A huge blast tore the area apart.

“Gah!!”

Erika was blown away. Her whole weight slammed against the ground.

Agh... I thought... we’ll be safe at this distance...

They were beyond the invisible wall, which blocked their progress before. Alas, that didn’t mean they were outside the Windflora King’s sniping zone. Erika was careless.

“Agh, Vivi... are you okay...?”

Erika opened her arms with difficulty. In the very last second, before the tornado assault, she grabbed Vivi and shielded the pixie with her own body.

“I-I’m fine... of course, the great Vivi is fine!”

Vivi jumped out of Erika’s embrace, trying to look healthy and energetic as ever. However, it took her a while to fully regain her vigor after the sudden bombarding. She must had been shaken by this near-death experience. If not for Erika’s protection, then Vivi would had been dead right now.

“I’m... glad...”

Erika’s voice was weak and coarse, but she wore a smile on her pained face. Her whole body turned into a mess and she felt like a washed out rag doll. Nonetheless, Vivi was safe and that’s what counted.

Erika tried to push herself away from the ground, but it was as easy as lifting a mountain. Every cell in her body ached whenever she twitched. Even after she conquered the virtual sense of pain, her limbs still moved as smoothly as those of a broken robot.

Her injuries were fatal, yet she somehow to survived. However, there was no telling how long she’d last in this miserable state. Every ounce of strength was slowly, but surely, slipping away from her.

Instead of struggling to stand up, she decided to relax. She loosened her limbs and peacefully rested on the ground. She hoped that the game system would recognize this as “taking a rest”, and would quickly restore her back to full health.

Alas, GoVe wasn’t such a merciful game. The automatic healing didn’t kick, probably due to Erika’s severe injuries. Rather than “taking a rest”, Erika’s current status could best be described as “dying”.

It’s alright... I managed to safely get Vivi across. That’s all that matters.

She glanced at the pixie with a fading smile. Vivi was back to her normal self and she didn’t sustain any injuries either. On top of that, Zelin City was right in front of them and there was no immediate danger in the area. Truly, Erika could die in peace.

“Seems like I can’t make it this time... wait for me here Vivi...”

Erika succumbed to her injuries and awaited her inevitable demise. To cross the Windflora King’s region again, she’d have to tame another bee and send it to fight. It was a tiresome task and she felt horrible for exploiting yet another bee familiar. Nonetheless, she’d have to do it.

Now that she knew the drill, passing through this area no longer sounded overly difficult. Everything should be alright, even if she died now. Everything... should be... alright...

“Like, are you serious? You gonna give up after putting all that effort!?”

Vivi yelled and waved her tiny fists. She couldn’t accept this defeat, not after they came this far!

“It’s alright... I can just do it all over again...”

“Don’t be an idiot! You’ve come this far already... oh, right! That stupid blob! Pull him out and force him to heal you!”

“Blobby...?”

Erika was too dazed to think straight. Even such a simple solution slipped her mind.

Right... Blobby could cure me with his water magic...

She tried to reach the icon of the DiVe on the user interface, but her hands were too heavy; she couldn't even lift them now. She gave up on that hopeless struggle and commanded the DiVe in her head.

Dimension Vessel... open... activate... something...

Nothing showed up. No matter how must she called out for it, the DiVe didn’t appear. It was her first time using the DiVe through her mind, but she had enough experience with virtual reality by now. She should had been able to bring it up.

Is it because of my dying state...? Hah, it’s all useless... I’m done for after all...

Erika sighed deeply. She couldn’t rest. She couldn't open the DiVe. No matter what she tried - the game blocked all her options. The system itself urged her to give up and die.

“Sorry, Vivi.... it’s no good... I can’t call him out...”

“Like, how useless can that idiot blob be!?”

Vivi raged about the report. She gritted her teeth and furiously kicked in midair. Though foul-mouthed and cheeky, she was sincerely concerned about Erika’s well-being in her own way. This emotional reaction caught Erika by a surprise.

“My... Vivi is so worried about me...?”

“Hmph! Like, the generous Vivi can’t let her servant die like that! You hear me!? The great Vivi didn’t give you the order to die, so you can’t die!”

Vivi insisted with puffed cheeks. It might had been nothing more than Erika’s convenient imagination, but Vivi’s eyes seemed a bit... teary. This side of Vivi was something Erika had never seen until now.

Thinking back on it, Vivi had been gradually changing as of late. The changes were minute and difficult to notice, but they were definitely there. Along their adventure together, Vivi became more friendly and more cooperative.

The pompous pixie started off as a rebellious brat. She hated Erika’s guts and never bothered to help out. However, right now, that same pixie was sincerely worried about Erika’s condition and wanted Erika to live on. It was a short adventure, but the two of them came a long way together.

“... eh?”

Something tapped on Erika’s cheek. She was sprinkled with warm water from above. It felt like being hit by weak rain drops, but that wasn’t the case.

“Vivi...?”

The source of the warm water was none other than the cheeky little pixie. Vivi stretched her thin arms above Erika’s head and squeezed out water drops from her tiny palms.

“Hmph. Be grateful that the generous Vivi took pity on an idiot like you.”

Vivi averted her face as she continued to spray water. There was a mixture of embarrassment and struggle in her expression.. She seemed to resent the very water she poured out of her hands.

So, she can use both offensive and defensive water magic. It’s amazing. I don't understand why she hates it so much...

Erika closed her eyes and let her body be bathed in warmth. Energy spread through her numb limbs and she gradually regained the ability to move them. It felt like waking up from a long coma.

“Thank you, Vivi.”

Erika stood up, now completely restored.

“H-hmph... you should praise the generous Vivi more for bringing salvation to... a pitiful idiot like you...”

Vivi spoke meekly and her words were scattered. Using water magic took its toll her small body.

“Thank you so very much, o generous Vivi~ Huhu~”

Erika giggled and hugged the exhausted pixie.

“W-wha!? Like, let go, you idiot!”

Only Vivi’s mouth had the energy to fight back. The rest of her body was limp from fatigue. Thus, Erika happily snuggled the defenseless pixie.

Of course, this heartwarming scene could end in only one possible way: with Vivi getting fed up with the whole snuggling business and blasting Erika in the face. However, even that blast felt a softer than usual. It only pushed Erika away, without knocking her down.

“Like, let’s go already!”

Vivi flapped her glittering wings and dashed forward. Erika hurried along.

“Say, Vivi. Why do you hate water so much? You’re so good with it too.”

“Hmph. Like, water is the worst magic ever and it shouldn’t even exist.”

Vivi crossed her arms and refused to speak any further. She clearly had some bad experience with water magic, or maybe with water as a whole. Erika couldn’t imagine what exactly happened, but she guessed it might had been related to water monsters.

They pressed onward along the unpaved road. Now, the Windflora King was truly behind them. Even that notorious villain couldn’t reach all the way out here with its tornados. They both made it through. Alive.

Finally, Zelin City was within reach.