Project Necro is an official initiative by Re:Library.

“…Uuh.”

My consciousness slowly returned.
It was an unfamiliar ceiling. The bed I was lying on was clean; it had that soft, fluffy feel and the pleasant scent characteristic of things dried in the sunlight. Feeling relieved that I was at least not in that place, I tried to sit up, but—

“…a, ugh…!”

A sharp pain shot through the part of my body I’d tried to move, and all the strength drained from me, forcing me to collapse back onto the bed. I didn’t feel well at all. My head felt foggy and hazy, and I had a sense of weakness, as if something inside me were missing—it seemed like I hadn’t even regained half my mana yet. On top of that, I felt a throbbing, searing pain throughout my body, along with a feverish sensation. It seemed I had a high fever; my condition was absolutely terrible.

“…Oh, Onii-chan, you’re awake.”

A figure entered through what must have been the door… Ayame—no, Sol, I suppose—and hurried over, taking small steps to avoid spilling the water he carried in a bucket.

“…What’s wrong? Does anything hurt?”

I shook my head vigorously at his concerned words. We’re together again… That thought filled my chest, and the tears that overflowed gently wet my cheeks.

.

The bandages that had apparently been wrapped around my entire body, along with the gauze underneath, were removed one by one.
With a soft, wrung-out cloth, my body was gently wiped down so as not to aggravate my wounds.

In my feverish state, I vaguely thought that if an outsider were to see this scene, it would probably look like a rather immoral sight: a handsome older brother undressing his teenage younger sister and wiping her down.

“I’m sorry… I really wanted to use a healing potion on you, but that might leave a scar…”

It seemed he had been waiting for me to wake up so I could cast a recovery spell.

I was surprised to realize that three days had already passed since then.

In any case, it was time for treatment.

Since some areas had become infected, I first cleansed my entire body with the purification spell “Purification,” and then, just to be safe, I cast the high-level spell “Ares Heal.” Before my eyes, the wounds all over my body vanished as if by magic, leaving not a single scar, and my original, flawless porcelain skin reappeared.

However, the next change manifested immediately. I began to feel sick, as if my body temperature had risen sharply, and I staggered back onto the bed.

I vaguely thought to myself that healing injuries consumed a fair amount of physical strength, and that it might even activate pathogens—it would be best to use this spell with caution on patients from now on.

“…Here, take this medicine.”

As if anticipating this, a small pill—apparently prepared in advance—was placed in my mouth. I slowly swallowed the solid pill with some water fed to me from a spoon.

The slightly lukewarm water felt pleasant against my parched throat. I drank it greedily and asked for more; water was then slowly poured into my mouth, one sip at a time, until I calmed down.

Once I’d regained my composure, the pain throughout my body had subsided, making me feel somewhat better, but the feverish sensation remained. As the cool, soothing sensation of a hand touching my face washed over me, I was instantly overcome by drowsiness.

.

The next time I woke up, my mind was fairly clear. On either side of the bed stood Sol and Rage, both in civilian clothes and unarmed, each holding one of my hands and peering at me with concern.

“Thank goodness… You’re awake.”
“Do you still feel sick, Onii-chan? Are you okay?”

Rage let out a deep sigh of relief, while Sol peered at me with concern. My fever seemed to have broken; though I still felt a bit sluggish, there didn’t appear to be any major issues.

“…I… made it… back…”

So many times, I thought I was done for.

Trapped in this unfamiliar body—that of a real, living girl—I was used as a plaything by strangers, and I was terrified I was going to break. But even so, I was here… I had made it back to the two of them.

Once again, tears of relief and joy streamed down my cheeks, and before I knew it, I couldn’t stop sobbing.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry I left you alone…!”
“Yeah, I’m sorry… This time, there’s no way I’m leaving you alone.”

Sol, whose physique was now the complete opposite of mine, held me gently in his arms, while Rage gently rubbed my back as I continued to sob uncontrollably.

It was painful.

It was terrifying.

But more than anything, I felt helpless.

A world that had changed, a body that had changed. On top of that, I hadn’t even known if the two of them were coming to find me.

With no way to contact them, it was impossible to dispel that doubt—the anxiety that maybe I’d never see them again.

—That anxiety melted away like spring snow. I could no longer control my emotions of my own volition, and for a while, held in their embrace, I just wailed like a child.

.

“…Sorry, I’m okay now… Thank you, both of you.”

Once I calmed down, I felt embarrassed about having cried just a moment ago.

“So…”
“Sorry to bring this up right after waking up… but there’s someone who really, really wants to see you.”

IInstantly, their expressions turned serious. Someone else who wants to see me. With those words, only one person came to mind. My body jerked, and my hands began to shake uncontrollably.

“If it’s too much, just tell us, okay…?”
“Just so you know, it’s only because this guy begged us that we were able to come save you… Please keep that in mind, at least.”

To be honest, I was scared. I hesitated for what felt like an eternity, afraid that the moment I saw his face, I might blurt out something heartless. …But hearing Rage’s words… I nodded firmly.

.

At the sight of the figure entering the room, my field of vision suddenly narrowed.

The sounds reaching my ears felt unnaturally distant.

My heart was pounding like a drum, and a cold, clammy sweat began to trickle down my body.

My whole body trembled uncontrollably; I hugged myself in an attempt to stop it, but of course, it had no effect.

My breathing became erratic, and I felt short of breath.

The moment someone other than those two entered my field of vision, even though I desperately wanted to run away, all the strength drained out of my lower body, from the waist down. Even though this body no longer bore that scar.

It was just like before. Back when I rejected everyone around me… everyone except my grandparents, Ayame, and Reiji… no, it might actually be worse than it was back then.

The difference was that it wasn’t just the man brandishing a kitchen knife who popped into my mind. It was those guys, grinning lecherously as they looked down at me… I was scared. Unbearably scared. The sound of my teeth chattering echoed strangely in my ears.

“…Hey, are you okay? Don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

…I must look absolutely terrible. But I had to do this. I had a feeling that if I just stayed here trembling like this, he’d be driven out by those two, and I’d never have another chance to talk to him.

“I’m… fine. Let me talk to him…”

I shook my head at Rage, who suggested with concern that maybe we should stop for now.

It was true—it was unbearably terrifying.

But… No matter how scared I was, running away wouldn’t save anyone.

Even if I was scared, I had to take that first step—otherwise, I wouldn’t be saved.

Besides, I had them with me. It was different from that time—I’d be okay. I could do this. I clenched my arms around myself, forcing my body—which was trying to run away—to stay put, and gently lowered my feet to the floor.

*—But being bedridden for three days must’ve really sapped my strength and left me weakened. My legs, which couldn’t quite support my body, buckled and gave way.*

“Miss!?”

The moment the person who’d been bowing his head… Scott… hurriedly caught me, a heightened sense of terror ran down my spine, and a small, almost-scream-like sound escaped from the back of my throat.

“Ah… s-sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you…”

I instinctively grabbed his hand as he frantically tried to pull away. My trembling intensified, and the blood drained from my face. No, I can’t collapse yet.

“S-stop it, Miss, don’t push yourself…”

I gently cupped his hands with both of mine as he frantically tried to pull back. My tongue was parched, and I failed to speak several times, but spurred on by the sensation of his two hands resting gently on my shoulders, I strained my throat with all my might.

“It… hurt.”
“…Huh?”
“…When they bit me, it… hurt a lot.”

Even though the wound had healed, that pain was still lodged deep within my heart. Just putting it into words easily brought back the terror of that moment. That was exactly why.

“I’m s-so sorry, extremely sorryy…! I’ll do anything—if you want me to kill myself, I’ll even do that…!”
“You’ll do anything… so that means… I can decide your punishment entirely on my own… and you won’t complain… is that right?”
“Of course! I don’t care what you do!”

Alright, I’ve got his verbal promise.

“Okay… then.”

I open my mouth, saying “Aah—.”

The mouth on this body was small and didn’t open very wide, but this much should be fine.

“……? Miss, what are you… Owww!?”

With a “chomp,” I bit down as hard as I could on the base of Scott’s thumb. I bit down with all my might, grinding my teeth.

“Owwwwww! Stop it, Miss, what are you… Owww!?”

It must have been a full ten seconds or so. I released my grip. The jaw strength in this body was weak, so my own jaw had actually started to ache. I didn’t bite through the flesh; there were just neat, even tooth marks left behind.

“W-what were you…?”
“Did it hurt?”

I tilted my head slightly and asked.

“…No, this is nothing compared to what you’ve been through, Miss.”
“…Did it hurt?”

That wasn’t what I wanted to hear, so I repeated the same question, almost as if to cover it up. This time, I added a smile. Though, to be honest, that pale, contorted smile felt like a pretty poor attempt.

“…No, this is nowhere near enough to atone for my sins.”
“……Did it hurt?”

Looking up at him, I asked for the third time. Staring intently. Staring intently, intently, intently.

“……W-well… it did hurt… I guess.”
“Okay, then, this is all water under the bridge.”

At last, I’d heard the answer I’d been hoping for.

Since I’d put him through the same ordeal—even if just once—I felt satisfied now.
Summoning all my strength, I forced a smile and spoke a few words. The light of healing magic that swirled around Scott’s body erased not only the fresh bite marks on his hand… but every single wound on his entire body.

…To begin with, it was a mistake to say he’d betrayed me.

Even though he owed me a small debt of gratitude, Scott at that time was, after all, just a stranger with whom I’d exchanged only a few words. To say I was betrayed was nothing more than my own ego, rooted in the idea that “I helped him.”

And yet… even so, he had gone to call for help even though he himself was injured.

I continued to rub the hand I was still holding. It was rough and calloused. Unlike my own hands—smooth and free of calluses, as if they’d never carried anything heavy—these were the hands of someone who had lived in this world.

He wasn’t an NPC; he was a living, breathing, normal person—not as good as I had hoped, but not as bad as I had thought, either. He was just a regular human being.

And yet, he had risked his own life to try and save me. That’s why I didn’t want to vent all of my complaints onto him.

“…Thanks to you, I was able to see these two again…… Really…… Thank you so, so much.”

My voice grew increasingly hoarse. The strength I’d desperately gathered in my throat was being rapidly sapped away. My fear of touching others hadn’t disappeared. Even now, I felt like I’d collapse if I didn’t muster all my willpower. Still… I had to convey this, at least.

“Young Miss… I…”

Large tears fell from his eyes, one after another. I mustered my last ounce of strength and managed to keep a smile on my face as I smiled back at him. That was surely the greatest thanks I could offer to the man who had worried so much about me and given his all for me.

“I’m… I’m so glad you’re safe… I’m so relieved…!!”

…Ah, so he had been this worried about me.

Seeing the tears he shed for me, a warm feeling welled up inside me, and I felt as though the wounds in my heart were healing—just a little… just a tiny bit.

.

And so his wailing continued until I finally reached my limit and fainted, and the two people behind me, panicked, carried me back to the bed… or so I would hear when I next woke up.