"Mwu... nyah..."
Mage Nyau, lying in the bed, let out a groggy, slurred murmur as her eyes slowly fluttered open.
"You're finally awake, I see."
"Ah... where is this? Where are we?"
"An inn in the Royal Capital. The second floor collapsed, but the first floor was still intact, so I took the liberty of using it."
"You went through all the trouble of carrying Nyau here. Thank you very much."
Indeed, after Nyau had fainted, I couldn't just leave her there. I had searched for a place where she could rest properly and carried her to safety.
"Also, I figured you’d be hungry, so I scavenged some food. Do you want to eat?"
"Nyau would like to. Also, Nyau would be happy if there was some water."
"Right, I should be able to get that ready immediately."
I was fairly certain there was a well nearby, so procuring drinking water wouldn't take long.
After getting her a drink, I sat down to eat with her. It was a modest meal, cobbled together from whatever supplies had been left behind in the damaged buildings.
"Hey, Nyau. What do we do now?" I asked while we ate.
"Well..." Nyau nodded, her expression growing heavy.
"First, I think we should look for the Great Swordsmaster here in the capital."
There was a high probability that he was dead, but there was also a decent chance he had survived. Either way, we should find him, regroup, and then plan our next move. That was my logic, but Nyau remained silent, offering neither agreement nor objection.
Wondering what was wrong, I watched her for a moment. Finally, she opened her mouth to speak.
"Nyau is so sorry..." she whispered.
Then, the words began to pour out of her.
"Before we came to the Royal Capital, Nyau was so boastful about defeating the Demon King. Nyau feels terrible about it now... because no matter how hard Nyau tries, Nyau thinks it will be impossible to fix this situation. Nyau doesn't think she can do it anymore. That is why Nyau is sorry. It is all Nyau's fault..."
"But if we can find the Great Swordsmaster, there might still be a way to win."
"The Great Swordsmaster is likely dead, Nyau thinks."
"How can you be so sure?"
In response to my question, Nyau extended her index finger and brought up her Status Screen.
"Because Nyau has been promoted to the Master's 10th Seat."
I looked at the screen she displayed. Sure enough, the word "Master" was there, right next to the number "10."
Originally, Nyau’s rank had been Diamond, the tier directly below Master. Since the Master rank is restricted to only the top ten individuals in the world, the fact that Nyau had been bumped up meant that one of those seats had recently become vacant.
So, that was her reasoning. She assumed the previous 10th Seat, the Great Swordsmaster, was the one who had died.
"It... doesn't necessarily mean the Great Swordsmaster is the one who died. Besides, the Great Sage is still out there, right?"
Just because Nyau had become a Master didn't provide definitive proof of Nidorg's death. It could have been any of the other Masters. For all we knew, the vacancy was created the moment Hero Eligion died, and that was what triggered Nyau's promotion.
I tried to reason with her, but...
"Perhaps you are right..."
Nyau simply nodded, her face a mask of grief.
Ah, I understood now. It wasn't the promotion itself that had done this to her. That had just been the catalyst. The problem was much more fundamental.
Her spirit was simply broken.
And who could blame her? She had been forced to witness her city’s annihilation, and now she felt as if she were the only person left who could possibly stand against the Demon King's Forces. How many people would actually be able to hold onto hope and keep fighting in a situation like this?
Perhaps this timeline really was a lost cause. If Nyau—our only hope—was in this state, defeating the Demon King would be impossible. Maybe it was better to give up now and trigger a Return by Death.
"I... I'm sorry," I muttered.
"Why are you apologizing, Kiska-san?"
"If I were stronger, maybe I could have kept you from having to carry this burden."
"N-No... please do not apologize. It is all Nyau's fault...!"
As she spoke, tears began to stream down her face. Even if I tried to deny it, my words wouldn't reach her heart right now. I could only remain silent.
"Um... Kiska-san. Nyau has a request..."
Later that day, after a fruitless search of the ruins for Great Swordsmaster Nidorg, we decided to spend another night at the inn. The moment I climbed into bed to sleep, Nyau spoke up.
"Kiska-san... um, Nyau wants to sleep while holding hands. Is that okay?"
"Uh..."
I didn't mind holding hands, but that would mean sharing a bed.
"It’ll be hard to hold hands unless we’re in the same bed, wouldn't it?"
When I pointed that out, Nyau went quiet, staring down at the floor.
I felt a pang of pity for her. When I first met her, she hadn't been like this at all. She had been lively, arrogant, and selfish. Now, all of that was gone, buried under a mountain of depression.
"Here, get in."
I couldn't bring myself to refuse her. I moved over and gestured for her to join me. She was so small that even in a single bed, it didn't feel crowded when she climbed in next to me.
"We just have to hold hands, right?"
"Thank you very much."
She gave a shy, embarrassed smile as she slid her hand into mine. Seeing her so meek and vulnerable made her seem like a frightened kitten. It stirred a protective instinct in me that I hadn't expected.
"Kiska-san is very kind."
"...I wouldn't go that far."
I didn't think I'd done anything particularly "kind" for her.
"Yes, you are. Kiska-san is kind, and very reliable."
"If you say so..."
"Nyau does. And... um... Nyau knows what she said earlier, but she wants to try a little harder for the Demon King Subjugation."
I had been certain her heart was beyond repair. It turned out she was much stronger than I had given her credit for.
"So, Nyau would be very happy if Kiska-san did not abandon her."
"I'll help however I can."
"Thank you...!"
She thanked me again, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. I felt like I hadn't done anything to deserve such gratitude.
When I thought Nyau had given up, I was ready to abandon this timeline and Return by Death immediately. But maybe it was worth betting on her for a little while longer.
Nyau might not have the power to save the world on her own. Even so, I wanted to stay and see how she lived out her life in this timeline. Besides, if I stayed a while longer, I might finally find a clue about Ageha.
With that resolve settled in my mind, I eventually drifted off to sleep.