Ep 151. I’m Sure We’ll Meet Again. (5)

  Quiet footsteps echoed throughout the cavern’s interior as Serenis trudged along the stone floors. Raizel’s soft, heaving breaths filled the remaining silence as she remained motionless in the dragonlord’s arms.

  Serenis gently pced the youngling unto the cavern floors.

  Grimag painfully, Serenis she stared up towards the ceiling with a solemn gaze. The night sky was far out of view, the few holes above her allowing only a small amount of starlight inside.

  ‘…Five.’

  ting Aldrid, six.

  Since her awakening, half the existiies had stepped down from their rule: none of which she’d aplished on her own.

  Before then, and even now – while the other lords had busied themselves with their indepe feats – Serenis alone had remained behind.

  “…”

  A millennium prior, demonkind had ventured on a quest to rid the world of its single divinity. It’d nearly costed their entire brethren.

  pared to the losses her kind had suffered then, a single dragon was hardly anything hy; had another lord been in her pce, they’d likely be celebrating the falling of another deity at su insignifit cost.

  But Serenis remained in the darkness of an isoted cavern, watg over her dying kin with dread-filled eyes.

  “…If…you hear me…”

  A thousand years, and she still hadn’t learo let go as the others could.

  She still hadn’t learo be callous and ung as others could.

  The dragonlord’s pained expression twisted in desperation. She held a hand above her chest, gripping a tight fist as she spoke in a pleading voice.

  ‘…If you’re truly listening…’

  Irospect, it’d always struck her odd.

  During her initial enter with Hathelon, the deity had nded what should’ve been a deg blow on her neck; when she’d lost sciousness, she’d thought her awakening would be ierlife.

  And during her final enter with Hathelon, the deity had dealt what should’ve been a fatal blow upon Raizel. With Serenis uo help the dying youngling, she couldn’t possibly have survived.

  But both of them had survived. On both occasions Serenis had fallen unscious, only to awaken to inexplicable outes.

  “…”

  No, inexplicable wasn’t quite right. She did have a vague idea of what had happened.

  And right now, ging to a vague idea seemed much more appealing than waiting for Raizel to die before her very eyes.

  Faint glimmers of light shone from Serenis’ tightened grip. Explosive amounts of mana gathered into her hand, as if she reparing to strike at some t enemy.

  ‘If my absence is what’s necessary, then…’

  g her eyes, Serenis allowed the surge of mana explode upon her own body.

  Waves of pain washed over her as the spell swallowed her defenseless frame. But still, she had no mind to stop injuring herself; the prismatic lights only grew in iy, tearing through their caster’s skin and flesh.

  ‘…Please. Help her.’

  After what seemed like ay, Serenis’ spell came to a case. Her legs buckled as her knees sunk to the floor, her body limp and sullen.

  …

  …

  …

  “…Ugh.”

  And in mere seds, the Serenis’ closed eyelids would begin to twitch.

  A visible frown crossed the dragonlord’s eyes as she seemingly came to in mere moments. A pained groan escaped her lips as her hands frantically ran over her body, painfully rubbing at the newly acquired wounds.

  Soon, a pair of two golden eyes revealed themselves.

  “Serenis…was that really necessary?”

  The dragonlord rose back to her feet, chug at the recklesshat had instigated their return.

  She then spared a brief moment to examine herself. Though, as soon as she ascertaihat she wasn’t in need of immediate care, her attentiourowards the dying steel dragon.

  “And I thought I told you to be o yourself, Raizel. But I guess you’d be the st oo take that advice…”

  A sarcastic smile curved the dragonlord’s lips as she k ba one kudying the youngling on the floor. She gently hovered one hand over Raizel’s lips, cheg the strength of their current breathing.

  “…It’s a miracle you’re still breathing.”

  The situation was bleak at best. Not even the world’s most skilled healer could guarahe youngling’s survival in this moment; it wouldn’t be surprising if her breathio cease this very sed.

  But heless, they had to try.

  She couldn’t restore missing limbs or molten flesh; no magic could aplish such feats. But she could at least undo the numerous burns c Raizel’s body, which would hopefully be suffit to keep the youngling alive.

  Steeling their heart, the dragonlord’s palm began to emit a glimmering, e light.

  Truth be told, the magic’s effects seemed miniscule at best. But slow as it may be, the bck over Raizel’s charred body was lessening speck by speck.

  Drops of sweat began to form over the dragonlord’s forehead. For hours she remained firm in pce, her focus refusing to wane as she performed her spell.

  “Hang in there, Raizel. If you die, I’ll never hear the end of it from your lord…”

  ? ? ?

  Thankfully, Serenis had picked out a secluded location: in her current occupied, repced state, there was no guarantee she could even fend off a wild squirrel. Even if the Reaper himself were to suddenly appear, she couldn’t risk interrupting Raizel’s treatment.

  Of course, nearby monsters had been all but eradicated, and Serenis had explicitly asked Urgus to prevent anyone from seeking her out. She’d likewise told Ilias and Light that she o be aloh Raizel, minimizing the ce of any interruption that could occur.

  For the first few hours, anyways.

  “Ilias…are you sure you find them like this?”

  “Mhm. One sed…”

  The red draged along the snowy hill, sniffing the night air as she walked.

  Light was trailing a short way behind her with a quizzical expression. As much as she trusted Ilias, she’d never heard ons being able to locate things by st.

  But books were lying, apparently.

  “…There. See that?”

  Ilias came to a brief stop, pointing at the entrance of a rather secluded cavern up the snowy hill. A faint e glow was leaking from within, signalling the presence of others inside.

  “I didn’t know you had such a good sense of smell…”

  “I don’t, actually. It’s just Lord Serenis. Weird, right?”

  “Really? What does she even smell like?”

  “Like…”

  Ilias trailed off her words as she began to approach the illuminated caverrance. Pretend as she might, her heart was thumping so loud she was surprised Light couldn’t hear its beating.

  The youngling lightly gripped the cavern’s stone walls, peeking into the e luminance. She could immediately see the familiar backside of her lord, and her even familiar friend lying oone floors before them. She could still hear the series of heaving breaths, lightly eg throughout the cavern walls.

  Though, a small frown crossed Ilias’ eyes as she realized that something was different.

  “…Lord…Serenis?”

  “…”

  The dragonlord her answered, nor even looked towards the entrance. She remained focused oask at hand, her heaving breaths growing rapid and sparse.

  Light also peeked in beside her sister, frowning at the strange sight.

  “…Serenis? Are you okay?”

  A few minutes passed in foreboding silence as the two remai the entrance. With Serenis remainihly silent, her were sure if they should be barging in to interrupt, or staying put to not interrupt.

  Only when the e lights began to dim would the dragonlord turn her head, fag the two guests. She could hardly tell who they were in her hazy vision.

  “…Ilias, Light. Didn’t she…I mean, didn’t I tell you two that I o be alone?”

  The two looked at each other, then back at Serenis. It was Ilias who answered, a hint of guilt mixed into her voice.

  “We…got worried. You were taking so long. It’s been hours since sundown…”

  “I…see…”

  “Is everything okay? Is Raizel…”

  Ilias immediately sealed her lips. She couldn’t bear to ask the question in full, fearing that she’d hear something she rather wouldn’t.

  But the dragonlord lightly wove her hand, being for them to e closer.

  “I did what I could. But she’ll still o see a proper healer.”

  “A healer? Does that mean…”

  The dragonlord’s light nodding firmed Ilias’ spark of hope.

  “She’ll be alright. She’ll ime, but she’ll be awake eventually.”

  Hearing the answer, Ilias spared a brief moment to ihe steel dragon on the floor. True to the dragonlord’s words, her friend’s burns had severely lessened; her breathing had likewise calmed. Missing limb or no, it seemed nothing short of a miracle.

  And while the red dragon embraced her lord with teary eyes and trembling arms, Light’s frown showed no sign of disappearing.

  If anything, it was growing heavier as the half girl tio study her peculiar friend.

  “Hey, Serenis?”

  “Hm? Yes, Light?”

  “I thought I heard you couldn’t use healing spells?”

  “Huh? Oh. Um, that…well…”

  “And what happeo your eyes?”

  “Uh…what about my eyes?”

  Light’s eyes narrowed even further as her friend questioned back at her premise. Stepping closer, Light stared into Serenis’ eyes from mere inches away, noting their golden hue.

  “Your eyes used to be blue.”

  “…Aren’t they still?”

  “No? They’re gold.”

  Serenis bliwi evident fusion. She quickly retreated from Ilias’ embrace, running her hands over her eyes – though that didly allow her to see her own eyes.

  Light crossed her arms, studying the dragonlord’s odd behavior.

  “Why don’t you just use an ice spell or something? You see your own refle then.”

  “…I’m…a little tired. Could you help?”

  “…Seriously? You’re asking for MY help? In magic?”

  “…”

  ‘Yeah…she wouldn’t do that, would she.’

  The dragonlord let out a nervous chuckle, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head. She was certainly tired, but that urely because she’d kept herself trated for so long, not because she was g in mana.

  At this point, even Ilias was catg on that something was amiss. And Light was already near-certain that she was talking to a lookalike, not her peculiar friend.

  ‘She’s talking weird, she’s ag weird, and she even looks weird…’

  Perhaps it was all the years she’d spent studying Karas’ nigh-ent facial cues.

  Or perhaps it was the keen animal sense she’d been born with.

  Whatever it was, the dragonlord’s little ruse wasn’t fooling the half anytime soon.

  “…You’re not Serenis, are you?”