I'd like to talk to you about many things, but first I want to relax from the battle.
　With that in mind, I was returning to the inn to rest...

Iris!

　I rushed downstairs to the first floor of the inn when I heard that a seriously injured Iris had been found.

　I found Iris, whose chest was wet with a lot of blood, lying on the table.
　Next to her were Sora and Luna, who were casting a recovery spell.

'Iris, are you alright!　Iris!
Rain, calm down. I know what you're thinking, but if you're too distracted, you won't be able to see anything.
I'm sorry.

　Tania admonished me to regain my composure slightly.
　Then I ask Sora and Luna.

'How's Iris' injury...?'
Well it's pretty bad, to put it bluntly.
I've healed his injuries. But he is not awake. Little by little, his vitality is diminishing and it's possible that his soul was damaged.

　Sora and Luna looked bitter.

　Although Iris was drenched in blood, there was nothing that looked like a scar on her.
　The two of them must have treated her.
　However, her eyes remained closed and the interval between her breasts going up and down was terribly slow.

''d*mn........why is this happening!
Neeee....I wonder if it's that woman, Monica, who did this...?
'I don't know. The guy has considerable power to create illusions, but I don't think that's enough to make Iris look like this...
'Either there are hidden powers that we don't know about. Or there's someone else. I suppose we'd better think of it that way.
Yeah, we should be careful. It's possible that they're trying to get to us, so we have to be careful.

　Kanade looks at me with concern.

'Nyah ... Rain, are you okay?　You look terrible. I'm sure you're tired from the fight, and you need to get some rest...
No, I'm fine.
But....
'Sure, I'm tired, but I can't rest at a time like this. But thank you for worrying about me, Kanade.

　He managed to smile and pat Kanade's head.

　Because of times like these........
　It's times like these that you have to keep your cool.
　Don't get burned out, don't get in a hurry, and make sure you know what you need to do.

　Take a deep breath.

"...Okay.

　I was able to calm down, albeit a little.
　What should we do now?

　Two.
　Making sure everyone is safe.
　And, two, you need to find a way to help Iris.

I'll just be a minute.

　I walked out of the inn and sent the dogs and the birds.
　They will be in charge of the perimeter vigilance.
　It wouldn't be easy to break through the vigilance nets, both in the air and on the ground.

　But the enemy is the one that broke through Iris' defenses.
　There is a high possibility that they are using some kind of force attacking us.
　It could be a special ability of the strongest species or perhaps a magical tool.
　Since it is hard to imagine the strongest species attacking their fellow countrymen Iris, the most likely possibility is the latter.

''Um........there was.

　We found a reactor ant, which is said to be able to sense the flow of magic power.
　They breed everywhere.

　I'm going to use them and ask them to join the alert.
　If some kind of magic tool is being used, this should be able to detect it.

　It's not perfect, but....
　I did the best I could.
　I'm going back to the inn.

Sorry to keep you waiting.
What are you doing here?
Check the perimeter. There's no guarantee they won't continue to come after you.

　I tell him that I've set up a warning net of dogs, birds, and reactor ants.
　Then Rifa heads to the entrance of the inn.

'I'll help you,'

　Rifa bit her finger, letting the blood flow.
　As the blood swelled, two wolves appeared, two wolves.

'These boys are good. Let them be alerted together.'
Yeah, that helps. With Rifa's help, that's a hundred man power.

　If we create this much of a warning net, the enemy won't be able to get to us easily.
　We can't let our guard down, but........
　For now, I think it's safe to focus on Iris' problems.

'Sola, Luna. How's Iris' condition?
"Uh ... I'm sorry. We're doing our best to cast a healing spell, but...
'It's still very likely that your soul is damaged. When this happens, the best we can do is to maintain the status quo, and recovery is.......
Well....

　I guess there was no way to beat them.
　Sola and Luna also looked frustrated.

　But I don't want to give up here.
　I could have made peace with Iris.
　She could have laughed at me like a normal girl.

　And now I can't believe it's over...
　We can never admit that!

　Is there any way to...

I think I know a way to help Mr. Iris.
Mr. Alpha?

　Alpha-san, who should have been asleep on the second floor, came down.
　Her body should have been in tatters due to the recoil from when she had been turned into a demon race.
　In fact, it was wobbling...
　If Kanade hadn't rushed over to him in a hurry, he would have just collapsed.

'Now you have to sleep...'
''No........As a result, I hurt Iris-san because of me. I have to take responsibility for that. If there's anything I can do, anything at all.

　Mr. Alpha looked very strong.
　I can see that he is prepared to take his responsibility head on and take it seriously.

　I want any information I can get right now to help Iris.
　Besides, I can't interfere with Alpha-san's resolve.

''........What do you mean by that idea?''
It's about getting help from the most powerful species.
The most powerful species...?
I've heard that there is a powerful species on the northern continent that can heal any wound and has the power to bring even the dead back to life.