Editing Unlimited Fafnir:Volume 8 Chapter 4 (section)

===Part 3===

Rustle...

I heard the sound of rustling among vegetation.

I woke up to find myself sprawled on the ground with the taste of soil in my mouth while my left hand—felt something warm.

"!?"

I looked up to see Iris' face next to me. I was holding hands tightly with her.

"Mmm..."

A faint breath escaped from between Iris' soft and tender lips. Her eyes slowly opened and met mine. Blue and clear, her eyes were the same as usual—

I realized suddenly in alarm and looked at her hand that I was holding tightly. The red scales on her skin were already gone.

"Iris! Your body!"

I sat up and checked her entire body. From gaps in the damaged jacket, I could see her delicate skin, the color of milk. I could not see any discoloration in her dragon mark either.

"Mononobe...? My body is—Wahhhhhh!?"

Realizing her chest was almost exposed, she instantly covered up frantically with her arms.

"Jeez... Mononobe, you're such a pervert."

Iris blushed and looked up at me shyly.

"Eh? Oh, no, sorry—I just wanted to say that your body has recovered, Iris."

I shifted my gaze away and hastily explained to her.

"Recovered...? Oh—It's true! The scales are gone!"

Only then did she finally realize her change and cheered.

"By the way, your eye color is also restored. You might not have noticed it yourself... But during the battle, Iris, your eyes were red."

Iris widened her eyes after listening to me, cocking her head in puzzlement.

"Why did I recover...? Say, what happened that? What about Kraken Zwei?"

These words prompted me to think about my situation. Although things had unfolded like a dream, but if this really was reality, then she should still be nearby—

After surveying my surroundings, I saw a pale foot under a tree's shade.

"That's..."

Iris and I exchanged a glance then stood up, supporting each other. My legs were quite weak while my left arm and flank were hurting intensely. After a moment's delay, I also felt pain on my back and the back of my head.

"Gah..."

The pain I had forgotten was attacking all at once. I gritted my teeth and endured. The fact that I could move seemed like a miracle already.

"Mononobe, are you okay? Oh my—Your back is all bloody!"

Lending me support, Iris called hoarsely.

"...I'm okay, although the injuries are not light... But not critical either. Right now, the important thing is to confirm that..."

I motioned with my eyes towards the pale foot I saw over at that giant tree.

"Hmm... Got it, let's go over together."

"Yeah, be careful."

I leaned against Iris' shoulder and walked slowly. We kept our distance from the target and circled around to peer from another side of the tree.

"Eh—"
[[image:UnlimitedFafnir v08 225.jpg|thumb]]

Iris and I both gasped at the same time.

There a young girl, all naked, was collapsed in the bushes.

"Kraken Zwei..."

Her face was similar to Shinomiya-sensei's so we could not be mistaken, but one part of her was clearly different from before.

"Mononobe, her... hair—"

Just as Iris pointed out, the dramatic change had occurred in the girl's hair. Originally made of mithril, her hair used to be hard and silver... Now, it had turned into purple hair that seemed quite soft in texture. I bent down and tried to touch the tips of her hair—Her hair did not exhibit the hardness of metal.

Judging from her chest heaving slightly up and down, she was breathing, apparently asleep.

"What happened... She's almost like an ordinary—human's child."

Iris murmured in a daze.

I had a whole mountain of questions on my mind too but after seeing Iris restored to human appearance and Kraken Zwei's loss of mithril hair, I came up with a hypothesis.

"Iris—I think I marked you."

I quietly said to her.

"Huh?"

Iris looked at me, quite perplexed.

"I didn't want you to be taken away... I didn't want to hand you over to anyone. Those thoughts, those impulses overflowed and gushed out. By the time I realized, Iris, your dragon mark had already turned into my color."

I glanced at my left hand's dragon mark and confessed to her what I had done.

Iris immediately showed a little smile and held her hand against her dragon mark.

"I see... So that's what happened."

"—Aren't you shocked? I thought what I said would probably be quite far-fetched."

Seeing Iris accept my explanation so easily, I could not help but feel doubt.

"Because I have faint memories of it. Back then, the moment just before Kraken Zwei would've finished marking me... I heard your voice, Mononobe, then my dragon mark heated up. I felt your extremely strong feelings, Mononobe... It made me really happy."

Iris blushed and stared at me from extremely up close.

"What..."

I felt my face heat up. With my attention drawn to Iris' moist eyes—I forgot what to say.

"Then... Mononobe, you came to save me. The instant you held my hand tightly—the dragon mark grew even hotter and the heat spread throughout my body. It was like you were embracing me... I felt very blissful."

Iris recounted excitedly with joy, lifting her right hand whose scales had disappeared.

"That's as far as I remember. When I woke up again, I was already like this, so I had a faint feeling that you were the one who cured me, Mononobe."

"R-Really...? But you're probably correct."

Feeling very embarrassed, I could not look squarely at Iris' face, so I turned to different direction while I spoke.

"Huh?"

"Someone marked by a dragon, to become its mate—will transform into a dragon of the same kind."

In response to Iris, who was tilting her head in puzzlement, I recited what we had heard countless times during class back in Midgard.

"Is there anything wrong with that?"

"You don't get it? The following is just my speculation—I marked you, Iris, then by touching your body, I turned you into my own kind."

"Eh? Eh...? Eh—"

Iris blinked in confoundment, perhaps because her comprehension rate could not keep up with the conversation, but gradually, her face turned red.

"U-Umm, then in other words—Right now, I... am your mate, Mononobe?"

"Huh—?"

This time, it was my turn to be put in tough spot. Indeed, on further thought, that was true.

"N-No good, Mononobe! So suddenly... I still haven't prepared myself... A-And you still have Mitsuki, Mononobe—"

Iris began to panic but she suddenly stopped her motions. Her gaze went over to Kraken Zwei who was lying in the bush.

"H-Hold on! Come to think of it, this child turning back to a human appearance is—"

Iris went pale and said in astonishment.

"Yeah, probably because I marked her. In the last moment, Kraken Zwei's dragon mark had almost changed color completely, so the phenomenon of 'transforming into the same kind' happened to her in addition to you."

I nodded in affirmation and voiced my hypothesis. In that case, things basically made sense.

The problem was, having become my kind, could the two of them still be considered "ordinary humans"?

Unless I found out what my real identity was, then there was no answer.

"Uh... Umm... Simply stated, that means you immediately had an affair, Mononobe? You clearly turned me into your mate, but you're two-timing with this child!?"

"Huh?"

However, Iris' accusation had nothing to do with my concerns. Angrily, she denounced me.

"A-And she's only a newborn child, you know? M-Mononobe, you pervert!"

"W-Wait! I think Kraken Zwei's dragon mark was affected because she was next to you, Iris... And she turned back to human like this—"

I frantically explained but when I said the words "turned back to human," I shut my mouth because it made me think of something.

Perhaps feeling my emotions, Iris also put on a solemn expression and stared at the sleeping girl.

"Has she really... turned human?"

Iris asked with wariness in her gaze and tone.

"Well—I don't know."

I answered Iris hesitantly. It was also possible she might fire antimatter at us as soon as she woke up. Despite losing her mithril hair, her ability to generate dark matter was most likely intact.

Because her dragon mark, having lost color, could still be seen faintly on her forehead.

And she... had killed Shinomiya-sensei. Having left such a massive gulf to bridge after the battle, to regard her as a target for protection was extremely difficult.

Rustle—!

Just as I was pondering how to handle the girl, the bushes on the side shook—A blonde girl appeared.

"Jeanne! I'm so glad you're okay—"

Although covered in wounds with burns left on parts of her clothing, Jeanne looked like she had no major injuries.

"Oh... Captain~ You are fine—!?"

Jeanne looked at me in relief but gasped when she saw Kraken Zwei, lying on the ground.

"...Are you alright!? Hang in there!"

Jeanne ran towards the girl without any hesitation, picking up the sleeping girl in her arms.

"Wait, it's still very dangerous!"

I hastily warned her but Jeanne was unconcerned. After examining the girl's condition and confirming she was unhurt, Jeanne took off her own jacket to cover up the girl.

"Don't worry—Captain, you two please keep your distance."

Jeanne shook her head with an expression of resolve. She hugged the girl tightly.

"Until the very end, I will continue to be this child's good fortune."

"Jeanne..."

Seeing her determination, I understood it would be a waste of breath to argue.

"Mmm..."

At this moment, Kraken Zwei moaned slightly and her eyelids twitched. Then she slowly opened her eyes.

The images of Jeanne, Iris and I were reflected in those purple eyes.

I gulped and focused my mind so that I could summon my fictional armament instantly in an emergency.

While we watched in concern, tears flowed out of the purple eyes.

"Ooh... Oooooh.... Ooowahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!"

Kraken Zwei began to cry loudly.

The girl clung to Jeanne's bosom, clutching her clothing tightly and bawling like a baby.

"It's okay... You're no longer alone. I will always stay with you from now on."

Stroking the girl's soft hair, Jeanne spoke gently to her.

Kraken Zwei's impulse to seek mates might have disappeared as a result of losing her traits as a dragon. Or perhaps Jeanne's body warmth had reminded her of the precious feelings she had forgotten.

I did not know which was the correct answer but upon witnessing this scene, I understood that there was no longer any ''enemy'' here.

"She is... human, right? That child is already—"

Iris smiled and asked me.

"...Yeah."

I nodded deeply in agreement. Then just at that moment, my tense consciousness broke off.

Instantly, my entire body lost strength and my mind went hazy.

"M-Mononobe!??

With Iris propping me up, I fell unconscious.

It had not been easy... but with this, the incident finally came to a close.

This was definitely not the best outcome, because I—we—had lost someone irreplaceable.

However... In the end, we managed to retrieve what Shinomiya-sensei had refused to abandon throughout the whole time.

Hence—

"—Mononobe Yuu, you did very well. Most sincerely... You have my gratitude."

Just before I sank into deep slumber, I seemed to hear a voice, one that could not possibly be heard again—
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