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“This could be a great opportunity for Fate.” Originally they had been enduring the Devil’s Night by adding Mireina to their ranks. But, as I became involved, they were freed from stagnation and able to move forward. Unexpectedly, that caused the dwarves to be revealed to human society. They were different from demons, but still inhabitants of the underground.

Moreover, they were originally humans who entered the bodies of dwarves. Now that the humans had sided with the elves, we had no choice but to form our own alliance. On the surface, it was good that the castle had improved, and my troops had increased, but…

“Of course, I think so, but…” There were more who were killed rather than saved. Both humans and dwarves had taken losses, and neither side would forget it. There was a clear difference in attitude between those who fought the humans and those who made it here before it escalated that far.

“How can our fellow humans be like that?”

“They must know that I had a dwarven partner.”

“Fellow humans? They don’t see us that way.”

“I wonder if my friends are still alive.”

“Human or not, what does it matter? Didn’t you see? They’ve already gone back to a more primitive society.”

“Not like we’re any different.”

Surprise and sorrow, cynicism, and despair. They filled and distorted the atmosphere, becoming hard to distinguish any individual emotion. It didn’t matter how I intervened; my words wouldn’t reach them. Rather than pretending to understand, it would be better to emphasize their position even if it were a bit harsh. What was certain now was that I saved their lives and had access to more power than them. That gave me the advantage. It couldn’t be helped, even if it was cold and unkind. We were in an alliance. I let out a sigh, and Rain smiled at me.

“You look tired.”

“I am.”

“Standing on top is like that.” Rain handed me a glass full of purple liquor to accompany his words. I emptied it and then stepped forward.

[The body’s fatigue has been relieved. Mana has increased, and the body has been purified.]

The dwarves stared at me as I stepped forward. Rather, they had been the entire time I was talking to Rain; I just wasn’t paying attention.

“At this point, every dwarf who is still alive has gathered here. Let’s put it out in the open: if you try to return to human society, you can’t expect to be welcomed warmly. Understood?” I was answered with silence. Nodding, I continued.

“There are still a lot more dwarves in the underground. As I promised, I will gather enough of you to overcome the threats of the humans and elves. Until they are rescued…”

“We will keep the castle, correct?”

“Yes.” One of the dwarves moved up with a cold expression on his face.

“Who judges what number is enough? You? If we judge that it will be too difficult to live on our own, are we supposed to stay here until we die of old age?”

“No, the judgment is yours to decide. Whether you elect a representative or vote, do whatever you want. If you feel that you can survive outside, just ask and I will provide you with a door.” I decided to declare it outright.

“If you don’t want to die in vain, however, I would ask you to discuss it amongst yourselves before choosing to do that.”

“…”

“You.” One of the others spoke up.

“Are you the strongest on Earth right now? How strong are our foes?”

“I’m not by a long shot. You could judge it by objective numbers, but the enemies are a suspicious lot. They no doubt have many much stronger than me.” I decided to omit that there were people stronger than me down here as well. They would figure it out soon enough with the next Devil’s Night.

“Cooperate with me and defend the castle. We will grow stronger together. If you risk your life fighting, you’ll become stronger even faster.”

“I’ve been risking my life since the moment I became trapped in a dwarf’s body. Don’t look down on me.”

“If that’s how all of you think, I have no complaints. I will tell you the specifics now.” It took a long time for all the dwarves to reach an understanding with me and to hammer out the smaller conditions, but it was essential. It would make it easier for them to join alliances in the future.

[They are so diligent.]

After we finished discussing the terms, I heard Cain’s voice from outside as the dwarves dispersed.

“Did you say you’ve seen them in the underground battlefield?”

[Yes. It’s a place where only the fallen can go. We fought against the monsters in the underground together. They didn’t know why they fought, but they desperately struggled to survive just like the rest of us.]

I nodded silently at his words. I wondered what he thought as he watched the dwarves.

[To keep our promise to them, we too…]

At that moment, the bracelet I had been wearing exploded with a loud bang, stopping both of us. The record broke a while ago, but now that the mission was complete, I couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for the lost artifacts.

“I’ll put it away in my inventory.”

[…How will you thank her for helping?]

“Her? Thanks?”

[She worked so hard to provide you mana through that bracelet. It is thanks to her that so many dwarves were saved today, so I would like to express my gratitude as well.]

A clear blush spread over his face, which I could see clearly through the window. It was a bit terrifying, to be honest, but it conveyed his feelings. I nodded at him.

“Alright, I’ll be back.”

[I’ll keep Mireina and Lee Chan-yu occupied, so don’t worry and take your time.]

“Hrgh…” I turned away from Cain and started to leave.

[There’ll be a lot to do later, so relax for a while and enjoy a break.]

“Yeah…” I waved at him before heading toward the spire L resided in. She had the broken bracelet on the table in her room when I opened the door, knocking briefly before entering.

“I’m back.”

“…”

“L?”

“…hm.” She let out a sigh, brushing away her hair as she raised her head to look at me. It fascinated me to see her thin fingers run through her silky hair. She looked at me with burning red eyes, then sighed once more.

“It looks like you and they fought with the elves.”

“Quite a few of them.”

“Come, sit down.” I felt like a child about to be scolded, but I was no longer as young or innocent as I was then. She trudged over to lie down on the sofa, letting out a small bit of laughter. She stood back up, moving over to where I sat.

“Stay still.”

“What?”

“Still.” Her cold hands touched my cheeks. She felt soft, and her scent made me feel as if I were floating in the air. She had run wild for nearly two days, providing me with mana, which seemed to be relaxing her. It took me a moment to realize her mana was flowing into me through her hands.

“Hmm.”

“It looks like the bracelet helped, but not enough.” I relaxed, feeling the flow of mana spreading from her fingers out through every corner of my body, blending with my own energy. The wounds and scars that I hadn’t even noticed began to gently disappear. The traces of battle with the Elakatra had gone deeper than I had thought, so many wounds were engraved deep into my body and soul. Yet I wasn’t tired even after fighting for so long.

“Elakatra is the opposite of us. You may think you killed them easily, but just touching them damages you.” L finally spoke up. I recalled the time I battled that soul monster, covered in armor and light. I felt like our mana had been reacting against each other.

“…I had forgotten.” The Elakatra had evolved to the higher system, after all. I had to be careful of them.

“It is an attack from a level you don’t understand well, so it’s natural you don’t understand it. I don’t really understand it myself, either.” As L spoke, a scene played out in my head. It was like a blurry photograph of L and I as close as we were now. I was stroking her head. I tried to keep my poker face up to conceal my thoughts, and L carried on in an affectionate voice.

“You told me that, when we hadn’t met yet.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“It’s natural you don’t remember.” She quietly took a step toward me and hugged my head. Her voice was small.

Only

“But now, can we remember today together?” It was my turn to be quiet. It wasn’t something I could answer immediately. Our relationship had been wrong from the start. She was keeping on to feelings from that past that hadn’t cooled. I had been avoiding them because I couldn’t believe they were directed toward me now. There was no way to reverse time. Even if we accumulated new memories over a mismatched relationship, it would be like covering a pile of trash. That was what I had been thinking, but her gestures and voice were so warm. It was running straight at my heart, making me feel like I wasn’t alone.

“We can. My memory isn’t that bad.” I opened my mouth without thinking.

“Fool…” L responded bluntly, but she didn’t let go. The atmosphere was different than before, and I felt like I had to stay still. Truthfully, I hated it when I was apart from her too.

Maybe if we kept covering up the garbage, it wouldn’t matter.

“It’s an absurd time, but…”

“Hm?”

“No, never mind.” I smiled, reaching up to hold her hand around me. She spoke quietly.

“Please be careful in the future.”