CH 17.1

Chapter 17 Part 1:

Many trees grow haphazardly on either side of the path.

In front of the path is a natural arch made of intertwining creepers. The ground is gently sloping, almost like a small hill.

The spectacular view that I wanted to show Spica is just ahead.

"Almost there.”

From the top of a huge fallen tree, I held out my hand about a meter above her.

At the end of my hand is a beautiful, eye-catching girl, Spica Velvet.

“Thank you.”

"... Did you like it?"

"It’s hard to put it in words."

She says with a bright smile on her face.

Spica was a character in a game I played in a previous life. But now, it's hard to think of her as a game character anymore.

In the game, ‘The Last Sword’, Spica's role was that of a demon lord.

She pulls my hand firmly towards me and draws herself up onto the fallen tree.

Her lips pout as she uses her magic to remove the pieces of tiny wood pieces from her cloak, she is already far away from her usual appearance in the game.

In the game, the gaze she directed at the player was a blank look, reflecting no kind of emotion. She was the epitome of despair and destruction.

In contrast, the girl that is in front of me, tilts her head and gives me a puzzled look that gives me the impression that she is a child.

Not bad. I'm glad for her.

“...What?"

"No, it's nothing. Let's go.”

"Can you give me a minute?

"What's the matter? Did you get hurt? Are you okay?”

"No, I'm not. I don't know how to describe it, but I'm having a good time, so why don't we take a break?...”

"I understand."

Spica sits down on a huge fallen tree and shuffles her feet.

I'm not in a hurry. I sit down on a fallen tree too.

I take out two square blocks of ice from my pouch and hand one to Spica beside me.

"Thank you.”

"Mmm!"

Spica makes a sword appear in the air and cuts off the top of the ice with it.

I flick the ice with my fingers, and the top fell to the ground.

What’s inside is chilled water.

This is caused by magic. In this world, there is the magic that was a fantasy game in a previous life.

...A gentle breeze blew, and the pleasant sound of the leaves rustle.

The sun's rays filtered through the trees, creating a soothing atmosphere.

We silently enjoy nature without any conversation.

I said earlier that we were traveling, but this strange trip had another goal.

That is, to find the village of the Dragon-men, the same race as Spica.

Spica's homeland was destroyed by humans. I don't know why the humans destroyed the village.

Maybe if I ask her, she can tell me… But that will surely be an act of stepping on the sensitive parts of her heart. I'm not sure how I, a human, can ask Spica who was exposed to human cruelty.

It's not easy. 

The promise I made to her when we started our journey was that I will send her back to the dragon people.

Eventually, our journey will come to an end.

Just thinking about it brings an indescribable feeling that dominates my heart. 

… A bitter smile appears on my face. I'm completely overwhelmed just by the thoughts of getting separated from her.

What I need to do is to help her understand that there are many different kinds of humans through this journey.

And the only thing I can do for Spica is to make sure that she doesn't get hurt by any more humans.

This is just my personal wish … I hope she enjoys her journey with me.

I wonder what effect she had on her first visit to Parose Village.

Well, she got along with me. ...I'm embarrassed to say it myself.

When I think about humans, everything instantly becomes confusing. When she saw Lark, who had been good to us in the village of Parose, she seemed to think, "There are different kinds of humans out there," but what happened in the village was not a good thing. I don't think it had a positive impact on her.