Rucia is bleeding like crazy in front of me. It’s very possible that she could die from this. I should immediately think of some ways to treat her so that she stops bleeding. Yet what do I think? ‘I wonder who fucked up this time.’ What an asshole I am. System, what is wrong with her and how do I fix it?

{Because of an innate constitution, her body is unable to properly absorb qi, and is only able to gain it through external means such as the Elementary Refinement Liquid. To fix the current problem, remove all qi that she has absorbed through the cultivation method.}

How much qi did she absorb? I can’t fix it otherwise.

{Unknown.}

Unknown? What? Why is it unknown?

{The system’s external sensors did not track how much qi she absorbed, thus, the amount of qi she has absorbed is unknown.}

Fuck, system! Why is it that you fail me when I need you the most?

{Circumstances.}

Argh! Fuck it! I bend down and place both my hands and glasses on Rucia’s chest. I move what little qi that I have absorbed and find the heart area. A pool of qi about ten times bigger than mine is boiling. The qi is turning violent, destroying her organs, starting with the heart. Shit! Is it too late? No, not for me! It isn’t impossible. Remember who you are Ardven! The ruler of this world! Status: Currently de-throned!

… Shit!

It’s not convincing, but it still won’t change who I am. The master of all qi! This little bit isn’t even worth my effort. You should be thankful that I have come to your help little girl! You shall thank this Lord once you come back. This Lord guarantees that you will live! So live! My qi touches the violent qi of Rucia. My qi is hit with a backlash, as it is too small to truly stop the rampaging of Rucia’s qi. A line of blood leaves my clenched mouth and drips to the floor.

“Rucia… This Lord… Is not yet finished with you… So don’t you dare die!!” I shout as a desperate attempt to stop the violent qi.

This is the first person that has truly talked to me, been friends with me, teased by me… DON’T YOU FUCKING DIE! I send my desperate will through the thin thread of qi between mine and Rucia’s qi. My will reaches the violent qi, causing a massive reaction to happen. The qi that was once about to burst calmed down and seemed to prostrate itself before my will. My qi as well, seemed to tremble in excitement and pride. Well, that would be if qi had a consciousness…

*Remembering...*

“He may be qi itself...”

“Qi itself...”

“Qi itself...”

“Qi itself...”

“Qi itself...”

(From chapter 1)

*Finished remembering...*

Oh. Oh. Oh. Oooooooooh. Ooooooooooooooooooooohhh! I forgot about thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttt! I am qi itself, just lots better than normal. How come I forgot that? Wait no, better just find out what to do here. Hmm… All of the qi Rucia has has all been converted to her own qi, so I can’t tell which is which anymore. Well, they seem to obey me, so might as well give them a command.

‘Disperse!’ I command the qi.

All the qi in Rucia’s body immediately leaves it, scared of my terrifying presence. Heh, I’m pretty cool aren’t I? Let’s hope she wakes up soon. I stand up and brush off my knees. I take one look and Rucia and I realize my mistake. I didn’t clean up the blood on her face…

Oops!

{Rucia’s POV, switching now…} -System.

It hurts. It really hurts. The energy that Ardven called qi, why does it hurt? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? It hurts!

Please stop it! The pain, please stop the pain!

“£¤æøþ-Ω∏∑!”

Ardven? Ardven, is that you? Have you come to help? I can hear some noises, but I can’t tell what it is. What is he doing? I feel a touch. Is that him? Is he trying to help? I feel… something, reach towards what Ardven called the heart. Is that… qi? Ardven’s qi? It feels so much more powerful than mine… pure…

His qi tries to calm the raging waves of qi, but it only seems to effect him instead. Please Ardven! Don’t kill yourself for me, I’ll be okay, just give me a bit of time! His qi gets smaller and smaller, until it is nothing but a fraying thread. Please, Ardven… Don’t die…

“Rucia… This Lord… Is not yet finished with you… So don’t you dare die!!”

Ardven…

I feel tears coming to my eyes. Not the blood that has been running out my eyes, but real tears of emotion. Ardven… you are too kind, to care for me so much… thank you, but you can’t do anything… It’s already too late…

I feel something like a determination, or a will. But it seems desperate, desperate to… save me. Ardven… This time, the real tears truly do come out. Why would he be going so far, for someone he just met? Would he be killing himself for me? Why? Why would he do this for the insignificant me? They all left me. Sis, mom, dad, grandfather, even grandmother… They all left. All because of me… It has to be because of me, why else would they leave? But why does he…? Why does he stay with me…? Why…? Don’t do it… You’ll only get hurt, like everyone else… Please don’t… A nice person like you doesn’t need to do this for me…

The desperate will Ardven sent has an arrogance to it, like it can do anything. He is that kind of person, isn’t he? Even when he can do nothing, he’ll still be arrogant until the end. But, it’s no use. Huh…? Why do I feel like I should… bow? The qi in my body calms down and congregates before Ardven’s will. It’s as though it’s the ruler and my qi is his subjects. Even his own qi feels different, like it is under the will of it’s owner. His will gives one command to my qi.

‘Disperse!’

This… this must be a secret technique! Secret techniques always have a backlash for using them incorrectly, and this…! The secret technique he’s using must be extremely powerful to do something like that! Then the backlash must be… NO! Please Ardven! Why did you have to do something so rash?!

I feel his qi and hands leave my body. Please don’t tell me he passed out. Please…

“Sorry Rucia, I nearly forgot to clean up the blood. Hope you don’t mind. Wait, who the hell am I talking to? She’s unconscious, right?”

He sounds fine… How? Was the technique he used a lifespan decrease or something without an immediate effect? Or something even worse? Ah… I can’t hold on… My consciousness is slipping… I can’t stay awake… I need to tell him… Tell him… Tell him…

“Tha...nk yo...u...” I choke out.

I black out.

“Tha...nk yo...u...” Rucia says weakly.

Oh? Was she conscious the entire time?

{That assumption is correct.}

Oh no… I said that embarrassing stuff and she listened… Nooooooo…

Geez, this is was why I don’t do speeches, it’s super embarrassing. Well, lets move her to the couch. I pick her up and place her on the couch, putting a pillow behind her head. She seems discomforted by the sudden move, but her next words annul that.

“Ardven… Don’t...” She sleep-talks.

WHOA!! WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE IMAGINING?! IT BETTER NOT BE RAPE YOU CRAZY BITCH!!

“Please…” She sleep-talks once more.

… She sounds worried. Does she think that I did something too much by moving her? No, possibly… could she be worried that I used a secret technique that does damage to the user? That could be it, she is a good person after all. She worries too much.

“Sleep girl,” I say lightly to her, patting her head. “Nobody would be so stupid as to harm themselves permanently trying to save someone they just met, that’s only for the stupid heroes, not me.”

She’s a good girl, isn’t she. My head patting seems to have calmed her down for now. There’s just one problem left to solve…

Where the fuck’s the bathroom?

I haven’t peed since two days ago, I need to release it. Do I have to pee in the forest? Please, no. There is some hope however. I heard that a girl’s bathroom is stalls only, so it is possible that they need the toilet to pee…

I speed through the house, checking for the bathroom. At the end of the hallway, I find the glorious room that I had searched long and hard for. All hail bathrooms!

I relieve myself. Letting out a satisfied “aah...” as I finally release everything that has built up in the past two days.

As, I finish relieving myself, wash my hands and walk back into the room where Rucia is, I decide to do something good for her. She should thank me repeatedly for this great gift I have given her. I walk into the kitchen and search the cabinets, intent on finding what I need most. During my search, I pick up some other valuable items to help me achieve my goal. In one of the last cabinets I check, I find what I needed and then proceed to look for the last item I need. I find it quickly and set it next to everything else that I have.

Cooking supplies all collected! I have the ingredients for making my masterpiece! Let’s begin, shall we?

Rucia has waken up now. I’ve finished my dish and placed it in front of her. I had asked her not to say anything until I fed her, and she did so. I gave her the silverware needed and gave her a smile.

“Please enjoy!” I said happily.

She cut herself a piece of her meal and took a bite. She foodgasmed. (From Shokugeki no Soma.)