What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?

Page 108

After a while, Frillie drank the whole bowl of medicine and then took a sip of water before lying down again.

Ash, whose hands were warmed by the medicine bowl, grabbed Frillie's hand again from under the covers, causing the drowsy elf girl to glance at him suspiciously: "What...are you planning to do now?"

"I just wanted to put your mind at ease, because people often feel uneasy when they are sick."

"With you holding my hand, I... feel even more uneasy..." Frillian pursed her lips, panting, staring weakly at him.

"Don't say that. We've been together for so many years. Even if you don't trust others, you have to trust me, right?"

"Then tell me quickly... what exactly did you do? I promise... I won't be angry..."

"Oh dear, don't think too much when you're sick. I'll definitely tell you when I'm better!"

He held the still-childish little hand of the older elven girl in one hand, while his other hand smiled and touched her slightly disheveled silver hair.

This made Frillie turn her head away in strong resistance, but she couldn't dodge it. She couldn't even pull her hand back, and could only let out a weak complaint:

"How many times have I told you... don't treat me like a child... don't touch my head..."

“I’ve heard that for many children, being gently patted on the head by an adult brings a sense of security and being cared for. This physical contact can also convey a message of warmth, support, and protection, making the child feel valued and loved.” Instead of the girl’s protest, and unable to think of any good stories to lull her to sleep, Ash, in a moment of inspiration, launched into a spiel, explaining to her on the spot:

"Especially when children feel uneasy, anxious, or need comfort, this kind of close physical contact can make them feel safe and comfortable. So, personally, I think that patting their head is actually more effective than shaking hands. However, since Simmel has said so before, I also intend to respect the local tradition. With this two-pronged approach, do you feel twice as reassured and comfortable? Well, although you might be a little shy, but you think..."

"........"

His incessant scientific explanations and conversation left Frillie speechless. Weak and exhausted, she felt both frustrated and somewhat amused, but also...

Surprisingly, it actually feels quite reassuring? But being called a child by this guy is really unpleasant... However, well... let's leave it at that for now? I'll settle the score with him later—Frilian closed her eyes with a slight pant, feeling this indescribable sense of security, as well as an unspeakable sense of shame, but temporarily gave up her plan to forcefully push him away.

However, for the sake of her own pride, she secretly decided that she must "get revenge" later.

The next day, after a full day and night of sleep, her cold and fever symptoms had mostly disappeared.

She couldn't quite remember what happened yesterday, and the ensuing questions only added to her suspicions, leaving her no time to dwell on yesterday's events.

According to Ash, Simmel and the others seemed to have arrived in the magical city in a hurry and went to the nearby labyrinth... They've temporarily lost contact.

She didn't see them for the next few days, and... even when they came back, their expressions were very strange. They were inexplicably hesitant and unwilling to talk to her properly about what happened during her illness.

It was as if something had happened during that time. But Frilian couldn't fathom what they could possibly have that they needed to deliberately hide from her, until—80 years later, the events of the past seemed to come full circle and happened to Philon.

The Burial of Frilian: The Officially Beginning Journey: Chapter Twenty-One - The Belated Truth and Understanding - Finally Arriving in the Magical City - The Legal Loli Zanze

Time returns to the present.

All these years have passed, and Frilian still doesn't understand why the entire squad kept it from her.

Until... she saw Ash reach out and lift Philon into his arms.

"Lord Ash...you...you are...?" Philon opened his eyes weakly, and even his originally rosy face seemed to have become even redder than before.

She wanted to say something more, but Ash gently and reassuringly stopped her:

"It's alright, Philon, close your eyes and rest for a bit, it'll be over soon."

"This conversation... it sounds strangely familiar...?" Frillian stroked her chin, deep in thought, trying hard to recall the past.

Although Philon didn't quite understand what he wanted to do, she trusted him completely and, like Frilian before her, closed her eyes without any suspicion. And then...

To everyone's astonishment, the sickly Philon, along with the blankets wrapped around her, turned to stone in Ash's hands.

"Wait, wait a minute...?" For a moment, Frillie made an exaggerated expression, clutching her throbbing head, and tried to force a smile to calm herself down as she asked:

"Ash, although I think it's unlikely, but in the past... you wouldn't have done the same thing to me, would you?"

"Well... if you look at it on a bright side... sometimes things that seem impossible actually happen, isn't that a kind of surprise?"

"......"

Ash awkwardly looked away, while Frillie clearly didn't feel any joy, but rather quite surprised.

She was so caught up in her brainstorming that her mind seemed to have gone blank, and she couldn't even speak. She stared blankly at the petrified girl in his arms.

After a long while, she stared at Ash suspiciously and murmured, "I won't ask anything else now. Just tell me... before flying magic existed, how did you manage to transport me to the magic city?"

"This... um, like this?"

He tried to make history repeat itself, using magic to levitate the statue, and then pushing it through the air with one hand.

As he turned back, the stone statue floated away, prompting him to quickly chase after it and catch it again.

It was this inexplicable resemblance—the action of dribbling and charging forward, then turning back after hitting the ball—that suddenly conjured up a strange image in Frillie's mind.

Now she finally understood why everyone else had a strange, hesitant expression when they only asked about what happened during her illness.

And why did Ash say back then that he was worried I would be angry, so he was being gentle with me beforehand, and he even looked guilty... but he just wouldn't say it?

This made her purse her lips and say, "You...were you just like when you were playing ball, taking me, who was sealed away, around everywhere? And you didn't tell the truth until the very end when you finally broke the seal, making me think that I was in a daze and accidentally arrived at the magical city?"

"Cough... Compared to such trivial matters, just tell me, isn't the pain reduced, and the illness cured immediately?"

"...That's right, that's right, but...!" Even Frilian felt that this treatment was a bit strange and couldn't help but want to blame him for something.

However, she was not good with words and didn't know how to criticize this strange treatment.

After all, this is indeed very effective, but it doesn't take into account the feelings of the person being transported like a ball.

Just like when a vehicle is already full, people are crammed into the trunk for transportation. While this might get them to their destination smoothly, it's hard to describe how the person being stuffed into the trunk like cargo would feel.

Although the treatment here might be a little better than that, at least you won't feel any bumps, and the experience is much better overall. As for the treatment... it feels a bit like being knocked unconscious and then thrown into the trunk.

..............................

After all these years, Frillian has come to understand that saying those things to Ash will basically have no effect.

After all, he cares more about effective methods than about other people's feelings.

All these years of talking haven't made any progress, and besides, it's unlikely to have any effect. This made Frillie lower her gaze, sighing with a hint of annoyance:

"You must reflect on your actions and then apologize properly to Philon... and to me!"

"....Why?"

"Not everything can be resolved simply by getting it solved; the process itself is also very important!"

"I understand what you're saying, but..."

"What? You're planning to leave a will?" He seemed about to explain, which made Frilian look very unhappy, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I just want to ask, if you had to choose, would it be better to be petrified and pushed into the magical city, or to be sick for a few days and suffer for a few days searching for the best medicine?"

"Isn't that the problem? Although I don't like being sick, I also don't like being suddenly petrified and then being transported like cargo."

"is it?"

"Understood?"

"No, I just feel a little conflicted about what you said about this..."

Despite being the slowest-witted person, Frilian has grown to the point where she can say this to herself.

No, although the reason is unknown, Frilian has had her own strange insistence on some strange things for thousands of years.

So even elves are essentially girls? Although she didn't care at first when her underwear was seen, she only improved in this area after I pointed it out? —Ash had a mental whirlwind, but in the end he couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.

Why are you sighing while looking at me...? Isn't that being too polite?

"Don't get me wrong, I just feel a bit conflicted because I can't even understand someone like you..."

"Hey! Isn't that even more impolite?" Frillie glared back unhappily.

The two argued, while Yubel watched with great interest, feeling as if he had gained a new understanding of them.

I even had a feeling...

"These guys are really more interesting than ordinary people!" Despite the slightly awkward atmosphere, Yubel just smiled and nodded repeatedly, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

Ash ignored her for the time being, and disregarded Frillie's gaze, silently looking at the girl in his arms for a long time before finally saying:

"I will reflect on what you said later, but... since the petrification has already happened, why don't we send him to the magic city first?"

"What do you mean, 'Since they're already petrified, don't you think your words are weird?' It's like saying that just because a crime has already started, it has to continue?"

"...Then cancel it?"

"No... Anyway, you've already sealed it, and it wasn't me who did it, so I won't be the one who gets scolded or talked about in the end. I might as well continue."

"...You really are my best friend."

Ash looked at Frillie for a long time, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back, before finally managing to utter a somewhat subtle remark.

“Of course, we’re best friends.” At this moment, Frilian showed no resistance whatsoever and even smiled and patted his shoulder.

But at that moment, Yubel suddenly raised his hand: "Just a brief interruption."

"what happened?"

How far is it from here to the magic city?

"...How far?" Ash lowered his head and pondered for a moment, calculating that the speed and energy consumption of human magical flight were relatively even, and casually replied, "Half a day, I guess?"

"...I've been at my limit for a little over half an hour. If I need to rest multiple times, I don't know how long it will take to reach my goal." Yubel did a simple calculation and then shrugged helplessly.