143 – Negotiation (6)

＊

Sylvia was scared.

That fact gave me a fresh shock.

It wasn’t such an obvious and childish remark that he now realized that Sylvia was also a helpless, fragile woman.

The fact that Sylvia was a woman was etched into my body almost every night, and yet I could see clearly every day that she still had the power to overpower me.

My shock came from the realization of how I had thought of Sylvia.

Just as I had been thinking of Pia as a convenient presence that I would only look for when I needed her without even realizing it, it seemed that I had been vaguely thinking of Sylvia as a strong and reliable support.

“…”

I didn’t have the courage to say anything.

It was too rude of me to hastily offer consolation, as I had mistakenly assumed that Sylvia was some kind of invincible superhuman, and my abilities were too insignificant to rashly promise to be her support.

Overwhelmed by the guilt that weighed on my chest to the point where I couldn’t even breathe, there was nothing I could do but stare blankly at Sylvia.

In this heavy silence that was as quiet as thick dust, yet ceaselessly covering the small cabin, only Sylvia’s sad sobs, gasping for breath, sharply cut through the air and struck my eardrums.

My heart ached.

It’s not that I’m hurt because she, who I thought was always strong, is falling apart, but it’s because I’m so pathetic for not realizing at all that she was already in danger for a long time.

I was sick.

“…Sylvia.”

With my heart groaning shamelessly in pain, I could barely manage to call out her name.

It was more of a sigh or a cry than a call to see Sylvia’s reaction.

“…under,”

I suddenly let out a hollow laugh.

My head was filled with countless random nonsense I had been telling her.

Sounds like love.

You want to live together? You’re just sitting there talking nonsense.

Are you saying I’m obsessed? Are you saying I’m a pervert? Are you saying I’m greedy for your body?

He’s just sitting there laughing.

What was Sylvia in pain about, what was she afraid of,

I have never once seriously thought about why he so persistently wanted to confirm his love for me. Aren’t I the one who is the pervert who only lusts after Sylvia’s body?

Because Sylvia is strong,

I didn’t even know Sylvia was in pain, and I never questioned that fact.

No, I didn’t even try to find out.

Did he foolishly think that the strong Sylvia would overcome it on her own, or did he just not care from the beginning?

Maybe it’s both.

I could see why Sylvia was so anxious and tried to tie me up.

Sylvia, a woman who wanted to be loved by me, must have felt it instinctively.

How empty were the wonderful words I uttered.

“…Ugh,”

Do I really love Sylvia?

I slowly bit my trembling lips painfully.

The blood that had been slowly dripping from the fangs that were poking at his lips soon gushed out and flowed down his lips.

Only then did Sylvia manage to control her voice and begin to speak in a bright tone.

“… Sorry, did I say something weird?”

“…”

“Don’t worry about it, I just kept having strange thoughts and was a little confused.”

“…”

“I guess I’m a little nervous because I’m thinking about going back to hunt the Demon King. I’m a veteran warrior, but I can’t believe I’m doing something so amateur…”

“…Sylvia.”

Sylvia slowly raised her head, then quickly glared and shouted.

“Ash! There’s blood on your lips!”

“… i know.”

“Did you bite your lip? Did you chew the meat wrong? Oh my god, wait a minute…”

Sylvia hurriedly walked over to me on her knees and pressed her sleeve to my lips.

Her strong, trembling fingers pressed painfully against his lips to stop the bleeding.

“You bit it pretty hard.”

A pale golden mist rose from her fingers and flashed softly.

Soon, warmth spread across my lips.

It was a treatment using divine power that I had become accustomed to after receiving it several times.

After a while, when the fog cleared, Sylvia gently let go of my lips and said:

“I’m sorry. I must have said something stupid and bothered you.”

“… don’t do it…”

“huh?”

“Apologize… Don’t, why are you apologizing… why Sylvia.”

“…Ash?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

I bowed my head.

Shameless, cloudy tears fell to the floor.

“Ash,”

“I’m sorry… Really, I… I had no idea Sylvia… would think that…”

There’s no way it wouldn’t be scary.

No matter how much of a warrior you are, no matter how much of a Sylvia you are.

It was not okay for him to follow in the footsteps of his colleagues who had supported him and even sacrificed their lives for his success.

It couldn’t have been easy to face one’s own mistakes and failures head on.

It couldn’t have been that easy to admit that he had messed up.

There was no way I wouldn’t want to wait.

“Ash…”

Looking back now, Sylvia clearly conveyed her fears to me.

When I said I would subdue the Demon King, she clearly told me with her own mouth, in her own language, in her own words.

I’m afraid of facing failure, I’m tired of a life of endless sacrifice.

I don’t want to take the risk of losing myself.

But what did I say to that?

Let’s get married.

When everything is over, let’s get married together…

haha,

Crazy guy.

Even though I didn’t have any abilities, I acted as if I was the main character in a romantic story because I had heard things from somewhere.

Idiot.

Even a retard doesn’t have a retard like this one.

It was ugly.

Oh, that sucks.

It was so pitiful that Sylvia nodded in agreement to such a request.

“stop,”

Sylvia said, gently wrapping her arms around my head.

“Ash, are you torturing yourself again?”

“…”

Sylvia slowly stroked my back with both hands and patted me.

It was hard to believe that those rough and strong hands were warm, and they slowly spread from my back to my entire body.

“It’s hard to see the days we spent together as short anymore.”

Sylvia spoke in a soft, soothing voice.

Her voice, still faintly wet from the sobbing she had just done, was a harmonious mix of warmth and sadness.

“No, if you say it was short, it might be short. But it was long for me. More than enough to make up for all the years I’ve had.”

“…ugh,”

“So now I can tell what Ash is thinking just by looking at him. He’s clearly torturing himself again, like, ‘I don’t know Sylvia.’”

Sylvia’s hand, which had been stroking my back, suddenly stopped and slowly gained strength.

And then he immediately hugged my back tightly.

The hugs I’ve given countless times already.

I folded my body against hers, as if I was a magnet, fitting perfectly into the empty space in her arms.

Sylvia spoke softly.

“Don’t do that, Ash. Don’t say anything.”

“… I am.”

“Don’t say anything. It’s obvious that Ash will just end up cursing himself anyway.”

“…”

“Even if it’s Ash, I don’t like hearing you badmouth Ash.”

“…Sylvia.”

“I’m sorry I seemed anxious. It was my fault.”

“No, Sylvia’s fine,”

“Shut up. It’s my fault.”

“…”

Sylvia hugged me so tightly that my back almost broke.

“I am a warrior. I became a warrior again because Ash asked me to.”

“…”

“As a warrior, I will protect the world.”

Then he slowly took me out of his arms, gently held my face, and looked at me.

Beyond the water-blinded vision, two red rubies glittered between beautiful platinum silk.

As the platinum curtain, beautifully fluttering like a tent in the bedroom where the goddess lies, swayed, the ecstatically sweet scent of Sylvia’s body rose up.

The curtain, the ruby, slowly came closer, almost covering my vision.

Sylvia’s scent filled my nostrils.

Just before our lips overlapped, Sylvia paused for a moment and whispered softly to me.

“Ash is my world.”

＊

After a light kiss, the first thing that caught my eye as the moisture slowly dried was my blood all over her lips.

I belatedly wiped my lips with the palm of my hand.

Sylvia was staring at me blankly.

I said hurriedly.

“Oh, no. I didn’t wipe it because I didn’t like kissing Sylvia…”

“…Haha, I know. I wiped the blood away.”

Sylvia dabbed the blood on her lips with her finger.

Then he slowly wiped the blood off his lips with his tongue.

“…”

“Why? Did you think I would think Ash’s blood was dirty?”

“Oh, no…”

I slowly wiped the remaining blood from my lips.

At that moment, my palms sensed an unfamiliar sensation from my lips, or rather, from around my mouth to my chin.

“…uh,”

“what’s the matter?”

“…Sylvia, did I grow a beard?”

“I know. You didn’t know?”

“Since when…?”

“It’s been a while since we met again, and it must have been like this since we started training?”

“…”

I was so surprised that I covered my mouth with my palm.

Of course, I wasn’t surprised because it was the first time in my life that I had a beard.

Although his beard didn’t grow as well as other people’s, it would naturally grow if left alone, and when he lived in Sylvia’s cabin, he would occasionally shave using the dagger Sylvia had given him.

But I haven’t shaved since I met the green lady.

I had been alone for over a month, and this little wooden shed I had built contained nothing, not even a mirror or anything useful as a mirror.

Even when I was washing at the lakeside, I always splashed around and swam, but I never looked quietly at the water’s surface.

Thanks to that, I completely forgot about the beard.

“…Please tell me something.”

“why?”

“I don’t like it, I think my beard looks a bit unsightly.”

“It’s kind of cute, isn’t it?”

“Does Sylvia like beards?”

“no,”

“… Then, tell me.”

“I thought you were raising it nicely.”

“…”

“lol,”

I slowly got up from my seat.

“Where are you going?”

“lake.”

“Are you going to shave?”

As Sylvia said, I got up to shave, but that was not all.

I wanted to wipe away the blood and wash my swollen, red eyes.

More than anything, I wanted to wash away this pathetic sight of mine.

The beard just happened to be a good excuse.

I thought that if I shaved off all my dullness and stupidity into my beard, I would be able to look at the world and Sylvia with slightly wiser eyes.

From the beginning, I hated my beard that grew out of place.

He is the perfect scapegoat to project my pitiful image onto.

“I have to wipe the blood too…”

“Should I train again after shaving?”

“Okay, come out in about ten minutes.”

“Yeah, okay.”

As I was walking with my mouth covered, I suddenly stopped in front of the door.

Then he slowly turned around and said.

“Thank you, Sylvia.”

Sylvia answered with a smile.

“I love you, Ash.”

＊

After Ash left, Pia sat blankly and looked at Sylvia.

Looking at the atmosphere, I was certain that the two would not stop sharing their love.

In Pia’s eyes, it was clear that Sylvia was lusting after Ash, but Ash was also easily drawn into their world without even noticing his surroundings, just because Sylvia created the atmosphere.

It was like that just a little while ago.

Even though he knew full well that Pia was watching from the side, Ash kissed Sylvia as if he had forgotten that fact.

Of course, I could understand it a little.

The two love each other, Sylvia can’t see Pia at all, and there is a strong bond between them, but also a huge, fatal gap that only each other can fill, and they constantly yearn for each other.

But there was a difference between being able to understand and being able to endure.

Although it was a pleasant sight to see, it was extremely distressing for Pia to have to keep watching the two people’s beastly copulation every night.

Every time that happens, I keep getting a strange feeling.

Pia sighed and got up to follow Ash, who had left first.

That was when.

“Did you say Pia?”

Did I hear that wrong?

I must have misheard.

Pia thought so.

It was a natural inference, since no one other than Ash could see him.

“Is it there?”

“…uh?”

Pia was startled and slowly turned towards the source of the voice.

“Can we talk?”

There were two bright red eyes looking straight at Pia.

The sweet yet bitter atmosphere that had enveloped the cabin until just a moment ago disappeared in an instant.

“Can you see… Pia?”

“…”

Sylvia smiled creepily.

.