Garnett!

　Felix's cries were drowned out by the dragon's roar.

　As if summoned by the roar, a dozen or so wyverns emerge from across the forest.

　Am I having a bad dream?　The sight of it is almost dizzying.

　A wyvern - a subspecies of dragon whose front legs have been transformed into wings.

　Although it is of a lower rank compared to dragons with four limbs and wings, and its flames (breaths) are not as powerful as those of dragons with four limbs and wings, it is a demon that has no chance of winning for an E-rank adventurer, even if it is just one.

''Ooohhhh!''
A dragon!

　The adventurers scream and flee in a state of panic.

　It's bigger than the dragon we killed a month ago, and its presence is full of murderous intent.

　If that dragon is a scrawny wild dog, this one is like a large, well-trained hound.

"Bradford!　Start intercepting them!

　At the same time as Felix's command, Bradford jumped forward and Sakura also ran as fast as she could.

'Binding chain invitation!

　As soon as Bradford shouted, several extremely thick chains appeared through the surrounding ground and attacked the wyvern in the air like a giant snake.

　Half of the wyverns that appeared were tangled up in the blink of an eye and slammed to the ground with the force of a hammer swinging down.

　Some of them died from the impact, and even those individuals who didn't die are tied to the ground with chains.

''【Shrinkage】!

　Sakura's figure disappears.

　The next place it appears is on the back of the wyvern, which had been circling to avoid the chains.

　Immediately after the target cries out under the sudden weight, a highly heated baboon kane's sword blade cuts its long neck into a loop.

　It kicked the back further and transitioned.
　The next wyvern's wings are slashed off, and the 'flying slash' of fire released by the returning sword cuts through the third body's torso.

　With no time to breathe, the fourth body is cut down in an unnoticeable transition.

　The last one releases a fireball, but it is drowned out as if it were sucked into the blade, and conversely, it is shot down by a slash of flame that is shot back with its heat.

''----!''

　I was speechless as I looked up.

　It's too overwhelming.
　The swarm of wyverns that I had only thought of as despair disappeared in less than a minute ...... or even a dozen seconds.

　There are few adventurers, even those with a B-rank or higher, who can do that.

　There are only a handful of adventurers I've met in my fifteen years of experience.

Lord Sakura!

　Felix's arms were filled with magical power, and a barrier of light was deployed between the falling Sakura and the dragon.

　In the next moment, the dragon's fire struck the barrier.

　Sakura's [Shrinkage] is triggered by the action of kicking some kind of foothold.

　Even if it was the wyvern's torso, it could be activated, but it couldn't be activated during a complete fall.

　The first thing you need to do is to make sure that you have the right information.

''d*mn, I can't prevent ......!

　A strong dragon breath breaks through the magic barrier.

　Sakura landed before it, and in an instant, she shifted with [contraction] and escaped the range of the breath and joined us.

''Don't flinch, Felix-dono. We misjudged our opportunity to break away.
'That unit is clearly different in rank. I'll stop the movement with me and Bradford, and I'd like to ask Lord Sakura to take the offensive. Luke-dono, please take off to a safe place.

　Felix flew his instructions in a calm, impatient voice.

　It was an impeccable decision.
　Including the fact that he treated me as a non-combatant out of the equation.

　No matter how pathetic I may seem to myself, it's not as if I'm an asset to the war effort.

　Instead, I'll just become a burden that must be protected and dragged down.

'Sorry, I've got you covered: ......!

　As I run from the spot, as a signal, the three of us begin an impromptu coordinated attack.

　The rushing dragon is stopped by the two-step stance of chains and magic barriers, while Sakura uses 【shrinkage】 to thin the flesh and slash into the gap.

　Shameful. When the skills have evolved, when it comes to the fight, this is it.

　Even if I could damage a dragon with 【Disintegration】, with my physical abilities, I would be turned back before I could even touch it.

　Sylvia or Sakura might say that it's my achievement, since they're able to fight thanks to the Hihiyrokane sword I made.

　But it's one thing for people to say that and another for me to be able to convince them.

......!

　As I was running towards the forest, chastising myself, I saw something move out of the corner of my eye.

　I didn't think it was a survivor of the wyvern, so I braced myself.

'...... garnet ......!

　There was Garnett, lying on his back in blood and suffering.

　He had been blown up close to the forest when the dragon had taken him by surprise.

'd*mn it ......!'

　I reflexively changed course and rushed over to Garnett.

　To be honest, there was no guarantee that Garnett was still alive at all.

　Even if his flesh seemed to be moving, he might just be twitching like a crushed head frog.

　I've never tried to see if it's possible to [repair] a dead person, and I think it's probably impossible.

　I looked into its bloody face, praying that Garnett hadn't died out.

'Ugh ......!'

　The devastation is so devastating that I'm at a loss for words.

"(...... terrible ...... my face is almost smashed up. ......)

　The dragon's claws seemed to have passed from the right side of his right side, right near the center of his chest, and tore vertically across his face.

　It wasn't a thin object like a sword or an axe, but a thick object called a dragon's claw that had gouged out his armor and flesh and blood, carving a deep groove in his flesh.

　He barely seemed to be breathing, but it was a wonder he was still able to continue breathing.

　A serious wound - or, normally, definitely a fatal one.

　Maybe I should say that he's in the middle of dying right now, rather than not dead.

'Are you still in time ......?　Armor can be done later, but we'll start with the body first: ...... skill activation, [Repair] begins!

　The regeneration of the flesh is the top priority and we start [repair].

　Felix told me to flee to a safe place, but this place is still too far away to be assured of safety.

　Abandon this guy and run away--
　Risking your life for someone you don't like is a stupid thing to do--

　It would be a lie to say that such an idea didn't occur to me.

　But even so, I chose to [repair] the damage to the garnet.

　I suppose there's a part of me that wanted to be of some use.

　There's also the pity that it was too pitiful.

　But more than that--

"(I'm the one who was cut down because I'm useless, and I'm the one who's dying because I don't like it?　(Ha, bad joke!)

　If I met the brave man again by some fatal prank, I wanted to resolutely avoid just the act of that guy laughing at me, 'You're doing the same thing as me.

　It doesn't matter if someone else thinks you're different from the hero.

　I didn't want to do anything that I couldn't proudly report to the people who adore me, who are only third-rate, such as Sylvia, 'I did this.

　It's pure self-satisfaction if you put it that way.
　I'm saving Garnet for myself.

I'm saving Garnett for my own good." "You know, you kicked me off earlier. I'll make you bow down and apologize later, so be prepared to give up ...... and come back ......!

　When the [Restoration] of the body was almost completed, the situation of the battle with the dragon moved greatly.

　The dragon tore off its restraints while being slashed repeatedly, breaking the barrier and releasing a tremendous breath.

　The three of us avoided a direct hit with Felix's multiple barriers, but the aftermath of the scorching heat, which we couldn't prevent, came crashing toward us, scorching the grasslands.

''At a time like this!　d*mn, it was a one or two: ......!

　While continuing the 【Restoration】 of the garnet with my left hand, I pull out a white and silver knife with my right hand and thrust it into the ground with the magical power of 【Restoration】.

　That knife is the one that I [synthesized] with the fragments from the labyrinth just a moment ago.
　I forgot to give it to Felix in the labyrinth and thought it would be fine when I returned to the ground.

　The object of 【Restoration】 is the wall of the labyrinth captured by the knife.

　And the 【Restoration】 material is the ground itself--!

Stop!

　The earthen wall that emerged by raking up the surrounding soil stops the aftermath of the breath in the nick of time.

　【Restoration】 can't be made into a perfect state if the original parts are small.

　But on the flip side, it can be created if it's an extremely sketchy and imperfect substitute.

　It can only be as good as an infant's clay work that imitates a work of art, but in very rare cases it is still sufficient.

If it was a direct hit on ...... it would have been blasted to death. ......

　The earthen wall I was able to create was large enough to just barely protect me and Garnett.

　It was a spur-of-the-moment method, but fortunately, it worked.

　As soon as I breathed a sigh of relief, I completed the repair of the garnet, which I had continued to do with my left hand.

Okay, it's fixed. ......

　I turned my gaze back to Garnett and instantly went rigid.

　Garnett's helmet has been blown off and the right side of his armor has been destroyed from the right side to his neck.

　So his bare face and right chest are exposed.

'Wait a minute, hey ...... this is ......'

　A face that is boyish yet 'not of the same s*x'.
　A modest layer of fat on top of a thin pectoral muscle.

　I'd never dreamed that I'd ever be able to get my head around it in this way.