I Can’t Run Away From the Girl Who Saved Me

16 – Sleeping (2)

＊

“I must be crazy.”

Silvia muttered while holding her cheek as she walked through the woods.

Seeing that his face was still hot, it was clear that the red flag was still running around his cheeks.

Well, I did just that.

Just remembering what had happened a little while ago, I was filled with shame again, and it tickled all over my body to the point where I couldn’t stand it without twisting my body.

Even though it’s already been an hour, every time I think about it, it’s new and thrilling and embarrassing.

“Mr. Lee, how nice it would be if you just said ‘yes’. Ash you stupid bastard.”

Sylvia kicked a stone in front of her eyes for no reason, and sighed.

“Ah, no, I said what to do, what. It’s just that I’m afraid I’ll break my back.”

In fact, that concern still remains.

Ash said it was fine, but he would spend the rest of his life here, so he couldn’t sleep in a makeshift bed like that.

That said, neither she nor Ash had the talent to make a decent bed.

Being a private in an aristocratic family, the quality of the bed was a very important issue for her.

During the journey to subdue the demon lord, there were many times when we camped in poor conditions, but camping is just camping.

There was no reason for the bed to be uncomfortable.

In fact, even during adventures, whenever she stopped by the village, she always wandered around looking for a comfortable place to sleep.

The bed she was using now had been in the woods for about a year, and she had searched all the houses in Millwood to find the best bed she had been using.

It’s been so long now that the rest of the beds in the village have been worn away and can’t be used.

In the first place, not only the bed, but all the usable furniture had been moved into the cabin or storage shed in the backyard.

“I don’t know, but when my back hurts, I think I’ll change my mind.”

While grumbling, Sylvia got out of the stuffy forest and arrived at a small lake.

A small lake in the woods, a long walk from the cabin to the river and the other side.

It was a place where many of the herbs she used grew, and at the same time, it was an area inhabited by fish of a different taste than those caught in the river.

Before starting fishing in earnest, she poked her head out into the clear water of the lake and looked into the reflection of her own face.

Her face reflected in the water was still red.

Looking at his blushing face, even if he didn’t like it, the events from earlier automatically replayed in his head.

As she climbed on top of Ash’s body and stuck her nose into his neck to sniff, she remembered his troubled face, which made her face redder again.

Her face looked like it was about to blow steam out of her nose and ears.

There was no way anyone could see it, but she covered her face with both hands.

Looking back now, he did something so bold that even he couldn’t understand what he was thinking, but in fact, he didn’t mean to do that in the first place.

However, when Ash refused so resolutely, I felt annoyed without knowing it, and when I brought up additional embarrassing memories, I couldn’t stand it in the end.

“Are you ashamed of yourself?”

Sylvia pointed her finger at her reflection on the surface of the water as if she were Ash.

“I was embarrassed too. Do you think it would have been easy for me to tell the boy to sleep with me? In the first place… I also have experiences with men… Mr. Lee, he makes me say things like this.”

She sighed, waving her fingers at the water’s surface.

She was a little bit annoyed, but when she saw her own frown reflected in the water, she suddenly fell into thought.

why am i so angry

I don’t know why, but the more I thought about it, the worse Ash’s refusal was.

Ash’s body odor, which still had a reverberant scent at the tip of her nose, gave off a soft, sweet smell without even noticing her feelings.

Sylvia touched the tip of her nose with the tip of her finger and purred her pouty lips.

“…Am I not that bad?”

she murmured quietly.

Well, the rough and crude hand that swung the sword, the unfeminine wide shoulders.

The chest may be a little on the large side, but the muscles clearly attached to the limbs and abdomen are far from feminine.

The ferocious eyes still have light dark circles thanks to having suffered from nightmares, and even though they are now flushed red, the original skin color is white enough to feel pale, and even the unorganized, scattered blonde hair is a little pale. I feel like doing it.

To put it a little rougher, it gives the impression of a sturdy female vampire.

It’s a little odd that the expression ‘sturdy’ is attached to the undead, but it seems that way anyway.

In the past, male co-workers usually had a sweet time with the village girls, but most of them had slender faces exuding a delicate atmosphere, were tall enough to be hugged in a man’s arms, and were only wrapped around one arm of a man. had the same thin waist.

And, of course, as a warrior, she was very far from such women.

“No, even though I can’t meet another woman anyway! And I don’t even like you!”

Sylvia was talking to herself and suddenly got angry with herself.

It was ugliness that would look like a crazy person if anyone saw it.

But even so, in the end, it was only herself who was pointed at by her.

Sylvia suddenly began to feel this situation strange as she was projecting Ash on her reflection on the surface of the water.

something passes through my mind

Since no one was there anyway, she grabbed something that passed by and spat it out quietly.

“It’s just… I’m afraid I’ll be lonely.”

The night before, Sylvia saw Ash weeping while talking to his family.

Considering the white traces of tears, she might have shed tears throughout her sleep.

Just as she has nightmares because of her guilt about the people of Millwood, Ash might have nightmares about not being able to protect her family.

Maybe, it’s just that she didn’t know, or even Ash himself didn’t know.

He may have cried every night since he regained consciousness.

Like herself reflected on the surface of the water, Sylvia recalled her last night in Ash’s image.

Those nights when you wake up in sweat as if running away from a nightmare.

“…and I’m lonely too.”

In fact, the reason she couldn’t sleep last night wasn’t just thinking about Ash.

The shocking truth Ash told us.

Even if the demon king was subdued, the world was still in chaos, so shocked by the truth that he couldn’t fall asleep.

own effort and sacrifice. And the sacrifices of those countless companions and the trustworthy comrades who were able to entrust each other’s backs.

The truth is that not only did the sacrifices of the nation and various nobles who supported them go to waste, but the enormous damage caused by them was eating away at the kingdom every moment.

The misfortune that happened to Ash was also caused by the situation.

All of that brought on too much guilt for her to handle on her own.

I did my best, I also made a lot of sacrifices.

Sylvia was too responsible to defend herself like that.

He was a warrior because he was such a person.

“…scary.”

Is it because I suffered from nightmares for a long time?

Before she went to bed, she was able to predict to some extent whether she would have nightmares tonight or not.

There were some errors depending on my physical condition and mood that day, but I still instinctively felt the feeling of ‘Oh, I’m sure I’m going to have a nightmare today’.

And yesterday was a day when it was clear that if I fell asleep, I would definitely have a nightmare.

That, too, must have been the worst nightmare she’d ever had, she could be sure.

Sylvia forcibly closed her jaw to block the yawn that came out of her involuntarily.

It was only natural that I stayed up all night.

To be honest, I am still very tired and sleepy.

If I went to bed tonight, it was clear that I would have the nightmares I had been forced to avoid the night before.

Will I be able to endure this night without falling into the scourge?

It’s probably hard.

Just then, a fish swam with its tail and caused ripples on the water surface.

The aftermath shook and scattered her face reflected in the water.

＊

Sylvia brought six fish pierced by arrows.

As always, the fish she caught had an arrow stuck in it.

Her fishing tools are a bow and arrow, not a fishing rod and hook.

Cut the belly open, remove the entrails, remove the backbone and thorns, and then spread it out in an oven and bake it until golden brown.

It was still a pity that there was no salt, but the fishy smell was able to be removed by spraying sour fruit juice from the forest.

I did not forget to stir-fry herbs and various vegetables until crispy, then crush them and sprinkle them.

Before putting it on a plate, I think about it in my own way and try to make it look as luxurious as possible.

After moving the finished dish on the plate several times, when the taste is satisfactory, it is carefully transferred to the table.

On the table were beautifully plated dishes and a soft candle.

It seemed like it would be romantic for a meal in the woods with no one around.

However, the atmosphere was somehow awkward.

It was because the events of the day were still messing with her and mine.

“bon appetite.”

“… Hey, Ash.”

“Uh… yes?”

“… no.”

Silvia silently tore the flesh of the fish with a fork and put it in her mouth.

Then, without realizing it, he smiled and smiled happily.

“Heh, it doesn’t smell fishy at all.”

“I heard that there are people who sometimes enjoy the fishy smell of fish. Are you sensitive to the smell?”

“…”

“Oh, I don’t mean that.”

“…”

“…not really.”

Sylvia took another bite with a pouty expression.

I tried to talk to her to ease the awkwardness.

“Is it delicious?”

“…it’s delicious.”

Sylvia answered bluntly.

I nodded.

“Since you always eat like that, it’s rewarding and good as a cook.”

“… okay?”

Ms. Sylvia seemed to have calmed down a bit and gave a comfortable smile.

She opened her mouth as she skinned the fish.

“… then,”

“I’m not sleeping with you, though.”

“… If anyone sees it, they’ll think I’m attacking them… Is it because of what happened during the day?”

“Before that, even when I was on the futon…”

“… that thing. I obviously,”

“Ah… I got it.”

Sylvia slightly furrowed her eyebrows, put down her fork, picked up the fish on the plate, and ate it.

After finishing the meal as if she were closing her eyes in an instant, she left the room with only one word, “I enjoyed it.”

With a blank look on my face, I stared at the door that had disappeared as if she had slipped in.

“…What’s the point of sticking around like that during the day and going into your room at night?”

It reminded me of the complaints of adults in the past that it was very difficult to understand a woman’s heart.

The warrior is also a woman.

I couldn’t possibly keep up with her thoughts.

＊

The night was getting late, but I couldn’t sleep.

To be honest, I did take a nap after Sylvia-san went hunting during the day.

I lay down on the bed to calm down my frightened mind, and then I fell asleep.

Perhaps because of the nap, no matter how much I tossed and turned, I couldn’t fall asleep. Rather, I felt clearer and clearer.

“I’m in trouble, what should I do tomorrow?”

Once my life pattern was twisted, it was very difficult to get it back.

No matter how relaxed the days were, it was clear that it would be difficult for a while if day and night were reversed like this.

If your life is so twisted that you can’t even do that simple task of making dinner for Sylvia, you’ll be so embarrassed, what should I do?

The more impatient my mind became, the further my sleep ran away.

I tried to close my eyes, put my arms over my closed eyes, and drove myself into complete darkness.

If you stay like this, one day you will fall asleep.

When I thought so and waited for sleep,

An unexpected variable occurred.

When my vision was completely blocked, my sane mind focused on my hearing and began to suck in all the sounds around me.

I began to hear louder sounds than I thought with my hearing, which had become sensitive enough not to miss a small sound.

“The sound of bugs chirping…”

From grass bugs to owls, the cries of all kinds of creatures could be heard.

Even the wolf’s cry from afar could be heard faintly.

To be honest, it’s the sound of nature that makes me feel at ease, but it felt very loud to me trying to sleep right away.

The crowded city was much noisier during the day, but in this deep forest where people were nowhere to be found, it was much louder at night than during the day.

Ting-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t she by, bye-bye-bye, by-and-by,

hmm?

ha ha ha ha?

I woke up at the sudden sound of a groan and woke up from my seat.

All my nerves were focused on the sound of a woman’s excited breathing mixed with the cries of the creatures in the forest.

It was very small, but it came from much closer.

“…Sylvia-san?”

Moaning could be heard from Silvia-san’s room.

.