4
The burst of light that coincided with the moment the giant scorpion changed color was the largest yet.
The swells of white light tore in all directions, obliterating the multiple gabaou aiming at the newly crimson scorpion and splitting the sands as the aftershock spread.
It went without saying that Subaru and Beatrice didn’t escape the devastation, either, but Meili was hit much harder. Leaning forward to direct the demon beasts, she had taken the crimson scorpion’s counterattack particularly badly.
The silver lining was that she had managed to avoid a direct hit from the stinger that was the true origin of the flash. Her small body would have disappeared without a trace if the stinger had even grazed her.
The worst had been avoided, but she had taken the full brunt of the shock wave that emanated from the desert-shattering stinger. That alone was enough to cause terrible injury.
“Meili!!!”
Subaru and Beatrice rushed over to where she lay in the sands. When they lifted her, they saw for the first time the true extent of her wounds. Maybe because she had reflexively curled up, the shock wave had mostly struck her back. Her black cloak was long gone, and shredded skin was visible through the torn clothes. The serious gashes and burns made Subaru’s vision go dark for a brief moment.
“This isn’t the time to drift off! What am I here for, if not this?”
Subaru pulled himself together with a smack and began calling upon the power within him.
Cor Leonis had been active this the whole time, and now he used its ability to share the burden of his comrades, taking some of the damage Meili had received onto himself.
Of course, if he took everything and collapsed, there would be no point. He needed to strike a balance, making sure Meili could survive, without knocking himself out.
“It’s fine. You got this. You can do this, Natsuki Subaru.”
The incomplete Natsuki Subaru might have panicked, lost control, and showed his pathetic side, but after tracing the path he had walked, Subaru had reevaluated himself. His role was of course to do the things that only he could do.
“…Ngh!”
Suddenly, Subaru got a taste of the suffering Meili was feeling. He groaned with a pain, like his insides were burning.
If he was being honest, he was already exhausted just carrying Ram’s burden. Taking on Meili’s near-fatal wound on top of that was practically suicidal.
“Not good…!”
Even though he talked a big game, it was impossible for him to carry both of their burdens fully. In which case, he had to prioritize Meili, since her life depended on it. There was no choice but to take on less of Ram’s burden.
With her insight, that would probably be enough for Ram to know that something had happened.
“She’s going to give me an earful after this…”
“Hah! After all that talk, look at you now. That’s Barusu for you.”
Imagining an uncannily realistic reaction, Subaru swallowed that bitter thought, along with the taste of blood.
Cor Leonis’s ability should be nothing more than shifting a burden, so him experiencing the actual taste of blood was proof that there was some sort of physical consequence occurring in his body.
The mind’s influence on the body was powerful.
Subaru had heard of situations where people who believed hot steel had touched them actually manifested burns on their skin. As he drew damage from Meili’s back and internal organs, Subaru’s own body was reacting as if it had happened to him.
If he wasn’t careful, this would lead to two fatalities from the exact same cause.
“This is…a little problematic…!”
Spitting out the blood pooling in his mouth, he raised Meili’s body. He leaped back, dodging a gabaou’s flaming lance, while Beatrice’s purple missiles drove it away.
The gabaou attacking just now was the one that had been letting them ride it for the past few minutes.
A betrayal by a shrewd demon beast when the going got rough—that would have made for nice plot development, but the reality was that it had simply reverted to normal, now that Meili’s blessing was no longer in effect.
Without her directions, demon beasts were enemies of all people. And there were countless of those demon beasts all around them in this sea of sand.
“Beako! Meili’s hurt bad! You need to heal her!”
“That’s quite obvious, I suppose! But I’m a little busy for that right this moment.”
“Yeah, I know! It was my mistake pushing Meili too much. I’ll cover the tab.”
Or rather, he had already started making payments, but the interest was piling up fast, and Subaru’s balances were getting strained even after cutting down on his financing for Ram.
“No, this is where I stand my ground. I can’t call myself a man if I don’t—”
“Fwaaah! I suppose!”
“Whoa?!”
Subaru held Meili’s body with gritted teeth as the effects of his authority hit his entire body. Then Beatrice suddenly leaped onto his back. Suddenly having her on his back was a shock to Subaru. Of course, she was as light as cotton candy, so it didn’t slow his flight, but…
“Stop trying to bear everything alone, Subaru. We’re partners, and Meili is one of our comrades, too. You aren’t the only one who promised to help.”
Clutching Subaru’s whole head, Beatrice pleaded with him softly.
Subaru fell silent, and with a gentle healing magic, Beatrice performed first aid on Meili’s wounds. He could feel the warm light healing Meili.
That warmth was how much Beatrice cared for everyone.
“—Giiiiiii.”
Behind them, the falling-out with the demon beast allies was rapidly developing.
Fortunately, even with Meili’s blessing out of commission, it wasn’t as if the crimson scorpion and the gabaou were suddenly ready to sign a neutrality agreement, and the same seemed true of the other demon beasts, too.
The crimson scorpion’s sweeping pincers and tail took down around half the demon beasts chasing them.
Of course, the other half were still coming, so they couldn’t just stop and enjoy the sights.
“Our options are…”
No, actually nothing, really.
Taking in Beatrice’s words, the warmth she felt for Meili—even if that wasn’t enough to get them out of this, there were ways to change the situation.
However, he had no idea whether he could pull it off without trying first, and the model for it was the worst one possible, so he was hesitant to try.
But…
“Subaru! If you’re holding back for Betty’s sake, then don’t! And if it’s another reason, then Betty will apologize together with you after all this!”
“ ”
“I want to share the joy and the pain with you…so don’t leave Betty behind! That’s the condition of our pact!”
Seeing the look on Subaru’s face, Beatrice angrily shouted at him.
He couldn’t see her face because she was right behind his head. But looking adorable even as she was furious was one of Subaru’s wonderful partner’s characteristics.
Taking courage from her words, Subaru gave in.
There was no time to worry about it. And there was no need to worry, either, since his own partner had told him not to.
“I’ll always love you, Beako.”
“Betty loves you more.”
With that exchange, Subaru looked down at Meili, who was on the verge of death in his arms.
And resolving himself not to let her slip away…
“—Cor Leonis, Second Gear.”
He shifted to a higher level inside himself.
That effectively spread the effect of the Little King authority. He had been scolded before for choosing the path of a lonely king bearing the weight of everyone’s thoughts, but he wouldn’t allow himself to become like the shameless, rapacious Greed, who shifted all of his own burdens onto others. What Subaru wanted from this authority was the ability to share burdens between friends who were willing to carry some of the load, who wanted to support one another.
In other words…
“Second Gear—the division of burden.”
…taking the burden of his comrades that Subaru should have been bearing alone and sharing it among those who wished to help shoulder the load.
And for the time being, that meant…
“—Subaru.”
“Yeah?”
“…This is really, really rough!!!” Beatrice cried.
“Yeah, it really, really is!!!”
The second stage of Cor Leonis allowed Subaru to share the burden he was carrying.
Not fifty-fifty. Just about a quarter. But even so, it was enough to make Subaru’s load feel quite a bit lighter. And it was enough to make Beatrice look positively ashen.
She yelled to cover how painful it was, and Subaru shouted back.
It hurt. It was painful. It was nigh unbearable.
Screw being a king who carries everyone’s burdens.
The Little King who couldn’t stand alone was able to stand with the support of those who cared for him.
“Incidentally, is there any chance I could ask you to share a little…?”
“ ”
“Guess not. Too bad.”
While Beatrice, on his shoulders, was healing Meili, Subaru turned his attention to the crimson scorpion. It was Shaula, and he could still feel his connection with her through Cor Leonis. There was a big, faint light there.
But unfortunately, for whatever reason, he couldn’t split out some of the load he and Beatrice were carrying with it. Probably because she had no will of her own to accept anything from him now.
Only those who wished to support the Little King could be asked to do so.
It was a rigid but easy-to-grasp ability. That was how he could avoid becoming haughty.
Subaru would never allow himself to forget that he was being supported by others.
“Beako! Do something different with your head and body!”
“—Ngh, that’s a difficult ask!!!”
Asking her to continue healing Meili with her body, he needed her to think of a way out of this situation with him. Because the crimson scorpion’s glowing tail was being aimed right at them…
“—E M M!!!”
As they played their first trump card of perfectly conjured defense magic, the shock wave of the attack swallowed the three of them up.
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