Arika, I’m sorry.

Thankfully, before Rana could even attempt to perform any mental torture to the poor man, a familiar meowing of a male Cheshire turned all of our heads to a direction.

“Rui! You’re safe, thank goodness!”

Rama was the first to rush up to Rui’s side, as he gave him a hug. Is it just me, or are his eyes becoming much teary as Rui cuddled with him with a purr? I couldn’t help but giggle at that sight– guess he was just as worried as I was, and that made me feel really happy for him, too.

I guess Grandma did keep her promise that she’ll pull her own strings to make sure Rui was safe and able to escape on his own. I couldn’t help but pull a smile on my own, as I clenched my fist in front of my heart, looked up to the sky and hoped my thanks to Grandma could’ve reached out to her somehow.

However, it’s too soon for us to be delighted and just return home safely. I saw one of the cult members trying to raise himself up with a crossbow on his hands, so I decided to conjure another fireball with my own magic staff and aimed it at him clearly enough for him to stop himself from doing anything.

“Don’t even try. That goes to any single wane— one of you.” I tried to say that line in what I thought was a very cool one-liner, but I kind of tripped on my own words by biting my own tongue midway so that I couldn’t help but speak it wrong. I gazed down in embarrassment as I could hear Rana snorted in holding back her laughter. At least, that does stop Rana’s sadistic run from happening again, so I sighed in relief.

The Temple members shriek in fear as they scramble to escape for the sake of their own safety as well, despite me tripping my own words. So I seriously thought it was going to be where we find our happy ending where they stopped disturbing us for the rest of our life. We can maybe live out our best lives back in Elder’s house and help him with reconstructing his house, too! My mind immediately imagined a cozy little slow life in the countryside, at least until one of the female fallen members spoke up as she pointed at me.

“W—what are you, exactly?! Why could you use that magic that only Blessed Ones could conjure that easily? Don’t tell me…. You’re….”

Except, it’s not going to be that easy, no matter which world we’re in. It’s something I should’ve learned better with my time as a working adult, yet kept forgetting to anyway.

Now that my cover would totally be blown, I knew what we needed to do.

“Arika, be careful—”

“Rama, it’s fine. It’s over. It should be over. We should go now before more members comes back.” I raised my hand as I took a glance at Dellney with a smile. “Prepare another one of your magic stones, please? I’ll pay you well.”

“T–that’s… Impossible…. ” Dellney looked nervous as she looked down. Is she finally thinking of her former friends of the Temple cult? Or did something happen to her collection box? Either way, this doesn’t look good. I need to ask, at the very least.

“What do you mean by that?”

“T— the box, with the magic stones. It’s not here. It’s not teleported with us, even when I should’ve put it on Kay’s saddle…”

“Dammit, Dellney! Just right when I thought you’re finally ____ing useful!”

“My, my, sweet little Dellney, do you want to see some worms? You hated them, right?”

“You twins are scary! Don’t touch me! It’s not my fault, right, Miss Arika? When will you pay me as your mercenary— Wait, Miss Arika?! Are you okay?!”

I would’ve just joined their banter,

But at that moment,

I realized something I shouldn’t have,

Which is how I really overestimated my own ability in this world

Even when Grandma is the one who took credit for them all.

For that moment, I panicked.

I feel like my entire body glitches, even though it’s probably just a mental reaction, I feel like my vision feels blurry and glitching. Sudden flashbacks run through my own mind, ones that I wanted to forget when I first arrived in this world– but it came along without stopping even for a beat.

Memories of when they fired me again. And again. And again.

“Are you even treating your job seriously?”

“You really overestimated yourself this time.”

“I had enough. Pack your things.”

“No… I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything properly… I shouldn’t even be—”

At that moment where I could barely feel anything, Rui walked over closer to me. I hoped it was just out of his will to comfort me with his furs, instead of him spouting a big magic stone out of his mouth, because I’m sure it would trigger another memory which I didn’t need to see at the moment.

“Wait, isn’t that—” Rama gasped.

I couldn’t even think of getting home to Elder’s place properly as its shine enveloped us all before I could think of anything.

~*~*~*~

…..I thought I was going to see Grandma’s face at the very least. It would surely be calming myself up from the sudden panic attack I’m getting. But why is she turning her back on me? Did I do anything wrong? Did I—

“I’m sorry, Arika. It’s my fault.”

Don’t say that. We finally found a way to contact each other again, and you helped us a lot today to save Rui, whatever you have done that time to keep Rui safe! But none of those words could’ve come out loud in my mouth. It was as if something was clogging my throat. It wasn’t like the other times I was in this dream space.

“I shouldn’t bring you into this world in the first place. Too many risks for the balance, as they said …”

Don’t say that, please. Who even told you that?! Not only everything that I gained in this little adventure you orchestrated, I’m just happy I could’ve seen you again like this in this other, fantasy world! Grandma, please turn your back to me! —-Again, those words didn’t come out at all. Even when Grandma’s back is shaking, like she’s going to cry. I wanted to approach her and give her a hug, a big one that enveloped her so that her tears would’ve just stopped.

“I just… didn’t want to burden you with anything anymore, but… I overdid my own authority … and now… I got scolded for doing that they’re… Angry, I guess. ”

…Even if I feel that way, my body can't move at all as my Grandma tried to explain the situation. My mouth can’t even open itself to say anything, after all. That was where I noticed, the dream space where I usually went in contact with Grandma was dimmer, darker, and foggier than it was the dreaming nights before. Yet, it was also as if there was something— like a glitching factor— lurking beyond the foggy darkness, preventing me from having any speech or movement, and I didn't like it at all.

It also just didn’t give the same form of warmth and comfort this space used to give, if I were to put it into any form of words. Alas, I couldn’t. So I could just stay in place as Grandma’s figure slowly faded away to the distance, back facing me. For a while, her appearance glitched until she transformed into one I knew of myself in this world— the Legendary Mage Hero Angelica, and that was when Grandma turned her back to me.

“I guess it’s time to say goodbye, Arika.” Grandma’s eyes were tearing up as expected, though she forced a smile on her lips. “I’m glad I was able to see you once again just like this, even when things are different now. Please, have this one gift too.”

Instead of warm lights, what envelops me until the waking world is just white fog.

~*~*~*~

“Grandma…!”

“Yes, what is it, my sweet little Arika… oh my, why are you crying?”

I thought it was going to be the waking world, at least. Until I remembered that the stones usually also brought me my shared memories with Grandma as her ‘gift’– this time one where we were just going home at noon after watching a children’s fantasy movie about a wizard’s adventure in another world— which only now I remembered as my first ever exposure to the concept of an Isekai that I experienced now.

Unlike the last vision I saw from that space of nightmares, I could move, and I could speak, but since it’s just a reliving vision of memory, I doubt that anything I could say could’ve changed anything in the present.

Yet, I couldn’t help but cry unlike what happened in that day, as I said something like—

“Grandma… I’m… sorry…. Please don’t leave…”

Grandma looked confused, but soon she took a handkerchief out of her pocket and tried to wipe my tears with it.

“There’s nothing to apologize for, my dear Arika. And surely, about that….” Grandma patted my head as she kissed my forehead. “Grandma would always be with you in some form or another.”

But that’s a lie, isn’t it? Since you said goodbye just before this, for whatever reason. I know it’s just a memory and I remembered Grandma saying that once in another choice of moment, but I feel like saying so. Yet, such words couldn’t even come out from my mouth as I was once again pulled back to the waking world for real this time…