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Irisdina, having finished nursing Nozomu, was walking down the hallway leading to her classroom.

The morning assembly had probably not started yet. There were buzzing conversations leaking into the hallway from inside the classroom.

When Irisdina arrived in front of her classroom, she took a deep breath and put her hand on the door.

When the door rattled open, all eyes in the classroom turned to her at once.

The hustle and bustle that had been going on earlier had suddenly stopped, and all eyes filled with interest and curiosity turned to her at once.

Irisdina sat down in her seat, ignoring all of the various gazes around her.

The information about Irisdina and Shīna treating the injured Nozomu had not been made public.

However, it was a fact that Nozomu, who had been spending a lot of time with Irisdina and the others recently, was currently being treated in the hospital after being injured in a recent incident.

Irisdina and Shīna were frequently seen coming to school late and leaving immediately after school ended, anyone could get a rough idea of what was going on.

In fact, there was a student who actually asked Irisdina directly, "Are you going to visit Nozomu?" and she didn't deny it either.

The only thing that Jihad kept quiet about was that Nozomu was a Dragon Slayer and about Abyss Grief.

Since it was a well-known fact that Nozomu was hospitalized, there was no need to deny it.

However, this fact caused quite a stir among the students.

Irisdina is one of the five most beautiful girls in the school. And considering her ability, origin, and potential, it was impossible not to gossip about her.

Precisely because she was unattainable, she attracted people's interest and attention.

The dark-haired princess had a new love interest.

Recently, she and Nozomu had been getting along well, and rumors about this had been circulating, but when she started taking care of Nozomu, the story spread throughout the school at once.

The fact that Lisa Hounds' gossip had sprung up just at that time also contributed to the spread of this rumor.

"Hey, Is it true that Irisdina-san..  with that guy..."

"I wonder about that. Nozomu and Irisdina-san are an unusual combination, aren't they? Nozomu certainly seems to be ridiculously strong, but he's not someone of noble birth, isn't he?"

"But it's obvious that the black-haired princess has been acting strange lately. It seems she lost her composure…"

Even though her surroundings were noisy, Irisdina's mind was on something else entirely.

From the beginning, Irisdina was accustomed to the gazes of those around her.

She had lived in a narrow, aristocratic society that was sensitive to other people's rumors.

Compared to that sticky, suffocating, damp, and cold world, she didn't care about the gossip of the students.

Therefore, it was not such a rumor that dominated her mind now.

What came to her mind was Nozomu lying in a hospital room. And all she could think of was his childhood friend who was nursing him.

"Hey, what do you think?"

"I wonder about that ... Kevin ..."

"……Ha!?"

"S-sorry, it's nothing ..."

"Idiot, why did you ask him? ..."

"It just slipped out..."

"Fuh..."

Iris Dina turned her gaze out the window, ignoring the annoying voices around her.

Summer is already near.

Young birds were resting on the branches of the trees that lined up in the central park, as they were about to leave their nests.

Outside the window, the sun was shining brightly.

However, in contrast to the city brilliantly illuminated by the sunlight, her mood was dark and depressed.

Nozomu was not waking up. When she saw him like that, it made her recall her past memories.

It was a story from when Irisdina was a child.

Somia didn't remember it, but Irisdina remembered her late mother well.

A gentle smile and a graceful gesture. Her mother was a gentle person with a charm that could attract people just by standing.

Irisdina loved her mother, always called, "Mother, mother!", and would cling to her legs.

Sometimes she grabbed the skirt of her dress or picked flowers from her favorite flowerbed with the intention of giving her a present, but her kind mother would just pat her head with a troubled look on her face and never scold her.

Instead, her father was the one who scold her.

She remembered how her mother loved her and how she gently comforted her when she was crying.

Irisdina played with her own glossy black hair, curling it with her fingertips.

Her lustrous black hair was also inherited from her mother. It was her pride and precious thing that allowed her to feel the connection with her late mother.

However, Irisdina's mother was never a strong person.

Her mother suffered considerably when she gave birth to her first daughter who was born prematurely.

Then she had her second child.

When Irisdina knew it, her mother had a big smile on her face, and she was very happy that she would have a sibling.

When her father found out that her mother was pregnant with Somia, he had one of the best doctors in the country working exclusively for her mother, and he made careful preparations for her mother.

Irisdina knew that her mother was frail and wanted to do something to help her, but there was nothing a six-year-old girl could do.

And her mother, who was pregnant, became frequently ill, partly due to her original frail constitution.

Her mother's personal doctor made careful preparations for her dietary improvements and childbirth, and her father gathered rare medicines that had been passed down in distant lands.

But their efforts were not enough, and her mother gradually became weaker and weaker.

Even healing magic could not be used on her frail mother.

Instead of regaining her physical condition, she would use up her remaining strength, which would be irreversible.

Her mother developed a fever every few days and gradually became unable to walk.

As her mother's belly grew larger, the intervals between her bedtime became shorter and shorter. To Irisdina, it seemed as if a new life was taking her mother's life.

Finally, her mother became so worn out that she could no longer get out of bed.

(Master, regarding your wife, I'm sorry but you have to prepare for the worst...)

Irisdina happened to overhear words that her mother's personal doctor told to her father at night.

Knowing that her beloved mother's life was in danger, Irisdina prayed night after night for her mother's safety.

(Please help mother!)

At that time, Irisdina was hoping that her mother's life would be saved more than the unborn life.

On the other hand, that unborn life might look like a sinister thing that would take her mother's life.

(It's okay, Irisdina ... Mom, will do her best ...)

But her mother was different.

She had lost weight, her cheekbones were protruding, and she looked like a different person, but she was rubbing her growing belly with a big smile on her face. For her mother, the unborn life looked precious, really precious.

(I wonder if it's Irisdina's brother or sister who will be born ... Fufu! I'm looking forward to it.)

Her mother's figure smiling lovingly was still vividly burned in Irisdina's mind.

She must have felt extremely happy when she received the unborn life and saw it growing inside her belly.

Even though her mother looked like a dried-up, skinny woman, the image of a mother thinking of her unborn child was so beautiful that it was hard to deny.

That was the last smile Irisdina saw on her mother's face.

Her sister was born at the same time her mother passed away.

The figure of her mother, who lay motionless and silent, was still burned into her eyes.

(M-mother...?)

No matter how much Irisdina called her mother out, her mother didn't answer.

(Mother! Mother !!)

No matter how loud she shouted, shook, or pulled her mother's hand, her cold mother gave her no response.

Her mother had already become a corpse. Irisdina was confronted with the fact that her mother, who had burned up all her life, had left this world, whether she wanted to or not.

Everyone there was speechless, and her father, who was usually taciturn, was weeping in front of the servants at that time.

Even to the young Irisdina, her mother's death was like a sharp blade that cut deeply into her heart.

A sharp pain ran through her chest, and the gust of wind that blew in through the scar took the heat out of Irisdina's heart.

Her heart, her emotions, froze. Just like the corpse of her mother sleeping in front of her.

Whether she yelled, shook, or pulled her hand, her cold mother didn't reply to her.

*Waaa! Waaa!*

At that time, it was the voice of her newborn sister that echoed in the silent room.

A young life was born, fed by the life of her mother.

Irisdina, who had been preoccupied with her mother's death, turned her attention for the first time to her newborn sister.

A tiny, tiny infant, lying next to her mother, who was sleeping peacefully.

It was a life as fragile as glass, but as bright as the sun.

Gently, she reached out and touched her sister's forehead.

It was warm.

The heartbeat and the heat she felt through the palm of her hand gradually seeped into Irisdina's body.

She recalled the face of her mother, who was smiling at her as she slowly approached death.

At that moment, Irisdina suddenly understood.

Ah, my mother wanted to keep this warmth alive. Even if she were to give all her life to this child ...

(Mother ...)

Something hot ran down Irisdina's cheek.

Strangely, the thought that her sister had killed her mother did not occur to her.

The warmth of her sister's body on the palm of her hand. It was like her mother's warmth, gently comforting the young Irisdina.

The wound in her chest was closed by her mother's feelings entrusted to her sister.

At that moment, she made a vow in her heart. She will protect her sister in place of her mother.

However, now that Nozomu had fallen asleep, the wound that should have been closed was about to reopen.

"Nozomu ..."

Nozomu's name naturally came out of Irisdina's mouth as she stared out the window.

Nozomu's figure lying on the bed overlapped with the last moments of her mother's life.

The sight of Nozomu's face, as if he were dead, undeniably stirred the wounds in her heart.

Irisdina clutched her chest tightly as if to suppress the prickling wound.

The doctor said that there was nothing wrong with Nozomu's body. She said that his spirit was just hibernating.

However, such a thing did not calm her down.

One's mind and body were closely intertwined.

If the spirit dies, the body also dies, and vice versa.

Moreover, Nozomu's soul carried a tremendous amount of danger.

(If Nozomu didn't wake up ... )

The worst-case scenario that came to her mind inevitably stirred Irisdina's heart.

This was not the first time she had been driven by this anxiety.

Every time she saw him asleep in the hospital bed, Irisdina caught a glimpse of her mother's death.

Previously, it was just for a few days. But this time it had been far too long.

The growing sense of frustration and loneliness drove her uncontrollably.

At that moment, at the edge of Irisdina's vision, she saw someone's reflection in the windowpane.

Her red hair was tied back and she was facing her head down as if to hide in the shadows around her.

"…………"

When she confirmed the appearance, the stabbing pain in her chest increased.

And the pain was getting worse. Her feelings for Nozomu were further contributing to that pain.

(I want you to be by my side)

Those were the words she directed at him when he was swallowed by Tiamat and went out of control. The wish from the bottom of her heart was now felt painful.

Irisdina shouldn't be the one to tell Lisa Hounds about Nozomu's thoughts and feelings.

Only one person in the world was qualified to tell her that. Only Nozomu himself, who was still asleep.

Irisdina gritted her teeth and put a lid on the feelings of impatience that had nowhere else to go.

She could see his smile in her mind. The smile he had shown to his friends who had accepted his past.

The first person outside of her family to whom she wished to smile from the bottom of her heart. Thinking of his smile, Irisdina desperately suppressed the black thoughts swirling in her chest.

Hoping that he would wake up as soon as possible.

====================================

While Irisdina was feeling frustrated, there was someone else who was equally hurt.

An instructor's lecture was flowing in the classroom of the second class in the third year.

"... Mainly, the deployment of army in the Great Invasion was deployed individually by each country who was facing the invading demon beasts. Because of that, the biggest problem at that time was the coordination of those various armies."

Shīna was in the classroom where the lecture was going on, and she opened her textbook and followed the words listed in it with her eyes.

However, her eye movements were erratic and somewhat unfocused.

Shīna's slender fingers tapped restlessly on the corner of the textbook.

She was usually serious. She had the good looks of a fairy, which gave a stiff impression to those who didn't know her well.

But now, instead of her usual stiff expression, she gave off a somewhat frivolous impression.

Her attention was now directed out the window, not to the lecture. To the Gloaurum Institution as seen from the window. To a boy sleeping there.

"The Allied Forces were originally assembled at the request of countries invaded by demon beasts, but when multiple forces like this are combined, it is often difficult to integrate the chain of command ..."

Even though Sheena was in the middle of a class, she concentrated on the path that she had previously connected to Nozomu and attempted to make contact with his spirit.

She closed her eyes and carefully maneuvered through the single thread that had been stretched still within her.

As she put her magic power into it, the thin thread gradually increased in thickness.

The thread became thicker, and then it expanded at once as if exploding from the inside.

Her vision widened and a gentle wind blew.

A corridor was created connecting Nozomu and Shīna's spirit, and her consciousness flew toward Nozomu's spirit.

There was no ground. In this corridor, unbound by gravity, Shīna's spirit could even fly like a bird.

Feeling the wind on her cheeks, Shīna headed toward the end of the corridor where Nozomu's spirit was located.

But just as her consciousness reached the border of Nozomu's spirit, it appeared.

"...~!"

Multiple chains suddenly ran in front of Shīna, who was feeling the wind as she passed through the magic path.

Like a school of fish swimming in the sea, the chains swam through the corridor in every direction.

The scene was like something came out of a dream. However, Shīna ignored the chains running in the air and pushed her body forward.

Then, the swarm of chains changed direction in mid-air and attacked Shīna.

"Kuh~ !?"

Shīna avoided the swarm of chains coming toward her from above by turning her body away from it.

The swarm of chains penetrated the space where Shīna's body had just been and scattered in all directions as they rose again.

The chains, which had broken free from the swarm, now attacked Shīna from all directions, up, down, left, and right.

Shīna skillfully maneuvered her body to avoid the countless chains rushing toward her.

She increased her speed to pull away from those chasing after her from behind and rose to avoid the chains coming at her from the left and right.

She dodged the chains coming from above by twisting her body, and at the same time, she quickly brushed off the chains catching up to her from below with her hands by rotating to gain momentum to spin around to avoid being caught by the chains.

Up and down, right and left, Shīna flew around the corridor of the magic path, moving forward a little at a time.

But the further she went, the more chains chased her.

At first, there were only a few chains, but then there were more than ten, and then more than twenty.

And before she knew it, over a hundred chains were chasing her.

"Ah gosh, they are persistent!"

Shīna, who was frustrated with the persistent swarm of chains, couldn't help but raise her voice.

However, when she shouted, her concentration was slightly diverted.

As if to seize the opportunity, the chains tangled around her legs.

"Kya~ ...!?"

A small scream escaped from Shīna's mouth.

The chains entangling Shīna's legs pulled her body at once.

The chains pulled Shīna back in the direction she had come from in an instant, and her body was tossed like a piece of paper trash.

Shīna, who had been thrown out while spinning around, managed to regain her posture, and before she knew it, a large shadow was standing in front of her.

If she had to describe it in one word, it would be a "wall of chains" that reached the sky.

A myriad of chains were gathered together and stood in front of Shīna's eyes.

She grabbed one of the chains and attempted to move forward while cutting her way through them.

"N~! Nnn ~~~ !!"

With all the strength she could muster, she pulled on the chain.

However, the chains were tugged harder than she expected, and Shīna's slender arms were not able to pull them off.

Shīna struggled with the chains for a while, but when she came face to face with the wall of chains that did not seem to be loosening no matter how much effort she put into it, her shoulders slumped.

"As usual, they won't let me go any further from here..."

Gently touching the wall of chains in front of her, Shīna muttered while feeling lonely.

Shīna had tried to reach Nozomu's spirit several times before. However, the path was always blocked by this wall of chains.

Her lonely voice echoed through the empty magic path.

The swarm of silent chains returned a cold touch as if to answer her question.

Shīna, who had been in front of the wall for a while, exhaled heavily and peeked through a gap in the chains to see what was ahead.

Through the gap, she could see a light, flickering like a bonfire.

"But you are there, aren't you?"

It was blurry and almost impossible to see, but the light was gentle as if it was a sleeping baby.

Shīna exhaled a little and rested her back against the wall of chains.

"Okay. I'll be waiting. But let me stay here for a while..."

Shīna meditated for a while, letting the cool sensation on her back soothe her heart.

Looking through the gap between the chains, she felt Tiamat's presence and danger in Nozomu's soul, and what she feared most of all was that the giant dragon would devour Nozomu's spirit.

But Nozomu's spirit was safe. He was just sleeping.

If she could confirm this fact directly and inform her friends waiting outside, they would be able to relax for the time being.

However, the coldness she felt on her back made her feel lonely.

Even though he was near, she couldn't touch him. She couldn't see him. She couldn't hear his voice.

Even so, she couldn't get his smile out of her head.

Even if he didn't answer, she wanted to stay here to feel his presence as long as she could.

"A~……"

At that moment, the words of her best friend came back to her mind.

(Shīna, if you've ever had someone you love, I think you'll understand. You want to be with that person all the time and you want that person to love you back.)

"Ah, I see. I wonder if Mimuru and Tom always feel this way, and Tima-san always looks at Mars-kun with this kind of feeling."

It was the first time Shīna became aware of her love for him. It was the moment she realized the small flame shining deep in her chest.

At the same time, that small fire gradually burned Sheena's heart.

She felt frustrated because she couldn't get a reply from him and she couldn't touch him even though he was near.

"What are you doing? Please, wake up ..."

The weak muttering voice in the magic path where silence reigned soon turned into a sob.

A wall of chains blocking her.

A ball of light flickered behind it.

What is Nozomu doing in the middle of it? ......

======================================

"Where is this?"

While muttering a dull line, he gazed at the strange scenery spread out before him with a dazed look on his face.