NOVEL FROG Chapter 168: Ryuu’s Awakening!
Chapter 168: Ryuu's Awakening!
"Ugh..."
"...Where is this?"
The dizziness caused by the depletion of her mental energy made the elf girl who had just woken up from her coma feel a little confused.
"Hmm? You're finally awake."
Luke, who was holding a bowl next to her, noticed Ryuu's awakening immediately.
He said to the girl in a relieved tone:
"It's just in time for dinner. Since you're awake, it's much easier."
"Come on, Ryuu, open your mouth, ah~~~"
Looking at the spoon reaching out in front of her in confusion, Ryuu subconsciously opened her mouth.
"Ah~~~"
In a daze, a bowl of vegetable porridge went down her throat.
The intake of food allowed her depleted mental energy to recover somewhat, and Ryuu gradually regained her senses.
As her consciousness truly awakened, the memories of despair began to echo in the elf girl's mind.
"Alise... Where's Alise!?"
"What happened to Alise and the others?!"
Grabbing Luke's arm next to her, Ryuu asked about the whereabouts of her companions in an agitated tone.
Tears filled her eyes, and the elf girl who had just woken up seemed to have her own guesses about what had happened to Alise and the others.
Asking Luke was just the last bit of hope she had in her heart.
"Don't worry, Alise, Kaguya, and Lyra are all fine."
"Eh?!"
"They're resting in another tent. Although their injuries are serious, their lives are not in danger."
"Eh eh eh!?"
Luke's smile and affirmative look stunned the desperate elf.
Before losing consciousness, Ryuu had witnessed Lyra being blown away, Kaguya with both arms lost being smashed away, and Alise being pierced by a giant claw.
She had assumed that Alise and the others were definitely dead the moment she fully regained consciousness, given that such injuries were almost impossible to recover from.
But now Luke was telling her that Alise and the others had survived?
"Re-really?"
"Yes, really."
The 'fantasy' was confirmed again, and the sudden joy instantly overwhelmed the elf girl's heart.
"Woo..."
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
The intense emotional impact caused Ryuu to hug Luke in front of her and burst into tears.
Luke looked at the elf girl venting her emotions in his arms, feeling his clothes gradually getting soaked with tears, and sighed helplessly.
Then he reached out and gently patted her back, silently comforting her.
…
After a long time, the crying gradually subsided.
Tired from crying and having vented enough, Ryuu, who had recovered from her emotional outburst, realized what she had done.
The girl who had finished crying blushed and silently slipped out of Luke's arms.
She looked at the bowl of porridge that had been knocked over and then at Luke's wet clothes, and finally lowered her head and said with some embarrassment:
"I-I'm sorry, I lost control of my emotions and let you see such a shameful side of me."
Picking up the bowl and spoon that had fallen on the ground, Luke smiled at the blushing elf girl and said:
"You should rest for a while."
"Recover your mental energy. After all, Alise and the others' injuries still need your help."
Ryuu's awakening was great news to Luke.
Not only did it reduce the number of injured people who needed his care, but the elf girl who could use healing magic could effectively stabilize the injuries of Alise and the others.
With her help, they would be able to set off and return to the surface in less than two days.
"Drink this, I'll come back to you later."
After cleaning up the dishes, Luke handed Ryuu two bottles of potions to restore magic and mental energy.
Just as he finished all this and was about to leave the tent, he was stopped by the elf girl behind him.
"Uh-um, was it you, Luke, who took care of me these past few days?"
"Just... just, like feeding and cl-cleaning and stuff..."
Listening to the girl's stammering question, Luke immediately understood what she was worried about.
Knowing what the girl was thinking, Luke smiled and shook his head, explaining to her:
"All I did was feed you. Ais did sensitive things like cleaning your body."
"Ah, I-I didn't mean that... In any case, thank you."
Luke's explanation made Ryuu blush again.
She didn't stop Luke from leaving this time, but just stared at his back with a blushing face.
After a while, the elf girl gently touched her lips and murmured.
"Feed me... how was it done..."
...
Stare--!
Luke, who came out of the tent, immediately saw Ais staring at him from not far away.
'She was probably attracted by Ryuu's crying.'
Luke judged so and walked towards Ais.
"Ryuu just woke up. After she recovers a bit, she should be able to treat Alise and the others."
"Is the cleaning of Alise and the others finished?"
"Um..."
Ais silently walked over and reached out to grab the corner of his clothes, nodding at the same time to answer Luke's question.
Ais was indeed attracted by Ryuu's crying.
After all, she had a good relationship with the elf girl. So, thinking of Ryuu's awakening, she sped up the cleaning process for Alise and the others, then hurried all the way to the tent.
However, the original joy disappeared in an instant when she saw Ryuu throwing herself into Luke's arms and crying loudly.
A feeling that she didn't know how to describe surrounded Ais's heart, it was a feeling she had never experienced before.
Ais couldn't tell whether the disappearance of joy was because of Ryuu's crying or because of Ryuu throwing herself into Luke's arms.
It was this strange feeling that prevented her from entering the tent, and instead, she hid far away and pretended to have just arrived before the boy came out.
Luke looked at Ais strangely.
So many years of living together made him very clear about some of Ais's little habits.
Grabbing the corner of his clothes was one of them.
Usually, when Ais was unhappy or sad, she would choose to remain silent or find a corner to squat down and bury her head in her knees and sulk in front of others.
But if Luke was around, Ais would silently walk over and grab the corner of his clothes and then follow Luke wherever he went, never letting go if she was in a bad mood.
This obvious difference in treatment, Riveria once envied him.
Putting down the tableware he had packed, Luke squatted down and touched the blond girl's head and asked:
"What happened?"
"...I don't know either."
Ais looked into Luke's eyes and hesitated for a moment before adding, "I just feel stuffy and unhappy."
Ais's answer made Luke a little confused, but she did not look very happy.
So Luke hugged Ais with both hands.
Hee hoo——!
With a strange sound deliberately made to tease the girl, Luke put Ais on his shoulders.
"Wah--!"
The sudden change of position made the girl scream, but then Ais obediently held Luke's head and sat quietly on his shoulders.
It was obvious that her mood had obviously improved.
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