Chapter 107 Prototype
The day to go to the city of the Rustu people was steadily approaching, and one day, after work, Diona and Lukas came to the synthesis room and got to work immediately.
While I was working, Lukas, who seemed to be receiving guidance from Diona, was steadily gaining control of his power. In fact, he seemed to be feeling the results, and his confidence was more apparent than the day he came to the royal capital.
While preparing for tomorrow, I watched Lukas from a distance. It seemed like he had received some advice from Diona, and after nodding a few times, he took a container in his hand and closed his eyes gently. Then he took a deep breath, and the healing potion Lukas was holding glowed.
"I did it!"
Lukas raised his voice and looked at me. I involuntarily stopped what I was doing and nodded back at him.
"Thank you, Diona-san!"
Lukas turned back to Diona with a smile. She also nodded with a modest but radiant smile.
"Laura, sorry to keep you waiting."
Lukas said as he handed me the container. I shook my head several times in response, even though there was no need to apologize.
"No, thank you very much."
I stared at the container I was given. The liquid that had shone brightly earlier now looked no different from a normal healing potion. It was in the same state as when Diona had put her power into it.
To confirm its effectiveness, I had to try it after all――.
"Shall we try it?"
I turned around at Diona's words from behind. Although there was no subject, Diona's resolute expression was enough to understand the original meaning of "trying it on a captured monster." She probably used vague words out of consideration for Lukas.
We stared at each other's amber eyes for a while, and then I nodded slowly.
As I recall the monster child who was curled up in the cage, my conscience still aches. However, I have no choice but to test this trial product for now.
"Test it?"
Lukas, who was tilting his head in wonder, cut in between me and Diona.
With his innocent eyes fixed on me, I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I should explain it honestly to my childhood friend. But I decided to tell him the truth, since he had cooperated with me this far.
* * *
The 3 of us, Lukas, Diona, and I, stood in front of the captured monster near Reinhardt-san's house, holding our breath. I thought of asking Reinhardt-san to join us, but it seemed they were out in the city of Rustu's people today.
I brought the container to the monster's hand, and once I glanced at Diona and Lukas, we nodded to each other. And the moment we poured the healing potion, the monster's roar echoed through the forest.
I reflexively took a step back. The monster in the cage writhed in agony, curling up its body as if embracing its belly. A few seconds later, a flash of light leaked from the monster's skin, and in the next instant, numerous flashes burst from inside the monster, engulfing it in light. The monster's figure vanished without a trace.
I stood there, staring at the empty cage, stunned for a while. Honestly, the effect was more than I had imagined. It was a pleasant miscalculation, but a new anxiety arose ―― whether it was safe to administer something with such power to Elvira.
"...That's an incredible effect, but is it really okay to put this in a human body?"
I turned around sharply at Diona's murmured words. I was thinking the exact same thing, and I nodded my head vigorously to convey that.
"Yes! That's exactly what I'm saying. If it has this much power, it could have a bad influence on the human body..."
Just a few drops of it had this effect. Even if it's a hero's power that's effective against monsters, if it's this strong, it could affect humans too.
Staring at the container I held in my hand, I wondered what would happen if I poured the almost undiminished contents onto my palm.
"――...It's no good, Laura."
"Huh!?"
Lukas's words, spoken in a lower voice than usual, made me let out a surprised sound. When I looked, Lukas was glaring at me with a stern expression, a furrow between his eyebrows.
"You're thinking of trying it yourself, aren't you?"
"W-Well... I mean, I might..."
I tried to cover up my true feelings, but I couldn't lie to my childhood friend with such a stern attitude.
I nodded with my head hung, and Diona let out a surprised "Eh" this time.
"What if something happens? What will you do?"
"But we also need to consider safety before prescribing it to Elvira..."
I was glad they were worried about me, but if it came to prescribing it to a human, someone had to be the first to try it.
"...Then I'll drink it."
I shook my head in disbelief at Lukas's words. I couldn't put the future Hero in danger like this.
"What are you saying, Lukas!"
"But it's originally my power, right!? I should be the least affected."
I fell silent for a moment at his reasonable words. Indeed, the power of the Hero was created inside Lukas's body. It was just an image, but the power contained in this healing potion might even now be circulating inside Lukas's body as we spoke.
However, that was just a story of imagination. In reality, there was no guarantee that Lukas would be safe after drinking this healing potion. On the contrary, he might even have an adverse reaction due to having the same power.
Before I could argue, Diona's calm suggestion reached my ears.
"Um, how about trying it on an animal instead of a monster? I think there's a big difference between monsters and non-monsters."
The tense air relaxed slightly at Diona's calm words. She was right.
If she hadn't been there, it might have turned into an argument, and I would have regretted my words and actions. "Let's do that," I nodded. Then, I apologized to Lukas and Diona, who I involved.
"I'm the one who should apologize. I got emotional."
I shook my head at Lukas, who was feeling down. I knew his words were because he was concerned about me, and the cause was my fault.
If I apologized to Lukas again, he would raise his eyebrows and laugh, saying "No." Relieved by his reaction, I looked at Diona. She too seemed relieved, smiling.
Diona is much calmer than me. On the other hand, I feel ashamed. Her life has been much more tumultuous than mine. This inappropriate calm and rational thought are cultivated by a life that has taken on a heavy burden. I secretly thought that I could support her if I added up the years I lived in my past life, but it ended up being quite pathetic.
(When it comes to things I haven't experienced in my past life, I'm quite weak.)
I remember being told by my cram school teacher in my past life, "You can do the basics, but you can't apply them." It seems that hasn't changed in this life.
As soon as we returned to the Reinhardt house, Diona set up a simple trap and quickly caught a mouse. She laughed, saying that she was taught this as a survival skill in her hometown deep in the forest when she was young.
She put the captured mouse in a case and gave it a healing potion as drinking water.
"...How is it?"
The 3 of us watched the mouse intently, but even after a few minutes, there was no dramatic change like the monster from earlier. This is a happy result.
However, it would be difficult to judge based on just a few minutes. It may not be a monster with a weakness to the Hero's power, so the result may not appear immediately, and there is a good chance that the overly strong power is slowly eating away at it.
I looked away from the mouse in the case and called out to Lukas and Diona.
"There's no change in the situation, is there? Let's observe for a night and see."
I noticed that Diona, who had nodded at my words, glanced at the calendar on the wall. I wondered what was going on, but before I could think any further, Diona spoke up in a smaller voice than usual, with a hint of hesitation.
"Um... if it's okay with you, would you like to stay over for the night? Tomorrow is a holiday, after all."
Lukas and I were taken aback by the unexpected proposal, our eyes widening in surprise as we looked at each other.
It seemed that Diona had checked the calendar to confirm that tomorrow was a holiday. Indeed, since we had worked late into the evening, it was already late, and visiting the Reinhardt house again tomorrow would be a hassle...
but when I looked at Diona, I saw that she was shrinking back, looking anxious.
There was something lonely about her expression, and I felt hesitant to turn her down. I thought it might be a bother, but if it were really a bother, she wouldn't have invited us in the first place... right?
I looked at Lukas again, and without a word, we both nodded.
"If it's not a bother, please let us stay."
* * *
――I was brought back to consciousness by a creaking sound. When I looked in the direction of the noise, I saw that Lukas was getting out of bed.
"Sorry, did I wake you up? It's still night, so go back to sleep. I'm thirsty, so I'll go get some water."
I nodded at Lukas' words and closed my eyes again.
After being treated to dinner, Lukas and I had been led to the guest room, and I had fallen asleep due to accumulated fatigue and the relief of having a healing potion. To be honest, I didn't remember when I fell asleep, but the towel blanket on me now was probably the one Lukas had given me.
I had been thinking of apologizing for our earlier argument, but I ended up falling asleep before I could do so. I made up my mind to have a proper talk in the morning, but before I could fall asleep again... I started to worry about Lukas, who had gone to get water and hadn't returned yet.
I don't think I need to worry, but once I start to feel concerned, I can't sleep. So I decided to get up and go check the water.
I slowly went down the stairs and headed to the living room. ――And then, at that moment.
"――What a wonderful relationship you two have."
Diona's voice made me stop reflexively
The voice came from the living room. It sounded like she was talking to someone.
"Because she's my precious childhood friend."
The next moment, I understood the voice of my childhood friend.
Lukas, who came down to the living room to drink water, must have been talking to Diona the whole time. That's why he was late coming back.
Now that I knew the reason, I thought it might be wrong to eavesdrop, but I couldn't help but listen. I've seen it many times in "Last Brave," the conversation between the hero and the heroine. Aside from Laura, I liked to watch the slow connection between these two, who bear a heavy mission.
"Diona-san, don't you have any childhood friends? Friends to play with?"
"I had kids my age, but I never played with them."
Diona's cheerful voice talking about something so ordinary made my heart ache. But in reality, she didn't feel anything about it. Because that's her common sense.
It's natural to sacrifice everything to fulfill her mission. It's natural not to have friends. It's natural not to play with kids her age. That's what Diona from "Last Brave" thought.
In the silence that followed, my childhood friend seemed to be shocked, and I could tell that. In fact, the Hero from "Last Brave" was the same. He was also shocked and wanted to change Diona's sad "normal" even a little.
"Well then, let's play together next time. Let's include Laura and the two of us."
My lips curled up at the kind words of Lukas, even though I felt a little nervous when my name was mentioned. I know that Lukas is a kind child.
"Laura's really good at finding fun things to do. I've never been bored when I'm with her."
It feels like I'm being overestimated, but I'm getting a bit anxious, thinking about what kind of things we should do if the 3 of us play together. Walking around the city together might be fun, but it would be even more exciting to run around in nature like little kids. For Diona, that kind of play might be even better.
"So, we'll definitely have a fun day!"
"...Yeah, I'm looking forward to it."
Lukas's gentle voice brought a hint of uncontrollable excitement to Diona's words, which jumped up a little. It was a kind and wonderful promise.
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