Ch 148.2
EXTRA CHAPTER: Lydia’s point of view…
On the morning of the third day after Claude’s disappearance at Sazan Island…
《Everyone!! Zeph is… Zeph is…!!!》
Lydia woke up from Milly’s sudden Telepathy.
Feeling the urgency in Milly’s voice she immediately replied back.
《Milly-chan? What happened? Milly-chan!》
《… Zeph is…》
《Good grief… Crying like that won’t help me understand you, so could you try and hold it back?》
《……》
She tried to console Milly, but in the end her crying wouldn’t stop.
Lydia was starting to grow quite worried as well.
After all this was way off of Milly’s usual behaviour.
Did something happen to Zeph I wonder? And what about Milly? Did something happen to both of them right after Claude disappeared as well?
《Lydia… UWAAA!!!》
What in the world happened? Where is she? Why is she crying like this? Did something happen to one of them? Am I at fault for leaving them by themselves? Why didn’t I realize that everyone was acting strange? Why, why, why…
The inside of Lydia’s head had turned into a whirlpool of questions as panic assaulted her state of mind.
《Milly… chan… Please… can you try and calm down…》
As Lydia tried to squeeze the words out, something within her began to boil.
She had a really bad feeling about this.
What in the world happened to Zeph, Milly and Claude? From Milly state I assume it can’t be anything good. It can’t be he’s… dead right…?
She thought of the worst outcome that could have happened.
Just as she did that her legs began to shake.
Her pulse hastened. Her chest felt like it would tear open.
She felt good to have everyone rely on her.
She had acted like a big sister figure for all of them all this time.
《Lydia… help us…》
《…》
However, she couldn’t reply to Milly’s desperate plea. The title of big sister that she had carried on herself seemed quite heavy to bear this time around.
Please someone… Anyone… Help me…
She then felt a hand fall on her shoulder.
「Zeph-chi?」 she said instinctively.
However, as she turned around she only saw Silverie.
Silverie had a serious look on her face as she immediately contacted Milly.
《… Calm down. Where are you now Milly?》
《… I don’t know… But Zeph is… UWAAA….》
《JUST ANSWER ME!!!》
《…?!!》
Hearing Silverie get angry, Milly instantly froze up.
Silverie then continued to calmly talk to Milly now that she had finally stopped crying.
《Anything is fine. I’m just asking you to describe the place that you’re currently at.》
《… I-It’s full of rocks… And I can also… see the sea…》
《Anything else? How did you go there?》
《I used Teleport…》
《In which direction from the inn is it?》
《Towards the back… I think…》
《Okay, if there’s anything else that comes to mind be sure to contact me okay? We’ll head there right away.》
Silverie then stood up with a long sigh.
Lydia, who could do nothing but listen to their conversation, looked up at Silverie as she stood up.
Her dignified expression reminded her of Zeph.
「… You sure are amazing Se-chi. And here I did nothing… Ahaha… You really are amazing… Just the thought that something could have happened to Zeph-chi or the others made me lose myself…」
「I’m no different. However, if we don’t hurry up and do something about it something even worse could happen.」
It was just as Silverie had said. There was no time for them to panic.
「That’s right!! Let’s go there fast!!」 said Shirushu who had woken up before the other two could even notice.
「I can follow Milly-san’s smell after all!」
「You’re right… We’re counting on you then.」
「I’ll give it my best, so just leave it to me!!」
Having been saved by the two of them, Lydia felt weak.
She followed after the two of them with tears falling from her eyes.
◆ ◆ ◆
Milly was still in a state of confusion, due to which she gave some quite inaccurate directions, but with the help of Shirushu’s nose the three of them were able to find her without any problems.
As soon as they got there they immediately understood what had happened.
The shattered rocks, the split up ground, the broken trees.
Milly was standing right in the middle of that scene of destruction.
「… Everyone…」 said Milly as she noticed the three of them and raised her head.
Her clothes were covered in blood and dirt, and they had a big hole around her chest area.
She was holding onto Claude, who was dressed in an unusual attire… as well as a youth with silver hair.
The youth was missing one of his arms and was covered in blood. It was quite the gruesome sight.
「Who… is that boy…?」
「…」
At Lydia’s question Milly didn’t answer and just held onto the youth ever so strongly.
However, the closer Lydia looked the more familiar that youth seemed to her.
Even though she was seeing him for the first time, he gave her the feeling that she had known him for quite some time.
The name of that youth was…
「Zeph…chi…?」
As the words left Lydia’s mouth her heart skipped a beat.
There was no mistaking it.
Even though he looked different, the presence that the youth gave off was identical to Zeph’s.
Milly nodded her head in approval.
Silverie and Shirushu were lost for words as well.
「That… is it really Zeph…」
「H-He smells the same way as Zeph-san… B-But to think something like this could have happened…」
Silverie and Shirushu both looked like they were about to crumble.
Lydia was in a state of shock as well.
Only Milly’s cries echoed in the area.
◆ ◆ ◆
After several days the party abandoned the request and left Sazan Island.
However, everyone’s shock was tremendous and it didn’t look like they would be able to go back to how they once were.
Claude in particular, was in a terrible state.
A few days after they went back, she wouldn’t stop convincing herself that it was all her fault and that it would have been better for her to die, rather than to see Zeph-kun like that…
Even after calming herself down a bit, she still locked herself up in her room and refused to leave.
When the others tried to listen in on her through the door, the only thing they heard were her cries.
Lydia and the others were worried about her, but they didn’t have the time to look after her right now.
After all, Zeph was in a state way worse than hers.
In order to try and heal him, Lydia turned to numerous doctors.
However, there were none which could bring him back.
Today she had called in another doctor.
However, he as well only shook his head as Lydia stared at him.
「I’m afraid I can’t do anything about his arm.」
「… Is there really nothing that can be done?」
「I’m afraid not. His magical power lines are in pieces. The wounds to his body are severe as well… He probably used some kind of strengthening spell without considering the backlash it would have on his body.」
Strengthening spells put a huge burden on one’s body so normally they would be used in moderation.
There was no way for them to know that Zeph had stacked on five of those strengthening spells and had gone all out.
The damage that his body had suffered at the time couldn’t be expressed with just the word severe.
「If I have to be honest, I’m not even sure if he’ll live. I’m afraid there’s nothing else that I can do.」
「… I see.」
She had heard these words a number of times already.
Lydia’s eyesight went black.
She once again reminded of how powerless she was.
Up until now they had always managed to scrape by somehow.
However, she then remembered that it was all because Zeph had been there for them.
The only reason Milly was safe was probably because of him as well.
And now, he was on his deathbed and unconscious.
「Zeph-chi… Please… Wake up…」
As the doctor left the room, Lydia licked up Zeph’s tattered hand.
His small, yet reliable hand had completely lost its normal appearance.
「Lydia, how is Zeph…?」 asked Milly as she entered the room.
「As usual…」 replied Lydia while shaking her head.
All of them definitely knew it within their hearts. Both of them helplessly looked down.
「Yera told us that she’d try and get a hold of a top class healing magician, but apparently we shouldn’t get our hopes up too much. After all a spell that allows the user to forcefully accelerate the body’s growth is unheard of.」 said Lydia
「… Yea, it really is an amazing spell…」 said Milly as she drew her hands closer to her chest.
At the time she had definitely been pierced through the chest.
Her clothes had been torn as well.
Yet right now the wound was nowhere to be seen and she was alive.
At that time, within the depths of the darkness, she had heard Zeph’s voice.
She was convinced that Zeph had saved her.
As she thought back to that time tears fell from her eyes.
「… I-It’s not efficient at all… for you to become like this… you idiot!!!」 said Milly with a trembling voice.
Lydia could do nothing but watch as Milly wept once more.
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