AFTER sufficiently basking in their reunion, Aki sat with Mina on the bed and heard all about what happened after she passed out.
According to Mina, Aki, Leo, and Johann had succeeded in sealing the Solar Goddess’s powers inside Elias, but the four of them lost consciousness as a result.
The resulting energy burst caused the Ancient Ruins to start collapsing, and Lunar Magic users Louis and Sutcliff worked together to cast a large-scale teleportation spell to evacuate the entire Hero Party to the inn. Mina laughed and flexed when she got to the part about a horde of monsters flooding the cave while they were in the middle of casting the spell and how she gracefully drove them away.
She told the story as if it had been a walk in the park, but Aki could only guess at how difficult it must have been to protect four unconscious people from monsters and falling debris.
Thank you, Mina…
They succeeded in bringing Elias back because they worked together, saving each other when they needed saving.
The four unconscious members then slept an entire day without waking after Mina and the others got them back to the inn.
It was now the dawn of a new day, but Elias, Leo, and Johann had expended so much energy, they were still sound asleep in their respective rooms.
I hope they’re okay…
“They’re on their way to a full recovery too,” Mina reassured and rubbed Aki’s shoulder when she saw the worry on her face. “If you feel up to moving around, why don’t you go check on the guys? Someone might be up by now. I’m pretty sure they’d be the happiest if you’re the first person they see when they wake up.”
“You think so?” Aki didn’t sound too sure. “I guess I’ll go check on them now then.”
As she stood to go, Aki suddenly realized Nako wasn’t around. “Hey, Mina? My younger sister Nako should have been waiting for us here. Did you see her? Maybe she went to take care of Johann.”
“…Nako?” Mina blinked as if she’d never heard the name before.
Maybe she hasn’t run into Nako yet?
“When Elias and I challenged the Ancient Ruins Quest, we left Johann, Leo, and Nako at the inn. Johann and Leo came to help us with the Quest, so Nako should still be here,” Aki explained.
“That’s strange…” Mina rubbed her chin. “I don’t remember running into anyone other than the innkeeper after we teleported here yesterday. No one else has entered any of the rooms either.”
“Really?”
Did Nako go out? Did something happen while we were away? I should ask Leo and Johann if they know anything.
With her mind made up to question the others, Aki headed for the door. As she approached it, she heard someone running down the hallway at full speed before a familiar face flew into the room.
“Aki! You’re up!”
It was Sutcliff, of all people, who had come running to see her, but she couldn’t even react before he fell to his knees and pressed his forehead against the wood floor in a groveling position.
“Aki! I’m seriously sorry! I know what I did can’t be undone with an apology, but sayin’ sorry’s the only thing I can think of! I can never make up for the way I hurt you and the Hero. I’m so sorry…” he apologized to the floor.
Aki crouched in front of him. She shook him by the shoulders, trying to get him to raise his face. “Sutcliff, it’s all right. I’m all right! Please don’t grovel.”
The mere memory of him stabbing her shoulder gave Aki chills even now, and the resulting devastation caused by activating the Solar Goddess’s power in Elias had put them all in grave danger. Even if Sutcliff was just following the Dark Lord’s orders, his actions were still unpardonable. Elias in particular had been dealt a crippling blow through the events of the past few days.
He had been the root cause of their suffering, but without Sutcliff there, Aki doubted they could have reached Elias with his mind taken over by the Solar Goddess or teleported out of the cavern in time. A piece of her was glad to have him on their side. He proved that the Shadow Tribe’s magic and physical capabilities far surpassed humans’.
When Aki told him that, Sutcliff raised his head and emotionally hugged her—or rather, clung to her waist.
“Uhh?” she squeaked, going stiff.
“Lady Aki…no, from today forward I swear to devote myself to you, so you are Boss Lady! Use and abuse me for the rest of my life!” he requested with zeal, ignoring her slack-jawed reaction.
✦ ✦ ✦
“…Pardon?” It took a whole ten seconds before Aki registered what he said and the fact she was locked in his arms. She gave him a little push to put distance between them, but he wouldn’t release her. “It’s fine, really! I don’t need you to serve me! Please let go, Sutcliff!”
Mina had been shaking her head the whole time, but since she saw Aki wanted space, she grabbed Sutcliff by the shoulder and dragged him away from her.
“Hey! Don’t go touching Elias’s woman! Are all Shadow Tribe members as clingy and needy as you?! Sheesh a meesh.”
If the Dark Lord and Sutcliff were anything to go by, the Shadow Tribe was full of unpredictable, idiosyncratic people who came across as sinister at first but were actually good at heart, if not a little off-kilter. They seemed oblivious toward human boundaries.
Thanks to Mina and Sutcliff, Aki was surrounded by laughter and cheerful banter for the first time in a long time.
Before she knew it, she was laughing out loud watching Mina bonking Sutcliff on the head until he was on his knees begging for mercy.