Comet Dragon, breaking into the gravity field

"I'm so tired... I can't do it anymore..."

Having pushed her body to its limits numerous times, the fatigue hidden within her was finally awakened by the hot springs at night. She returned to the cabin exhausted, fatigue overwhelming Chihaya Aine like a tide.

She fell headfirst onto the bed, burying her face between the sheets and humming adorably. She rolled over and crawled under the covers, leaving only her striking pink hair exposed.

Normally, Takamatsu Teru's physical strength is even worse than Chihaya Aine's - but unlike Aine, she was not trained by Narushe Ritsu for several hours today.

Still having some energy left, she changed into her pajamas and walked towards Ritsu Narose with the unique moist vapor of the hot spring.

Sitting in a compartment made of a screen, Ritsu Narose took a pink jade-like object and placed it under the candlestick to observe it carefully.

The gem of the Savage Jaw Dragon - this was one of the trophies he got from hunting today.

This rare material formed in large organisms can dramatically improve weapon performance, so it is often used to forge weapons and armor, or inlaid as amulets.

As a carrier that absorbs the power of monsters, it contains latent power waiting to be awakened by craftsmen.

The so-called "precious jade" is undoubtedly a very rare material. However, no matter how rare it is, it is not as rare as the materials of ancient dragons.

That's the meaning of the experiment.

The white beast statue glowed slightly beside it, as if it felt the test tube placed quietly on the potion rack silently calling it.

Pour the bottle of dark red liquid, which seems to be solidified, onto the statue serving as a medium, allowing it to flow down the jade-like surface and into the crystal interior embedded with the Barbarian Jaw Dragon gem.

After his carving and transformation, the transparent dragon crystal was seeped into the interior by blood, dyeing its original color crimson. As the seemingly corrosive liquid gradually spread, it turned pink like a gem.

Only when it stopped changing did Ritsu Narose take it in his hand.

Did you make it?

There were no strange light and shadow effects. He held the palm-sized pink crystal and fell into deep thought.

Why is it pink... There are so few shrimp girls with this color. Compared with the style of the Barbarian Jaw Dragon, it is too different, right?

Noticing the sound of light footsteps coming from behind, Ritsu Narose turned around and just saw Takamatsu Deng walking towards him with a curious look on his face.

"What's wrong with the lights?"

"..."

Without saying a word, Gao Songdeng's eyes shifted slightly as she sensed the faint scent of blood in the air between rooms. And when she saw the white statue on the table, she vaguely understood something and looked uneasily at Mingse Ritsu.

"Was it like this before?"

"what?"

"Was the previous potion made in the same way?"

Seeing that the truth had been revealed, Mingse Ritsu could only scratch his cheek awkwardly: "Almost, but what I added was my own blood, not this kind... Although it sounds a bit strange, but-"

As he was talking, he suddenly noticed that Gao Songdeng's expression was not right.

"Sorry, I know this might seem a little gross..."

"no!"

She found the courage to interrupt him and quickly walked over to Naruse Ritsu. She clasped her hands tightly and looked at him with a sadness Naruse Ritsu had never seen before.

The scene he saw in the hot spring hotel that day emerged in his mind, and Takamatsu Deng finally understood why there was a strong herbal smell in the room that day, and why there were light green marks similar to herbs on Naruse Ritsu's hands.

Looking at the part of Ritsu Narose's hand where he had personally cut the wound and let the blood out, Takamatsu Touma felt an inexplicable feeling of blockage in his chest.

Then she remembered what she saw in the basement of Ritsu Narose's house, and those bottles and jars with different labels appeared in front of her.

"Why would you do such a thing..."

She seemed to see the colorful liquids pouring down from the sky, gathering and blending together, and finally forming a scarlet lake, which almost pressed on her and made her breathless.

"Is it because of us? Is it because of us that Ritsu did this?"

Seeing him staring at her blankly, as if he didn't know how to respond, all the happiness she had felt today, yesterday, and all the time turned into self-blame at this moment, leaving Gao Songdeng speechless.

If she caused the person who loved her to suffer because of her, then she—

The world in front of my eyes began to become blurry, a sharp scream came from my ears, and even the strength to support myself standing was weakening.

In a trance, Gao Songdeng suddenly felt someone gently holding his hand.

"I'm sorry, I just don't think it's nice to let you know about this."

"why?"

Seeing the confusion and sadness on Takamatsu's face, Naruse Ritsu smiled to ease the atmosphere. "Because, I've always felt it was very embarrassing to talk about my sacrifice."

"That's clearly not what motivated me to do this, but once I said it, it felt like I was doing it for the sake of praise or to make myself feel sorry for myself. It was almost like I was deliberately trying to gain sympathy and attention... I just can't do that. I'm just such a weirdo."

Naruse Ritsu's eyebrows curved downward, a self-deprecating smile on his face. He looked into Takamatsu's eyes and said slowly, "I hid this matter at first because I was worried about something like today happening again."

"Although Deng is concerned about me out of kindness and love, I have to consider whether my actions are considered a form of moral kidnapping in your eyes."

"I didn't..." Gao Songdeng said hurriedly as if he was under great doubt.

Touching the girl's head and feeling the wetness of her hair, Naruse Ritsu smiled and said, "Yes, because Deng is a good child, that's why I said I'm an awkward person. I don't want to be regarded as a heavy person by you, nor do I want you to be affected by my heavy feelings."

"I'm not a loyal guy, so I always feel that I owe you morally, so I regard this as the price I should pay."

"I never thought of it that way," she said with remarkable fluency, something she would hardly have the chance to say normally. "It's Lu who has been helping me the whole time, so I should be thanking him."

"That's it..."

Seeing him shyly turning his face away, Gao Songdeng's nose suddenly felt sore, and an urge to cry quietly burst out in her heart.

"I'm sorry..." She looked at Ritsu Naruse and whispered in a trembling voice, "If only I had said it earlier... I could have told Ritsu how much you mean to me..."

"I actually knew it a long time ago," Naruse Ritsu lowered her head and gently scratched her cheeks that were burning with embarrassment. "I always knew that Deng wanted to do something for me, but I'm still happy to hear you say it now."

He sniffed, and a sense of satisfaction he had never felt before filled Gao Songdeng's chest.

When she wiped the tears from her eyes, she saw Ritsu Narose standing in front of her holding a leather-bound book.

"I'd like to ask the light for a favor."

"Um……"

Gao Songdeng reached out to take it and nodded vigorously.

Clutching the book to her chest, she said earnestly, "I want to... help."

Seeing that she was ready to devote her heart to this mission, Ritsu Narose wanted to tell her not to be so serious, but he was reluctant to dampen her enthusiasm.

With a thousand thoughts in his mind, he slowly said, "I remember that Deng is interested in collecting small items, so I would like to ask Deng to record them for me while we explore the Ancient Tree Forest."

Motioning for her to open the notebook in her hand, Naruse Ritsu pointed to a page and said, "Take 'Poison Vine' for example. Although I wrote it down in words and drew a corresponding diagram, my drawing style is ultimately not realistic enough."

Seeing the pattern in the book that was painted with only a few blocks of color, Takamatsu Deng admitted that what Naruse Ritsu said had some truth, but -

“But I’m not very good at drawing.”

"Didn't you show me your notebook when we were at Deng's house? The insects in it were beautifully drawn," Naruse Ritsu encouraged. "Besides, this is just a copy based on my original, with a few details as annotations. I believe Deng has a talent for painting."

Have it?

Gao Songdeng tilted his head, and his originally uneasy heart gradually calmed down.

Remembering the oath she had just made, she nodded again, saying that she would try her best to finish the painting.

No, don't be so exaggerated...

Handing the girl the book "Quick Learning to Be a Painter - From Perspective to Speech" that he had read before, Ritsu Naruse watched Takamatsu Touma holding the candlestick and starting to copy the potted plants in the house with a serious look on his face.

Is it needed...

Freed from the heavy emotions expressed to him by Takamatsu Touma, Ritsu Narose suddenly thought of the girl who had brought him into this world.

Why...why would she pursue me to this extent?

Still unable to understand her motives, Ritsu Narose took a last look at the synthesized pink crystal and blew out the candle on the workbench.

Let’s soak in the hot spring first.

After blowing bubbles underwater for a long time and clearing all the messy thoughts from his mind, Ritsu Narose returned to the cabin.

Using the gun wing as a hair dryer, Ritsu Narose walked behind Takamatsu Deng while blowing her hair.

Seeing the realistic wind and leaves on the drawing paper, he couldn't help but praise: "Isn't this a very good painting?"

"what……"

As if he was not used to such direct praise, Gao Songdeng shook his head slightly.

The condensed gray hair shone slightly in the candlelight. Noticing that her hair was not completely dry yet, Ritsu Narose offered to help her blow-dry her hair.

The warm air flow hit her skin, causing her body, which was originally tense due to tension, to gradually relax. However, while she was enjoying herself, she had not forgotten the person lying on the bed.

“Um…where’s Aine?”

“She’s already asleep. Waking her up just to blow dry her hair might make Aine grouchy.”

While gently combing the girl's hair with a comb, Ritsu Narose suddenly noticed something strange.

"Is Deng's hair longer than before?"

Hearing this, Gao Songdeng's body trembled. After a moment, she murmured softly, "I want to grow my hair longer."

"Do you want to change your image?"

"Because..." Biting his lower lip, Takamatsu answered truthfully, "Because Ritsu seems to prefer girls with long hair."

The hair dryer behind him suddenly tilted, and the powerful airflow instantly blew out the candles in the room, leaving only moonlight in the space.

"..."

Ritsu Narusha didn't know what to say.

Should I be grateful for the girl's hidden affection, or should I feel sad that my XP has been completely exposed?

While he was embarrassed, Gao Songdeng, who was sitting on the stool, stood up.

As if the darkness gave her courage, she took Ritsu Narushe's hand and begged him hesitantly:

"Can you... accompany me..."

Lying on the bed, the aroma of the hot spring after the bath wafted through her hair, and her body also exuded a light body fragrance. When Naruse Ritsu reacted, he had already quietly hugged the girl from behind, and the girl was frightened by his surprise attack and trembled all over.

Turning her head to look at Naruse Ritsu, she relaxed again, squinting her eyes as she lay in his arms. As if feeling uncomfortable in this position, she slowly turned around so that she and Naruse Ritsu were facing each other, resting their heads on the same pillow.

Feeling his heart beating faster and faster, Gao Songdeng was like a little squirrel that had just left its nest, his whole body filled with tension.

While Ritsu Narose was still gently stroking her hair, she suddenly leaned forward and gently placed her left hand on Ritsu Narose's shoulder, closing the distance between them again.

"Chirp—"

Her long eyelashes kept trembling, and controlled by a momentary impulse, Takamatsu Deng turned back into her usual weak appearance, as if the person who had just kissed Naruse Ritsu was not her.

Seeing the amber eyes that had been in his sight just seconds ago escaping from his sight, Ritsu Narose did not stop them.

After the girl had calmed down the shyness that was overflowing in her heart for a while, he asked softly, "Deng, do you want to hear a story?"

Hearing his suggestion, Takamatsu Deng looked up in surprise. Meeting Naruse Ritsu's gaze, she froze for a moment, then nodded in understanding.

Placing the relit candlestick on the tray by the wall, Narushe Ritsu opened an old travel brochure and whispered his past story to Takamatsu Touma:

In the bright spring, he listened to the birds singing in the forest and saw the newborn cubs playing in the grass; in the hot summer, he raced across the sea and recorded the migration of fish underwater.

In the cool autumn, he would go to the forest covered with red maples to admire the misty mountains in the distance; in the silent winter, he would go to the unexplored ice fields to observe the groups of hooded penguins deep in the ice caves.

Listening to Ritsu Narose's experience, Tomo Takamatsu felt happy about his past happy experiences, but also sad about the regrets he witnessed.

In the end, she envied it.

But she quickly remembered that she and Ritsu Naruse had already spent their spring together, and in the coming year they would spend the remaining three seasons together - and this kind of life would continue forever in the future.

She had memories of them, ordinary moments like this one, but they would be remembered for a lifetime. Looking at the bracelet she had temporarily taken off on the cabinet, Gao Songdeng was sure that this would not change.

She moved her body deeper into the quilt and rested her head on Ritsu Narushe's left shoulder.

The book in his hands didn't have the characteristic sense of decay that comes with old books. Perhaps it was because he'd frequently aired it out to dry it from moisture, or perhaps there were other ways to preserve it, but despite the yellowing of its pages, this travel guide actually exuded a faint, refreshing fragrance.

Ritsu Narose's voice came slowly from his ears. Looking at the handwriting on the pages of the book that recorded his past, a strong sense of security enveloped Takamatsu Deng.

In the quietly burning candlelight, she fell asleep unknowingly...

……

Noticing that Takamatsu Deng's breathing gradually stabilized, Naruse Ritsu carefully laid her down on the bed.

When he was about to blow out the flickering candle, he found Chihaya Aine lying on her side on the bed - her left hand supporting her face, her eyes slightly narrowed, and a smile of success on her face.