I Can’t Run Away From the Girl Who Saved Me

195 – Sylvia’s Happy World (3)

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It goes without saying that you can’t always be lucky.

Well, I’m not a very lucky person to begin with, so it might be considered almost a miracle that I was able to avoid Sylvia’s attacks five times.

Thanks to Pia’s help, I was able to block the sharp attack, and thanks to my training, I was able to dodge it by a narrow margin.

But beginner’s luck only ended there.

Again, luck isn’t always good.

Sylvia’s sixth slash cut through the air in front of me.

The moment I thought I had avoided it, a black trajectory twisted and fell from above, digging deep into my right shoulder.

Of course, it was a speed that even Pia couldn’t witness, let alone react to.

It was almost as if her sword had teleported next to my collarbone.

“Big,”

A lot of hot, sticky blood spurts onto my cheek.

Her sword, which cuts through the trapezius muscle and digs into the shoulder, gradually moves downward.

If things continued like this, my right arm might be cut off.

I hurriedly grabbed her sword with my left hand.

Pia also used magic to secure the sword embedded in my shoulder.

Pia must have tried to pull it out, but Sylvia’s strength was so strong that she could barely keep herself from falling further down.

Fortunately, the faint divine power that came from Sister Alice’s heart that I was holding was slowly reattaching my shoulder that had been torn apart by the sword.

However, because it was such a faint divine power, it did not heal at the same time as it was wounded like Sister Alice.

Rather, it would be closer to prolonging the suffering for a longer period of time.

The sharp blade dug into the palm of his left hand, which he was gripping tightly, and blood began to pour out.

Judging from the trembling of Sylvia’s fingertips, it seemed that the strength that Pia and I had used to block the attack with all our might was balanced by the strength of her one arm.

Sylvia tilted her head for a moment, then began twisting the wrist holding the sword back and forth.

The blade that had naturally pierced my body began to bend to the sides and crush the inside of my body at will.

“Kwaaah!”

“Ash!”

“Sylvia… stop, stop.”

I managed to force out my voice with great difficulty, my mind becoming increasingly hazy as if I had lost too much blood.

Pia, who had used magic, or rather spirit magic, to grab Sylvia’s sword, spoke while sweating profusely as if she was struggling.

“Ash, don’t talk. You’ll die if you do!”

As Pia screamed, a gurgling sound came from inside my throat and blood gushed out.

It seemed like the sword had hit the wrong spot.

The sword slowly lowered to near the armpit, and the world briefly went dark whenever it moved here and there.

It must be that you are fainting for a moment due to the extreme pain that is difficult to describe.

“… Damn it, Sylvie… Ah, if you keep doing this… when you open your eyes,”

“Ash,”

“You’ll regret it….”

At that moment, I saw something fall powerlessly from my chest to the floor.

Thanks to my naturally drooping head, I was able to see what the object on the floor was.

It was Malice’s necklace that was in the pocket on her waist.

It was a necklace that Sister Alice had brought me, but I took it off and hung it around my neck to make room in my pocket for Sister Alice’s heart.

Pia said that it looked like a tool to trap spirits, and she even said that a spirit had already entered the necklace.

“Ugh,”

Sylvia twisted her wrist and lifted the sword slightly upward.

The wound that had been healing with divine power tore open once again, spurting blood.

The fingers holding the sword gradually lose strength.

I felt like I couldn’t bear it any longer.

At that moment, a loud noise was heard from behind.

“What… is happening… Pia, please tell me.”

I had no strength left to look back, so I continued speaking with difficulty.

But the answer that came back was not Pia’s voice.

“You guys are the ones who got it.”

“…!”

A horrible, creepy voice, as if a raccoon with hundreds of legs was crawling inside your ear.

“The disloyal demons have fallen.”

It seems that the loud noise heard just a moment ago was the sound of the peddler boy being defeated.

So, who is the owner of this creepy voice?

“Watching you suffer like this would be a fitting punishment for a thief who walked to my bed with dirt feet.”

“… Pia,”

A pair of pale, thin fingers clenched into a fist came in next to my head.

Those long, slender fingers were holding Pia’s neck, and Pia was squirming in those slender fingers.

They were so long that it seemed as if they were wrapped around Pia’s neck twice.

“I am a cautious person.”

Pia said, struggling to peel away the fingers that were digging into her neck like thin threads.

“Hey, what the heck, shii…”

“Ugh!”

As Pia’s magic faded, Sylvia’s sword in my hand became heavier and heavier.

It advances downwards, slowly cutting through my black body.

I was sure.

It’s over.

So in vain, we lost.

I could feel it even without seeing it.

A huge amount of magical energy forming a large lump behind the back.

It seemed like the Demon King himself was trying to end Sylvia.

Just before my bloodshot eyes closed, I took one last look at the necklace that was lying on the floor and emitting a bright blue light.

In the end, I never figured out what it was.

With those thoughts in mind, I tried to let go of my fading consciousness.

“Ash or Sylvia…”

At that moment, a strange voice was heard.

A voice that was unfamiliar yet very familiar.

“…?”

“You can’t do anything without me!”

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Sylvia looked down blankly, her face in confusion.

This was because, while confidently picking up the axe instead of Ash and chopping firewood, the axe got stuck in the sixth log and wouldn’t come out.

Of course, Sylvia was quite embarrassed by this situation, since she could easily split a piece of wood like this with her bare hands.

I’ve never failed at anything I’ve tried, but this damn piece of wood just won’t budge from my axe, as if it has clay inside instead of wood grain.

Sylvia shouted urgently, even stammering her words.

“Wait, wait, wait, just stay still.”

“I’ve been quiet all this time?”

“I told you to stay quiet.”

“What did I say?”

Ash looked at Sylvia with a sly expression and smiled.

Sylvia felt a rare sense of shame.

It was not surprising that a man of great strength would feel embarrassed when he showed off his strength in front of his lover.

Rather, what was strange was this piece of wood.

“Hey! Why won’t this come off?”

Sylvia twisted her wrist and tried to wiggle the firmly embedded blade back and forth, but it was still embedded in the block of wood and showed no sign of coming off.

It was as if someone was holding me tightly.

Ash pretended to be calm as he drank his drink, but then burst out laughing loudly at the sight of him struggling and struggling.

Sylvia said, glaring at Ash with a sour look on her face.

“Even though you were struggling too.”

“Yeah, but it’s still funny.”

“No, this is really weird. Ash, you didn’t do anything weird, did you? Like using spirit magic or something.”

“I didn’t do it. Are you suspicious of people because you feel embarrassed for no reason?”

Sylvia’s face turned red and almost looked like she was crying.

Ash carefully placed the iron cup on the floor and got up from his seat with an exaggerated ‘thud’ sound.

Then he walked slowly towards Sylvia with his luggage on his back in a sarcastic manner and said:

“Should I do it?”

“No, stay still.”

“Because Sylvia is so bad.”

“You… Mr. Lee,”

Despite Sylvia’s warning, Ash giggled.

That playful face seemed refreshing somehow.

That face was closer to the mischievous younger brother Maria had told her about long ago, before she had even met Ash, than to the Ash Sylvia knew so well.

As I thought about it, Sylvia’s expression, which had been tense, seemed to relax a little.

Is this Ash’s true form?

I feel comfortable enough now to reveal my true self without hesitation.

We have become a real family.

If you think about it that way, doesn’t that kind of mischievous appearance feel so lovable?

When I think about it myself, it’s really serious.

Sylvia thought about that and let out a short sigh.

“Ash.”

“huh?”

“I’m thirsty, so do you remember the glass I gave you earlier? Please pour me some water.”

“Oh, okay. Okay.”

Ash picked up the two glasses he had placed on the floor and walked into the cabin, humming a tune.

“I’m about to get a sore throat-”

“Ash, you, really…”

“lol,”

Sylvia looked in the direction Ash had left for a moment, then turned her head back towards the strange piece of wood.

It was obviously strange that the axe didn’t fall down this far.

Although I was surprised by the embarrassing situation I had experienced for the first time in a long time, when I think about it now, I feel more glad than uncomfortable.

It was true that for Sylvia, who had always lived in the midst of adventure and bewildering events and had endured a long time in terrible pain and exhaustion, the current peaceful days were somewhat boring.

Thinking about it that way, it was only natural that I was happy about this little incident that happened after a long time.

It almost felt like a waste to split this tree.

“Huh? You still haven’t put the axe away?”

“I was resting.”

“It doesn’t really fall off?”

“You were resting… Well, it’s true that I didn’t miss anything.”

“I think I caught the Demon King, but now I have nothing to exert myself on, so I guess I’ve become weaker.”

Ash smiled broadly and handed the glass of water to Sylvia.

Sylvia, who received the glass of water, smiled at Ash and said.

“Why is there nothing to work hard for?”

“Huh?”

“I work hard every night.”

“No, that’s what I’m trying to do.”

“I use it a lot too. Ash likes it when I move around on top.”

“…That’s true.”

Ash nodded, his head hesitant.

It seemed that he was embarrassed, recalling the night’s love affair.

What are you thinking about?

My waist bouncing up and down busily?

Or is it my heart that sways in the opposite direction to the movement?

Ash smiled awkwardly for a moment, then quickly walked towards Sylvia.

Then he whispered softly, his lips pressed close to Sylvia’s ear.

“Then, if Sylvia splits that firewood,”

“…Uh, yeah?”

“I’m going to try my best tonight.”

“…”

Sylvia nudged Ash with her shoulder.

“away.”

“Sylvia?”

“Keep your promise.”

Okay.

Even though it was a new experience after such a long time, it wasn’t as important as having s*x with Ash.

Sylvia held the axe handle tightly.

No matter how firmly something unidentified is holding on to it from inside, if you lift the piece of wood and slam it down on the floor with all your might, it will eventually split.

Should I strike with both hands?

Yeah, then we can split it more clearly.

In Sylvia’s other hand was a glass of water.

Sylvia gulped down the water in one gulp and tried to lift the axe.

At that moment,

A voice spoke in Sylvia’s head.

“What color are Sylvia’s eyes?”

“…?”

what?

Who said that?

It wasn’t Ash’s voice.

Sylvia was startled by the voice that suddenly rang in her head.

A lot of really strange things are happening today,

Sylvia thought about this and looked into her glass of water.

Now that I think about it, it seems like Ash had asked me that question before.

What was your original eye color?

I couldn’t answer Ash at that time.

He had lived alone in the forest for so long that he couldn’t even remember his original eye color, so he couldn’t answer even if he wanted to.

But now, things are different.

Now I can answer.

Of course, my eye color is reflected in the water in this cup…

“… uh?”

Sylvia couldn’t see the color of her own eyes reflected in the glass of water.

I could clearly see that these were not the red eyes created by the Demon King’s curse, but I couldn’t tell what color they were.

It was a strange feeling.

I can clearly see it with my own two eyes, and I can see it clearly enough to draw the shape of the pupils, but I can’t tell what color they are.

“Of course, because I don’t remember.”

“… who is this?”

“Wake up, Sylvia. Look at yourself.”

“Who are you?”

“First of all… how about opening your eyes?”

“what?”

At that moment, the sky above Sylvia’s head began to fall down.

The clear blue sky began to break apart like puzzle pieces.

Even the ground, no, not only the ground, but the entire background – the trees, the hut, the flower pots, the sunlight – was shattering and disappearing like large pieces of broken glass.

no,

no!

“Ash!”

Sylvia quickly turned her head to where Ash was standing.

But Ash crumbled along with the surrounding background, like a painting on a wall.

It’s as if everything up until now was just a paper puppet show.

In this way, Sylvia’s world was shattered into a flat plane.

And behind it, dark and gloomy pillars and walls covered in magic and dust were revealed.

“…!”

The cup in her hand, the firewood scattered around, and the tickling warmth of Ash’s breath in Sylvia’s ear.

Now that everything is disappearing, there is one thing that will not disappear.

It was the axe she was holding.

Sylvia slowly looked at the axe handle in her hand.

It was not an axe, but the handle of a sword she knew all too well.

Sylvia’s gaze naturally moved forward slowly, following the sharp blade of the sword.

To the location where there was a solid piece of wood with the axe blade embedded in it that would never come off.

And there,

The horrible scenes Sylvia never wanted to see were on display so graphically that they tormented her.

Sylvia lost control of the sword for a moment.

“baby…!”

“Calm down, I’m not dead yet. The fact that I’m alive is proof of that.”

A voice I heard a little while ago.

Sylvia’s head was spinning as she was confused by the fact that she had hurt Ash, but then she realized that this voice sounded very familiar.

It was so familiar that it gave me goosebumps.

The voice began to sigh as it looked back and forth between the frozen Sylvia and the drooping Ash.

“Ash or Sylvia…”

“ah…”

“You can’t do anything without me!”

A confident, playful voice.

Sylvia knew that voice, full of pride and self-esteem, with a hint of loveliness that suggested she had grown up loving.

I knew it so well, obviously.

But it wasn’t Sylvia who reacted first.

“… you,”

The Demon King began to twist his long, ugly face.

Then, he started shaking unsteadily as if he was going to explode the magic he had been gathering behind Ash’s back at any moment.

Sylvia, who had already faced the Demon King once in the past, could tell.

That was the Demon King’s unique magic that literally tore apart the surroundings.

It can neither be avoided nor stopped.

The only thing that could stop it was Maria’s magic.

That was when.

Sacred polyhedral shield.

The curtain of miracles.

The fairy’s cheerful wings flap.

The pouring emerald light.

Advanced Blue Wind Shield.

The voice chanted the spell in an instant.

Several top-tier defensive spells that would take an ordinary wizard over an hour to calculate began to surround Sylvia, Ash, and Pia in an instant.

Sylvia could now speak.

Only now, with confidence, could I dare say that name again.

“Maria…?”

“Yes, Maria is the most beautiful girl in the Academy.”

It really was her.

.