by Aneko Yusagi
Kissed me on the lips.
My first kiss from a girl . . . tasted of blood.
Then Atla’s strength failed her and she collapsed.
“I’ve been wanting that for so long. Finally . . . finally I got it,” she breathed.
“What the hell are you playing at? This is hardly the time . . .” I reacted.
“Raphtalia,” Atla said.
“W-what is it?” Raphtalia replied, a little shocked herself. She had been quietly watching the exchange between Atla and me up until now.
“It seems the ongoing battle between us . . . neither side ever giving ground . . . is finally coming to an end,” Atla told her.
“Not yet! It’s going to continue . . . for a long time yet!” Raphtalia told her pleadingly.
“Hehe . . . to hear even you say that, Raphtalia, does make me a little bit happy. As I’m sure you already know, I’ve always been jealous of you, Raphtalia. I knew no matter how hard I tried, I’d never be able to become Master Naofumi’s number one,” she explained.
“Nothing is decided yet! Our fights are going to continue, Atla . . . into the future . . . on and on . . .” Raphtalia trailed off, tears streaming down her face. Atla smiled at her in response.
Then as though she finally understood everything, Atla continued.
“You are so kind, Raphtalia. I understand why Master Naofumi likes you so much. But there’s one more thing I need to say to you.”
“No need to limit it to just one! Tell me lots more things. You can even have Mr. Naofumi once, if you have to,” she pleaded.
“Raphtalia,” Atla went on, “Master Naofumi . . . likes women more than you think. He’s a regular guy. So please, look at Master Naofumi . . . a little more closely than you do now.”
“I understand. But you’ll be here with me. Don’t give up!” Raphtalia said desperately, pleadingly. But Atla’s life energy was already so weak she couldn’t even tell where anyone was anymore.
That fact spoke the cold truth about how little time she had left.
After another moment, as though finally realizing something, she muttered a few more words, seemingly to no one at all.
“Ah . . . I know what we should have done. I should have colluded with Raphtalia and we could have shared Master Naofumi between us. Why didn’t I realize such a simple thing? Thinking like this makes me . . . I want to live. I have a dream I want to achieve,” she said.
“You can live! I’m sure Mr. Naofumi can heal you!” Raphtalia said.
“I can!” I said. But Atla slowly, even more weakly, shook her head.
“Please, Master Naofumi,” she said. “I need you to realize something.”
“What? Anything!” I replied.
“I did everything I could to become your number one, Master Naofumi. But . . . I couldn’t achieve it,” she said.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Master Naofumi, from the wounds you’ve suffered in the past, I’m sure you’ve just been trying not to think about this. But you need to be more self-aware. Raphtalia likes you, Master Naofumi . . . as a member of the opposite sex, just like I do,” Atla revealed.
“This isn’t the time for this!” I pleaded.
“I know . . . This is the only time you will listen, Master Naofumi. Please, believe me . . .” Then she descended into spluttering.
It was clear that Atla was weaker than before.
No! If I just used more Elixir of Yggdrasil, more Liberation Heal—
“Please . . . promise me. This is my final request, my final selfish request. Please, Master Naofumi, become aware that there are people who like you, and please . . . respond to their feelings. That’s all I ask of you,” Atla said.
“Okay! I get it! I understand, so please just stop pushing yourself so hard!” I exclaimed. Oh God! Please! Save the ones who believe in me!
I’d never prayed for a divine miracle as hard as I did in that moment.
When Witch framed me, when I was tricked and driven out, I’d never wished this hard.
“Promise . . . me. I know I’m asking a lot . . .” Atla breathed.
“Okay . . . I’ll do everything you asked . . .” I responded.
“Hehe . . . having you treasure me like this, Master Naofumi . . . I’m so . . . happy . . .” For a moment I thought she had more to say, but her words cut off.
“At . . . la?” I desperately tried to keep my awareness together, but with a gentle smile on her face, Atla had finally stopped moving.
“Atla!” Raphtalia wept.
“Atla!” I shouted . . . but what remained of the girl, lying there on her cot, could never answer me again.
Epilogue: The Girl Who Became a Shield
I had no idea how long I’d been out of it.
Raphtalia had been crying the entire time, while Fohl just wordlessly glared at me.
Atla’s life had ended. She wasn’t with us anymore.
“You can . . . hate me,” I managed. I’d failed to save his sister . . . someone he had loved and treasured more than anyone else. I could accept him hating me.
The moment I said that, Fohl grabbed the front of my clothes and his fist . . . stopped just in front of my face.
“I’m not going to hate you! I’m not going to hate you and make this any easier on you!” Fohl raged.
“What?” I could hardly comprehend.
“Let me tell you about Atla! Right up to the end, she was in love with you! She chose to sacrifice herself for you! So I can’t blame you . . . I can’t hate you! I didn’t save her either. If I’d stopped her, when she stepped forward, none of this would have happened!” Fohl said.
“But—” My words stopped as my head filled with possibilities. Things I could have done differently to stop Atla from dying—questioning myself as to why I didn’t respond to her feelings.
“If I’d never met Atla . . . then she wouldn’t have died like this.” In the moment I uttered these words, my whole head was rocked hard to the side.
I realized that Fohl had finally punched me.
“Don’t say that to me! Never say that to me!” he raged.
“But it’s the truth—” I managed around my aching jaw.
“If we hadn’t met you like that, Atla would have died long ago!” Fohl countered. “I didn’t have the money to buy the medicine we needed to keep Atla alive. If she had another episode, she would have simply died! Instead . . . she was able to walk around, even fight with me, which was all thanks to you! So I won’t forgive you if you ever say something like that!”
“But even so . . . this is just—” I stumbled.
“Don’t you dare defile Atla’s pride any further!” Fohl demanded, turning his back on me. His hands were bunched so tight they were bleeding.
I was as hard as metal and he’d punched me. That was going to do more than just hurt. Droplets of his blood dripped onto the ground.
“Atla told me that she wanted me to protect everyone from the village, just as though they were her. I have to stand by her final wishes! How can I hate you, the one who should have become my brother-in-law? I can’t hate you!” Fohl roared, his rage ringing out.
That shout . . . perhaps having awoken something, caused a blinding light to rise from the temple in the castle town. That light flew toward Fohl and enveloped him.
The eyeball-burning flash lasted for just an instant before vanishing . . . and then gauntlets appeared on Fohl’s hand.
“This is—” I’d seen these particular gauntlets before. Had the legendary gauntlets responded to the shout of Fohl’s heart? I would have mocked this all as simple contrived coincidence up until yesterday.
But right now, I didn’t have the leeway even to mock such tropes.
It was too late. Too late for anything . . .
“You’d better keep your promise to Atla! I’m going to go and do the same!” Fohl dashed away, tears streaming from his eyes.
To protect those fighting on the battlefield . . .
For my part
. . . I tried to console the sobbing Raphtalia . . . and reflected on the final words of the departed girl who had so adored me.
“Can I have a moment alone?” I asked Raphtalia, Rat, and the healers, even as I held Atla’s remains in my arms.
“If that’s what you need. But don’t forget the battle is ongoing,” Rat said.
“Yes, I know,” I managed. Raphtalia just gave a sob, and then the two of them nodded and left. Still stunned . . . I thought back over my memories of Atla.
I remembered that night when she first came to sleep in my room.
“I’m the Shield Hero. All I can do is protect people,” I had said, playing down my own role.
“Looking at your village, Master Naofumi, it seems like everyone is being protected under your wing,” Atla replied.
“Wing, huh?” I hadn’t been convinced.
“I think you are protecting everyone, waiting for their moment to leave the nest,” Atla had continued.
“Leaving the nest is all very well, but I still need you to defend it. I’ll have to consider some punishment otherwise,” I had told her.
“Everyone in the village has told me about your great deeds, Master Naofumi. I think you’re doing a wonderful thing, something to be proud of. I respect you for overcoming such adversity, always carrying on,” she had replied.
“I mean . . . I guess so. I’m not trying to be humble, but I guess I’ve made something of myself,” I had admitted.
“One thing though . . . Who protects you, Master Naofumi?” she’d asked.
“Me?” I’d asked in surprise. Then I’d remembered Raphtalia saving me and the others. “I guess I do have some people.”
“I’ve had a thought. If Raphtalia is your sword, Master Naofumi, then I want to become your shield. I want to protect you,” Atla had said.
“A shield, huh? That might not be as glamorous as you think,” I’d told her.
And now that wish had been fulfilled at the cost of her life.
In that case, I had to respond to her final request. I hadn’t been able to protect her, so the least I could do was fulfill that final wish . . . or I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.
That was the heart of this. No matter who might take exception with what I did next, or disparage me, having failed to protect someone else so badly, I had to keep this promise—this promise above all else!
I grit my teeth, determination flowing through me. I was about to step into forbidden territory. Then I scolded myself; I was a criminal, buying people’s lives, using them up, then discarding them, so what did I have to feel guilty about?
I looked at Atla’s body. It looked like it would crumble at a single touch. It was all because she chose to protect our lives with her own, small, fragile body. She had certainly helped keep our casualties down. When considering it pragmatically . . . I did understand.
If it was to save the heroes, if it was to save someone you loved, people might be willing to give their lives for such things. I’d considered making that choice myself, so I could sympathize with that thought process.
But then take a look at the reality. Look at what happened to her. The kind of death so horrible it could barely be put into words. And yet, right up until the end, she had still been thinking of me.
This girl had loved me, of all people, accepting everything about me, unconditionally.
And now I was going to put her inside my shield.
Fear, terror, despair, lamentation—all kinds of emotions whirled inside me. My body couldn’t stop shaking.
I still had to do this.
If nothing happened after all of my prayers, if they could just stand by and not see the injustice in this outcome . . . there surely were no gods.
No. There couldn’t be a god. I wouldn’t allow it! If any such god existed and allowed this to happen, I would never forgive them. I’d kill them, whatever it took.
It was all so messed up!
Everything had been going well. I’d been aware of everything, ready for anything. It was a battle we could have won without losing anyone!
If not for that light, that terrible flicker, Atla wouldn’t have had to die.
Heroes? Hah. Gods? Double hah! This world . . . this unreasonable world . . . who could stand it?!
“Atla . . . I think I understand a little about what you meant when you said you didn’t want to return to this world,” I whispered to her. Her body was so light—the body of a girl that I would never talk to again.
I was going to keep that promise.
I couldn’t possibly break it.
I wasn’t going to let this shitty world take Atla.
I grunted. I gasped. The body of the girl vanished into the shield.
It sparkled in exactly the same way as when I’d put a monster or item inside in the past.
Curse Series. Shield of Wrath, blessing!
Bless Series. Shield of Compassion forcibly unlocked!
Soul Shield conditions unlocked!
Demi-Human Series forcibly unlocked! Completed!
Slave Master Series forcibly unlocked! Completed!
Companion Series forcibly unlocked! Completed!
Bless Series
The Bless Series is a powerful series of weapons only obtained by those who have overcome a terrible curse. It exists as a default shield and imbues power into the weapon it changes into.
The equip bonus depends on the shield it is changed into.
Bless Series
Shield of Compassion
special effects: call of compassion, enchant, bless, all resist, spell support
Hand in hand with a blind girl . . . the Shield of Compassion was created by the mercy in two hearts.
It was an incredibly simple and yet a gentle shield. It was like sunlight through the trees on a warm day. It also had the best effects of any shield I had collected so far. I knew that “enchantment” meant the effects of this shield could be overlaid on other shields. That alone provided a massive boost to my defensive capabilities.
On top of that, it had forcibly unlocked the Demi-Human Series, Slave Master Series, and Companion Series. It also had equipment bonuses. In other words, it provided a massive boost to the stats of slaves, demi-humans, and companions.
I switched to the Spirit Tortoise Shell.
Growth up due to growing power!
Changed to Spirit Tortoise Shell Shield!
Further boosts were being triggered. I didn’t have the time right now to look in detail at everything that was happening. Those who had been getting treatment had now all been treated too. The healers were clamoring about it being some kind of miracle.
I stepped out in front of the tent and looked at the twin Phoenixes whirling in the sky. They shrieked, as though taunting me. Just like Ost, I was here fighting these birds for the sake of the world. I understood the true nature of it, that I was simply a device completing my assigned role.
Ost had known that too . . . had fought, based on that understanding . . . meaning there was only one thing I could do.
“Filo!” I shouted, calling her over. She was putting up a good fight against the Phoenixes.
“What is it?” Filo approached, clearly worried about Atla and seeing the sad expression on my face. I glimpsed a kindness in Filo in that moment that I’d never seen in her before.
I couldn’t tell if that was Atla’s power or the power of the Shield of Compassion.
Conflicting emotions rose inside my chest. Not just sadness, but also kindness mixed in. However, I didn’t want to think this was just the influence of the shield.
“I know you won’t like this, but take me over to Gaelion,” I told her.
“Okay . . . we’re doing this then,” she replied.
“Yeah. Time to bring overtime to an end!” I stated. I climbed onto Filo’s back and sped back to the battle. When I gave a signal with my hand, Filo bunched her stre
ngth into her legs and then leapt up to Gaelion.
“Gaelion! A request from our master!” she shouted.
“Kwaa!” he replied. Gaelion, with Wyndia still on his back, caught me in midair as I launched myself off from Filo.
“One final push, Master!” Filo gave me a pseudo-thumbs-up with her wings as she plummeted back to the ground.
“I’ve got it!” I replied. As soon as Filo landed, she charged right back into battle with the low-altitude Phoenix.
With a shriek, the Phoenix turned its attention on me and came at us with its claws. I should have tried to retain my composure, perhaps. Just because my hated foe was before me, I couldn’t let it fill my heart with darkness. But I could understand the pain. I could understand how unfair this world was.
I understood the wounds we had taken . . . and the sadness of what we had lost.
It was exactly because I could understand it that I had to get angry.
“You shut the hell up.” I stopped the Phoenix’s incoming claws with a single hand and hurled the bird down toward the ground.
Its only shriek now was one of surprise.
Spinning dizzily, the Phoenix recovered in midair and flew back toward me. Its expression looked like . . . one of pain? Was it weak? Then this was the moment to strike.
I immediately leapt off Gaelion’s back and headed straight for the Phoenix.
“Kwaa!?” Gaelion squawked.
“Huh!?” Wyndia was surprised too, rider and steed both with shocked looks on their faces.
“I’m going to smash this overstuffed turkey into the ground. Pile on!” I shouted.
“S-sure thing,” Wyndia affirmed.
“Kwaa . . .” Gaelion growled too. I let them know my plans, with suitable gravitas in my voice. Then I activated gravity field.
It hadn’t had any effect when I’d tried it before, but now I could use it. I made it as heavy as I could, stopping the Phoenix from flying completely.
With more pathetic squawks, the Phoenix, unable to fly due to the weight, desperately flapped its wings. But it was completely unable to maintain its height.
