“So, when I resonate with the Holy Sword, my other personality comes out.”
Lishe, who was listening intently to my explanation, finally understood and widened her eyes.
“What does it feel like?”
“It’s creepy! It’s like someone else is controlling my body to do this or that to you… Hwaaaak.”
Lishe, feeling embarrassed, covered her face with both hands, turning bright red.
“No wonder I had a bad feeling from the moment I first saw the Holy Sword… Is there any chance we could fight without it? I’ve shot arrows a bit back in the day.”
Out of nowhere, Lishe winked and lifted her arms, making whoosh whoosh sounds with her mouth. Her closed eyes were the opposite of when she actually shot.
“To face the Demon King, you need to hold the Holy Sword, Hero.”
“Really… I wonder if I can do it properly when I lose consciousness without even realizing it.”
“Of course. That’s why I’m here.”
I took out a few vials for Lishe.
“It’s a week’s worth. In the morning, take the green one, Serotonin. At night, the white one, Melatonin. It’s medicine for your other personality. It will help you sleep while the Hero sleeps and reduce stress.”
“Wow, there are so many colorful ones.”
“After dinner, take this one, a mixture of Zinc and Iodine. It helps activate the sympathetic nervous system. For the next medicine, we need to decide on the direction.”
I opened the status window to check the list.
―――――――――――
◎ Alchemical List
○ Status Ailment Recovery
– Mental Ailment Series
· Cleansing Pill (D)
· Saint’s Elixir (C)
· Divine Potion (B)
· Sacred Marriage Potion (B)
―――――――――――
There were two types of powerful recovery potions for mental ailments.
Both had the same effect, but the processes were quite different. Since there were limits to the recipes I could access, I needed to determine the direction.
“As we enter a stable stage, we must choose one of these two methods. Naturally, we can either eradicate the other personality or forcibly seal it inside so it can’t come out.”
Lishe looked a bit flustered at my suggestion.
“Um, is there really no other way than to eliminate or imprison them…?”
“If not, we can only integrate the personalities, but I don’t think that would have a good effect.”
I feared that if Charles’s unstable personality were to merge with Lishe, it would lead to negative results. When Lishe was out and about, the chances of a bad ending lowered. But it might stagnate or rise again.
“But isn’t that person a bit pitiful…?”
“Well, you don’t want your body to be taken, do you?”
“Sure, but… that person is like a ghost without a body… They didn’t come to me willingly, so I feel a bit sorry.”
Lishe’s thought wasn’t unfounded.
I might have been thinking too much from Camilla’s precedent.
Charles was my companion, so it would be nice to help if there was a way. However, in the current situation, she was the source of bad endings and a hindrance to Lishe’s growth.
“If that’s what the Hero thinks, let’s keep the possibility open over time. But whatever means we use, we’ll have to get cooperation from that personality, so it won’t be easy.”
“Personality…”
While listening to me, Lishe seemed to get lost in thought and tilted her head.
“Does that person have a name?”
“Her name is Charles.”
It was important for Lishe to recognize and differentiate Charles as a separate individual. For now, our goal was not to integrate the dual personalities but to separate and restore them to their original state.
“Charles from the Holy Sword.”
Lishe said the name a few times before standing up.
*
Even after returning from the dungeon conquest, Lishe didn’t rest her body.
When given a task, she’d silently complete it until she heard dumb remarks. As a result, she often faced grumbling from those around her, but she didn’t know any other way.
Vroom, vroom. She swung the Holy Sword until her body was soaked in sweat.
She thought it was okay to focus on this task for now. It wasn’t like the village where a single mistake would get her scolded. If her skills increased, she could genuinely receive praise from Tanya and the knights.
Here, she could truly be a good girl.
For that, Lars was also helping.
Lishe couldn’t be happier at that moment.
“I’ll level up. I’ll use the sword energy just before it’s released with my aura. Can you handle it?”
“Ah, yes! I’ll give it a try!”
She was gaining quite a bit of confidence in her swordsmanship. The sword master personally teaching her continuously improved her skills day by day.
She faced Tanya, gauging the distance between them. They exchanged blows while trying to figure each other out.
Her steadily trained body didn’t betray her. Lishe concentrated her gaze and followed the flow.
Tanya’s sword was sharp. As the intensity increased little by little, it was even tough to parry.
Hooook!
In a moment of crisis when she was pushed back and her posture crumbled, the Holy Sword sparkled with the emblem on the back of her hand, and
something entered Lishe’s mind.
—Right upper side.
Instinctively, she reached out her arm. Pulling her center of gravity back, she swiftly blocked Tanya’s quick attack in a defensive stance.
Tanya admired Lishe’s movements as she watched. She silently praised Lishe, who had a talent for swords just as much as her own, and continued the exchange.
On the other hand, Lishe was bewildered. The attack just now wasn’t one she had fully predicted and blocked herself.
—Next, midsection second strike. Step back.
As Lishe moved in accordance with the voice, she could respond as if she had foreseen Tanya’s next attack.
Her head was filled with questions about this mysterious and bizarre phenomenon.
‘Who are you?!’
—Who else, it’s me.
It felt like her thoughts were being read. Lars had said that the personality of the Holy Sword was asleep inside her mind.
‘Charles?’
—In a state of weak resonance, this happens. I don’t feel like greeting you, honestly, it’s embarrassing to look back at my past self; it feels like a black history.
‘Black history? You’re saying something harsh right from the start.’
—That might be true. After fighting for a while, I can’t tell if I’m a demon or a hero. Right side waist, mix in one more step.
Clang! Lishe deflected Tanya’s strange attack.
—I don’t want to talk anymore. The teacher said Charles is dangerous.
—That’s a bit harsh. Well, it’s not entirely untrue. And yet, you’re still listening to me attentively.
‘But the teacher is too fast!’
—That’s funny. I didn’t realize I was so slow. Don’t look at the opponent’s sword; watch their eyes.
‘Their eyes?’
—Yeah. When you look at Lars, just look into his eyes. You’ll be too busy looking at his face.
‘Why does the teacher’s talk come up now!?’
Lishe complained to Charles and focused on Tanya’s eyes.
With that gaze, she instinctively sensed where the next attack was headed.
Lowering her body like a little squirrel, she darted in and rapidly closed the distance.
“Oh ho.”
Tanya admired her brave action.
The edges of the swords slid against each other, and after their shoulders collided, they both separated.
“Hwa.”
“That was a good judgment. You’ve been frighteningly growing stronger day by day.”
Tanya said with satisfaction as she sheathed her sword.
Clap.
A knight watching their duel couldn’t help but applaud.
The clapping quickly spread. It was a well-deserved praise for the brilliant display by both of them.
“…Haha.”
Lishe realized that she had just used a “sword” for the first time.
She looked at the blade of the Holy Sword in her hand.
In the pure white blade, her face was reflected.
The face of a somewhat mature-looking hero, who appeared a bit weary.
*
“What do you think? It looks delicious, doesn’t it?”
As Lishe opened a new bag, no one was next to her in the Moonlight Palace corridor, as she munched on snacks alone.
Crunch, she bit into a biscuit, and a blissful smile spread across her face.
“Told you it would be delicious.”
—Right? I had forgotten.
After her resonance with the Holy Sword increased, Lishe could now converse with Charles in her mind even during normal times.
Of course, since others couldn’t hear it, she limited her chats to when she was alone.
“What else does big sister Charles like?”
—Pretty much the same as you.
“Oh, I see.”
—Enough with the snacks, bring me some booze. Rum.
“Ugh, alcohol? I’ve never tried it.”
—You’d probably like it.
“I don’t want to drink alone… It sounds so pitiful.”
—Why not ask Lars to drink with you? He’s fun; he rambles on endlessly about nothing.
“Teacher…”
Lishe trailed off when Lars’s name came up. There was something on her mind.
Charles understood exactly what it was. It was her psyche. Not knowing was tougher.
—Do you feel like you’re lying?
“Uh, well… I have to talk about big sister Charles. You’re struggling because of me.”
—Lars has always been like that. No matter when or where he wakes up, he relentlessly healed me without showing a hint of difficulty.
“Oh, I see.”
Lishe nodded slowly.
“…I respect the teacher, not in any other… way. More than anything, he’s got such a beautiful betrothed…”
—Don’t lie.
“It’s not a lie…”
—I’m in your head, you know? I know everything. You want to call him ‘big brother.’
“…Don’t ever say that.”
Lishe pouted her lips.
Maybe she was too engrossed in talking to herself that she didn’t even notice the approaching shadow.
“Oh, Hero! There you are.”
“Gah, Teacher.”
Lars was right in front of her. Lishe shrunk her body like a kid caught doing something wrong.
“It’s time for the regular checkup. Are you ready?”
“Ah, check-up, yes.”
Lishe desperately nodded to hide her panic.
He spotted the biscuit she was holding and his eyes lit up.
“I also like that!”
He took a biscuit from Lishe’s hand, put it in his mouth, and appeared satisfied.
Then, he grinned at Lishe, who was staring blankly at him.
“Hey, I didn’t steal it. Here’s your payment.”
Saying that, Lars pulled something from his inner pocket and placed it on Lishe’s palm.
It was a small candy.
“Shall we go?”
“…Yes.”
Lishe looked at his fluttering white robe.
“Sister.”
—Want me to teach you how to get Lars’s attention?
“Yes.”
Lishe carefully put the candy in her pocket and followed Lars.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.