Chapter 154

154 – [ I see . ]

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[———————-]

I regain consciousness .

I take out my pocket watch and check the time .

……I hardly got any sleep .

It’s only been about 10 minutes since I fell unconscious .

Seras…

[……………… . . ]

—is lying down with her back turned towards me .

She appears to be awake but——

[……, ……… . ?]

I feel uncomfortable .

The only thing covering my upper body is these bandages wrapped around my wounds .

There’s also “that” in the center of my exposed chest .

A strange lingering memory .

That area is slightly warmer than the others……

One discomfort after another .

I put my hand on my mouth .

My lips .

……A warm moisture .

Strangely enough, they feel wet .

I silently looked at Seras’ back .

Shyness…

Nervousness…

Surprise…

Regret…

Guilt…

……Awareness .

I could read intermingling emotions from her .

[……………… . ]

“Achoo . ”

Raising my upper body, I touch my bangs .

I then called out .

[……You still can’t sleep?]

Seras’ calm shoulders twitched in response .

Taking a deep breath, she replied .

[My apologies . ]

What was that apology for?

[Why are you apologizing?]

[I- I’m sorry……]

[…………… . ]

I should probably pretend that I didn’t notice it .

[Should I make you sleep with my skill?]

That’s also probably better for Seras with the way she is right now .

Slightly shrinking her body smaller, Seras replied .

[Yes, please . ]

[—–—–]

Shortly after, I began to hear the regulated sounds of her breathing .

Turning over, Seras lies down on her back .

I look at her sideways to see how she’s doing .

……It seems that she’s completely sound asleep .

[………………………… . . ]

I take a deep breath .

I had a slight hunch of what happened .

After the battle against Civit, Seras kept a reasonable distance from me .

Yes— Consciously so .

She was probably looking out for me .

She doesn’t want those emotions to get in the way of my journey for revenge .

Even so…

[She’s more daring than I thought……]

I’m a little surprised .

No…

[But well…… this is how it turned huh . ]

However, this happened way too sudden .

A lonely journey of escape, in which you’re exhausted both physically and mentally .

And in the middle of the road, you finally met someone that you felt comfortable with .

In a situation where you’re driven to the corner…

And you were saved in a way like that…

If our situation was reversed…

If it were Seras that had saved me instead…

[It wouldn’t be weird for me to be infatuated with her…… However—–]

Before I fell unconscious…

I had only planned to sleep after Seras herself fell asleep .

And yet—– I fell unconscious .

On Seras’ lap, I completely fell unconscious .

Completely .

[I see . ]

I look towards Seras as her chest regularly move up and down .

[Even I…]

Before I noticed it…

[I’ve also come to trust you this much huh . ]

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After we had some rest, we left the cave and hurried straight to our destination .

The skies were still dark after we left .

However, the sky brightened up soon as sunrise came .

The morning of this day is rather quiet in the Demon Zone .

The crisp, clean air pleasantly fill my lungs .

We didn’t encounter any minor hindrances along the way .

Is it because the monsters in the vicinity had decreased after yesterday’s slaughter?

Or perhaps, is it that the monsters have perceived us as dangerous beings now?

Anyway…

[Touka . ]

Eve stood next to me .

[Yeah . ]

We checked out the map .

From hereafter, we finally entered the domain where the Witch lives .

The glowing dot showing our position and the glowing dot showing the witch’s position .

The two glowing dots showing our positions were about to overlap with each other .

[There’s no turning back now, Eve . ]

My lips curved up a smile .

[Well…… There’s no way you’re going to turn back now that we’re already in front of our goal . ]

“Umu . ”

The pensive Blood Champion nodded her head .

[Obviously . ]

And thus—- We stepped into the Witch of Taboos’ domain .