It was definitely the worst night of her life for Wisteria.

　Just being deprived of one's body by an evil spirit (demon) is the worst of nightmares, but she was slashed, beaten, kicked, poked and prodded by the thing that overwhelmed the evil spirit - she was hurt to the point that there was no place she wasn't hurt.

　Wisteria, who had fought numerous demons and spirits as the first swordsman, was resistant to physical pain. However, this opponent's attacks, by what kind of logic, hurt not only her body but also her spirit. Every time he was cut, the sensation of something important inside him being chipped away was beyond description.

　And what suffered even more than the Wisteria was the evil spirit that had been hiding in the Wisteria's body.

　Wisteria, who was half-fused with the evil spirit, could directly feel the evil spirit's astonishment, anguish and rage. No, rather than feeling it, she was consumed by the simmering emotions of the evil spirit.

　She was tossed, stirred, and swept away by emotions that were not her own. Wisteria had to endure it all, lest her existence be blotted out.

　It would have been easier if she had just lost her mind, but she was in tune with the evil spirit and was not free to lose her mind. As long as the evil spirit resists, the wisteria will also have no choice but to resist.

　Their resistance continued until dawn.

　After a long night of battle, the evil spirit had its four wings torn off, its two tails torn off, its claws shattered, and its limbs bent in the wrong direction. The sight that can only be described as horrific, on the contrary, shows the underlying power of the evil spirit. If they hadn't gone this far, they wouldn't have stopped resisting.

　It could be said to be a terrifying life force, but even more terrifying would be the one who had hunted down the evil spirit. The black-haired human looked down at the fallen evil spirit (Wisteria) with an arrogant look on his face, without any apparent wounds.

　At this point, the demon's consciousness, which had been torn to shreds, was on the verge of disappearing. If the Wisteria had the extra power, it could have taken the body back, no doubt.

　But there was no way Wisteria had any extra power (or anything like that) left. Ever since she was banished from Andorra, she had been holding back the evil spirits (daemons) that were becoming more powerful by the day, searching for divine beasts in the unfamiliar desert, wearing out her spirit against the humans, and finally beating them all to death.

　The human pointed his black sword at Wisteria. While feeling a clear death at the tip of it, Wisteria suddenly thinks.

　If this young man is the incarnation of a divine beast, she wondered.

　Considering that, the opponent's power to deviate from the usual course is understandable. It would also explain why they couldn't find the divine beast in the desert, no matter how many times they looked for it.

　Even if I was wrong in my assumption, there was no doubt that this person had the power to defeat the evil spirit. And if that is the case, then as a result, I will be able to achieve my goal - to destroy the evil spirit (demon) that has been nesting in me.

　While thinking about this, Wisteria's consciousness fell into darkness. Feeling the evil spirit's groaning close at hand....







　How much time has passed since then?

　I could hear birds chirping from somewhere. The faint sound of leaves sliding off the ground shook my earbuds in harmony with the chirping.

　The breeze was gentle, blowing through the trees, caressing my cheeks.

　It reminded Wisteria of the forests of her home town, Andorra. A sense of peace that I had never felt since my exile in the desert filled my heart.

　It was in the mountains to the east of Belka. It was a place where a dragon slayer used to hide his wyvern from the public eye, but of course, Wisteria had no way of knowing.

　The silver-haired elf failed to immediately grasp the situation he was in. It felt like he was having some kind of tremendous nightmare, but he couldn't remember what it was, no, he didn't want to remember. I wanted to bask in this peace of mind for as long as possible now.

　--But the next moment such a small wish was crushed to dust.


"If you're awake, I think you should at least check your surroundings.

"--!


　The moment she heard that voice, Wisteria, who was lying on the ground, jumped up like a spring-loaded doll. As soon as she recognized the dark-haired young man out of the corner of her eye, the events of last night became a flash of light and ran through her mind.

　Wisteria, who instantly remembered the situation she was in, tried to step back to distance herself from her opponent.

　And that move triggers the robe that had been covering Wisteria's body until then to fall to the ground with a flutter.

　The clothes Wisteria was wearing were all lost when she mutated into a deformity last night. The robe that fell to the ground now belongs to someone other than Wisteria. Regardless of who it belongs to, once the robe falls to the ground, there is nothing to hide Wisteria's body.

　All that was left was a lone elf who revealed his birthright form.


''--?


　Wisteria's face instantly turns bright red. She knew this was not the time, but she couldn't contain the feelings of shame that were bubbling up.

　The shame, however, did not last long. But the shame didn't last long, because the astonishment that surpassed the shame hit Wisteria.

　Wisteria looked down at her body again. There was not a scratch on her skin. There wasn't even a scar left after being slashed so much last night.

　No, more importantly, the body reflected in her vision was her own (the elf). There was no animal hair on his arms. There were no scales on its legs. The claws on the ends of his limbs have returned to their original shape.

　Wisteria huffed and put her hands to her face. And then, with both hands, she touched her cheeks, her lips, her nose, and her forehead, in that order.

　All of this was her innate face. There was no ugly beastly face left anywhere.





　A sob escaped her shapely lips. In the face of the unexpected gospel, he almost slumped down on the spot, forgetting the situation.

　At that moment, the young man opened his mouth. When I looked at him, I saw that he was looking away from the Wisteria with a somewhat awkward look on his face.


''Pick up your robe. I'm sorry to see you dressed like that.

Eh.........ah!


　Wisteria came to herself at the other party's words, and hurriedly picked up the robe that had fallen to the ground. It should be said, of course, that the young man is not going to take advantage of it and attack the young man.

　After that, Wisteria, who covered her naked body with her robe, confronted the young man again.

　The reason why my eyebrows were knit is because I didn't know what expression to make.

　It seems that the young man has no intention of hurting us. Wisteria thinks so. If that's the intention, there's no reason to overlook the current gap, and in the first place, they could have acted as much as they wanted while we were asleep.

　On the one hand, I think so, but on the other hand, I don't even think that they helped me out of pure kindness. Of course. Where in the world is there a curious person who helps someone who has been mutated into a horrible demon out of the kindness of his heart?

　Wisteria hesitates, unsure of what action to take.

　However, regardless of what the other party has in mind, the body that was being trapped by the evil spirit has definitely returned to normal thanks to the young man. I must thank him for that. With that thought in mind, Wisteria was about to open her mouth.


"I ask you, do you know the word 'anima'?


　The young man turns to ask a question before Wisteria does.

　Hearing this, Wisteria was momentarily unsure of how to react, but she immediately responded with an intention.


''........No, unfortunately I haven't heard of it.''

"Hmm. Then what did you call that thing last night?

...a demon, they call it.


　After answering the question again, Wisteria asked a question from her side this time.


I'd like to ask you something as well. Do you don't mind?

I don't mind. I don't know if I can answer that question.

That's fine.


　Here Wisteria placed her right fist on her left chest and slowly hung her head. It was a salute from the Andorra Swordsman Squad.


''My name is Wisteria. O One who avenges the evil spirits that nest in my body, I would like you to tell me your name.


　The young man who was asked blinked his eyes with a puzzled look on his face. Perhaps the question was not what he had expected.

　Somewhat later, the young man responded with a slight shrug of his shoulders.


'It's Sora.'

Sola I will call you that then.


　Once, after mumbling the other person's name as if rolling it around in her mouth, Wisteria looks at the young man - Sola - again.

　Wisteria belatedly remembered last night. It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

　The hint of it still surrounds Sora with a strong color.

　Just looking at it is enough to make one's body tremble with a sense of intimidation. And even that intimidating feeling is much smaller than when she was fighting the Demon God.

　Wisteria clenched both fists tightly so that the opponent wouldn't notice her. And then she opened her mouth slowly and tightly so that her voice would not tremble.


Sola. I would like to thank you again and again for freeing me from the evil spirit. And then I will ask you on top of that. What is your purpose?　With your power, you would have had no reason to slay me with an evil spirit. I don't think you had any reason to help me in my hostile behavior. Nevertheless, you still took the opportunity to talk to me. There must be a reason for this, right?