Volume 5
Epilogue
Ugh…
A faint groan echoed
in the room, and Nozomu's eyes, lying on the bed, slowly opened.
...W-where am
I?
What met Nozomu's eyes
as he lay there was a world dyed in shades of gray and a ceiling made of
assembled wood. But it wasn't the ceiling of his room in the dormitory, nor was
it as luxurious as the Francilt mansion.
What in the
world... kuh!
He should have been in
the forest, he thought... He tried to get up from the bed, but the pain running
through his body made it impossible to raise himself, and he fell back onto the
bed. Looking closely, he could see traces of treatment all over his body. Both
his arms, especially, were bandaged heavily and rigidly fixed so that he
couldn't move them. Sunlight streamed in from the open window, clearly
indicating that a considerable amount of time had passed since the battle in
the forest.
Nozomu slowly moved
his body to avoid strain and tried to get up again. A dull pain still ran
through his body, but he gradually, little by little, crawled to sit up and
peered at the view beyond the window. The room Nozomu was in now seemed to be
on the second floor of the building, as the roof of the house across the street
with a bird perched on it came into view. Looking down, he saw people passing
by on the street. At that moment, Nozomu felt something was off with his body.
Huh? That’s
strange. I can't hear anything. And my eyes too...
The scenery beyond the
window... no, his entire vision was dyed in black and white. He couldn't hear
the chirping of the bird perched on the roof of the house across the street,
nor the commotion of people coming and going on the street. He tried to utter
words like "ah-ah" as a test, but he still couldn't hear anything.
Could it be,
was that the cause?
What came to mind was
the release of his ability suppression and the direct use of that dragon's
power. Considering that his ears and eyes were normal before he used Tiamat's
power, there was no doubt about the cause. Nozomu exhaled deeply and looked up
at the ceiling.
He was happy to have
survived, at least. Honestly, it was a situation where he could have died. The
Corpse Dragon, which had suddenly revived and attacked, and Tiamat, which had
seriously tried to take him over. Furthermore, the Corpse Dragon, which he
thought he had defeated, had revived again, and attacked him once more in a
greatly transformed state.
Is everyone
safe, I wonder...
Nozomu was worried
about their safety. Considering the situation, they must have brought Nozomu
here, so he thought they must be safe. However, the anxiety clinging to his
chest wouldn't disappear as long as he couldn't see them. But Nozomu could
barely move now. He had abnormalities in his sight and hearing, and the wounds
all over his body had not yet healed. He was in no condition to go out.
Nevertheless, he tried
to somehow get up by leaning on the edge of the bed and go look for his
friends. At that moment, the door, which he had seen at the edge of his vision,
opened, and someone entered the room.
Ah...
In his gray-tinted vision,
Nozomu's gaze crossed paths with the people who had entered the room. Two girls
with flowing long hair and captivating eyes. One had the long ears
characteristic of elves. It was Irisdina and Shina. They seemed to have come to
treat Nozomu, as they were carrying bandages and gauze in both hands.
Seeing Nozomu sitting
up, they frantically cried out something, then rushed to Nozomu's side and
forcibly made him lie back down on the bed. They must have been very flustered.
Pain shot through his wounds, and Nozomu groaned. The two, seeing Nozomu
grimace in pain, hastily removed the hands that were holding him down, and
Shina turned on her heel and rushed out of the room. She probably went to call
everyone else. Irisdina leaned her face close to Nozomu and shouted something,
as if scolding him. Nozomu himself couldn't hear anything, but it felt like she
was reprimanding him. She occasionally touched Nozomu's body to check the state
of his wounds.
And after checking his
wounds with a worried expression, Irisdina grimaced again and entered lecturing
mode. Since Nozomu couldn't hear her voice, he lacked a sense of seriousness or
realism, so his cheeks were about to relax at her concern, but each time,
Irisdina's gaze sharpened. Irisdina pressed closer to Nozomu. Perhaps thinking
it was bad to anger her any further, Nozomu tried to somehow appease Irisdina.
However, Nozomu didn't know what she was saying now, so he couldn't answer.
Irisdina continued to get heated, and Nozomu was flustered, unable to do
anything. At that moment, multiple presences entered the room.
Nozomu's and
Irisdina's gazes turned towards the people who had entered. They were indeed
the friends who had been in the forest at that time. Not a single person was
missing, and none of them had any severe injuries. At that sight, Nozomu
breathed a sigh of relief. At least, if his friends had been able to escape
that predicament, his own sensory impairment hadn't been in vain. Norn said
something to Irisdina, and she blushed in embarrassment and moved away from
Nozomu. Irisdina glared resentfully at Nozomu, fidgeting. Noticing that they
had been close enough to feel each other's breath just moments ago, Nozomu's
face also began to blush belatedly.
At that moment, Norn
approached Nozomu, raising her hands in a gesture of exasperation. He didn't
know what she was told, but Irisdina was pouting. Norn, approaching Nozomu,
said something while checking the state of his wounds. However, Nozomu, whose
hearing was gone, could only tilt his head. At that moment, Norn's expression,
realizing something was wrong, turned stern for a moment. Nozomu shook his head
vigorously, as if trying to wake up his dazed mind. He didn't know if that
worked, but gradually, colors returned to Nozomu's vision, and he began to hear
sounds.
"I-I'm alright. I
think I was just a bit sleepy..."
"I see... For
now, I'll examine your wounds, so everyone else, please go outside."
Norn urged Irisdina
and the others to go outside for the examination, but Irisdina and Shina, who
were worried about Nozomu, interjected.
"Eh? But..."
"Norn-sensei, if
it's just an examination, couldn't we stay here...?"
"It's an
examination, so he'll have to take off his clothes. Irisdina-kun, Shina-kun, do
you want to see Nozomu-kun naked?"
Nozomu naked... The
faces of the two who heard those words rapidly turned red.
"Uh..."
"E-excuse
us."
Irisdina and Shina
hastily left the room. Prompted by them, everyone else also shuffled out of the
room, and the door closed. Anri remained in the room, perhaps to help Norn, and
they faced Nozomu again.
Observing Nozomu, who
was confused and didn't understand the situation well, Norn briskly removed
Nozomu's jacket and began the examination. She palpated Nozomu's body, checking
for injuries and his internal condition. Magical light glowed in her hands,
indicating that she was also using magic for the examination. Norn questioned
Nozomu while palpating him.
"Nozomu-kun.
Could it be that you couldn't hear earlier?"
"Yes... I can
hear now, though."
Nozomu nodded in
response to Norn's question. Hearing his words, she continued Nozomu's
examination, recalling several possible causes in her mind.
"About five days
have passed since you collapsed. This is Anri's room, and you were brought here
immediately after that. Do you feel any other abnormalities in your body?"
Nozomu nodded at
Norn's question and then spoke of how not only his hearing but also his vision
had remained gray just until now. His hearing had not yet fully returned to
normal, echoing in his ears like a distant voice, but he could at least make
out what was being said.
"That's probably
because the release of that power temporarily paralyzed the ki channels and
nervous system in your body."
Ki channels are the
flow of life force within the body. Organisms absorb and utilize elemental
essence present in this world through various means such as breathing and
eating. Roughly divided, it can be categorized into ki, the power of the body,
and magic power, the power of the spirit. Ki techniques are used by drawing
upon a portion of the flow of ki channels. Since ki channels are the flow of
life force, if they are abnormal, in the worst case, it could lead to a
situation directly linked to death, like with Shino.
"Honestly, it was
a serious injury. The bleeding wouldn't stop easily, and you didn't regain
consciousness. You were saved because we used medicine like water and
continuously cast healing magic, but if we hadn't, you would definitely have bled
to death."
Norn carefully probed
Nozomu's ki channels while palpating his body with magic. As she said, Nozomu's
body had weakened from the continuous overuse of excessive power, and the
effect of healing magic had also diminished. Healing magic promotes the healing
ability of the injured, so if the injured person's life force decreases, its
effectiveness inevitably drops.
"Your wounds
themselves are better than when I diagnosed them while you were sleeping, and
your ki channels aren't damaged either. The sensory disturbance seems
temporary, and I think it will heal as your body recovers, so it would be best
for you to rest now."
Norn concisely
conveyed the results of the examination to Nozomu, but then, in a slightly
scolding tone, she admonished Nozomu.
"You overdid it
too much. This time you were lucky, but you could have died, and it wouldn't
have been strange if you had suffered a lifelong disability, you know?"
Nozomu nodded at
Norn's words and looked at the door Irisdina and the others had left through.
If he had been asleep for five days, he must have caused them considerable
worry.
"Everyone was
worried. Anri and I took turns watching over you, and Irisdina-kun and the
others also stayed here late into the night to help."
Norn's words confirmed
his thoughts.
This is
troubling. I hadn't intended to make them worry...
As Nozomu showed a
troubled expression, Norn, having finished the examination, draped his jacket
over his shoulders.
"But, well, leave
this to Anri and me. You should rest well now. When your body gets better,
their worries will disappear too."
"Yes..."
Nozomu looked at Anri,
who was behind Norn, and she smiled and nodded as usual. While he was certainly
concerned about Irisdina and the others, Nozomu decided to focus solely on
healing his body for now, as Norn said. Norn stood up from the chair and was
about to leave the room. However, she paused as if hesitant, then turned back
to Nozomu.
"Nozomu-kun,
about that dragon inside you..."
A somewhat hesitant
voice echoed in Nozomu's ears. Nozomu received Norn's words, staring straight
at her worried eyes, which looked at him.
"Nozomu-kun. I
believe you are well aware of the danger of that power, but as a doctor and a
teacher, I must say this: using that power..."
"...I know. What
will happen if I keep using that. 'That guy' hammered it into my head until I
hated it."
If it was just him
dying, it might still be fine. But this incident had concretely shown that
power was being directed at the people around him. No one had died this time,
but as long as Nozomu harbored Tiamat's power, there was always a possibility
of it running wild. Nozomu himself fully understood. He knew it firsthand. That
was why he had bottled up his worries, leading to the strained atmosphere with
Irisdina and the others this time.
"But I can't run
away either. Even if I run, the people around me will ultimately get hurt. And
the first ones to get hurt will be Iris and the others... I won't allow
that."
However, currently,
there was no way to separate this power from Nozomu. Then, he had only two
choices. Give up and abandon everything, or face this power and completely
control Tiamat, which had fused with him. And Nozomu could no longer choose the
former option. Irisdina and the others, who tried to stop him when he went
wild, even though they might have been killed. He couldn't turn his back on
them, who had accepted him so much.
"Of course, the
difference in power between 'that guy' and me is obvious. But I won't be swayed
anymore. Even if I die, I won't yield this will."
Nozomu declared,
clenching his fist. Those words were directed at himself more than anyone else.
"Do you think you
can? Your opponent is a legendary dragon, you know?"
Norn narrowed her eyes
and stared at Nozomu. Receiving her gaze, as if trying to discern his true
self, Nozomu took a deep breath and then declared in a clear tone.
"It would be
impossible for me alone. But it's alright. I have a place to return to, after
all..."
Yes, he was no longer
alone now. Nozomu, having stated that definitively, no longer evoked the image
of a cloud drifting aimlessly and about to disappear, but rather a tree rooted
firmly in the wilderness. It was the bond he had gained. Though still small and
uncertain, it was a guidepost, one of the indicators when he was lost,
confused, and unable to find his way. It was the moment a small bud that had
sprouted in Nozomu's heart began to grow large.
"I see... Then,
so you don't forget that feeling, cherish Irisdina-kun and the others."
Was she satisfied with
his answer? Norn relaxed her strained eyelids and, with a smile, turned on her
heel. Nozomu slowly nodded at Norn's words, then lay down on the bed and closed
his eyes, re-imagining Irisdina and the others' faces in his mind. As expected,
his body was craving rest, and Nozomu immediately began to breathe softly in
his sleep. Anri and Norn left the room without making a sound to avoid
disturbing him. The door opened directly into the living room, furnished with a
fireplace, tables, chairs, and other furniture. The interior, unified with
orange curtains and bright colors, was typical of Anri's room, and a warm,
distinctly feminine scent permeated the air. In the living room, Irisdina and
the others were watching them anxiously. They seemed to have been curious about
the conversation.
"Well.
Nozomu-kun's condition is that his senses were temporarily messed up due to the
power he released. It seems he still has a little difficulty hearing."
"!"
Irisdina and the
others' faces tensed at those words.
"It's alright, as
I said before, it's temporary, and he's over the hump for now. He'll be fine if
he rests slowly and heals his body."
"I see..."
"............"
Norn explained
Nozomu's condition in a determinedly cheerful tone. However, even though they
gave a general reply, Irisdina and the others' expressions were uniformly
gloomy. Perhaps they were too worried about Nozomu. Their gaze was fixed on the
door to the room where Nozomu was sleeping.
"...Are you
worried?"
"Yes..."
Irisdina answered
weakly to Norn's question. Perhaps sensing their feelings, Norn and Anri smiled
faintly.
"We're going out
to buy some things. Our medicine is almost running out. He fell asleep
immediately after the examination, but his condition is stable. He'll probably
wake up in a while, so could the rest of you watch over him?"
"Yes, I
understand."
Norn left the room
after hearing Irisdina's reply. With Feo and Mars as porters, she disappeared
into the city's hustle and bustle.
"Well, I'll go
make some tea. I think there's time until Nozomu-kun wakes up, so let's take a
little break."
Anri began preparing
cups and tea leaves to make tea, and Irisdina and the others tried to help.
They had been taking turns watching over Nozomu until he regained
consciousness, but it was true that they couldn't get proper sleep due to their
concern about his condition, even when resting. Knowing that Nozomu's condition
had passed a certain critical point, they felt a little relieved, at least for now.
However, the tension remained taut, and they weren't truly at ease yet. Norn
had anticipated this and told Irisdina and the others to rest, but worry was
unavoidable. For now, even as they prepared tea, their awareness remained
constantly directed towards the next room, separated by only a single wall.
***
While still concerned
about Nozomu, Irisdina took a breath, and as the sun began to set, she watched
Nozomu's sleeping face by his bedside, feeling a little guilty. What would she
talk about when he woke up? What would she ask...? There were many things she
had held back from asking until now. There was so much she wanted to talk
about.
"...Nozomu."
She murmured the name
of the person sleeping before her and gently touched his cheek. Perhaps because
his wounds hadn't fully healed yet, his skin felt warm to the touch,
transmitting a pulsing heartbeat, thump-thump, to Irisdina's palm.
"It was tough...
but I'm glad."
His sleeping face was
enveloped in relief, and the breeze blowing in from the window gently stroked
his face.
"...Irisdina-san."
Shina entered the room
after knocking on the door. She came to Irisdina's side and, similarly,
softened her cheeks as she peered at Nozomu's sleeping face. Ahead of her,
Nozomu slept with a relieved expression. He was truly here now, and she could
feel him alive with her skin. The tension that had been taut deep in their
hearts finally began to loosen.
"Mmm..."
At that moment,
Nozomu's eyelids slowly opened. His slightly dazed eyes reflected the faces of
the two who were peering at him.
"You're...
awake?"
"Ah, yeah."
Nozomu replied in a
slightly raspy voice to Irisdina's murmur.
"! You can hear
our voices!?"
"U-um. My eyes
seem fine too, and I can hear properly."
"Thank
goodness..."
Irisdina and Shina
breathed sighs of relief upon hearing that Nozomu's hearing had returned. At
that moment, Mars and the others, who had been in the next room, rushed in,
opening the door.
"Nozomu, are you
alright?"
"Yahoo!
Nozomu-kun. Still alive?"
"Mimuru, that's
inappropriate. Thank god, it seems your senses are back properly."
They must have heard
the previous conversation. Mars and the others called out to Nozomu, relieved
that his senses had returned.
"Everyone... I'm
sorry for making you worry."
"You're
absolutely right! Thanks to you, I'm facing a huge financial loss! Hey, Nozomu.
I have a proposal. That katana, will you let me have it...? Bugh!"
"What are you
saying? How can you say such a shameless thing at a time like this?"
Shina's fist flew at
Feo's insensitive remark. Feo, who had taken a direct hit to the nose, clutched
his nose in pain, glaring at Shina with teary eyes.
"You didn't have
to hit me! It's obviously a joke! It was my intention to lighten the mood!
...Well, if I could have it, I'd gratefully take it."
"I'm glad you're
safe. Good grief, you always do things that give me heart palpitations..."
Feo, complaining to
Shina, tried to resume negotiations with Nozomu. Of course, the katana talk was
a joke, an attempt on his part to avoid awkwardness, but his consideration was
literally cut down by Shina.
"Heh heh... Can't
you say the same about yourself? You might be even more foolish than I."
Shina smiled at
Nozomu, a gentle smile on her lips. Even Mimuru, her best friend, looked
surprised at her maternal smile, which showed no trace of the sharp atmosphere
from when they first met.
"Um... Aren't you
going to retort? It's sad for me to be the only one making jokes. Can't at
least one person play along...?"
"But I'm happy
you came back safely. I look forward to working with you from now on."
Shina extended her
hand, asking Nozomu for a handshake. It would normally be a touching scene,
but...
"............"
The fox-tailed boy,
pouting later, utterly ruined it. Feo, who had tried hard to get a laugh, was
completely ignored. He was indeed pitiful. Mars' hand, placed on his hunched
back as he crouched in the corner, burdened by a dark shadow, further deepened his
melancholy.
"U-un, likewise,
everyone. By the way, the katana..."
"Here you
go."
Irisdina answered
Nozomu's question, who had hesitantly returned Shina's outstretched hand. She
held out a single katana. It had a simple hilt and guard with no particular
ornamentation, but something about the katana itself strangely drew the eye.
"That's...
Master's katana."
"This katana
seemed to have escaped the flames and was found near the burned remains of the
cabin. I thought it was important and you might need it in the future."
Irisdina said, handing
the katana to Nozomu. The katana, which had probably been leaning against the
cabin door, must have escaped the Corpse Dragon's breath range due to the
impact of the cabin's collapse. His master bequeathed the katana along with her
feelings. Until now, he hadn't dared to hold it and had left it in the cabin.
However, even without having swung it yet, the handed katana strangely fit
Nozomu's hand. As if it had already recognized him as its master.
"Thank you. Truly..."
Filled with emotion,
Nozomu thanked Irisdina and the others. Irisdina and the others received
Nozomu's thanks with full smiles. She sat on the chair by the bedside and then
peered into Nozomu's face.
"Nozomu. Will you
tell me? More about you..."
She wanted to know
more about him. She could feel the heat throbbing deep in her chest increasing.
As if the hesitation she had felt before was a lie, Irisdina was able to talk
to Nozomu.
"Right, what
should I talk about first...? My hometown is surrounded by mountains..."
As he felt his
heartbeat quicken at her delicate features and lustrous white skin, Nozomu
slowly began to speak of his hometown. Time flowed gently, and the curtain of
night fell. But that day, the light in the small room never ceased, and
everyone's laughter echoed around.
***
He was dreaming. A
hellish scene where scorching inferno and the cries of people begging for help
echoed. In the collapsed Arcazam, Nozomu stood alone once more.
"That guy,
huh..."
The heat that burned
his skin and the strange odor emanating from what were once human remains
scattered around. That sight, which seemed utterly real, spread before Nozomu's
eyes. However, Nozomu was watching that sight with a different sensation than
before. His five senses accurately conveyed the scene of hell before him, but
he felt as if there was a curtain drawn.
"............"
Nozomu now recognized
that the scene before him was an illusion. Nozomu silently released his ability
suppression. He unleashed all of Tiamat's absorbed power, concentrated it into
his right arm, and then slammed his fist into the ground with all his might.
The unleashed five-colored power once again ravaged the scorching hell,
pulverizing the false world and reducing it to dust. The moment Arcazam
shattered, Nozomu stood on that dark lakeside. A mountain-like colossal figure
loomed before him.
"Grrrrr..."
Tiamat glared at
Nozomu with irritation. Its gaze contained such fury that it seemed ready to
burn the minuscule human before it to ash. Tiamat spread its five-colored
wings, creating countless orbs of light in the air. Five-colored orbs of light,
spreading so widely they seemed to fill the dark sky. As the orbs of light
twinkled like stars in the night sky, Nozomu simply glared straight at the
giant dragon before him. Tiamat, unable to drive Nozomu to despair with
illusions, now tried to break Nozomu's mind by force.
He lowered his stance
and circulated ki throughout his body. Intense pain shot through his right arm
from the full-power Annihilation Light Impact he had unleashed earlier, but he
didn't care. Countless masses of killing intent, filling the sky, were directed
at Nozomu. A chilling sensation ran down his spine, and he felt a crushing
pressure. He noticed his right hand trembling slightly.
"! As always...
it's no joke."
As cold sweat ran down
his back and he listened to his heart pound with a force that seemed to break
it, Nozomu desperately invigorated his fading spirit. Thinking about the
difference in their power was useless. But he wouldn't yield. Even if he were
reduced to ash by that ultimate breath, he would absolutely not yield. He
pictured the place he belonged in his mind. His hands... were no longer
trembling. Imprinting their faces in his mind once more, Nozomu placed his hand
on the katana at his waist.
"Gaaaaaaaaah!"
With its roar, the
orbs of light filling the sky simultaneously rained down on Nozomu. As masses
of killing intent, so immense that it felt as if the sky itself was falling,
approached, Nozomu meditated, then once again summoned forth the power of the
same nature as the giant dragon within him.
"Ugh!"
His vision turned
white from the sharp pain running through his body. Nozomu desperately tried to
maintain his consciousness, clenching his teeth hard enough to break his
molars. Chaotic light enveloped Nozomu's body, and his entire body screamed.
Still, he glared at the approaching meteor shower of light. Trailing a
five-colored tail of light, Nozomu rushed towards the approaching light mass.
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