Kuzu Inou【Ondo wo Kaeru Mono】 no Ore ga Musou suru made Chapter 106

106 War in the Forest 7  Limit of Power 

Suddenly, I heard a plosive sound and the voice from Serizawa-kun was interrupted. Since a while ago, Satsuki-sensei is trying to call them desperately with the Income. But there is no reply. Both Akai and Serizawa-kun seemed to not received Satsuki-sensei's voice.
When Satsuki-sensei understood that, she ran towards the direction where they are.

『Serizawa-kun? What's wrong? ……Akai-kun……If you can hear me, please answer』

She is calling the two of them while running right now, but there is still no answer.

『…………Hey, wait…………!』

Suddenly, I can hear that guy's voice. He is calling out to something. Serizawa-kun……looks like it is not him. Is there someone over there? A battle starts immediately. It looks like he is trying to stop someone. He uses his Talent, and the voice distorts. After that, I can't hear properly due to the noises.
In the noise, I heard something collided. Then, the noise abated a little.

『……Gua……』
「…………Akai?」

I can hear his voice from the noise. A very suffering voice.
Then, I heard another colliding sound. With a slight mix of water sound.

『……………………Wh………………at…………is………』

I can't hear his soft voice properly due to the noise. What is he saying? What is he saying with such hoarse voice? When I listen carefully, I can hear a word that I can understand.

『…………Ka…………gura…………』

My name. Akai was calling my name……with a weak sobbing voice.

「…………Akai……what's wrong…………?」

『…………………So……………rr………………』

I can't hear his voice clearly due to the noise. But he is trying to make an appeal to something desperately. I try to catch what he is saying, but I can't hear his voice after that.

「Hey……Akai……? What's wrong……?」

I called him through the Income. Akai didn't answer.
Only noises resounded. Satsuki-sensei is also calling him from a while ago. But there is no answer too.
Only the noises can be heard from the speaker.

「……Akai……please……say something……!」

……Why.
Why is he not answering? Why are you not saying anything?

「…………Hey……answer me…………!」
「…………Mai」

When I realized it, Shiro held my hand. With Tarou beside her. Both of them look at me with a sad look. ……Why am I crying right now?

「……No…………no……not like this…………」

He might still be alive. He might be safe. ……Even if I want to think that way, even if I want to have hopes, my intuition erased them all.

……I understood all of it upon hearing that voice. The trembling voice calling out my name. I have never heard such voice before. Living with him for a long time, I never know he would speak like that.

「……Sorry………Akai………sorry……」

Hoarse, weak……lonely voice. The feeble and sad voice as if he already started to cry. Such voice of him……I have never heard of it before.

That's why, I know just with that. That was his last voice. I can't……talk to him anymore. The moment I understand my sense, tears overflow from my eyes.

「……I am really……sorry……sorry……」

I have been apologizing since a while ago. Even though I might have something to do, I am just saying 「Sorry」. Who……am I apologizing to? Who I want to apologize to?
……It is obvious. To him.

「…………Sorry……I…………couldn't do anything for you…………」

The same words keep coming out from my mouth.
But there is no reply. He can never say anything anymore.
If I were there. I might be able to heal him. I couldn't do anything. All along……since childhood, I was protected by him.

No……wrong.

What I can do is just heal scratches at the most. With such half-baked power, I am useless in this kind of battlefield. I would probably just be a nuisance if I was with him. There is nothing that I can do from the start.

I am powerless right now.
I can't do anything but to sit here and cry. In order to protect someone like me, he……

「Mai……don't worry-jya. Tarou is saying so」

Shiro puts her hand on my back, and speaks to me. This girl is trying to comfort me right now.
But……I……

「He's saying that you shouldn't be worrying about yourself」
「……Eh……? Tarou……?」

「Waon!」

……Tarou? Tarou said "Don't worry"? What is this girl saying……?

「My wounds have healed long ago. That's why……you can already let go of yourself. He's saying so」

……Tarou's wounds? I don't know such thing.
After all, that incident……Tarou was killed by someone, I used 『Resurrection』 on Tarou, and since them, I have never used my power on Tarou. In addition, Tarou has never gotten hurt once at all. ……She is probably misunderstanding it with something.

「Sorry……Shiro……Tarou. ……I no longer have such power……I can't do it anymore」

Either way……it is no use. I don't have the powers like that time.

「What are you saying-nojya? The power that you used on Tarou is already not needed for him. So stop it and give it to Tsuba. Tarou is saying that-nojya」

「Wao~n!!」

……Stop it? The power used on Tarou? I didn't do anything to Tarou. What are these two saying? Aren't the two of them misunderstanding something? On Tarou……?

……No.
If it is Tarou……
When thinking properly, there is something that doesn't feel right.

After using 『Resurrection』 on Tarou, I couldn't use my power properly. I always thought that 「I exhausted my Talent's power」. Reviving a dead creature. And I resurrected it by sticking its body parts. I caused such an absurd miracle. The power of the Talent was consumed and disappeared. It is not strange to have that much of compensation.
I acknowledged it that way, and so does everyone around me.

……But. After that, something strange happened.

A few years ago, Tarou got into an accident to the extent that it is not strange to have a serious wound. Despite this, he was completely unhurt. ……He was lucky. At that time, we all thought so.
In addition, there is also something strange recently. When I was kidnapped, Tarou was tackled by a large man and was blown away to the wall. Considering the difference in weight, Tarou didn't had a wound even when I checked him after that. It all settled with Tarou being tough, but……when thinking about it calmly, it is strange if he didn't get a wound from that.

Then--

「Use the same one you used on Tarou to Tsuba. Tarou is saying that」

……I see. That's how it is. I didn't think of that at all.
Tarou didn't get wounded even once since then. We thought so. But Tarou actually did get wounded. His wounds healed. The moment he get wounded, it healed. By my Talent's power.

「……I see……so that's why………………I am so stupid……!」

I completely misunderstand it.
I didn't use it. It wasn't exhausted. My powers didn't disappear.

--It was used continuously.
Probably, all along……since that time.
I thought that if I stop using my powers, Tarou's body might scatter in pieces again……so I unconsciously use it on Tarou continuously. Almost all of……my power.

「Waon!」

I turn towards Tarou, and brush his body. Then, I can feel the familiar feeling in my hand. The feeling of my Talent……no. The feeling of a strong power that I had when I was an elementary school student. I can feel that it is coming back to me.

……It is true.
It looks like the limit that I thought, was not a limit. This power disappeared from me suddenly, and I was troubled. And yet……the answer is this close to me. And I was doing it unconsciously……
……I am really stupid.

「Thank you……Shiro-chan……Tarou」

I wipe my tears with my hands, and concentrate on my hands. In order to use my maximum power. He is far from me right now. I don't even know what kind of state is he in.
But I think I can.

……Because I have been doing the same thing to Tarou all along unconsciously.

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