Pain surged through the blonde’s body. Her muscles were shot and singed from the explosion, her armor was left to pieces of dust and her clothes could barely cover the essentials for a woman’s decency to be maintained. What was left of the threads was burning away, along with her life slowly. Darkness watched the ashes from Megumin’s superior explosion rain around her in the dirt. Just as she was able to hear Kazuma’s shrill, familiar voice, her eyes closed and her consciousness faded.
Darkness. Literally - not Darkness herself. It was like sleeping with no dream. Was this what death was like? What was going to happen now? A light? A light indeed. A glimmer of a burning flame shined through the blanket of black that practically suffocated her. She moved forward, whether she was floating of walking was hard to tell. Most of her nerves were numb, or something similar. She just couldn’t feel her own body.
As the Crusader approached the flame, she observed the red-hued fire as it flickered against a non-existent breeze. It was beautiful in such scenery, like a beacon. The same way sailors felt about seeing the lighthouse beacon on a foggy night. Whatever instinct she once had that told her to avoid reaching for an open flame had left her with the numbness she gained. Her slim fingers reached out to it, sparking the flame to life against her hand and burning it wildly. She instantly waved her hand to put it out, even though it didn’t hurt, but that did nothing to stop it. Soon it enveloped her entire body, and she again fell unconscious.
“Hey…” A voice faded through her head, one she wasn’t familiar with. She expected to hear Aqua’s voice since she was capable of bringing people back to life with her abilities as a high-priestess. “Hey girl, why are you sleeping in the dirt? Wake up.”
“Hunh?” Darkness mumbled as she stirred awake. Through the blur of her squinted eyes and blonde hair, she could see the blue sky and the green grass of a field before her. The voice spoke again as she showed signs of being alive.
“It’s not safe for someone to just be lying in the grass near the road. You should go home if you’re not capable of staying awake out here.” He said, watching the Crusader shift into a sitting position. She rubbed her temple with her left hand. It felt like she was waking up from a coma.
“H-How did I.. get here?” She asked herself. Though, the old man who woke her thought that was directed at him.
“How would I know? I was just walking along the path here and found you passed out on the ground.” He said adjusting the wooden pipe he smoked from his mouth to speak and returning it when he finished. “You should probably try to find your way home-”
As he droned on, the blonde’s mind returned to her possession. Megumin blew her up with explosion magic that should have obliterated her - the simple thought of that memory replaying through her head was nearly enough to cause an episode - yet she has no scars from the explosion whatsoever. There’s no way she recovered quickly from something like that. How long was she out? Months? Years? Did Kazuma and the party just leave her out here? No, Aqua and Megumin wouldn’t let him do that to her. Something had to be wrong. Her priority should be to find Kazuma, Aqua and Megumin. They must be worried sick about her well being.
“Thank you for waking me, sir. I must figure out where I am and find my three friends. Have you seen a group of three people: A girl with ocean-blue hair who constantly proclaims godhood, a very condescending guy who steals women’s panties, and a small girl who loves to blow things up with magic?” She asked as seriously as she possibly could. The man returned a glare of awe at her, his pipe nearly slipping off his lips. He was silent for a few moments before responding.
“Young woman, you should find new friends.” The man said before adjusting his expression in a deadpan tone. “As for where you are though, you’re in Erde Nona.”
“Erde Nona? I’ve never heard of this place before. Interesting…” The crusader pondered to herself. “Thank you for your help. Which direction is to the nearest town?” With her question was the simple response of a gesture in the direction to the north. “I appreciate it. Have a good day.”
She then continued to head off in the direction of the aforementioned town’s direction. If she was lucky, she just got a little too drunk and ended up on the outside of town. The party must be in town wondering what happened to her. Best way to find out was to go into town and find them, probably in the inn recuperating from their hangovers - besides Megumin.
Darkness. Literally - not Darkness herself. It was like sleeping with no dream. Was this what death was like? What was going to happen now? A light? A light indeed. A glimmer of a burning flame shined through the blanket of black that practically suffocated her. She moved forward, whether she was floating of walking was hard to tell. Most of her nerves were numb, or something similar. She just couldn’t feel her own body.
As the Crusader approached the flame, she observed the red-hued fire as it flickered against a non-existent breeze. It was beautiful in such scenery, like a beacon. The same way sailors felt about seeing the lighthouse beacon on a foggy night. Whatever instinct she once had that told her to avoid reaching for an open flame had left her with the numbness she gained. Her slim fingers reached out to it, sparking the flame to life against her hand and burning it wildly. She instantly waved her hand to put it out, even though it didn’t hurt, but that did nothing to stop it. Soon it enveloped her entire body, and she again fell unconscious.
“Hey…” A voice faded through her head, one she wasn’t familiar with. She expected to hear Aqua’s voice since she was capable of bringing people back to life with her abilities as a high-priestess. “Hey girl, why are you sleeping in the dirt? Wake up.”
“Hunh?” Darkness mumbled as she stirred awake. Through the blur of her squinted eyes and blonde hair, she could see the blue sky and the green grass of a field before her. The voice spoke again as she showed signs of being alive.
“It’s not safe for someone to just be lying in the grass near the road. You should go home if you’re not capable of staying awake out here.” He said, watching the Crusader shift into a sitting position. She rubbed her temple with her left hand. It felt like she was waking up from a coma.
“H-How did I.. get here?” She asked herself. Though, the old man who woke her thought that was directed at him.
“How would I know? I was just walking along the path here and found you passed out on the ground.” He said adjusting the wooden pipe he smoked from his mouth to speak and returning it when he finished. “You should probably try to find your way home-”
As he droned on, the blonde’s mind returned to her possession. Megumin blew her up with explosion magic that should have obliterated her - the simple thought of that memory replaying through her head was nearly enough to cause an episode - yet she has no scars from the explosion whatsoever. There’s no way she recovered quickly from something like that. How long was she out? Months? Years? Did Kazuma and the party just leave her out here? No, Aqua and Megumin wouldn’t let him do that to her. Something had to be wrong. Her priority should be to find Kazuma, Aqua and Megumin. They must be worried sick about her well being.
“Thank you for waking me, sir. I must figure out where I am and find my three friends. Have you seen a group of three people: A girl with ocean-blue hair who constantly proclaims godhood, a very condescending guy who steals women’s panties, and a small girl who loves to blow things up with magic?” She asked as seriously as she possibly could. The man returned a glare of awe at her, his pipe nearly slipping off his lips. He was silent for a few moments before responding.
“Young woman, you should find new friends.” The man said before adjusting his expression in a deadpan tone. “As for where you are though, you’re in Erde Nona.”
“Erde Nona? I’ve never heard of this place before. Interesting…” The crusader pondered to herself. “Thank you for your help. Which direction is to the nearest town?” With her question was the simple response of a gesture in the direction to the north. “I appreciate it. Have a good day.”
She then continued to head off in the direction of the aforementioned town’s direction. If she was lucky, she just got a little too drunk and ended up on the outside of town. The party must be in town wondering what happened to her. Best way to find out was to go into town and find them, probably in the inn recuperating from their hangovers - besides Megumin.
