Miyuu spent the night holding the note. She read the single line written in Rion's meticulous handwriting over and over again—*"I'm leaving to protect you"*—but the anger and something far heavier kept alternating, and neither could be put into words. She woke before dawn. There was no hesitation in her preparations. She fastened a grass-cutting sickle to her waist and placed two small bottles of healing potion in her pouch. Four hours one way to the Ley Spring—considering magical exhaustion, she was anxious about the return trip. Still, her hands didn't stop moving. When she opened the door, Eliza was standing there. Her bright golden hair was still disheveled. She must have come first thing in the morning; her cheeks were slightly flushed. Her transparent golden eyes assessed the situation the moment they met Miyuu's gaze. "[gentle]You were planning to go alone," "……Don't follow me," "[gentle]I'm coming," There wasn't a shred of hesitation in her voice. Miyuu walked forward in silence. ────────────────── Beyond the forest entrance, the weight of the air changed. The Velde Great Forest—the continent's largest concentration of ley lines—grew darker the deeper they ventured. The tree trunks became thicker, and the canopy overhead blocked out the light. The ground was covered in moss that seeped moisture with each step. Bioluminescent mushrooms called "Luna Fungi" glowed faintly blue-white. Partway through, Eliza hesitantly opened her mouth. "[gentle]……Last night, you were worried about Rion, weren't you?" "That guy can't move alone through the forest. If I leave him, he'll die," "Is that all?" "That's all. Don't get the wrong idea," Her voice trembled slightly. Eliza stared at Miyuu's back. She looked like she wanted to say something, then stopped. "[gentle]……Master, you're not very honest, are you?" "Did you say something?" "[scared]Nothing at all!" She shook her head as if bouncing. Miyuu looked ahead with half-closed eyes. But she couldn't bring herself to laugh. She knew her own body better than anyone. Every time she used the Healing Sprout, her body temperature dropped—she'd been repeating that price all week. The accumulated damage meant her magical capacity had visibly declined. Honestly, she wasn't confident she could even reach the Ley Spring today. Still, her feet kept moving. She remembered herself from the previous world, running away from people she'd held dear. She'd grown tired of it, felt burdened, and one day simply cut off contact. Making excuses like "I don't want to be a burden." The same words were in Rion's note. If she turned back now, it would be the same as back then. That thought made her feet unstoppable. ────────────────── About two kilometers from the Ley Spring, it appeared. At first, she thought it was a tree shadow. But the shadow moved. A vine as thick as a tree trunk rose from the ground with a writhing motion. Not just one. Three, four—multiple vines moving slowly from different directions, as if possessed by will. "[scared]What is that?" "Don't move," Speaking low, Miyuu dropped to her knees. She placed her palm on the ground. She tried to activate Grass and Wood Manipulation—the power of the Jade Shrine Maiden who controlled plants rooted in ley lines—but immediately noticed something wrong with the magical flow. A vine magical beast. Plant-type magical beasts possessed the will of their kind and clashed directly with Grass and Wood Manipulation. It consumed several times the normal amount of magical power. *(This is bad.)* Still, she had no choice but to try. She pulled up the vines at her feet and moved to bind the beast's movements. The sound of vines intertwining—*Gichi, gichi*. One stopped. But the others kept moving. Miyuu moved to the next action. She pulled thick roots from the ground and created a wall. Just that much made her feel heat draining from deep within her body. Her fingertips grew cold. "Master! Right!" She rolled across the ground before even turning around. A vine struck where Miyuu had been. The earth gouged. *(I can't manage a third time.)* The moment she made that judgment, one of the vines changed direction toward Eliza. Her body moved before her mind could think. Miyuu ran forward and placed both hands on the ground. The final grass wall. She poured everything into it. Green light exploded outward, repelling the vine. In exchange, her body's heat plummeted all at once. "……!" Her knees buckled. She kept herself from falling by pressing one hand to the ground. Her vision blurred. She had a clear sense that one more hit might knock her unconscious. "[scared]Master!!" She heard Eliza's footsteps rushing toward her. But her body wouldn't move. She could feel the vine beast turning toward her. Then— Silver flashed. *Zubaa!!* A sword strike tore through the center of the vine. The beast stopped moving. Another strike, this time at the root. The mass of vines fell to the ground with a heavy thud and didn't twitch again. Miyuu looked up. He was a mess. His pale silver hair was disheveled, his left sleeve torn. Blood seeped from his cheek. His blue eyes looked at Miyuu. "……I'm sorry I was late," With just those words, Rion lowered his sword. ────────────────── All three collapsed where they stood. Eliza started to rush toward Rion, then stopped when she saw his complexion. He was pale and trembling. It was clear he'd walked here while enduring the curse's intense pain. "[sad]Rion… you were alive," "I'm terribly sorry for causing you worry," When Miyuu tried to stand, Rion knelt first. He brought his eyes level with hers. Miyuu wanted to yell at him, but the moment she saw his face, her words changed. "You idiot, going alone like that," "……I'm sorry," Something heavier than an apology mixed into his voice. Rion opened his mouth. He began to speak about what he'd seen at the Ley Spring. His own body reflected in the spring's surface. The thorn-like shape coiled around his body. And the vision the spring showed him—the scene of his younger self, repeatedly hearing his stepmother Sofia whisper to him. "That no one would ever love you……I was told that constantly. After my real mother died and Sofia came," Eliza listened in silence. "Every time I came to care for someone, I'd feel the premonition of losing them again. The spring told me that this fear, hardened into magical power over a long time, was what Tornis's thorns truly were—not a curse Sofia planted, but my own fear taking form," Miyuu listened without speaking. "And," Rion's voice caught slightly. "The more I come to like someone, the stronger the fear becomes, and the curse grows stronger……that's how it's structured," He looked down. Something fell from between his silver hair to the ground. "So—as long as I continue to love you, the curse won't break. If I stay near you, I'll only hurt you," In that moment, something inside Miyuu crumbled. Memories from the previous world came crashing down like an avalanche. The image of herself, tired of work, running away from people she'd once held dear. The night she made excuses like "I don't want to be a burden" and abandoned everything. Rion's profile and her own face from back then overlapped. *(It's the same. The same way of running away.)* "……Then," Her voice came out. "Can you stop loving me?" Rion looked up. His blue eyes wavered. No answer came. That silence was the answer. Eliza was trying to quietly fade into the background. But something far more pressing was bearing down on them. ────────────────── The first thing she noticed was the tremor in the ground. A faint vibration. The sound of trees swaying in the distance. Miyuu looked up. Near the spring—the water's color was changing. The amber-colored Ley Spring was beginning to cloud with an ominous purple. That discoloration spread through the underground ley lines to the surrounding area. The roots beneath their feet pushed up the earth. Tree branches hung down. Moving with intent, surrounding the three of them. "[scared]The trees are……moving!?" "It's not plants. The curse's magical power is contaminating the ley lines!" Rion tried to stand. His face twisted as he remained on his knees—the curse's intense pain was activating. He couldn't move. "[scared]I'm sorry, my body——" "Don't move!!" Miyuu placed both hands on the ground. She wrung out magical power she thought she'd already exhausted, trying to suppress the rampaging ley line flow with Grass and Wood Manipulation. But the scale was too vast. She couldn't control it alone. Still, she didn't give up. Hold it. Keep holding. Pull magical power from the depths of her being that shouldn't exist. The sensation in her fingertips vanished. At the edge of her vision, she saw Eliza's feet caught by tree roots as she fell. *(Protect. Protect. Protect——)* She wrung out her last magical power and cast a grass barrier around the three of them. Green light spread in a circle. Branches from outside pressed down with crushing force. The barrier creaked with a groaning sound. Her body temperature kept falling. Fingertips. Wrists. Elbows. Growing colder and colder. Her vision darkened. "Miyuu-sama!" She felt an arm reach out. Supporting her. Miyuu fell straight into that embrace. It was warm. As consciousness slipped away, she understood that much clearly. ────────────────── It was dark. In complete darkness, a voice echoed. Her voice from the previous world. But not that pathetic voice from the night she'd failed and run away. A deeper voice—her honest self. ——Don't run. Miyuu remained still in the darkness. ——Being afraid of loss and running away first. Stop that now. The voice continued. ——The me I am now doesn't need to run. A small light kindled at the bottom of the darkness. The warmth of Rion's arms remained in her body until the moment consciousness faded.