TOYLCG 37 🍒

Chapter — 37

Rosebell couldn’t control her trembling voice and let out a cough. Her throat tickled, and her eyes burned hot.

“Cough, cough.”

“What’s wrong with you?”

It wouldn’t have been strange if tears had poured out at any moment.

Aren grew worried as Rosebell suddenly seemed about to collapse. Still, there was nothing he could do for her. All he could do was wait for her to stand back up on her own.

“Haa… haa… Elaim… I know you’re scared too. I’ll stay by your side… so please… come out.”

Her shaking voice was painfully pitiful. Aren felt keenly aware of his own helplessness.

This situation—where he couldn’t do anything—was agonizing. But Rosebell was doing everything she could.

Even though she herself was suffering, she called out while thinking of the other’s feelings. Aren thought she was amazing.

If he were the one cornered like this, would he be able to think of someone else? From his point of view, it seemed impossible.

But if it were Rosebell, maybe she could. He hoped such a thing would never happen, but if it did, he felt she would throw herself in without hesitation.

—Waaah, Rose! I’m sorry…! Don’t get hurt!

Along with a sudden downpour, a crying voice rang out, sounding like that of a child.

Rosebell’s breathing, which had been wracked with pain, slowly began to steady. As if clinging to life, she lay flat on the ground, and the corners of her lips curved faintly upward.

“Why did you come all the way here? You should’ve stayed in the territory…”

—The children said they were scared, so I came… but then I got scared too… sob… I’m sorry. I should’ve gone to see you sooner…

“It’s okay. I’m just glad we met like this.”

Rosebell didn’t even have the strength to move a finger. If Aren told her to get on his back, she could have done it gladly. But before that, there was something she had to do.

“Elaim, will you make a contract with me?”

—Of course! I’ve been waiting only for you!

“Really? Thank you. Come here.”

Elaim floated around like a soft blue jellyfish, with tiny droplets of water hovering nearby. Thinking it looked like some kind of merchandise sold in shops, Rosebell reached out her hand.

Suddenly, the heavy raindrops stopped, and it felt as if all sound around them disappeared.

Then, a sound that could only be heard underwater filled her ears. Her ears rang, and her breathing naturally stopped.

“Aaah!”

—Rose, please endure it just a little. I’m sorry… I don’t want to hurt you… I’m sorry…

“I—I can’t… breathe… ngh!”

Instinctively, Rosebell flailed as if she were struggling underwater.

For some reason, it felt like the pain grew worse with every contract. And this was already the second time she thought she might die.

The thought of Is this really right? didn’t last long. Her reason was swallowed up by the instinct to survive.

It felt like being trapped underwater with no water around. The pressure felt like it would burst her eyes, and the sensation of losing her breath was frighteningly vivid.

Water governs the birth of life. All spirits are connected to life, but water has the most direct influence.

At the moment she felt she had reached the boundary between life and death, Elaim came right up to her face.

—I’m sorry I made you wait so long… and thank you for coming to find me like this. I was really… scared. Thank you, Rose.

When Elaim kissed her forehead, a chill ran through her body as the energy of water spread within her. At the same time, the pain in her solar plexus twisted even more violently.

“Ugh!”

Now breathing was difficult for a different reason. She gagged so badly that it was hard to breathe at all.

Aren panicked and reached out toward her, but his arms hit a thick wall of water, and he could do nothing.

There wasn’t even a drop of water to be seen, yet watching Rosebell suffer like this made him feel like he was going insane.

“Rosebell! Get a hold of yourself! Rosebell!”

No matter how many times he called her name, it was as if she couldn’t hear him. Her struggling only grew worse.

Just as his knees were about to give way from helplessness, the thick wall of water suddenly shattered, and Rosebell sucked in a rough breath.

“I—I feel like I’m going to die…”

“Are you okay?”

“No… I’m not okay, but first, help me up.”

Her trembling had lessened compared to before. No—more accurately, it was completely gone.

“Are you really okay? Let’s go down. I’ll carry you.”

“I’m fine. But even after making a contract with Elaim, the water still isn’t flowing.”

“Ah… you’re right?”

The two of them looked around with confused expressions. But since it had just rained, fog had settled in, making it hard to see. Wandering through the mountains like this was dangerous.

—Rose, there’s actually a reason I was trembling with fear…

“What is it?”

—Something wicked is leaking out from that cave. Without a contractor, we can’t use our power properly. That’s why we couldn’t do anything.

At Elaim’s words, Rosebell asked Sylphid to clear the fog.

—You really understand our powers well, don’t you?

At Rosebell’s request, Sylphid immediately cleared the fog enough for the two of them to pass. The cave was closer than expected. A cave beneath a cliff wasn’t strange.

However, the foul smell wafting out of the cave made them hesitate.

Even so, both of them knew they couldn’t just turn back now. Swallowing dryly, Rosebell resolved to step into the deep darkness.

“Ifrit, come out and light the way.”

—What kind of spirit do you think I am?! You’re using me like a torch!

“There’s no fire right now. Then what, should we just turn back? Elaim asked us for help.”

—Tch! Fine! Just this once!

Grumbling, Ifrit enlarged his body and lit up the cave.

The cave ceiling was high, and the space was completely enclosed. The deeper they went, the stronger the stench became, making nausea rise in her throat. Worse than that, every time she summoned a spirit, her mana was draining away like water going down a sink.

She couldn’t show it, so she clenched her teeth, steadied her breathing, and kept moving.

At the end of the foul smell lay a shapeless mass of flesh.

A large magic circle was drawn there, along with symbols whose meaning couldn’t be understood.

“What… is this…?”

“The spirits said there was a wicked aura. I expected something like this,” Aren said calmly as he examined the magic circle.

Then he explained to Rosebell.

“It was done by an amateur. Still, they had some magic power, so it seems to have worked. Normally, this kind of magic circle could destroy an entire territory, but the caster’s magic power must not have been very strong.”

“Then… what do we do about it?”

“We have to purify it. Someone with holy power, or…”

“Or? Other than a priest, is there someone else who can purify it?”

“…Yeah.”

Rosebell didn’t like Aren’s hesitation. What was so hard about just saying what he knew?

“Stop being vague and tell me.”

“…You.”

“Me?”

Rosebell tilted her head in confusion. She didn’t have holy power.

Hearing that she could purify it sounded ridiculous.

“More precisely, a spirit contractor. Spirit contractors are said to have purification abilities too, as far as I know…”

“Really?”

She exclaimed in genuine surprise. It felt like she had every ability imaginable, even though she wasn’t the female lead.

“Then what should I do?”

“Whether it’s magic or mana control, it all comes down to concentration. But this requires an extremely high level of focus—hey! Are you listening to me?!”

“I’ll try first, and if it doesn’t work, I’ll keep trying. This smell is so disgusting I can’t stand it anymore.”

Rosebell slowly regulated her breathing. Her stomach twisted painfully—her mana was nearly empty. Still, she felt that if she got through this once, things would work out somehow.

And honestly, she thought it would be better to faint for a few days than to leave this thing as it was.

—Rose, you have to focus. This isn’t using the power of just one spirit, but all four of us. If your concentration wavers even a little, you could be seriously hurt.

At Sylphid’s serious warning, Rosebell relaxed her body. To be honest, she thought that simply concentrating without knowing anything might not do much.

“Should I think of visualizing something?”

—As expected of Ariel’s daughter!

“I didn’t say that to hear praise, okay? I’ll just focus using a shape that’s easy for me to imagine.”

Rosebell took a deep breath, exhaled, and closed her eyes. She pictured a pure white sphere and slowly raised her left hand—or rather, it rose naturally.

Then she felt something surge up violently from deep inside her.

“Rosebell!”

When she opened her eyes, the cursed magic circle was gone. At the cave entrance, streams of water were pouring down, and the droplets reflected the light, forming a beautiful rainbow.

“Hey…”

“Hm?”

“Carry me…”

Leaving those words behind, Rosebell collapsed on the spot.