Shiranui Flare IF Route: An Endless Song for You, Covered in Ashes
I'm Shiranui Flare. I was a top virtual elf streamer, having a blast with my fans, when my screen went white—and I woke up in a strange city.
This is the Lazberil Kingdom, a place where elves are discriminated against by humans. Seriously?! The idea of me being the one discriminated against isn't even funny enough to be a streaming gag. But I got caught up in the commotion and thrown in jail. That's when I was saved by Lucas, a totally weird human merchant.
Lucas doesn't care about the elf t
Shiranui Flare IF Route: An Endless Song for You, Covered in Ashes - The Smiling Witch Has Arrived—A Morning of Despair and Threats
The white corridors of the Clevista Orphanage were submerged in the blue darkness before dawn.
Slumped against the wall, Shiranui Furea stared intently at her own hands. The blood caked between her fingers had already dried black and was beginning to flake off. Lucas's blood. Blood shed to protect me.
She hadn't been able to wash her hands all night.
She was afraid to wash them. If she did, it felt like she'd be trying to look away from the fact that it was all her fault.
"[whispers]...Why?"
Her voice was hoarse. Her throat was tight, and she couldn't breathe properly.
The same words kept spinning around and around in her head.
—Because I'm an elf from another world.
—Because I'm rare.
—Because I'm here.
That's why Lucas was targeted. Beaten over the head, covered in blood, still unconscious even now. All of it, every last bit, was her fault.
"[crying]...No, it's not my..."
She started to say it, then stopped.
There was no way it wasn't.
If only she weren't here, Lucas would be making his weird inventions like always, laughing with Sara, living peacefully.
She clenched her fists. Her nails bit into her palms, and fresh blood oozed out.
It hurt. But this much pain wasn't enough.
Compared to the pain Lucas was feeling, this was nothing.
—*—*—
The door to the treatment room opened.
Sara Tirherb stepped out. Her honey-colored, soft wavy hair was disheveled, and her deep forest-green eyes were bloodshot. She'd been by Lucas's side all night. Of course she had—she was his fiancée. But the moment Furea saw that, something deep in her chest tightened painfully.
"[gentle]Furea... you're still here. Did you get any sleep?"
Sara's voice was calm. But that calmness was, in a way, terrifying. It was painfully obvious how hard she was forcing herself.
"[scared]Sara, you're one to talk... How's Lucas?"
Furea tried to stand up, but her legs were numb and she stumbled.
Sara gently offered her a hand. That hand was cold.
"[serious]The bleeding has stopped. But..."
She broke off.
"[serious]They said tonight is the critical point. If he doesn't regain consciousness by the end of today—"
She stopped there and shook her head.
She didn't need to finish. Furea's elven ears had clearly picked up the doctor whispering to Baldo: *Whether he regains consciousness depends on tonight.*
"[scared]...Sara, I..."
She had to say something. I'm sorry. It's my fault.
But her throat seized up and the words wouldn't come.
Seeing Furea like that, Sara gave a small smile.
"[gentle]It's all right. Lucas is stubborn."
"[scared]But..."
"[gentle]It's not your fault. Those thugs are to blame. That's all."
She said it with absolute finality.
This side of Sara was what Furea found so amazing. She was kind, but her core was as strong as steel. No matter how anxious she herself was, she never blamed others.
"[sad]...Thank you."
Furea hung her head.
She was grateful, but it hurt. The kinder Sara was, the more pathetic Furea felt.
That was when it happened.
*Click, click, click.*
From down the corridor, the regular footsteps of leather shoes approached.
Both of them looked up at the same time.
A woman was walking down the hallway, where the morning light was beginning to stream in.
A tall woman clad in a black cloak.
Long, straight crimson hair tied tightly back. Golden eyes that gave off a cold light. A thin scar running from her left temple down to her jaw. And on her right hand, a silver fingerless glove—its sharp claws glinted in the morning sun.
The receptionist hurried over.
"[serious]Ma'am, visits require a prior appoint—"
The woman didn't even glance his way.
She slid a single gold coin across the table. That alone silenced the man.
The footsteps didn't stop.
The woman came to a halt right in front of Furea.
"[cold]—Hoh."
A gaze that seemed to appraise her crawled over Furea's entire body, from head to toe.
Her long ears. Her platinum blonde hair. Her amethyst eyes.
All of it, thoroughly, as if sizing up its worth.
A violent chill ran down Furea's spine.
She knew this gaze.
It wasn't the contemptuous eyes of the guards. Nor the curiosity of a customer. This was—the look of someone eyeing merchandise.
"[cold]A genuine otherworld elf. I see... this exceeds my imagination. An exquisite piece."
The woman spoke. Her voice was low, smooth, and yet utterly devoid of warmth.
"[scared]...Who are you?"
Furea had unconsciously taken a step back.
"[cold]How rude of me. I am Ilze. Ilze Vanagur—the employer of the men you encountered last night."
The thugs from last night.
In Furea's mind, the scarred face swinging the club surfaced.
"[angry]...It was you!!"
The moment she shouted, Ilze smiled softly.
But her golden eyes weren't smiling at all. They remained cold as ice as she looked down at Furea.
"[cold]Calm yourself. I merely came to pay a visit to the injured."
"[angry]Don't screw with me! If you do anything to Lucas—"
"[cold]If I do anything?"
Ilze's voice suddenly lost all temperature.
"[cold]Was it not your group that attacked first? Five of my subordinates are seriously injured. The medical expenses alone are considerable. Normally, I would be seeking compensation, but—"
"[angry]You started it, didn't you?! Telling us to hand over the elf—"
"[cold]It was a business proposal. There should have been room for negotiation."
Ilze shrugged.
"[cold]However, my subordinates seem to have gotten... a little too heated. I did warn them, for what it's worth."
Her tone was elegant, even gentlemanly.
But that was precisely what made it so terrifying.
This woman genuinely thought of the elf as nothing more than a "bargaining chip."
Furea clenched her fists.
"[cold]No matter. Let's get to the point."
Ilze walked past Furea and opened the door to Lucas's private room.
—*—*—
Inside the hospital room, the bitter smell of medicinal herbs hung in the air.
The morning sun streaming through the window illuminated the white sheets dazzlingly. In the center of them, Lucas lay sleeping. His head was wrapped in bandages, and his complexion was sallow.
Ilze stood beside the bed and looked down at the unconscious Lucas.
"[cold]You've had a rough time, wandering merchant."
She murmured as if to herself.
Sara gripped Furea's arm tightly. The two of them stood frozen in the corner of the room.
"[cold]Now then."
Ilze slowly turned around.
Her golden eyes fixed solely on Furea. She didn't look at Sara. As if no one else existed in this room except Furea.
"[cold]I'll be direct. Shiranui Furea—I wish to buy you."
"[scared]...Huh?"
"[cold]A genuine elf from another world. There is no greater rarity. The Vanagur Trading Company will take responsibility and purchase you at the highest price."
"[angry]Wh-Who would ever go with someone like you?!"
"[cold]I thought you'd say that."
Ilze smiled.
"[cold]Therefore, allow me to make a proposal from my side as well. Three days from now, come to the trading company in Melvita. If you come of your own accord, I will do nothing further."
"[angry]Like hell I'd go!!"
Furea shouted.
At that moment—Ilze turned her gaze toward Sara for the first time.
"[cold]Hoh. In that case—"
Still smiling.
Her eyes still ice.
"[cold]I cannot guarantee the personal safety of... this fiancée of yours, either."
"—!!"
Furea was speechless.
Sara squeezed Furea's arm back. She could feel that hand trembling.
"[angry]...Don't... screw with me...!!"
Her voice shook.
"[angry]Sara has nothing to do with this!! If you're going to target someone, target only me!!"
"[cold]But of course. However, that depends on you. If you come quietly, no one gets hurt."
"[angry]Get lost!!! Get out of here right now!!!!"
Furea screamed. Tears spilled over. Her vision blurred.
Ilze didn't so much as raise an eyebrow.
"[cold]Consider it carefully. The deadline is three days."
Saying only that, she turned on her heel.
The footsteps of her leather shoes receded with mechanical regularity. It was only a few dozen seconds until they disappeared down the corridor, but it felt like an eternity.
—*—*—
Silence descended.
Only the sound of Lucas's ragged breathing remained in the room.
*Huff, huff,* his pained sleeping breaths.
Furea—collapsed on the spot.
"[crying]...Uu, uwaa... ah..."
Her knees hit the floor.
The cold sensation of stone.
But none of that mattered.
"[crying]...Ah... uu... aaaah...!!"
A voiceless cry overflowed from the back of her throat.
She couldn't be positive and laugh it off. She couldn't turn it into streaming material and run away. She couldn't do anything.
She was just scared.
Just frustrated.
Just—hated herself.
The tears wouldn't stop. Her nose was running, her face a complete mess. It was pathetic, but she couldn't stop it.
"[crying]I-If I... if I just weren't here...!"
She murmured in a trembling voice.
"[crying]If I disappeared, it would all be over... Sara, Lucas, they'd all be safe...!"
That was when it happened.
At the edge of her vision, Sara moved.
She crouched down and met Furea's eyes.
Those deep forest-green eyes stared straight at Furea.
"[serious]Furea. Do you really mean that?"
Her voice was quiet.
Gentle, but—there was a strength in it that brooked no argument.
"[crying]B-But... it's because of me...!!"
"[serious]No."
Sara said it flatly.
"[serious]Even if you disappeared, Ilze's objective wouldn't change. She'd target a different elf. She'd hurt someone else. Even if you run, she'll pursue you. That's what a trading company is."
It was a dispassionate list of facts.
Neither comfort nor encouragement.
But—those words slowly seeped into Furea's heart.
"[crying]...Then, what should I do..."
"[serious]I don't know. But—at the very least, you're not alone."
Sara took Furea's hand.
She wrapped both of her own hands around that bloodstained hand.
"[gentle]I'm here too. And Lucas, once he wakes up, he'll definitely help. So—please don't say you'll disappear."
Furea bit her lip.
She tasted blood.
But—just a little, just a tiny bit, she felt the tightness in her chest ease.
It wasn't that hope had sprung up. It wasn't that she could see a solution.
Just—she wasn't alone anymore.
And that alone made such a difference.
"[crying]...Sara...!"
That was when it happened.
*Knock, knock.* A hesitant knock at the door.
"[whispers]U-Um... your crying is quite loud, and the other patients are..."
A nurse peeked in apologetically.
Furea raised her tear-streaked, messy face,
"[crying]Sorry 'bout that..."
And apologized honestly.
Sara couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"[laughing]...Pfft."
"[surprised]Huh, Sara, you laughed?! Was that a laughing moment just now?!"
"[laughing]I'm sorry, but—after crying so hard, you suddenly said 'sorry 'bout that' so casually..."
Sara was laughing, her shoulders shaking.
Drawn in, Furea laughed too.
Tears were still streaming down her face, but the corners of her mouth relaxed.
"[laughing]Well, what else could I say?! Manners are important!"
"[laughing]Yes, they are important..."
For a while, the two of them laughed together in hushed voices.
Tears and laughter mixed together, and it made no sense at all.
But—that was fine.
—*—*—
In the evening, Furea sat in a chair in Lucas's private room.
Sara had returned to the herb shop for the time being. She couldn't leave the store unattended for too long.
"I'll definitely come back tomorrow," Sara had said as she left.
In the room, there was only Furea and Lucas, who continued to sleep.
"[whispers]...Lucas."
She called out to him, but there was no answer.
His bandaged face was pale, and his lips were dry.
She couldn't get the image out of her head—last night, covered in blood, he had reached out to her and said, *"You're... safe..."*
At that moment, she had definitely realized it.
That she loved Lucas.
If she didn't, there was no way her heart would feel like it was being torn apart like this.
"[whispers]...Love, or whate
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