Antagonist Protection Service-Chapter 99: Homeostasis For Two

Immediately following my seemingly innocuous question, the room's atmosphere shifted dramatically.

'Hm?'

Lookng closely, Ella's lips pressed tightly together, and her silently quivering eyes turned down to the coffee table between us. For an expression like that to be caused by a simple question―one I thought to be only natural, and indeed harmless... wasn't it quite a severe look?

'Hey, whoa, what's this about? what happened...?'

"Ella?"

I called her name, but she didn't reply, remaining biting her lips subtly. Judging from the look in her eyes, it didn't seem like she was ignoring me. I also knew she wasn't the type of person to get too absorbed in her own thoughts, so I ruled that out...

Something definitely happened prior to, or perhaps as a result of her Awakening.

All I could do―or should do, rather―was wait patiently for her to be ready to talk.

"I..."

Albeit slowly, the words were eventually coaxed out of her mouth.

"I'm not sure... All I remember is my skin, and my body-- as if I was moulting..."

Holding herself with her arms, she visibly shuddered, staring down at the coffee table as if vividly recalling a now-distant horror.

'M-moulting? As in, like a snake or a bug? I... guess it makes sense why her skin and hair changed, then... if her body went through something like metamorphosis...?'

Metamorphosis, transfiguration―whatever the technically correct term might be, could that have been what happened? I wanted to enquire as to the cause, as I doubted such a thing could happen following an encounter with a harmless magical beast like what I had experienced, but...

"...It was... throughout my whole body, just-- just... agony."

The sound of an abrupt gasp resounded from her mouth, proof of her trying to calm herself down.

"Enki..."

She raised her face to lock gazes, and I met that expectation wholeheartedly. At that moment, deep within those eyes, I couldn't tell if it was real or a mere illusion...

I could have sworn I saw some kind of white aura flare in her eyes, resembling the corona of a star around her iris, only subtly silver-bleached by the newfound mana in her body.

For just a split-second, I also wondered if her eyes remaining primarily brown was a natural occurence.

"It... it hurts."

Glistening tears pricked at her eyes, threatening to burst the dam at any moment, and I could see that clearly. Still, the gates remained strong―just strong enough to endure, to resist the building desire to blink, to break, and to flood.

"Even now..."

Raising her lightly quivering hand up, she brought it to the centre of her chest.

"It burns... literally like my blood is boiling."

Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.

This is something I feel like I say a lot, but again, I was never someone who was great at comforting. In fact, claiming I was half-decent would be a fumbled lie. There were even times in the past where that skill, or rather lack thereof, had also caused some trouble... but anyway.

I had barely managed it in Drakon-Rasa thanks to a lucky combination of Professionalism and being a recognised 「target of interest」 for the Protagonist, as well as some other unstated factors, but the reality was that I lacked such an instinct for intimate social capability.

There were only a few phrases I had in my mind for such a scenario――

I didn't know what pain Ella was experiencing―I couldn't know.

Saying 'I understand' wasn't an option.

I didn't know what extremity of emotions were coursing through her―I couldn't know.

Saying 'It'll be okay' wasn't an option.

――There were only a few phrases I had in my mind for such a scenario, and those two were the only ones that sprung to mind in the heat of the moment.

Still, I wanted to comfort my closest friend. Ella was the person I've known for the longest time, and it wasn't even close. Yet, what words could I think of to bring solace to her distress? Frankly, there was nothing that my hurried mind could conjure.

If there were some magical phrase that could make her feel better just like that, I wish I knew it, because my brain couldn't come up with anything good enough on its own.

Of course, various words of comfort sprouted in my mind, but I immediately dismissed them.

Too cringey, too out of place, too useless―for one reason or another, none of them seemed like they would do anything to help.

...But, just because there wasn't anything to say, didn't mean there wasn't anything to do.

Because, after hearing her words, I realised something.

Wordlessly, I took her hand, upon which her eyes widened.

'Hm... It really is bad...'

Just like she said, it was as if her whole body was, not just warm, but heated up way beyond a healthy standard. For the briefest of moments, the thought occurred that her blood might have quite literally been boiling as she suggeste, but she would obviously have died if something like that happened, so I immediately dismissed the idea.

In any case, her hand truly was hot, like a stove or electric heater. If her body was this hot even internally, or around her lungs and heart, I could definitely see how it would feel torturous just to breathe.

But, you know.

A constant, unending pain.

A fiery agony that boiled her heart in a stew of her own flesh and blood.

"Enki, your hand... why..."

To her, who appeared far too vulnerable compared to her normal, competent self, I flashed a smile.

"It's cold, right?"

"...Like ice. What did you...?"

"Is it really that much?"

"Yes, it's--! Almost too much..."

"Well, if it's that cold, it should help cool you down some, no?"

Giving me a slightly salty, yet appreciative look, she didn't say anything in response, instead bringing my hand up to rest on her forehead which also burned hot like the Sun... Of course, that was a bit of a hyperbole, but I guess it shouldn't be such an exaggeration to assume that it was akin to laying on a fresh ice pack during a scorching day for her?

Anyway, I would probably be fine from harm thanks to my body's own nonsensically low temperature, but I wondered if I should be surprised that my hand didn't start sizzling or steaming upon contact.

Like this, as well as being able to help her out by cooling her down, she could help me out by using her uncurbed, unnatural body heat to warm me up, too.

It's been my one, constant discomfort ever since that final night in Drakon-Rasa, and now, the explosion of relief at the sensation of thawing all around my body was phenomenal.

Although, considering that the conduit for that much-needed heat was but a single palm, I couldn't help but find it odd...

"...Sorry. I need this for a moment. It's really... haaah..."

"Don't worry about it. Take as much time as you need."

A feeling distinct from last time, this was not a sapping of the cold within me, but rather a legitimate toasting of my full self.

It was, in a certain sense, that much more freeing.

To ward that cold off, albeit temporarily, was very different from merely taking it away.

"...Thank you..."

Closing her eyes gently, Ella sighed, faintly nodding before falling into silence once more.

Thereafter, we sat in that position for a while, my hand firmly pressed against her forehead.

Cold against hot.

It was tiring to stretch and hold my arm up for so long, but if I could use what plagued me to alleviate her suffering, even if it was just a little, I would be glad, and that small ache was no price to pay.

And, if it could accomplish that much, then maybe it wasn't such a useless Blessing after all.