part and told him to think carefully with his small brain.
“You have eyes even if you don’t have the same brains as me. Recall what you’ve seen with those eyes. Have you seen anything broken here except for the city walls? Everything was perfectly functioning, wasn’t it? Even though no one maintains it, why is everything still intact?”
That… was indeed strange. The fountain being intact despite no maintenance, the furniture in the house covered with mold that attacked Alterra.
If that were a blessing, it might make sense, but the mold was incomprehensible.
“Just tell us already, will it hurt to do so? Since I don’t understand, it would help if you explained the connection between this place being intact and the molds.”
“So, I expected too much from you guys. Cutting out the complicated parts, the fools living in this country preserved themselves like this building and the fountain.”
What Akashi said sounded almost real. Originally, this place worshipped the God of Preservation. When he visited before, the king asked if the blessings applied to buildings could also be extended to the people.
Akashi advised reconsideration, but apparently, they didn’t listen.
The problem was that the preservation blessing only applied to inanimate objects. Applying it forcefully to living beings resulted in these molds.
“How could that weak woman refuse such earnest pleading? She probably granted it. What a foolish woman. Considering her level, preserving only their souls would’ve been best. For that, the physical bodies binding the souls had to be dismantled. Well, that’s the summary of the mass disappearance incident.”
So, what we’re stepping on was once people’s bodies…? Alterra set up a bonfire. I’m sure she threw some mold into it.
I felt sick.
“Well, does burning humans as fuel make you feel nauseous? Then it’s fortunate. It means you still have enough humanity left. By the way, forget about helping them. There are too many, not enough time, and most importantly, actions come with consequences.”
Akashi complained about seeing something unpleasant due to worms, laid down his sleeping bag, and lay down. Yuna glanced uncomfortably around but sat near the bonfire, relieved to have found Alterra.
Altera seemed to have finished bathing as she sat by the fire, wringing out her hair and drying herself.
By the way, I’ve never seen her take off that fur covering. It seemed like a part of her body, as it had never peeled off even once, which made me curious.
Is it really part of her body, or is it just something she wraps around for a reason?
I moved closer to Alterra while carefully pushing away the mold with my foot to avoid stepping on it. She barely noticed me approaching.
She must have weakened considerably. Seeing her struggle even against the mold monster wasn’t unusual.
While wiping her body with her cloak like a towel, she looked at me suspiciously, as if asking why I had come.
“Not here to disturb. Just had a question. That… Alterra. Is the fur around your neck… part of your body?”
It was a question born out of trying to turn away from the truth that the molds were once people, but the more I thought about it, the more genuinely curious I became.
What exactly is she? Given that no scales appear during her rampages, it seems unlikely to be her real body, but then again, it could be something like her hair.
Questions breed questions. As I stared intently at the fur, Alterra hesitated for a moment before leaning close and whispering in my ear.
“…I can’t tell you here. Come with me.”
Before I could recover from the surprise of her whisper, she headed toward a distant building from the bonfire, motioning for me to follow.
I understood why she was doing this. She still didn’t trust the others completely, so she intended to tell me alone. That’s all.
But isn’t she a bit too careless?
I followed her, clearing my mind of odd thoughts. The moonlight softly reflected off the egg, illuminating her brown skin.
“Did anyone follow?”
Responding positively to her worried inquiry, I nodded. Akashi was lying down asleep, and Yuna was checking her arm’s condition.
She sighed in relief and gently placed the egg down, then carefully fiddled with the fur as if manipulating something. Finally, she took it off with utmost caution.
“This isn’t part of my body. I wear it to cover my weakness. So… look at this.”
She slightly turned around, brushing her hair aside, and showed me the back of her neck. Despite resisting the urge to look away due to an uncomfortable sensation, I saw something that dispelled any strange thoughts.
“…Scales? Is that your weakness…?”
Unlike the other scales, these grew backward, reminiscent of reverse scales.
“…Yeah. If this is attacked, I collapse helplessly anytime. Only you should know this. I’m telling you because I trust you.”
This makes it even more burdensome, doesn’t it? I just asked out of curiosity about what the fur was, but now I’ve discovered her most crucial secret.
“Ah, got it. Then… sleep well tonight. You must be tired like everyone else. I’ll take watch with Yuna.”
Altera put the fur back on, acknowledged, picked up the egg, and exited the building.
I know she sends me nothing but trust. Still, this makes it hard not to have strange thoughts.
Shaking off futile fantasies, I headed toward the fountain.
Akashi was snoring loudly. This egg… he’s the one who cooks it, right?
I told Yuna I’d take the first watch. She requested to be woken up halfway through and then entered her sleeping bag.
Actually, it’s a bit early to sleep, but everyone’s exhausted, and since there are no beasts here, it’s fine to rest when we can.
Altera curled up tightly, quietly snoring as she slept deeply.
I always thought she was strong and would remain aloof forever. But no, she has weaknesses, scars.
I realized she’s not just a beautiful and fierce savior meant to make my world easier; she’s a girl full of wounds with nothing but strength to rely on.
Tomorrow, she’ll return to normal. Without giving me a chance to interfere, she’ll solve problems effortlessly with a flick of her wrist.
Hmm.
Though I know it’s absurdly arrogant, having seen her tears, there’s nothing I can do.
I want to find happiness on her face.
Lately, I’ve been indulging in such thoughts alone at night. I thought I had stopped doing this since high school.
As I pushed more logs into the bonfire, the night deepened.
—
No one needed to wake me up; my eyes snapped open.
Normally, sleeping on stone floors wouldn’t bother me, but perhaps due to laying eggs, my whole body ached. Stretching after twisting my body, Yuna greeted me.
“Did you sleep well?”
Even without speaking slowly, I think I can understand her. Once learned, I rarely forget things.
“Ye…s.”
Following what I learned, I greeted her back. Yuna smiled wryly, corrected me with “yes,” shook her head, and said “sleep.”
No, you said sleep.
Her voice woke Myungho, who rubbed his eyes and got up. He immediately criticized my pronunciation.
“Here, curl your tongue a little less… Hmm…”
Still sleepy, he washed his face with water from the fountain, yawned widely, and lazily shook Akashi awake.
In contrast to Myungho, the mage woke up instantly, tearing off a lot of mold, throwing it into the campfire, and pulling out cooking utensils from his bag.
“I remember you mentioning the lizard laying eggs, right? Good, let’s eat them for breakfast. I wonder what half-dragon eggs taste like. Hey, translator hero, ask her to give us an egg. Anyway, an egg, hmm. Though we only have one example, my knowledge grows.”
Judging from Akashi’s gaze towards my egg, he clearly wanted it.
Sitting cross-legged, I firmly held the egg with both hands and feet. Then, applying force with the edge of my tail, I began cracking the shell with a loud “bang bang.”
“A-Altera?! Are you serious?!”
Myungho panicked, and Yuna widened her eyes watching me crack the egg. Only Akashi observed with interest.
“That’s correct.”
“I was considering using magic to crack the shell, but this works too.”
The mage was already preheating the pan over the fire. After striking repeatedly with the tail, cracks began to form.
Though my tail hurts, the taste will be worth it. With patience, I continued hitting until I created a round hole.
Then, I carefully placed it onto the heated pan, flipped it, and poked the membrane with the tip of my tail.
As the contents spilled onto the hot pan, a delicious sound began emanating.
