The funeral for those who sacrificed their lives to seal the Witch of Gluttony has concluded.
While the number of sacrifices may not be great, it was a matter that could not be taken lightly, so the funeral was hastened even amid our busy lives.
And what awaited us after the ceremony was the aftermath left behind by the calamity that had struck us head-on.
“……Haaah…”
Sofia, who was beside me, let out a groan.
“……Sofia, are you okay?”
“……Yes. I’m just a little tired. I’m fine, so you don’t have to worry.”
Even though she didn’t look well at all, I asked out of concern, but Sofia smiled as if to say not to worry and continued with the task she had been working on just moments before.
The task she was performing was the purification of the miasma that the Witch of Gluttony had scattered before her sealing.
If left alone, not only would demonic beasts continue to spawn, but the ones nearby would also gather to seek out the thick miasma, so the quicker it was handled, the better.
However, the Magic Purification Facility was mostly damaged, so the only way to purify the areas was to do so directly using magic or other methods.
That was why Sofia was up and working just a few days after she had collapsed and bled out.
And that meant Sofia couldn’t possibly be in good condition.
“Considering how ‘fine’ you are, your range of abilities is slowly diminishing. You’ve been pushing yourself, haven’t you? Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”
“……No, I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did.”
“……Tch, Lady Scarlet is annoyingly perceptive in these matters.”
As I continued to point out that she was overexerting herself, Sofia clicked her tongue in defeat.
Despite my repeated warnings to take it easy, she ended up overdoing it, which made me slightly irritated as I spoke.
“Sofia, didn’t I tell you not to push yourself? If you collapse, that would be a bigger issue, wouldn’t it? This task is done for now, so hurry back and recover.”
In the current state of the city, with the barrier and the Magic Purification Facility gone, if I had to choose the most important person, it would undoubtedly be Sofia.
In an emergency, she was the one who could protect people from the miasma on her own, making her the last bastion of the city.
If someone as vital as her were to collapse, it would be a disaster.
That’s why, given that I spent the most time with her, I had secretly asked others to keep a close eye on her condition.
I had an obligation to stop Sofia from overexerting herself for no good reason.
So, I was feigning annoyance to prevent her from straining herself.
In fact, today was supposed to be a day of rest for her, but she forced her way out under the pretense that she had rested enough.
On the condition that she wouldn’t push herself, of course.
So, when I told her to rest, she stubbornly shook her head, refusing to comply.
“……But if I take a break, then Lady Scarlet and the others will have to work harder, right? How can I relax knowing that? I won’t do it. I don’t want to cause others to suffer just because I’m taking a break…”
“……”
I was momentarily speechless in response to Sofia’s words.
She was right.
If the miasma purification was delayed, then the responsibility of dealing with the spawned demonic beasts would fall on me and the others.
While defeating demonic beasts was something we were used to and could handle, the issue was that most of the heroes were exhausted from fighting the Witch of Gluttony and needed recovery time.
For the people to rest, Sofia had to finish dealing with the miasma quickly.
However, instead of overexerting Sofia, everyone had decided they would endure hardship to help her recover.
That’s why Sofia had gotten out of bed today, unable to stand by as the others suffered.
And that was why I could only pretend to be angry at her and act as if I were scolding her.
How could I sincerely be mad at someone who would rather suffer a little more than let others struggle?
But that’s that, and this is this, so I sighed lightly and spoke to stubborn Sofia.
“……Sofia, I understand that you feel uncomfortable not being able to rest peacefully.”
“……If you understand that, then why do you keep telling me to rest?”
“Because no one wants to see you pushing yourself like this. I know it bothers you that everyone else is struggling while you’re at ease, but no one is going to criticize you for resting. Everyone knows how important you are to this city. So, if you’re really thinking of the others, hurry and go rest. If you keep this up, you’ll actually be a nuisance to everyone.”
“……Lady Scarlet, do you really think I’m a nuisance?”
Sofia’s expression showed that she was hurt by my words.
Seeing her reaction, I approached her slowly with a serious look.
“What I just said was an objective opinion.”
I hugged her from behind and smiled slightly.
Taken aback by my sudden shift in demeanor, Sofia asked,
“Objective, opinion…?”
“I was asked to keep an eye on you, to make sure you don’t overexert yourself. Since I was asked, I have to ensure your condition is stable, which is why I said that.”
“I see…”
Sofia seemed to question if my thoughts were different from the objective perspective, but I shook my head while resting my chin on her shoulder.
“No, even from a subjective standpoint, I actually wish you would rest a bit more.”
“What do you mean? That doesn’t sound different from the objective standpoint.”
“The reasons are different, you see.”
As I said that, I raised my left hand in front of Sofia.
On my left index finger was a friendship ring she had given me.
While I took it off during battles for fear it might melt, I always wore it at other times; it symbolized our friendship. With my left hand holding hers, I said,
“I just don’t want to see my friend Sofia overexert herself.”
An warmth flowed through our connected hands.
But when I recalled the time when that warmth almost faded away, it still occasionally made my heart drop.
I remembered how she had collapsed and bled during the fight against the Witch of Gluttony and said,
“Do you know how shocked I was when you collapsed and bled out? I was so worried about what would happen to you. But seeing you up and working again so soon makes me feel all sorts of things.”
“……Is that something Lady Scarlet should be saying? You regularly engage in even more dangerous acts without hesitation.”
“Ah, anyway… I’m worried about your well-being because you’re my friend.”
While I was a bit pricked by Sofia’s words, I still tightened my embrace around her.
I interlaced my fingers over the back of her hand.
The rings intertwined and produced a clinking sound.
That sound wasn’t just any sound; it was a reminder that it was Sofia.
Thinking about how that sound might fade away made me anxious, so I whispered softly into her ear.
“……Honestly, I’d like you to take a good break regardless of what others are going through. It feels bad to feel guilty about anyone else, but to me, my friend Sofia means more than anyone else. Uh, that might be a bit selfish of me to say?”
Sofia gave a bittersweet smile in response to my words.
“……Well, I don’t have any reason to argue against that. I actually didn’t want to see you struggling because of me, that’s why I was trying to push myself. After all, you’ve also had quite a bit of trouble, haven’t you?”
“……Hmm, if that’s the case, then it doesn’t matter.”
I chuckled slightly at Sofia’s words and reached my right arm over her shoulder.
From that arm came the flames unleashed towards the demonic beasts rushing toward us.
The flames were released intensely, burning the oncoming beasts to ashes without a trace.
Seeing that display, I shrugged and told Sofia,
“I’m different from someone who bleeds out and collapses from overexertion. I’m a witch, and I’m tough, you know? I can recover quickly even after pushing myself a bit. The last time I overexerted, I was already back to normal ages ago.”
“……Really?”
“Of course. You just saw it.”
I replied confidently and continued to persuade Sofia.
“Sofia, do you realize how foolish it is to say you won’t rest because you don’t want to make me worry? Honestly, I’m working harder to catch more beasts so you can rest. So if you’re thinking about me, just don’t overdo it and rest well. That’s what I want. Just leave it to this sturdy friend in the meantime.”
Having said that, Sofia smiled as if she couldn’t argue any further.
“Well, if you put it that way, I guess I have no choice. Alright, I’ll trust Lady Scarlet and focus on resting as much as possible.”
“Yeah, you can count on me.”
With that, Sofia turned to head deeper into the city to take her rest.
“……Is she gone?”
After watching Sofia leave for a moment, I muttered to myself,
“Ugh… Is she pushing herself to look fine… My body…”
Once I was certain that no one was around, I plopped down into a seated position and groaned.
Well, the claim that I had fully recovered was a lie crafted to make her take a break.
No matter how quickly witches recover compared to regular people, it’s impossible to regain all the strength spent to the point of nearly collapsing in such a short time.
People might say I could absorb the miasma lying around to regain my strength, and that’s true to some extent, but having drained so much energy, I knew better now.
This miasma isn’t just something you can absorb recklessly.
Ms. Eve had explained the barriers to me.
She mentioned that miasma comes in different types, and a witch’s heart acts like a filter that transforms different miasmas for use.
In simple terms, to absorb a different type of miasma, one must go through the transformation process.
But the miasma left behind by the Witch of Gluttony was particularly troublesome, it seemed to take a bit of time to undergo that transformation.
To give you a metaphor, it’s like passing a large lump of dough through a narrow hole to produce thin noodles.
In any case, this meant I was just as much in need of rest as she was.
However, I rose back to my feet again without resting.
If I endure a little longer, others can rest a bit more.
That was more than enough reason to push myself.
And it was the duty of those who survived for the sake of those who sacrificed.
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