Chapter 3: Encounter
“Are you okay, Ashley?!”
From Anon’s urgent voice, it was clear he was worried about Ashley. He suppressed his desire to rush to her side and instead came to me first. This was solely to coordinate our story before he met with Ashley. I couldn’t thank Anon enough for understanding my situation.
Though he had a somewhat cynical demeanor, he was incredibly considerate towards both Ashley and me, truly a person who cared for his friends. At the sound of Anon’s voice, Ashley turned her face towards us from the bed.
“Yeah, I’m fine. More importantly, it’s been a while, hasn’t it, Anon?”
Ashley still seemed far from fully recovered as she struggled to sit up in bed, her long pink-blonde hair swaying gently over her shoulders.
“Been a while? You just saw me a little while ago, didn’t you?” Anon grumbled.
“Well, it seems like I’ve been asleep for quite a while, so my sense of time is a bit off,” Ashley replied.
Indeed, there were noticeable dark circles under Ashley’s eyes.
“Are you really okay?”
“I’m really fine. In fact, strangely enough, it seems I don’t have a single scratch on me.”
I had heard there had been intense fighting, yet she claimed to be unscathed?
“What do you mean?” Anon asked, sounding puzzled.
“When I was found after collapsing, I had no injuries at all. Not even the scars from my past.”
“That must be Mika’s Healing Magic.”
The words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop myself. There was no doubt that the one who healed Ashley was Mika. Her extraordinary Healing Magic could erase even the scars that should have remained from ordinary healing. In fact, not a single scar from my life back in Japan remained.
“And you are?”
Ashley looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Oh, his name is Row. And the woman behind him is Omi. They are both my friends.”
As planned, Anon introduced me as a friend.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Row—Yanmar D. Row.”
“I am Omi. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Row and Omi, huh? I’m Ashley Noble. You might have heard from Anon that I’m one of the Holy Knights.”
“By the way,” Ashley continued, “you just said ‘Mika,’ didn’t you? That sounds quite familiar. Are you acquainted with the Saintess?”
“Oh, um…”
“Row, you don’t need to be so stiff. It’s not like you’re being reprimanded for calling the Saintess by her first name. Ashley, Row once received Healing Magic from the Saintess after suffering a serious injury.”
Anon smoothly covered for me when I struggled to find my words.
“More importantly, Ashley, what’s going on? Why are you speaking so sharply to someone you’ve just met?”
Ashley covered her face with her right hand and said, “I’m sorry.”
“No, I’m the one who should apologize. I shouldn’t have brought up such matters in your condition—”
“No, that’s not it. I couldn’t remain calm when I heard the Saintess’s name. I’m sorry, Row, for questioning you so harshly.”
Ashley bowed her head deeply. I should have been the one apologizing. It was inconsiderate for me to enter the room of someone recovering from illness, especially to bring up topics related to the Hero Party.
“I truly apologize. I should have been more considerate towards you, who are recovering.”
When she lifted her head, fatigue was evident on her face. Shadows hung over her elegantly downcast eyes.
“Enough of this. If we keep apologizing to each other, we’ll never get anywhere,” Anon said, sensing the heavy atmosphere. Such a caring person, Anon.
“More importantly, Ashley, I heard most of the story from Mr. Justus. What really happened?”
With her head still bowed, Ashley began to recount the events that took place in the shrine’s cave.
While Ashley was sealing the shrine, the three members of the Hero Party appeared and stole the Sealed Sword—Ashley’s account was largely as I had expected.
“Did you use a Quadruple Skill, or even a Quintuple Skill?”
Without touching on the whereabouts of the sword or Ashley’s defeat, Anon inquired about her use of skills, his voice tinged with anger.
“Yeah, I did. I realized instantly that I wouldn’t win without using it. But in the end, I was defeated by them, and the Affirmative Sword was taken away…”
Ashley spoke as if mocking herself.
“Ashley, I’m not saying that to criticize you. We can always retrieve the Affirmative Sword. If the seal is broken, we can seal it again. But what would you have done if you had died using a Quintuple Skill?”
“It doesn’t matter what happens to me. No one would mourn my absence.”
Ashley looked utterly exhausted. A deep shadow loomed over her.
“I would be sad.”
Anon was genuinely distressed.
“And Mr. Justus, along with everyone in the mansion, would be sad too. It doesn’t matter what anyone else says! Just throw their words away like trash!”
Anon raised his voice, filled with emotion, causing Ashley to look startled.
“…I never expected to hear something like that from you, Anon… Thank you. You’re right.”
When we first arrived at the mansion, Mr. Justus had looked at me and Sensei with suspicion, likely worried about whether we would harm Ashley. Similarly, everyone in the mansion, whom I had yet to meet, must care for Ashley. The well-kept mansion and the meticulously tended garden were surely expressions of their feelings for her.
“Let’s take everything back from here, Ashley. We need to break the seal and retrieve the sword. That’s why I brought them with me.”
Anon left the next words to us.
“There’s no one more knowledgeable about the Sealed Domain than me.”
Sensei, who had been rather quiet until now, finally stood tall.
“Just think of it as riding on the battleship Yamato and holding your ground.”
That was a bit of a downer. Who taught Sensei such obscure knowledge? Seriously…
Sensei shot me a glance.
“We will lend our strength to the Sealed Labyrinth Conquest. We have our own expertise in labyrinth exploration.”
I pointed my thumb at myself, signaling that I would help Ashley feel a bit more at ease. After all, I had conquered seven labyrinths that humanity deemed impossible to traverse. However, Ashley still seemed unconvinced.
“Anon, can they really fight?”
“Don’t worry, it’s fine.”
That phrase was often a red flag for when there was a problem, but sometimes it’s better left unsaid.
“Are they famous Seekers or something?”
Sensei and I shook our heads.
“Then, are they masters of some martial arts? Or perhaps experts in magic?”
Once again, we shook our heads. Seeing this, Ashley turned to Anon with a look that suggested she wanted to say something. Anon replied, “It’s fine,” but—
“Listen closely, both of you. I appreciate your offer to help. However, we don’t know if we can return alive from this battle—it’s that desperate of a fight. I can’t involve you two, who have no stake in this.”
Ashley’s concerns were valid. Without any titles or honors, it was hard for her to believe in the abilities of Sensei and me. It was a bit sad.
“It doesn’t matter. They said they would help. They are adults, after all. No one is forcing you. If you still doubt their abilities at this point, Ashley—why not fight them once?”
What kind of thing was Anon saying to a woman recovering from illness?! I shot him a disapproving look, but—
“Then let’s have a match. That would be the easiest way to understand.”
Ashley, still in bed, reacted unexpectedly.
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