161 4.23 The revival ceremony - part 2

"Yeah, I survived alright… but he asked me for favor instead. He was desperate and so vulnerable."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"He wanted me to deliver a message and bring you back to him. I guess you wouldn't even be willing to hear his words, so I will just go now. I will tell him that I tried, but she didn't listen."

I had heard that some girls act tough outside even when they want something to happen desperately. So, instead of going that route and giving her what she wants, I could make her work for it.

"W-wait, are you telling the truth."

"Honestly, you can figure it out yourself. Do you think I am telling the truth or lying?"

She was silent for a while, so I realized I might have gone a little too far this time.

I will need to do something to bring the conversation back on track.

"You knew the dragon would arrive once I meddled with the seal, and as you said, he did. After he was here, I told him that I could converse with you. What do you think would he want next?"

She remained silent even after that. 'I guess I was a bit too harsh on her.'

Even though I realized I was being hard on her, there was no turning back after this point. The only way to move from here was forward.

"Anyway, as I said, I am here just to deliver the message. If you want to hear it, I will tell you the content, or I just will leave. I don't have a life to waste on someone else's romance."

"W-wait… Tell me the message."

She was acting completely different from the Queen Himiko I met at the start. And if I were to be honest here, I liked this Himiko a lot better.

"Hazel told me…"

I tried remembering the message, but my memory of it was a little hazy. I was too focused on trying to remember the message that I only had it in my conscious mind. And while trying to manipulate my thoughts to get here, I forgot most of the message.

'I should have known that it was bound to happen.'

"Well, he said something like, You don't need to blame yourself, and he is not upset about anything. He shouldn't have left you and should have been there for you. He said that he was sorry and he still loves you. And he wants you to come back. Yeah, something like that."

"...that doesn't sound like him."

"That's because I am just delivering his words, not his emotions. If you want to hear him say it, you should just come back."

"But… do you think he will accept me even after all this."

'What?! Is she feeling insecure now? Why do I have to deal with all these things when I don't even know her enough.'

"Well, he was desperate enough to ask me for a favor, so I think he will. You should just have faith in yourself and him."

Her voice wavered, and regrets could be felt in her words. She seemed down for some reason.

"I am pretty sure he cares about none of them. I think all he cares about is you, and that is why he is here today in the first place. You should just quit being stubborn; that will make him suffer even more. Just come to him already."

"I… am not sure."

"Then make your choice. I will give you some time, but please be quick. I don't have years to spend here."

I patiently waited for a few minutes while she was thinking things through. There was only darkness all around me, so there was nothing to keep me occupied. Due to that, I was a little bit impatient. I wanted to get out of this place, go to that village, and take a nap as soon as possible.

"I have come up with a choice. Could you take me back to him? I want to see him one more time. He is the only person who has only given me everything I wanted without asking anything in return. I want to return to him."

"Alright. Follow me back to the manor and into your own body. As soon as you do that, he will insert your soul back, and you will be able to live again."

I closed my eyes and forced myself back into my body like last time. It was like waking up from an inescapable nightmare, but I had no time to rest or relax.

"She is back. Put the soul into her body."

As soon as my consciousness returned to my body, I gave him the signal. Right then, he placed the pendant right on her heart and pressed on it.

He supplied the mana through the pendant to her heart. And while doing so, her soul was also transferred little by little into her body. It was an extraordinarily complicated and delicate process even for him.

He was holding his breath, and all his senses were entirely focused on the ritual. Flare's flames were continuously purifying the place and preventing any evil spirit from entering.

My part was already done, so I was able to observe the rest of the process carefully. As I was doing that, Flare was healing my mental fatigue, along with everyone else's.

After a few minutes, Hazel stopped. That meant he had successfully transferred the soul to her body. And since Flare's flame prevented miasma from entering, it was unlikely that she would turn into undead.

"Master, Earth Dragon, I can sense all the functions from that body. However, the flow of mana within her seems irregular."